My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 88 Strange
The words of the crowd made the man in the red armband frown. He looked at Zhou Jiye, then at Xu Guoqing who had a calm expression, and then waved to Xu Guoqing.

"Comrade..."

"Damn it, you think I don't know you? Xu Guoqing, right? This stall belongs to you?" the other person said with a low laugh.

"Hehe, comrade, who are you...?" Xu Guoqing asked without changing his expression, taking out a cigarette and offering it to him.

The other party did not refuse, took the cigarette and said, "My surname is Zhang, Zhang Jianguo. I'm from the Xigong Security Department. Genbao is my brother. Genbao greeted me on the first day you set up your stall here."

"So it's Section Chief Zhang! I've heard so much about you. Brother Genbao mentioned you to me before. I've always wanted to meet you but never had the chance. I never expected to run into you today." Xu Guoqing felt confident instantly. He continued to smile and kept offering cigarettes to the security guards. After scattering cigarettes around, he lit one for Section Chief Zhang and casually slipped the lighter into his hand as he lit the cigarette.

"You little rascal!" Section Chief Zhang chuckled, casually putting the lighter into his pocket, and whispered to Xu Guoqing, "What are you going to say about these three brats?"

“I’ll listen to you. You’re the head of the security department, so of course you should make the arrangements,” Xu Guoqing replied without hesitation.

Section Chief Zhang was even more satisfied now. He nodded and said to Xu Guoqing, "The incident happened at the West Palace gate. According to the rules, we at the West Palace can handle this kind of situation, and the police station can also handle it. However, if we leave it to the police station, it might be considered that we haven't done our job properly if it gets reported to higher-ups. So... do you understand?"

"I understand, I understand." Xu Guoqing had no doubts. It was simply a matter of dividing responsibilities. If Section Chief Zhang, as the head of the security section, took the matter over, the police station wouldn't be able to get involved. From now on, this matter would only be considered an internal matter for Xigong, which would be more convenient for them to handle.

In addition, this also involves the situation of street vendors at the entrance of the West Palace. Although we turn a blind eye to street vendors now, if things get out of hand, no one knows what the impact will be. It would be better for them to keep the impact within their own authority. Why bother going to the police station?
Seeing Xu Guoqing's eagerness to get on the road, Section Chief Zhang was very satisfied. He reached out and patted Xu Guoqing's shoulder lightly, then waved his hand and pointed at A Mao and the two henchmen who were still lying on the ground, saying to his men, "Take them all back!"

"Yes!"

The crowd responded, and several men stepped forward and pulled out handcuffs, snapping them on Ah Mao before he could even react. The two generals, Heng and Ha, who were slowly waking up, were also handcuffed together, and the three of them were escorted towards the West Palace.

As the cold handcuffs tightened around his wrists, A Mao's face turned deathly pale, and his legs went weak.

He suddenly remembered something and hurriedly turned his head to look behind him, but all he saw was a dense crowd of onlookers, and he couldn't find that familiar figure for a moment.

"What are you looking at? Behave yourself!"

The security guards who were escorting Amao showed him no mercy. They raised their hands and struck him on the waist. The blow was neither too light nor too heavy, but it made Amao, who was about to explain, gasp. The pain in his ribs was so intense that he couldn't even speak. He was dragged into the West Palace gate.

A Mao and his two companions were taken away by the security department. Seeing that the matter was resolved and there was no more excitement to be had, the onlookers gradually dispersed.

After the crowd dispersed, Zhou Jiye went to move the goods they had brought back over. He hadn't had time to put them away properly in his haste and had just left them on the ground. But it didn't matter; with so many people around and such a thing happening, who would be foolish enough to steal them? That would be utterly suicidal.

I took the items back to my stall, greeted the stall owner who had been watching over the stall while they were fighting, and offered cigarettes to everyone to thank them for speaking up for me.

After exchanging a few polite words, the four returned to their stalls. Only then did Xu Guoqing inquire about the details. He had only heard a brief account from Lao Wen and did not know the full story.

Lin Ying, as the person involved, spoke in detail about how A Mao and the others got there, how they asked about prices to buy things, and how they said they would owe them money, then snatched the items and left.

As soon as Lin Ying finished speaking, Lao Wen, who was standing next to her, said excitedly, "You didn't see it just now, but Lin Ying was so decisive! Before I could even react, she rushed forward, pulled out her weapon, and smashed it directly into that Ah Mao's head."

"Good heavens! I've never seen such speed and ruthlessness before. By the time I came to my senses, that guy called Amao was lying on the ground clutching his head. His two henchmen were also startled and were about to attack Lin Meimei. How could I just stand by and do nothing? I quickly grabbed half a brick and rushed over, smashing it directly at one of the guys' heads. If he hadn't dodged quickly, he would have been knocked down by me..."

As Lao Wen spoke, he gestured wildly, spitting as he spoke with great excitement. To be honest, he was neither Zhou Jiye nor Xu Guoqing. Lao Wen had always been a good kid and had never been in a fight before. Today's battle could be said to be the first real fight he had ever fought in his life. The key was that he did not lose and even showed his spirit. This alone was enough for him to brag about for a long time.

"Do you think you're Mu Guiying?!" Zhou Jiye was terrified after hearing this. Lin Ying was too bold. The three guys, A Mao and Xu Guoqing, were all young men who had been out there. Although they were not as good as him and Xu Guoqing, they were still strong and healthy young men.

Lin Ying is a woman, less than 1.6 meters tall, and petite. How could she possibly be a match for her opponent in a fight? Not to mention her, even if you include Lao Wen, if Xu Guoqing and I hadn't returned quickly, we would have definitely suffered this loss today.

What if he really got seriously injured? Zhou Jiye never expected Lin Ying to be so fierce; this wasn't like the usual playful fights they had at home. "Well... I just forgot when I got angry," Lin Ying said, somewhat embarrassed, but still trying to argue, "Don't underestimate me. I'm trained. If my weapon wasn't so unsuitable, I would have made them suffer today."

"Your weapon wasn't quite right either. You almost smashed someone's head open because it wasn't right. You didn't know your own strength. If you had really hurt someone, you wouldn't have been in the right anymore," Zhou Jiye complained, then asked curiously, "What did you use to smash that guy's head?"

"this……."

Lin Ying reached behind her and pulled out a rolling pin. Zhou Jiye was both amused and exasperated when he saw it. He didn't know when Lin Ying had brought this thing with her. Xu Guoqing, who was standing next to her, couldn't help but laugh as well. However, it was fortunate that Lin Ying had this thing today, otherwise they wouldn't have been able to keep A Mao. Once the three of them ran away, even if they came back, it would be difficult to handle the situation.

After chatting for a while, Lin Ying noticed that Xu Guoqing seemed to be deep in thought, so she asked him what he was thinking about.

"I think there's something strange about what happened today."

"What's strange about it?" Zhou Jiye asked.

Xu Guoqing shook his head: "I can't say for sure. We've been setting up a stall here for a while now, and even when thugs come, nothing like this has ever happened. And today is such a coincidence. Xiaoling and I had just gone back not long ago when these three guys showed up and started causing trouble. And from what you just said, they didn't come to buy anything at all. It seems like they're deliberately trying to cause trouble."

“Brother Qing is right.” Lin Ying nodded: “I’ve thought about it and it’s true. They started asking all sorts of questions as soon as they came in, and acted like they had plenty of money. After they picked out some things, they said they owed them. They were just deliberately trying to cause trouble.”

“Exactly!” Xu Guoqing said, “That’s why I find it strange. Logically speaking, there are rules in the underworld. Ordinary people wouldn’t do such despicable things. And even if they really wanted to rob you, they wouldn’t struggle with you for so long first. There are three of them. Wouldn’t it be more straightforward if they just pretended not to know each other, had two people hold you off, and then had the other person grab the item and run away when you weren’t paying attention? Why bother with this whole thing? Isn’t it just like taking off your pants to fart and doing something completely unnecessary?”

"Could this be someone trying to show off?" Old Wen asked from the side.

"No way!" Xu Guoqing said confidently. "Only someone who's lost their mind would do that. Would you do it?"

Old Wen shook his head vigorously. He wasn't stupid; only an idiot would do that.

"These three guys weren't sent by someone we have a grudge against, were they?" Zhou Jiye also felt that something was wrong. After thinking for a moment, he looked to the side and his gaze fell on a stall owner.

“It wasn’t him!” Lin Ying said firmly. “If he were retaliating against us, he would have run away by now. Why would he still be setting up a stall?”

The guy they were talking about was the one who got slapped twice by Zhou Jiye on his first day setting up his stall. His stall was now only five or six meters away from theirs.

Xu Guoqing agreed, also feeling it wasn't the right person. Besides, if it were him, he would seek revenge on Zhou Jiye, but A Mao and the others were clearly after Lin Ying.

"Sister Lin, have you offended anyone recently?" Xu Guoqing asked after thinking for a moment.

At this moment, Lin Ying also thought of this, but after racking her brains, she couldn't recall anyone she had offended. Shaking her head, Lin Ying said, "I set up my stall and then go home to cook and do laundry every day. It's just a routine between two points. Who do you think I could have offended?"

"That's strange..."

The group exchanged bewildered glances, unable to understand what was going on. Since they couldn't figure it out, they decided to put it aside for now. After all, the person was at the security office; they could set up their stall first and then ask the security office later.

They put the goods they brought back on their stall and continued doing business, as if what happened with A Mao was just an interlude.

As evening approached, the crowd gradually increased again, and their business was quite good. Before long, they sold some more goods. Seeing that these goods could only be sold for another day or two at most, everyone felt both happy and worried.

Once the goods are sold out, they can't just close the stall, can they? But they're not sure what's going on with Achang right now. On his way to pick up the goods today, Xu Guoqing sent a telegram to Achang at the post office. They don't know when he'll reply. If all else fails, they'll just have to wait. Or maybe Zhou Jiye is still considering whether he and Xu Guoqing should make another trip to Lingnan.

Just as he was pondering this matter, someone from the security department came over, found Xu Guoqing, and whispered a few words to him. Xu Guoqing nodded, glanced at the goods on the stall, and asked Lin Ying to get him five digital watches. Without saying a word, Lin Ying picked out five watches, packed them in a plastic bag, and gave them to him. Xu Guoqing took them, stuffed them into his pocket, and said that he was going to the security department to tell them to continue selling goods, and that he would be back in a while.

(End of this chapter)