It didn't take long for Wang Zhenyu to leave a deep impression on Liu Hongsheng:

  After a round of greetings, everyone discovered that they hadn't eaten breakfast. Wang Zhenyu saw a shop selling Hangzhou steamed buns on the street and, without saying anything, beckoned to everyone and walked in directly. This action was very ordinary because Wang Zhenyu had always liked eating steamed buns since his later years. However, it made Liu Hongsheng's eyes light up - this person was a general, yet he didn't have even half a bit of bureaucratic air about him, nor any pretentiousness of the nobility. From just this point alone, one could see that he was a very practical person; perhaps Mr. Ye's letter hadn't exaggerated, and this man might indeed be someone who could get things done. Having come to this realization, Liu Hongsheng felt relieved and followed him into the steamed bun shop.

  Everyone was eating xiaolongbao while chatting, and Wang Zhenyu became enthusiastic and proactive, which made Liu Hongsheng feel honored and surprised.

  "Mr. Liu, Wang has always admired businessmen the most. You wouldn't believe it, although since ancient times, scholars, farmers, workers and merchants have been ranked in that order, with merchants being the lowest, but that's just what the feudal emperors did to maintain their rule. In Wang's opinion, without commerce, there is no wealth. Look at America, where businessmen hold high status, and can even become presidents or congressmen, which is why the country is getting stronger by the day. On the other hand, in our country, scholars, farmers, workers and merchants are all being turned into parasites..."

  What is called mountain blowing and sea blowing, Wang Zhenyu is like this now. On the one hand, he is eating xiaolongbao and enjoying the delicious food that has spanned centuries; on the other hand, he is digging out the goods in his stomach to make an effort to narrow the distance between himself and Liu Hongsheng in a way close to blowing.

  Perhaps because of the low social status of merchants in this era, Liu Hongsheng felt a sense of respect and pleasure from Wang Zhenyu's words. This sense of identity suddenly brought the two people closer together again.

  "General Wang, although young, has a vision that surpasses those corrupt and rotten officials of the former Qing dynasty by a hundredfold. No wonder the Manchu ultimately lost the world - it's really because they were self-satisfied and brought about their own downfall! Liu Hongsheng also didn't forget to flatter him a bit, after all, flattering words are free."

  "Mr. Liu, Wang is a straightforward person and easy to get along with. I'm usually right about people, and Mr. Liu, you have real skills. But Wang's subordinates are all rough men, what they lack is someone like you who is capable." Wang Zhenyu spoke quickly, although he didn't say it directly, his intention was clear. Ye Zuwen, who was drinking soup at the time, was startled by Wang Zhenyu's directness and spat out the soup in his mouth. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and covered his mouth with a towel, avoiding drawing everyone's attention.

  Liu Hongsheng did not expect General Wang to be so direct, and out of habit or rationality, he politely declined: "General Wang's favor is too great, Liu is just a humble merchant and scholar, useless in every way, how can he live up to the general's appreciation?"

  Wang Zhenyu smiled and naturally knew that things couldn't be so simple. He didn't persuade anymore, smiled again, and stuffed another small steamed bun into his mouth...

  A group of people soon entered the Shanghai French Concession, and Wang Zhenyu still had to see another person, Du Yuesheng.

  It can't be said that it's a coincidence. Since Wang Zhenyu had the idea of selling arms, Ye Zuwen was considering the channel issue.

  It's not like it was back in Wuhan that time, when the Qing dynasty hadn't fallen yet and the princes' envoys could travel freely with their private seals. Selling arms to Zhang Xun was also very easy, just transport them directly by boat to his base in Xuzhou.

  Now the Qing dynasty is finished, any move of the Zongshang Party has to be transferred from the surface to underground. To make an analogy, according to Wang Zhenyu's idea, it may not be difficult for military supplies to come out of Nanjing, but it would be a big problem to deliver them into the hands of the Zongshang Party.

  Can't let Huang Xing's people directly transport weapons to the Northeast, can we? If that's really what they're going to do, even if Wang Zhenyu manages to get his hands on the money, he'll probably have no choice but to resign and flee overseas. From then on, he'll be a sworn enemy of the revolutionaries. Those Iron-Blooded Pioneers, Dare-to-Die Corps, and other revolutionary martyrs will come after him one by one, eager to send Wang Zhenyu off to an early grave, where he can savor life with the Ox-Headed and Horse-Faced Guardians of Hell.

  Wang Zhenyu didn't want to make money but not be able to spend it, so this deal needed an intermediary. The underworld forces were naturally the first choice. At this time, Liu Hongsheng recommended his friend Du Yuesheng, who was mixed in with the Green Gang, to Ye Zuwen.

  Liu Hongsheng and Du Yuesheng were born in the same year, but one was from Jiangsu and the other from Zhejiang. In Shanghainese, that means they didn't get along. However, the two of them happened to know each other. The story starts with Liu Hongsheng, who used to be a teacher at the Shanghai Gongbu Bureau's Old City Police Station. At that time, Du Yuesheng had just become an apprentice under Huang Jinrong, a big shot in the French Concession's Green Gang, and Huang Jinrong was also a police informant for the station. Through this connection, the two of them had some interactions.

  Du Yuesheng was a servant at Huang's mansion before he made a name for himself, and after a long time, with the help of Old Master Huang's influence, he also gained some reputation in this concession.

  Liu Hongsheng was doing Kai Ping coal, initially his peers looked down on him, but unexpectedly he managed to make a success of it, so his peers wanted to find trouble for him and bring him down.

  Liu Hongsheng had no choice but to seek help from the gang, but Huang Jinrong was as elusive as a sun in the sky. As a mere salesman, how could he possibly meet him? After being rejected at Huang's mansion, Liu met Du Yuesheng again. Du was notorious for his ability to get things done, and with great enthusiasm and initiative, he helped Liu resolve his troubles. Moreover, he didn't ask for a single cent, saying only that it was a gesture of friendship towards Boss Liu.

  Du Yuesheng's prompt and just handling of the matter made Liu Hongsheng feel good about him, and after a few interactions, they became friends. This time when Mr. Ye wanted to find someone from the gang to do something, Liu naturally recommended Du Yuesheng without hesitation.

  After listening to Liu Hongsheng's introduction, Wang Zhenyu could only sigh that this world was indeed full of coincidences. Well, let's meet this Du Yuesheng who has yet to make a name for himself.

  It was a decision that seemed logical and natural, but it would bring the greatest turning point in the lives of Liu Hongsheng and Du Yuesheng, at least they thought so.

  Shanghai French Concession, Baoshan Road, where Liu Hongsheng's mansion was located. Wang Zhenyu and others arrived by carriage. Along the way, beautiful and neat French plane trees, clean streets, and the elegant clothes of passersby made the entourage very surprised, and they couldn't help but point and whisper to each other. Even Ah Gui, who was driving the carriage, looked down on this rustic appearance of entering the city.

  What made Liu Hongsheng feel strange was that Wang Zhenyu seemed to have no sense of surprise at all, and didn't look like a martial artist who had never seen the world.

  Wang Zhenyu is indeed not rare, the worst three genres shot by later generations, Qing palace drama, anti-Japanese war drama and Shanghai beach, Wang Zhenyu has been immunized against this, ignoring all physical and chemical attacks generated from it.

  Out of courtesy to the host, Liu Hongsheng also learned from Ye Zuwen's way of calling: "General Wang, why don't you take a look and see if you want to go to the Bund in the International Settlement to take a stroll? There are trams there, currently only Shanghai, Dalian and Jiaozhou have this thing. In addition, many high-end goods are also sold there."

  Wang Zhenyu smiled: "Mr. Liu, no need to be so polite, I didn't come here for sightseeing, so there's no rush. By the way, what's the historical origin of Baochang Road? I hope Mr. Liu can enlighten me."

  It's rare for a martial artist to take an interest in place names, and Liu Hongsheng was happy to chat idly about it.

  "This starts with a senior fellow from Shanghai, surnamed Dong and named Baochang. He was a predecessor in the concession area. The Municipal Council, which Mr. Ye also knows, is the highest management organization of the concession area. Our Mr. Dong was a director of the Municipal Council and served for 15 terms, with five terms as the main director. In Shanghai, he was one of the top two charismatic figures. Many influential people in Shanghai today come from his family. He made the greatest contribution to the establishment of the new concession area... Therefore, this road is named after him."

  Wang Zhenyu understood, I thought I was some kind of big shot, but it turned out to be just a couple of devils, and the deal was done. Alas, what kind of world is this!

  In the Republic of China era, Shanghai was indeed a strange flower in the country's history. The comprador bourgeoisie held sway, hooligans ran amok, and the three religions flowed together, with chickens and dogs rising to heaven! Ah, you still don't obey?

  They soon arrived at Liu's mansion, a two-story Western-style building with a white tone and very delicate. The only drawback is that the land occupation is not large, it seems that Liu Hongsheng's career is also just starting.

  As soon as the car stopped, a young man in a long gown approached and said respectfully: "Sir, Mr. Du from Huang Gongguan has called to say that he will be here on time after lunch."

  Liu Hongsheng nodded and turned around to invite Wang Zhenyu to enter and rest.

  After taking the train for most of the day, Wang Zhenyu indeed felt a bit tired and leaned against the sofa in Liu Gongguan's house.

  Zhao Dongsheng and Ma Xicheng, among others, could not bring guns into the concession, but their vigilance work did not relax. There were eight guards in total, all equipped with bayonets. After Ma Xicheng accompanied Wang Zhenyu and Ye Zuwen into the consulate, Zhao Dongsheng immediately signaled his subordinates to disperse and stand guard before turning around and entering the consulate.

  Liu Hongsheng saw all this and did not raise any objections. His internal evaluation of Wang Zhenyu increased by a few points, it seems that this person is very good at leading troops.

  At noon, Liu Gongguan had lunch at the restaurant, and Ye Zuweng was also there. Liu Hongsheng also liked to eat Western food. Zhao Dongsheng went out to arrange for the guards to take turns having meals at a restaurant across the street, while Ma Xicheng stayed by Wang Zhenyu's side.

  Wang Zhenyu, Ye Zuwen and Liu Hongsheng were having a meal while discussing business matters.

  "Yè Gōng, Hóng Shēng! I've been waiting for you for a long time, gazing out at the autumn waters!" Liu Hongsheng said, starting the conversation after finishing chewing his steak.

  "Hey, Hongsheng, no need to be so polite. Last time's equipment deal was a big help from you. I didn't get a chance to thank you when I left in a hurry that day, don't blame me!" Ye Zuwen is also an old fox.

  Wang Zhenyu continued eating his meal without responding, which made Liu Hongsheng feel a bit uneasy.

  However, at this point in time, Liu Hongsheng thought it was better to speak frankly: "Mr. Ye, the kindness you have shown me is something I can never repay! Today, seeing you again reminds me of how difficult it was when we first started out, and if not for your help, I wouldn't be where I am today. Let me offer you a toast."

  Ye Zuwen smiled but didn't speak, and took this cup.

  Liu Hongsheng bit his cheek: "Ye Gong, to be honest, I have no relatives in this Shanghai, every step is extremely difficult. This coal business has finally started to look up, but now the source of goods has some problems."

  Wang Zhenyu has transformed into a foodie, ignoring Liu Hongsheng's words as if he didn't hear them, and is working hard to devour the steak on his plate. Grandma, it's really seven minutes well done.