Chapter 1: The Last Eunuch of the Republic

  The sky in Shanghai is shrouded in dark clouds, with a steady drizzle of rain that shows no signs of letting up. This weather has been going on for a week now and doesn't seem to be easing up at all.

  Du Haisheng sat in a wooden rattan chair near the window, his face solemn, his eyes revealing a deep introspection. As he pondered, he let out soft sighs from his mouth, and the wooden rattan chair creaked, making a faint squeaking sound. His restless mind didn't notice this jarring noise, as he gazed at the dazzling Shanghai landscape under the newly lit streetlights, momentarily forgetting to breathe, in a silence that was suffocating.

  He was just an ordinary martial arts family's son in his past life, after failing the college entrance exam he went to the army, relying on his excellent quality and physical condition, he became a true soldier king of the army. Unfortunately, while leading new recruits for the last day of outdoor training, he accidentally fell into a cliff, when he woke up again, sadly found that he had crossed over. Fortunately, he crossed over to a big city - Shanghai, unfortunately, his reborn environment was in 1927, the era when Shanghai was most turbulent and chaotic with heroes rising everywhere.

  I've always thought that I hadn't done anything morally wrong since I was young, but this dog-blooded plot twist is even less likely than winning the lottery. And yet, I, a jinxed person, encountered it. Not only did I encounter it, but I also got reborn into the chaotic Shanghai Bund. It seems that when one's moral character reaches a certain level, even fate becomes extremely unusual.

  "Damn it all..." Du Haisheng got angrier the more he thought about it, and couldn't help but clench his fists and shout loudly at the world outside the window.

  "Brother!"

  A sweet voice came from the staircase, Du Haisheng turned his head and forced a smile at the girl wearing a white dress, asking: "Wei'er, how did you come here? Is your piano practice over?"

  Wei Er was his lifesaver and the master of this house's treasured darling, Wei Er's father Zhao Tian Ming, Shanghai Hu Ren Gang's big boss, a standard Shandong man, came to Shanghai to make a name for himself after several years, finally mixing out his own territory. Although Hu Ren Gang wasn't large, in the Shanghai where gangs were everywhere, it was respected because Zhao Tian Ming was righteous, loyal to friends, and more importantly, he had a daughter who could be called a national beauty.

  Zhao Tianming was originally a roughneck, and it's unclear what happened to his brain, but he actually brought back a piano from abroad and forced his daughter to play elegant music with all his might. Every time Zhao Wei played the piano, he would sit on the sofa with his eyes closed in rapture, and when she finished, he would shout "Bravo!" twice.

  Du Haisheng found the father-daughter duo's performance hilarious. Zhao Wei didn't have any musical cells, having played piano for four years and hired many masters, but her skills were still mediocre and unpleasant to listen to. In his day, she wouldn't even pass the first level of piano, let alone the eighth level. On the other hand, this girl was quite skilled with her hands, able to take down four or five big men. This was indeed a case of a daughter following in her father's footsteps.

  "The piano has nothing good to play, it's not as pleasant as playing with cotton flowers at home."

  She glanced around, and the little girl's eyes blinked, running to Du Haisheng's side, whispering mysteriously: "My dad is not at home today, hehe, I declare a holiday for myself!"

  Du Haisheng rolled his eyes, able to link playing the piano and popping cotton balls together. In 1927's Republic of China, this was truly unprecedented! This girl is quite fierce!

  "Aren't you afraid I'll tell your dad?"

  "How dare you!"

  Xiao Yatou heard Du Haisheng's threat to herself, her small face tightened, not retreating but advancing, sticking to his body, without saying a word, she was about to take action to pull the zipper of her dress.

  "What are you doing?"

  Du Haisheng hastily intervened, finding the situation unfavorable. Faced with this national beauty, he was actually delighted to appreciate the different scenery inside her clothes. Unfortunately, this was in Shanghai, in the Tiger Benevolent Society's old nest, flirting with a society leader's precious gem would lead to his own downfall, and he would be torn apart.

  "Hehe, are you daring to tell my dad? I'll immediately take off my clothes and say you molested me. Haha, Haisheng brother, do you think my dad will believe you or me?"

  The little girl said with a sly smile, her voice was small but it hurt more than a steel needle.

  "You..."

  Du Haisheng's face suddenly fell, like a deflated balloon. He threw up his hands and said, "Alright, you're ruthless enough! I surrender, you win! Are you satisfied?"

  He knew that Zhao Wei was a beautiful girl, looking innocent and harmless, but she had many tricks up her sleeve, just like her old man. If he dared to expose her laziness, Du Haisheng knew that this girl would absolutely not care about his appreciation for her. And then, the consequences were predictable, his journey of rebirth was completely ruined.

  Who says modern women are open-minded? Look at this chick, 18 years old, and she's really not ordinary, even the way she threatens others is so... unconventional.

  "This is just about right!"

  Zhao Wei'er had a triumphant look on her face, with an air of beauty and elegance, and replied with satisfaction.

  "Hai Sheng Ge, to be honest, do you want to see my body?"

  Her words almost shocked Du Haisheng off the wooden chair, facing the naked provocation, those extremely tempting lips and flirtatious face, as a big man, if you say you don't want to, it's better to just castrate yourself, if you say you do, what if this girl really takes off her clothes for you to see, your eyes will be satisfied, but the consequences are unimaginable.

  Du Haisheng's heart was filled with anxiety, whether to take off or not, it was really a dilemma...

  "Hmph..."

  At the moment when Du Haisheng was struggling, Zhao Wei'er couldn't help but burst out laughing and whispered in his ear with a seductive tone: "Want to see? My body isn't that cheap. You don't have the capital now, wait until you're qualified later, I'll let you look your fill every day."

  This remark made Du Haisheng choke, and at this rate of conversation, he was really worried that something untold would happen between the two tonight. He quickly got up from the wooden chair, took a look at Zhao Wei'er who was full of absolute temptation, suppressed his unrealistic thoughts, and calmly asked: "Little girl, you didn't come here just to tease Haisheng, did you?"

  "Dad says the world is too chaotic now, it's all about hacking and killing every day, death is as common as a home-cooked meal. He doesn't let me out, but being cooped up at home staring at that broken piano is really boring. Why don't you take me out for a spin? It'll be fun to see the outside world! Two gangs fighting, it must be thrilling!"

  This, what is this girl thinking? Du Haisheng was completely speechless. Chopping and killing seemed to be the synonym for excitement in her mind. Violence, this girl must have a tendency towards violence, I'd better keep my distance from now on.

  Du Haisheng made a hesitant expression and said, "This isn't good, is it? If your old man finds out you're going out with me, he'll skin me alive when we get back. And now, outside, it's all about fighting and killing. Although I'm not one to deceive children, those rascals will definitely have ulterior motives if they see how beautiful and lovely you look."

  "How dare they!"

  Zhao Wei'er gained momentum: "In Shanghai, who doesn't give Tiger Ren a helping hand? My old man Zhao Tianming has some influence in this area. If anyone dares to move against me, it's laughable!"

  It's really a case of "a tiger father has no inferior son"! Look at her, although she is just a woman, the words she says are not one bit less powerful than her old man. Du Haisheng muttered to himself for a moment before continuing: "Your name Zhao Wei may be well-known among people who know you, but what about those who don't? They won't care if you're the young mistress of the Zhao family or not. What if something happens, how can I explain it to your father?"

  This was not because he was timid, in 1927 Shanghai, Du Haisheng had at least learned from history books, especially the ones he read as a child, "Shanghai Bund", "Ma Yongzhen". In this era of Shanghai, no matter how small, if someone wanted to deal with you sincerely, no one could guarantee that they would wake up the next day. Zhao Tianming's Hu Ren Gang had only about 100 brothers, in the Shanghai where gangs were everywhere, it was just a sparrow with steel teeth, compared to "Axe Gang", "Qinglonghui" was simply worlds apart, in Zhabei it was still somewhat famous, but outside of Zhabei, any gang would not take Zhao Tianming and Hu Ren Gang seriously.

  After all, Zhao Wei'er is still a young girl who has just turned eighteen and has not experienced much of the world. She only has her martial arts skills and her wild nature, but once she encounters real danger, she will definitely be at a loss. In this era's big Shanghai, it's not just about comparing martial arts skills, sometimes being cunning and smooth is more important than being straightforward and having strong martial arts skills. Think of Ma Yongzhen as the best example. Du Haisheng, who has been reborn, deeply understands this principle and will absolutely not be a rash and impulsive martial artist. To mix in and create his own world, he must be able to adapt and navigate through different situations, only then can he become a legendary hero.

  "What's there to be afraid of? If some little rascal dares to flirt with me, I'll beat him until he's picking up his teeth from the ground. And if that doesn't work, isn't there still you, Haisheng brother?"

  Zhao Wei'er showed a disdainful attitude towards Du Haisheng's words, in her opinion, she was the queen of this generation of Zhabei Luokou, whoever dared to provoke her would be dealt with, no matter what.

  "Me?"

  Du Haisheng pointed at his own nose and then smiled wryly: "I don't know any kung fu, so don't expect me to protect you. If I can just protect myself, that's already pretty good!"

  It seems that her father's transformation plan was not successful after all. He had originally wanted his daughter to be well-versed in music, chess, calligraphy and painting, and to remove the label of being a nouveau riche family. In front of outsiders, she should have been able to put on the airs of a refined young lady. But looking at the current situation, it's truly pitiful. This little girl is obviously an even more sinister and cunning character than her father, with not one bit of refinement or elegance.

  "Are you still a man?"

  Zhao Wei'er finally got anxious, stamped her foot, gave Du Haisheng a cold glance, and started to mock him: "I think you're just a cowardly bear who is afraid of everything. If you weren't standing in front of me, I would have declared that the things you said make you absolutely the last eunuch of the Republic of China. You don't even have any dignity! I'm ashamed that I even saved you!"

  Du Haisheng was suddenly speechless, cursing in his heart. He said that he would say it, but how could he launch a personal attack? The last eunuch of the Republic of China, who said this, I am a pure man, not fallen, don't believe me, let's take off our pants and try.

  He knew that for a long time to come, he would still have to rely on the Zhao family's not-too-big-or-small tree to shield himself from the wind and rain, so it wasn't worth going against a small woman.

  "Okay, I'll go with you, but you have to promise me one thing!"

  "What conditions?"

  When Du Haisheng responded to her, Zhao Wei'er was excited and asked with a smile, once making Du Haisheng mistakenly think that the girl in front of him was the dream lover he had been searching for, a representative of innocence and purity.

  "To avoid unnecessary trouble, go change your clothes. And when we go out, everything must be done according to my instructions. Don't run around randomly and don't cause any trouble. After crossing the road, come back immediately."

  "Alright, alright, I agree with you on everything."

  Zhao Wei'er nodded vigorously and got up to return to her own room to change equipment. Suddenly, she thought of something and turned back to ask: "What is a roadblock?"

  "What's with all these questions? Hurry up and go! If your dad comes back, we'll both be in trouble."

  Du Haisheng didn't want to get entangled in these issues, after all those words only belonged to the 21st century self, she wouldn't understand even if he explained, his face turned red as he scolded.

  Zhao Wei'er let out an "oh" and stuck out her tongue, playfully making a face at Du Haisheng before excitedly rushing back to her own room to get dressed.

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