The news that Old Master Long was dead swept the whole town like a storm, even causing a moderate commotion.
As the grandson of Mr. Long, I was the only relative of Mr. Long who was the last to know the news.
The small shop was already crowded with gangsters who were brazenly holding watermelon knives. The old man with a crooked mouth in the lead opened his mouth and revealed a mouth full of yellow and black teeth. The blade of the knife in his hand made a rhythmless sound on the wooden counter.
.
I stood up from the rattan couch. The deserted shop had never been so lively. The crooked-mouthed old man was a well-known figure in the city's underworld. He was in the arms business. A conscientious citizen like me couldn't afford to offend him.
I grinned and said, "Uncle crooked, why are you here?"
"What are you doing that's expensive? I'm here today to ask for money!" The old man Waizui slashed the knife into my wooden table.
I was startled for a moment. This old man with a crooked mouth is really weird now. In the past, when my grandfather owed him a debt, he would come to me to ask for it if he didn't dare to ask for it. This was a common thing, but he always respected me.
Xiao Long Ye, he was polite, but I have never seen him so aggressive today.
"Uncle, what are you doing?"
"Long Zuimeng, don't pretend to be confused with me. Your grandfather took several boxes of arms from my place. He didn't even give me a penny, so he just gave me a kick to the sky. You are his grandson, this money
What do you think I should do? Today, you have to give me whether you want to give me something or not!" The crooked-mouthed old man tilted his head, raised his eyelids, and said harsh words.
"My grandfather bought you arms to make - what do you mean, you said my grandfather is dead?!"
"You kid, don't tell me, you don't fucking know the news that the whole world knows! Do you give me the money or not? If you don't give it, I will destroy your shop. Your old man is gone, and there is no one to protect you now.
!”
"Lao Wai, how can you add insult to injury like this?" A high-pitched voice came from the door, and then a person appeared slowly and slowly, "Master Xiaolong, please forgive me and accept the change."
"Bah, you old boy are not here to collect debts!" the crooked-mouthed old man spat.
The person at the door had already walked in. It was Tang Ye who opened the nightclub. He was also a figure. He monopolized the nightclub business in the entire city and had some friendship with my grandfather. The man waved a fan in his hand and said unhurriedly: "I
Don't be in a hurry, I just came to tell Mr. Xiao Long that Mr. Long made some accounts at my place, and Mr. Xiao Long had better take some time to settle them." After saying that, Tang Ye turned around and left, walking to
When he was at the door, he turned around and said, "Master Xiaolong, if you don't have enough money, you can use that picture as payment."
The old man with a crooked mouth cursed a few more times, "Why are you pretending to be a good person? I'm not here to collect debts! I said, boy, your grandfather owes a lot of debt, enough to bankrupt you. I have no interest in waiting for you to bankrupt again.
If you want, please tell me, should I give it or not?!"
After following my all-powerful grandpa for a long time, I have actually developed the ability to not be surprised by any changes. I was confused, I tilted the corner of my mouth, looked at the crooked old man and said, "Master, I don't want you to joke like this. What are you doing?"
Are you setting fire to deceive me? My grandfather is dead, how could I not know!"
"Hey, it seems like the rumors are true. Old Master Long is dead, and Little Long Master doesn't even know! Little Long Master, go take a look quickly, maybe you can even see your old man's ghost!" Someone stepped from the door.
He came in, glanced at the old man with a crooked mouth, and said, "Hey, Lao Wai is here, so I'd better leave first. Mr. Xiaolong, I can trust you. Your grandpa's account with me is here. Remember to come and clear it when you have time."
"
It was during one chaotic debt collection after another that I learned the news that my grandfather was dead. At that time, when I heard that my grandfather, who I depended on for life, had died, I didn’t feel sad at all. I even couldn’t believe my ghost.
The ghost's grandfather will die.
After all, the crooked old man smashed up my shop. How could I give the money for a few boxes of arms to someone who was running a legitimate small business? Besides, I don’t know if my grandfather really took it from him.
Regarding arms, my grandfather used to hang out on the streets in his early years. After opening an antique shop, he became a good man and had a lot of friends. However, he had long since given up on the arms business.
After the crooked old man left, the shop was left in a mess. I didn't even lock the door, so I went straight to my grandpa's antique shop on East Street.
The antique shop is still the original antique shop, with an antique style and a spooky feeling like a haunted house. There is no one in the room, and the rattan couch is quietly placed behind the counter.
"Grandpa!" I shouted several times before entering the room.
The door curtain of the back room swung, and Lin Sheng walked out of the door curtain. He looked at me blankly, and something fell to the ground in his hand.
"Xiao, Xiao Longye!"
"Where is my grandpa?" I entered the house.
"Old Master Long..." Lin Sheng hesitated to speak.
"What's up with him?"
"Old Master Long is missing."
"Gone?" I breathed a sigh of relief. It was common for my grandfather to disappear. From time to time, he would disappear for ten days and a half, and then come back. When he came back, he was always more refreshed than before.
.
I was just about to turn around and leave, and when I went back to clean up my small shop, Lin Sheng called out to me, and immediately fell to his knees with a plop, slapping his thighs and crying, "Master Xiaolong, I can't help you, and I can't help you."
I'm sorry, Old Master Long! Old Master Long is dead, I didn't take a good look at it, and his body is gone!"
I was stunned for a moment, wondering if I had heard wrongly. Obviously, I had not heard wrongly. Lin Sheng explained the cause and effect of the matter with a tearful voice.
My grandfather had an accident last night. According to Lin Sheng's description, I roughly know what happened.
There was no business all day long. The occasional person who came in would be tourists passing by in twos and threes. They would point and look before leaving. Until late in the evening, a hunchbacked old man with a long, sinister face and sly eyes suddenly walked in at the door.
He looked around in panic.
The old man walked into the house and lowered his voice and spoke a few words to his grandfather. Then his expression changed and he excitedly asked the hunchbacked old man to come into the back room to chat, and ordered Lin Sheng to make tea.
Lin Sheng was also happy, thinking he was a big customer, and immediately made a pot of fine Longjing and brought it into the house. Unexpectedly, he was shocked as soon as he entered the house. My grandfather was lying motionless on the rattan couch inside, but he was supposed to
The hunchbacked old man sitting opposite had disappeared without a trace. The back room was originally a small compartment, with only a coffee table, two chairs and a few pots of flowers and trees. The cabin of more than ten square meters was clearly visible.
Lin Sheng didn't see the hunchbacked old man go out when he was outside. There was no passage inside to get out. There were several steel bars on the window, not to mention an adult or even a newborn baby. But the hunchbacked old man couldn't climb out.