Now the tricycle had only one sign standing on it.
The jolt made it fall straight to the ground.
Marquis Hou pointed his rod at Li Qiuyue’s face, threatening, “Bitch, if you don’t pay me twenty yuan now, I won’t let you off!”
“After making such a big fuss, all you dare to ask is twenty?” Li Qiuyue sneered.
Casually, she grabbed a chopping knife from under the table.
She slammed it onto the table: “Come on, today either you kill me, or I’ll kill you!”
At this moment, someone finally remembered.
“Isn’t this the boss who once went to Scarface’s house with a kitchen knife?”
“Yes, that’s her!”
“I remember it even made the newspapers. After that, no gang in this area collected protection money anymore!”
“So these two idiots are doomed now, huh?”
The onlookers chatted back and forth, forgetting their fear.
Even their hostility toward the two thugs turned into a hint of sympathy.
Fat Brother and Marquis Hou couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
But by now, the stick was already drawn. If they backed off, wouldn’t they lose face?
How would they survive in the underworld then?
“You’re asking for death!” Marquis Hou shouted, swinging the rod at Li Qiuyue.
Li Qiuyue didn’t flinch, raising her chopping knife and swinging at him.
Previously, she had swung a knife at the Scissors Gang boss’s home, and the boss had called the police to take her away.
She had asked the police if she could fight back against these protection-collecting thugs.
The officer had said, with a meaningful tone, “As long as no lives are endangered, everything else is fine.”
At that time, she understood what he meant.
Since then, no one had ever tried to collect protection money from her again. She had never tested the rule either.
But she knew that if she paid today, she would have to keep paying every day.
She mustered all her strength and prepared for a blow from the rod.
Just as she swung her arm, someone appeared first.
A single kick sent Marquis Hou flying.
With just one kick, he staggered backward and collapsed onto the ground.
The rod in his hand flew far away.
The man who kicked him wore a military uniform, standing tall and upright, blocking Li Qiuyue like an immovable mountain.
The man tilted his head slightly, as if checking on her.
Li Qiuyue instinctively glanced at his wrist.
No red string.
She felt some mix of disappointment or something else.
Before she could think further, Fat Brother suddenly grabbed a stool and swung it at the man.
At that moment, another man in uniform rushed out.
This time, Li Qiuyue noticed the red string on his wrist.
“Husband, that’s a market stool! You’ll have to pay if it breaks!” Li Qiuyue hurriedly warned.
She was genuinely worried and didn’t even notice she had called him “husband.”
The “husband” paused, looking slightly flustered.
The first man deftly dodged the stool and kicked Fat Brother instead.
In just a few moves, he grabbed Fat Brother’s arm and made him drop the stool.
Then, with an over-the-shoulder throw, he tossed him to the ground.
Meanwhile, he calmly set the stool upright.
His movements were elegant, hardly resembling someone who’d just fought.
The crowd gasped and applauded.
They praised, “Soldiers really are something else!”
Fat Brother and Marquis Hou finally realized something was wrong.
They no longer cared about pride, scrambled to their feet, and ran.
Better to live and fight another day!
Just as Qin Huai was about to give chase, Li Qiuyue ran ahead of him.
Straightening her back and feigning composure, she said, “Captain Qin, what brings you here?”
“And bringing a friend too?” She glanced at the man beside him.
Similar in height to Qin Huai, but less fussiness and more decisiveness.
The crisp uniform looked particularly heroic amidst the chaos.
Most importantly, he understood her protecting the stool was clearly a priority.
It was almost embarrassing!
The man noticed her sneaky glance, and his expression darkened immediately.
Before Li Qiuyue could figure it out, “Qin Huai” chuckled. “Sister-in-law, I’m Old Qin’s friend, Han Tiancheng.”
“You can just call me Old Han,” Han Tiancheng said, forming a fist to cover his mouth.
Afraid of laughing out loud and getting punched, he explained quickly.
Li Qiuyue stayed silent but suspiciously eyed Han Tiancheng’s wrist, noticing the red string.
Han Tiancheng noticed and hurriedly explained, “When I came over just now, Old Qin’s red string looked interesting, so I took a look.”
Li Qiuyue pressed her lips together, neither agreeing nor denying.
She turned to the real Qin Huai with a practiced smile. “Captain Qin, you brought a friend and didn’t say a word?”
No playful charm remained, only endless mock resentment.
This dog of a man, she thought, must’ve deliberately embarrassed her by giving the red string to someone else!
“You’re running a stall, I’m naturally here for wontons,” Qin Huai ignored her complaint.
She didn’t recognize him serves her right!
Li Qiuyue didn’t hold back, holding up four fingers. “Two bowls of wontons, forty cents.”
Before Qin Huai could speak, someone nearby teased, “Boss, charging your own man for food?”
“When it comes to money, don’t talk feelings it hurts money!” Li Qiuyue pouted.
She took Qin Huai’s fifty-cent coin, found him ten cents change, and turned to straighten the tricycle and sign.
The others returned to their business, laughing and chatting.
Qin Huai and Han Tiancheng simply sat on the stool Qin Huai had saved earlier.
Han Tiancheng clicked his tongue. “Old Qin, your wife’s quite something.”
“Give me back the red string!” Qin Huai said, expression sharp.
“Here, here, here, I just wanted to see you’ve been glaring all the way.” Han Tiancheng sighed, removing the red string from his wrist and handing it to Qin Huai.
Then, restless as always, he asked the neighboring vendor, “Boss, do you know any places around here to hide people?”
“We’re honest merchants. How would we know that?” the vendor stammered.
They had been warned repeatedly by the market supervisor not to cause trouble during the census.
Han Tiancheng was used to this attitude from yesterday; though helpless, he wouldn’t force them.
Even the police didn’t know some of these hidden spots how could small stall owners?
“Captain Qin, I’ll bring your wontons with a bun each.” Li Qiuyue soon carried out two bowls, each topped with a different bun.
She had her targets in mind:
Red string Han Tiancheng, gets a meat bun.
No red string Qin Huai, gets a vegetable bun.
Ha! Qin Huai! Take that!