Chapter 2

Wei He not only collected the homework of the girl with the braid but also that of three other children who came to him for help.

It was all because of a special skill he had from his previous life: he could mimic different styles of handwriting, and it was even easier to imitate the handwriting of children.

After collecting a pile of homework papers, Wei He rolled them up, hid them inside his clothes, and got up, quickly heading home.

As he passed the stone bridge by the river, a faint commotion came from the weeds by the riverbank.

It was mixed with a woman's cries and a man's angry roars, as well as the sound of sticks brutally beating someone.

Wei He paused for a moment, then sped up and passed by the side.

The scripture hall was in the inner city, where it was safe, with constables patrolling regularly.

But his home was in the slums, which were chaotic.

This stone bridge street was already within the slum area.

When he got home, Wei He used the charcoal pencil he had prepared and completed all the homework. Then he patted off the charcoal dust, rolled up the papers, and put them away.

His older sister, Wei Ying, used the vegetables they had in stock to make one dish and one soup. The two of them sat at the table, waiting for the others to come home.

The sky gradually darkened.

His eldest sister, Wei Chun, still hadn't returned.

There was no news from their parents either.

Both of Wei He's parents were craftsmen, specializing in carving stone statues. Recently, they had been carving Buddha statues for the Mingde Temple outside the city.

"Mom and Dad might have to stay at the temple again today," Wei Ying said softly. "But why hasn't Eldest Sister come back yet?"

Eldest Sister Wei Chun always came back every day.

"......"

Wei He didn't say anything, just raised his head and looked out the window. The sun was almost setting, and the wind blowing in was getting cooler, carrying the faint smell of cooking from other households.

"Eldest Sister always comes back at this time," Wei Ying said, looking at her brother, speaking softly as if to Wei He, or perhaps just to herself.

"I'll go check, you stay here and don't go anywhere." Wei He stood up. He had a feeling that something was wrong, and he was uneasy.

"Go and come back quickly." Wei Ying reminded him.

"Okay."

Wei He put on a coat, though it was full of patches, it at least provided some warmth.

Pushing open the wooden door, he immediately saw several tall, muscular men standing at the entrance of the alley on the right.

There were three of them, dressed in gray short jackets, their arms exposed, showing strong muscles under their dark skin.

Wei He recognized these three men; they were the notorious hooligans in the area, led by Chen Biao and his two followers.

Chen Biao didn't work and spent his days idling around, and no one knew where he got his money from. Despite his robust build, Wei He had heard that some people guessed Chen Biao was associated with a gang. He often helped the gang kidnap people and sell them.

They wanted children, single women, and even some good-looking men.

This was all irrelevant, but the key was that Chen Biao had seen Wei He's older sister, Wei Ying, and had been frequently hanging around since then.

Later, he had a conflict with Eldest Sister Wei Chun, which made him a bit more restrained.

Wei Chun was a member of the Black Water Gang, not a leader, but not someone a hooligan could bully.

Since then, Chen Biao had often waited for Wei Chun to be away before coming around.

Wei He looked from a distance and met the eyes of the short-haired, muscular Chen Biao.

Chen Biao's small eyes flashed with a strange light, and he smiled at Wei He before turning back to talk to his two followers.

Wei He's heart tightened.

He knew this guy was waiting for Eldest Sister to come back. The reason Eldest Sister always came back on time might have something to do with him.

Gang members faced many dangers and troubles, and who knew what might happen.

So Chen Biao definitely had some bad intentions.

'Trouble,' Wei He quickened his pace, walked out of the alley, and headed towards the Black Water Gang's branch, which he knew well.

Eldest Sister Wei Chun and her other siblings looked different. She was naturally big and strong, with a bad temper and considerable strength, which gave her a bit of a reputation in the Black Water Gang's branch.

The Black Water Gang's branch was a small courtyard. Inside, a few men were lifting stone locks, and a man with a small braid was yawning on the side.

"Wei Chun? She took a job this morning. She said that after this job, she could earn enough money for the family to move to the inner city and save enough for her little brother to learn martial arts.

It must be an important job. Why didn't she tell you?"

"No," Wei He shook his head, feeling a heavy heart.

"That job is being fought over by many brothers. The branch leader only picked a dozen or so good hands, and your sister is one of them. Don't worry, don't worry." The man smiled.

"Do you know when they will be back?" Wei He asked.

"I don't know. Important jobs usually take a while. Don't worry. I'm still training here. Go back and wait. I'll notify your sister first when they return." The man waved his hand, indicating that Wei He should leave.

Wei He knew he could only get this much information, and the man wouldn't tell him more.

He turned and slowly walked out of the courtyard gate.

Standing at the gate, he looked back at the sign that read "Black Water Gang Branch."

'The Black Water Gang is just a small gang. There are dozens or even hundreds of them in the outer city. Where can you find a job that pays so much?' Wei He's heart was heavy.

He had a bad feeling.

He wasn't like the other uneducated poor people; he knew there was definitely something wrong.

But now the people were gone, and he was just a sixteen-year-old boy, with no skills.

What could he do?

He could only recognize some words. What could he do?

When he got home, he didn't see Chen Biao and his group at the alley entrance.

But when he opened the door, he saw his older sister, Wei Ying, with a pale face and a look of panic and suppression.

Seeing him return, Wei Ying seemed to have put down a heavy burden and let out a heavy sigh of relief.

"Xiao He... How is Eldest Sister, how is she?"

"Chen Biao came by just now?" Wei He asked in a low voice.

"He came, but I hid and didn't make a sound. He thought no one was home and left." Wei Ying's voice was stuttering, clearly scared.

Wei He saw the fine yellow dust on the door, knowing that there had been a significant commotion just now.

"Eldest Sister went on an important mission and won't be back for a while. Let's eat first." He tried to stay calm.

Now it was just him and his older sister. If he, as the male, panicked, his timid older sister would be even more afraid.

"Okay." Wei Ying responded softly.

The two of them closed the door and the windows, and in the dim light coming through the window, they sat down silently and slowly ate their meal.

The dish was carrot and bean sprout stir-fry, and the soup was cabbage and tofu. The rice was mixed with a lot of corn and bran.

There was no meat; most people couldn't afford it. Eldest Sister Wei Chun's robust build was due to her large frame and the better food she got from the gang, which was more than what they had at home.

But the Wei family and their neighbors ate at this level. A bit of oil was already considered good.

After the meal, Wei Ying washed the dishes, and Wei He spread out the homework on the only table and started completing the children's homework.

At this time, he dared to use the flint to light the oil lamp and write by its light.

Wei Ying sat beside him, carefully sewing clothes with a needle and thread. Neither of them spoke much.

When night fell, they each went to their own bed to sleep.

The next day, Wei He returned the homework, and the money was finally in place. He had finally saved enough to learn martial arts.

Eldest Sister Wei Chun still hadn't returned.

Even his parents, the Wei couple, had not sent any news.

Wei Ying, sitting at home, was too afraid to go out to take on jobs. She could only wait for Wei He to come and go, bringing back some news.

Wei He went to the branch again, but the person who had been willing to see him was gone, perhaps not wanting to waste words with him anymore.

He was stopped at the gate.

Three more days passed.

Neither his parents nor Wei Chun had any news.

The frequency of Chen Biao and his gang appearing at the alley entrance increased, and the time they spent watching the Wei family also grew longer.

Wei He's heart had sunk to the bottom.

He knew that the worst-case scenario he had feared might have happened.

So he knew he had to find a way as soon as possible.

In this world, people suddenly disappearing was a common occurrence. They might encounter bandits, wild animals, or fall ill on the road and die.

There were too many reasons for people to disappear.

On the fourth morning, with the money in hand,

It was still dark, and Wei He took a small arm-thick wooden stick and quietly left home.

He tightened the money he had saved to pay for his apprenticeship and looked back at his older sister, Wei Ying.

"Stay at home, don't go out, and don't make any noise."

"Okay." Wei Ying nodded forcefully, sensing that something was different about her little brother today.

Now that Eldest Sister and their parents were gone, only she and her little brother were left to rely on each other, so she would not be a burden to him.

In the dim light, Wei He took a deep breath, slowly exhaled, and calmed himself down.

"I originally planned to save some more for food, but now I have no choice..."

He could feel his heart pounding. The money he carried was what he had saved for over two months, and the success or failure of this mission depended on it!

He carefully hid the money bag inside his clothes, his entire savings, which he could not afford to lose.

Then, using his hand and the wooden stick to shield it, Wei He gripped the stick tightly and quickly walked towards the alley entrance.

Crossing the stone bridge street and the stone bridge, the road was already filled with farmers carrying vegetables and fruits to sell.

There were also well-dressed wealthy people in carriages, seemingly going out for a spring outing.

The poorly dressed farmers and the silk-clad young masters and misses formed a stark contrast.

Not far away, he soon saw Chen Biao and his three companions standing by the road, chatting and looking at the passersby, especially the attractive ones, with intense gazes.

As if trying to memorize them.

Wei He's heart tightened. He had all his savings with him and couldn't afford any problems.

The more nervous he was, the more he pretended to be calm.

He walked forward, and soon he was near the part of the road where Chen Biao and his companions were standing.

If he hadn't been seen by Chen Biao before, the best thing would have been to take a detour.

But since he had been seen, suddenly taking a detour would be too conspicuous and might cause trouble.

So, the more natural he was, the safer it would be!

Wei He walked steadily, about to pass by the three men.

"Wait."

Suddenly, Chen Biao stretched out his hand, blocking him.

"Xiao He, where are you going? You go to the inner city every day. Are you working for some wealthy family?" Chen Biao said with a mocking smile.

His voice was sharp, lacking the imposing presence of a tall, muscular man, and more like a rooster.

"What's it to you? My Eldest Sister found me the job." Wei He responded coldly, as he usually did.

"Hehe, Eldest Sister, right. She's a good hand in the Black Water Gang. Okay, I won't stop you." Chen Biao laughed and withdrew his hand.

Wei He continued walking.

"Wait."

Chen Biao had another issue.

His small eyes scanned and focused on the slightly bulging part of Wei He's clothes.

"Xiao He, your clothes seem a bit bulging today... Are you hiding something?"

"I work at a construction site every day and get hungry, so I bring some dry bread. What's wrong with that?" Wei He pulled open his clothes and took out a piece of dry bread, waving it.

"Fine, of course it's fine." Chen Biao laughed and withdrew his hand, saying no more. "Go ahead, and remember to say hello to your older sister for me. I've liked her for a long time."

"..." Wei He said nothing, his face cold, and quickened his pace, quickly leaving.

He walked quickly for over a mile before he could finally breathe a sigh of relief.