A Girl Traveling Through Troubled Times

Chapter 999 Deciding to Move to a New Bookstore

Gui'er quickly said, "How can I use your money? If you really need money, just tell me. Half of the funds you brought back from Shanghai are still in a safe. I'm just worried that opening a pawnshop will only lead to more losses, which is not a good thing in the end."

Wu Mingqiang patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, Miss. I will definitely find Chen De. Then our losses will be reduced. In addition, Zhao Ding is an old hand in this industry and has a lot of connections. Our business should gradually improve in the future."

That night before going to bed, Dingxiang brought in milk. Gui'er drank the milk and was about to go to bed when she turned around and saw Dingxiang still standing there blankly. She asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Dingxiang hesitated for a few seconds before saying, "Brother Cheng, there are actually a few words I want to say to Miss, but he can't come up here, so he asked me to pass on his message."

"What's wrong? Is there something you can't say, Brother Cheng?"

"That's right. Brother Cheng said that Brother Qiang probably brought Zhao Ding back today on purpose so that you could meet him, Miss. In reality, he wanted Zhao Ding to know that he is the one in charge of the shop, and that you don't understand anything and have to act according to Brother Qiang's wishes."

Gui'er was somewhat taken aback. It sounded like Wu Mingqiang and Acheng were at odds. She asked, "Did something happen?"

Dingxiang said, "Sigh, when Brother Cheng told me about this, I was quite surprised. But Brother Cheng said that Brother Qiang might have secretly agreed to Longxing's request to do things for him. Wu Mingqiang made a lot of benefits for himself back in Jiangcheng behind the back of the young marshal. Not to mention now that he's in Hong Kong, no one can control him. Although he and you have a good relationship, you are still young. Brother Cheng asked me to remind you to be careful and not give him too much power."

Gui'er frowned and asked, "Has Brother Wu already started working for Longxing?"

Dingxiang shook her head blankly and said, "I don't know, probably not yet, because they've been busy with the pawnshop these past few days."

Gui'er nodded and said, "Okay, I understand. Tell Brother Acheng to keep an eye out."

The next day, Gui'er took some money from the safe, along with the money Lin Peishan had given her earlier, and gave it to Chen Zhongyu. She told him that she had already discussed the house with Wu Mingqiang, and that Wu Mingqiang would tidy it up so they could move in anytime.

Chen Zhongyu sighed and said, "Okay, but I won't take the money, okay? I've been making you pay all this time, and you've suffered quite a bit of loss this time, haven't you?"

Gui'er said, "Why are you saying all this? This money was left to me by my second brother. He is now fighting bravely for the revolutionary cause. All I can do is use this money to do my part. By the way, have you been in contact with the organization? You've been missing for so long, has the organization given any instructions? My brother... is there any news?" She hesitated, actually more afraid of hearing bad news.

"We've re-established contact. There's no news from your brother yet. Actually, some of our comrades knew I was in trouble and gave us timely feedback. I contacted them after I came back. There are indeed a few colleagues who need our protection until they leave Hong Kong and return to the mainland. I thought I'd take this opportunity—since I'm moving to a new store, I plan to have those comrades work as temporary staff at the store, helping with packing and staying there for a few days. This way, we can keep a low profile until they leave."

Gui'er listened and smiled, saying, "That's a really good idea."

Chen Zhongyu said, "Do you have a key to that place? I was thinking of taking my colleague there to settle in later."

"I don't have it on me. I'll go get the key from Brother Wu after school."

Chen Zhongyu nodded. Seeing Gui'er's worried expression, he asked curiously, "What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

"I don't know the answer to this problem. How should I handle it? I didn't want to cause trouble for the organization, but my personal abilities are limited."

Chen Zhongyu thought she had encountered some trouble again, so he quickly said, "What's the big deal? Just tell me."

Gui'er sighed, "Ouyang Bao is dead. The biggest beneficiary is Long Xing. All of Ouyang Bao's former subordinates and sphere of influence have fallen to him. For some reason, he's taken a liking to Brother Wu, thinking he's quite capable, and wants to recruit him to work for him. Brother Wu is quite tempted; he feels it's like working for my brother in Jiangcheng before. But I think working for Long Xing is like using a black glove—it's dangerous, and he might not be doing anything good. But his men tell me he might accept. I tentatively asked him, and he said he wouldn't agree to Long Xing's offer. I'm afraid I can't control the situation."

Chen Zhongyu thought for a moment and said, "Have you met Long Xing? What do you think of him?"

Gui'er thought for a moment and said, "He's not as brutal and greedy as Ouyang Bao. As far as a policeman goes, he's alright. Besides, he's quite sympathetic to the revolution. I just don't know if he's genuine or just pretending."

Chen Zhongyu became interested upon hearing this: "If he really is a patriot, we can try to win him over. Could you introduce me to him? I haven't been in Hong Kong for long and haven't established many connections yet. It would be good to know someone in the police force."

Gui'er was very doubtful. She didn't know whether Long Xing was good or evil: "What if he's faking it? Before, Ouyang Bao pretended to be a good person and helped us resolve a dispute at a pawnshop. Of course, we paid him money."

"It's alright. I've met and talked with him, so I know what kind of person he is. If he's the kind of cunning person we should keep our distance from, we can always do things for money. Sometimes, even if we're doing something for money, the organization will provide it if it's for rescuing comrades and getting supplies."

Gui'er thought that made sense, so she nodded and said, "Okay. I'll call Wu Mingqiang right now and ask him to arrange a meeting between you two."

Then she found a phone booth and made a call to the villa, asking the people at the villa to notify Wu Mingqiang.

When she got out of school, she found that Wu Mingqiang was the one who came to pick her up.

He said with a big smile, "Miss, I'll get the keys for you right now. Come on, let's take Mr. Chen to see the house. Also, I have an appointment with Detective Long, we'll meet at that house as well."

Gui'er knew that he acted so quickly because he really wanted to do something for Longxing, so she didn't say anything more.

Driving to the bookstore, I could see Chen Zhongyu talking to a few people from afar.

Gui'er's heart skipped a beat. Could these be the comrades Chen Zhongyu mentioned who needed cover?

Chen Zhongyu smiled and said to them, "You've arrived. Thank you for your help, Mr. Wu. These are the helpers I temporarily hired to help tidy up. Is there anything in the house that you need to move out? They can help with that too."