"This Lin Chuan has quite the background, huh?" Li Jiangping frowned.

"Hmph, he's just a nobody. I bet it's Secretary Tang who showed him favor." Lv Yan pushed up the glasses on the bridge of her nose and said, "This woman is not simple at all. She climbed to the position of city secretary at the age of thirty, even squeezing out Secretary Song. Do you think her background could be small?"

"That does make some sense." Li Jiangping nodded.

The sudden appointment of Tang Yumeng had once caused a sensational effect throughout Jiangbei City, and even across much of China. Who would have thought that a woman nearing thirty would become a department-level official and even assume the position of city secretary? It was truly unbelievable.

Thump thump thump...

Suddenly, there came a knocking at the door.

Li Jiangping was staying in a high-end VIP ward, complete with professional private nursing care, and the attending specialists were all professors or higher. The daily hospital and nursing fees amounted to thousands. The ward was also fully equipped with all kinds of facilities.

Lv Yan hurried to open the door, but the moment she opened it, she was stunned.

"It's... it's... you?" Lv Yan was shocked.

"Commissar Lv, long time no see." Lin Chuan walked in with a beaming smile, holding a brightly colored fruit basket in his hand.

"You... what are you doing here?!" Lv Yan glared at Lin Chuan, seeming to have a particular dislike for him.

"Hehe..." Lin Chuan grinned and said, "I'm here to offer Director Li an apology."

After saying that, Lin Chuan squeezed past Lv Yan from the left.

Li Jiangping immediately spotted Lin Chuan, his eyes widened: "Lin Chuan, you... you dare to come?!"

"Director Li, I came to apologize to you." Lin Chuan's face showed a mischievously wicked smile, not at all looking like someone here to apologize. He invited himself in and, after entering, sat down on the edge of Li Jiangping's hospital bed, smiling, "Director Li, this is a little token of my sincerity."

Lin Chuan placed the fruit basket on the table.

Li Jiangping could not contain his anger: "Enough, I've seen enough. Now leave." The police system didn't think much of Lin Chuan these days.

"Uh..." Lin Chuan paused, then smiled, "Actually, I'm here today to discuss something more important with you."

"What is it?" Li Jiangping closed his eyes, choosing to ignore Lin Chuan altogether. Indeed, every time he saw Lin Chuan, Li Jiangping felt like it brought bad luck.

"It's like this, I plan on opening a bathhouse." Lin Chuan smiled, "I was hoping to ask for Director Li's help..."

"Wait a minute!" Li Jiangping immediately interrupted Lin Chuan, "Why come to me about opening a bathhouse? I'm just the director of the Huai Mountain South Road Police Station, I can't help you. You should be going to the Bureau of Industry and Commerce for a business license, registering with the Taxation Bureau, getting fire safety checks from the Fire Department..."

Li Jiangping listed the procedures and order for Lin Chuan, hoping to quickly get rid of this rascal.

To his surprise, Lin Chuan shamelessly grinned and said, "Hehe, Director Li, I came to you because I was hoping you could lend a hand. You know this industry is not like the others."

"Sorry, I can't help with this matter." Li Jiangping immediately shook his head in refusal.

"What if I offer you a twenty percent stake?" Lin Chuan smiled.

Li Jiangping was about to continue rejecting Lin Chuan when Lin Chuan gestured to stop him, "Director Li, let me finish talking first."

"Go ahead." Li Jiangping continued with his eyes closed, already thinking about how to refuse Lin Chuan.

"You must know about Qinghua Pool from the Northeast Tiger, a gold mine." Lin Chuan, with a cigarette in his mouth, smiled, "An income of over a hundred thousand a day, that's several million a month, and tens of millions a year. Although we can't aim that high, given the current situation in Jiangbei City, if we start, making several million or even ten million a year would be as easy as playing a game, right? If you own twenty percent of the shares, hehe, you could pocket a couple million a year. Right?"

Li Jiangping's eyes snapped open, and Lv Yan beside him also showed interest.

"Humph, you blatantly trying to muscle in on the business of Northeast Tiger?" Li Jiangping sneered mockingly: "You probably won't even know how you died when the time comes."

"Whether I live or die, that's my own business, and it's none of your concern," Lin Chuan said with a smile: "Your job is just to help us get all the documents together. You won't have to invest a penny, just sit back and collect the money. Who wouldn't want that?"

Li Jiangping glanced at Lv Yan beside him.

Lv Yan nodded slightly to Li Jiangping, brazen as the mistress she was. During her hospital visits, Lv Yan came to see Li Jiangping almost every day, shamelessly displaying affection in front of his wife. Li Jiangping's wife was a down-to-earth rural woman, who would turn a blind eye to such things but eventually, she couldn't stand it and left.

"Are you sure?" Li Jiangping asked.

"Of course!" Lin Chuan nodded.

"If the higher-ups start investigating, you better not drag me into it," Li Jiangping said with a cold laugh.

"Of course not," Lin Chuan hurriedly nodded, saying, "I assure you, I'll take all the blame myself; it has nothing to do with you or the Lv commissar."

Li Jiangping was still somewhat hesitant. It wasn't because the documents were difficult to handle, but because he was wary whether Lin Chuan was planning to dupe him. If this kid tried to play him, Li Jiangping's own career could be in jeopardy. Lin Chuan seemed to see through Li Jiangping's thoughts and smiled, "Director Li, I know what you're worried about. I might be ruthless, but as long as my interests aren't offended, I'm usually easy to talk to. Besides, there are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests. If we can cooperate, then we are friends."

"Let me think about it," Li Jiangping frowned.

"How about this," Lv Yan suddenly spoke up, "We'll give you an answer by tomorrow. Regardless of whether we agree to cooperate or not, we will call you. How does that sound?"

"Agreed," Lin Chuan nodded, adding, "Director Li, I am always straightforward. I don't have much money at hand, so I can't offer you any cash. What I do have to offer is a golden goose. You can take 20 percent of the profits if you're interested; call me tomorrow. If not, I'll look for someone else."

After speaking, Lin Chuan turned around and left.

In the hospital room, Li Jiangping and Lv Yan exchanged glances.

"Is this deal doable?" Li Jiangping asked.

"Why not?" Lv Yan smiled with a smirk, "Just look at Qinghua Pool, that's a juicy piece of meat right there."

"Indeed," Li Jiangping nodded.

"Director Li, although we hate and despise him, there's one thing we have to admire," Lv Yan pushed up her glasses and said, "That's his ability. This guy has committed so many outrageous crimes, but what about now? He's still alive and well, without any apparent issues. So, I think we can totally try to cooperate with him. Actually, it's not us who would be working with him; people like us, with our status, can't afford to be directly connected with businessmen, but our families and friends can. We don't need to pull any strings for him. Some things, even if we don't say them, others may already know. We will still get our due respect, and that doesn't go against the rules because it's others giving us face voluntarily, not us asking for it."

"Makes sense," Li Jiangping nodded, "I'll call Lin Chuan now."

"Wait," Lv Yan immediately stopped Li Jiangping.

"What's up now?" Li Jiangping asked.

"Don't rush," Lv Yan said with a flirtatious smile, "Lin Chuan must be more anxious than we are right now. Who in Jiangbei City would dare to work with him? Heh, call him tomorrow, it also shows that we are not eager, and it will make him appreciate us more."

"Alright, I'll listen to you," Li Jiangping nodded immediately.

...

Lin Chuan went back to Changlin Factory.

Zhou Kai and the others were gathered together, planning big moves. Opening a bathhouse was something they had always dreamed of, aside from endless women, there were countless banknotes too. For Zhou Kai and Lu Dapao, their dream of owning Porsches was not far off. After discussing, everyone's blood was boiling.

"You won't go wrong following me," Zhou Kai said with excitement, rolling up his sleeves and speaking passionately, "As long as you follow Brother Chuan, you're guaranteed the good life. Sooner or later, we'll become the local tycoons. By then, forget the Northeast Tiger and the Thirteen Grand Protectors; the legends in the eastern part of the city will be all about Brother Chuan, Brother Kai, and Brother Pao..."

Whoosh…

Everyone's eyes shined with excitement, eagerly anticipating the day. Each one harbored dreams of being the leading figure. Becoming the head honcho of the eastern part of the city would be a true legend. This dream was especially strong in the hearts of those teenagers around eighteen or nineteen, full of fervent longing, looking forward to the arrival of that moment.

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