Chapter 145: We Jianghu Folk and You Are Just Incompatible

Rang Weidong was truly unaware that back when Jiangzhou served as the wartime provisional capital, the aircraft of the Nationalist government's dignitaries used to take off and land at an airport located on an island right in the middle of the Yangtze River. Wouldn't that entire place get flooded during the summer?

Shen Cuiyue remarked that she used to run around on that island as a child and had even seen the remains of that temporary runway.

As someone reborn, he felt a strong sense of temporal disorientation while conversing with this retro-chic young woman.

The four of them boarded the plane empty-handed.

However, with his suit jacket draped over his arm, Rang Weidong frowned slightly the moment he reached the aircraft. Good grief, was this a propeller plane? How primitive could it possibly be?

In truth, he had only ever flown three times in his life, yet he had already encountered three completely different types of aircraft.

No matter how ignorant he might be, he subconsciously assumed that propeller-driven planes were hopelessly obsolete. Therefore, before boarding, he even asked whether this specific model flew the Jiangzhou-Beiping route or if various types were deployed.

In those days, there weren't so many different airlines; virtually all commercial flights fell under the single banner of the Civil Aviation Administration.

The flight attendant maintained a pleasant attitude and explained that the fleet operating the Jiangzhou-to-capital route consisted entirely of this model, though Shanghai and Guangzhou might indeed have jetliners like the Trident or the Tupolev Tu-154.

Inside the cabin, things actually felt roughly similar, and the interior decoration was perhaps even more luxurious.

Old Third Shen, who had been extremely nervous at first, began to feel curious.

Rang Weidong, on the other hand, grew increasingly displeased. He felt that the jetliners he had previously experienced possessed a sort of modern minimalist interior, whereas this outdated relic tried to look opulent like some antique automobile. Upon closer inspection, however, everything was severely worn down. It must have been an ancient aircraft with many years of service.

Psychologically, he felt intensely uncomfortable. This damn thing could easily cost people their lives.

Moreover, perhaps because it was a propeller plane, the roaring noise after takeoff was exceptionally loud and grating.

And then, good grief, they started handing out cigarettes right after takeoff!

Was this to keep people calm while smoking?

Each passenger received a pack of five cigarettes, while the two children were given chewing gum and toys. Stone was particularly adept at playing naive and ingratiating, which earned him a small telescope!

Maoer, who was usually so steadfast in maintaining his cool facade, was clearly shaken, hesitating whether he should also act charming to swap for something.

Rang Weidong observed with great interest, because bringing them along was precisely his intention: to let the two boys experience more mainstream, upright aspects of life so they wouldn't assume they were destined to be Jianghu underworld figures forever.

Right in front of the flight attendant, he applauded and egged the boy on. Maoer immediately shouted sweetly, "Big Sister," and was rewarded with a metal model airplane.

The successor of the Hua Sect instantly showed off his prize proudly to the rookie of the Ge Sect.

Throughout this process, Shen Cuiyue sat beside him in the window seat, her entire body rigid as she looked outside, gripping Rang Weidong's arm with as much force as she had used earlier.

When his arm was pulled away, she quietly grabbed his sleeve from underneath the armrest.

Rang Weidong turned his head and teased, "You can take off your mask now that we've reached Beiping, can't you? There's no... what kind of facial recognition here?"

Ever since the epidemic, the security guards' awareness of facial recognition technology had doubled, significantly reducing trouble for gatekeeping duties.

Thus, he had always assumed this scammer wore a mask to evade law enforcement.

Old Third Shen silently removed it without uttering a word, and even barely touched the airline meal served later, which consisted only of bread and garlic sausage—though Maotai liquor was still provided, and ice cream was served to the children.

It was completely incomparable to the airline meals in the south.

However, he didn't converse with Shen Cuiyue. He leisurely sipped the white liquor with small bites of that garlic sausage, and when the flight attendant walked past, she even refilled his garlic sausage and poured him another cup.

Perhaps as a result of those couple of extra drinks, an hour or so later, just as Rang Weidong distinctly felt his temples throbbing violently, Shen Cuiyue suddenly grabbed his arm because a torrential rainstorm had abruptly battered the exterior.

The intensity was truly like someone blasting the cabin window glass with a high-pressure water hose.

It felt as though only moments ago the scene was a breathtaking expanse of blue skies and a sea of clouds, yet suddenly it had transformed into pitch-black, churning storm clouds!

In truth, the cabin was not full. Based on a casual glance Rang Weidong had cast when entering, only about half of the hundred-odd seats were occupied.

At that moment, even the flight attendants hurriedly grabbed the overhead handrails and stood up to announce that they had entered a thunderstorm zone, urging everyone to remain calm...

How could anyone possibly remain calm?

The moment the words left her mouth, the fuselage plunged violently!

Your soul could literally fly out of your body!

Old Third Shen's scream was high-pitched and piercing, almost puncturing Rang Weidong's intensely throbbing temples.

He hurriedly protected his wine glass and fished out the scattered cigarettes rolling on the table. "Here, want a cigarette? Might make you feel a bit better."

Shen Cuiyue only clung to him desperately, trembling violently.

While using a trembling hand to light a cigarette with a match, Rang Weidong glanced across the aisle.

Maoer was sitting cross-legged in meditation, his fingers seemingly twirling prayer beads rather than that model airplane.

Stone, with a look of utter fascination, pressed his face against the window, occasionally turning to exchange excited glances with his eldest brother!

Damn it, what a pair of monsters.

Old Third Shen was the only normal one.

Having worked as a security guard for forty years without ever smoking a cigarette, Rang Weidong, accompanied by the plane's abrupt, repeated plunges and seemingly arduous climbs, managed to light his cigarette amidst the violent turbulence and took a deep drag.

He even had the fleeting thought that it was fortunate he hadn't tucked a pistol into his waistband; otherwise, this sheer terror might have tempted him to just end it all to escape the fright.

On several occasions, the fuselage rocked with such magnitude that it felt as though the plane was about to snap in half.

Shen Cuiyue had completely squeezed herself into Rang Weidong's arms, her body twisting past the armrest. When she occasionally looked up, she even plucked the cigarette from Rang Weidong's mouth, held it between her fingers with the alluring grace of a female secret agent to take a single puff, and then stuffed it back.

Swept up in the heightened emotions, Rang Weidong naturally reached out to wrap his arm tightly around her waist, forming a temporary alliance for survival.

Miraculously, neither of them trembled anymore.

With a final series of violent shakes, the plane instantly punched through the gloom into a blinding expanse of brilliant light, revealing once more the dreamlike, boundless sea of clouds. It felt as though they were riding the mists, remarkably smooth and serene.

The terror moments before had merely been a nightmare.

Side by side, the two of them turned their heads to gaze at the magnificent scenery outside.

Shen Cuiyue removed the cigarette butt and extinguished it in the ashtray on the armrest, then whispered softly, "Let's not take a plane on the way back."

Rang Weidong murmured his assent. At least for round trips between Beiping and Jiangzhou, if it were another propeller plane like this, he wouldn't fly either. Who could endure such an ordeal?

No wonder the seats hadn't been fully occupied.

With his limited knowledge, he assumed that was simply how things were.

Nevertheless, upon landing in Beiping, he still expressed awe at the crab-like terminal building, considering it the first relatively modern structure he had laid eyes on in over a year.

Even the glass-façade building of the Guangzhou Trade Fair lacked this kind of majestic grandeur.

Well, this was the capital, so it was only natural.

Therefore, his decision to incorporate glass architecture at the Shangzhou Food Factory had been influenced, to some extent, by this sight.

After landing and retrieving his checked small leather bag, unwilling to pull it out in the open, he tucked it under his armpit in imitation of Zhang Lanzhi's manner.

The three Jianghu siblings silently trailed behind him, instinctively drawing closer.

This amused Rang Weidong, who had initially felt somewhat conned by the entire travel experience. He laughed inwardly, guessing that from now on, the three of them would harbor deep psychological trauma regarding air travel.

However, once they walked through the enclosed boarding bridge into the main hall, he burst out laughing.

Because there were quite a few foreign devils to be seen!

Furthermore, they possessed that distinct look with slender legs, tailored suits, and frog-eye sunglasses.

Such sights were utterly nonexistent in Jiangzhou. The three bumpkins almost tripped over one another, and Shen Cuiyue, who had been wearing that tailored suit dress, grabbed Rang Weidong's arm once again.

Moreover, the impeccably clean and beautifully decorated Beiping terminal, with that aura of genuine high-end sophistication unique to airports, easily created the illusion of time travel.

It wasn't until they boarded the airport shuttle bus back to the city center and encountered the drab, dusty urban decay that the three of them finally let out sighs of relief.

Refraining from putting on airs, Rang Weidong first called He Yuemei, one of the college student sales representatives.

Like Korea Bin, she was a graduate of the Steel Institute that year and was currently stationed at the school, waiting to receive the boss for this trip to Beiping.

She already possessed a touch of professional business demeanor. "Hello, Manager Rang. I've already arranged the Steel Institute's guesthouse. You can take this bus route first..."

During his previous visit, he had arrived in a large truck, ridden in newspaper office cars for meetings, and occasionally taken public buses, failing to notice that along this entire route, taxis were practically invisible.

This particular detail in Beiping differed from both Guangzhou and Shanghai.

Even Jiangzhou at this time could occasionally be spotted with small two-box hatchbacks; could it be that such small cars were deemed unworthy of the capital's aura, and thus omitted altogether?

Fortunately, it wasn't too far. Earning tens of thousands of daily, Boss Rang and Manager Shen had no choice but to squeeze onto a crowded public bus, with the two younger ones hurriedly following behind.

If squeezing onto the bus with Zhang Lanzhi in Guangzhou could be considered somewhat crowded, the situation in Beiping was overwhelmingly packed.

Boarding right at noon, they had no choice but to press face-to-face against one another, and the manager unhesitatingly pressed her entire body against the boss's chest.

Rang Weidong had to desperately rack his brains, thinking about what his food building should look like—it had to be taller, larger... and resilient.

He hastily twisted his body slightly and reached high up to grab the overhead handrail.

Perhaps due to this movement, the leather bag he had been clamping under his arm finally became exposed.

After they had rattled along for two stops, Maoer suddenly shouted, "Brother! There's a pickpocket!"

Before Rang Weidong could react, Shen Cuiyue—whose face was already flushed red while buried against his chest—suddenly snapped her head up and slapped down directly toward the bag under Rang Weidong's arm.

Meanwhile, Stone, who happened to be standing nearby, looked startled; he hadn't noticed that a fellow practitioner of the trade had somehow squeezed right next to him. Perhaps due to the intense crowding, and because his height only reached Rang Weidong's waist, he hadn't raised his head to pay attention.

Undoubtedly, the other party hadn't expected this seemingly harmless child to erupt into sudden violence either!

Before leaving, Rang Weidong had already searched this fellow for daggers and thin blades, so how on earth had he suddenly whipped out a razor blade and slashed forward without a word?

A stream of blood spurted out along the man's elbow!

At the same time, the leather bag under Rang Weidong's arm had already been sliced open by the blade, causing the heavy iron lump wrapped inside its leather case to slip downward!

It was intercepted just in time by Shen Cuiyue, who shoved it hard back against Rang Weidong's waist!

Feeling the chest of her white shirt press against Rang Weidong's front, she completely shielded the man with her body. With her other hand, she whipped out the sharp hairpin from her hair bun, reversed her grip, and thrust it toward the assailant!

Because the opponent also had a flashing razor blade wedged between his fingers, enduring the sudden pain, he instinctively swept downward toward the face and neck of the child right in front of him!

Even though they were packed so tightly that even a fried dough pastry could have been flattened into a pancake, the three of them managed to engage in a lightning-fast, life-or-death struggle within inches of space.

Having been shoved slightly aside, Rang Weidong felt that while his basketball skills made him quite agile and versatile, his advantage lay mainly in physical endurance and stamina. When it came to technique and reflexes, he still lagged behind professionals who had undergone rigorous training since childhood.

When facing the pig butcher last time, he had already experienced what a truly ruthless character looked like.

Now, witnessing people who genuinely cared nothing for their lives filled him with even greater astonishment.

The fact that Old Third Shen hadn't attacked with such lethal intent upon their first meeting was truly a mercy for which he should be grateful.

In the brief instant his mind was wandering, the opponent certainly hadn't expected to be discovered, nor had he anticipated that the child beneath his elbow would be so vicious, and least of all that the fatal threat would come from the young woman pressed against the man's chest—the male target he had been focusing on entirely had merely been a decoy.

However, the mere sight of the pistol butt exposed from the leather holster pressed against the woman's hand was enough to send the man in his thirties scrambling backward in terror.

It was too late. In the blink of an eye, Shen Cuiyue executed a feint with her thrust, aiming with fierce and perilous intent straight for the man's eyes. As he instinctively kept retreating and raising his hand to block, that razor blade naturally distanced itself from Stone.

The young "Child Brother" who had been tilting his head upward seized the precise moment to viciously swipe the edge of his blade across the man's wrist. Rather than aiming for the visually alarming blood vessels, he severed the tendons!

Amidst a miserable shriek, Shen Cuiyue's wrist flicked, transforming her reversed hairpin into a sideways slash. Utilizing the opening created as the screaming man recoiled, she lunged straight for his temple.

Fortunately, Rang Weidong reacted just in time to give a slight push and pull, causing the razor-sharp tip of the hairpin to merely graze the man's forehead, drawing a single bead of blood.

The interior, previously compressed so densely that even a pancake maker would have despaired, miraculously yielded a bit of space under the sheer violence of the confrontation. Rang Weidong, having backed the three siblings into a defensive circle, stood facing the bleeding Beijing pickpocket as the surrounding crowd parted.

Hearing someone shouting from the front that blood had been shed, the driver spun the steering wheel and headed straight for the police station.