The anti-Qing movement began with the looting of the Eight-Nation Alliance.

"You look unfamiliar, sir! Is this your first time visiting Linqing? I am Tan Ya, a humble man who makes a living at this dock. I know all the trades and professions here like the back of my hand..."

Shen Lian turned his head and saw a thin man in his early twenties. His two front teeth were very prominent, and his smile had a lewd tone.

"That damn Tan Ya, daring to steal business from the docks. Looks like we didn't beat him enough last time!" Before Shen Lian could speak, a voice rang out from the side. Tan Ya trembled upon hearing this.

Three shifty-eyed fellows swaggered over.

Shen Lian frowned involuntarily.

"Get lost, you little punk! How dare you be so insolent in front of our young master!" Shen Xiaohu roared.

Upon hearing this, Lai Fu and his three companions rolled up their sleeves, ready to take action.

"Oh! It's Tiger Lord! My eyes were covered in sleep, I didn't see you, please forgive me."

"Tell them to get lost!" Shen Lian was too lazy to bother with these thugs, lest he lose face.

"Did you hear that? Our young master told you to get lost. Get the hell out of here, or I'll break your legs if you show your face in front of him again!"

"Okay, okay! We're leaving, we're leaving!" The three guys immediately fled in panic.

"Heh! Looks like Tiger is quite the big shot at the docks!" Shen Lian sneered.

Shen Xiaohu's face immediately fell. "No, no, young master. I was just relying on the master's and young master's prestige! Hehe!"

Shen Lian shook his head, ignoring him. This was no big deal.

"Tan Ya, right?"

"It's me! Young Master Shen! Please give me your orders." Tan Ya said, bowing and scraping. He had seen everything that had just happened and naturally knew Shen Lian's identity.

"Who are those people?" Shen Lian raised his chin.

"Oh! You mean them? They are all descendants of the Taiping rebels. Because they had no land and no one was willing to take them in, they gathered in the reeds by the river and built some shacks to live in. People all cursed them as remnants of the Taiping rebels."

“They usually make a living by pulling boats on the canal, but in recent years there have been fewer and fewer boats on the canal. Their lives have become very difficult.”

"This Lu Da organized a group of people to work at the docks. Because he was tall and strong, three or five men usually couldn't beat him. He made quite a name for himself at the docks. Hehe!"

"Don't let Lu Da's rough appearance fool you; he's very sensible. He only goes out to steal jobs when he has no other choice, which is why the gangs at the docks can tolerate him."

"Hmm! He's a man who's rough around the edges but meticulous at heart," Shen Lian nodded. He casually pulled out a cigarette and lit it with a snap.

Shen Xiaohu, who was standing nearby, was immediately impressed.

"Young master, is this the legendary foreign cigarette? And what kind of treasure is that you used to light it?"

"Yes! This is called a lighter, and I brought it back from abroad!"

Exactly! What other business can make money? What's more profitable than cigarettes?

There probably aren't any cigarette factories in China right now; making cigarettes must be a unique business!

Small investment, high profit. Thinking of this, Shen Lian's lips curled into a smile.

Lighters are also a good business opportunity; he's seen old-fashioned kerosene lighters before. With current technology, manufacturing them shouldn't be too difficult.

We can create our own lighter brand and not let foreigners have all the credit.

Just as Shen Lian was lost in thought, a commotion in the distance interrupted his reverie.

Not far away on the shore, a wooden boat was moored. Several people were throwing steamed buns onto the shore, and a large crowd gathered to scramble for them.

The white steamed buns fell onto the muddy bank, instantly becoming covered in dirt. But the people on the bank didn't mind at all, and were desperately scrambling for them. Shouts and cries filled the air.

The people on the boat laughed loudly and kept shouting strange noises.

"Young Master, that's the Kong family distributing grain!" Tan Ya quickly said when he saw Shen Lian looking over.

The Kong family?

"Is it the Kong family you know?" Tan Ya explained proactively.

The basket of steamed buns was quickly finished, and the Kong family's boat sailed away. The gathered crowd slowly dispersed.

A boy curled up on the ground slowly moved his body. After observing his surroundings, he rolled over and got up.

He clutched a lump of unrecognizable white steamed bun in each hand, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with his right hand, and ran quickly into the distance.

Under the eaves of the dockside warehouse, several children lay sprawled about. They were all covered in black soot, and most of them were naked, without even pants.

"Sister, look! I brought you back!" The boy helped up a four- or five-year-old girl from the crowd.

The little girl was already starving and on the verge of death. When she opened her eyes and saw the steamed bun the boy offered her, she snatched it away, took a big bite, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it.

The little girl choked on the steamed bun, her face turning bright red and her eyes rolling back.

"Sis! Slow down, eat slowly." The boy quickly reached out and patted his sister's back. It took quite a bit of effort to get the little girl to swallow the steamed bun.

The boy found half a broken bowl and scooped some water from the ditch. The little girl quickly leaned over and drank a mouthful, then began to gnaw on her steamed bun in large bites.

Seeing his younger sister eating with relish, the boy couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Brother, you eat!" The little girl handed the remaining half of the steamed bun to her brother.

"Sister, you eat. I have more here." The boy smiled slightly.

The little girl didn't stand on ceremony and continued to gnaw on the food with her head down.

"Stone, Brother Stone! Do you have enough steamed buns to eat?" a weak voice rang out.

The commotion caused by the siblings had already alerted the children nearby, and a group of them slowly gathered around. They watched the little girl munching on her steamed bun with wide eyes, their throats bobbing incessantly.

The boy frowned and thought for a moment. Then he found a larger, broken bowl and scooped a large bowl of water from the ditch.

I broke off most of the steamed bun in my hand and soaked it in water, then broke off a small piece and put it in as well. Then I stuck out my black finger and stirred the contents of the bowl before handing it to them.

"One sip each, taking turns to drink, no one is allowed to drink more!"

"Okay, thank you, Brother Stone!" A child of about ten years old took the broken bowl, carefully took a sip, and then reluctantly handed the bowl to his friend.

The other children quickly gathered around, waiting anxiously.

Seeing that his younger sister had finished eating, the boy picked up his own half-eaten steamed bun and ate it with water.

The broken bowl spun around, and the soup inside was drunk clean by a group of children. A child of about ten years old was still licking the broken bowl, seemingly not quite satisfied.

"Brother Stone, the steamed buns are so delicious! I can't even remember the last time I had them, I've almost forgotten what they taste like."

"Tan Ya, who are those children?"

“Young Master Shen, they are all orphans. They come from all sorts of backgrounds.”

"Don't the government care? And who will adopt them?"

"Hey, the government! Cough, maybe there are too many disaster victims and the government can't manage them all!" Tan Ya glanced at Shen Lian and said with his head down.

"They're too young to work. These days, who wants to feed another mouth to feed?"