Chapter 1: The Unexpected Arrival

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  A transport plane from the British Royal Air Force landed steadily on the runway of Shanghai Longhua Airport under the warm sunshine.

  The cabin door opened and a sunny man wearing casual military uniform and sunglasses, carrying a large suitcase, walked down the cloud ladder.

  His outfit is quite unconventional, not to mention the sunglasses that make it impossible for others to see his eyes, giving off an air of mystery that's hard to decipher. Just look at that casual military attire, which is particularly eye-catching - in this era, it's a standout, one-of-a-kind fashion statement that's truly unique on this planet.

  Breathing in the fresh air, this is a refreshing feeling that is n times stronger than the 21st century. Zhang Meng only felt an unspeakable comfort all over his body.

  This British Royal Air Force transport plane was naturally hired by Zhang Meng with his money. If someone asked him how a Chinese could hire a British military transport plane, Zhang Meng would only answer - Money can make the devil push the mill.

  If someone else asks him where he got the money to hire a British plane, Zhang Meng will inevitably smile and answer - I robbed a bank, do you believe it?

  No one would believe it except for the two women who followed Zhang Meng off the plane - Zhang Wei and Xiao Zhao.

  Zhang Wei looked especially beautiful today, originally a beauty with long hair, and today she wore a white plum blossom cheongsam and blue high heels that matched her tall and slender figure perfectly, completely setting off her curvaceous figure.

  Perhaps this outfit was to match the $1 million blue sapphire necklace she wore on her chest, because that blue sapphire instantly brought out her noble temperament.

  Of course, the gemstone was still the one that Zhang Meng had taken from the Japanese bank, but it had been reworked and repackaged into a completely different blue sapphire necklace.

  Unlike Zhang Wei's cold and noble beauty, the little maid Xiao Zhao beside her dare not wear more beautiful clothes than Zhang Wei, but has another kind of elf-like loli beauty, absolutely a killer type for otaku.

  If Zhang Meng were a bit more wicked, he would have directly pushed Xiao Zhao down. Even if he temporarily didn't push her down because of his affection for her young age, he still didn't hesitate to take advantage of her innocence. Since Zhang Meng gave her that golden bangle, it was as if it had become a token of their love, and not long after, Xiao Zhao's first kiss was given to him, and the relationship between the two became ambiguous.

  Of course this is a secret between Zhang Meng and Xiao Zhao, and Zhang Wei was also kept in the dark.

  It was Zhang Fu, the old steward of the Zhang family, his young son Zhang Cheng and more than a dozen guards who came to pick him up, mobilizing five or six cars, making a big show.

  Maybe they knew Zhang Meng had offended the Japanese and deliberately strengthened security!

  Zhang Fu is fifty-three years old this year. He has been a trusted person of the Zhang family since his grandfather's generation, in other words, he is a loyal servant. He can be said to be extremely loyal to the Zhang family, so both Zhang Meng and Zhang Wei call him "Fu Bo".

  "Uncle Fu, why have you come? It would be enough to let Ah Cheng come over!"

  Zhang Wei is very close to Fu Bo, and at the first moment, she took the initiative to greet him, without any airs of a young lady.

  Fu Bo saw that the two siblings were also very happy, especially Zhang Meng. When he heard the news of his serious injury on the battlefield, he was like Zhang Meng's parents, unable to eat or sleep well for days, showing how deep and sincere their relationship was.

  Zhang Meng also said: "Yes, Fu Bo, let Ah Cheng come and it will be fine! You should also rest and enjoy your blessings!"

  Fu Bo smiled and said: "It doesn't matter, seeing that young master is back safely I am at ease."

  "As long as I see the young master return safely, it's more effective than my father eating a peach of immortality!"

  Zhang Cheng is the same age as Zhang Meng, and is now the head of security for the Zhang family. The young man looks robust, with a sharp gaze. As they chatted, he quickly walked over to greet them, taking the suitcase from Zhang Meng's hand and putting it directly into the trunk of the car.

  "It's getting late, Master and Madam have prepared a dinner for Young Master, let's head back now."

  "Wait! Let's go somewhere first!"

  Zhang Meng's words left everyone perplexed, and Zhang Wei couldn't help but ask first: "Brother, where are you going first? Don't provoke Grandfather, he'll scold you!"

  Zhang Meng smiled and ordered Zhang Cheng: "A Cheng, go to the west prison first!"

  The West Prison was Shanghai's earliest Western-style prison, located on Ward Road in the Public Concession. It was later known as the precursor to the Tilanqiao Prison, which would be dubbed "the First Prison of the Far East". At this time it was managed by the British.

  In Hong Kong, Zhang Meng had already gained a detailed understanding of the people in the Zhang family through Zhang Wei and Xiao Zhao. This was not difficult for Zhang Meng.

  Because it was known that Fu Bo's eldest son, Zhang Zhong, had taken the blame for Zhang Meng three years ago and was charged with excessive defense resulting in the death of a Japanese ronin in the public concession. Although at the time Zhang Meng had bravely rescued a girl who was being bullied by a Japanese ronin and killed him in the process, in the end Zhang Zhong took the blame for Zhang Meng's crime and Zhang Meng escaped to Huangpu Military Academy to avoid punishment.

  The Japanese in China are very arrogant, and the British authorities do not dare to offend them. If it were not for Zhang Meng's father, Zhang Xin Hai, who spent a lot of money bribing the court, they would probably have executed Zhang Zhong directly. Even so, Zhang Zhong was still sentenced to life imprisonment.

  Zhang Meng knew that a loyal and dedicated follower like Zhang Zhong was extremely rare, and if he could rescue him, he would definitely become his trusted confidant in the future.

  As soon as they mentioned Xilou, Zhang's family in the car and Zhang Wei understood Zhang Meng's intention, 80% of which was to visit Zhang Zhong.

  Zhang's father and son were naturally very pleased, which could be felt from their eyes. But Zhang Wei secretly pinched Zhang Meng's thigh and whispered in his ear: "Okay, you're good at buying people's hearts!"

  Zhang Meng was pinched by her and felt a sharp pain, knowing that he didn't discuss with her this time, so he quickly apologized in a low voice.

  "Never mind! It's fine this way! You have your own ideas and I can rest assured! This is better than what I did, and Brother's spirit in heaven will surely appreciate you!"

  The two of them whispered to each other and soon arrived outside the west prison gate.

  Everyone thought Zhang Meng just went in to see Zhang Zhong, but unexpectedly, Zhang Meng brought Zhang Zhong out shortly after entering.

  How is this possible? Something that Lao Ye spent a lot of money on and couldn't accomplish, Zhang Meng actually managed to pull off.

  Zhang Wei couldn't help but ask when the fake brother in front of her had become so formidable.

  Watching Zhang Zhong reunite with his father and brother, hugging each other excitedly, Zhang Meng also felt that the effort he put in was worthwhile and exciting. He quietly told Zhang Wei about it.

  It turned out that Zhang Meng's series of crimes in Hong Kong did not leave any evidence, but people with ulterior motives couldn't help but suspect him.

  The Japanese Consulate in Hong Kong was not short of clever and capable people, who had long suspected that it was Zhang ** who did it. However, they were unable to take action due to lack of direct evidence, and the British Hong Kong government would not allow them to move against Zhang Meng without their consent. The Sakai family had already issued a **wanted order** to kill Zhang Meng, with a reward of $100,000, and was putting pressure on the British Hong Kong government through the Japanese authorities.

  In this case, Zhang Meng wanted to leave Hong Kong and could only ask Governor Cammell. After the war, the British economy was not good, and Governor Cammell did not get any benefits either. Zhang Meng robbed the Japanese-owned Bank of China and got over $2.3 million in US dollars, took out $100,000 and directly bribed Governor Cammell, who issued a letter allowing him to leave Hong Kong smoothly by British military transport plane. At the same time, Governor Cammell was also friends with the warden of Victoria Prison and officials of the Public Rental Housing Department, Zhang Meng asked him to call them to help smooth out relations for Zhang Zhong, and obtained a death certificate for Zhang Zhong in prison, allowing him to be released early.

  However, Zhang Meng paid an additional $30,000 for this.

  Thirty thousand dollars was a staggering sum in those days, equivalent to one hundred thousand silver dollars (at the 1928 exchange rate), especially for Zhang Zhong's family, a debt that would take a lifetime to repay.

  "Master, how can I be worth 30,000 US dollars? This debt will take our whole family a lifetime to repay!"

  After Third Brother was happy, he didn't forget to come over and thank Zhang Meng. But when they heard that it took 30,000 US dollars to redeem Zhang Zhong, the whole Zhang Fu family was suddenly scared silly.

  Zhang Meng burst out laughing and said, "What's with the talk of paying back or not? We're all family. Ah Zhong went to prison on my behalf, just like a brother. No matter how much money it takes or what the cost is, we have to get him out."

  Next to her, Zhang Wei rolled her eyes and thought that this cheap brother was really good at buying people's hearts. She watched as Ah Zhong knelt down and vowed to follow Zhang Meng for the rest of his life without any second thoughts. Even Fu Bo and Ah Cheng were filled with gratitude. All she could do was smile wryly, thinking to herself: Who knows if this cheap brother she brought back will be a good or bad thing for the Zhang family in the future.

  However, she believed in her own judgment. Although this man looked fierce like a tiger and cunning like a fox at times, his inner nature was still kind.

  Hmph! As long as your heart is still a sentimental little sheep, even if you're armed to the teeth on the outside, this big sister has ways to deal with you.

  Thinking of this, Zhang Wei glanced at Xiao Zhao beside her and a mysterious smile appeared on her face.