The third floor of the Da Dong Hotel, Li Yaoting was crouching in the bathroom adjusting the hot and cold water faucet. This kind of coal gas water heater he had seen at Liu Guo Restaurant, but never enjoyed before.

  "Ah, ah, as soon as the faucet is turned on, hot water comes out naturally. It's so comfortable to soak in a bath at home." He exclaimed repeatedly.

  Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Li Yaoting thought it was the floor servant coming to clean up and went to open the door. He was so frightened that he retreated several steps back.

  The group of people who rushed into the small noodle shop were led by a man in a suit and hat, but he was a stranger. He took off his hat, smoothed his oily hair with his hand, and sized up the two customers in the room with eyes like a fierce dog.

  Chen Zikun sat motionless in his chair and said, "You've actually found me."

  The man in the western suit took out a badge and flashed it: "Police station."

  "What's wrong with the police station? I haven't broken any laws."

  The man in Western suit sneered: "Carrying arms in the concession is a crime. Hand over your guns and come with me to the police station for a walk."

  Li Yaoting is afraid this time, a strong dragon can't suppress the snake in the ground, the Shanghai patrol house is just like the Beijing police department, they all eat official rice, and can't even hide, how can he provoke them.

  Chen Zikong was fearless and calm, throwing over three light words: "What's the reason?"

  The man in the suit was furious, and he quickly pulled out a pistol from his waist and pointed it at Chen Zikun. But before he could fire, Chen Zikun had already drawn two pistols and aimed one at the man's forehead and the other at the crowd, shouting: "Fire your gun! You shoot first, I can still kill you first!"

  The man in the suit, who had been holding a gun, was trembling with rage. He had been through many storms in his five or six years as a police officer, but he had never seen anyone so completely without rules. At the slightest disagreement, they would pull out their guns and attack each other, giving no quarter whatsoever. Their words were just as aggressive and intimidating. Faced with such an unreasonable and stubborn opponent, even he was at a loss for what to do.

  This gun of mine isn't just for show, but it's not even loaded. Looking at the other person's intention, the sword is drawn and the crossbow is tense, but it doesn't look like a pretence. If we really start fighting, I'll definitely be the first to die, and even Hua Tuo would not be able to save me from a bullet to the head.

  "What's all the commotion about?"

  Li Yaoting's eyes lit up, and he said, "Ah, a genuine Beijing accent, you're a fellow countryman!"

  The man in the suit found the stairs below and turned towards the door outside, shouting: "Who is it!"

  The axe head cleared a path for everyone, and in the corridor stood a man in a long gown with a folding fan in his hand, about thirty years old, elegant and refined.

  "You ask me? My name is Yuan Kewan. Which old master's door are you from?" The elegant man asked with a smile, not putting the man in the suit in his eyes at all.

  The man in the western suit changed color immediately upon hearing this name, and quickly put away his gun. He hurried forward, took off his hat, and bowed: "I'm Ye Tianlong, a detective from the French concession police station, apprentice of Captain Cheng. I wish to pay my respects to Master Yuan."

  Yuan Kewen said: "Oh, you're a disciple of Hei Pizi, are you? Your old man is from the Wuzi generation, so you should be from the Xuezhi generation?"

  "Yes, yes, yes, I'm a junior apprentice." Ye Tianlong nodded and bowed, overwhelmed with fear. He knew that the other person was not only the second son of former President Yuan Shikai, but had also studied under Zhang Shanting, an elder of the Qingbang who was ranked as a senior master, one of the highest ranks in the organization. There were only about a dozen people in all of Shanghai with this rank, and his own rank was three generations lower!

  Yuan Kewen nodded and took a distant glance at the scene inside the house, asking in a soft voice: "Is it the whole martial arts performance today, with guns and knives?"

  "Second Master, the wire report says that two unidentified Over-the-River Dragons have arrived here. I just came to investigate and didn't want to disturb you, Second Master. We'll leave now."

  "Oh, investigating the case? You all continue."

  Li Yaoting was expecting his fellow villagers to come and rescue him, but instead saw them whispering among themselves, seemingly familiar with each other. He quickly shouted: "Brothers, we are from Beijing, all decent people."

  Yuan Kewen heard the Beijing accent, smiled slightly, and actually stepped into the room. Seeing Chen Zikun, he looked him up and down before saying: "You... are you surnamed Chen?"

  Chen Zikong nodded and said: "I am Chen Zikong."

  Yuan Kewen slapped his fan in the palm of his hand and laughed: "That's right, that's the name. I've seen you at Li Zhengwu's house."

  Chen Zikun was puzzled, but Ye Tianlong was shocked. Li Zhengwu was also a prominent figure in the Qingbang generation, and he was a well-known and influential money master and real estate tycoon in Shanghai. Could it be that this overlord had some connection with Li Boss?

  As expected, Yuan Kewen smiled and said: "The big water flooded the Dragon King Temple. This old man is Li Zhengwu's formal disciple who opened the fragrance hall to receive him. Speaking of which, he is even one generation higher than Director Cheng."

  Ye Tianlong secretly cursed, today he unexpectedly ran into a senior fellow who was also surnamed Ye, and to make matters worse, this person was so young. If someone else had said it, he wouldn't have believed them even if they were beaten to death. But Yuan Er Gongzi was not the kind of person who could be suspected of speaking nonsense, so this matter must be true.

  He hastily apologized and bowed: "Sorry, it was a misunderstanding."

  Chen Zikun also saw good and collected, collecting his gun: "Since it's a misunderstanding, let's just forget about it."

  "Goodbye, Second Master, goodbye." Ye Tianlong bowed again and backed out, the Axe Gang was stunned. They were just a small gang under a branch of the Green Gang, they had never seen such a high-ranking person before. Even their mountain master Ye Tianlong only had the privilege of nodding and bowing to him. They didn't dare say anything, one by one they also left with their tails between their legs.

  Downstairs, Ye Tianlong slapped them one by one: "Damn it, false military report, making Alia lose face!"

  ……

  Yuan Kewen, however, did not intend to chat with Chen Zikun and the others. He just smiled faintly and said goodbye before returning to his own room. His mysterious smile only left Chen Zikun even more perplexed.

  At night, the door was knocked again, and the sound was very urgent. Li Yaoting looked at Chen Zikun in horror, and Chen Zikun stood behind the door with a gun and slowly opened it.

  Jiang Zhicheng burst in excitedly and was startled by their appearance: "What's going on?"

  Li Yaoting complained: "The people we met at the noodle shop brought police to cause trouble, and after they were sent away, we thought they would come back again."

  Jiang Zhicheng cursed: "You bastards, this group of usurers are really despicable. However, I've already made arrangements and tomorrow a large sum of money will be coming from Guangzhou. Tonight, I'll treat you to a drink at the Meiyuan Wine House on Sima Road."

  Li Yaoting was excited as soon as he heard about drinking, and Chen Zikun also agreed happily. The three of them left the Dong Hotel, hailed a rickshaw, and headed straight to Si Ma Road.

  Mei Garden Restaurant is located at the intersection of Si Ma Road, and two men are already seated in the elegant upstairs room. Jiang Zhiquan introduced them: "These two gentlemen are my friends, Chen Guofu and Dai Jitao."

  Everyone shook hands and exchanged greetings, and Chen Zikong also reported his own name.

  Chen Guofu said: "I also have the surname Chen, we were one family 500 years ago, haha." Suddenly he stopped smiling and thoughtfully said: "Brother Chen, I seem to have seen this name somewhere before."

  "Brother, I just arrived in Shanghai."

  "Wait, wait, let me think carefully."

  Jiang Zhicheng smiled and said: "You think about it, we'll order first. Since the two of you have come from afar, let's just order some local dishes. Ji Tao, you can order."

  Dai Jitao said: "Nowadays, the most popular in the flower world are Lin Daiyu, Jian Bing, Xiao Yi, and Jin Yushu. I think we can just call them the 'tickets' for this gathering."

  Li Yaoting was stunned: "These are dish names?"

  Jiang Zhiqing burst out laughing: "Li, my younger brother, is new here and doesn't know that the four great golden flowers of Shanghai's smoking world are also normal. These are all female students from the fourth street school, we invited them to accompany us for drinks."

  Li Yaoting suddenly enlightened, but then became suspicious again: "The Four Great Golden Arhats, aren't they very expensive, can they condescend to accompany us?"

  Jiang Zhiqing said, "Our face may not be enough, but Brother Ji Tao's face is certainly sufficient. At the age of 19, he was already the chief editor of Tianfeng Daily, a celebrity in Shanghai's cultural circle, and the female students were most fond of following his elegant style. The three words 'Dai Jitao' are like thunder in their ears."

  Dai Jitao smiled proudly and said: "Zhiqing brother, you're teasing me again. Who doesn't know that you're a top graduate of the Japanese Military Academy, with first-class honors, and received the Emperor's gift of a military sword? You were once the commander of the Fifth Regiment of the Shanghai Army, and are the sworn brother of the famous Chen Ying Shi. As the saying goes, 'beauty loves heroes', those schoolgirls must have come because of your face, after all, 'a hundred thousand brocades and fine writings can't compare to a single Mauser rifle'."

  The two of them kept flattering each other, and it wasn't until then that Chen Zikun and Li Yaoting realized that this Jiang Zhicheng was not an ordinary person either.

  The ballot was quickly written and sent out. On this side, dishes of vegetables and fruits were served, along with several jars of yellow wine. The five men chatted and drank while waiting for the master's arrival.

  Half an hour passed, and not a single prostitute came. Jiang Zhicheng's face looked somewhat awkward, so he called the waiter over to ask him what was going on. The waiter said: "Sir, you don't know that all the brothels in the flower district have closed down to support the students in Beijing. Those pimps and madams have even organized a 'Brothel Salvation Society' to hand out flyers on the streets with the students."

  Everyone looked at each other in dismay, and Chen Guofu, who had been deep in thought, suddenly slapped his thigh and said: "I remember now! I saw your name in the newspaper. You're Chen Zikun, one of the students involved in the burning down of Zhao's house!"

  Chen Zikong said: "Ashamed, it is indeed a humble abode."

  Jiang Zhiqing and Dai Jitao immediately looked at him with reverence, originally they were just inviting him to drink wine for the purpose of recruiting martial artists for their own use, from a psychological perspective, they were looking down on him, now it has become a level gaze, even slightly upward, after all, the May Fourth Movement is currently in full swing.

  Jiang Zhicheng said, "I didn't expect Brother Chen to be a legendary figure, I'm really sorry. Those famous courtesans, if they knew you were in Shanghai, wouldn't they flock to you? Let me write another invitation card and see if they come or not."

  It took only five minutes for the famous Miss Jian Bing of the Four Horse Road to arrive at Mei Garden Restaurant.

  As soon as Jian Bing appeared on stage, she shocked everyone in the audience. What an extraordinary and elegant woman!

  Only then did the beauty with skin as white as snow slightly open her crimson lips and ask in a soft Wu dialect, "Which one of you is Mr. Chen Zikun?"