With the money in hand, Yu Zhenping felt much relieved. He reached out and shook hands with Monkey, but his mind was already thinking about how to make his hideout even more secure once he got back.
As for the matter of trading the bronze tripod, Yu Zhenping had never even considered it. He simply couldn't carry it or transport it out. If he wanted to sell it, he would have to let the other party come to his door to see the goods, but there were more than just one or two items there.
In addition, the bronze cauldron is too conspicuous and would easily attract the attention of the police, so Yu Zhenping would never use those heavy weapons unless absolutely necessary.
After the transaction was completed, Yu Zhenping greeted Monkey and Da Niu, then slipped into the crowd of students who had not yet completely dispersed, disappearing into the throng in an instant.
Monkey and Da Niu, who were turning back towards Panjiayuan, were unaware that Yu Zhenping had been following them all along. It wasn't until the two entered "Xuanrui Zhai" that Yu Zhenping breathed a sigh of relief, stuffed the bag of money into his school uniform, and squeezed his way towards the exit with the bustling crowd of Panjiayuan.
Yu Zhenping had already planned it all out. Once he got the money, he would immediately take a taxi to the Beijing West Railway Freight Station, find a freight train bound for Henan, and climb aboard. He was now extremely nervous and afraid to travel by car or train.
Back at Xuanrui Studio, Monkey proudly held up the cake box high, saying to Zhuang Rui, "Brother Zhuang, I brought the things back. Take a look, are these the two items...?"
"Let me see..."
Zhuang Rui took the cake box, opened it, and took out two bronze wine cups. After examining them carefully, he said, "It's done, Brother Da Niu. Thank you so much this time. Monkey, I'll treat Da Niu to dinner tonight. You can go wherever you want. Keep the receipt to reimburse the shop..."
"Hey, thanks, Brother Zhuang..."
"Thank you, Boss Zhuang. If you ever need anything in the future, just let me know. There's nothing in Panjiayuan that I, Da Niu, can't handle..."
Da Niu was quite happy. He wandered around for more than half an hour, and not only did he have an extra 10,000 yuan in his pocket, but he also met Zhuang Rui, a big boss. He knew that he and Zhuang Rui were not on the same level, so after exchanging a few pleasantries, he said goodbye.
After the monkey escorted Da Niu out, Zhuang Rui went to the inner room and put the two bronze wine vessels into the shop's safe. These things weren't really his yet, and the police might take them back at any time. Zhuang Rui didn't want to bring the police home.
“Officer Miao, things have been handled as you instructed. I won’t concern myself with the rest. If anything goes wrong and he gets away, these two bronze wine vessels will be mine…”
After putting away the bronze jue, Zhuang Rui slowly made a phone call to Miao Feifei.
"Alright, the police are handling the case, you don't need to worry about it..."
Miao Feifei hung up the phone abruptly.
"Damn, what kind of attitude is this? Why didn't you say this when you were begging me?"
Zhuang Rui cursed at his phone, clearly annoyed. Wasn't this a classic case of crossing the river and then burning the bridge?
Panjiayuan is a place that attracts tourists from home and abroad. From the time it opens in the morning until it closes at night, there are always a lot of people. Yu Zhenping, who is used to walking close to the wall, can't do that now because the area near the wall is full of stalls.
After squeezing through the crowd for three to five minutes, Yu Zhenping arrived at the exit of Panjiayuan. There were not so many people there anymore, and his vigilance lessened a little. He loosened his arms that were crossed in front of his chest.
However, just as Yu Zhenping was about to pass by the signboard of Panjiayuan, an old man walked towards him. Whether he was tripped or not, he lost his footing and bumped into Yu Zhenping.
"Grandpa, please be careful when you walk..."
Despite his short stature, Yu Zhenping is a physically demanding worker who digs up graves and is quite skilled with his hands. He is very agile and quick. When he saw the old man bumping into him, he took a step to the side, tilted his body, and with a flick of his right hand, caught the old man.
However, the old man rushed forward too fast and couldn't stop. His face bumped into Yu Zhenping's chest, but since Yu Zhenping had already supported him, the impact wasn't very strong.
"Um?"
Yu Zhenping held onto the old man's left hand, but what startled him was that the old man's left hand was cleanly severed from the wrist, as if it had been cut off by a sharp blade.
Although he was used to seeing dead people, Yu Zhenping was still startled by the bare wrist. Something seemed to come to mind, but he couldn't remember it at all.
"Young man, I'm so sorry, I'm really so sorry, I'm getting old, my hands and feet don't obey me anymore..."
The old man kept apologizing to Yu Zhenping, but he didn't stop walking. After he steadied himself, he squeezed into the crowd at Panjiayuan, as if he had something urgent to attend to.
"money?"
From the moment the elderly man knocked down Yu Zhenping to the moment he was helped away, the entire process took only about ten seconds. During that time, Yu Zhenping was stunned for no more than three seconds.
But in those three seconds, Yu Zhenping discovered that someone had slashed a long gash in the zipper of his school uniform with a blade, and the bag containing 100,000 yuan that he had been carrying in front of his chest had vanished.
"Damn it, that's a cunning old thief..."
Yu Zhenping, being a seasoned veteran, quickly realized what was going on.
Now he realized that when he saw that bald hand, something seemed to have occurred to him. Generally speaking, there are only two types of people whose severed hands or feet are relatively neat: one is a work injury, and the other is intentional.
Such intentional injuries to hands and feet are considered "work-related injuries" in certain circles because they are indeed severed while "working." These people are thieves.
If you ask who the common people hate the most, without a doubt, it's thieves. Nowadays, thieves usually commit crimes in groups, so let's not even talk about that. But more than ten years ago, most thieves were lone wolves. After being caught committing a crime, they would definitely get a good beating first and then be sent to the police station.
In earlier times, when the legal system was less developed, many people would resort to vigilante justice when catching thieves. Many retired thieves and petty criminals today often have items missing from their possessions or belongings, which are remnants of those times.
As for the old man Yu Zhenping helped up, it goes without saying that his severed hand was accidentally cut off, and his money was undoubtedly stolen by that old thief.
To be able to silently tear through one's clothes in just a few seconds after a collision, and steal a bag of money in the blink of an eye without being noticed, this old man's skill is so exceptional that calling him a master thief is absolutely no exaggeration.
Yu Zhenping didn't have time to investigate whether the old man was a notorious thief who had stolen 100,000 yuan, which was tantamount to taking half his life.
Yu Zhenping put his hands in his pockets, grabbed the gun handle, and plunged into the crowd at Panjiayuan. Even a clay figure has some temper, let alone Yu Laoba, who once dominated the tomb raiding world.
Yu Zhenping secretly vowed that when he saw the old man, he would definitely cripple his other hand.
"I'll fuck you!"
More than an hour later, Yu Zhenping emerged from the crowd, looking dejected.
Chapter 681 The King of Thieves (Part 2)
"Mr. Wei, this matter has really troubled you. Look at me, I haven't been able to help at all, I've only been making things worse..."
Standing on the second floor of his real estate company's sales office, Zhuang Rui watched the busy renovation workers and felt a slight excitement. In a while, this place would become his own private museum.
After dealing with the two bronze wine vessels at noon, Zhuang Rui drove to the real estate company. This was his first visit since handing things over to Wei Ming in Paris.
Wei Ming just explained to him that most of these people are from security companies, installing various anti-theft measures.
For a museum, theft prevention is naturally of paramount importance. Many museums in China have experienced incidents of artifact theft. Therefore, Zhuang Chuan specifically instructed Wei Ming to find the best security engineering company to do the job.
As Zhuang Rui moved from the first floor to the second floor, he noticed that many security cameras had been missing from the corners of the walls. These cameras would be collected in the monitoring room and monitored by designated personnel.
In addition, hundreds of infrared sensor alarms were installed in the more than 20,000 square meters of space, so while it can't be said that flying insects can't get in, there are basically no blind spots.
It's worth noting that these security projects alone would have cost nearly three million RMB. However, after Chairman Ouyang acquired 10% of Zhuangrui's shares, he had a change of heart and had the real estate company pay for all of it.
"Mr. Zhuang, you're too kind. This little project is nothing. But you need to give me the size photos of those antiques so I can find someone to make display cases for them..."
When the second boss of the real estate company arrived, General Manager Wei Ming naturally had to accompany him personally. Although Zhuang Rui held the title of General Assistant in the company, Wei Ming still addressed him as "Sir," knowing that the title couldn't be taken seriously.
After receiving Zhuang Rui's call, Wei Wu dispatched a construction team, in cooperation with a security company, to renovate the sales office. Fortunately, most of the properties had already been sold, so the impact was not significant.
Wei Ming took Zhuang Rui's instructions very seriously. He even hired someone with experience in museum decoration and management to join the company. It was that person who reminded him about things like creating display cases for exhibits.
Upon hearing Wei Ming's words, Zhuang Rui knew that the other party had put a lot of effort into his museum, and quickly said, "Thank you, Mr. Wei. I'll take pictures of all those items and send them to you later..."
The display stands for a precious cultural relic must be custom-made according to its size and dimensions, and must also include lighting and other features to showcase the object's extraordinary nature.
Compared to installing an anti-theft system, custom-made display cases may take longer, because those display cases themselves are also anti-theft, and the glass and cabinet body are specially made.
He nodded, explaining that he had delegated these tasks to his subordinates, so they wouldn't require much effort. He then said, "Yes, Mr. Zhuang, rest assured, I will definitely hire the most professional company to do it. Let me show you the locations of the museum's exits. Originally, the main entrance to this club was inside the residential area, but since it's being converted into a museum, it needs to be open to the public. I'm thinking of opening a new entrance at the back as the main entrance to the museum..."
"Excuse me, Mr. Wei, I need to take this call..."
As the two were talking, Zhuang Rui's phone suddenly rang.
Zhuang Rui glanced at the caller ID and saw that it was Monkey King calling. He couldn't help but ask curiously, "What's wrong, Monkey? Didn't I tell you to go out to dinner with Da Niu?"
The monkey on the other end of the phone had clearly drunk quite a bit, and was now speaking haltingly, making Zhuang Rui frown.
"Monkey, I'm telling you, go wash your face, get yourself ready, and then call me..."
After hanging up the phone, Zhuang Rui pondered, "Could it be that the police have already taken care of it?"
A wanted criminal like Yu Zhenping, who is wanted nationwide, would probably not risk selling cultural relics again if he had 100,000 yuan in cash.
After thinking for a moment, Zhuang Rui picked up the phone and dialed Miao Feifei's number.
"Officer Miao just called and wants to continue selling wooden artifacts. What should I do? Should I ask to see the goods?" "Yes, you should not only ask to see the goods, but also insist that they be important artifacts; small items are not acceptable. Only then will he take you to the lair where the cultural relics are hidden..."
Miao Feifei didn't seem surprised by the result and explained it to Zhuang Rui over the phone.
"Yes, I understand, Officer Miao. Could you tell me how you made that person's money disappear?"
Zhuang Rui agreed verbally, but he was secretly itching to know what method the police had used to make Yu Zhenping's hands empty.
"Don't ask about things unrelated to the case, okay? I'm busy. Just do as I say..."
Unexpectedly, the voice coming from the other end of the phone after Zhuang Rui asked the question almost made him drop his phone. What kind of person was this? It was like an official who allowed others to set fires while forbidding ordinary people to even light lamps.
Actually, Zhuang Rui didn't know; it wasn't that Miao Feifei didn't want to tell him, but rather that the matter was so dishonest that it was impossible to talk about.
Miao Feifei's branch office has now been converted into the special task force office for the Yu family's major tomb raiding group. In addition to the members of the special task force, there is also a frail old man sitting in the office.
The old man looked to be in his sixties, but he had a good complexion and half of his hair was gray. He was an ordinary man, no different from those retired workers who spent their days walking their birds and playing cards in the park.
The only difference was that his left hand was always tucked into his sleeve. If you took it out, you would find that the old man's entire left hand had been severed at the wrist, and even though it was his square hand, only three fingers, the index finger and the little finger, were missing.
"The Miao government's money is all here, and I haven't touched a single penny..."
When the old man wasn't talking, he seemed quite composed sitting there, but as soon as he spoke, a fawning air appeared in his eyes. However, if one knew the old man's background, one wouldn't find his expression strange.
The old man's real name is Zuo Ya, but no one in the martial arts world would recognize him. However, Zuo Yidao is definitely one of the five most famous bandit kings of the time, and also the oldest.
Zuo Yidao had a tough childhood, growing up in a place where he was raised on bitter herbs. Although he was born in Beijing, his family had seven or eight children, and he never had a full meal before the age of 12.
During the Great Leap Forward in 1950, when people were selling everything they owned, they almost starved to death. Left with no other choice, Zuo Yidao left home and began a life of wandering, becoming a vagrant.
This man, when he got really ruthless, didn't care about his reputation anymore. When he was a homeless man, he not only begged for food, but his hands and feet also became dirty. Whenever he saw a house that wasn't open, he would take a few things and run away. Gradually, he developed a habit of petty theft.
When Zuo Yidao turned sixteen, he came to Zhengzhou and was caught stealing. However, the person who caught him was not a policeman or the victim, but a gang of thieves with the same identity as him.
In the thief gang, Zuo Yidao was initially a stupid little thief who was bullied. When stealing, he could only stand by and watch, and couldn't even get close to the inner circle. When dividing the loot, he was lucky if he could get some food and drink, and he couldn't even dream of getting a share of the money.
After two years of doing odd jobs, the gang of thieves was busted. The thief king, who had come from before the liberation, fled to another city with Zuo Yidao. Because they had shared joys and sorrows, the thief king began to teach him his skills.
In half a year, Zuo Yidao mastered the skill of picking up coins from soapy water and honed his left-hand razor blade skills to perfection. However, at this time, his master was also arrested by the police and executed for his numerous crimes.
Zuo Yidao dared not stay in Zhengzhou any longer and wandered to Xi'an alone. With his superb thieving skills, he made a great name for himself. In the Northwest at that time, everyone knew him. He also had a hundred or so thieves under his command and became a king of thieves.
Although society was turbulent at the time, those who stand out are often targeted. Zuo Yidao was caught by the police and sentenced to 10 years in prison. By the time he was released, it was already the early 1970s.
The gang that Zuo Yidao founded before he went to prison had long since disappeared. Zuo Yidao, who did not want to leave Xi'an, inevitably clashed with the emerging forces in the area. His left hand was the one that was cut off. According to another gang leader, if you don't have your left hand, can you still be called Zuo Yidao?
After a disheartening escape from Xi'an, Zuo Yidao returned to Beijing, only to find himself with nowhere to go. Left with no other choice, he resumed his old ways of stealing.
What many people don't know is that Zuo Yidao's famous left-handed theft techniques are not his real secrets.
His real skill lies in his mouth; Zuo Yidao can hide five razor blades in his mouth at the same time, and can use the blades in his mouth to cut through the victim's clothes and wallet and steal the money inside without anyone noticing.
To acquire this skill, Zuo Yidao suffered countless cuts and bled profusely in his mouth back then. As a result, even though he was illiterate and physically disabled after returning to Beijing, he was still able to make a living and live a comfortable life.