The Italian fleet made the trip this time because of Li Zhongtang's urging, so the preparations were not very complete. So the next addition in Shanghai, the economic center of the Qing Dynasty, is very important.
Japan, which attaches great importance to the departure time of the Italian fleet, received the news immediately. Tokyo even sent the telegram intact by communication ship to Aritomo Yamagata on the Weihaiwei front line. This is even more important.
This stimulated the ferocity of the Japanese troops attacking Weihaiwei, and their desperate attacks inflicted heavy losses on the defending Qing troops.
If it weren't for Li Zhongtang's strict orders and the Italian reinforcements in sight, the Qing army, which suffered heavy casualties, might have surrendered.
After all, it is better to die than to live. If you surrender now, you can save your life. Even if you are beheaded by Li Zhongtang in the future, you will live a little longer.
But this time Li Zhongtang was cruel. After the war, as long as the Qing army surrendered from Weihaiwei, no matter who it was, they would be subject to military law, and their family members would also be sent to the frontier. Such harsh and strict orders made the Qing army grit their teeth.
After all, in the Qing Dynasty society, family was still valued. If you died, your family would be affected. Not everyone had the courage.
The delay in Weihaiwei made Japan anxious. In order to buy time for the Japanese army to attack Weihaiwei, Japan used all means, among which assassination and destruction were extremely important. And Shanghai, which needed to stop to replenish supplies, became a
The hardest hit area.
Zhang Shusheng took out his pocket watch and looked at the time. It was now six o'clock in the afternoon.
"Leader Zhao, let everyone eat quickly so that we can feel refreshed later in the evening."
"Mr. Zhang, please rest assured. We, more than thirty brothers, will guarantee that your warehouse will not be lost."
The strong man who spoke was Leader Zhao, whose full name was Zhao Tiezhu. Below him, more than thirty strong men were eating. There was an abundance of fish and meat, and knives, axes and other sharp weapons were placed conveniently beside them.
That's right, Leader Zhao and his party were temporarily hired by Zhang Shusheng to protect them, which cost the boss a lot of money.
It’s no wonder that Mr. Zhang doesn’t care. Although Shanghai has great safety risks due to unreasonable planning and the influx of too many people, haphazard construction has caused fires from time to time. However, there have been too many fires in Shanghai during this period.
There have been more than 20 incidents in the past ten days alone, and in two of them the whole family was burned down.
Moreover, the fires that occurred during this period were very strange. Most of them burned warehouses, especially those businesses that provided supplies to Italy, which were more likely to be burned. Even the concession, which is known as the safest, also burned several warehouses.
Therefore, during this period, both the Shanghai City government agents and the concession patrols were patrolling day and night, trying to catch these perpetrators.
Not to mention, there was little success during this period. We encountered a wave of arsonists. However, this group of people was extremely ferocious. After some resistance, twelve people were killed, one person was seriously injured, and the police officers also lost two people.
.But unfortunately, the seriously injured gangster did not survive the night.
Although no one was left alive, the autopsy showed that these people had thick calluses on their right hands. In addition, the point where their big toes separated from the other toes was a bit too wide, so they were probably Japanese.
Of course, this was not what the government said to the outside world, but what Mr. Zhang got through his connections. This is why Mr. Zhang spent a lot of money to hire Zhang Tiezhu and his gang. Zhang Shusheng knew very well what it would be like to rely on the government alone.
"Leader Zhao, I entrust my life and fortune to you."
As he spoke, Zhang Shusheng took out two envelopes of silver coins from his arms. "This is the cost of treating all of you heroes to tea. I will give you a big thank you after the goods are shipped away."
Obtaining heavy silver coins is also a big temptation for Zhao Tiezhu and his party, who are accustomed to licking blood with the tip of a knife.
"Mr. Zhang, please rest assured. We guarantee with our lives that the warehouse we must protect will not be lost."
Although this is the second time Zhao Tiezhu has said this, judging from the solemn expression on his face and the strength of his tone, he has made an oath.
When faced with Zhao Tiezhu, how could Zhang Shusheng, who has dealt with various people as a businessman, not know this. He patted Zhao Tiezhu on the shoulder and said, "Your words are enough. My fortune and life are all on me."
It’s on you.”
Zhang Shusheng did not lie. Although the over 10,000 cotton-padded clothes in the warehouse were only worth two to thirty thousand taels of silver, which was nothing to Zhang Shusheng who was worth hundreds of thousands. But these cotton-padded clothes were still related to his life and fortune because they were purchased by Italians.
Military uniform. As Zhang Shusheng, who is mainly engaged in trade between the Qing Dynasty and Borneo, what is the difference between this and his wealth and life?
That's why in addition to hiring Zhao Tiezhu and his team, he also wanted to come and watch it in person.
Since Zhao Tiezhu received a heavy reward from Zhang Shusheng, he had to do something.
He turned to look at his brothers and asked, "Is everyone eating well?"
"Everything is ready!"
"Now that you've eaten, get ready to work. Keep your eyes open and don't let snakes, insects, rats, or ants take advantage of you."
Following Zhao Tiezhu's shouts, more than thirty men wiped their lips and left the table, taking their own things to replace their brothers who had been guarding him for most of the day.
As for Zhao Tiezhu, he bowed his hand to Zhang Shusheng. "Master Zhang, just rest here. The brothers outside will be watching."
After saying this, Zhao Tiezhu went out for inspection. This bowl of rice looked delicious, but only those in their line of work would know how difficult it was and how risky it was.
It is common to send more than ten urns back to your hometown every year, and some even end up with no one to collect the bodies if your eyesight is not bright enough.
Therefore, to be in their profession, in addition to being brave enough, you must also have a keen eye. Not everything can be accepted.
The risk for Zhao Tiezhu to take this order this time is not small. Of course he knows what he has to face, but he must take this order. If he wants to get ahead in Shanghai, for people like them who have no capital, they can still get it without risking their lives.
What.
But even so, some people still feel uneasy inside.
"Master, I can't figure it out."
A team member saw Zhang Tiezhu approaching, pulled him aside and asked in a low voice.
"Huzi, what's wrong with you?"
Zhao Tiezhu took a closer look and saw that this was Zhao Hu from the same village as him.
"Brother Zhuzi, the risk of this job is too high. I got the news that the people who caused trouble this time are Japanese people. Brother Zhuzi, you also know how ferocious these Japanese people are. Although we are not afraid, the casualties will definitely be huge when the time comes. This
Life is not easy."
"Huzi, are you scared?"
"Brother Zhuzi, you still don't know my Zhao Hu's character. If I were afraid, I wouldn't go out with you at all. The main question is whether it's worth it."
"Well, Huzi, listen up. The risk of this life is indeed high, but since I took it, I naturally have my reasons."
As he said that, he looked at Zhao Hu calmly and said, "Since we have eaten this bowl of rice that we have worked hard for, we must eat it well. Now this matter about Mr. Zhang is an opportunity, a good opportunity for us to become famous.
Opportunity, everyone knows that recent events are caused by the Japanese. As long as we can protect Mr. Zhang’s goods from being lost, other people will look at us favorably. Once our reputation is established, naturally we won’t have to search everywhere.
Work done."
Although Zhao Hu was the only one looking for him, Zhao Tiezhu knew that he was not the only one who thought this, so he patiently explained it.
"Brother Zhuzhu, I understand, this is to make us famous. Just be optimistic, we will not let those Japanese people be inferior."
Zhao Tiezhu didn't say anything after hearing Huzi's words, but patted him on the shoulder to encourage him.
As time goes by, night falls, and today the moon is dark and the wind is high. Except for the bright lights in the warehouse, the surrounding area is plunged into darkness.
After the moon climbed over the branches, some sneaky figures appeared in a wasteland outside the warehouse.
These figures number in their thirties or forties. Although they are all dressed like ordinary people, after careful identification, it can still be seen that they are different from ordinary people. In addition to each of them having a fierce look, their bow-legs are more serious.
"Sato-kun, is this the warehouse where Yiren's uniforms are stored?"
"Yes, Mr. Takeda, the 15 pieces of winter clothes prepared by Zhang Shusheng of the Qing Dynasty for the Italian army are all in this warehouse."
"Yoshi!"
Takeda glanced at the brightly lit warehouse, turned to his subordinates who were waiting behind him and said, "Everyone, get ready, for the sake of the Empire of Japan!"
"Hi!"
Following his order, these silent murderers silently picked up knives, axes and other murderous weapons and headed towards the warehouse. In order to conceal their identities, these rogues did not even use their favorite samurai swords, but instead picked up Chinese knives.
Here comes the ax.
"Sato-kun, follow me."
Takeda took out a revolver and called for Ito to follow him.
More than thirty figures took advantage of the darkness and made their way toward the warehouse. Although they were able to avoid being discovered with various obstacles at first, once they got closer, it was not easy to get past them.
No, they were discovered about thirty meters away from the warehouse.
"Who?"
A loud roar exposed Takeda and his group.
"rush!"
Seeing that he couldn't sneak in secretly, Takeda waved his hand and insisted on forcing his way in.
At the same time, he also aimed his revolver at the guard who found him.
"Pah, pah!"
The two gunshots were more like a pot exploding, cheering everyone up.
The vigilant guard covered his chest and slowly fell down.
"not good!"
The sound of gunfire made Zhao Tiezhu, who had just sat down, stand up immediately.
"A thief is coming!"
Zhang Shusheng, who was sitting next to him, was also asked to stand up. But looking at his shaking body, one could tell how scared Mr. Zhang was.
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhang, I will gather the brothers to kill the thieves right away."
Zhao Tiezhu first comforted the proprietor, then turned around and shouted, "Huzi, wake up those who are resting immediately. I will lead my brothers to withstand the thieves' attack first."
Zhao Hu had obviously experienced a lot of this kind of thing, and he immediately replied, "Boss, I'm going to summon the big guys right now."
After saying that, he hurried away.
Just when Zhao Tiezhu also wanted to leave, Mr. Zhang tremblingly reached out and gave him a hand.
"Mr. Zhang, is there anything else?"
Facing Zhao Tiezhu who asked, Zhang Shusheng took out two pistols from his body and said, "Leader Zhao, the thief has a gun. You can use these two pistols to deal with them."
Zhao Tiezhu also knew that now was not the time to be polite, so he cupped his hand, took the pistol and left.
After Zhao Tiezhu walked away, the long follower behind him asked worriedly, "Sir, the gun was given to them, what should you do?"
Faced with Chang Sui's concern, Zhang Shusheng pointed at himself and said, "In my current state, how useful is it for holding a gun like Leader Zhao? Besides, since we have hired the other party to protect you, we must do our best. After all, this matter concerns me.
Money and life.”
Since Zhang Shusheng said this, the man behind him stopped talking.
"Kill me!"
After Zhao Tiezhu went out, he summoned the patrolling brothers and immediately pointed towards the warehouse door, took Takeda and his entourage to kill them.
Zhang Shusheng's warehouse was built extremely solidly, with thick walls made of bricks and stones that Takeda and others could not pry.
The windows are four or five meters high from the ground. In addition to the glass, they are also covered by thick fences because of the dangers these days. Although this will make the warehouse darker, it can also prevent others from entering through the windows and causing damage.
, all the above measures made Takeda unable to do anything about this warehouse except to find a way through the gate.
Therefore, when facing Zhao Tiezhu and his entourage, Takeda could not give in. He raised his pistol and fired several shots at Zhao Tiezhu and his entourage.
"Leader, be careful!"
The sharp-eyed guard saw that Takeda had a gun and immediately pushed Zhao Tiezhu away. Instead, he was shot twice.
"Liangzi!"
Zhang Tiezhu's eyes turned red when he saw the guard who was blocking his gun. He brought these things from his hometown. Although he knew the danger of eating this bowl of rice, who could not be angry after seeing this?
Zhao Tiezhu took out the two guns that Zhang Shusheng gave him, and fired at the rushing Takeda group.
In fact, Zhao Tiezhu had few opportunities to come into contact with guns and only knew how to shoot. However, Takeda and his group rushed close and forced him to knock down several of them despite his extremely poor marksmanship.
However, Zhao Tiezhu's reckless shooting accidentally suppressed the momentum of Takeda and his group.
However, as the person involved, Zhao Tiezhu didn't care so much. He threw away the bullets and raised his steel knife to kill Takeda and his party who were attacking.
Under the leadership of Zhao Tiezhu, the guards worked hard and fought with Takeda Ika's men.
"die!"
Zhao Tiezhu, who was leading the way, still had some skills as a leader. He turned sideways to avoid the incoming knife, swung his knife to hold another knife, kicked it down with his big foot, and then slashed his opponent's arm with a slash.
He chopped it down with his hand and knife, causing the opponent to scream and lose his fighting ability.
Under the leadership of Zhao Tiezhu, the other guards stepped forward to catch their opponents and started fighting for a while.
As for Zhao Tiezhu, because of his heroic performance, he even attracted three opponents.
"ha!"
One opponent couldn't keep his composure and launched an attack first, his ax pointed straight at Zhao Tiezhu's head.
Following his lead, the other two men slashed at the waist and the shoulder, and all of them were quick and accurate.
Facing the enemy's attack, Zhao Tiezhu remained calm. He took a step across his body, turned sideways to pass the axe, and then used his knife to block the knife that struck his waist. He kicked the man who had slashed his shoulder into the armpit with his other kick. The armpit is a vital point, and there is one
The nerve is very large, so a severe blow can cause severe pain and partial paralysis.
The man who had exhausted all his strength was unable to dodge the kick and was kicked and rolled all over the ground.
It was obvious that Zhao Tiezhu's powerful and heavy kick made it impossible for this person to get up in a short period of time.
Zhao Tiezhu took advantage of this opportunity, stepped forward, and used his elbow to shout directly into his opponent's face. He also heard the "click" sound of broken nose bones, and his opponent bent over in pain, threw away his weapon, and held his face with both hands.
In two or three blows, Zhao Tiezhu was able to defeat two opponents. As for the remaining one, it was easy. With a powerful and heavy waist knife, he slashed several times while the opponent was unable to block it. He directly kicked him down and struck forward with a single blow.
opponent.
Zhao Tiezhu's fierceness immediately boosted the morale of the guards. The leader was so powerful that they put aside a lot of worries and fought desperately with the opponent. Takeda also saw this, and after he eliminated a guard, he immediately targeted him. he.
"Eat me with a knife!"
Facing Takeda who was coming towards him, Zhao Tiezhu stepped forward and struck with a knife.
"when!"
The knife was blocked.
Zhao Tiezhu was not impatient and kicked him over.
Takeda also turned sideways and gave way, and then struck back with a knife.
"when!"
Takeda's sword was also blocked.
After this fight, the two had a preliminary understanding of their opponent's strength, and both knew that the other was difficult to deal with. Therefore, they both stared at each other, trying to find flaws.
"kill!"
Suddenly, the two of them yelled at the same time, then drew their swords one after another in a desperate fight.
Daodao is a desperate play that gives up defense and directly targets the opponent's vital points.
"puff!"
"laugh!"
The short and desperate fight was thrilling and thrilling. Zhao Tiezhu was stabbed twice, one on the thigh and one on the waist. Takeda also had a hard time. He was hit three times, one on the shoulder, one on the abdomen, and one on the thigh. .
Now that both of them are seriously injured and have lost their fighting ability, it all depends on the people below.
However, compared with Takeda and the others, Zhao Tiezhu had reinforcements. While Zhao Tiezhu was dragging Takeda, Huzi finally came with reinforcements.
"Kill~"
The roar of reinforcements not only increased the morale of the guards but also greatly reduced the morale of the attackers.
Seeing that there was nothing he could do, Sato, who took over the command after Takeda was injured, immediately ordered, "Let's withdraw."
The attacker jumped out of the battle group and left Takeda at high speed.
The guards, except for cutting down a few who had no time to escape, did not leave them behind. After all, their duty was to protect the warehouse, not to chase down the thieves.
"Brother Zhuzi, how are you?"
After Zhao Hu waited for the enemy to retreat, he immediately rushed in front of Zhao Tiezhu.
Faced with the concern of Zhao Hu and other guards, Zhao Tiezhu smiled. "Don't worry, I won't die. If you are so stupid, I'll be in trouble if you come a little later."
"By the way, some of the brothers slept and some were injured."
Of course Zhao Hu knew what Zhao Tiezhu meant. He was asking how many were seriously injured and how many were dead. "Seven were injured and six fell asleep. But we are not at a loss. We knocked down the other nineteen."
"Oh, I still lost money, a big loss."
Whether you lose or not is another matter, but you will be compensated immediately.
As soon as the battle ended, Zhang Shusheng, the proprietor, appeared.
Although his legs were still shaking a little when he looked at the blood on the ground, this person still spoke. "I can see everyone's love for fighting for my Zhang family. In addition to the prescribed burial money and medical money, , I will add another thousand taels of silver as extra reward, and if you don’t mind if you are missing arms and legs and can’t eat this bowl of rice, I can arrange a living.”
Zhang Shusheng's words immediately attracted a burst of applause.
"Dr. Zhang is a man of great benevolence and righteousness, and he is a big business man."
"Thank you in advance, Mr. Zhang."
This attack on Zhang Shusheng's warehouse is just a microcosm of Shanghai.
Japan succeeded and failed, but this still did not affect the arrival time of the Italian fleet.
On January 2, 1895, the second day of the new year, the Italian fleet arrived in Shanghai.
