"Believe it or not, just think of it as me going to the mental hospital to check out some business. When I get back from the mental hospital, I'll bring you a souvenir." Song Tianyao stretched and shook his neck, saying, "Come to my place for a couple of drinks tonight. Remember to bring your girlfriend. My woman is coming over tonight. We've known each other for so long, I want to show you her cooking skills, and maybe your girlfriend can become her apprentice and get some pointers on cooking."
"You idiot, haven't you even turned 18 yet? You already have a girlfriend?" Just as Hong Lai-sau was thinking Song Tianyao must have lost his mind today, an excited shout rang out from outside the library, accompanied by heavy footsteps, echoing throughout the spacious library.
"Secretary Song! Secretary Song! There's a big business opportunity!"
"Quiet! This is a library! Do you think this is a tram stop? Don't you recognize those big signs? Keep quiet inside!" Hong Lai-sau shouted at the person who had started the commotion.
Song Tianyao also shouted at the same time, "Didn't I tell you not to come see me unless it's absolutely necessary? Get the hell out of here! You bastard!"
Wearing black-rimmed glasses, and looking more like a cultured man than Hong Lai-sau and Song Tianyao, Scribe Hui, rushed up to them after they finished speaking, panting as he looked at Song Tianyao: "Secretary Song, there's a big deal!"
Chapter 200 I'm a Boss?
Every day, Scribe Hui and Nine-Tattooed Dragon used a rented truck to collect vegetables from the countryside in Kowloon New Territories, then took a ferry across the sea to the military camp on Hong Kong Island to barter. Although Scribe Hui was often scolded by Song Tianyao for being tactless, he had one redeeming quality: he was honest and obedient. When Song Tianyao told him not to treat the British Army like idiots and make profits recklessly like other vegetable farmers, he resolutely refused to make any money. Before, he would make a small profit after covering the daily expenses of truck rental and ferry crossing, and occasionally even lose money on fuel due to sudden increases in vegetable prices. Since Nine-Tattooed Dragon's foot injury healed, he stopped renting the truck altogether. Instead of delivering vegetables to the military camp on Hong Kong Island once a day, the two of them each carried vegetables on a shoulder pole, once in the morning and once in the afternoon, taking ferries and trams to the military camp themselves.
When it comes to fighting, ten Scribe Huis might not be able to beat Nine-Tattooed Dragon, but when it comes to carrying heavy loads while walking, Nine-Tattooed Dragon, who has practiced martial arts for many years, is really no match for Scribe Hui, who has been a patrol horseman and traversed mountains and rivers on his own two legs.
Moreover, after his foot injury healed, he was left with some disability. He looks like an ordinary person when walking slowly, but he limps a little when running or walking briskly.
"Brother Hui, Secretary Song already told you to rent a truck, why are you carrying the load yourself? Why continue renting trucks?" After Nine-Tattooed Dragon and the others boarded the ferry, they put down the carrying pole, straightened their backs, walked to the side of the boat to get some fresh air, and wiped their sweat as they spoke to Scribe Hui next to them who was also wiping his sweat with a towel.
After wiping away his sweat, Scribe Hui glared at Nine-Tattooed Dragon. Nine-Tattooed Dragon looked down at his clothes, puzzled, and, finding nothing amiss, asked, "What's wrong? Did I wash my face this morning?"
"You good-for-nothing, eating so much for three meals a day? If I don't save money, you'll bankrupt Sister Fen's shop! Secretary Song is giving out money to make money, not for me to waste every day. Of course, we should save where we can." The Scribe Hui got angrier and angrier, and reached out to slap Nine-Tattooed Dragon on the head. "If I don't save on transportation costs, you good-for-nothing will complain every day that the food is bland. Where will you get chicken legs or pig's feet!"
Ever since Nine-Tattooed Dragon started helping him deliver groceries, Scribe Hui no longer harbored the same intense hatred for the young man as before. However, he still disliked him. Once, when he returned late from dealing with cigarettes and alcohol, he wanted to stay at the grocery store for the night. But this scoundrel actually told him, right in front of Sister Fen, to stay in an empty room on the second floor! He didn't know if the scoundrel said it on purpose, forcing him to repeatedly shake his head and refuse in front of Sister Fen.
Aside from his lack of tact and his large appetite, most of the time, Scribe Hui considered this guy a qualified subordinate—hardworking, strong, and obedient.
Seeing that Nine-Tattooed Dragon had taken out half a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered one to himself, Scribe Hui even felt that Nine-Tattooed Dragon's lack of ability to read people was a weakness that had improved.
"Brother Hui, I'm planning to take revenge in a couple of days. I'm afraid I won't be able to help you. Why don't you just continue like before, renting a truck to deliver vegetables?" After Nine-Tattooed Dragon helped Scribe Hui light a cigarette, he lit one for himself, blew a smoke ring, leaned his arms on the ferry railing, and looked at the gray-blue sea outside the ferry.
Scribe Hui looked at Nine-Tattooed Dragon. He had previously inquired about Nine-Tattooed Dragon's background and knew why the man was injured, but Nine-Tattooed Dragon had never mentioned wanting revenge. Scribe Hui had always thought that since the young man's leg was already crippled, he should be disheartened and had given up on revenge. He never expected that Nine-Tattooed Dragon would bring it up now.
"Revenge? Are you out of your mind? Handkerchief Qing! I specifically asked He-prefix gangs, do you even know what Double Red Pole' is? Even someone as good as your Brother Hui was just Fuyixing Yee Hing back then! You want to seek revenge against him? Do you want to cripple your other leg too?!"
"What kind of 'Double Red Pole' is this? He's not like me, he only has two hands, does he have three heads and six arms? I'm not afraid." Nine-Tattooed Dragon scratched his hair, which hadn't been cut for months and was already half-grown, and said confidently, "Last time he had more men, but if it were one-on-one, I wouldn't lose."
Scribe Hui stared at Nine-Tattooed Dragon and said, "Even if you win, tens of thousands of people from the He-prefix gangs want to kill you to avenge Handkerchief Qing. Are you going to fight them all one by one? No way. I don't agree to you going. If you obediently come with me, you might be spared. I'm saving you not so you can find another opportunity to go and die. You haven't even met Xianyu Shuan A Shuan, who was burned to death by the Jianghu people. Neither I, nor Sister Fen, nor even Xiu'er, hate people who go into the Jianghu. If you insist on seeking revenge, we'll just pretend we don't know you."
"Should we just let this go unpunished?" Nine-Tattooed Dragon replied lazily to his Scribe Hui, flicking his cigarette ash into the sea. "I'm crippled, and I might not even be able to find a wife in the future. There's no reason to let this deep-seated hatred go unpunished, is there? It's either him or me, I'm not afraid of death."
Scribe Hui said in a serious tone, "Revenge? Of course you want revenge. If you want revenge, go find Secretary Song let him help you."