Little Boy

With a snap, all the lights in the room came on. Zhang Qinghuan was in the living room of a dilapidated apartment building, with thick curtains drawn on the windows.

His brothers, however, were still lying unconscious not far away; none of them were dead.

Zhang Qinghuan slowly opened her mouth wide and looked at the person opposite her.

Sitting opposite him was Luo Wanyai.

"Hmm, I've interrogated your underling. You didn't reveal anything about Inspector Qing Chen, so at least you kept your mouth shut," Luo Wanyai laughed. "What I fear most is encountering a good-for-nothing with no redeeming qualities. In the end, he'll just be using this gang's name to do things for the boss."

Zhang Qinghuan was a little confused. He had clearly heard the sound of throats being slit, the sound of knives piercing bodies, and the sound of gasping for breath. How come none of his brothers were dead?

At that moment, a member of the silver-clad family member not far away slightly moved his lips and mimicked the previous sounds.

Zhang Qinghuan was surprised. There was someone here who was good at ventriloquism. It was an art!

Luo Wanyai asked, "Your Art Troupe... it's really bizarre to have a club with a name like this. I've seen Black Dog Club, Protein Bar Freedom Club, and Gay Club, but to be honest, this is the first time I've seen a club like yours. It's serious but with a hint of frivolity, making it sound like a cultural troupe."

"It sounds pretty good," Zhang Qinghuan said weakly.

Luo Wanyai thought for a moment and said, "Next, you'll have to cooperate with us. We'll be pretending to be members of your club to do some things. By the way, what do you club members usually do?"

Zhang Qinghuan was stunned for a moment. "Big brother, we're usually in jail."

Luo Wanyai: "?"

Zhang Qinghuan realized. "We usually smuggle mechanical limbs and occasionally work as thugs in nursing homes."

"That's interesting," Luo Wanyai gestured to his family to untie Zhang Qinghuan and the others. "I'm here in City 22 on orders to do something. What I just did was a necessary procedure. These days, being cautious is being responsible to the brothers. I hope you don't mind. We'll all be family from now on."

"Okay... okay," Zhang Qinghuan slowly stood up.

He was somewhat bewildered. What was the purpose of Inspector Qing Chen sending so many gene warriors here?

Will you wipe out all the communities in City 22?

District 9, Dove Cage Building.

"Knock knock knock!"

A loud banging came from outside the door, and the dilapidated apartment door creaked.

There were several bullet holes in the apartment door, and someone outside was peering through them with a mechanical eye, like looking through a peephole, making no attempt to conceal the fact that the apartment's owner was inside.

Qing Chen calmly asked, "Who?"

"The Blackwater Gang is extorting protection money!" a young voice shouted.

Qing Chen remembered the Blackwater Gang; it was the group he had shot down with an automatic rifle on the Steam Train.

The other party makes a living by smuggling, trafficking women and children, and selling human organs.

Qing Chen calmly walked to open the door, and as soon as the door opened, a cold pistol was thrust in and pressed against his chin.

Three young men squeezed in, one of them grinning and saying, "New guy, where are you from? Got your protection money ready?"

Qing Chen slowly backed away. "District 6 went bankrupt investing in blockchain."

"No wonder you're still all intact. Looks like you were living a pretty good life before," the young man joked. "How much do you owe? Want me to find you a way to make money? Otherwise, you won't even be able to pay your protection money."

"Why should I pay protection money?" Qing Chen asked.

"Because this entire building is managed by our Blackwater Gang, everyone living here has to pay two thousand dollars a month," the young man said. "If you pay, you won't die. If you don't have the money, I'll find you a way to make some."

Qing Chen asked curiously, "What connections do you have? I don't sell organs."

"There are ways to make money without selling your organs," the young man said with a smile. "Have you ever heard of the Cross Game?"

Qing Chen shook his head. "Never heard of it."

"This was set up by the big shots in City 22, specifically to help the poor in our Lower Three Districts escape poverty. As long as you win the game, you can get a lot of money," the young man said.

"Then what do I need to do?" Qing Chen asked.

"You need to become the prey, and then big shots will come after you," the young man explained. "Within 168 hours, you just need to do everything you can to survive in this city. You can't leave the city, you can't fight back and kill anyone. As long as you hold out for 168 hours, you can take away 10 million!"

In the federal government, 10 million is enough for a poor person to achieve upward social mobility. At least they can buy a small house in the District 5 or District 6, and as long as they don't live a luxurious life, they can live comfortably for the rest of their lives.

The young man asked, "So, what's the best option: pay protection money, become a hunter, or are there other ways to make money that are simpler?"

Qing Chen calmly said, "I'll pay protection money."

As he spoke, he took out two thousand yuan from his wallet.

The young man's eyes lit up because he saw that Qing Chen's wallet still had several hundred yuan.

However, the young men didn't persist. They simply took the money, patted it in their hands, and said, "You've got some sense. Brothers, let's get out of here!"

After saying that, they turned and went out.

Qing Chen pondered, "These people just left like that?"

The young man's eyes as he left told Qing Chen that these people would definitely come back, but he couldn't make a move now.

It seems that there are certain rules in this underworld; gangs cannot openly take action against those who have paid protection money.

Otherwise, it will be very difficult to collect protection money in the future.

At least not openly.

Qing Chen glanced around the cramped room. It was ten square meters, with one bedroom and one bathroom. Apart from a dirty bed, there was almost nothing else.

The water supply pipes in the pigeon coop are still working, but the drainage system has been broken for a long time, so the toilet is unusable.

The landlord simply blocked up the toilet.

At this moment, Qing Chen sent a message to Yang Yang: "As agreed, I've come to the Lower Three Districts."

Yang Yang: "Now do you know why we want to change the world?"

Qing Chen: "Understood."

Yang Yang: "As agreed, even though it's tough there, we have to stay for a full month."

This was the condition for Yang Yang's exchange with Qing Chen: she would go to Osaka to take Xiao Zhenji to see her mother, and then bring Xiao Zhenji back to Luocheng. This was what Yang Yang had to do.

What Qing Chen needs to do is Lower Three Districts.

In fact, Yang Yang didn't gain anything from this exchange; she just wanted Qing Chen to understand what the Inner World was really like.

Qing Chen put down the phone and shook his head. In fact, he understood everything the moment he stepped into the Lower Three Districts.

He didn't despise this place at all; instead, he breathed in the pain of everyone here, every minute and every second, and pondered his own direction.

As he was pondering, a small head peeked in from outside the door. Qing Chen looked over, and the moment the other person made eye contact with him, he immediately shrank back in fright.

That was none other than the little boy who had stolen Qing Chen's phone before; the mechanical eyes on his head looked particularly out of place.

"Come in, I'll ask you a few questions, and I'll give you money in return," Qing Chen said.

The skinny little boy, as thin as a matchstick, walked in timidly. "What do you want to ask? One dollar per question, no less."

"What's your name? How old are you?" Qing Chen asked.

"Zhang Mengqian, 13 years old, these are two questions, I'll charge you two yuan!" the little boy said.

Qing Chen frowned and looked the little boy over, then asked after a couple of seconds of silence, "Where are your parents?"

Zhang Mengqian leaned against the wall, her voice cold. "I have no parents."

"I paid," Qing Chen said.

Zhang Mengqian hesitated for a moment. "This question will cost two yuan. I ran away from home in District 7. They have a buyer in mind, and they will harvest my kidneys when I turn fourteen."

Qing Chen felt his breath catch in his throat.

So this is the Inner World.

Master Li Shutong adopted so many orphans, not because he wanted to get into gang fights, but because some children really wouldn't have survived if he hadn't adopted them.

Qing Chen asked, "What are you doing following me here?"

"I think you're different from the people here. Let me remind you, you'll die if you just obediently pay protection money. You need to know what resistance is so they won't dare to mess with you," Zhang Mengqian said. "Even a kid like me understands this, how come you don't? Consider this your way of repaying me for catching me but not beating me up."

Qing Chen asked, "What will those Blackwater Gang do to me?"

"Although they've left now, they'll still sneak into your room around four or five in the morning, anesthetize you, and then remove one of your kidneys," Zhang Mengqian said.

"Understood," Qing Chen nodded.

"How come you're not scared at all?" Zhang Mengqian asked.

"I'm scared, really scared," Qing Chen said, getting up and walking towards the door.

"You haven't paid yet," Zhang Mengqian said, chasing after him. "Also, let me give you some news. They definitely tricked you into participating in the Cross Game. In reality, everyone who participates dies. Those wealthy people use the most advanced weapons to hunt their prey. Even if the prey manages to survive 168 hours, it will inevitably die because they don't want the media to know about the game. Besides, the payment actually goes to intermediaries like the Blackwater Gang; they never really intended to pay 10 million to an ant."

This child was surprisingly precocious, and he spoke fluently and knowledgeably about the things happening in the Lower Three Districts.

Qing Chen took out a hundred-yuan bill from his wallet and handed it to Zhang Mengqian, who then stuffed it into her crotch. She was only relieved after making sure it wouldn't show anything unusual while walking.

Even today, in the Inner World, paper money is still used, simply because it remains the safest way to evade taxes and launder money under big data surveillance.

At this moment, Qing Chen walked through a door and saw five people inside, wearing brain-computer interfaces, sitting quietly and occasionally making sounds of pain.

"What are these people doing?" Qing Chen asked.

Zhang Mengqian glanced at it and replied nonchalantly, "They are employed by businessmen to connect their brains to computers and then use the brain's computing power to mine cryptocurrency on the blockchain. The businessmen rent them equipment and pay them wages. This way of making money is quite simple, but it's a quick way to fail."

"These people look very young, but their brains are often overwhelmed, and they usually die before they turn thirty."

Qing Chen watched this scene calmly. This was the world after the weak were no longer protected by law. The oppression from capital did not lock you in a cage, but made you crawl in and willingly become a pig.

He turned and walked down the stairs from the Dove Cage. The little boy behind him asked, "Where are you going?"

"Go to work."