RBCT Chapter 3 The Money That Started
Chapter 3 The Money That Started
The area in front of the police station was bustling with traffic.
Lin Yuanshan smiled at Wu Shihao: "Brother Hao, if it's just to help me get a travel permit..."
You can just report it on the first floor and it will be done for an extra ten yuan.
But you took me to the plainclothes unit on the second floor and spent two extra cigarettes. You couldn't have just done that to help me cut in line, could you?
I guess you have two purposes.
First, while you're handling my matter today, take the opportunity to deliver some cigarettes to the plainclothes police team and reconnect with your underworld connections;
Secondly, I brought my cousin along so he could become a familiar face to these plainclothes officers.
Since you've already bought the cigarettes, I should at least try to make my presence felt and ensure your money was well spent, right?
Upon hearing this, Wu Shih-hao was greatly shocked.
Because Lin Yuanshan's deductions were almost all correct!
Is this the kind of insight and mental capacity a 17-year-old boy living in his hometown, struggling to get enough to eat, should have?
However, looking back thirty years, the Lin family was known for its tradition of combining farming and scholarship.
My uncle-in-law, Lin Huaijin, was a legendary figure in the surrounding area when he was young, so it's not surprising that he raised such a son.
Taking a drag of his cigarette to compose himself, Wu Shih-hao had one last question: "So, discovering the error in the English version of the horse racing newspaper was also a spur-of-the-moment decision?"
"Yes and no. Even if the horse racing newspaper didn't print it wrong, I can find other ways to showcase myself."
For example, when we're about to part ways, I'll say "Good luck" to Cheng Ge and wish him good luck in the horse racing lottery, just to attract attention.
Sigh, it's not easy to keep a foreign police officer in check.
Let's scare these Chinese police officers who can't even read properly, with you, an acquaintance, paving the way with cigarettes.
"Use your brain, it's not difficult." After saying that, Lin Yuanshan raised his hand and hailed a rickshaw across the street.
Upon hearing this, Wu Shih-hao was completely stunned.
At this moment, Lin Yuanshan had already gotten into the rickshaw: "Brother Hao, I have received my travel permit now, so you don't have to worry about me being checked for a license while walking."
I've wasted a lot of your time from last night until now.
You go ahead and do your thing. I'll pawn some old things to raise some money and see what avenues I can explore for development.
I'll meet you at Hung Kee at noon.
Wu Shih-hao snapped out of his daze and saw the rickshaw had gone more than ten meters. He shouted, "Hey, how much can your tattered clothes be worth? Just take a few hundred and use it!"
Lin Yuanshan waved his hand and said, "Don't worry about me, I'll take good care of myself."
Watching the rickshaw disappear into the distance, Wu Shih-hao's face showed both worry and helplessness.
Also 17 years old, his younger brother Wu Shiping was much more well-behaved than Lin Yuanshan.
He sent his cousin to a free school for the common people as soon as he arrived in Hong Kong. Unlike his cousin from the mountains, who seemed honest at first glance, he turned out to be a troublesome person once you got to know him.
……
Deliberately separating from Brother Hao, Lin Yuanshan instructed the driver to head to Chao An Ya in Shek Kip Mei.
Ten minutes later, Lin Yuanshan bent down and got out of the car. He looked up and saw a sign that read "Bat Hanging Money". Above it was a plaque with black background and gold characters: Chao'an Pawn.
As a Hong Kong history blogger, Lin Yuanshan knows that this pawnshop is not large, but it was notorious for being shady among Chaozhou immigrants from the 50s to the 70s!
The owner, who also served as a clerk, was a man from Chaozhou who specialized in taking advantage of acquaintances.
People thought that if they went to a pawnshop owned by someone from their hometown, they could get a better price.
To everyone's surprise, they all walked in the door and then left clutching their chests.
Over time, this guy who fell down in the river was called "Double Knife," which means that life is tough, and he was first cut by life, and then scraped by it.
"Please wait for me outside, brother." Lin Yuanshan took out a dollar and handed it to the driver: "I need to go to Fengru Teahouse in a little while."
After taking the money, the driver lowered his voice and said, "Judging from your accent, you're also from Chaozhou."
My name is Tietou, and I'm from Caitang. Don't take offense, but before you go inside, you'd better go to another place.
We're all on the same side, so I won't charge you for the rest of the journey.
Lin Yuanshan took another look at the driver and found that he was a young man in his early twenties with an honest face and a tall stature of nearly 1.9 meters.
Lin Yuanshan patted the other man's broad shoulder and stepped onto the pawnshop steps: "Brother Tie Tou, thanks for the reminder."
However, my cousin said that this restaurant is run by people from our hometown, and that people from our own hometown wouldn't cheat each other.
Iron Head sighed and looked at Lin Yuanshan with pity—this young man's head is even more iron than his own. You'll see how tough he is soon enough!
After entering the room, Lin Yuanshan ignored "Two-Layer Knife," a man around 60 years old with a goatee and wearing a black silk Tang suit.
He chose a chair, took out an iron box from his bundle, placed it on the side table, and opened it.
There were four items in the box: travel expenses and family assets that the original owner's father, Lin Huaijin, had prepared for his son.
A yellowed silk cloth, a palm-sized piece of vermilion wood seal, five ten-dollar bills, and a Parker fountain pen.
I don't have much Hong Kong dollars left. I carry a few dollars in change with me, and I keep fifty dollars in a box to save money.
The Parker pen was a gift from an American friend to my father during the war.
If you need money when you get to Hong Kong, you can ask your cousin to take you to a pawn shop to pawn your money.
As for the seal of the mountain hall and the appointment letter, destroying them would be a disservice to the martyrs of the Hongmen, and keeping them in the house would be a hidden danger.
You should take this with you to Hong Kong this time; perhaps it will come in handy someday.
Recalling Lin Huaijin's earnest instructions before boarding the ship.
Lin Yuanshan took the cash and placed the pen beside him.
Then, he carefully put away the iron box. Clearly, the two items left inside were of far greater value to him than these mere possessions.
From the moment Lin Yuanshan entered the room, the two layers of blades were secretly watching his every move.
Seeing Lin Yuanshan's extraordinary demeanor, the two-layered sword gave his apprentice, Ah Shui, a wink.
Ah Shui nodded and stood up, picked up a cup of tea, and respectfully placed it on the side table next to Lin Yuanshan: "Young master, please have some tea."
Lin Yuanshan lifted the lid of the teacup and curled his lips: "Heh, before my family went bankrupt, we thought this kind of tea was too grassy to even rinse our mouths."
That's enough. I'm only willing to live with this pen.
Take this to your family's salesman and tell him to think carefully before he sets a price. He doesn't want to ruin his reputation or damage the friendship between the villagers.
Seeing Lin Yuanshan's arrogant demeanor and boastful tone, I realized he was quite imposing.
Ah Shui dared not delay, first apologizing, then picked up the pen with both hands and walked a few steps to the counter.
He took the two-layered knife, examined it for a while, and then spread out his five fingers on his right hand: "This Parker pen, young friend insists on being pawned, so this is the highest price I can offer."
"Okay, issue the invoice." Lin Yuanshan held a teacup in one hand and used the lid to scrape the tea soup with the other, looking disgusted and unable to bring himself to drink it.
Seeing this, the two-layered knife was secretly pleased and raised an eyebrow at the accountant: "Note, an old Western pen, gilded and crooked nib, worn and in poor condition, common on the market, not worth much. Pawn it, issue the receipt, fifty dollars, perfect!"
"What? Fifty yuan?" Lin Yuanshan slammed his teacup down. "My cousin Wu Shih-hao personally told me that Chao'an Pawnshop is known for its fair prices in his territory, and that they're trustworthy and reliable for cooperation!"
Lin Yuanshan suddenly attacked, startling the two layers of knives.
The accountant, holding a calligraphy brush, whispered a word of advice: "Boss, that Hao guy in the water room is notoriously bad-tempered."
If he really is his cousin, this pen is burning his hand.
Liangcengdao glanced at the accounting office, then forced a smile at Lin Yuanshan: "Brother Hao from the water room? Hehe, how come I've never heard of Brother Hao having such a wealthy relative like you in his family..."
"Don't believe me! Send someone out and ask around." Lin Yuanshan crossed his legs and said confidently, "Besides Brother Xiongxiong the Dumb and Brother Hao's men, who doesn't know me, Baijia Yuan?"