Wu Guo Hezhong Prefecture, Liyang County.
Winter season.
"boom!"
There was a violent sound, and the dilapidated wooden door of the grocery store was kicked open.
I saw a stout, powerful man in his thirties and two followers striding in, "Hey, Ah Xing, why are you closing the door in broad daylight? No more business?"
"Master Cheng!"
Opposite is a handsome young man wearing a coarse short shirt. His name is Yang Xing. Seeing Mr. Cheng walk in, he quickly stood up from the counter and said with a smile on his face: "The door is closed because of the wind. Isn't this waiting for you to pay the first payment of this month?"
After speaking, Yang Xing took out three coarse cloth bags from behind.
It is said to be the first payment, but in fact, it is protection money to put it bluntly.
Mr. Cheng put his palm into the coarse cloth bag, and white rice grains came out from his fingertips. Occasionally, there was a little bran mixed in. He could tell the quality of the rice at a glance, "Since this month, it has increased by three kilograms."
"Three pounds!?"
Yang Xing looked troubled, took a deep breath and said, "Master Cheng, this refined grain is no longer enough. Can I use coarse grain instead?"
Taxes and gangs collect refined grains, and most people eat them mixed with miscellaneous grains, or even replace them with vegetables.
Mr. Cheng frowned and said, "Nine pounds of coarse grains."
Soon, Yang Xing took out nine kilograms of whole grains from under the counter and put them on the table.
Mr. Cheng took a brief look and said with a smile: "Ah Xing, why are you so happy this time? Could it be that you got rich recently?"
"Master Cheng is joking, you still don't know about Chunfeng Lane? If I get rich, how can I hide it from your discerning eyes?"
"The business of this grocery store is getting harder and harder. I'm just worried about people with ulterior motives causing trouble."
Speaking of this, Yang Xing rubbed his hands and said with a smile on his face: "I hope Master Cheng can take care of me more and make it easier to travel."
When Master Cheng heard this, he laughed and said, "Don't worry, since you paid the first payment, our Black Snake Gang will definitely protect you."
"Then thank you very much, Mr. Cheng!"
Yang Xing sent Master Cheng away with a smile, his face full of flattery and not displeased at all.
If he dared to shout "30 years to the east of Hedong, 30 years to the west of Hexi", he might be beaten to death on the spot.
Moreover, what a gangster like Mr. Cheng is best at is watching people's actions. Once he expresses some resentment, he may be punished with a lesson.
Yang Xing naturally knew this well.
"When someone is humiliated, he does not show his composure. A gentleman will take revenge even after ten years."
Yang Xing took a deep breath and secretly wrote down what happened today.
"These are the ones who have been stabbed a thousand times!"
At this moment, a middle-aged woman wearing a wooden hairpin, a coarse cloth skirt, and slightly poor skin came out.
At this time, she was gnashing her teeth, with a look of indignation on her face. It was Yang Xing's mother, Mrs. Chen.
"The official tax collection is only 30%, but they actually charge 40%..."
"Mom, it's useless to talk."
Yang Xing waved his hand and said, "In case the walls have ears, it would be bad for the Black Snake Gang to hear."
When Mrs. Chen heard this, she trembled with fright.
She knew very well how powerful these gangs were.
"Why!"
Mrs. Chen sighed in a low voice: "Your father died somewhere, leaving us orphans and widowed..."
Yang Xing's father suddenly disappeared a month ago and never appeared again.
In this world, there is only one possibility of disappearing.
When an ordinary family loses its backbone, it is undoubtedly a disaster.
Yang Xing comforted: "Mom, I will find a way."
He came through time.
It has been three months since Yang Xing came to this world. From being confused at first to calmly accepting it now.
This is a poor family of three who barely make ends meet by opening a grocery store.
But just a month ago, Yang Xing's father Yang Wang suddenly evaporated and disappeared completely.
Everyone thought Yang Wang was dead.
After all, it is normal for a common person to die in this world, just like the death of an ant.
The government officials only conducted a symbolic investigation, and then closed the case hastily and let it go.
And Yang Xing also thought about solving the family's livelihood.
But in this world, if you want to make money to support your family, you cannot avoid two words.
Gangs.
In the slums, whether you open a small shop or do business, you must pay money to the gang. If you have no background, you will be targeted by the gang as long as your business is good.
Either the business is given away and he becomes a part-time worker, or he is given a large sum of protection money every month and he can barely survive.
This is an era where ordinary people will be targeted if they have money.
But Yang Xing has one biggest support.
This support is the golden bronze mirror in his mind, which shows his destiny.
[Destiny: Diligence can make up for weakness, and you will succeed]
Through the residual information, Yang Xing learned about his destiny.
Any skill or technique, as long as Yang Xing keeps practicing, he can eventually master it and reach perfection.
In other words, all it takes is hard work to grind an iron rod into a needle!
There is no such thing as qualifications and bottlenecks.
If there is a technique for cultivating immortality and becoming a Taoist in this world, then through practice, if you can make up for your weakness with diligence, you will definitely be able to become an immortal and achieve Taoism.
Yang Xing felt hot inside.
It's a pity that since he traveled through time, he has never heard of legends about immortals at all. He only knows that there is a group of people who have some kind of internal refining method. These people are real masters.
Some of these masters are in gangs, some are in martial arts schools, and many of them are serving in the government.
However, it is very difficult to learn internal training methods.
For ordinary people, not only do they need certain connections, but they also need an economic foundation.
"What can you do?"
Mrs. Chen sighed and said: "Now we can't afford corn noodles, so we can only eat bran. If you're hungry, drink more water and you should be able to survive this winter..."
"Everyone come out!"
Dangdang---!
"Everyone come out!"
Dangdang--!
While Yang Xing was deep in thought, there was a sound of gongs and drums outside.
"problem occurs!"
When Yang Xing heard this, he frowned and walked out slowly.
At this time, the neighbors of Chunfeng Lane, Aunt Cuihua, Dashan Xiaoshan father and son, Uncle Wangcai and others all came out.
I saw men wearing clothes with the Black Snake Gang logo standing in a row, and the leader was Mr. Cheng.
At this time, Master Cheng had an angry look on his face, and two people were lying at his feet, screaming and wailing incessantly, the sound making people feel chilled.
These two people are Lao Wang and Xiao Wang.
Yang Xing naturally recognized these two people. Their family ran a blacksmith shop. Xiao Wang's name was Wang Hu and he grew up with Yang Xing.
"Everyone listen!"
Mr. Cheng shook his clothes, then glanced around and said coldly: "Wang Dexing is a piece of shit. He eats everything. Not only did he not pay the down payment, he even secretly sold weapons to our rival Black Snake Gang."
"Today, I am here to enforce the family law!"
As soon as the words fell, there was an uproar.
"Are the Wang family crazy?!"
"How dare you liaise with other gangs."
"Could it be... that a leopard becomes brave after eating a bear's heart?"
.......
Yang Xing felt strange in his heart. He took a look at Lao Wang's house. It was in a mess. Tables, chairs and benches had been kicked down, and people were beaten until they were begging for mercy.
As I thought, this was not the case: the Black Snake Gang raised the head money, but Lao Wang's family did not have that much food and could not pay it, so the Black Snake Gang's people searched everywhere, and then there were quarrels and even physical conflicts... ..
Cheng Ye naturally took advantage of the topic and took this opportunity to kill the chicken and show it to the monkey.
After all, many people would not be willing to raise the initial amount.
"no no....."
Just as Lao Wang was about to explain, Master Cheng slapped him hard.
Snapped!
Lao Wang was sent flying away by this slap. His whole body was in a state of disgrace, and his cheeks were swollen.
Master Cheng's eyes reflected a cold light, "Hit me, hit me hard, let him know what the rules are!"
Lao Wang and his son were beaten and howled repeatedly, making everyone in Chunfeng Lane feel sad.
Yang Xing knew that Master Cheng's goal had been achieved.
After a long time, Mr. Cheng waved his hand and said: "The gang rules have been implemented, but this money cannot be spared. Go in and search for me!"
Hear this.
The two followers rushed into Lao Wang's house like hungry wolves and smashed everything.
Click!
The quilt on the shabby bed was ripped open, and the cotton wool was scattered all over the floor...
boom!
The pots and pans were smashed directly!
"So it's hidden here!"
At this moment, a follower was surprised to find a box under the bed. There was a silver lock in the box, and he ran to Master Cheng like a treasure.
Lao Wang was a little confused. When he saw the silver lock, he still struggled violently, "That was left by the baby's mother..."
"Get out! You old man!"
"How dare you say you can't pay the initial payment for such a big silver lock? Old Wang, Old Wang, why do you think you are so confused? If I don't punish you cruelly today, everyone will be like you in the future, then I, Black Snake How can the gang gain a foothold?"
Master Cheng's voice was soft, but his eyes looked around fiercely.
Then, he stepped hard on Lao Wang's knee.
"ah--!"
The sound of bones breaking was mixed with Lao Wang's screams, and the person fainted.
"let's go!"
Master Cheng left directly with everyone in the Black Snake Gang.
"father--!"
Wang Hu crawled towards his father with tears in his eyes.
Seeing this, Yang Xing sighed in his heart: If he couldn't pay the down payment, I'm afraid my family's fate would be even worse than now.
In addition to the mafia gang's first payment, various exorbitant taxes and levies from the government are also indispensable.
This world is difficult!
For example, the old Wang family and his son are businessmen. Nowadays, the world is difficult, and their family can't even make the first payment.
Dashan and his son run a medical clinic. They are always busy with business and their lives are tight.
Aunt Cuihua sells tofu. She works hard from dawn to dusk and can only make ends meet.
Seeing Lao Wang and his son fall to the ground, and the house was in a mess, everyone present shook their heads and dispersed.
Yang Xing was also silent.
The situation in my own home may not be much better than that of Lao Wang's.
He sympathized with Lao Wang and his son, but who would sympathize with him?
