Quickly conquer the martial arts world, and let your fists dominate the heavens!

The masters of the Yihequan were all men who had spent years practicing martial arts in the countryside. They had undergone countless real combat experiences and possessed genuine skills in their fists and feet, so they must have had considerable strength.

In chaotic times, the more skilled individuals there are, the stronger the resistance becomes.

Chen Zhan knew in his heart that he alone was far from enough to ignite the flames of resistance.

We must gather more experts and unite more people, working together as one, in order to truly resist the foreigners' powerful ships and cannons and overthrow the corrupt Qing Dynasty.

Standing to the side, Zhang Laojiao watched Chen Zhan, Lu Jun, and Wu Qingshan talk, and his heart gradually calmed down.

He could clearly sense that Chen Zhan's actions last night were not impulsive but rather part of a long-term plan.

Perhaps, by following Chen Zhan, we can truly survive in this chaotic world.

They can even do things for the people of Tianjin.

Once the thought arises, it can no longer be suppressed.

Lu Jun walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and looked out at the street. He could vaguely hear the shouts of the police officers in the distance, as well as the crisp sound of things being smashed.

When foreigners searched for people, they would smash and destroy people's stalls and oppress the innocent if they were not in a good mood.

“There are many of us, and although we are all close brothers, the foreigners’ search efforts are too intense, and not everyone has the mental fortitude we do.”

Lu Jun turned around, his voice filled with worry, "If someone slips up in their nervousness, not only will we be in trouble, but the foreigners will also find the hidden silver dollars."

His concerns were not unfounded.

Zhang Laojiao and Wu Qingshan nodded in agreement, their faces showing seriousness.

Not actively betraying someone and not revealing any flaws are two different things.

Most of these people were from the lower classes and had never seen dozens of boxes of silver dollars in their lives. Faced with the questioning and pressure from the foreigners, they were bound to panic. A single glance or movement could reveal their whereabouts.

Chen Zhan glanced out the window: "It's alright, just divide up all the silver dollars."

"Huh? They've already split up?" Lu Jun and Wu Qingshan were both taken aback, their faces full of surprise.

Wu Qingshan couldn't help but speak up: "Isn't it a bit inappropriate for us to split everything up? Shouldn't we keep it for something bigger? Recruiting soldiers and buying horses, none of that requires money?"

Seeing their shocked expressions, Chen Zhan slowly said, "Who said you got to share it all?"

"Huh? What does Mr. Chen mean?" Lu Jun realized what was happening and quickly asked, his eyes full of doubt.

"Distribute it to the residents of the shantytowns."

Chen Zhan asked firmly, "How many people live in the shantytown?"

Lu Jun grew up in the shantytown and knew the situation there very well. After a moment's thought, he replied, "There are probably thirty or forty thousand people, maybe more. In recent years, with the constant fighting, people from other places couldn't survive, so they all came to Tianjin to beg for food, and the shantytown has expanded dramatically."

"Let's take action tonight."

Chen Zhan made up his mind, "Give some to each family, the amount is up to you, not too much, just enough for them to have a few peaceful days. The remaining few boxes are to be distributed among the brothers, not a single one is left."

He paused, then added, "What we need to do requires manpower, not money. These silver dollars were originally exploited by foreigners from the people, so it's only right to return them to them."

Chen Zhan didn't care about the silver dollars at all. Money is something you can't take with you when you die. In chaotic times, people's hearts are the most precious wealth.

Only by winning the hearts of the people can we truly gather the strength to resist.

"it is good!"

Lu Jun, Wu Qingshan, and Zhang Laojiao, though still shocked by Chen Zhan's decisiveness, had no objections.

Most of their men came from shantytowns and knew the hardships of ordinary people.

Moreover, by breaking down the silver dollars into smaller amounts, even if the foreigners searched very thoroughly, they would not be able to find any scattered silver dollars in each household, thus completely eliminating the risk of them being discovered.

Seeing that the three understood his intentions, Chen Zhan continued, "We have four more days to prepare. After the money is distributed, we'll move to another location tomorrow and then plan the follow-up. I will launch my attack during the Jishi Society's activities."

"Yes!" the three answered in unison, their expressions solemn.

Afterwards, the three of them left the room one by one, carefully departing from the Four Gates Inn, each going to make arrangements for dividing the silver dollars that night.

Chen Zhan was the only one left in the room.

Before long, the foreign police found the Four Gates Inn.

A dozen or so police officers, armed with guns, stormed into the inn, checking each room one by one. Knocking, banging on doors, and shouting filled the inn.

The police officers walked to Chen Zhan's room and pushed the door several times, but it didn't budge.

The police officers, growing impatient, simply kicked the door open.

"Bam—!"

With a loud crash, the door was forced open, sending splinters of wood flying.

Several police officers rushed into the room, guns raised, and scanned the surroundings. They found the room to be simple and empty, with only a bed, a table, and a chair. There was almost no place to hide people or belongings.

They searched thoroughly, checking under the bed, under the table, and in the corners, but found nothing suspicious or any trace of silver coins. They could only turn around and leave, cursing, to check the next room.

Such scenes are playing out all over Tianjin.

Foreign police, taking advantage of the Qing government's weakness, conducted arbitrary searches, indiscriminately detaining anyone even slightly suspicious, regardless of whether they were officials or civilians. The people dared not speak out against this, and they were filled with anger.

The search even extended to the residence of the Zhili Governor-General of Tianjin.

The foreign soldiers stormed into the governor's mansion with great force. Although the Qing soldiers blocked the entrance, they only pretended to confront them and dared not actually make a move. In the end, they had no choice but to retreat in humiliation and allow the foreigners to search the governor's mansion at will.

Chen Zhan saw this scene clearly and was not surprised at all.

The corrupt Qing court had long lost its backbone. In the face of foreigners, it couldn't even protect the mansion of a first-rank official, let alone the common people.

The current powerful Governor-General of Zhili in Tianjin is Wang Wenshao, who took office just a few months ago.

The renowned Li Hongzhang, who previously went to Japan to negotiate peace, has now joined the cabinet and is considered to have been promoted, but he has also left behind a mess.

Although Wang Wenshao has officially taken charge of Tianjin affairs, the appointment has not yet been formally issued, and nominally, Tianjin is still under the jurisdiction of Li Hongzhang.

This predicament made him even more passive when facing foreigners.

The foreigners searched the governor's mansion but found nothing related to silver dollars. They continued to act recklessly, scolding and beating the servants, and even physically assaulting Wang Wenshao's family, subjecting them to extreme humiliation.

After the foreigners left, Wang Wenshao completely erupted in his study, smashing things on the spot. Bookshelves overturned, vases fell to the ground, and his roars echoed throughout the entire governor's mansion.
"Get out of here! Get out!"

"This is outrageous! This is outrageous!" This "political stalwart" of the late Qing Dynasty had completely lost his composure. He drove all his wives, concubines, and servants out of the mansion and stayed alone in his study, venting his humiliation and anger.

Wang Wenshao was already sixty years old, but his energy was still vigorous. He started from the bottom of the political arena, and after entering officialdom through the imperial examination, he successively served as a secretary in the Ministry of Revenue, the circuit intendant of Anxiang, Yun and Jing in Hubei, the governor of Hunan, and the governor-general of Yunnan and Guizhou. He was known for his thorough understanding of official duties and his grasp of the big picture.

He was also jointly recommended by Zuo Zongtang and Li Hongzhang, and rose all the way to the position of governor-general. The hardships he faced along the way are unimaginable.

But all the hardships he had experienced in his life were not as heavy as the humiliation he had just suffered at the hands of the foreigners.

The foreigners had become so arrogant that they had laid hands on the family members of a Qing Dynasty governor in public, while he, a high-ranking official, could only swallow his anger.

This humiliation is indescribable, yet there is nothing one can do about it.

For the sake of the bigger picture, he had no choice but to endure it.

After a fit of rage, Wang Wenshao sat quietly in his study for several hours before gradually calming down.

He stood up, carefully walked out of the study, and closed the door tightly, as if to lock all the humiliation he had just suffered inside.

As night fell, Tianjin was completely plunged into darkness, with only the torches of the police officers flickering in the streets, illuminating their arrogant faces.

Inside the governor's mansion, Wang Wenshao was still feeling frustrated, so he invited several powerful officials he knew to come.

They were all high-ranking officials serving in Tianjin, and they ate and drank together in the hall to relieve their worries.

Since they were all close confidants, they naturally dismissed everyone else, leaving only the few of them in the study.

After a few rounds of drinks, the men began to confide in each other, expressing their grievances about being oppressed by foreigners and discussing the future of the Qing Dynasty, their voices filled with worry.

After the defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War, the court and the people were filled with anxiety. The country was in decline, and foreigners were eyeing it covetously. No one knew how much longer the Qing Dynasty could hold on.

Just as the group was talking, a dark figure, like a ghost, slowly seeped into the study, revealing only a pair of sharp eyes.

It's Chen Zhan.

The study was a mess, just as Wang Wenshao had smashed it in his anger during the day, but no one dared to tidy it up.

Because the study contained many important official documents and confidential files.

Chen Zhan moved lightly and slowly through the study without making a sound. He contained the energy in his dantian, walked around the study a few times, and his gaze swept quickly across the room before finally settling on the intact table.

During the day, when Wang Wenshao was angry, he almost smashed the entire study into a mess, but he didn't touch this table. The writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone on the table were neatly arranged, obviously hiding something important.

Chen Zhan walked to the table, stretched out his finger, and gently tapped the surface.

"Dong dong——!"

The sound was clear, yet very faint, and was drowned out by the conversation of the group, failing to attract anyone's attention.

He fumbled around on the table for a while, and soon found a mechanism. With a gentle push, a hidden compartment slowly popped out from the table, revealing several yellowed paper documents neatly arranged inside.

Chen Zhan took out a document, quickly scanned it, and within five seconds, he had memorized every word of the document.

He then took out a second and a third sheet, one of which was a diagram of the internal structure, with very detailed annotations.

In a short while, Chen Zhan finished reading all the documents. Even though it was dark, he could still clearly see every word thanks to his keen senses as a master of the Core Formation Realm.

He carefully placed the document back in its original position, checked it thoroughly to ensure there were no flaws, then turned around, his figure blurred, and he silently left the governor's mansion, disappearing into the night.

On the other side, Lu Jun and Wu Qingshan had already followed Chen Zhan's instructions.

They split into two groups, each leading their men, and quietly made their way to the backyard of Wu Qingshan's wonton shop.

With everyone working together, they dug out all forty-odd boxes of silver dollars buried underground, and divided them into smaller portions for easy carrying.

"Split into two groups, one heading north and the other south. Go along the alleys of the shantytown, take some from each household, throw it away and leave. Don't linger, and don't talk to the people," Lu Jun instructed in a low voice.

"Alright!" the crowd responded in unison, took the pre-packaged silver dollars, split into two groups, and headed towards the shantytown.

They calculated very clearly that it would be best for each family to receive ten silver dollars, which would also be easy to hide.

In just one hour, all twenty boxes of silver dollars were distributed, and every household in the shantytown received an unexpected windfall.

Wu Qingshan asked Lu Jun, "The shantytowns have all been distributed, what do we do with the remaining twenty boxes?"

Lu Jun said without hesitation, "Keep spreading out, spread outwards, spread towards the poor families in the old town. Tell your men to be careful and avoid the patrolling police, so they don't get caught."

The shantytowns are relatively safe at night as there are no police patrols, but outside the shantytowns lies the patrol area of ​​the police.

Nowadays, the foreigners are conducting thorough searches, and the patrol frequency of the police is several times higher than usual. If they are caught, the consequences are unimaginable.

Chen Zhan had instructed that after distributing the silver dollars in the shantytown, the remaining silver dollars should be distributed to poor families in the surrounding area.

There are too many poor families in Tianjin. He even thought that if he had enough time, he would go to the countryside to distribute aid.

Wu Qingshan nodded and immediately gave the order.

Erzhu, along with his three brothers, each carried over a hundred silver dollars. They wore old-fashioned work clothes with many pockets, a style commonly worn by rickshaw pullers to hide money.

Putting some silver coins in each pocket helps distribute the weight, making the bag less bulky and less noticeable.

Under the cover of night, the four quietly left the shantytown and headed towards the alleys of the old town. When they saw a house with a faint light, they quietly walked over, threw in a silver coin, and then turned and left without leaving a trace.

Inside a house, a family was sitting around a table, counting the few strings of copper coins they had earned from their stall that day, their faces full of worry.

This amount of money is barely enough to feed a family.

Suddenly, a string of silver coins flew in through the window and landed on the ground with a clatter.

The family was stunned for a moment, looking at each other in disbelief. After a long while, they finally reacted, scrambling to pick up the silver coins, their faces filled with unbelievable joy.

The man carefully picked up a silver coin, examined it under the light to confirm it was genuine, then quickly walked to the door, opened it a crack, and peeked out. The street was deserted, with only the night and the sound of the wind.

"The Dragon King has appeared to us and sent us money!" The woman murmured to herself, her hands clasped together, her face full of piety.

"What Dragon King? Money falling from the sky? That's the Jade Emperor, the God of Wealth!"

Such scenes are constantly playing out in the alleys of the old city.

Erzhu and his group quickly distributed the remaining silver dollars they had.

The four walked back towards the wonton shop, carefully avoiding the police patrol routes.

A young man named He Ming couldn't help but speak up, his tone full of envy: "Brother Erzhu, we've all given away our silver dollars, aren't we keeping any for ourselves?" (End of Chapter)