Naming of Night

Chapter 1

Compared to their organization of student marches, the arts groups acted more brutally.

Spade's current wish is that all children in the world can read books and newspapers, so that they can at least know what is happening in the world.

Thinking about this, Xu Linsen and Jiang Mubei actually became somewhat interested in the art club.

Xu Linsen said in a low voice, "I'm now certain that the person behind this art group is the one Yangyang was talking about. I really want to see what he's going to do with the lower three districts of City 22."

Qingchen stood behind him, innocently staring at the ceiling.

...

...

In the Ninth District Fatty Intestine Noodle Shop, Qing Chen and the others sat side by side at a long table, slurping their noodles. Zhang Qinghuan and Zhang Mengqian were the loudest slurping sounds.

Their team completed the task of persuading 112 households to return to school in one day, and everyone was all smiles.

These are just small things, but for some reason, my life feels exceptionally fulfilling.

Xu Linsen wiped his mouth, pondered for a moment, and asked Zhang Qinghuan, "Boss, aren't we a gang? Why are we doing this kind of thing?"

Zhang Qinghuan stopped talking and casually said, "This wasn't my decision. It was the higher-ups who said that the sound of reading should return to schools. They said that if this vast world can't accommodate a single desk, it's the fault of all adults in the world..."

At this point, he realized he had let something slip: "Ahem, the 'people above' I was referring to were the sages in heaven who gave me instructions in my dreams."

In the blink of an eye, Qingchen became a sage in the heavens...

Xu Linsen: "But we're a gang, shouldn't we be fighting and killing each other?"

"You don't know this," Zhang Qing laughed, "When I was a kid, I was extremely poor. I couldn't even afford to go to junior high school. We were barely getting enough to eat, so how could I go to school? Later, I worked hard to earn money, thinking that money would bring happiness. Although my business was doing alright, at least my brothers had food and drink, but I still wasn't happy. Until recently, I've been like I'm on steroids every day, with inexhaustible energy. Do you know why?"

"Why?" This time it was Qingchen who asked.

Zhang Qinghuan said, "I suddenly realized why I felt so empty before. It's because before I was trying to improve my own life, but now my goal is to improve the lives of more people. It's different."

Jiang Mubei muttered under his breath, "His ideological awareness is pretty high..."

But Zhang Qinghuan continued, "Besides, the kids are all in school now, so at least they can find decent jobs and won't have to be involved in clubs like I am. Once they're done with clubs, won't only art clubs be left in City 22? We'll collect all the protection money, becoming the dominant force. That's the way to undermine the art world!"

Qing Chen: "???"

Xu Linsen: "Pfft!"

He spat a mouthful of noodles into the bowl.

"Brother, look," Jiang Mubei said, holding his phone up to Xu Linsen. He saw a message on the screen, a wanted notice for Ace of Spades issued by the Kamishiro Group in City 22!

The reason for the arrest warrant is that Xu Linsen murdered Takahashi Taisei, a member of the Kamishiro Foundation!

Xu Linsen stared at the wanted poster for a long time. They did come to City 22 with the mission of killing Takahashi Taisei, but they hadn't even made a move yet!

Something's strange.

The person was someone they wanted to kill, and although he didn't actually do it, it's still considered that he killed him...

Xu Linsen remained silent for a long time: "There's no such coincidence in the world. It's probably that person Yangyang mentioned who's trying to get me..."

Jiang Mubei raised an eyebrow: "If I find out where he is, I'll definitely settle this score."

Qingchen suddenly looked up and raised his hand: "Boss, another bowl, please."

Zhang Qinghuan muttered, "Eat less! How come you have such a good appetite?!"

Chapter 572, Another Bowl of Fatty Intestine Noodles

"Gao Yang, it's been three days. What's Zhang Qinghuan up to? Have you figured out his whereabouts at all?"

On the phone, Chen Yidong, the boss of the Dragon Pattern Society, sounded noticeably impatient.

Gao Yang hesitated for a moment: "You might not believe it, boss, but he's going door to door persuading children to go to school. He goes through one building a day, sweeping the buildings every day. He hasn't done anything else."

Chen Yidong was stunned for a moment: "Trying to fool me with this kind of nonsense, have you betrayed us?"

Gao Yang explained, "Not yet... no, boss, listen to me, he really hasn't done anything productive in these past three days. And it's not just him, the entire art club seems to have fallen silent, nobody's doing anything productive."

"How many leaders does the art society have now?" Chen Yidong asked.

“There are three in total, Zhang Qinghuan, Luo Wanya, and Xiao Qi,” Gao Yang said. “Xiao Qi is busy with infrastructure construction for the owners of the four buildings every day, and Luo Wanya is busy with team building activities for us new members every day. They don’t go out to fight or do business. They don’t do anything that is even remotely related to the serious business of the gang.”

"By the way, the art club wiped out four clubs before: Blackwater, Big Swing, Meteor Hammer, and I Want to Buy a Watch. Where did all those hundreds of people go?" Chen Yidong asked. "Were they absorbed into the art club, or were they all killed? When PCE asked for people to be handed over, they only handed over thirty."

Gao Yang explained, "They're all folding cardboard boxes, operating sewing machines, and assembling electronic components."

"What the heck?" Chen Yidong was clearly taken aback.

Gao Yang said, "Xiao Qi cleared out the top three floors of the Giant Swing for them, then installed iron gates and locked them up, making them do some kind of 'labor reform' inside, while also making money for the art club. Now, these people are considered one of the art club's main businesses, and the cash flow is decent..."

Chen Yidong sat on his leather sofa, lost in thought for a long time.

Federal prisons are much better than slums, and there's no such thing as forced labor.

His family has been involved in gangs since his grandfather's generation, and after decades of involvement, they never imagined that they could make money in this way... The key point is, it's too bizarre for gangs to make money in this way!

That's way too old!

Where else can you make money from trafficking people, chemicals, and organs?

Chen Yidong couldn't bear to look at the hundreds of burly men operating sewing machines inside the giant pendulum ride.

"Alright, enough of this nonsense," Chen Yidong sneered. "You've already got Zhang Qinghuan's whereabouts, haven't you?"

"Yes, I understand. But boss, will Zhang Qinghuan have any expert bodyguards protecting her?"

"Alright, send someone to kill him today. He's just an F-level gene warrior, what kind of experts could he possibly have around him? He's no longer worth my attention."

"Okay, sure," Gao Yang said, hanging up the phone.

Not far away, Luo Wanya waved with a smile: "Gao Yang, come and continue the team building with your family!"

"They're here! They're here!"

In District 8, two motorcycles sped out of the courtyard of the Dragon Pattern Villa and headed towards District 9.

...

...

"Aren't we going to expand our territory?" Jiang Mubei asked, his mind filled with deep doubt.

The two big shots of Spade knew very well the strength of the art club; those more than a hundred gene warriors could easily sweep through the entire Lower Three Districts.

But the art club has become quiet, seemingly content with its modest success, which makes Jiang Mubei feel a bit disappointed.

If this art group is doing things that oppress the poor, then the two big shots of Spade can at most just stand by and watch.

But now things are different. They've discovered that what the arts community is doing is the same thing they're doing, albeit through a different path.

It's better than Spade.

This reignited Jiang Mubei's enthusiasm. He couldn't wait to discuss with Xu Linsen the possibility of simply shutting down the art club, so that the poor people in the lower three districts of City 22 could see the light of day sooner.

Zhang Qinghuan, however, didn't care at all: "Don't rush. Right now, we're just setting a precedent. There are still many people in the Ninth District and even the Lower Three Districts who don't know about the Pigeon Cage. So even if we attack, we won't get any help from the people. Now that we've lit up four buildings, we'll deliberately spread the word, and it will naturally become a topic of conversation. Look, those people were invited to visit."

Jiang Mubei murmured, "If I had never seen the light, I could have endured the darkness."

“That’s right,” Zhang Qing chuckled. “And there’s another problem: all the societies have to supply their superiors. The societies supply PCE, and the PCE in turn supplies their councilors, who in turn belong to the conglomerates. If the arts societies were to blatantly change the balance, it would definitely attract attention. So while we need to act quickly, we need to proceed cautiously.”

"You came up with all of this?" Jiang Mubei asked doubtfully, his subtext being, "You can come up with such a serious line of thinking?"

Zhang Qinghuan readily admitted, "That's what Lao Luo said."

At this moment, Qingchen suddenly said, "I understand. So we need to wait for something to happen in the city, and when PCE is too busy to pay attention to us, then we can expand rapidly!"

"Smart!" Zhang Qinghuan praised.

Qingchen said, "How about we assassinate someone from the Kamishiro Group? I know someone named Kamishiro Unro who drinks at the Black Swan Restaurant in the Fourth District every day, and he always comes alone in the early morning. I work as a waiter at the Black Swan Restaurant. If we kill him, the Upper Sixth District will definitely be in chaos."

Zhang Qinghuan was both amused and exasperated: "I know about Shendai Yunluo you're talking about. He's a famous young nobleman in City 22. He's an A-level! We're nothing compared to him. Just wait for the chaos to unfold. We can't create chaos ourselves."

At this moment, Jiang Mubei whispered, "Boss, should we help them create chaos?"

“We can consider it,” Xu Linsen nodded.

“But the problem is we’re from Spade, not really members of an art club,” Jiang Mubei said. “I think this is their own business, and it’s better for them to handle it themselves.”

Xu Linsen was silent for a moment: "If he can really do what we can't, then what's wrong with letting him be the Joker of Spades? I don't mind."

Jiang Mubei was stunned for a long time: "Boss, you..."

“No need for further words, we’ll create chaos tonight,” Xu Linsen said, his calm expression revealing a certain resolve. The purpose of their Spades was not power, but an ideal.

As long as things go smoothly, Xu Linsen's personal gains and losses are not important.

In fact, Xu Linsen also realized their limitations. After all, most of the Spades were wilderness people, and their vision and scope meant that it would be difficult for them to complete this task independently.

Now he knows how ambitious the person behind this art group is.

Jiang Mubei muttered to himself, "Let him be the Joker? We don't even know where he is yet, how can we let him be the Joker?"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Qingchen suddenly raised his hand: "Boss, another bowl of braised pork intestine noodles, please."

Jiang Mubei rubbed his ears, turned around, and yelled, "If you want more noodles, just say so! Why are you yelling like that?!"

Chapter 573, Someone Leads the Way

While everyone was eating noodles, two men dressed in black leather jackets stood on the opposite sidewalk outside the noodle shop, casually observing the people inside.

Their right arms hung at their sides, as if they were ready to draw their weapons at any moment.

At that moment, Xu Linsen and Zhang Mengqian, who were inside the store, both looked outside alertly.

Zhang Qinghuan was just painfully paying the bill when she saw Xu Linsen disappear from his seat and appear in front of the two people.

With a bang, he punched the two assassins in the stomach with both fists, knocking them down like red-hot shrimp.

A-level sixth sense is beyond the comprehension of ordinary people; even a slight glance or a look with malice can be sensed.

That is the sign that the spiritual will of the extraordinary has begun to merge with the world!

The assassins, of course, were unaware of this; they continued to scrutinize their targets with unbridled abandon, just as always.