Chapter Fifteen: Benevolence and Righteousness

  Back in the city from Yu Zhu Wharf, it was already 12:30. Li Tiegui got off at the East Gate with his dozen or so brothers and, after instructing An Wei a few words, they formed up and left. An Wei drove back alone along the riverside highway, but before he reached Tianzi Wharf, his way was blocked by thousands of students from various universities in Guangzhou who were marching in a mighty procession. An Wei had no choice but to pull over to the side and stop behind two small cars belonging to the National Government, where he leaned against the window and admired the crowds of enthusiastic young men and women and the endless revolutionary banners. Slogans like "Kill Chen Jiongming" brought forth thunderous cheers from the crowd, but An Wei couldn't help but think: if Chen Jiongming were to see or hear this, would he give the order to open fire?

  A large contingent of women's normal school students marched by, carrying banners and shouting slogans, leaving An Wei in awe. The usually demure young ladies, who normally walked with their eyes cast down, were now flushed and shouting at the top of their lungs. These slender or plump young women were completely absorbed in the moment, their voices hoarse from shouting, their teeth bared in excitement. What left An Wei most impressed was that the girls carrying the heavy banners seemed impervious to fatigue, unlike their usual fragile selves who would be panting and sweating after just a few quick steps. The revolutionary fervor bursting forth from these young ladies was truly astonishing.

  "Knock knock——"

  Two short-haired girls patted An Yi's right car door twice, and An Yi quickly turned his head. Seeing the person who patted the door clearly, he immediately revealed a charming smile: "Miss Jin, and Miss Pan, haha! I saw you two at the flower market on the third day of junior high school, and I thought you were both still celebrating the New Year at home. How is it? You can gather so many classmates to go shopping before school starts?"

  " Bah! You oily-tongued guy, not a shred of revolutionary awareness, how can you say that the tens of thousands of patriotic students supporting the revolutionary army's Eastern Expedition is just strolling around? How embarrassing for you to be brothers with so many Whampoa military men, and yet have such a mindset?" Pan Huichen bluntly criticized An Yi.

  An Yi smiled and saw Jin Hui-shu constantly sizing up the empty car compartment, knowing that something was wrong. He quickly came up with an excuse: "Haha... wasn't I just joking? In fact, I also support the Eastern Expedition. With so many of my brothers facing gunfire on the front lines, how could I not be moved? To tell you two the truth, I just returned from Yuzhu Wharf, transporting a batch of supplies for the Huangpu Army. Along the way, I even ran into Old He and several others leading a group of Military Union brothers to join forces with the main troops. If our car hadn't almost run out of gas, I would have immediately let them get in and turned back to Yuzhu Wharf. I wanted to catch a glimpse of the Huangpu generals' majestic appearance from afar, but unfortunately, our boss is too stingy and never gives us enough gas. What a pity!"

  Jin Hui-shu was somewhat disappointed: "I thought so, I wanted to invite you to join our team and put all the flags on your car for a parade. It seems that's not possible now. However, you're really great, using actual actions to support the revolutionary cause, which is worth learning from. But... but it seems like when you speak, you don't take things seriously, often saying something good followed by some nonsense. You should change this in the future."

  "He's so upright in appearance, but when he speaks, he's all over the place, it's infuriating!"

  Pan Huiqin glared at An Yi, pulling Jin Huishu back into the procession. An Yi politely waved goodbye to the two of them, watching as their energetic figures disappeared into the crowd. He couldn't help but wipe away a sweat, thinking that it would be best if they didn't meet again in the future, lest he say something wrong and end up with another lecture on politics.

  More than half an hour later, An Yi drove back to the Shanghang courtyard, parked the car, and a tempting dog meat aroma came immediately. An Yi sniffed his nose, got out of the car, locked the door, and was about to walk towards the residence of Abao and others behind the gatehouse when Chen Zhanggui had already walked quickly in front of him.

  "Hand over the car keys." Chen Zhanggui stretched out his hand coldly.

  An Wei smiled slightly and handed over the key: "When I came back, I was blocked by a procession of students and citizens for half an hour."

  "Am I blind?"

  Chen Zhuang looked at An Yi with displeasure: "From today on, you don't have to drive anymore. What if the military requisitions such an expensive car? Our eight major business lines will also be closed from today. But you can't rest. You must take turns being on duty with Ah Pi and the others. How you arrange the shifts is up to you. Did you hear that clearly?"

  "I understand."

  An Yi had no complaints. He thought it was better this way. His father could take time off to buy a house.

  Chen Zhanggui just left. Abiao and several shop assistants immediately surrounded him. Everyone was very dissatisfied with Chen Zhanggui's attitude. After a round of complaints, they all said that An Yi had a good temper. Abiao angrily said: "I worked hard to stew a pot of dog meat for you to come back. Who knew that Chen Sanye smelled the fragrance and came over. One person ate more than half of it. Not even a word of thanks, just patted his butt and left! What a scoundrel!"

  An Yi looked at the front hall in surprise, turned to A Pi and smiled: "Who made your stewed dog meat so delicious? I smelled the fragrance as soon as I drove in, haha! Forget it, next time I'll pay for you to do it. Anyway, we have to take turns guarding the store and warehouse day and night, there are plenty of opportunities."

  Everyone felt a bit more at ease, and Abao, who had not fulfilled his promise, said generously: "You've just driven back and must be tired. Go back and rest, sleep in tomorrow, have lunch, and then come over to discuss the shift arrangement together. I'll cover the shift today."

  "Then I'll trouble everyone, Abiao you know where I live, if there's an urgent matter just call me, I'm leaving." An Yi smiled and walked towards the back door, greeted the old doorman and left through the small gate.

  All the way home, Anyi kept thinking about the Eastern Expedition and Chen's attitude problem. Unconsciously, he walked past the stewed goods store and finally had to come back, nodding at the familiar boss lady to buy a large pot of stewed chicken, including the big casserole in the basket to take back, saying that it would be returned early tomorrow morning.

  Just as he walked to the entrance of Puzi Street, An Yi saw a group of people crying and supporting each other in the middle of which was the figure of Ou Zongguan. He couldn't help but be startled, stood still for a moment, then quietly walked over to Ou Zongguan's side and asked in a low voice: "Uncle Ou, what's going on?"

  The old housekeeper wiped away his tears and saw that it was An Yi. He sighed: "Little Yi, I'm also moving to Hong Kong with my family tomorrow. The master has already found a house for us. I came to say goodbye to our relatives today, but didn't expect them to want to move to Hong Kong too. However, they can't bear to part with the house they just bought two years ago. It's all their life savings, and they even sold their ancestral home in Dongguan to make ends meet. Now, who would buy it? Everyone wants to escape and sell their houses, but where are the buyers?"

  An Yi's heart moved and he hastily comforted him, saying: "Uncle Ou, actually there is no need to panic. I think Chen Jiongming cannot break into Guangzhou City, so you can rest assured and live here."

  "Uncle Ou shook his head: 'You're still young, you don't understand the hardships of war. If it were really Chen Jiongming coming back, we wouldn't be in a hurry. We can endure for now, and the war will eventually pass. He won't treat our province's people too cruelly; he also needs to collect taxes and have someone to govern. But nowadays, the world has changed, and the warlords from other provinces are getting more and more brutal. They don't care if you're from Guangdong or Guangxi; in their eyes, there's no such thing as hometown or neighbors. We're afraid! Alas... I'm also having a hard time myself. Although my master helped me find a place to live, every penny is precious in Hong Kong. I want to help my relatives, but I have the heart but not the means. Seeing their whole family so desperate, it's really hard for me to bear...'

  An Yi sighed: "Uncle Ou, where is this house of your relative? How much does it sell for?"

  "Just at the entrance of this street, entering the second courtyard, Pujiyao Fang is next to... Xiao Yi, you ask me what's going on? Could it be that you know who wants to buy a house?" Yu Shu looked at An Yi in surprise.

  An Yi smiled and said, "To be honest with you, Uncle Ou, I was thinking of buying it. You also know that I've been renting a house at the corner of Chaoxing Street, near the Qi family's mansion. These past few months, Mr. Ou has given me a high salary, which I've saved up, and adding the red envelopes from before Chinese New Year, I think I can afford it if it's not too expensive. The only thing is, I don't know if the house is too big for me to afford."

  "No, no! Xiao Yi, if someone else were to buy a house at this time, I and your family would be overjoyed. But you can't do it, I won't watch you use the money you've worked so hard to save to buy a house that will become a ruin in just a few days. A Ou wouldn't do such a thing." Uncle Ou waved his hand repeatedly: "Alright, go back now, don't worry about it, we'll think of another way."

  An Yi grasped Ou's hand and said sincerely, "Uncle Ou, I believe in my own judgment. Chen Jiongming can't break into Guangzhou City, and the warlords from other provinces can't dominate Guangzhou City for long. Generally speaking, it's still safe. If your relatives don't want to sell this house, then so be it. But if they really decide to move to Hong Kong with their family, who they sell it to doesn't matter, does it? I'm young and don't have many burdens. Even if I buy back the house and it's destroyed the next day, I won't spend my whole life hanging my head in shame. One day, I'll rebuild a new house on the ruins. After all, I'm young! You always say that youth is the greatest asset, don't you?"

  "Uncle Ou sighed: "Xiao Yi, think carefully, are you sure you want to buy it?""

  "Uncle Ou, I really want to buy it, but it can't be too expensive, or I won't have the ability. You tell me, how much money?" An Yi didn't care about what the house looked like anymore, he thought that since he couldn't persuade them back, he might as well think of a way to help this family, and at the same time make it convenient for himself. The amount of money wasn't a problem, it was all earned by people, and with his own skills, he wasn't afraid of not being able to earn money?

  "Alas... your stubborn temper hasn't changed a bit, wait for me!"

  Uncle Ou walked into the crowd and called out to his wife, and together they helped their crying mother-in-law out and stood in front of An Yi, comforting her: "Mother-in-law, this is our company's Xiao Yi, a sensible and righteous young man. He's the one I told you before who has skills even better than foreigners. Now he wants to buy your house, name a price."

  A middle-aged woman with a tear-stained face and runny nose immediately wiped away her tears: "Great, great, thank goodness... I'll buy it no matter how much money it costs!"

  An Yi couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time, and asked again in a gentle tone: "Auntie, how much did you buy this house for back then?"

  "Four hundred and sixty bucks, now you're in a state of war, just give me any price."

  An Yi turned to Ou Zongguan: "Uncle Ou, say something, can't be so ambiguous. You're leaving tomorrow, and Auntie's whole family is old and young... At this time, talking about etiquette is not a big deal!"

  "Alright, I'll take charge! Xiao Yi, just give 180 yuan and we'll consider it a lucky deal!"

  An Yi smiled with relief: "Alright, I'll give 380 yuan, it's an auspicious number, and we won't argue about it anymore. Uncle Ou, would you please help me draft a written agreement? Please prepare the original land deed and house deed together, and invite two neighbors to witness it. I'll take care of the thank-you gift for the neighbors. I need to send this chicken soup back to the patient first, and I'll be back in an hour."

  "Alas... hello... Xiao Yi, you haven't even looked at the house yet, we can't accept so much money from you."

  "I trust you, Uncle Ou, go and get ready, I'll be back soon..."

  An Yi finished speaking, and he was already ten meters away. The Ou uncle and aunt at the street corner, as well as their family members, were moved to tears again. Uncle Ou gazed at An Yi's figure disappearing into the distance at Chaoxing Street Corner, muttering to himself: "Benevolence and righteousness! Benevolence and righteousness..."

  PS: Thank you all for the flowers and rewards, I didn't expect my new book to achieve such results! I'm deeply grateful! Finally, I'll continue to ask for recommendation votes, let's see if we can climb even higher!