111: Chapter 111 Bold and Meticulous

While the two were talking, the middle-aged white man interrupted impatiently, "Who are you? This is our business. Leave immediately and don't meddle! You two, hand over my things right now. I don't have time to waste with you, or I'll have someone search you."

"We were just walking near this man when he suddenly lost something. He thinks we intentionally approached him to steal it, so he called his bodyguards to surround us and demand it back. But how could we do such a thing? We explained for a long time, but he still won't let it go. Being away from home, I didn't want to cause trouble, so I thought about paying him some money to settle it. But when I asked what exactly he lost, he wouldn't say, only that it was very important and couldn't be measured in money, insisting we hand it over. If it weren't for the crowd watching, they would have already searched us. I'm very grateful you stood up to help, but we have no support here, so I'd rather not involve you." Ren Keyong didn't hold much hope; he felt the middle-aged white man was looking for trouble on purpose, was well-prepared, and definitely had a scheme he wouldn't abandon until he reached his goal. Furthermore, Cao Xiao was unknown even back home, so he wouldn't have much power abroad. He only said this to let Cao Xiao know the difficulty and retreat.

Cao Xiao frowned and looked at the middle-aged white man again. Although the man was dressed luxuriously, he felt the man's expression and behavior were unnatural, and the whole situation felt eerie. Elder Ren was a man of status back home, so his family naturally wouldn't resort to theft. If something was lost but not identified, and the goal was a body search, then they wanted to find something on Ren Keyong and the others. He had no interest in knowing what the man was plotting; understanding the gist was enough. Having figured this out, he had an idea and said, "Mr. Ren, don't worry. Just leave this to me."

"This... well, give it a try then, but don't force it." Ren Keyong couldn't refuse Cao Xiao's kindness since he had stepped up to help. Letting him try wouldn't hurt, while he himself also thought of ways to escape.

"Sir, I don't care what your purpose is for troubling my friends, but please leave immediately. I've already called the police, and they'll be here soon." Cao Xiao was just using the police's name to make the man back off. Today, Duan Hong and the other weren't by his side. He was weak while the enemy was strong, and he had no confidence in dealing with six well-trained, robust bodyguards. Never mind six; each one was a size larger than him, and he couldn't even beat one.

"It'll be the same even if the police come. They stole my things and must return them immediately. This is none of your business, or else you're their accomplice, and the police will take you away too." The middle-aged white man was fearless, using the police to threaten Cao Xiao in return.

Hearing this, Cao Xiao understood that this man likely had a strong local background and didn't even care about the police. Although he knew General Dimogo, the Commissioner of the Cape Town Police Department, it was only a one-time meeting, not even a casual acquaintance, and the man wouldn't bother with him. Tiandu Company had little local influence; in a critical situation, the police might not side with them and could even cause trouble. It seemed the official route wouldn't work. He sighed inwardly and said, "I have a good relationship with Dapu, the head of the Angress Family. I wonder if you've heard of the Angress Family?"

The middle-aged white man's eyes narrowed upon hearing 'Angress Family,' and his expression became solemn, his body tensing slightly. However, after glancing at several bodyguards, he relaxed and laughed loudly instead. "I do know of the Angress Family. So what if you know Dapu? If you stole my things, you must return them. It would be the same even if Dapu were here. Hahaha!"

Cao Xiao's heart sank upon hearing this. Things had become serious. Given the Angress Family's notorious reputation in South Africa, even if local powers looked down on them, they would still be wary and show some respect. Yet this man, who clearly looked fearful when he first heard the name, gained full confidence to challenge Dapu after looking at his bodyguards. Cao Xiao couldn't help but look at the bodyguards again and made a guess. He lamented inwardly—he just came out for a meal! Now another incident had occurred, and a big one at that. This wasn't a small skirmish like dealing with the Angress Family; this was real trouble!

He saw a temperament in these bodyguards similar to Duan Hong and the others, but much sharper. Their bodies were solid, with calluses on their hands; they couldn't be farmers or workers. They could only be soldiers, likely active-duty special forces! For active-duty special forces to be dressed in civilian clothes acting as bodyguards, the story behind this was hard to fathom. With a thought, he used his Perspective Scan on the bodyguards. When he saw some of the small equipment they carried, his heart sank to the bottom because the equipment was very advanced. Only one country in the world used these models: the USA. And the middle-aged man's English accent clearly had a local South African flavor; he might just be a spokesperson. No wonder he wasn't afraid of Dapu. These people were going to such lengths to get something from Ren Keyong; if he stopped them, he would be opposing a major US power capable of deploying elite special forces. Not just him, even Father He, who controlled Hongdu, wouldn't dare offend them rashly. He was truly in a dilemma this time, caught in a dead end.

If he helped, given the importance of the matter, he would be ruining someone's big plans and provoking a powerful US faction, which required taking risks. If he didn't help, his conscience would be uneasy, as Ren Keyong and the others couldn't stop them alone. But then he thought something was off; if that side had support from a major power but still needed to be so secretive, then Ren Keyong's background likely wasn't simple either. In that case, the consequences might not be so severe, plus he wasn't the protagonist and wouldn't be the first to take the hit. Having realized this, he no longer hesitated. Besides, Cao Xiao had some weight of his own; backing down wasn't his style. He swept back both sides of his jacket, and two Golden Pistols appeared in his hands. One barrel pointed at the middle-aged white man, and the other at the fake bodyguards. He then said decisively to the man, "Do you recognize these? One word: do you want to walk away standing or stay here lying down?"

"Ah!"

Seeing Cao Xiao suddenly pull out handguns, the onlookers screamed and scattered in a panic, no longer in the mood to watch the excitement!

"Drop the guns!" The bodyguards hadn't expected this ordinary young man to suddenly produce weapons. However, they weren't on a battlefield mission this time and weren't carrying weapons themselves. They could only shout and quickly close in on Cao Xiao.

"Mr. Ren, you guys leave first. I'll handle things here, but you'd better go to the embassy for help. These are active-duty US special forces!" Cao Xiao didn't know if Ren Keyong had noticed this, but he still reminded him to let him know the gravity of the situation. They were carrying important items; if these people lost their patience and dropped their pretense, nowhere would be safe except the embassy. He then slowly backed up, leaning against a shop wall on the street to keep a few meters' distance from the bodyguards, and shouted at them, "Stay back! Leave immediately, or I'll fire!"

"Shit! This is a busy street! You madman!" There was fear in the middle-aged white man's eyes, but more of it was frustration. He didn't dare bet that Cao Xiao wouldn't shoot—someone who appeared out of nowhere and pulled a gun without a word, completely ignoring the rules. Their identities couldn't be exposed; if Cao Xiao fired, the police would definitely take it very seriously. Once the police intervened, their plans might fall through.

"Mr. Cao! Take care!" Hearing the identity of these people, Ren Keyong instantly realized the gravity of the matter and finally understood why he was being targeted. At this point, staying would only waste Cao Xiao's efforts. He solemnly cupped his fists toward Cao Xiao, then immediately pulled his family and hurried toward the entrance of the pedestrian street.

Seeing the targets about to leave, the opponents unwillingly tried to force them to stay. Some blocked Cao Xiao's line of fire, while others moved toward Ren Keyong and his family. If they succeeded, Cao Xiao would be hesitant to shoot even with a gun. He immediately turned his gun toward the moving bodyguards and shouted, "Don't move! Stay here with me. Put down your phones!"

"Forget it, don't chase them." The middle-aged white man resentfully stopped the bodyguards, then said angrily to Cao Xiao, "You will pay for today! Even Dapu won't be able to protect you!"

"Then we shall wait and see. Here's a piece of advice: you and the people behind you had better not provoke me. Do you know why I can be friends with Dapu? Because I'm crazier and more capable than them. Otherwise, I guarantee the first person to regret it will definitely be you! Even these US special forces standing behind you won't be able to save you!" Cao Xiao was already prepared. Anyone could make threats. Even if the other side used extraordinary means against him, they wouldn't pay too high a price because it wouldn't be worth it. If they really dared to come, Cao Xiao would do as he said and make them hurt enough to have to give up.

"Fine! Then we'll see! Now that they've gone far, can we leave?" The middle-aged white man laughed out of extreme anger. Even if this young man had some background, he was too arrogant, actually daring to think he could be their enemy. Like an ant trying to shake a giant tree, he was overestimating himself. Making threats now would only provoke him. For now, he would let him go; once he was free, he would definitely deal with him properly.

"You may go! Remember what I said!" Cao Xiao put away his pistols and said indifferently.

Watching the seven of them walk away, the sound of sirens drew closer. He didn't plan to flee or hide. Carrying a gun and disturbing the peace on a public street today would be caught on surveillance; the police would find him sooner or later. Besides, he already had a countermeasure and wouldn't face any trouble. So, he went to a nearby shop to buy some snacks and waited on the spot for the police to arrive while eating.

"Drop your weapons! Hands behind your head, kneel on the ground!" The police arrived as expected, a group of them swarming around Cao Xiao.

"I want to see General Dimogo!" Cao Xiao threw away his food and stood there, shouting loudly at the police. If he didn't find a useful shield now, he would definitely end up being pinned to the ground in a mess, which would be quite embarrassing.

The police about to rush forward stopped immediately. A Major walked over, frowned while looking Cao Xiao over, and said, "Put your weapons on the ground."

Cao Xiao followed instructions and slowly took out the two Golden Pistols and placed them on the ground. A policeman quickly picked them up but immediately felt something was wrong—they were too light! He instinctively squeezed, and with a 'crack,' the golden pistol actually shattered! He looked at the break and said helplessly to the Major, "Major, these are plastic model guns, not real ones!"

"What? Plastic model guns?" The Major had a look like he'd seen a ghost, his eyes full of bewilderment.

"Major, today's incident was a misunderstanding. To help my friends escape danger, I used the model guns I had on me to scare away some thugs. I deeply apologize for the inconvenience caused to the police. May I make a phone call?" Cao Xiao said to the Major with a smile.

"You may, but although you prevented a crime today, you also caused public panic and disturbed social order. Please come with us to the station after your call." Seeing how calm Cao Xiao was, the Major thought he might have some backing and spoke politely.

Cao Xiao took out his phone and dialed General Dimogo's private number. He explained what had happened to General Dimogo. He had expected to need a lot of persuasion, but General Dimogo on the other end was unexpectedly enthusiastic. After some pleasantries, he told Cao Xiao not to worry and asked to speak to the officer in charge.

"Major, General Dimogo is on the phone. Please take the call." Cao Xiao walked up to the Major and handed him the phone.

"Yes, General! We will escort Mr. Cao back immediately." Hearing it was his superior on the phone, the Major didn't dare delay. He took the call, then returned the phone to Cao Xiao and said, "Mr. Cao, you don't need to go to the station. The General has ordered us to escort you home. If you're ready, let's go."

"Then thank you, officer. And please convey my thanks to the General!" Cao Xiao didn't understand why General Dimogo was suddenly so enthusiastic. Aside from meeting once that day, they had no interaction. He wasn't some big shot worth a powerful general going out of his way to befriend. He didn't think too much about it; he would ask for clarification when he had a chance to visit him in person later.

He didn't refuse the kindness. Since his bodyguards weren't around, having a police escort would also avoid danger. So, he walked out of the pedestrian street with the police, got into his car, and returned to the villa.