Chapter 13 A Motley Crew

Although I hadn't known Hu Wazi for long, I had already figured out his personality. He was a man of his word, and once he made up his mind, not even ten oxen could pull him back, let alone me.

So, for Lao Wei to ask me to persuade Hu Wazi to change his mind was just wishful thinking.

Knowing I couldn't dissuade Hu Wazi, I decided to try and convince Lao Wei instead. I said, "Lao Wei, how many men did Xiaolingwei send this time? Can you count them on two hands?"

Two hands meant ten people.

Lao Wei sighed helplessly. "Two hands? I'm struggling to gather enough for one. The Wang shopkeeper's case needs manpower, right? Yang Guo's case can't be left unattended, right? After all this shuffling around, I only have four brothers left, including myself, barely enough for one hand..."

I nodded and said, "Originally, with Da Yong and Uncle Mei, we'd have two more people. Now that Uncle Mei and Da Yong are also injured, that's like losing two more. There are clusters of rats in Qushang Ancient City. Count them yourself. Besides the White-Clad Immortal, there's the Silver Ring Snake, Liu Huangshu (Uncle Liu), and the people we met at the hotel. That's at least four groups. With so few people, can you fight them?"

Lao Wei's personality was different from Jiang Yongguang's. Jiang Yongguang, true to his name, was brave and had a tiger-like spirit. He feared nothing. Lao Wei was more cautious, a steady and reliable type.

Hearing what I said, he did look worried. He frowned and said, "Now that you mention it, I'm starting to feel a bit uneasy."

At that moment, Hu Wazi boomed, "Uneasy about what?! Don't panic! I'm here to help you. I'll just call my brothers from the hall to lend a hand. Is twenty enough? If twenty isn't enough, I'll call fifty! Forget four groups, even if there were ten, I'd take them down!"

Lao Wei frowned even deeper. Originally, he wanted to dissuade Hu Wazi from getting involved in this mess, but now, not only was Hu Wazi joining in, but his fellow paoge (sworn brothers) were coming to join the fun as well.

He quickly waved his hand. "Hu Wazi, I appreciate your kindness, but catching grave robbers isn't like fighting a war. It's not about having more people. We need to be discreet and secretive. If you bring thirty or fifty people, what rats are we catching? We'll scare them all away."

Hu Wazi was quite reasonable this time. He rubbed his chin and said, "Hmm, you make a good point. In that case, I won't call so many people. I'll just call a few of my most quick-witted and capable brothers. Not many, just three or four. Is that okay?"

Lao Wei had another headache and quickly waved his hand. "No need, no need. Not even three or four. How about this? Just you come with us. Is that alright?"

Hu Wazi refused and shook his head. "That won't do. We'll be at a disadvantage with fewer people. My brother-in-law just said there are at least four groups in Qushang Ancient City. What if that bastard Liu Huangshu joins forces with the other rats? If they outnumber us, how are we going to avenge Godfather? How about this, Lao Wei? Listen to me. I'll take charge of this. I won't call too many, just two of my most capable brothers to lend a hand!"

Without waiting for Lao Wei's agreement, he took his phone and went outside to make calls.

Lao Wei was practically in tears. He rubbed his forehead and sighed.

Once Hu Wazi was far enough away, he grabbed my arm and said, "Xiao Chen, why didn't you help me stop Hu Wazi? I'm a government employee, how can I associate with these shady paoge?"

I smiled wryly and said, "Lao Wei, to be honest, you don't really have a choice, do you? Xiaolingwei doesn't have enough manpower, so you can only join forces with Hu Wazi! Think positively, it might not be a bad thing. At least we'll have more fists when we encounter danger in Qushang, right?"

Lao Wei thought about it and finally chose to compromise. He nodded and said, "You're right. After all, I want to avenge Da Yong and Third Brother Mei. Even if we don't get revenge, we can't let the other brothers be in danger."

"That's the spirit," I said.

Around dawn, the brothers Hu Wazi had called from Renshoutang to lend a hand arrived. These two didn't look like easy-going types.

One of them was very burly, about one meter seventy-five tall, with a flattop haircut. Although he didn't have Hu Wazi's towering height, his muscles were well-defined and looked like they were about to explode. He was obviously a martial artist.

The other guy wasn't muscular, but rather a bit thin. However, his slanted, triangular eyes were filled with murderous intent. Just one glance from him sent chills down your spine. He was also a ruthless character.

They both called Hu Wazi "Brother Hu." Hu Wazi introduced them to us, saying that the flattop was called Er Jun, and the guy with the slanted eyes was called Yun Jie. They were both trustworthy brothers from Renshoutang.

Hu Wazi also told them to listen to Lao Wei's commands and follow his arrangements.

Lao Wei was quite pleased to hear this and was about to say a few words of appreciation when Hu Wazi added that the main purpose of calling them here was to find a grave robber named Liu Huangshu (Uncle Liu). Once they found him, they should beat him to death and show no mercy.

Lao Wei was speechless. He quickly stopped him and said that they should be measured and avoid causing any deaths.

Er Jun was also confused and turned to ask Hu Wazi, "Brother Hu, should we listen to your command or Lao Wei's?"

Hu Wazi said that was obvious. They should listen to him when he was around, and only listen to Lao Wei when he wasn't.

Er Jun and Yun Jie quickly nodded.

Lao Wei almost fainted from anger on the spot. He yelled, "Damn it, all three of you have to listen to my command! Don't act on your own!"

Seeing them chatting animatedly, I quietly slipped back to the ward to rest. I hadn't slept all night, and I couldn't hold on any longer.

Back in the ward, I saw that Xiao Liang was already awake. When she saw me coming back from outside, she struggled to sit up in bed and anxiously asked, "Chen Rongsheng, are you alright?"

Her voice was even hoarser than when I had woken up yesterday, so I knew she wanted water. I poured her some warm water and handed it to her, saying, "Don't worry, I'm fine. I just went out for a walk to stretch my legs. Come on, have some water to soothe your throat."

Xiao Liang was in my arms as she gently sipped the water. After drinking, she asked, "What about Uncle Mei and Officer Jiang?"

I said, "They're both alive and won't be left with any disabilities or anything. Just relax and focus on recovering."

"That's good..." Xiao Liang breathed a sigh of relief and took another big gulp of water.

After drinking, she suddenly struggled to get out of bed.

I told her not to rush and to stay in bed for a couple of days.

Xiao Liang blushed and whispered, "I want... I want to go to the toilet."

I decided to see my good deed through and simply put down the cup, helped her stand up, and said, "Let's go, I'll help you over there."