The drinks flowed freely, the conversation was surprisingly engaging, and soon it was late into the night. Ning Shixuan smiled at her uncle-in-law and asked, "Uncle, should Commissioner Zhou sign something as a memento to boost your wonton stall’s reputation? If Commissioner Zhou ever makes it to the central government, that signature could be worth a fortune."

Sun Caiwu was beside himself with excitement tonight. After living most of his life, he never expected to share drinks with a high-ranking official from the province, alongside Secretary Ma and Director Xie—even though the latter two were not at this specific table. "That would be wonderful, but I worry about causing more trouble for Commissioner Zhou."

Ning Shixuan reached into her small purse and handed Zhou Qiang a notebook and a fountain pen. "Since he's Zhao Qian's friend, any trouble is justified."

This unintentional remark by Ning Shixuan made Secretary Liu beside her grind his teeth in irritation; she was clearly treating them all like family. Zhou Qiang took the pen and sought my opinion with his eyes. I nodded, signaling him to proceed without worrying about my presence.

Ning Shixuan put away the pen and book, turning to Zhou Qiang. "Commissioner Zhou, you must get promoted in the future, or this signature won't be worth anything. Comrade Zhao Qian, I see you winking over there—do you also want an autograph? Even if it won't be worth much, I’m willing to sacrifice the cleanliness of my notebook to satisfy your little vanity."

I waved away the proffered pen and book. "Forget it. At most, I'll give you a blank IOU; I owe you quite a bit of money lately." I had borrowed a hundred yuan from Ning Shixuan to get medicine for Yun Yao, and she had also sold me a lot of... necessities. I couldn't just accept them for free.

Ning Shixuan laughed. "You can just come here every evening to work off the debt. Don't forget you’re also my love consultant, and I haven't paid you a salary yet. I think that evens us out now."

Pedestrians were scarce in the night market. Zhou Qiang invited me back to the hotel to rest, but I declined. "Maybe not. I'll just sleep in the boiler room. After all, only harsh environments can temper a person's will."

Secretary Ma's face was extremely awkward. He quickly stepped forward. "Young Comrade Zhao, everything I said this morning was nonsense. I am rescinding all penalties against you now; you can return to your third-floor dorm. It's getting late; let Commissioner Zhou return to rest. He must be very tired after a long day."

Zhou Qiang ignored Secretary Ma and said to me, "Zhao Qian, I’m leaving now. I will handle the matter you mentioned tomorrow. I’ll notify you immediately if there’s any news."

Secretary Ma looked utterly confused. He didn't know Zhou Qiang was referring to pressing the Shimen City Geological Team to test the water samples. However, he had a tendency to overthink things. Since Zhou Qiang hadn't been explicit, he dared not ask and could only send Zhou Qiang back to Liangshan Hotel with a churning, uneasy heart.

Ning Shixuan and Yun Yao were helping Sun Caiwu load his cart. I pulled Scarface aside and asked, "How is your wound healing? You seemed quite agile tonight. Are you ready to fight again?"

Scarface rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "It's nothing, Brother Qian. People like us have tough lives; a small injury doesn't matter. I didn't expect Brother Qian to be friends with the Commissioner. We admire you even more now. Following you is definitely the right move. Brother Qian, you should give us some assignments now. The entire city of Liangshan is under the control of Xie Lei and Liang Kuan. Although their people have been subdued these past two years, they control the most profitable industries. It's very hard for us to establish a foothold."

I said, "My friendship with Commissioner Zhou cannot be your bragging right. We are starting from scratch; we can't rely on anyone."

Scarface nodded. "Understood."

I continued, "It's not like we have no place to stand, though. Isn't this night market under your control?"

Scarface chuckled. "What I said earlier was mostly meant to scare people. If we actually fought Liang Kuan's men, they would probably be the ones to profit in the end. We are far behind them in terms of both weaponry and popularity. But I believe with Brother Qian here, even if Liang Kuan shows up, we don't need to be afraid. Before, Xie and Liang both disdained this night market; it was always just a place for us lowlifes to hang around. But we could barely collect any protection fees. Liangshan County is a small place where you see everyone constantly; many merchants have countless connections with the Liang and Xie families. We could easily offend them, which was something we wouldn't have dared to dream of before meeting you. Even now, we can't collect protection fees immediately because we haven't established our authority; no one respects us yet."

I paused to consider. "Where is that Dàhé Arcade you mentioned before? How is its business doing?"

Scarface pointed nearby. "Brother Qian, look over there. It's written right on the big sign."

I looked up toward the street in the distance. The large lightbox displayed the words '' (Dàhé Arcade) in bold characters. "Let's go take a look inside. Just remember, be discreet and don't expose my identity in front of outsiders."

Scarface nodded. "Then I’ll go in first. Brother Qian, you follow."

While the others packed up the wonton stall, the two of us slipped into the Dàhé Arcade for a quick look. Although it was late, there were still quite a few people playing games—mostly young hoodlums, smoking, cursing, and slamming the game joysticks. Two ceiling fans rotated listlessly overhead. I couldn't stand the smell of the air inside and quickly stepped back out, Scarface following discreetly behind me.

"If it's Saturday or Sunday, it’s packed to the rafters. On a good day, they can rake in five or six hundred yuan. Even on regular weekdays, they can make over a hundred yuan. That’s considered a decent small business in Liangshan," Scarface reported.

"But there aren't many types of games inside," I noted. "Just Mahjong machines and a few Street Fighter types. It seems like the truly profitable gambling machines aren't here. One hundred yuan a day, after deducting electricity, rent, and machine wear and tear, means it’s essentially not making money."

Scarface laughed. "There used to be a few gambling machines, but the County Public Security Bureau took them home to play. However, even before they were taken, no one gambled on those things anyway; you lose money too fast. It's better to buy a few tokens for one yuan and play for a good while. Liangshan’s economy is lagging; you can't compare it to the big cities outside."

It seemed impossible to make big money here. Never mind, solving the basic needs first would suffice. "I see quite a few people guarding the place. It seems that Wang Gui is also worried about someone robbing the shop. We need to prepare our defenses seriously too. Here’s what we’ll do: Tomorrow, find a way to locate the original owner of the arcade and talk to him about the current situation. Hopefully, we can spend a little money to sign a custodial contract with him, or even better, have him transfer the arcade over to us."

Scarface looked puzzled. "Brother Qian, why do that? Wang Gui can rob us outright; why can't we do the same?"

I smiled. "Wang Gui can never grow large, but we can. That’s the reason."