Author: Jiangsu Daozi

Zuo Zhong looked at Francois Huang who was looking like a pear blossom with rain, and smiled slightly, shook hands with him, then came to sit down next to the stool, looked at the other person up and down with interest and asked slowly.

"Mr. François, don't you work for a French company in Qicheng? Why did you suddenly come to the mountain city and participate in the black market gold transaction? Tsk tsk, this is a major crime that undermines the wartime economy."

As soon as they met and before reminiscing about old times, Zuo Zhong put a big hat on the other person's head. François Huang heard the words and jumped to his side, bent down and squeezed out a flattering smile to explain.

"Sir, you don't know that my house in the French Concession was bombed by the Japanese. If our family hadn't gone to the consulate's dinner that day, we might have all died in Qicheng.

Without my house and property, the French not only refused to help me, but also added insult to injury and expelled me from the foreign bank. Fortunately, I had deposited some gold in a British bank before, so I didn't starve to death."

When Francois Huang mentioned this matter, his face turned red with anger, and then he changed the subject: "Since the French are unreliable, I have no choice but to find a way to come to the mountain city and make a living on the black market."

Zuo Zhong glanced at the other party and said with a half-smile: "It's just a living, Mr. Francois is too humble. With a capital of several hundred taels of gold, he can be regarded as one of the few big traders even on the black market.

And why didn’t you come to see Zuo when you came to Shancheng? You should know Zuo’s identity. I said when we parted last time that we can cooperate if necessary in the future. Could it be that you look down on Zuo?”

François Huang Lian shook his head and his smile became even more humble: "Sir, sir, you have a high position and I don't dare to disturb you. It just so happens that Zhongtong has some connections, so they didn't come to see you."

The two chatted for a while, asking questions and answering questions. Zuo Zhong roughly understood Francois Huang's recent experience. As for the authenticity, it was easy to verify. The strength of the Israeli military commanding the Changcheng station was easy to find out.

He stood up, looked at his watch, and nodded to Wu Chunyang beside him: "You issue a release certificate to Mr. Francois. As for the gold, 30% will be taken according to the rules, and the rest will be returned."

After speaking, he smiled and asked Francois Huang: "My old friend, please understand that this is an official act. I must explain it to everyone above and below, and I cannot give you all the gold."

"Understand, understand, I understand."

Francois Huang Fei nodded quickly. He was able to get out of the military command completely and get back 70% of the gold. What else could he be dissatisfied about? Didn't you hear someone screaming outside the window?

It was the military commander's special agents who were interrogating the black market businessmen. In the hands of these murderous agents, it was impossible to get out without peeling off the skin, and it was even more difficult to even think about getting the money back.

If he hadn't formed a good relationship in Jiangcheng, he would definitely have been one of the people being interrogated. François Huang knew this very well and thanked Zuo Zhong and Wu Chunyang again and again.

Zuo Zhong waved his hand and replied with a smile: "Haha, okay, you're welcome. After all, we have lived and died together in Qicheng. Without the help of Mr. Francois, we would not have retreated so smoothly.

I just heard you say that my wife and children have also come to the mountain city. It is better to choose a different day. Zuo and Chief Wu will be unwelcome guests today. How about Mr. Francois? Would you like to welcome Zuo and others to visit us? "

"Welcome, of course."

Francois Huang was overjoyed. This reaction was normal. Being able to establish a relationship with the deputy director of the military command was something that many people dreamed of. With the help of the other party, the black market was nothing.

So the three of them walked out of the room chatting and laughing, took a suitcase of gold, got in the car, and drove unsteadily for more than half an hour, arriving near the Li Family Garden located in the eastern suburbs of Shancheng City.

After everyone got out of the car, Zuo Zhong looked at the lush woods around him, raised his arms and expanded his chest, took a deep breath of the extremely fresh air, and turned to look at Francois Huang.

"Mr. Francois has chosen a good place for self-cultivation. Zuo wanted to buy a residence here. Although the city is lively, it is too noisy and the air is turbid and tight.

It’s just that it’s a bit inconvenient to start a black market business while living here. Could it be that Mr. Francois takes gold to the city every day? This is a bit dangerous. The streets are not stable recently.”

He seemed to ask a question with concern, but Wu Chunyang, who was in charge of accompanying him, was moved in his heart and cast his eyes covertly at Francois Huang, wanting to hear what the other party would explain.

Francois Huang showed a wry smile and pointed to a small courtyard surrounded by green trees: "Of course it is inconvenient, but the housing prices in Shancheng City are too high. I have limited capital. I can't even afford to rent, let alone buy.

.

This place is far away from the urban area and has beautiful scenery, so it is a suitable place to stay. As for safety, Lijia Garden is close to Yucheng Highway, and there are many military and police patrols nearby, so safety can be guaranteed."

Zuo Zhong was noncommittal about this answer and walked slowly along the mountain road towards the house pointed by Francois Huang. Upon seeing this, Wu Chunyang and the little spy in charge of protection quickly followed.

When the group of people slowly came to the entrance of the small courtyard, a young child squatting on the ground and playing with ants with a wooden stick at the door saw Francois Huang with a surprised look on his face, turned around and ran into the courtyard shouting.

"Mother, mother, father is back."

Following the cry of the toddler, the sound of objects falling to the ground came from the house, and then an elegant woman in her thirties rushed out of the house and looked up, tears filling her eyes.

"Ahem, Sir Zuo, this is Zhuo Jing." François Huang introduced the woman sheepishly, then walked quickly to the other party, wiped away his wife's tears, and spoke in a low voice.

The couple talked about themselves, Zuo Zhong and others turned their faces consciously and admired the surrounding scenery. After a long time, Francois Huang returned to the agents and invited everyone into the house.

Zuo Zhong nodded and stepped forward. When he passed by the young child hiding behind Francois Huang, he suddenly touched his head. Looking at the angry eyes of the young child, he laughed and walked into the door.

Entering the courtyard, what you see is an ordinary mountain town residence, with the steps winding up, and a tall stone house standing on a flat dam built of stone and soil.

There is a well in the northwest corner of the courtyard. There are traces of long-term use on the edge of the well. There is also a copper basin buckled on the ground. This shows how surprised Francois Huang's wife was just now.

After casually looking at the layout of the yard, everyone entered the living room and sat down under the guidance of Francois Huang. His wife brought a few cups of black tea. The fragrance was fragrant and the color was really beautiful.

"Oh? Ceylon black tea, this is a good thing." Zuo Chong took a look at it and said with a smile, and then put down the tea cup. It's a good habit to be suspicious in this business. Who knows if there is poison in the tea.

Smelling the aroma of tea, he took a closer look at François Huang's wife. She was tall, wearing a foreign cloth cheongsam, and her skin was slightly rough but fair, matching the characteristics of a middle-class housewife in trouble.

Zuo Zhong asked with a faint smile: "I don't know what your wife's name is. It's really rude of me to bother you so rashly this time. If I hadn't been asked by Shangfeng to crack down on the black market, I really wouldn't have known that Brother Huang came to the mountain city to make a living."

François Huang's wife handed the last cup of tea to the little agent and gently announced her name: "Weng Wenpei, Francois just told me that I would like to thank you sir for the rescue this time.

If it weren't for your noble gesture, my child and I would not know what we would do. It is a great honor for us to have you come to our home. You and the other officers will wait a moment while I go to the kitchen to prepare the meal."

With that said, Weng Wenpei took a few steps back gracefully and dragged the curious child out of the living room. Francois laughed twice and took the initiative to inquire about the government's crackdown on the black market.

Nowadays, people in the black market in the entire mountain city are in panic. No one knows what the government is going to do, how hard it will crack down on the black market, and whether the top leaders of the Guo Party are really going to throw this pot away.

This can be related to the livelihood of countless people, including Bangbang who moves goods, boatmen who transport goods, landlords who rent shops, even Brother Pao who oversees the venue, as well as people who rely on the black market to exchange daily necessities.

With his hand stroking the warm tea cup, Zuo Zhong did not "hide anything" and directly pointed out the joints to the other party. How and when this matter will end depends on Deputy Director Xu of the Central Military Commission.

Their military commander was just a scapegoat and was tricked by Xu Enzeng. After all, he was known as a compassionate person in the Guo Party and loved the people as his own children, so how could he have any evil intentions?

As long as the Central Government withdraws its proposal to crack down on the black market, the Military Command promises to stop the action immediately, and those caught can leave after paying fines to ensure the stability of the livelihood of millions of people in the mountain city.

François Huang was naturally a boaster, saying that Zuo Zhong was the most righteous person in the world. He was simply a Zhuanzhu of the time and wanted to leave in the Republic of China. He also scolded Xu Enzeng bloody and never left his mother.

With the common topic of scolding Lao Xu, the agents suddenly looked at each other more favorably, and the scene gradually became lively. Wu Chunyang also asked him about the situation of the black market and the people at the bottom.

According to Francois Huang's statement, since the war began, most prices of various commodities have increased. Recently, this trend has become increasingly apparent, and the lives of refugees and ordinary mountain town residents have become increasingly difficult.

In order to make a profit, profiteers deliberately hoard goods, manipulate hot money, speculate and raise market prices. Traffic obstructions and insufficient supply of goods have also left people in dire need of daily necessities.

Various factors are intertwined with each other. Faced with increasingly rising prices, people have deeply felt the strong impact on their daily lives. They feel the pressure of survival and their living conditions are deteriorating.

For example, some men in mountain towns follow their wives to buy meat, and simply cut the pork and take it away. Because if they wait in line honestly, the price of pork will rise if the pork is small, so they have no choice but to grab it.

In the rapidly changing environment during the war, all industry and commerce came to a halt, traffic was jammed, and prices were high. People were very uneasy, anxious, and unfair, and other emotions permeated society.

Some uneducated people and people without specialized skills were desperation after losing their jobs. They turned to crime because they were hungry and cold, and all kinds of crimes spread in large numbers.

Wu Chunyang looked heavy when he heard this. To be honest, with his current status, military pay, and gray income, he could not feel the lack of supplies at all, but ordinary people were not like that.

So he quickly asked Francois Huang for more information. While answering, Francois Huang took out a box of cigars from the drawer in the living room and distributed them to everyone, and also took out an ashtray.

Zuo Zhong smiled and took the cigar. His eyes glanced at the ashtray inadvertently, but he didn't know what he saw. His pupils shrank suddenly, and then he quietly put away the cigar and listened to the discussion of the two people next to him.
Chapter completed!