From Robinson Crusoe

Ronald stood by the car, staring blankly at everything, until Chen Zhou finished looting the gang members. Only then did he snap out of his daze and get into the car with Chen Zhou.

As for the scantily clad red-haired girl, she wasn't frightened or ran away by the scene. She simply got off the car silently and stood aside waiting for things to end.

Perhaps those four guys lying on the ground, with broken arms or legs, are waiting for her to call for a doctor and take them to the hospital.

……

Sitting in the driver's seat, Chen Zhou loosened the buttons on his coat and gripped the steering wheel.

Ronald sat beside him, watching the mysterious homeless man, momentarily at a loss for words—

Judging from the homeless man's physique, he should possess a certain fighting ability.

But he didn't expect the homeless man to be so powerful. He defeated four opponents in an instant, and the situation was completely one-sided and crushing.

How could someone like this end up on the streets for no reason?

Whether he has yellow or black skin, or even if he doesn't look human, he can still make a name for himself in the boxing or combat sports world with his physique.

At least in Ronald's limited understanding, his opponent's performance in just a few seconds was no less impressive than that of any boxer he had ever watched fight.

……

The quiet atmosphere inside the car didn't last long. As Chen Zhou shifted gears, the battered Chevrolet let out an angry roar, nimbly turned around, and sped away.

In 1947, there weren't many vehicles in remote American towns; motorcycles were the main mode of transportation, so there was little worry about traffic jams.

Although Chen Zhou had never driven such an old-fashioned car before, and had only driven a manual transmission car a few times, he quickly mastered the vehicle thanks to his exceptional reflexes and understanding of mechanics, and drove Ronald out of town.

……

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Chen Zhou, and I am Chinese. You can simply call me Chen, since Zhou is not my surname."

I'm here on a special mission, the details of which I can't tell you, but it's related to the missing persons cases here.

Coincidentally, your daughter also went missing here.

I don't know if you have any clues, but I feel that we should have some common topics.

I can help you find your daughter.

In return, you need to find a way to get me a new identity and get me a few guns.

As they were talking, the car had already driven out of the town and headed straight for the burned-down house.

Chen Zhou gave Ronald some time to make a decision, then parked the car on the side of the road, took out the key, opened the car door, and walked towards the house.

Having just witnessed the man's miserable state, he was certain that the other party would accept his invitation and help him establish himself here.

Now all he has to do is retrieve his knife and then take this man with him to find the pickup truck driver who left the area.

At this time, Chen Zhou was unaware of everything Ronald had seen at Brian's house, and his suspicions still lay with the pickup truck driver.

……

A moment later, when Chen Zhou returned carrying his long knife, Ronald had already gotten out of the car.

He straightened his posture, then, ignoring the oil stains on Chen Zhou's dirty coat, warmly shook hands with Chen Zhou and leaned close to his body.

"Hello, Chen, my name is Ronald, Ronald Roy."

Although I don't want to say it, we have no other choice now, do we?

You are my creditor, and you just saved my life. No matter what, I will help you with this favor.

but……"

Ronald frowned, looking at Chen Zhou's attire, and said with difficulty.

"I can arrange an identity for you, but only if I can get the money. You also need to dress appropriately, otherwise it will be difficult for me to take you into some high-end hotels."

Guns are easy to obtain, but the risk is too great.

You have to help me find my daughter first. She's been missing for almost two days, and I don't want to find her dead.

"As long as you can help me with this, whether it's your identity or the gun, it's negotiable. I'm willing to take the risks to do these things for you, and I can even give you a considerable reward."

At this point, Ronald paused and looked Chen Zhou up and down again.

He hesitated, wondering how much money he should offer to entice Chen Zhou.

Clearly, the homeless man's identity and knowledge were not as simple as he appeared. Ronald had intended to offer $2000, which was no small sum; an average American might not earn that much in two years.

But after carefully considering Chen Zhou's actions not long ago, and knowing that he was a desperate criminal with exceptional combat skills, and that he was likely to carry out even more dangerous missions later, and that he had just saved his life, Ronald felt that $2000 was indeed too little.

"I can give you $5000, your identity, and a gun. If you help me find my daughter, I'll give you another $5000 as a reward."

This amount of money is enough for you to live a carefree life in any city for a year. If you want to live in anonymity and hide away, $5000 is even enough for you to live comfortably for the rest of your life.

how about it? "

Ronald stared intently at Chen Zhou's smeared face.

Then he saw the tall man's lips curl up slightly, revealing a smile.

Ronald thought the other party was only interested in money, but he never imagined that Chen Zhou didn't care about such things at all.

Whether in America in 1947 or in modern society, money has lost its meaning for him. Right now, he just wants to fulfill the contract and return to his own world as soon as possible. As for the $5000, it makes no difference whether he gets it or not.

His smile stemmed from the fact that Ronald had arranged for him to buy guns, which had solved his biggest problem.

Of course, there might be some sarcasm in it—

They mocked the guy for only being willing to pay $5000 for his daughter and himself.

Chen Zhou has read many newspapers in the past two days and has gained a lot of understanding of the United States at this time.

As far as he knew, Ronald's new Chevrolet Belair cost over $2000. For someone who could afford such a car and carried over $400 in cash, $5000 shouldn't be a big deal at all.

The thought that this man was offering such a small amount of "money" for his daughter and himself made Chen Zhou feel inexplicably pathetic.

While despising this American, Chen Zhou couldn't help but think of Bi Kai and Gao Yao.

People who treat others as national heroes, and whom one will reciprocate in kind, are perhaps truly rare.

……

"make a deal."

Chen Zhou shook Ronald's hand, smiled politely, and then tossed the long knife into the back seat of the car. "So, Mr. Ronald, have you found any clues about your daughter?"

I remember last night I gave you the location where your daughter was last seen. Did you go there to inquire?

I suspect that driver took your daughter. If you can find out his name and where he lives, we can leave right now.

As they talked, the two got back into the car.

Ronald recalled his encounter that morning and immediately recounted his findings and speculations to Chen Zhou in detail.

Upon hearing about the solitary confinement room, the strange man with no tongue who appeared to have been disfigured and abused, and the suspicious behavior of the wax figure maker family, Chen Zhou, like Ronald, shifted his suspicions to the wax figure maker family.

Upon closer examination, this family not only had connections to the missing little girl, but also fit the characteristics of the murderous family he had speculated about.

For example, someone may be very wealthy despite living in a remote town, have contact with the upper class, and act mysteriously and illogically.

There is just one point of doubt—

The number of people in this household is far too small. How can a mere three or four people be called a family, and how can they meet the requirement of a history of hundreds of years as stated in the contract, unless they are vampires.

Furthermore, it is also a question whether the Ambrose mentioned in the contract is actually Prescott.

If Prescott isn't Ambrose, then even if the family making the wax figures are serial killers, are they truly unrelated to the serial killer family that needs to be eradicated...?

There are still some questions that cannot be answered, but for now it seems that this is the only suspect, and Chen Zhou has no other choice.

……

As they drove back to the town, they discussed what to do next with Ronald.

This Chevrolet is the only means of transportation for the two of them. Chen Zhou plans to repair it and then use it as a means of transportation.

The difference in mobility between having a car and not having one is vast. You might need to travel hundreds of kilometers in the future, and you can't do without a car.

He planned to take Ronald to buy a gun first, and also get some clean and tidy clothes. Then he would take the car to a repair shop to fix it, at least to replace the windshield and side windows, and fill up the gas tank.

After finishing these tasks, he would take his gun and go to the family who owned the wax figure to test the waters and gather some information.

To that family, he was a complete stranger and shouldn't have aroused any suspicion.

Ronald has already discovered their secret and can no longer show his face.

……

Ronald was concerned for his daughter's safety and didn't have time to discuss the details with Chen Zhou. He just wanted to find and rescue his daughter as soon as possible.

Therefore, he hardly argued about the most sensitive matter of buying guns and readily agreed.

At that time, the procedures for white Americans to purchase guns were lenient. Whether you had money or not, as long as you dressed decently and spoke like someone from high society, you could borrow guns on credit.

Of course, most of what you can buy in gun shops are ordinary items. It's unrealistic to expect to buy outdated or replaced weapons there; you'd need special connections.

Ronald had connections, but they didn't work in this remote town.

Besides, Chen Zhou hasn't fulfilled his promise yet. Even if he could risk getting a better gun, he wouldn't be willing to do so.

He's no longer a naive young man; despite his bloated physique and lack of stamina, Ronald is quite shrewd.

Bounced checks don't count for him.

……

At noon, the car stopped on the busiest street in the town.

The tall homeless man and the well-dressed Ronald split up and headed toward the clothing stores and gun shops on either side of the street.

Needless to say, Chen Zhou's attire was so intimidating that he would have been kicked out by the shop owner if it weren't for his imposing physique. Even after managing to sneak into the shop, he still received a lot of disdainful looks.

Of course, for the sake of the money, the shop owner still served him impatiently.

In the midst of the height of racial discrimination, and in Arkansas no less, the shop owner's attitude was actually quite good.

In big cities, some clothing stores would rather not make a profit than serve such customers. They feel that people of color would contaminate their products, and if white people see that the products in their store have been worn by people of color, they will refuse to buy them.

However, even if the shop owner is willing to sell Chen Zhou clothes, it won't be easy for someone of Chen Zhou's physique to find suitable clothes in a small town clothing store.

Even the largest size clothes fit him very tightly, with the sleeves or pant legs being too short.

With no other option, Chen Zhou continued to buy coats and had the shop owner measure his shoulder width, waist width, arm span, and other measurements, leaving a deposit in preparation for picking up the custom-made clothes in a few days.

Compared to his setbacks, Ronald's situation was much smoother.

As long as he has money in his pocket, Ronald can always put on that arrogant air of a rich man.

Speaking fluent, standard English from a big city, Ronald impressed the gun shop owner with just a few words, and in no time he bought two Colt pistols, a double-barreled shotgun, and several boxes of ammunition.

These two guns are standard issue for the Southern County Sheriff. In the gun shop of this remote town, apart from old-fashioned revolvers and some late 19th-century hunting rifles, these two guns are the best you can find.

As for the Winchester M12 or Browning automatic rifle, those are not easy to buy; small gun shops simply don't have access to them.

……

Before long, Chen Zhou and Ronald, who had finished buying clothes, gathered in front of the car.

Although Chen Zhou had bought the clothes, he did not wear them and remained dressed as a homeless man.

With a double-barreled shotgun slung over his shoulder and two pistols tucked into his pocket, Ronald's courage instantly increased considerably.

With a gun in his hand, Ronald felt calm. Holding a weapon that could take a life in an instant, he even felt that he could save his daughter on his own without Chen Zhou's help.

$5000 was half a year's salary for him. Now he has lost his job and has no income. His only hope for survival is his savings and some financial investments with uncertain returns. He feels heartache every extra dollar he spends.

However, when he sat in the passenger seat and met Chen Zhou's cold eyes, his courage vanished instantly.

From the perspective of a businessman or employee, Ronald is not a good person.

Although he hadn't committed murder or arson during those forty years, he must have done plenty of unscrupulous things to make so much money.

At least while working at the bank, he frequently used his position to deceive customers into buying unreliable financial products and pocketed the profits. He even secretly misappropriated customers' deposits for his own investments.

If he hadn't been reported by a customer he couldn't afford to offend, he wouldn't have been fired; he was a long-time employee of the bank.

Nevertheless, Ronald was at most involved in money laundering for the mob; murder and robbery were still far removed from his work.

Compared to a ruthless character like Chen Zhou, who already has more than a dozen lives on his hands, his courage is utterly pathetic.

Once seated in the car, he immediately abandoned the idea of ​​breaking the contract and obediently handed the pistol, shotgun, and ammunition to Chen Zhou. (End of Chapter)