The next day, when Chen Ergou was strolling around the scenic Huamen for the 16th time, he finally ran into Wei Duangong, who was out walking his dog. Behind him, as always, followed a young man who worked part-time as a bodyguard, very thin and gaunt, with sunken eyes that seemed to gleam with a sinister intensity, like a wolf that had lost its fur from too many fights. Chen Ergou exchanged a brief greeting with the enigmatic Wei Duangong, but unexpectedly, the high-and-mighty man didn't brush past him as usual. Instead, he stopped in his tracks, pulled out a pack of cigarettes - Huanghe Lou 1916 - and tossed one to Chen Ergou, saying: "I only carry these for social occasions, don't mind if they're not good to smoke. Actually, Nanjing cigarettes are more flavorful. By the way, I saw you getting along well with those dogs yesterday. Have you raised dogs before?"

  Chen Ergou lit the cigarette and took a drag, habitually leaning back slightly as he said, "It's just a mutt, definitely not worth much."

  Wei Duan gazed at the few dogs wagging their tails intimately towards Chen Er Gou, and said with a playful tone: "In the future, if someone offers you a cigarette, you can accept it, but don't rush to smoke. People may not have the intention of harming tigers, but tigers always have the intention of harming people. The forest is vast, and there are all sorts of people in it; be careful, as a boat that sails safely for ten thousand years." Seeing Chen Er Gou's two fingers holding the cigarette suspended in mid-air with a look of bewilderment on his face, Wei Duan burst out laughing, lit up a cigarette himself, and said: "Don't worry, you can smoke my cigarettes freely."

  "These few dogs of mine are actually not top-notch, there's another place with a few that can be put on the stage. Among them is a Tibetan Mastiff and a Shandong Hulutou, which have taken up quite some of my heart and soul. Don't look at these two Bull Terriers with their ferocious appearance, when they see that Shandong Hulutou, they'll obediently tuck in their tails and behave like dogs." Wei Duan Gong laughed loudly, talking about his dogs, he was never stingy with words. Although the two Bull Terriers in his hands were talked down by him, there really wasn't anyone in Nanjing who dared to bring out a dog to fight them. Wei Duan Gong had long since put out the word that whoever's beast could kill these two Bull Terriers would get two sacks of one million yuan cash, but unfortunately, up until today, no one has been able to take away the two sacks of money."

  "Dogs are spiritual, and when you're with them, you have to be sincere." Chen Ergou couldn't help but sigh, this was his innermost thoughts.

  Wei Duan Gong nodded and then shook his head, smiling but not speaking. After finishing the cigarette, he bid farewell to Chen Er Gou and continued walking his dog. As Wei Duan Gong was about to return to his villa, the young driver behind him asked in a rough Mandarin accent, "Master Wei, I investigated this person's background as you requested last night. The detailed information is already on your desk. From what I can see, there doesn't seem to be any problem, and he doesn't appear to be someone sent by Qiao Ba. However, he has a record with the other two individuals, and they're not clean. Especially one guy named Wang Hu Sheng, who used to be involved in grave robbing in the north. He had some reputation, but later got into trouble and almost died. He took advantage of the situation to wash his hands and quit."

  "This young man, he's been waiting for me to appear for sixteen rounds, his heart is in the right place, but it's a bit tender. I'm old and don't have many thoughts about polishing jade anymore. If this were ten years ago, I might have taken him under my wing with a smile and a few words of encouragement. Alas, I'm old now. I increasingly admire those old foxes like Huang Jinrong and Du Yuesheng, who become more vigorous with age. My body can't keep up with you young and ruthless ones, and my mind can't compare to those cunning young people who are almost worthy of being called treacherous. I'm thinking of finding an opportunity to retire soon." Wei Duan Gong said with a smile, but his expression was tinged with coldness.

  He handed the dog over to two professional dog walkers and walked into the villa, where a group of women were waiting for him. The scene was chaotic, with his three wives and four daughters all vying for attention. His ex-wives were at odds with each other, while his daughters were engaged in subtle but fierce competition. To make matters worse, his wives and daughters would occasionally erupt into loud arguments, and even his young children had inherited his ruthless streak, often engaging in cruel pranks like throwing snakes or poisonous spiders into each other's rooms. Wei Duan Gong found it difficult to intervene, as he didn't want to take sides, and besides, he felt that the situation was partly his own fault for raising them this way. So he chose to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to their antics, figuring that as long as they didn't resort to violence, he would just have to foot the bill to clean up after them. Moreover, Wei Duan Gong found this kind of life more interesting and authentic compared to the sheltered lives of some high-ranking officials and wealthy families in Nanjing. To him, children who were overindulged and spoiled would only grow up to be trampled by society, so what was the point of that kind of upbringing?

  "Dad, I want to go to Lijiang alone, mom doesn't allow it, you be the judge." The 13-year-old daughter of Wei Duan jumped onto the sofa and shouted at a certain father who was about to slip upstairs.

  "You can go, but I'll say it again, before you're 16, if you dare to get into bed with a boy, well, I won't dare do anything to you, but I'll only break that guy's hands and feet and feed them to the dogs." Wei Duan Gong shrugged his shoulders, looking at his 13-year-old daughter who had developed very well, with smoky makeup, ***, plump and perky, looking like a 15 or 16 year old girl in bloom. Although Wei Duan Gong liked to play with young girls, it didn't mean he could tolerate other men disrespecting his daughter.

  "Dad, a woman who is the deputy director of the judicial bureau's cheap thing is competing with me for my boyfriend. I want you to help me confront her and beat her up, selling her out is also okay." The high school graduate daughter cried out.

  "Go and settle it yourself, stop embarrassing me all day."

  Wei Duan Gong's face turned red with rage, and he shot a glance at the group of women in the living room on the first floor. He squeezed out an expression that Chen Er Gou had never seen before - a sinister and sarcastic look. As soon as he made this face, the originally noisy house fell silent. Wei Duan Gong's fingers were intertwined, and he smiled slyly, but his tone was sharp and cutting, like an old eunuch. "A group of useless goods, you're just good for nothing except being manipulated by men. What other skills do you have? Today is my birthday, so I won't scold you. Otherwise, I would have slapped you long ago. Get out, get back to your own homes."

  A large group of women immediately dispersed.

  Wei Duan Gong sat down in the second-floor study, feeling serene. He had walked up from the stairs to calm his mind, but he didn't regret kicking out that group of women who could be considered family members. To him, women were only beautiful women, and their sole function was to bear children for men. Wei Duan Gong wanted a son. His first wife was kind and came from a good family, but she gave birth to two daughters, so he divorced her. His second wife was stunningly beautiful, but even with her impressive figure, she still gave birth to a daughter, and they divorced again. The third wife had been chosen by a fortune teller who promised a male heir, but it didn't work out, and they also divorced. Wei Duan Gong treated them well, giving them large sums of money, houses, and jewelry after the divorces. He thought of them as expensive mother dogs he was raising. Recently, he had found a young woman he liked, and for some time, he had been "farming" her belly every night. Wei Duan Gong hoped that this time, he would finally have a son with a penis. The entire region of Jiangsu and Shanghai cursed him to have children without anuses, but he didn't believe it. He picked up a thread-bound edition of the "Zizhi Tongjian" and copied down a sentence with his pen: "A gentleman uses his talents for good, while a petty person uses his talents for evil." He recited it silently several times.

  After spending more than an hour reading "Zizhi Tongjian", Wei Duan Gong finally picked up the materials about Chen Er Gou and his gang. The materials on Chen Er Gou were scarce, with Wang Hu Sheng and Wang Jie Fang taking up most of the space. However, Wei Duan Gong was particularly interested in the brief summary of Chen Er Gou's life. The materials mentioned that after stabbing Zhao Kun Peng, Chen Er Gou fled to Nanjing, but what really caught Wei Duan Gong's attention were the names "Chen Fu Sheng" and "Chen Fu Gui", as well as a brief introduction to Zhang Jia Zhai and Chen Er Gou's family background in about 40-50 words. After putting down the materials, Wei Duan Gong stood up and gazed at the massive bookshelf filled with thread-bound ancient books. He finally pulled out a copy of "Hei Nang Jing" written by Yang Jun Song, the founder of Jiangxi school of Feng Shui, and said to the young driver standing at the door: "Ge Lü, check again on Chen Fu Gui's current situation, and have someone take a camera to Zhang Jia Zhai as described in the materials. I haven't practiced pulse diagnosis for a long time, let's see if I can get any surprises this time. Tonight, you go to the city and keep an eye on Qiao Ba Zhi's side. If there's any movement, notify me immediately. I plan to stay here alone tonight and sleep soundly. If possible, I'll also go out for a small dinner."

  ————————-——

  In the evening, Chen Ergou, Wang Huzi and Wang Jiefang were just gathering around a small table to eat the simple dinner cooked by Zhang Sanqian on his humble gas stove. They found an unexpected guest, Wei Duogong, holding a bottle of white wine, which was absolutely authentic Maotai. Zhang Sanqian was busy stir-frying the last dish, Mei Cai Kou Rou. Chen Ergou was really shocked and had to give up his small stool to this big shot who didn't follow common sense. Wei Duogong didn't feel embarrassed or awkward at all, nor did he think it was shameful to share a table with a group of migrant workers. He opened the Maotai and gave each of them a bowl. Just as they were about to drink, he looked up and saw Zhang Sanqian bringing in the dishes. Even though he had seen many grand scenes and occasions, he was still taken aback for a moment. He asked Chen Ergou in a low voice, "Boy or girl?"

  Zhang San was not afraid of anything, but he didn't care about Wei Duan Gong, who dared to eat white rice as soon as he came in with a bottle of wine. He hated it when others asked such stupid questions, and in his haste, he blurted out Wang Hu's usual phrase, holding the bowl of Mei Cai Kou Rou and refusing to put it on the table. "****, I am a real big shot, you are just a woman."