Chapter 31: Wealth for All
“To be able to produce twenty thousand yuan at once and purchase, even when personal bonds are as worthless as scrap paper? Is this kid insane? Or could it be that personal bonds… will unexpectedly make a comeback?”
The middle-aged man—Liu Mingli.
He was a renowned speculator in the Suiyan District, and held another identity: Liu Qian’s father!
His presence here at this moment was, of course, due to the imminent trading of national treasury bonds, from which he saw an opportunity to grow his wealth. As a speculator, his trade was always buying and selling, with no concern for actual possession. Wherever there was profit, he’d rush to seize a piece.
Unfortunately, he arrived a step too late to see Wu Ya.
But even if Liu Mingli had met him now, he wouldn’t have recognized him.
“What should I do?”
Standing in place, Liu Mingli gazed at the street beyond the door, his face clouded with melancholy.
Originally, he had resolved to spend his entire ten thousand yuan purchasing collective national bonds.
But now, he hesitated.
His hesitation stemmed, naturally, from the lively discussions of the crowd!
Anyone who could produce twenty thousand yuan at a stroke was surely ahead of his time.
Could such a person possibly be a fool?
No!
Absolutely shrewd and clever!
Yet such a person had just spent twenty thousand yuan, buying personal bonds that everyone else discarded like worn-out shoes.
To say this was a reckless, attention-seeking stunt?
Liu Mingli could not believe it!
Twenty thousand yuan, just to grab attention?
That would be sheer madness.
“No, this move must have its reason! Perhaps he has some insider information! I can’t put all my eggs in one basket. At worst, I’ll earn less, but it’ll be safer!”
With this thought, Liu Mingli strode quickly to the counter.
The clerk before him happened to be Li Yanyan.
“I’d like five thousand yuan in collective bonds, and five thousand in personal bonds!”
“Oh.”
Li Yanyan responded out of habit.
But then—
“What did you just say?”
Her large eyes widened again.
“I want five thousand collective bonds, five thousand personal bonds.”
Confirmed.
Another generous bonus!
Li Yanyan’s face instantly bloomed with a radiant smile.
Today truly was a wonderful day!
Meanwhile, in the Southern District.
Inside a low, gloomy house.
Smoke hung thickly in the air.
Through the haze, several people could be seen gathered around a table, playing mahjong.
Around them stood more than a dozen young men.
“Hua Zi, you’re having another big win today! Your luck is truly beyond compare!”
“Yes! If I could win like this every day, I’d retire from the mahjong world for good!”
“Ah, don’t mention it! If this keeps up, we’ll all end up ‘monthly losers’!”
Three of them spoke to the middle-aged man seated at the north end of the table.
This man was Hua Zi, the most notorious gangster in the Southern District!
He was also Yan Li’s lover!
At that time, the structure of street gangs was not as complex as it would later become.
Their reputations were forged through street fights, which maintained their status.
The brothers under them, for the most part, were not motivated by profit.
They simply wanted to be able to say something that would bring them honor…
“I’m Hua Zi’s brother!”
And for that, they willingly risked life and limb.
Blindly devoted, they called themselves ‘diehard followers’.
“Hahaha, I’ve lost at least five to eight thousand over the past few days. You’ve only lost for two or three days and already want to quit?”
Hua Zi’s face glowed with excitement.
He gathered the heap of bills on the table closer to himself, the stack at least ten centimeters thick.
Just by the look of it, there was at least ten thousand yuan.
“Hua Zi, you jest! Would we be scared off by such a trivial sum? If you gave us just a little opportunity, earning this kind of money would be as easy as peeing!”
The man seated at the south wind, face full of smiles, spoke to Hua Zi.
His gaze, however, shifted toward the other two men as he spoke.
“Han Gongyan’s words are right! Hua Zi, how about the matter we discussed with you?”
The strong man at the west wind followed, staring at Hua Zi without blinking.
This was Ma Si, the gangster from the Northern District.
“Hua Zi, there’s money for everyone. We wouldn’t let you lose out, right?”
Yan Changxing, seated at the east wind, chimed in as he stacked his tiles.
Hua Zi lifted his eyes, scanning the three men.
“Heh, you gentlemen are flattering me! So, what share do you plan to give me?”
He got straight to the point.
In this world, one must be cunning to survive.
But when it comes to profit, directness is essential!
Otherwise, a single careless moment could land you in a trap.
To rise above the chaos in the Southern District and become a boss, Hua Zi was far from a mere brute.
Especially when facing these three—none of them were easy to deal with.
Their meeting today was only because they needed him.
Their business was trying to break into the Southern District.
But without his nod, it would be impossible.
For this business was the latest and most lucrative trade on the streets—drugs.
“Hahaha, Hua Zi, with those words, everything can be negotiated.”
Han Gongyan’s eyes sparkled.
Hua Zi had kept them waiting for three full days, making them restless with anticipation.
“Hua Zi, our brotherhood has always been equal. You won’t lose out in this business.”
Ma Si’s face was bright with sincerity.
Yan Changxing glanced at the other two, then at Hua Zi.
After lighting a cigarette, he spoke.
“Hua Zi, this business is a tightrope walk with your life on the line! One misstep, and everything’s lost. Just giving you a share, you surely wouldn’t agree, right?”
Yan Changxing’s words cut to the heart of the matter!
A share for Hua Zi?
Faced with life and death, would he step into the abyss for a pittance?
Anyone could see it was impossible!
Otherwise, Hua Zi wouldn’t have kept them waiting for three days.
“So I propose that from now on, all profits in Weiling City be split equally among the four of us!”
Yan Changxing continued.
“I agree!”
“So do I.”
Han Gongyan and Ma Si exchanged a glance and nodded.
They had no choice.
Though Hua Zi was the last to join, his Southern District was the largest in Weiling City.
Densely populated, full of entertainment venues.
Naturally, the profits were the greatest!
In fact, they were the ones benefiting here.
“Hahaha…”
Hua Zi was satisfied.
His hearty laughter filled the room.
But just then—
“Boss, Sister Yan Li sent us to find you. There’s urgent news.”
Two men Hua Zi had sent to watch over Yan Li had returned.