To get rich quickly, you need to be simple and rough

The sky was dark, the autumn wind rustled, the reeds swayed, and a layer of gray fog covered the mountains and rivers. The Li family, in a daze, left the Liuhe Bridge, crossed Changshanzi, and said goodbye to Binta. Fengtian was no longer in sight. They passed Juliuhe Station at some point, and all around them was endless white sand, lush weeds, and dense willow trees and thatch.

Hiding in a willow thatch nest were a group of bandits ("huzi" means bandits in Northeastern dialect). When they saw the No. 105 bus approaching, they swarmed out of the willow thatch, firing their guns and shouting loudly:

"Stop! Stop!"

The train driver spotted a swarm of bearded men charging ahead and slammed on the brakes. The bearded men, firing their rifles, surrounded the train. From the tangled mass of bearded men, a short, plump man, about forty years old, with a chubby face and a scowl, emerged. He held a mirror-mounted pistol in his hand and began hurling curses at the refugees on the train, his breath reeking of koji.

"I, Rolling Dragon, always travel with my friends and spend my enemies' money. My friend is so kind that he left me some money for the trip, which is convenient. If you're not so kind, stop talking nonsense. Enemies often meet, and bullets have no eyes. So you should do as I see fit!"

The refugees on the train were suddenly attacked by the bearded creatures and began to panic. Face to face, they were stunned and at a loss. Some people knew that every year when the green gauze tent was raised, the rolling dragon would pull up a wisp of its beard and kidnap people everywhere, torturing them half to death. If they didn't pay a ransom, they would tear their bodies apart. Anyone who encountered it would be unlucky.

People whispered to each other: "It's really like buying wine but only getting water, and then running into a ghost when you go out!"

"Get off the bus. No one can get through here. You can't hide from me."

The beards, armed with rifles, shouted and cursed. Knowing they couldn't escape, the refugees hurriedly jumped off the train. Some had their pockets ripped from them; others had their clothes taken from them; others, hiding jewelry in their socks, were slapped. The beaten refugees cried out in agony, their voices piercing the air.

The Huzi knew how to push their luck. The refugees' demands emboldened them, and they felt they were lambs to the slaughter. Their courage grew, and they began to look for attractive young women among the refugees, hoping to bring them into the green tent. Suddenly, the crowd erupted in weeping.

At this moment, a crisp sound broke the silence. A bloody hole appeared on the rolling dragon's head, and blood gushed out. His eyes rolled back and his life was over.

The bearded men were furious and were looking for the shooter everywhere. However, the bullets seemed to have eyes and were tracking the bearded men's heads. Even if one bearded man pulled the refugees in front of him as a shield, it was useless. One by one, their heads were blown apart.

When the last bearded man was shot dead, the crowd suddenly fell silent. The refugees looked around blankly. Was this troublesome rolling dragon dead? Were all the fifty or sixty bearded men dead in such a short time?

Who would believe it if I told them? In the blink of an eye, more than fifty bearded men had their heads blown to pieces and died.

After a brief silence, the refugees burst into tears. The Chinese were smart. After Hu Zi died, the money that he had looted was taken back by the refugees. Some even stripped off Hu Zi's belongings and better clothes. There were no taboos at that time.

Some clever people might ask, "Isn't it disgusting to see blood on these clothes?" But people back then were poor, so what was the big deal about a bit of blood on perfectly good clothes? They could just wash them and wear them anyway. Compared to freezing to death, these things were nothing. Being particular about things was something you only thought about after you had enough money and enough to eat and drink.

It would be bad if the strong young men among the refugees threw the body of Beard into the willow stump and onto the ground, scaring the old man who was planting crops.

Two hours later the train started moving again. Sitting in his seat, Li Yujin began to feel sorry for his 1,000 points. He didn't feel it when he was spending the money, but it really hurt after he spent it all.

The Li family fled from Fengtian to Peking and entered a completely different world.

I remember when I left Fengtian, the scenes of Chinese policemen lying dead on the streets of the industrial zone, Japanese military police arresting people everywhere, and bearded men robbing refugee vehicles were still so vivid. Fengtian was such a vast land but there was no place where one could live in peace.

However, ancient Beijing presents a scene of solemnity and peace.

The Forbidden City surrounded by red walls, the Forbidden City with yellow glazed tiles, the towering White Pagoda of Beihai, and the exquisite corner towers on the corners of the Forbidden City show the power, solemnity and majesty of the feudal dynasty.

Within the ancient city walls, modern civilization emerged: the Six Nations Restaurant on Chang'an Avenue, the Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant in front of Qianmen, and the Xidan Hapei Dance Hall. With the Mid-Autumn Festival approaching, mooncakes were on sale, and clay rabbit figurines appeared on the stalls. Here, the people bustled about in a joyful way. Outside a red-painted door on Jingshan East Street, a scion of a former dynasty, carrying a birdcage, lounged in the shade of a tree.

This was not something the Li family could consider. After coming from Fengtian, everyone was exhausted. The old housekeeper Liu was so tired that he was staggering, and the strong young men could not hold on any longer. At the west corner of the road, the wooden sign of the Wenfeng Hotel was particularly conspicuous.

The exhausted man walked into Wenfeng Hotel.

Zhang Linshan, the owner of the Wenfeng Hotel, was a portly, middle-aged man with a thick face and unsightly scarred eyes. He glared at Butler Liu with disdain and said gruffly, "Our hotel provides meals. Two meals a day: rice, a dish, and soup. Including rent, each person costs twelve yuan per month."

Those who were able to follow Li Wenting out were his confidants who ate the meals in the kitchen at home. Li Wenting was not willing to let these people down, so he waved his hand and told us to take care of our own meals.

Li Wenting paid 20 yuan more and would get a refund for the shortfall. He would settle down first.

Butler Liu logged the store account at the counter, and Zhang Linshan led them to a row of green-tiled houses at the east end of the west courtyard and unlocked them one by one. Li Wenting and Xu Huizhen lived in the third room with their two children, and Li Chunxing was a girl, so Xu Huizhen arranged for her to live in the inner room.

The remaining people lived separately according to gender.

They slept soundly and deeply. When Li Wenting, Xu Huizhen and the others woke up, it was already noon the next day and everyone had recovered their energy.

The Li family changed out of their fleeing clothes. Li Wenting and Li Yujin wore well-tailored suit jackets, trousers and fitted leather shoes, looking energetic. Xu Huizhen wore a Su satin cheongsam, and Li Chunxing wore a moon-white brocade short-sleeved jacket with a slanting collar and a light blue pleated long skirt.

Even Butler Liu and his group wore appropriate clothes.