Ever Joy, Heaven's Will (Please Follow)

Longjin Road, Chen's Rice Noodle Factory.

"Aunt, I'm back." When Li Xiuwen returned, his aunt was making dinner.

"Perfect timing. I made some sea cucumber congee today," his aunt said with a smile.

"Eating well, huh!"

"It's your first day learning boxing. We have to celebrate—and nourish you properly."

"Thank you, Aunt. Don't spend so much in the future. As long as I can eat my fill, that's enough. In the early stages of training, I don't need heavily nourishing food yet."

Li Xiuwen felt a little embarrassed.

Of course, heavily nourishing food would be better.

But his family's circumstances didn't allow it... he wasn't a footballer, after all.

"Did your boxing training go smoothly today?"

"I haven't started training yet. Today was about the preliminary knowledge you need before learning boxing."

"You even have to study? Those boxers in the big rings don't look like they've got much learning in them. Who knew boxing had so much knowledge to it?"

"Where's Uncle?"

"Working overtime."

Li Xiuwen knew that his uncle also wanted to save enough money sooner, move out with his aunt, and improve their living conditions.

But Fragrant Sea had little land and too many people; every inch of land was worth its weight in gold. Any apartment outside the Walled City was a dream ordinary people could only gaze at and never reach.

During dinner, his aunt casually said, "Awen, I got a call from someone named Zhao Dalong. He said he was a fellow villager and friend who crossed over with you?"

Li Xiuwen raised his head as memories surged into his mind. "Yes. What happened?"

"He said he'd found several friends who crossed over together and escaped from the Snake Den, and invited everyone to gather at Fortune Tower outside the Walled City."

"Alright." Memories surged into Li Xiuwen's mind.

Zhao Dalong, Ding Shao, Li Nanshu... he wondered how those friends who had shared hardship and danger were doing now.

It was ten at night when Uncle finally came home. A Band-Aid to stop the bleeding was stuck to his forehead, its strip soaked through with blood.

"How did you get hurt?" Aunt helped Uncle take off his coat, her face full of worry.

"It's nothing. I talked to Third Master about the turf fee, and Brother Ji brought a few punks to rough me up a little," Uncle said.

"Brother Ji again? What does he mean by this?" Aunt's expression darkened.

"He told me that from now on, I should pay the turf fee directly to him..." Uncle frowned.

"So we have to pay Third Master, and we have to pay Brother Ji too? That punk doesn't follow the underworld's rules at all. If he pushes us too far, we'll fight him to the death!" Aunt cursed.

"You said it yourself, he's a punk. Those bastards live one day at a time and don't care about underworld rules at all." Uncle looked troubled.

"If only you'd learned boxing back then," Aunt sighed.

"I'm not cut out for boxing. Besides, times have changed. An ordinary person could train in boxing for a lifetime, only to get dropped by a single bullet in the end."

"I'm still counting on Awen. If this kid can really make something of himself, we won't have to live in constant fear in this Walled City."

"Go to sleep early. Everything exists in dreams... Don't tell Awen about what happened today. Young people who've just begun learning martial arts are the most likely to act on hot blood."

"Then what about the injury on your head?"

"Just say I fell."

Wu Jun Hair Salon.

"Brother Jun."

"You're here for work. I heard you went to learn boxing."

"I've only just started."

"Once you've learned enough, don't keep working as my helper. Watch over my place for me instead. If nothing happens, I'll give you two hundred a month. If something does happen, we'll settle that separately."

"Really?" Two hundred was no small amount. Li Xiuwen was tempted, and he wouldn't even need to come work here—if anything happened, Brother Jun only had to call him over.

"These past few years, things in the Walled City have been unsettled. Everjoy Society is so busy they're run ragged. Small places like mine are practically being abandoned."

"What's going on?" Li Xiuwen had also felt that the Walled City had become increasingly unstable lately.

Although the Walled City was beyond anyone's jurisdiction, with Mr. Ming and the Walled City's number one society, Everjoy Society, protecting it, it had been relatively stable in the past.

Even in Aunt's memories, the Walled City in its earlier years had been rather warm, with neighbors living in harmony.

Over recent years, vast amounts of opium had flooded into the Walled City, Dragon-Chasing Dukes had proliferated, and the place had been turned into a foul, smoky mess where people could barely survive.

Groups of ruleless punks like the Children's Gang and the Thirteen Guardians had also gradually emerged, growing more and more arrogant.

"I don't know the specifics either. From an old friend in United Heroes, I heard that a massive society outside the Walled City probably wants to stick its fingers into the Walled City."

"Which one?"

"Heaven's Will Gang."

"This is a clash of immortals..." Li Xiuwen muttered.

Everjoy Society was the largest society in the Walled City. Most of the societies within it were, in fact, Ever Joy branches.

Heaven's Will Gang, meanwhile, was one of the three great families of the underworld outside the Walled City. Its leader, Tianyi Hao, was also a figure who could stir the winds and clouds in Fragrant Sea.

"The increasing number of Dragon-Chasing Dukes in the Walled City these past years was secretly driven by Heaven's Will Gang. Rumor has it Tianyi Hao controls half of Fragrant Sea's powder trade."

"Then I hope Everjoy Society wins."

"Exactly. Mr. Ming strictly forbids his people from dealing powder. He has bottom lines, and he's easier to deal with... I heard Tianyi Hao is a madman!"

"But Brother Jun thinks highly of me if he wants me to watch over his place." Li Xiuwen smiled as he worked as an assistant.

"You dared to follow others and cross over into Fragrant Sea at such a young age, and you even survived the Snake Den. You've got a big life! I think you'll make something of yourself," Brother Jun joked.

"Won't that friend of yours from United Heroes help you?"

"How would a third-rate society outside the Walled City like United Heroes dare come into the Walled City and meddle in something like this?" Brother Jun said.

"Then I'd be even less likely to dare. I'm just a little shrimp," Li Xiuwen said.

"That's different. You're from the Walled City. Mr. Ming said that Walled City residents should help each other watch over their own small establishments. Ever Joy won't interfere—instead, they'll back you up."

"Oh, there's such a thing?"

Brother Jun lit a cigarette, sat down, and said:

"Awen, you need to understand: even though we haven't joined Everjoy Society,

from the moment we chose to settle in the Walled City, we became part of Ever Joy's camp, in a sense.

Every year, small merchants and peddlers like us pay 'Ever Joy money' to Everjoy Society.

At its core, that money is protection money too, though it's a notch lower than what other gangs charge.

It's far lower than the colonial government's taxes, too.

Once we pay, Everjoy Society should keep us safe.

And that's what they used to do.

It's just that in recent years, powerful enemies have surrounded the Walled City,

while junkies and punks have clustered inside it. Everjoy Society is run ragged too.

If you watch my place for me, you'll be sharing Ever Joy's burden, so naturally they won't interfere."

Li Xiuwen smiled. "I understand, Brother Jun."

Brother Jun continued, "The reason the Walled City falls under no one's jurisdiction is partly due to historical issues, but Mr. Ming deserves credit too.

Because of him, we don't need to pay taxes to the colonial government and can support ourselves.

Because of him, the big societies outside don't dare come in and bully us at will.

The Walled City's order is a little chaotic, but for the poor and downtrodden, it is the most suitable harbor.

Without the Walled City, would Fragrant Sea, where every inch of land is worth its weight in gold, have room for hundreds of thousands of people at the bottom?"

After thinking it over, Li Xiuwen said, "Brother Jun, I'll consider it. There isn't even the first stroke of the character eight yet."

"I was only mentioning it... Learning martial arts is hard. I thought about it when I was young too, but the master said I had the bearing of a servant. I took my money and ran. Learn my ass."

"Um, Brother Jun, can I take an advance on next month's wages? I'm still a little short on the martial arts school meal fee. Training boxing has made my appetite bigger, and dry rations don't fill me up."

"Take it."

"Brother Jun, this is two hundred. You gave me seventy extra."

"Consider it sponsorship for your boxing lessons. Pay me back when you make money later."

"Brother Jun, you're righteous!"