Wu Sangui, standing behind me, said, “I admit I’m selfish, arrogant, cunning, and treacherous. Loyalty and righteousness are all bullshit to me. I’ll be good to whoever is good to me, but that has to be fair and equal. If you treat me well, I’ll return the favor; but if anyone dares to take an inch from me, I’ll make them pay back a mile! I may be two-faced, but so what? At least I didn’t die a cowardly death like Yue Fei and Yuan Chonghuan. I live only for myself. The world may scorn me, but I find it very satisfying.”
…I must say, this time I encountered a truly righteous traitor. The defining characteristic of this kind of traitor is that he absolutely refuses to admit he's a traitor. Unlike Qin Hui, who knew he couldn't clear his name even if he were soaked in formaldehyde, his actions were the despicable act of fawning over people in other ranks while standing in one, so he could only flee when confronted with accusations. But Wu Sangui is different. Once he discovered injustice from the captain, he jumped out and ran to another team, eventually even forming his own. So, honestly, he felt no remorse whatsoever, and it's really hard to argue with him for the time being.
But thinking about it, the old man's words make some sense. He'd fought his whole life, basically fearless, yet for some mysterious reason, he always surrendered. History gave him many opportunities to choose, but this old man was truly remarkable; each time, he could resolutely and unhesitatingly choose the wrong path…
Faced with Wu Sangui's eloquent presentation, I could only conclude, "Your theory of being a true villain is quite popular now!" It's a rather glorious thing, for example, like me... uh, I'm not a true villain at all. Didn't Li Shishi say? I'm a gentleman!
I gentlemanly provoked Xiang Yu: "Did you hear that? He just said you're not a real man!"
...
Back home, everyone was there except for Liu Bang and Baozi, who hadn't returned yet. Hua Mulan was chatting with Qin Shi Huang; she needed to learn some basic knowledge from him. Qin Shi Huang, unusually, wasn't playing games, apparently he was really tired of it.
In another room, Ersha stood upstairs, using a small mirror he'd picked up from somewhere to shine sunlight onto the dark wall below. Zhao Bailian silently chased after the patch of light, each time Ersha would dodge it just as he was about to capture it. The two idiots were having a great time, and seeing them always brought a knowing smile to one's face, reminding them of childhood memories.
Mulan and Qin Shi Huang, seeing a stranger, both came out of the house to greet him. I deliberately introduced him, "This is Wu Sangui," emphasizing the name "Wu Sangui." To my surprise, Mulan and Qin Shi Huang didn't react at all, but warmly shook hands with Wu Sangui. Mulan even took the old man around, teaching him some common sense.
I made a mistake. Subconsciously, I always felt that everyone would be sensitive to names like Qin Hui or Wu Sangui, and upon hearing them, they would spit on the ground and curse, "Pah, traitor!"
But I forgot about the time period. In the era of Mulan and Qin Shi Huang, Wu Sangui's ancestors might not even have had the surname Wu. It seems that finding an anti-Wu ally will be difficult.
Baozi came back as dusk was falling. I noticed she hadn't bought any groceries today. When she saw Wu Sangui, she just nodded and said to me with a very bad expression, "Qiangzi, you guys can just go out and eat something. I'm a little tired, I'm going to lie down for a while." Then she went into the bedroom.
Xiang Yu looked at Baozi's figure and said to me, "Baozi is acting a bit strange today."
I noticed it too. Normally, Baozi would never have that expression when guests come over. I said, "He might be sick." I went to the bedroom door, pressed my ear against it, and asked, "Baozi, what's wrong?"
"It's okay, I'll be fine after lying down for a while." The voice was quite loud, not like someone who was feeling unwell.
I smiled at Xiang Yu and said, "They must have argued with a customer again." Such things often happen in those kinds of small, unregulated shops. Although shop owners nowadays always say that the customer is God, it's annoying when God is too picky.
Wu Sangui said with a stern face, "Is it because of me...?"
You wouldn't guess that this old guy, with his seemingly indifferent attitude, is actually quite perceptive. I said, "Come on, my daughter probably doesn't even know who you are." And indeed, her historical knowledge is quite limited. She always thought the person who swore brotherhood with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei was Liu Bang. The only Qing Dynasty historical figure she knows is Ji Xiaolan, and that's only thanks to Zhang Guoli's performance.
Me, Fatty Ying, and the others looked at each other, silent. Although Baozi didn't know the group's background, we had never excluded her. In fact, Baozi was closer to them than I was. Now that she was unhappy, we all felt a little awkward.
Hua Mulan smoothed her hair, stood up, and said, "I'll go take a look."
After Hua Mulan went inside, Wu Sangui asked me, "Was that woman just now...?"
I said, "The principal wife!"
Xiang Yu put his arm around my shoulder and tightened it slightly, saying in a subtle, threatening tone, "And Xiao Qiang doesn't plan to take a concubine, right, Xiao Qiang?"
I said with a pained expression, "The government won't allow it either."
Wu Sangui asked in surprise, "Does the state even manage this?"
A while later, Mulan came out, her face grave, and told us, "It's true that I had an argument with the guest."
I immediately relaxed and said, "That's alright, it'll be fine by tomorrow morning at the latest."
Hua Mulan said, "The other side was a large group of people, and in the end they smashed up Baozi's restaurant."
I had a bad feeling that something was wrong, so I quickly asked, "What else did Baozi say?"
"Baozi said those guys looked like gangsters. The leader even said something threatening before he left, saying his name was Lei Ming and anyone who disagreed could come and find him."
My face immediately turned ashen, and I stared straight at Mulan, saying, "How about the steamed buns?"
"Baozi was pushed while trying to break up the fight, and he got a bruise on his shoulder."
With a snap, I crushed a corner of the ashtray. My eyes were bloodshot, and I forced out a few words, which I then ground to dust between my teeth: "Fuck! Lei Laosi—"
This was the first time anyone had seen me like this, and they looked at each other in bewilderment. Xiang Yu knew there must be something going on, so he grabbed my shoulder and asked, "What happened?"
My cheeks trembled, and I couldn't speak. Xiang Yu lit a cigarette and put it to my mouth, saying, "Don't rush, speak slowly."
I took a few puffs of my cigarette and found my hands were shaking so badly I couldn't even hold the water glass. It took me a while to calm down before I told them about how I had offended Lei Laosi while collecting debts for Boss Hao.
After listening for a while, Wu Sangui asked, "So, who exactly is this Lei Laosi?"
I said, "The underworld."
Wu Sangui: "The underworld?"
I simply said, "It's equivalent to the Heaven and Earth Society back in your day."
Wu Sangui said, "Oh, they're rebelling. Why are they rebelling? Is it because the country doesn't allow concubines?" Finally, he added, "They're actually making things difficult for a woman. These gangsters aren't all that great."
Hua Mulan crossed her arms in front of her chest and said, "Yes, he really shouldn't have touched the steamed bun!"
I took out my phone and called Tiger: "Is Lei Ming the same as Lei Laosi?"
Tiger had never heard me speak like that before. He paused for a moment before saying, "That's his son..."
How can we find him?
"...Lei Laosi owns three nightclubs and three bars in the area. Lei Ming usually goes to these places to relax in the evening. I don't know anything else. I don't have any close relationship with the Lei family."
"Brother Tiger, can you tell me the names of these places?"
"...Okay, write it down. I remember once when I went out, they gave me a business card with it on it, because the Lei family's businesses are all chain businesses."
I picked up a notebook and wrote down six names. Finally, Tiger said, "Are you going to cause trouble for Lei Laosi?"
"I'd like to talk to Lei Ming first."