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Chapter 78: The Boss in School Uniform
On the other end of the phone, Yang Yu laughed heartily, "Of course, Brother Qiu, where are we going?"
"Let's go see Biao Ge and find something to do."
"Sure thing, Brother Qiu! I'll head over right now." Yang Yu couldn't contain his excitement; finally, there was something to do after such a long time.
"Great, it's at the intersection west of No. 1 High School, White Fire Bar. I'll go ahead and wait for you."
After finishing the call with Yang Yu, Zhang Qiu hurried to White Fire Bar. He had already contacted Biao Ge yesterday and arranged to meet him there this morning. Because of this, Zhang Qiu couldn't just show up with his head wrapped in bandages.
White Fire Bar was located at the first intersection west of No. 1 High School in Beiluan. It occupied four storefronts and had two floors. The exterior was covered in white wallpaper with red flames rising slowly. A huge neon sign stood in the middle, with the words "White Fire" designed to resemble flickering flames. Zhang Qiu had passed by here many times but had only glanced at it from the outside; he had never actually entered a bar before.
Zhang Qiu understood that Brother Leopard wanted him to come to Biao Ge's place because it was close to his school. He appreciated Brother Leopard's kindness; being nearby made it convenient for him and also for Gao Zhi, Zhao Pingchuan, and Wang Zhengxiang to come over frequently.
Zhang Qiu waited in front of White Fire Bar and soon spotted Yang Yu arriving on a roaring motorcycle with a group of people. The distinctive motorcycles lined up neatly in front of the bar as the Brothers shouted in unison, "Brother Qiu!"
"Hello, everyone." Zhang Qiu smiled and nodded. Yang Yu rushed over and excitedly grabbed Zhang Qiu's arm, saying, "Brother Qiu, finally something to do! I was about to go crazy from boredom."
"Being idle is not good; I think there will be plenty of things coming up."
"I'm not afraid of having too much to do; I'm just afraid of having nothing to do. As long as there's passion, no matter how much work there is, it's fine." While speaking, Yang Yu looked around at White Fire Bar and pointed at the large sign above, asking, "Brother Qiu, is this the place?"
Zhang Qiu also looked up at the sign and nodded, "This is it; let's go inside."
With Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu leading the way, the other Brothers followed behind. A server at the entrance opened the door for them and watched these young men with curiosity. After they entered, one server turned to another and said, "What's going on? Look at that guy in the school uniform; why are those people so respectful towards him? It seems like that guy in the trench coat should be the boss."
The server shook his head, "I don't get it; I really don't."
It was still before eight o'clock, and there weren't many people in the bar's hall—only a few tables had scattered beer bottles on them, while some drunken patrons lay sleeping on the sofas. Long wooden tables and high stools were scattered around; in the center was a projection screen with a stage set up for drums and guitars along with two orange speakers. If it weren't for business matters, Zhang Qiu would have been tempted to play a tune himself.
Zhang Qiu lingered, examining the sound system. He approached the front desk, where a beautiful woman looked up, her golden wavy hair tossed back as she sweetly smiled and said, "Handsome, are you here to pick someone up or to enjoy yourself? If it's for enjoyment, we only start serving after ten o'clock. You can sit in the lobby for a while."
Zhang Qiu smiled lightly and replied, "I'm here to find someone."
"Please go ahead." The woman continued to smile, gesturing toward a group of people who were intoxicated, not forgetting to throw a flirtatious glance at Zhang Qiu.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Zhang Qiu quickly explained, "I'm not here to pick anyone up; I'm looking for Biao Ge. We have an appointment."
The woman paused for a moment, re-evaluating Zhang Qiu, who was dressed in a high school uniform. Hesitantly, she picked up the intercom and spoke into it: "0808, someone is here looking for Biao Ge. Go check it out."
"That's right; he's a student wearing a high school uniform."
Zhang Qiu felt speechless. What was the big deal about being a student? It seemed he would need to prepare an outer garment for future outings; wearing his school uniform in public wasn't ideal.
"Handsome, are you Zhang Qiu?"
"Yes."
"Brother Leopard is waiting for you on the second floor. You can go up from here; someone will meet you." The woman gently pointed toward the stairs and threw another flirtatious glance at Zhang Qiu.
Zhang Qiu hurried up the stairs with Yang Yu and the others. After turning a corner, they reached the second floor. A bald man wearing an earpiece stopped Zhang Qiu and asked, "Are you Zhang Qiu?"
"Yes, that's me."
The bald man nodded and said, "Follow me; they're waiting outside. You can have some fun."
"Let him come in with me; Biao Ge will agree." Zhang Qiu pulled Yang Yu along, and the bald man didn't bother to report further, directly leading Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu into a room.
The room appeared to be about twenty square meters, adorned with dark-colored wallpaper, and directly opposite was a glass window that allowed a view of the lobby on the first floor. Against one wall was a black leather sofa, with a glass tea table in the center. On the table lay an opened pack of cigarettes and a lighter, while the ashtray was piled high with ashes. On the other side of the room, an iron chain hung from the ceiling, supporting a sandbag. Nearby, there was a dartboard firmly affixed with several darts.
“Brother Biao,” Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu greeted as they entered.
Abiao was sunk into the black leather sofa, comfortably smoking a cigarette. Upon seeing Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu enter, he pointed to the sofa and said, “Come sit over here.” He then addressed the bald man, “You can go now; it’s all good.”
The bald man slightly bowed and turned to leave. Zhang Qiu and Yang Yu sat down next to Abiao, and as soon as they settled in, Abiao said, “Brother Leopard has already briefed me on your matters. You’re under my supervision anyway, so it’s only natural for you to come here if you want to work. So, what do you want to do?”
“Brother Biao, what kind of work do we have here?” Although Zhang Qiu had thought about many things, he wasn’t familiar with this line of work and figured it was better to ask Brother Biao first to avoid making any mistakes.
Abiao took two deep puffs from his cigarette and laughed, “There’s plenty of work—managing the venue, providing services, advertising, training, procurement, and so on. A lot of things.”
Zhang Qiu quickly sifted through what Abiao had mentioned in his mind and asked, “Brother Biao, what time is managing the venue required?”
“After business hours is when it’s needed; peak times are in the evening. Especially after ten o'clock—that's when the bar is at its busiest. However, considering you have your college entrance exams this year, I won’t have you do too much. Just come by whenever you’re free to get familiar with things; you can start working officially after your exams.”
“Brother Biao, I can come; I have plenty of time, and I have a group of brothers with me who can help manage the venue. This way we can work while Brother Qiu continues his studies.”
Abiao smiled and asked Yang Yu, “Aren’t you a student too?”
Yang Yu chuckled wryly, “What kind of school is mine? It’s a vocational school; I won’t earn much after graduating. We don’t have any other skills; it’s better for us to come out here and mix in. If we do well, we’ll stand out; if not, we won’t lose anything.”
“Alright then; just bring your people over regularly,” Abiao agreed with Yang Yu and then asked Zhang Qiu, “Do you know why I had you come to this venue?”
Zhang Qiu nodded, “It’s close to No. 1 High School. I know you’re looking out for me; I’ll do my best.”
Abiao smiled broadly: “You’re quite clever; that’s right—having you here is indeed because it’s close by. But there’s an even more important reason.”
Zhang Qiu became intrigued; Abiao was clearly hinting at a deeper reason behind his decision. What could it be? Zhang Qiu directly asked, “Brother Biao, what is it?”
"Control Beiluan No. 1."
"Control Beiluan No. 1?"
"Yes."
"This is our Stone Dagger Gang's territory, right?" Zhang Qiu recalled meeting Red Hair at East City Barbecue, where Red Hair, who collected protection fees, was indeed a member of the Stone Dagger Gang. If that's the case, Beiluan No. 1 should be within the Stone Dagger Gang's sphere of influence. It was already their territory; why control it further?
"That's right, Beiluan No. 1 is indeed our territory. I trust you all to handle it, so I'll be straightforward." Abiao straightened up and pressed the remaining half of his cigarette into the ashtray. "What money is easiest to earn? Student money, right? Beiluan No. 1 is highly profitable, and its location borders Lin Tao's territory. Often, hidden dangers lurk beneath a glamorous exterior; do you understand?"
Zhang Qiu nodded thoughtfully. He only knew a little about the three major gangs in Beilan County. He deduced that Beiluan No. 1 belonged to the Stone Dagger Gang from Red Hair's collection of protection fees. He wasn't clear on the boundaries between the three gangs, but from what Biao Ge said, he could grasp the importance of this area. However, that still didn't explain why they needed to control Beiluan No. 1.
"This area is managed by Third Brother. You all saw it at the Bus Station; the conflict between Third Brother and Brother Leopard has been ongoing for a long time and is irreconcilable. Although we claim to be Beilan County's largest gang, internal stability is lacking. As long as the boss is alive, things are fine, but if something happens to him... Third Brother will inevitably compete with Scorpion—oh, that's the boss's son—for this position." Abiao continued explaining, his scar twitching with every word.
After hearing Abiao's final explanation, Zhang Qiu finally understood why they were trying so hard to control Beiluan No. 1. Throughout history in China, struggles for power have never ceased. In thousands of years of history, from mighty empires to family villages, scenes of power struggles have played out one after another. Even now, power struggles were about to unfold again within the gang he had joined.
"Your appearance is what Brother Leopard would call a fortunate opportunity. It wouldn't be appropriate for us to involve anyone else in matters concerning No. 1; only you are different. After the Ancient City Battle, your name Zhang Qiu became well-known; as the largest gang in Beilan County, no one would dare oppose you taking them in. Especially Third Brother; no matter how dissatisfied he is, he’ll have to swallow his anger."
Zhang Qiu suddenly realized: "So Third Brother's appearance at the station that night was not a coincidence?"
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