My wife and I are both time travelers.

Chapter 121 Joining the gang
That's right, this ruthless bandit was none other than Cheng Jiandong, whom Zhou Jiye had unintentionally saved in Fengdong.

Zhou Jiye never imagined that his action back then would save such a person. Recalling Cheng Jiandong's disheveled appearance at the time, and then looking at him now, he not only robbed people on the streets of Hong Kong but also fought fiercely with the police. Zhou Jiye couldn't reconcile the two figures for a moment.

But the facts are right in front of us: the other party is indeed Cheng Jiandong, and he even remembers that his name is Zhou Jiye.

For a moment, Zhou Jiye was filled with mixed feelings of sorrow and joy. It seemed that his life was spared. He had lent a helping hand to Cheng Jiandong, which could be considered as saving the other party's life. For the sake of this matter, he should at least uphold the code of honor among the underworld.

"What are you doing in Hong Kong, kid? And getting chased by the cops in the street? Hahaha!"

"Boss, it's a long story!" Zhou Jiye came to his senses, and the tension in his heart subsided. Since it was an acquaintance, that was good. He should be able to save his life.

Without hiding anything, Zhou Jiye gave a general account of the situation. When Cheng Jiandong heard that Zhou Jiye had encountered the anti-smuggling operation when he picked up the goods in Macun, and had unwittingly taken the delivery plane to Hong Kong, and that it had only been a few hours since he set foot on Hong Kong soil, and that so many things had happened in between, he was both amused and exasperated.

"You're really unlucky, you always seem to run into all sorts of bad luck."

“I didn’t want to either!” Zhou Jiye complained. “If it weren’t for this accident, I wouldn’t have been able to come to Hong Kong. I originally planned to come to the city center to get an ID card, but as soon as I got off the pier, the police checked my ID. Boss, tell me, what else can I do if I’m a smuggler? Who would have thought that running away would lead to this…”

At this point, Zhou Jiye glanced at Cheng Jiandong but didn't finish his sentence. Cheng Jiandong, however, didn't think much of it. It was indeed a coincidence. If he hadn't known Zhou Jiye, he would have been certain that Zhou Jiye was definitely not a cop, much less someone from the Hong Kong underworld. Anyone else would find it hard to believe that such a coincidence could happen.

"Don't you know?"

"what do you know?"

"Hehe, even if you get to the city center and find the personnel registration office, you still won't be able to apply for an ID card given your current situation."

"This... shouldn't be, right? They said..." Zhou Jiye was stunned for a moment.

“What they said isn’t exactly a lie. According to Hong Kong’s current policy, people from the mainland can indeed apply for an ID card, but there’s a prerequisite: they need someone in Hong Kong to act as their guarantor and they need to have a registered address. Otherwise, they can’t apply,” Cheng Jiandong explained with a smile.

"Damn it!" Zhou Jiye couldn't help but curse inwardly as he came to his senses. Those guys from Hong Kong were really scoundrels. Not only did they inexplicably bring him to Hong Kong, but they also didn't tell him the truth. As soon as he got off the ship, they urged him to leave, ostensibly instructing him to get an ID card, but without explaining the specific requirements for obtaining one.

If I actually get there and still can't get my ID card, wouldn't my trip have been pointless? Besides, Hong Kong is much stricter than the mainland. If I'm caught without an ID card and detained for a few days, that's one thing, but if I'm deported, the consequences are unimaginable.

"Alright, it's all in the past." Patting Zhou Jiye on the shoulder, Cheng Jiandong comforted him and then said to Zhou Jiye, "Let's just let this go. We know each other, and I told you before that you could come to see me if you came to Hong Kong. But I didn't expect you to meet me in this way. That's a bit unexpected."

"Hehe, but that's fine too. I believe you have nothing to do with the cops, and although you encountered some trouble today, nothing serious happened in the end. I'm here. I promised you that you could come to me if you had any difficulties in Hong Kong, so let's pretend this never happened."

"But now that you're here, as a friend I have to ask about your plans. What are you thinking about going back? Are you going to stay here and drift along, or are you planning to go back?"

Zhou Jiye subconsciously said, "I still plan to go back. Boss, do you have any way to send me back? If you can, I will definitely repay you handsomely in the future!"

"A generous reward? Ha!"

Cheng Jiandong sized up Zhou Jiye. Although he knew Zhou Jiye was involved in smuggling, how much money could one make in the mainland? Cheng Jiandong was originally from Lingnan, and had even come to Hong Kong from Lingnan, so he was very familiar with the situation in the mainland.

While those involved in smuggling in mainland China do earn more than ordinary people, at most they can only make a few thousand or tens of thousands of yuan through hard work, and even the big players only make tens of thousands. This amount of money is indeed a lot in mainland China, equivalent to the wages of an ordinary worker for ten or twenty years, but in Cheng Jiandong's eyes, it's nothing at all.

Putting everything else aside, the gold and silver jewelry they robbed today is worth a fortune. A single resale would generate a huge profit, at least a million. It would take Zhou Jiye many years of hard work selling smuggled goods to earn that much money.

But Cheng Jianjun, with just a few men, three large black guns he'd acquired from the mainland, and a car, easily got his hands on them. If they hadn't unexpectedly run into two cops chasing Zhou Jiye during their retreat, none of what happened afterward would have occurred.

Cheng Jiandong waved his hand, completely disregarding Zhou Jiye's talk of a generous reward. In his view, a few thousand or tens of thousands was a small amount, nothing compared to the quick money he could make from running a "big business."
"I'll give you two choices, how about it?"

"Please speak, sir."

“First!” Cheng Jiandong held up one finger: “Considering the help you gave me before, I’ll let this matter drop today. As long as you swear not to reveal any information about us, I’ll let you go and give you some money as well. As for how you get back, I can’t help you with that, but you can try to find a way back to Saigon. Aren’t the people in Saigon using big planes to travel by sea? Give them the money and let them find time to take you back to the mainland.”

"So what's the second option?" Zhou Jiye asked, his eyes darting around. Cheng Jiandong smiled and said, "The second one is even simpler. Since you're already here, why rush to leave when you're in this wonderful world? Why not stay and work with me? I happen to be short-handed. ID cards and stuff are easy to handle; I'll take care of that. From now on, we'll be brothers, and we'll eat and drink well together. How about it?"

As he spoke, Cheng Jiandong's smile remained unchanged as he looked at Zhou Jiye, awaiting his answer. At this moment, Zhou Jiye nodded without hesitation: "Boss, I choose option two! I'll work for you!"

"Great!" Cheng Jianjun raised an eyebrow and grinned, his expression becoming even more relaxed. He reached out and patted Zhou Jiye's shoulder forcefully: "I knew I hadn't misjudged you. You're a loyal friend. You helped me in my time of need, so we're destined to be together. From now on, follow me, Brother Dong, and I guarantee you'll be a big shot in Hong Kong. When we brothers join forces, we'll have everything we want, hahaha!"

"Hehehe, then I'll have to trouble you to take good care of me, Brother Dong." Zhou Jiye nodded with a smile, his palms sweating as he suppressed his wildly beating heart and secretly let out a long sigh.

What a risk!

Zhou Jiye wasn't stupid. Cheng Jiandong seemed to have given him two choices, but Zhou Jiye knew that if he had chosen one, he might already be lying dead on the spot.

Zhou Jiye was a modern young man who had watched a lot of Hong Kong films. Moreover, he could clearly see that when Cheng Jiandong asked him to make a choice, he leaned back and moved his right hand slightly, assuming a posture as if he was about to draw his gun.

Although Zhou Jiye had saved Cheng Jiandong once before, making him Cheng Jiandong's savior, who was Cheng Jiandong? Cheng Jiandong was no ordinary person; he was a tough guy who dared to lead a group of men to rob a gold shop and even exchange fire with the police in the street.

Could such a formidable person be an ordinary person? Could one deduce his thoughts using common sense? Besides, he already knew that Cheng Jiandong was the mastermind, and since he didn't have a Hong Kong ID card, he would be arrested if he were caught on the street. If he didn't want to be deported and sent to work as a laborer or even shot, Zhou Jiye would have to negotiate with the police. He didn't have many bargaining chips to offer, and the only possible one was news of Cheng Jiandong.

From this perspective, Cheng Jiandong would absolutely not let Zhou Jiye leave so easily, because if Zhou Jiye were to report them, Cheng Jiandong and his gang would be wanted, and then they would have a hard time establishing themselves in the Hong Kong underworld.

How could Cheng Jiandong allow such a risk to exist when undertaking such a major undertaking? He also couldn't explain it to his men, even though Zhou Jiye had once saved his life. To protect himself, he couldn't let Zhou Jiye live. Zhou Jiye understood this as well, and noticing Cheng Jiandong's wariness, he chose the second path without hesitation.

Choosing option two is equivalent to joining the group. It's no different from Lin Chong joining Liangshan; once you're on their side, you have no worries.

Although Zhou Jiye himself did not want to join the gang of ruthless bandits, as it was a dead-end path, the current situation left him no other choice.

One is life, the other is death; any choice is obvious.

Amidst laughter, Cheng Jiandong beckoned Zhou Jiye out of the room and led him outside.

Following Cheng Jiandong, they arrived at the next room, where there were two men. Like Cheng Jiandong, they were not disguised and revealed their true appearances.

One of the men, slightly older and about the same age as Cheng Jiandong, had a fierce look on his face. Judging from his build, he was Peng Ge, who was holding a weapon to his head in the car. The other man, slightly shorter and younger, was the last of the three thugs who made the move. As for the woman driving the car, she was nowhere to be seen.

"Brother Dong!"

Upon seeing Cheng Jiandong enter, the two men who were smoking quickly stood up to greet him. Soon, their gazes fell upon Zhou Jiye, who had walked in with Cheng Jiandong.

"Come, let me introduce you." Cheng Jiandong smiled and pointed to Zhou Jiye, saying, "Zhou Jiye, my little brother. Last time I went back to the mainland, I almost got into trouble in Fengdong. He was the one who saved me. If it weren't for his help, your brother Dong would have been lying dead in the street long ago."

"By the way, I know his background. He's definitely not from the police force, and he has no connection with the underworld here. He ran into the anti-smuggling squad in Fengxian early this morning and flew in from Hong Kong. I only saw him on the street before because he didn't have an ID card. It was all a misunderstanding, haha!"

After saying that, Cheng Jiandong pointed to Peng Ge and another person and said, "Aye, this is my good brother Tan Peng, you can just call him Brother Peng. This is He Jiajun, you can call him Handsome Jun."

"Brother Peng, Brother Jun!"

Zhou Jiye dared not be arrogant and quickly put on a smiling face to greet the two.

Handsome Jun seemed easy to get along with. He smiled and nodded to Zhou Jiye, calling him "Ah Ye".

Tan Peng looked at Zhou Jiye with a rather unpleasant expression, seemingly somewhat dissatisfied that Cheng Jiandong had accepted this unfamiliar mainlander. However, Cheng Jiandong was the boss in their gang, and since the boss had made this decision, and had previously explained that he owed Zhou Jiye a favor and would talk to Zhou Jiye to see how he would choose, now that he had brought him here, it meant that the deal was done, and Zhou Jiye had joined the gang. Even if he was unhappy, he could only accept the fact and reluctantly accepted Zhou Jiye.

(End of this chapter)