Young hero, stay put and don't be reckless.

Chapter 1 Jiang Xiaogou

Deep in an alley in the east of Jiangzhou City, there stands a dilapidated temple.

Nobody remembers which deity was enshrined in the temple.

The incense had been cut off for twenty years, the roof had eight holes, and there were more rats in the corner than monks.

But none of that matters—as long as it provides shelter from the wind and rain, that's fine, and most importantly, it's free.

"Brother, I'm hungry."

The speaker was a little girl, about seven or eight years old, with a round face and round eyes, huddled in the haystack like a little rabbit.

Her name is Ali, and she was picked up by Jiang Xun from a garbage dump in the west of the city three years ago.

At that time, the little girl was fighting with a stray dog ​​for half a steamed bun. Her hands were bitten and covered in blood, but she just wouldn't let go.

Jiang Xun found her fierceness pleasing to the eye and picked it up without thinking.

"Bear with it." Jiang Xun didn't even look up, sharpening a pair of rusty scissors in his hand. "We'll have money when we open for business later."

"Opening for business" is slang in their line of work; to put it bluntly, it means stealing.

Ah Li obediently said "Oh" and then fell silent.

The two younger ones next to him—Shiliu and Xiaoqi—also sensibly huddled in the corner, not daring to disturb him.

Jiang Xun is seventeen years old this year and is the leader of these four children.

In this Jiangzhou city, where people devour each other without spitting out the bones, he managed to raise his three children to this day by relying on one word: thief.

This wasn't your average thief.

They specifically target the fattest sheep.

"Alright."

Jiang Xun tucked the sharpened scissors into his clothes, stood up, and patted the grass clippings off his clothes.

He was tall and as thin as a bamboo pole, but his eyes were piercingly bright. When he looked at people, he had three parts roguishness and three parts shrewdness, and the remaining four parts were hidden in his eyes, making him impossible to see through.

"Ah Li is watching over them; they drink water when they're hungry. Brother will bring meat back tonight."

Ah Li nodded, her eyes filled with unwavering trust in her brother.

Jiang Xun didn't say anything more. He pushed open the dilapidated wooden door of the temple and plunged into the morning mist of Jiangzhou City.

As soon as the sun rose, the East Market became bustling with activity.

Vegetable vendors, cloth vendors, steamed bun vendors, and street performers were all crammed together.

Jiang Xun squatted down next to a tea stall at the intersection, his eyes darting around, scanning the crowd.

He was waiting for someone.

To be precise, they are waiting for a fat sheep.

He scouted the place yesterday—there's a wealthy man named Qian in the west of the city who made his fortune by lending money at exorbitant interest rates; he's swallowed up countless houses and fields belonging to poor people.

Every morning, this old man would come to the East Market to eat a bowl of wontons, then take a stroll through the silk shop, and finally walk through this alley back home.

The key point is that this old man likes to walk with his money bag hanging from his waist, swaying back and forth like he's carrying bait.

"Here it comes, here it comes."

Jiang Xun squinted and saw a fat old man in a silk robe turn the corner from the street corner, followed by two servants.

Master Qian walked at a leisurely pace, his belly sticking out high, looking just like a pregnant duck.

He picked his teeth with a toothpick as he walked, completely unaware that he was being watched by a pair of thieves.

Jiang Xun was in no hurry to make a move.

He stood up and walked towards the alley entrance as if nothing had happened. His pace was neither fast nor slow, just like any other passerby.

Master Qian was getting closer and closer, twenty steps, ten steps, five steps—

"oops!"

Jiang Xun suddenly stumbled and fell forward, crashing solidly into Master Qian.

"Ouch!" Master Qian was knocked back two steps, almost falling on his backside. "Who's blind?!"

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" Jiang Xun apologized repeatedly, scrambling to his feet with a look of fear on his face. "I deserve to die, I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped into you, sir..."

As he spoke, he bowed deeply, his posture so low it seemed to sink into the mud.

Just as Master Qian was about to get angry, he looked down and saw that the person who bumped into him was a skinny, half-grown boy dressed in tattered clothes, clearly a peasant.

It's too dirty to hit someone like that.

"Get out! Get out! Get out!" Master Qian waved his hand dismissively, like shooing away flies. "If you bump into me again, I'll break your legs!"

"Yes, yes, thank you for your mercy, sir, thank you for your mercy..."

Jiang Xun bowed and stepped back, then turned and ran after taking three steps, disappearing into the crowd in the blink of an eye.

Master Qian snorted, continued picking his teeth, and kept walking forward.

The servant behind him scratched his head: "Master, when that kid bumped into you just now, it seems like he touched your waist?"

Master Qian looked down and saw that the money bag was still there, bulging and quite heavy.

"I'm here, what are you worrying about?" Master Qian glared at his servant. "He's just a peasant. He wouldn't dare touch my things even if you gave him three lives."

The servant A thought about it and agreed, so he said no more.

The group continued walking, passed through the alley, and entered the silk shop.

After an incense stick had burned, Master Qian came out of the silk shop and habitually reached for his waist—

empty.

The money bag is still there, but it's empty.

"Where's my money?!" The wealthy man froze for three seconds, his face turning a deep purplish-red. "It was just here!"

Servant A and Servant B looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Master, I knew it was that kid..."

"Then hurry up and chase after them!"

Jiang Xun was already in an alley three streets away.

He squatted down by the wall and dumped his money bag on the ground—with a clatter, more than five taels of loose silver rolled out, along with two strings of copper coins.

"Tsk, a fat sheep."

Jiang Xun grinned, revealing two rows of white teeth.

Five taels of silver is enough to buy half a month's worth of food, and it can also be used to make new clothes for Ali and the others—although the girl will definitely be reluctant to wear them, just thinking about how happy she will be makes Jiang Xun feel good.

He carefully pocketed the silver and counted the copper coins—two strings, enough to buy medicine for three days.

The old man has been coughing badly these past few days, and his wound has become infected again. If he doesn't get some medicine soon, he might not make it through the winter.

Jiang Xun stood up, patted his bottom, went to the pharmacy to get medicine, and then went to the cooked food stall to buy half a roast chicken—Ali had been craving it for three months, and today he could finally satisfy her craving.

After buying his things, he deliberately took a long detour to make sure no one was following him before heading towards the dilapidated temple.

He suddenly stopped halfway there.

Three people were standing at the entrance of the alley.

The leader, with his shirt open, revealing a tuft of black hair on his chest, held a wooden stick in his hand and spat on the ground.

This man is named Liu Wei, and he is a minor leader in the Black Tiger Gang.

Black Tiger Hall is the local tyrant of Jiangzhou City. They run casinos, lend money at exorbitant interest rates, and collect protection fees—they do all sorts of unethical things.

Liu Wei had seven or eight men under his command who specialized in collecting "protection money" in this area.

It is said that he has a sworn brother who is doing very well in Qiantang, and even the leader of the Black Tiger Hall treats him with great respect.

This relationship made Liu Wei increasingly emboldened, and he walked with his chin held high.

"Hey, Jiang Xiaogou." Liu Wei grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "Bought so much good stuff, struck it rich?"

Jiang Xun's heart skipped a beat, but he forced a smile and said, "Brother Liu, what a coincidence, you're out for a stroll too?"

"Shut up, you son of a bitch." Liu Wei spat on the ground, his eyes sweeping over Jiang Xun. "That rich man Qian was yelling about losing money, did you do it?"

Jiang Xun's heart skipped a beat again, but his smile became even more humble: "Brother Liu, how could I dare? Who is Master Qian? I'd rather avoid him than live for him—"

"Enough with the nonsense." Liu Wei interrupted him, looking him up and down. "Judging by your appearance, you've made your first sale today, haven't you? Hand it over."

Jiang Xun's smile froze for a moment, then quickly returned to normal.

"Brother Liu, you've misunderstood, I really didn't—"

"without?"

Liu Wei took a step forward, grabbed Jiang Xun by the collar, and lifted him up.

Jiang Xun's feet left the ground, his face flushed red, but he didn't dare to struggle.

"Jiang Xiaogou," Liu Wei leaned close to his face, his yellow teeth almost poking his nose, "You think I'm new to this? I can smell who has money in this area. If you know what's good for you, pay up yourself. If not, I'll pay for you—and then I'll break both your legs."

Jiang Xun was being lifted up by him, a smile still on his face, but that smile was so stiff it looked like it was pasted on.

He remained silent for three seconds.

Then he took out the bag of silver from his pocket and presented it with both hands.

"Brother Liu, please have a smoke and some tea." His smile became even more humble. "This is all the harvest we have today, please don't think it's too little."

Liu Wei took the silver, weighed it in his hand, and his eyes lit up.

"More than five taels? Not bad, Jiang Xiaogou, did you catch a fat sheep today?"

He stuffed the silver into his pocket and then threw Jiang Xun to the ground.

Jiang Xun tripped and fell on his backside, got up, dusted himself off, and still had a smile on his face: "Well, Brother Liu, if there's nothing else, I'll be going now—"

"Leave?" Liu Wei laughed. "Who said you could leave?"

Jiang Xun's smile finally crumbled.

"Brother Liu, I've given you all the money..."

"Money is money, and taxes are taxes." Liu Wei brandished the stick in his hand. "This area is my territory. You open a business on my turf, and you don't have to pay taxes? Don't you understand the rules?"

Jiang Xun opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

"How much is the tax?" he asked.

Liu Wei held up one finger.

"One ounce?"

"One tael?" Liu Wei laughed out loud. "Little Jiang, are you trying to fob me off like a beggar? Ten taels."

"Ten taels?!" Jiang Xun almost jumped up. "Brother Liu, I'm just a petty thief, where am I supposed to get ten taels? I've given you my entire fortune!"

"Then go get it." Liu Wei's smile faded, his eyes turning cold. "I'll be waiting for you here in three days. Ten taels of silver. If it's a penny less, I'll sell those kids from your temple. That little girl named Ali is quite pretty; she'll fetch a good price."

Jiang Xun's expression changed.

It became very ugly.

But he didn't say anything, he just lowered his head and clenched his fists.

Liu Wei saw him clench his fist and laughed even harder.

"What? You don't accept it?"