The Card Apprentice

It was the fatty, which rather surprised Chen Mu. He didn’t look so good. “Have you heard the news of the blockade?”

“I have.” Chen Mu nodded.

The fatty’s face looked as though it could squeeze out bitter water. “Things are miserable for me right now. There are still a lot of valuable things in the auction house; if they really do fight, my losses would kill me!”

“What can we do?” Chen Mu also knitted his brow, unable to think of a good approach.

The fatty sighed. “How about I move everything over to where you are? The defenses on my warehouse are far from yours. I would feel a lot better if they were with you there.”

“Ok.” Chen Mu readily agreed, although the fatty’s confidence in him surprised him.

Seeming to have guessed what Chen Mu was thinking, the fatty sneered still more. “You might not know, but it has become impossible to recruit anyone by now. The power I have on hand is pitiful, and the gang I have is useless. The arrogance of the Big Six is well-known. As a big player, I don’t mean a thing to them. At least you have Jiao Si there. They would have to think hard before making any moves on you. I’m thinking you are in the safest place in Pomelo.”

Chen Mu was taken aback, never having thought he would hear the fatty call it the safest place.

The fatty grunted coldly. “I have always felt this battle would quickly be resolved. Right now, all routes out of town are in the hands of the Federation Comprehensive Academy, and the Central Island Firm is in the hands of the Central Repository of the Classics. The longer the stalemate lasts, however, the more obvious the advantage of the Federation Comprehensive Academy will become. Their forces can easily be resupplied. Mi Xiaqing is no fool. I’m guessing he will take advantage of the current situation, when the difference in power remains pretty minor, and try to break out.”

Sure enough, no matter who it was, their judgement about the situation seemed a lot better than Chen Mu’s!

“The Federation Comprehensive Academy is certainly aware of that, and they are likely to be prepared for the Central Repository of the Classics breaking out. Ha ha, when the battle comes, I’m afraid it’s going to be a big one!” The fatty’s bitter humor deepened. “The more fiercely they fight, the more miserable for us.”

The fatty’s expression then turned more solemn. “There are now already people who have started secretly organizing the power we do have. If those in Pomelo with any face and heads on their shoulders pull together all their strength, it would be a rather frightening power!”

“That would be a good thing!” Chen Mu said. “Wouldn’t you be safe then?”

“Your thinking is too simple, young brother!” The fatty sighed. “Right now, everyone is looking out for themselves and minding their own business. No one else is likely to interfere with your affairs. But once they get organized, the power on everyone’s hands will be concentrated. When the time comes, what you do isn’t going to be up to you! It’s a time of war. If you want to root out outsiders, there are just too many ways to accomplish that. Those in the organization won’t necessarily be harboring good intentions.”

Chen Mu was silenced. The organizations he’d seen previously had always raised the flag of helping the common man, but after a while, they would transform into using them as pawns.

“So, what do you intend to do?” Chen Mu asked with concern. Hearing what the fatty had to say, he felt the fatty’s situation had turned bad. The relations between the fatty and him had long since developed into more than simply being partners. All the help the fatty had provided was something he would never forget.

The fatty shook his head as his expression turned serious. “I don’t know right now. I’m going to take it step by step. Those people wouldn’t dare to use force just yet.” His voice went cold. “Moreover, it wouldn’t be good for them to provoke me.”

After considering it, Chen Mu said, “Why don’t you come over here?”

The fatty was taken aback and gave out a hearty laugh. “Don’t worry about me, young brother. Ha ha, your older brother has seen a lot of storms, and these people just aren’t in the mainstream. Even if those manipulating from behind have some ability, if they think they are going to push me around, they’re too tender for that!” His expression then become still more serious. “Still, I’m planning to send my boy over. Look after him for me for a while.”

“Of course!” Chen Mu nodded without the least hesitation. To want to give his son over to someone else at such a time required a lot of trust!

The fatty’s expression relaxed as he said with a slight smile, “Ha ha, with no family concerns, I won’t have anything to worry about. The layout in Pomelo will possibly be redivided during this period. I’m going to have Xi Ping bring everyone over there with you. Xi Ping has been with me a long time, and he is very dependable and experienced with getting things done. He seldom makes mistakes. You can turn over all your logistics to him.”

Chen Mu merely nodded, still feeling rather concerned about the fatty.

The fatty gave Chen Mu a close look before saying, “From the first time I saw you, I felt a kindred spirit. My young brother is a real person, not out to cheat anyone and without the least bit of hypocrisy. Plus, you’re decisive and reasonable. There is nothing for me to worry about. Besides, you have Bogner now to help out, and you will soon have a fine disposition there. But, young brother, there’s something you must remember!”

Chen Mu was listening carefully since he knew the fatty was telling him something important.

“You must remember you are no longer just one person! Everything you decide will determine the lives and deaths of the hundreds below you. As I see it, a competent boss can’t only look out for his own interests but has to represent the interests of the entire team. That’s the only way for you to sit firmly as the boss with everyone else wanting to serve you. But you must know that if you need something for yourself, then don’t sacrifice yourself in the interests of others. A person has to live for himself first,” the fatty said solemnly.

Che Mu nodded with vigor. “I’ll remember!”

The fatty then laughed and said, “Don’t resent me for being so long-winded. Ha ha, ok, I imagine Xi Ping will be there right away.”

After cutting off the connection, Chen Mu was still chewing over what the fatty had just said as though he’d realized something.

Before long, Xi Ping arrived, and following along was the mighty procession of a shuttle car fleet. The specifications for the team became a lot higher than before.

Xi Ping and Chen Mu were familiar with one another, and the work went along smoothly. The fatty’s son was about 7 or 8 with a well-proportioned body, not at all fat like Yang An. He looked very smart. His dark eyes were like gems, which reminded Chen Mu of Li Duhong. He was called Yang Bo, and he was a really good kid.

Probably having been instructed by the fatty upon departure, Yang Bo called out to Chen Mu primly, “Uncle.”

Chen Mu was taken aback, that being the first time anyone had called him Uncle. He rubbed Yang Bo’s little head and said in a soft voice, “You’ll be playing here with your uncle for a while, little Yang Bo.”

“Mmmm, thank you, Uncle.” Yang Bo was wearing a sweet smile.

Xi Ping then came over and said respectfully to Chen Mu, “Everything has been moved into the warehouse, Mr. Cao. The boss said some things had better be taken out and used rather than being stored away. He specifically asked me to bring them along.”

Chen Mu felt his heart warmed as he nodded. “Mmmm, you can take care of those.”

Xi Ping responded respectfully with, “Yes, sir!” Then, he went to arrange the warehouse. The fatty had brought over nearly all of his possessions.

Chen Mu seemed to sense something unsafe about that.

Seeing little Yang Bo, Bogner’s eyes lit up as he said, pleasantly surprised, “Little Yang Bo!”

“Uncle Bogner!” Little Yang Bo ran cheerfully over to Bogner.

After Yang Bo had left to play, Bogner’s brow immediately furrowed. “Yang An’s situation doesn’t seem so good.”

Chen Mu felt that even ten of him wouldn’t be up to Bogner’s judgment about the situation. He passed along everything the fatty had told him.

After hearing that, Bogner’s expression changed. “Yang An is in danger!”

Chen Mu was stunned, “What do you mean?”

“Hmmm, the fatty is giving himself a way out. That shows he doesn’t have much confidence. Certainly no ordinary person could make the fatty lose his confidence. The gang of losers in Pomelo by themselves would have no way to make him so concerned. Who could be the awesome person manipulating things behind the scenes?” Bogner was talking to himself.

Chen Mu was mulling it over in his head, as well.

Bogner suddenly raised his head with a burst of enlightenment in his eyes, and he said in a low voice, “I know who it is!”

“Who is it?” Chen Mu couldn’t help but ask.

“Faya! It must be Faya!” Bogner’s tone was definite. “I’m guessing Faya would never fold at the first blow like that, and they wouldn’t be that stupid. They certainly have something up their sleeves. If someone is manipulating things in the background, the greatest likelihood right now would be Faya!”

Bogner knitted his brow again. “But, if it is Faya, what is their intention? Even if they manage to organize this group of people, they could never hold out against the Central Repository of the Classics and the Federation Comprehensive Academy. So, what is their objective?”

That question was too difficult for Chen Mu.

Bogner fell into deep thought, still unable to guess Faya’s intentions. But he did know they didn’t have the ability to help Yang An at that time. Jiao Si wanted to sit firmly where they were, but that didn’t actually mean anyone wanted to just casually take a shot at them.

They would never take a random shot at such an ace as Jiao Si.

According to the agreement between the two sides, Chen Mu had no way to make his counterpart do those things for him. The only thing they could do just then was quickly make themselves stronger. Even someone as slow as Chen Mu could tell the atmosphere was filled with danger.

The storm was quickly approaching.