166: Chapter 163 Dilemma

It had to be said that this might be the only positive impression Li Changsheng had of the US.

It was fantastic—free gym, getting paid, and enjoying top-tier service.

Previously, the therapist could only be enjoyed once a month with a membership, but now Li Changsheng could get a free massage every day.

He enjoyed the therapist's professional technique in relaxing his muscles and relieving fatigue.

"In the US, money makes you the boss everywhere else, but here, strength still makes you the boss."

Li Changsheng sighed with emotion, casually bought some burgers and pizza from a nearby fast-food restaurant, and walked back to the repair shop.

Handing the food to Chang Wei, he saw that the young man was already deep in thought.

"Brother Li, I've already bought a few canes from the market. I didn't know which type you preferred, so I bought a few British-style ones. I plan to hollow them out and embed a steel pipe inside to store a telescopic spear."

Chang Wei was very serious. As he spoke, he opened several wooden boxes nearby, revealing a few exquisite wooden canes lying inside.

Li Changsheng took a look and was also won over by Chang Wei's serious attitude.

It was clear that Chang Wei was very dedicated to this; every cane was exquisite, and the wood selection was exceptionally strict.

Walking sticks generally fall into three categories: Decorative, Folk Art, and System.

The first two belong to the series of artworks or even daily necessities; in the past, some upper-class people loved carrying them around.

They were even introduced to our country, and by the late Qing Dynasty, canes had become a standard accessory for some upper-class individuals deeply influenced by the West.

As for the one Li Changsheng needed to craft, it was a System cane—as the name suggests, a cane with things hidden inside.

Men liked to make them into swords, where one end of the handle could be pulled out to reveal a blade; others had clocks made into the end of the cane to check the time. Some were even used as whiskey flasks, or for a doctor's scalpel or stethoscope.

Women liked to have a delicate powder puff made on the cane, or hang a small sachet to use as makeup, which also served as a nice accessory to carry around.

These were all sorts of whimsical ideas from the time when canes were popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, and there were even over 1,500 patents applied for them, which was absurd.

One can only say how obsessed people were with canes back then.

Li Changsheng wanted to craft such a weapon also because even now, carrying a cane in one's hand wouldn't seem too out of place, especially abroad.

After all, carrying a gun around all the time would be quite strange.

Li Changsheng looked them over and immediately chose a cane with a rosewood shaft; it didn't have too many decorations on the surface, appearing simple yet elegant.

"This one will do. Brother Chang Wei, all expenses will be covered by me, and I'll pay you a labor fee when it's done."

Li Changsheng said with a smile. Since he was troubling others, he certainly couldn't let them pay for it, and the labor fee had to be included as well.

Although he wasn't particularly wealthy right now, with his current salary of 10,000 USD per month, he was willing to spend money to craft the weapon.

"By the way, for the Materials of the spear shaft, try to choose a metal that has both flexibility and strength."

Li Changsheng continued, knowing that such a telescopic spear shaft couldn't be made of wood and had to be metal.

Of course, there were some metals with strong flexibility and hardness, but compared to a wooden shaft, they certainly wouldn't be as smooth and fluid for spear techniques.

"Alright, I'll ask Seventh about the Materials; he understands this better than I do." Chang Wei nodded. He didn't say he wouldn't take the money; after all, he was making a living, and their relationship hadn't reached the point where he could help for free.

"By the way, how is Seventh doing?" Li Changsheng only then remembered that Seventh seemed to have been injured and was receiving treatment.

"Seventh is fine. His wound reopened, but it's nothing; it's already been bandaged with gauze, and he should be fine after lying down for a while."

Chang Wei waved his hand, as if he was long accustomed to such things.

Li Changsheng couldn't help but click his tongue in surprise. The wound reopened?

Shaking his head, he prepared to go to the rooftop to practice martial arts, too lazy to visit Seventh, mainly for fear of getting entangled in their affairs.

Watching Li Changsheng go upstairs, Seventh in the first-floor office finally withdrew his gaze.

At this moment, he was bloodless, and his waist and abdomen were wrapped up like a mummy.

Third Master's handiwork was a bit rough, but at least there was hemostatic medicine here. Fortunately, it hadn't hit any vital points, and his internal organs weren't damaged, so after taking out the bullet and applying some medicine, it wasn't bleeding much anymore.

"What are you staring at him for? Want to recruit him?"

Third Master was lying casually on a chair, tapping a long pipe in his hand as he spoke in a composed manner.

"Third Master, I don't believe you don't want to. This kid is definitely a ruthless character. I've trained for a few years, and I can tell this kid is a practitioner, and a practitioner who has killed people at that. If someone like this knew how to use firearms, he would absolutely be a major figure!"

Seventh sighed with emotion and shook his head with great regret.

"Hmph!" Third Master snorted coldly and said irritably, "Can't this kid want to wash his hands of the Jianghu? He clearly came to the US to live a quiet life. Jianghu has its rules; since he doesn't want to do it, we can't force him into this life. Remember that, or I'll deal with you before the big bosses upstairs even get a chance!"

"Third Master, I know that, of course, it's just a bit of a pity." Seventh drooped his head and said weakly.

Hearing this, Third Master chuckled instead. He picked up his pipe, took a deep puff, exhaled a wisp of blue smoke, and then smiled faintly:

"I've long said we should change our line of work. What era is this to still be fighting and killing? The current crackdown is very severe, and in their eyes, we are just trash from the old society. Unless you can bribe a congressman."

"Third Master, is that the real point?"

Seventh gave a bitter smile and then shook his head. "Third Master, but if we don't do this, what else can we do? Fix cars? How much money can fixing cars make? How many brothers do we have here? Besides here, there are other places. With so many brothers to support, what can we do with just this legitimate business? Besides, this is the US. If we don't do this, it will only be worse. They won't let us wash our hands of it here. Even if we want to quit, will the big bosses above let us?"

"Shut up!"

Suddenly, Third Master let out a sharp shout, full of breath, his face already extremely ugly.

For a moment, both of them fell into silence.

After a long while, Third Master sighed softly: "I mentioned this to the boss, but the Americans won't let us in. They can let others in, just not us Chinese. A bunch of people who look down on others."

As he spoke, he took another deep drag of his pipe.

Hearing this, Seventh became even more silent. How could he not know this truth? Chinese people may seem numerous here, but what use is it?

They can't get in and can only do some bottom-level business. If they want to avoid being bullied, they have to fight and kill, and bare their fangs.