“Stop!” Just as several ruffians were rolling up their sleeves, someone suddenly stepped forward to play the hero.
“Ah, boss, you?!” The hooligans and onlookers were all stunned.
“Step back!”
It turned out the hero was actually the ruffian leader—Qiao San. He casually pulled a few hooligans behind him and, with a big grin, scolded them, “What do you think you’re doing, beating people up?! Fellow townspeople are the bread and butter of us ruffians. Without them, what would we eat or drink?! What you’re doing is completely outrageous. Apologize to the old man immediately!”
Everyone rolled their eyes, looking as if they might faint. Was this really something a ruffian leader should say? Had Qiao San been possessed by a ghost?!
Qiao San’s crooked, slouching posture still showed no trace of heroic righteousness. He said to the old man, “Old man, I hope I didn’t scare you just now! Don’t worry, with me, Qiao San, around, no one dares to bully you!”
In a sudden twist, the comical character not only refused to collect money but instead pulled out a handful of copper coins, saying, “Hmm, I heard you didn’t have enough money for medicine. Here, take these fifty coins. Go to the clinic immediately for treatment—don’t delay it!”
Among the onlookers, the angry young man and middle-aged scholar who had previously clashed with Qiao San kept their eyes fixed on the ruffian leader. The youth’s eyes brimmed with disgust, while the scholar showed a stronger interest.
Just as Old Li nervously accepted the coins, the unconventional ruffian boss finally revealed his true colors, “Alright, the deal is done! Old Li, remember, tomorrow you owe me seventy coins—don’t forget! Ha, ha… Brothers, let’s go!”
“Brother San, that was brilliant! Truly brilliant! You’re the boss I, Bingshan, admire most…” The short, fat Bingshan gave a heavy thumbs-up, sincerely bowing to his leader’s tactics.
“Boss, you’re our idol—no, the idol of the entire Liubang Town—,” the tall, thin You Tiao chimed in enthusiastically, the two of them heaping praise upon the promising young ruffian.
“Ha, ha…” Qiao San threw his head back in laughter, his self-satisfied and arrogant cackle lasting until the next day.
“Old Li, got the money yet?” Qiao San still wore a smile, but in the townspeople’s eyes, it was definitely a devil’s grin.
Before Old Li could respond, Bingshan and You Tiao were already tapping a ledger and abacus, striking a pose. “Old Li, if you can’t pay today, tomorrow it’ll be one hundred coins with interest, and the day after that it’ll compound again…”
Among the crowd, the father and son duo had appeared again in the shadows. It seemed they truly had great interest in Qiao San.
“T…Three Master, here, this is the sixty coins I owe you!” The clattering of the ruffians’ abacus was met with shock in reality—Old Li actually had money to repay!
“Hehe… The ‘Great Criminal Hero’ visited my humble abode last night, so…”
“Darn it! That blasted ‘Great Criminal Hero’ again, cutting off my income! Sigh…” Qiao San let out a “grieved and indignant” howl to the heavens, tearfully accepting the seventy coins. Although he made twenty coins profit, he hadn’t collected Old Li’s protection fee for the past two days, so he actually ended up losing twenty coins.
Waaah… Even a ruffian had suffered a loss—how could he not cry?!
“Boss, let’s capture that blasted ‘Great Criminal Hero’ and skin him alive!” Several young ruffians were equally furious.
“Bang!” Qiao San casually knocked each of his subordinates on the head and weakly scolded, “Idiots, do you think you can catch him?! Even combined efforts of the major ruffian bosses ended in disgrace. Do you really think you can do it? Forget it, retreat!”
The previous glory instantly vanished, and these guys were truly pitiful today. The crowd couldn’t help but cheer loudly—even though they knew they would still be oppressed tomorrow, they thoroughly enjoyed the moment.
As the show ended, the middle-aged scholar stroked his black beard and said to the angry youth, “Zheng’er, come. It’s time for us to assume our new posts!”
“Father, rest assured. I will definitely help you arrest all the ruffians in Liubang Town, making our Beigong family stand out in the imperial court!”
In the quiet whispers of this mysterious father and son duo, a stormy upheaval began. Liubang Town—the holy land of ruffians—was finally about to face a tempest!
The matter of the Ghost Forest gradually faded from people’s forgetful memories, while Qiao San resumed his blissful life of idleness.
Just when everything seemed to return to normal, the government office in Liubang Town was suddenly thrown into chaos, making ruffians within a thousand miles anxious.
The county magistrate, who had colluded with the ruffians, was removed and investigated overnight, replaced by a sudden newcomer surnamed Beigong.
“Breaking news! To rectify the border stronghold, the imperial court specially appointed Beigong Ping, the renowned detective from Aolai Country, as the acting county magistrate, taking over from the civilian official effective immediately!”
“Ahh!” When Qiao San saw this notice, his first thought was of that unfamiliar father and son. Although he had never met the famous detective Beigong Ping, he was 100% certain that the seemingly polite and refined middle-aged scholar must be the new magistrate and the number one enemy of the ruffians—the detective Beigong Ping!
“Waaah… Boss, we’re in trouble!” Bingshan and You Tiao were the first to “roll” in front of Qiao San, shouting the news loudly.
Qiao San placed one foot on a long bench, smiling indifferently, “This doesn’t concern us small fry. If that so-called detective wants to target anyone, it’ll be the major ruffian bosses. Gagaga… We’ll just keep drinking, chasing women, and collecting money as usual!”
“Gagaga…” The gang of hooligans laughed together. Thin and small Jiu suddenly muttered, “Boss, thank goodness you weren’t the top boss this time, or you’d have directly clashed with that damned detective!”
“Hehe… This is exactly what they call a blessing in disguise!”
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