Siheyuan, my new life

Xu Fugui noticed Yue Xiangqian's actions, and he also gently put down the flour bag he was carrying and pulled out a wooden stick about a foot long from his back waist.

Meanwhile, the other residents of the courtyard at No. 95 were still babbling on and on to the law enforcement officers across the street, pleading for mercy. According to them, their families were starving, and if they couldn't buy food tonight, their elderly relatives and children would go hungry tomorrow. They begged the officers to be lenient and let them go.

What particularly pleased Xu Fugui was that, perhaps seeing that the law enforcement officer in the khaki cotton coat opposite them hadn't spoken up to stop them, these guys from courtyard number 95 actually pretended to be pitiful while slowly approaching him.

Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian mingled among the group, walking step by step toward the law enforcement officer. In their hearts, they were secretly mocking him. Clearly, this guy was just a greenhorn, carrying out a mission alone and not knowing how to maintain a safe distance from his target. In particular, the fact that he hadn't even drawn his pistol yet only emboldened the men of Number 95. Otherwise, if they were facing the dark muzzle of a gun, they wouldn't have dared to do such a thing, even if they had ten times the courage.

Seeing that these people were less than two or three meters away from him, the law enforcement officer shouted, "Everyone, stand still immediately, put down your belongings, raise your hands and wait for inspection and registration, otherwise don't blame me for being impolite." As he spoke, he put his right hand on the holster at his waist.

The people in the courtyard at number 95 stopped involuntarily upon hearing the order from the law enforcement officers opposite them. They had been testing the waters, hoping to gain the mercy of the officers by feigning poverty and playing the victim.

Those who survived the era of warlord conflicts and Japanese pirate raids, were hardly simple-minded individuals. It's likely that most of those simple-minded fellows perished in those times when human life was cheap.

The fact that the law enforcement officer hadn't spoken up earlier had given the people in courtyard number 95 a bit of courage. Now that they saw the officer about to draw his gun, they immediately stood still, feeling a chill and despair in their hearts. However, even at this point, they still had a modicum of rationality, knowing they couldn't continue testing the officer's limits. Otherwise, if they went too far and the officer opened fire, things would get much more complicated. Right now, at most they would only lose some property and have to write a self-criticism and get criticized. Nobody wanted to get shot.

Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian had deliberately moved to the sides of the crowd. Noticing that the law enforcement officers opposite them had taken their hands off their holsters, the two pounced on each other from the left and right at the same time. One raised his wooden stick, while the other swung his fist at the other's face.

The residents of courtyard house number 95, whose hearts had already sunk to the bottom upon hearing the order from the law enforcement officers opposite, suddenly saw two figures rushing towards the officers from their side. Even under the cover of darkness, everyone could tell that the figures rushing towards the officers were the two stewards, Uncle Xu Fugui and Uncle Yue Xiangqian. In an instant, they realized that Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian had seen that the officers were alone and were preparing to take them down.

Immediately, one of the residents whispered, "Let's all attack together. As soon as we take down that guy, we'll grab our things and run away as fast as we can."

People naturally have a herd mentality. After seeing Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian's actions, some people were already getting restless. Now, after hearing these words, several guys put down what they were carrying and rushed forward.

In an instant, only a tall, thin figure wrapped in an oversized blue cotton coat remained on the scene, standing there helplessly. It was Qi Wenzhang, the eldest son of the Qi family in the backyard.

At this moment, Qi Wenzhang stared dumbfounded at the scene unfolding before him. He never dreamed that his neighbors, who had just been constantly crying their poverty and playing the victim to the law enforcement officers across the street, would suddenly start attacking the officers.

To be honest, tonight's trip to the Old Imperial City Black Market was quite an eye-opener for Qi Wenzhang, a high school student. He had only heard about the existence of the black market from his father before. The reason he insisted on going to the black market with the neighbors tonight was not only because he felt sorry for his father, who was working hard day and night and whose hair had turned gray, and wanted to help relieve some of his father's pressure, but also because he was curious about the black market.

Tonight, I saw the famous Old Imperial City Black Market with my own eyes. It felt to me similar to the temple fairs in Beijing during the Spring Festival. The difference was that the things sold in the black market were completely different from those at the temple fairs. Moreover, most of the people who went to the black market were wrapped up tightly, giving people a mysterious feeling.

The trip to the black market was initially going smoothly. Qi Wenzhang managed to buy the grain and pork his family urgently needed, along with his neighbors. Although the prices far exceeded those offered by the supply and marketing cooperative, he was prepared for the worst. However, no one expected to be so unlucky as to encounter law enforcement cracking down on the black market in the old imperial city.

Before I set off, my father had instructed me that if I were unlucky enough to run into law enforcement cracking down on the black market, I should quickly discard what I had bought. When the law enforcement officers questioned me, I should just insist that I was going to the black market to check the price of grain. Under normal circumstances, the law enforcement agencies would not be too harsh on ordinary people.

Qi Wenzhang had originally planned to discard the grain and pork he was carrying, but the steward, Uncle Xu Fugui, led everyone into the alley.

Just as Qi Wenzhang was secretly rejoicing that he had finally avoided losing more than forty yuan, he did not expect to be blocked at the entrance of the alley by a law enforcement officer. He also did not expect that Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian would dare to attack the law enforcement officer.

Although Qi Wenzhang had occasionally gotten into fights with some of his peers, it would be a violation of the law for him to attack law enforcement officers, especially since he was a person who had received a high school education.

What happened next left Qi Wenzhang speechless. Under his horrified gaze, Xu Fugui and Yue Xiangqian, who had rushed towards the law enforcement officer, were casually kicked away by him. Their bodies flew four or five meters away and crashed heavily to the ground. Then, the law enforcement officer, like a tiger pouncing on a flock of sheep, easily knocked down everyone who rushed at him.

For a moment, the pitiful wails and groans of the crowd could be heard incessantly.