"Don't be nervous. I'm just asking." Gao Ming kept driving, occasionally glancing at the driver in the rearview mirror. "When gangs fight, you charge into the thick of it and risk your lives. What do you actually get out of it in the end?"
Only after a long while, once he was sure Gao Ming wasn't planning to kill him to keep him quiet, did the driver answer in a small voice, "For those of us in gangs, loyalty comes first."
"Wansheng bullies men and abuses women. They've done plenty of filthy things. Their people almost chopped me up and fed me to dogs, too. Is that what you call loyalty?" Gao Ming sounded as though he were merely making idle conversation to pass the time while driving.
When the driver said nothing, Gao Ming smiled. "If you had a choice, would you rather live in a city without gangs, or keep things the way they are?"
The driver didn't understand the deeper meaning behind Gao Ming's questions. After racking his brains, he finally decided to tell the truth. "But without gangs, who would protect us? Those fat, well-fed bastards in the Municipal Council Hall?"
"So you think there's something wrong with how the gangs operate, too. It's just that the Municipal Council Hall hasn't fulfilled its responsibilities, leaving you feeling unsafe."
"I never said that." The driver's voice was very quiet. He stole a glance at Gao Ming, growing even more frightened. In all his years with the gangs, he had seen every kind of villain. Ordinary-looking men like Gao Ming, who spoke so calmly and deliberately, were actually the most ruthless. Calling him a psychopath wouldn't be an exaggeration.
"The Municipal Council Hall is too weak. It's nothing but a puppet of the gangs. All of this needs