Chapter 26: Never Underestimate My Intelligence Network

Linde was doing so well that he had earned recognition, and his superiors even hinted at formally bringing him into the fold. This ignited a burning jealousy in Wang Cheng, the man who had originally pulled him into the business.

Linde had hit a massive jackpot at the casino using a batch of "capital," and he was in high spirits; all his previous anxieties had vanished in an instant. The powers behind the casino had officially approached him, offering him "more stable work." Everything was moving in a positive direction.

Wang Cheng’s envy became unbearable. Yet, after Linde had happily left with a suitcase full of "wealth," claiming he was going home to surprise his wife and children, he returned that same night looking utterly shattered. When acquaintances asked him what was wrong, he wouldn't answer. Without a word, he dove back into the work of earning capital and gambling. His daily movements became limited, and he no longer seemed to belong to the same world as the rest of the freelancers.

However, Wang Cheng, who was closer to him, grew suspicious. Linde, who used to constantly talk about his wife and children, had suddenly stopped mentioning them altogether. Moreover, Wang Cheng noticed that the suitcase full of money Linde had brought home that night was missing.

That was impossible. People blinded by the casino would never actually give away their "money." They would only show it off and then take it back to use as "seed capital," desperate to earn even more. Thinking he had figured something out, Wang Cheng harbored sinister intentions and headed toward Linde’s residence.

...

"Meow."

The cute cat call masked all the unpleasantness. Lin Yilin and Zheng Fan emerged from the alleyway together.

"What’s in the alley that doesn't roll and doesn't have many holes?" Zheng Fan spread his hands. "The answer clearly rules out a bowling ball."

"The answer is a corpse," Lin Yilin said nonchalantly as she retracted her cat-shaped gun into her small bag.

"You’re so proficient. Before coming here, I was only talking about this in theory."

"I have done it before, a long, long time ago."

"Wow."

"Most people don't care about a corpse killed by a gunshot, and a freelance cleaner gets even less attention. There are countless people like that in that kind of casino. But if we don't dispose of him, we might have some trouble. Although the impact of a piece of trash is small, it’s best to eliminate the possibility."

"Pulling the trigger makes things much easier. A cost-effective trade," Zheng Fan agreed.

"Indeed, Mr. Hallucination is even more of an expert than I am."

"Consensus reached. Our rapport has reached a new level."

"What was the previous level?"

"When you told me the color of your underwear."

"Indisputable."

Zheng Fan and Lin Yilin did not pursue the matter further. They took the subway back to 102 Xiding Road. Upon opening the door, they found Toast had been revived, though it was no longer as lively when it saw Lin Yilin, clearly left with a bit of trauma. Zheng Fan gave it a big hug to celebrate the rebirth of the perfect toast.

"My dear Toast, I’m so happy to see you. My appetite is back all of a sudden."

"Awoo!"

"Don’t worry, though. On the way back, I used Lin Yilin’s body to eat a donut."

"Awoo!"

As Zheng Fan interacted passionately with Toast, Lin Yilin focused on her phone, slumped into a single-seat sofa, her fingers moving at a lightning pace.

"Are you mobilizing your mysterious intelligence network again?" Zheng Fan asked, glancing over.

"It’s not that mysterious. It’s just like asking the neighbors if they’ve eaten dinner tonight—a very mundane and ordinary thing," Lin Yilin replied.

Zheng Fan didn't find that particularly convincing.

A moment later, Lin Yilin suddenly straightened her legs and held her phone high. "Found it."

"Hm?"

"The force behind that nameless casino. Though, it is still just a hypothesis."

Zheng Fan: ?

He had just finished hearing the story of Linde from Wang Cheng, and while they were on the way back, she had been tapping away on her phone the whole time. How could she know who was behind the casino so quickly? Were her "neighbors" really that formidable?

"It happened a few months ago. The time Ms. Kaibisi mentioned her husband’s business failing seems to align with some things in my memory." Lin Yilin stood up, walked quickly to the bookshelf by the desk, and pulled out a stack of newspapers.

"Great Capital Economic Turmoil?" Zheng Fan read the headline.

"A major gang fell. One of the important components supporting Great Capital’s economy is these gangs. The life and death of these major gangs are particularly important; this is news that could be called a Great Capital earthquake," Lin Yilin explained.

"So? What does that have to do with anything?"

"The reason why gangs have been so rampant in Great Capital lately, aside from the 'simple folkways' you mentioned, Mr. Hallucination, is that the collapse of that gang triggered a reshuffling of power, leaving everything in chaos. Xikikoki Street, as a large gray district, was naturally affected."

Zheng Fan recalled his recent encounters with various gangs. He had actually thought Great Capital was always like this. But it wasn't much different, really—it just increased the spawn rate of gang incidents.

"Was Linde’s business caught in the crossfire?" Zheng Fan asked.

Lin Yilin put down the newspaper. "In a gray district, large or small, every business is inevitably linked to gangs. This is not uncommon. Often, a business that looks legitimate on the surface involves various interests between underground gangs behind the scenes. Those living on the surface find it hard to know this. By the time the underground gang issues come back to affect them, they haven't even reacted before the leeks have already been harvested."

Zheng Fan: "Linde was just one of those unlucky bastards."

Lin Yilin added: "There have definitely been more unlucky bastards than just Mr. Linde during this time; we just happened to touch the tip of the iceberg."

"Then how did you trace that to the nameless casino?" Zheng Fan steered the conversation back to the main point.

"Flesh currency," Lin Yilin said first.

Zheng Fan paused, then realized: "Missing people... no, that’s too common in Great Capital. So, it’s small animals and livestock within the city?"

Flesh currency had to have a source. It wasn't just the people being lured in who needed seed capital; the powers behind the nameless casino needed it too. Human beings were high-value currency, but disappearances were so common in Great Capital that they couldn't be used as a reliable clue—it was a bit of dark humor. However, medium-to-low-value currency, such as livestock and urban pets, was a much more specific coincidence. If the operation grew too large, it would easily expose that aspect.

"So I looked up the supply routes for some livestock farming around Xikikoki Street. I originally just wanted to follow the vines to find the roots, but I accidentally found a lead that basically confirms it." Lin Yilin’s tone was flat, as if she had done something trivial.

"A livestock company that appears to have gone bankrupt on the surface is still operating at a minimum capacity internally, and has been secretly transporting livestock to locked-down communities for months. And this company was originally an asset of the Canneton family."

"Digging deeper, this company was originally established by the third son of the Canneton family for amusement, but now it’s being used for other purposes."

After speaking, Lin Yilin put down her phone and met Zheng Fan’s gaze quietly.

Even the perfect Toast in Zheng Fan’s arms looked a bit dazed.

Just as he thought: never underestimate the intelligence network of a binary beautiful girl.