Madam, protect me!

On the streets of Chang'an, a plain-looking middle-aged man held the arm of a young man, pointed to an alley not far away, and said, "Don't worry, it's just a few words. What can I do to you?"

After saying that, he walked over on his own.

The young man stood there, hesitated for a moment, and finally followed.

When he walked into the alley, he put one hand behind his back and made a secret gesture.

In a restaurant on the street, sitting by the window on the second floor, Butler Wu's expression changed. He was about to make a move, but when he saw the young master's gesture, he sat back helplessly.

Deep in the alley, Zhao Wu looked at the rookie burglar in front of him and said with a smile: "Brother, you are not very old, but your skills are very exquisite. In the past two days, I have watched you make hundreds of moves, and you have not missed even once." …”

The young man looked frightened and said in a trembling voice: "Who are you..."

Zhao Wu smiled and said, "Little brother, don't worry, I'm in this business too, don't worry, I won't harm you."

When the young man heard this, the fear on his face eased slightly.

Zhao Wu asked: "What's the name of the little brother?"

The young man rolled his eyes and did not answer.

Not only was Zhao Wu not unhappy, but he was very pleased. Being cautious was the way to be a thief. This boy was born to be a thief.

He did not pursue the question, but asked: "Have you ever heard of door theft?"

The young man shook his head.

His reaction was as expected by Zhao Wu. This young man didn't even understand the basic rules and didn't know that it was normal to break into a door.

Zhao Wu showed a smile on his face and said: "It doesn't matter if you haven't heard of it before. Just know it in the future. There are Confucians who are scholars, there are military strategists who are soldiers. We are thieves, and there are thieves. You work alone, if something happens, even the others will be killed." There is no one to help you, but it is different when you join the gang. There are many colleagues together, and they take care of each other. They can also discuss and communicate with each other, promote each other, and improve together... How about it, are you interested? Join us to steal the door?”

The young man looked hesitant and asked, "If I join the thieves, will I have to hand over half of what I have worked so hard to steal?"

Zhao Wu understood his concerns very well and said with a smile: "Little brother, that's not how the accounts are settled. Brother tells you that as a thief, you can't just focus on the small profits in front of you. You have to take a long-term view. How much money can a person steal in a month after working so hard? The risk of stealing a little bit each time is still high. After joining the thieves, you only do one or two orders every month, and you earn a hundred times what you are making now. times..."

The young man's eyes flickered, and he was obviously moved.

But he had some concerns. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Can you let me think about it?"

After all, this is a big deal, and it is understandable to be cautious. If he agrees directly, Zhao Wu will doubt whether he has ulterior motives.

He patted the young man's shoulder and said, "Okay, but it won't take too long. If you figure it out, come here to find me tomorrow morning..."

The young man nodded and the two left the alley together.

Seeing the young man's figure disappearing into the crowd, Zhao Wu winked. The two vendors setting up stalls at the alley slowly stood up and followed him.

After a long time, the two returned to Zhao Wu again and spoke slowly.

"Followed to where he lives."

"He lives in a slum in the north of the city."

"He also has a wife at home. When we opened the door for him, we saw her. She was average-looking but had a good figure..."

"It's not just good, it's simply great. This kid is so lucky..."

…

When Zhao Wu heard this, he nodded slightly. He had a family and a wife, which meant that there was no problem with his identity.

However, this little guy is still too young to know that he is being followed. When he enters the door, he needs to find someone to teach him how to avoid being followed.

How could a thief be followed into his home?

The two agreed that the young man would give him an answer the next day.

Early the next morning, Zhao Wu was waiting here.

It was not until three poles in the sun that the young man arrived belatedly.

He didn't seem to have slept well last night. He looked a little tired and the circles under his eyes were dark. I don't know if it was because he had been thinking about it all night or because he was lingering with his beautiful lady.

He walked up to Zhao Wu, took a deep breath, and said, "I've thought about it, I'm willing to join the Pirates."

Zhao Wu showed a smile on his face and said: "Welcome to join the family of thieves."

…

Chang'an.

A simple dwelling.

The residences here are located deep in the intricate alleys. Unless they have lived here for a long time and are extremely familiar with the place, it is difficult for outsiders to find it.

This is one of Zhao Wu's strongholds in the Pirate Gate.

Cunning Rabbit Three Cave, those who work in this industry naturally cannot stay in one place, and have to move to a new base every other month.

Several figures squatted in the yard, gathering stolen goods together and chatting.

"Hey, why did you gain so little this morning?"

"Don't mention it. I've been staring at the fat sheep all morning. I accidentally missed it and almost got caught. If I hadn't run fast, I wouldn't be able to see you now."

"Boy, are you sure you missed it and didn't hide it?"

"Screw you, you can doubt my craftsmanship, but you can't doubt my character!"

"Okay, okay, be careful next time. Speaking of today's competition, if the boss doesn't go himself, who are you going to send?"

"Who knows, the boss hasn't said anything yet. It's a pity that my skills are not good, otherwise I will definitely go. This is a good opportunity to rise to the top in one step. Maybe I will become the boss tomorrow..."

Bang bang bang bang bang!

There was a knock on the door outside.

The voice was long and short, and a person ran forward, opened the door, and said with a smile: "Boss, you are back..."

Zhao Wu nodded, looked behind him, and said with a smile: "Little brother, come in."

The young man standing at the door glanced into the small courtyard, with an expression on his face that was obviously hesitant. After a moment, he took a deep breath and mustered up the courage to step inside.

Zhao Wu smiled, this little guy is really vigilant.

The young man walked into this stronghold of burglary and glanced at it.

In addition to the man who opened the door just now, there were several people standing in the courtyard, four men and one woman.

These people all looked unattractive, including farmers wearing straw hats, women wearing coarse clothes and headscarves, scholars in green shirts, and salesmen carrying burdens...

At first glance, almost no one would associate them with thieves.

Zhao Wu took him into the back room, poured him a cup of tea, and said, "Sit down."

After the young man sat down, he hesitated for a moment and finally asked: "What is your name for this elder brother?"

Zhao Wu smiled and said: "In our industry, it is impossible to tell others your real name. My stage name is Zhao Wu. You can just call me Fifth Brother from now on."

The few people who were eavesdropping outside the door were greatly surprised. The leader was so polite to the new boy. It seemed that they would have to fawn over him a little bit in the future.

The young man thought for a moment and said, "Fifth brother, you can call me Xiao Song."

Zhao Wu nodded and said: "Xiao Song, since you have entered our burglary, there are a few rules that I have to tell you first."

The young man said: "Fifth brother, please tell me."

Zhao Wu said: "First of all, the most important thing is that the things you steal must be handed over to the superiors for unified distribution. If you hide them, you will be kicked out of the thieves..."

The young man nodded.

Zhao Wu continued: "This is the most important thing. You should also remember what I am going to say next. Our burglary is organized and has rules. Unlike those casual thieves, the burglary pays attention to every thief. Tao, you have to be principled when taking action..."

The young man asked in confusion: "What principle?"

Zhao Wu talked: "Don't steal the old, don't steal the young, don't steal the sick, don't steal the disabled, don't steal the poor, don't steal the good, don't steal the begging, don't steal the orphans and widows, don't steal the officials, don't steal the powerful..., this is Don't steal."

The young man asked in surprise: "Why don't you steal so many?"

Zhao Wu explained: "Those who reach out to the old, young, sick and disabled are all the dregs of the dregs. In this world, it is hard enough for the poor to live. Stealing from them may kill a whole family; good people have immeasurable merits. Stealing from them will result in retribution." Beggars have been reduced to the streets, so why would you mind stealing from them? The orphans and widows are pitiful, and as long as there is still human nature, you should not reach out to them. As for not stealing from officials and dignitaries, this is for our own good. Once caught, they will be exiled. If it's light, you might lose your life...

In addition, there are some small rules, such as stealing money but not people, taking things but not lives... you must keep these in mind. "

The young man nodded solemnly and said, "I remember."

In fact, to sum up these principles, don't steal from the weak. Adding insult to injury may force others to death.

You can't steal from a strong person. If you miss, you will die.

Those who have a little money but little power are the best targets.

Zhao Wu took a sip of tea, looked at the young man, and asked doubtfully: "Xiao Song, you are obviously not very old, how did you get this superb skill?"

The young man thought for a moment and said: "It's a long story. In fact, I didn't know anything about this. But one winter, I remember it snowed heavily that day. There was an old man who froze and fell in front of my house. I took the old man to his house. I helped him into the house, gave him a bowl of hot soup, and let him live in my house for a while. In order to thank me, he taught me these things..."

He sighed and said in a complicated tone: "I thought I would never need these things in my life, but I didn't expect, hey..."

Zhao Wu patted his shoulder and comforted him: "Life is forced, it's not shameful. In this shitty world, why do some people work from dawn to dusk, exhausting themselves, but can only make ends meet? Some people If you don’t do anything, you will enjoy endless glory and wealth when you are born. We rely on our crafts to eat and earn money with our sweat. There is nothing to be ashamed of..."

After comforting the young man, he said with emotion: "It seems that the old man who was rescued by you must be a master of burglary. If you take over his mantle, work hard and your future will be limitless. Maybe Fifth Brother, I, There will be a day when I can rely on you, and then you should call me Xiao Wu..."

The young man said in fear: "Don't dare..."

"Hey, people still have to dream, and you must not belittle yourself." Zhao Wu encouraged him, then changed his voice and said: "Right now, there is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in front of you. Today I will hold a door-stealing meeting. Originally, only stewards and senior thieves could participate in this competition, but since you are outstanding in your thieving skills, Fifth Brother would like to recommend you to participate..."

After hearing what he said, the young man was stunned for a moment, then shook his head and said: "Me, participating in the door-stealing competition? No, no, no, I can't, I've just started..."

Zhao Wu said seriously: "Don't belittle yourself. Fifth brother, let me tell you something from the bottom of my heart. Your ability is incomparable to fifth brother. If you participate in this competition, even if you can't win the first place, you can still win in front of the top brass." If you show your face a little bit and get noticed by the senior management, your promotion will definitely be faster in the future. When the time comes, don’t forget to support your brothers..."

Zhao Wu is in charge, so he can directly participate in this competition.

But with his ability, he would be a foil for others, so he might as well recommend Xiao Song to go up. He looked at the young man in front of him and asked: "Do you know the six arts of stealing?"

The young man was stunned: "There are six skills in stealing?"

Zhao Wudao: "Of course, climbing over walls, picking locks, removing obstructions, pickpocketing, cutting hair, and buying in pairs are the six skills of stealing. How much did the old man teach you?"

The young man nodded and said: "So these are the six arts of stealing, so I know a little bit of them."

Zhao Wu smiled and said: "That's good. If you are lucky, after today, I will call you Song Chief..."

The two chatted for a while, and suddenly there were three heavy knocks on the door outside the courtyard. Zhao Wu walked into the courtyard and said to his disciples: "You guys go out through the back door."

After several disciples left the door, Zhao Wu walked to the door in person, opened the door, and saw a masked figure standing outside the door. He immediately bowed and saluted, and said respectfully: "Master Wu..."

The masked figure glanced at him and said calmly: "The time has come. Do you want to participate in this competition?"

This competition for promotion to the first seat mainly involves these stewards.

Zhao Wu waved his hand and said: "No, no, I don't have this ability. However, I have just accepted a little brother. Although he is young, his skills are very good. Why not let him take part in the competition on his behalf." "

The masked man didn't say much. He glanced at the young man standing behind Zhao Wu and said, "Follow me."

After that, he turned around and walked outside.

The young man walked a few steps, turned back, glanced at Zhao Wu timidly, and asked: "Fifth brother, aren't you going?"

Zhao Wu knew what he was worried about, so he smiled and said, "I can't go, so you can rest assured and go with Manager Wu. When the competition is over, he will bring you back..."

The young man followed the masked man along the intricate alleys to an alley entrance, where a carriage was parked.

The masked man walked to the carriage and said calmly: "Get in."

The young man got on the carriage and found that there were three other people on the carriage. The three doorkeepers looked at the young man who got on the carriage in surprise and couldn't help but speak.

"Zhao Wu didn't come by himself?"

"With his little ability, it would be embarrassing to go. It's better not to go."

"Then we won't send such a hairy boy, right? He has grown all his hair, and he still wants to compete for the top spot?"

The masked man glanced at them and said coldly: "Shut up!"

When the three heard this, they didn't dare to say a word.

The masked man took out a few pieces of black cloth from his arms, threw them into the carriage, and said, "Cover your eyes."

The four of them obediently picked up a piece of black cloth and covered their eyes.

The masked man lowered the curtain, waved his whip, and the carriage started slowly and drove in a certain direction.

High in the sky, a wooden kite flapped its wings slowly and landed far behind the carriage.

Several hundred feet away, there was another carriage.

Li Yun closed his eyes and said to Butler Wu and Li Anning outside the carriage: "They are moving. They are moving. Looking at the direction, they should be going to the north of the city..."

…

Li Nuo was sitting in the carriage with his eyes covered, completely unaware of the situation outside.

He had to be blindfolded while sitting in the carriage, so cautious. No wonder the thieves could always be active at the emperor's feet.

But he wasn't too worried.

For this operation, Li Anning went to Prince Chun's Mansion to invite Li Yun.

What martial artists and Legalists cannot do, Mohist mechanics can easily do.

He can control the flight mechanism and monitor his position in real time.

Although this mission was a bit difficult in the early stages, it went extremely smoothly after that.

Although Fifth Brother is not a good person, he is a good leader.

Such a precious opportunity was given to myself.

Li Nuo originally planned to use coercion and inducement.

After his eyes were covered, his perception of time became less acute. After an unknown amount of time, the carriage slowly stopped with a "hush" sound.

"get off."

Hearing the sound coming from outside, Li Nuo and the other three took off their blindfolds and got out of the carriage.

He looked around for the first time. He was surrounded by low and dilapidated houses. It should be a slum area in the north of the city.

Led by the masked man, the four of them walked into a courtyard. Apart from them, there were already several figures waiting here in the courtyard.

Among them, there were two figures whose faces were also covered with black cloth.

The rest of the people, six men and two women, at a glance, they are all passers-by A and passers-by B who can't be found in a crowd. Who would have thought that they are actually the stewards of the burglary...

Li Nuo was glad that he had the foresight.

If Phoenix hadn't transformed him, he really wouldn't have been able to join this mediocre team.

In the courtyard, a masked man asked: "Old Wu, why are you here? I've been waiting for you."

The masked man who brought Li Nuo and the others here said, "It's always right to be careful. I walked around a few times outside."

The man didn't say anything. He glanced at Li Nuo and the others and said, "Since we are here, let's start early. We will go to the next place soon."

Li Nuo raised his eyebrows slightly. According to what the other party meant, this was not the final venue for the competition.

In a competition, there are different points. These guys are really cautious and scary.

He glanced around and saw that except for the three men in black, there were only twelve people in the courtyard.

There are sixty-four stewards of the Stealing Sect, plus other masters. It stands to reason that there should be no less than a hundred people participating in the competition. There must be other competition venues.

They actually separated the examination rooms carefully.

Twelve people stood side by side, and a man in black glanced at them and said: "After this level, at most half of the twelve of you can stay, and the rest can come and go wherever they go. Go ahead."

When everyone heard this, their expressions changed more or less.

I didn't expect that half of the people would be eliminated in the first level. Wouldn't it mean that if you fall behind in this level, you will lose the opportunity to show off other skills?

The man in black pointed to a courtyard wall in front of him and said to the man in Confucian shirt standing at the first place: "Climb over that wall, and then climb back over."

Li Nuo stood at the end of the crowd. Climbing over the wall is the first of the six skills of stealing, and it is also the most basic skill.

Burglary is safer than stealing someone's wallet in person, of course when the owner is not at home.

Climbing over the wall is the first step to break into the house, so it is ranked first.

Hearing this, the man in Confucian shirt walked out of the queue, ran for a short distance, easily crossed the nearly ten-foot-high courtyard wall, and landed with a "bang".

Soon, he rolled back from the other side. When he landed, Li Nuo felt the ground shaking slightly even two feet away.

Li Nuo shook his head slightly. He climbed over the wall, but the sound of falling to the ground was too loud.

Climbing over the wall of a stolen door is not a simple matter of climbing over. It is required that when climbing over someone else's wall, the noise made should be as small as possible.

Thieves usually steal in the middle of the night, when everything is quiet. If they make too much noise, they can easily alert the neighbors.

It didn’t bother the neighbors, nor did it alert the guard dog.

In the courtyard, the three leaders also frowned.

The wall was climbed well, but the sound of falling to the ground was so loud that I can only give him a B rating.

The second person to climb over the wall was a woman with a sallow complexion dressed as a village woman. She was petite and chose to use a few pits on the wall. After several attempts, she successfully climbed up the wall.

When she climbed down from the wall, she did not jump straight down like the man in Confucian shirt. Instead, she climbed up the wall with both hands, slowly lowered her body, lowered her height, and jumped down gently, making only a slight landing sound.

When turning it back, she used the same method.

Li Nuo continued to shake his head. The sound of landing was quieter, but the speed was too slow.

Climbing over the wall is not only the basis for breaking into a house, but also the guarantee for escape.

If she had been discovered by her owner or chased by the guarding dog, she would have been caught eight hundred times crawling like this.

When climbing a wall, what matters is speed and lightness.

Next, the rest of the people quickly climbed over the courtyard wall in order.

I have to say that the housekeeper is quite capable.

Not to mention the speed of climbing the wall and the sound of landing, at least everyone successfully climbed over this high wall.

Li Nuo was the last one. He took a slight step forward and put his toes on the wall several times. He had already jumped onto the top of the wall and jumped down without any pause.

While in the air, he could clearly see the situation on the ground.

Avoiding the uneven road surface, he chose a relatively flat position, bent his knees and landed on the ground, and did a forward roll. The whole process made almost no sound.

Then, he rolled back in the same way and landed silently.

The three leaders standing under the wall had expressions of surprise on their faces.

They were so close that they didn't hear anything.

Even they may not be as perfect as him in climbing over the wall.

This young man has something.

When the young man stood back in line, a leader couldn't help but asked: "Whose steward is this? He's quite capable..."

Another masked leader also looked surprised, and then explained: "He is not a manager, he is a newcomer recommended by one of my managers. No wonder Zhao Wu recommended him so much. This guy is really quite capable, and he is not too old." , is a good seedling..."

When the other two leaders heard this, the expressions on their faces were even more surprised.

Newcomer?

Is this fucking new guy?

If it weren't for the fact that his face was so young, and his ability to scale walls silently with just one hand, they would all believe that he was a Dharma protector...