Chapter 1: The Whirlwind of Jianghu

  When there is a first place, rush for it; when you see a red flag, grab it.

  Under the large banner, a square formation was formed, shouting slogans "One, two, three, four... Civilized construction, shared honor and shame" with high morale. The women's team of Taodong District Urban Management Squadron, which had just taken office this year, marched by in unison. Their uniform urban management uniforms and neat short hair made them look particularly impressive. Even the leaders reviewing on each platform nodded frequently.

  Punish eating and taking cards, create a good development environment.

  Under another large banner, the same square formation, with the same high morale shouting: "One, two, three, four...... tree civilized image, show harmony style." The sound is loud and powerful, but it's even more impressive than the women's city management team. The uniform uniforms and the handsome square formation have indeed attracted the attention of many onlookers.

  This is the new batch of university graduates in the Taodong District Urban Management Law Enforcement Team after three months of military training. Today, on their first day of work after completing their training, the bureau leaders personally sent off the new team members to start their duties on the streets. Deputy Captain Zhang Daojiang of the Taodong District waited for each group to disperse and go to their posts, and then saw off the military training instructors and the bureau leaders. He stood at attention by the gate and quietly asked the approaching Captain Xiao: "Captain He, what about the two teams in the back?"

  After saying this, Captain He Zhenhai glanced at the permanent logo wall with "Tree Civilization City Management Image, Show Harmony and Luozhou Style" on it, and the heads above him immediately retreated in unison.

  There is also a hidden team, but this team makes the captain a bit embarrassed, with a pout on his face, walking upstairs. The deputy captain reminds: "We have to find something for them to do, after all?"

  "What have you done?! Standing at attention for five minutes and they're all collapsing to the ground, walking in lockstep and their legs can't even lift off the ground... this is just too much. And those faces... it's really affecting the city's appearance, it's a disaster." The battalion commander said with great difficulty, then turned back again, passing by the parking lot and heading towards the backyard. As soon as he entered the door, the deputy commander shouted "assemble" and they formed a team of ten people in three rows. But this team was really not pleasing to the eye. The first three were standing together, fat like a mountain, their faces so chubby that their eyes were almost invisible. The four behind them were thin as if they had been invaded by frost, the whole team looked malnourished. The last three were just too strange-looking, one with severe myopia, his glasses were two inches thick, another with strabismus, his eyes looking in all directions except straight ahead... and the last one was so short that he might be mistaken for a minor if sent out."

  Captain He shook his head, some things were not what he could handle, such as recruitment. If it wasn't a direct hire from the higher-ups, then it was because the leader of the higher-up unit had made a phone call. Not to mention him being just a captain, even the director might not be able to handle it. Every team has a few people like this who don't know how to behave or sit properly, they're almost all people who were washed out after just starting military training, but for some reason they can't be kicked out of the team.

  He stood up without saying a word and turned around to leave. The deputy captain followed the captain's footsteps, seemingly wanting to discuss where these people would go.

  The two captains left, and this team of people suddenly became loud and clear. Those sitting on the ground, leaning against the wall, standing with their hands in their pockets, and playing games on their phones were all inadequate. The fattest one was already out of breath, wiping the sweat from his forehead and saying, "Damn it, they're all city administrators, how can the difference be so big?"

  The second fatty, with his mouth hanging down and seemingly still having unlicked saliva, plopped himself down and asked Big Fatty: "Lì Gē (Brother Lì), haven't you noticed? The girls in our class look pretty good when they wear their uniforms."

  The voice was a bit muffled, and his face was too fat with a heavy chin, so when he heard this, Lei Dapeng, who was sitting on the side, also sat down with a thud and laughed: "Bai Rou, you're simply a donkey looking at a small grass, what's that thing of yours good for?"

  "Go away, go away, crow's mouth, one side go." Bai Rou's Er Piao shouted, raising his head, and leaned against Da Piao, ignoring Lei Da Peng.

  No mistake, Ray is going to work as a city administrator.

  No wonder, still that personality, wherever you go, nobody welcomes you.

  Looking around, even Lei Da Peng is quite depressed. He hadn't played for a few days when his dad forced him to join the city management team just to fill a quota and get familiar with society in order to get into the system later. Who would have thought that there were so many people waiting for opportunities here? Not to mention those who graduated from regular universities, among the remaining ten, most of their dads are high-ranking officials, and some have been staying at home for two or three years, making it even harder for them to find a job than for girls.

  He asked around and found that his father, the captain of this team, was not impressive at all. This made Lei Dapeng a bit disappointed, but what's more disappointing is that he had been the second-in-command in school for n years, but after joining the city management team, he couldn't even rank high in terms of seniority or education, and his weight was only third in the team. The outside team called this team "Crooked Gourd Team", and Lei Dapeng's weight earned him the nickname "Third Fatty", ranking behind Big Fatty Li Xiaoguang and Second Fatty Bai Shuguang.

  It's not fun at all, not even a bit. Since everyone here found out about Le Ge's foul mouth, the team that wasn't very united to begin with split into several factions and no one wants anything to do with him. Thinking back to when they were in school, the lively atmosphere of shouting and laughing together is now nothing but a memory, leaving Lei Da Peng filled with disappointment and depression.

  Just then, the two team leaders came in, shouting to assemble. It seemed that they had already discussed and decided on a place to go. Team leader He Zhenhai pointed at them and assigned tasks: "Zhang Weihua, Wang Min, Tian Jianping, Shang Shuangqi... you four, stay in the office for internal affairs and wait for further instructions."

  With that said, four skinny guys stepped out, with a happy face, it was the easiest job.

  "Dong Wei, go to the monitoring room... Zhao Fengji, you've studied finance, right? Go to the cashier's office. Gai Tingjia, go to the reserve team." The captain shouted and assigned three more people, and another three weirdos left, leaving only these three fattest ones behind. Captain He's eyes seemed to be having a hard time for a few seconds, his voice slowed down, and his tone became gentler as he called out: "Li Xiao Li".

  "Arrived." Da Pang got off.

  "Among the three of you, you joined the team earliest, so I'll have you lead. Patrol Taedong Road, Taedong Small District, from south to north for three kilometers. The patrol time is from 18:00 to 22:00 tonight." The captain arranged.

  "Ah?!" Big Fatty's mouth was agape in shock, but then he saw the two team leaders glare at him and quickly stood up straight and saluted: "Yes!"

  "Alright, you can take a rest now. Pay attention to your work methods, whoever gets complained about will be dealt with by me... By the way, Taizhong community has had many complaints, there are many unlicensed vendors occupying the roads illegally, and the residents of the community have complained to our squadron many times."

  The captain said a word and went out in a hurry.

  The three fat men suddenly wilted, only Lei Dapeng, who had just joined the team for a month, didn't understand what was going on and asked in confusion: "What's wrong with this? Wouldn't it be better to go out on patrol when it's cooler at night?"

  "You stupid x, you look like a weak-minded person. Come at the right time tonight." Da Bao Leng Xiao Li directed Lei Da Peng.

  "Did you hear that, San Bao? Lao Da said you're stupid, and being stupid can't make you late either, come on time!" Er Bao Bai Shuguang also scolded Lei Dapeng for a sentence, and the two chubby guys left with a huff.

  Lei Dapeng didn't make a sound, in college he followed Singo and learned to hide his sharpness and reveal his clumsiness, at the critical moment he would make a shocking move, but it's been a month now, all he did was pretend to be a pig, and never got the chance to eat the tiger, you say if this goes on for long, won't he really become a pig?

  "I endure, I endure... I explode! Oh Party, Harmonious God, give me strength, I must take down these two useless trash."

  Lei Dapeng secretly made up his mind, turning the small pig's belly eyes, wandering back and forth in the yard, thinking that if he didn't make a move, it would be better to make a shocking plan, this team even looked down on him by the two fattest idiots, it was simply a great shame.

  ………………

  ………………

  At 18:00, Lei Dapeng arrived ten minutes early and took over the duty car. He stopped at the entrance for a while before those two finally came in a taxi. They went back to the team to change clothes, which was more troublesome than old ladies applying lipstick and powder. After waiting for another ten or so minutes, they finally came down. The two of them sat side by side in the back seat. Da Peng waved his hand: "Let's go."

  Lei Dapeng drove his electric vehicle to the four-kilometer-away duty point without a word. In fact, night shifts were better than day shifts; at least he wouldn't be standing under the scorching sun all day. As he walked, he hummed a little tune. It was said that on the first day of work, it was still quite fresh. Listening to the conversation between the two behind him, they were discussing things like masters, skills, potions, and equipment. Lei Dapeng knew it was just another public test of an online game. These two otakus were nothing compared to Lei Dapeng, who had experience in exploring the world.

  " Chestnut, white meat." Lei Dapeng shouted out his own nickname, all foodies. Those two didn't care, hummed in agreement, and then listened to Lei Dapeng's idea: "I say we three should call ourselves whatever we want, right? Can't let them call us Fat One, Fat Two, Fat Three, or we'll really become Big Fatty, Second Fatty, Third Fatty!"

  "It's better than being called white meat anyway." Er Pang Bai Shu Guang said reluctantly.

  "That's not the same, that's what brothers call each other. They look down on us, right? You should have a sense of honor and shame about this. This is just after joining the team, you go to Lu courtyard to ask around, anyone who looks displeasing to me, immediately gets a brick or a knife waiting for them, has been punished several times, almost got kicked out." Lei Dapeng boasted, afraid that these two would look down on him. As he spoke, he lit a cigarette that wasn't very good at smoking, then flicked it behind him with a few pats, two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes, saying: "Looking at you two, just staying at home without seeing the world, follow me in the future."

  What? The team is still recruiting new members? A pack of cigarettes as a meeting gift?

  Dà Pàng èr Pàng was stunned for a moment, already in his twenties. Although it's just a game online, but seeing this lineup in reality is quite astonishing. However, when Léi Dà Péng mentioned ranking and positions again, saying he should be the big brother, the two of them became unhappy. Dà Pàng pointed with his finger and said: "I've been staying at home for three years, it's impossible for me to be younger than you who just graduated."

  "Exactly, I came two months earlier than you, so it's not your turn to be the older brother?" Er Pang said to Bai Shuguang, who was also unhappy.

  "It's not about age or weight, you're no match for me anyway." Da Pang said, finding his own advantage.

  "Anyway, it's not about weight, but about our dads, you should be last in line," Er Pàng found another reason to support himself.

  The two fat men seem to be no longer recognized by Le Ge, and Lei Da Peng said disdainfully: "Coming out to mix is based on righteousness, mixing well depends on ability, who eats more fat? Why don't you two go compare with the old sow?"

  "What? You scold me?" Er Pang was unhappy.

  "Exactly, you stinky mouth." Da Pang also became unhappy.

  "Don't be dissatisfied, let's pick a place and have a fight. My tens of brothers won't be called then, one on one." Lei Dapeng shouted. With this shout, the two fat guys behind him didn't dare to make a sound anymore. Fighting and killing in the game is okay, but in reality, it's clear that they don't have that experience. Moreover, since Lei Dapeng joined the team, no one dared to disobey him, so who would dare to be dissatisfied? This kind of person is really worth questioning. Da Bao and Er Bao looked at each other and didn't continue speaking.

  But obviously not yet willing to be a younger brother, Er Pang changed the subject and said: "Lei Da Peng, don't scare us, we are all abandoned, who is with whom."

  "It's just that, to put it bluntly, why must we be in the same boat and yet still fight each other?" Da Pang awkwardly tried to sidestep the question, clearly not daring to take the bait, but quietly pocketed his Chinese cigarette.

  "This sounds like a phrase, but I think it's quite comfortable, it's great to come out tonight." Said Lei Dapeng.

  It's really good, the gentle breeze is blowing, the small electric car is running, and the cool little girl on the road is looking at it. What a great life! Leidapeng stopped the car by the side of the road and even sold a few bottles of drinks to the two people behind him. Brother Lei is really generous, which brought them closer together. Just as he was about to start the car again, Er Pang, who had benefited from it, couldn't help but hint at waiting, saying in a low voice: "Lei Dapeng, I came earlier than you and there are some things you don't quite understand. Be more careful when you're on duty."

  "It's just that those two dog B team captains are also looking down on people, they're just dumping this rotten thing on us, probably waiting to see us get fired." said Da Pang.

  "Huh? It seems there's still a dark side to this, and Lei Dapeng is sincerely seeking guidance. These two fat guys aren't hiding anything, directly saying that they recruited over 60 assistant managers this year with three high standards: height, education, and level. What's the point of relying on these people to reshape the image of urban management? But apart from the three highs, it can't be helped that there are also those who have connections, so there are the three people present here as well as those few weird team members. Among them, there are also different levels, such as the four who stayed in the bureau to do internal work - their dads are either from the Construction Committee or the Public Security Bureau; and then there are the three who haven't gone on external missions, although they're one level lower, but at least their dads are department-level cadres."

  It's different when it comes to the two brothers. Da Bao is a small section chief in the local tax bureau, and Er Bao is a small section chief in the quality inspection bureau. They used a lot of effort to squeeze their unemployed son into the auxiliary police team just to make up the numbers, waiting for an opportunity to find him a job. Both of them have been staying at home for quite some time now.

  "My dad is at least a big captain in the northern city district, can't be so cowardly." Lei Dapeng didn't believe it.

  "Big Peng, the big captain doesn't count as long, farting doesn't make a sound; the head of the department and the section head don't count as long, it's hard to get promoted even if you're old. We're not doing well, are we?" Da Bao said with deep feeling, otherwise he wouldn't have been at home for three years. Er Bao wanted to persuade him again, but Lei Dapeng couldn't take it anymore, waving his hand: "No point in talking, it's all nonsense, coming out to mix and relying on oneself, my big brother taught me that, when will you introduce me? Think about the past, what kind of momentum we had in school, my brothers and I shouted together, leading thousands of students, and smashed the security department."

  "Yeah, it seems like that. I was a kid in the Lu Institute, and it seemed to have caused some trouble." Erhuang said.

  "Was it you who did it?" Da Bao disbelieved.

  "My elder brother, Dry Brother. We have dozens of brothers, and with one call, we can gather several hundred people." Lei Dapeng said proudly.

  The two of them were shocked again, and when they couldn't tell what was true or false, although they didn't dare to fully believe it, they also didn't dare not to believe it. After walking for a while, Da Bao and Er Bao exchanged glances, and Er Bao came over to say: "Lei Dapeng, we're being kind-hearted, something happened in Ta Dong Xiaoqu before you came here."

  "What's up?" Lei Dapeng asked.

  A fat man and a thin man, each with their own sentence, were standing at the entrance of the residential area. It turned out that this was a prime location for doing business, facing Taizhong Road. There were not only prosperous shops but also 40 to 50 buildings with residents. However, with many people, it became chaotic. Every evening, unlicensed vendors would come from all directions to set up stalls at the entrance of the residential area. The Taizhong City Management Team repeatedly tried to crack down on them, but the more they cracked down, the more chaotic it became. A few months ago, Captain He came up with a clever plan and dispatched two teams of city management officers to stand guard along the residential area in a line, blocking the vendors from doing business. However, this was exposed online the next day, and public opinion clearly sided with the vulnerable group. Moreover, the small merchants were not easy to deal with either. On the third day, it was unclear whether the stalls had been knocked over or the vendors had intentionally overturned them. More than a dozen vendors and city management officers engaged in a fierce battle of words, destroying the civilized law enforcement that had been painstakingly established.

  Dark curtain, absolutely dark curtain, this is what makes you move forward without telling you there's a pit ahead.

  Lei Dapeng cursed quietly, but somehow liked these two chubby guys a bit more. At least they wouldn't harm people behind their backs. Thinking about his job again, he didn't think there was anything difficult about it. He said in surprise: "What's so hard about this? Just drive them away and that's it."

  "Hey, Big Peng, you think it's that simple? What's the point of having a city management team then?" Da Bao said in surprise, knowing that Lei Dapeng was new to this. He went on to say that urban construction and city management were like fish and bears, incompatible, and only when urban construction is of high quality can business be done well. In places where small vendors do business, the city's management is already overwhelmed. Er Bao also chimed in, saying that small vendors should be sympathized with, it's not easy for them to make a living in the city. But who sees the city management as easy? When they go out, they get scolded by vendors, when they return to their team, they get scolded by their leader, and when they go online, they get scolded by netizens. If it weren't for having no other place to go, they wouldn't have joined the city management team! It's better to just stand on the side and curse them!

  These two brothers are quite lovely, coming and going, Lei Da Peng actually has the heart to accept these two little brothers, listening to them nonsense every day, just like setting up a Longmen array in the dormitory at night, definitely not boring.

  Three people were talking, and they quickly approached the Taodong community. Suddenly, even Lei Dapeng was stunned. On both sides of the road were shops, more than half of which had their doors open. The entrance to the community, a 10-meter-wide gate on Dong Road, was already packed with tricycles, vendors carrying poles, and flatbed carts, leaving only enough space for one car to enter or exit. There were over a dozen fruit vendors, fried doughnut sellers, noodle cooks, and meat pie makers. Occasionally, a small vehicle would honk its horn as it entered the community, but the vendors didn't bother with it, and soon blocked the way again. Lei Dapeng drove his urban management electric vehicle past, and some of the vendors saw him, giving him a cold attitude: ignoring him.

  "Hey, this is a big deal!" Lei Dapeng was stunned for a moment, and it was different from the usual phenomenon of a horn blowing and people rushing around on the street.

  "You see, the team couldn't handle it so they dumped us here. This is a bustling area, if there's even a little commotion, the whole city will know." Er Piao said.

  "This place has been out of control since we chased the city management away. It's so lawless that if they come again, there will be people lying on the ground shouting 'the city management is beating us up' just to scare us off." said Da Piao.

  It's really a big pit, Lei Dapeng feels both unwilling and helpless. Looking at those merchants, the young ones are still in their teens, while the old ones are already wrinkled old men. They're all struggling to make a living, no one has it easy. Originally thought that with our group of brothers, we could at least get ten or so people together. In the past, when we didn't wear uniforms, we dared to cause trouble, now wearing uniforms and still afraid of who? At most, being fired as temporary workers would be a good excuse not to go to work. But unexpectedly, when something really happens, it's still very difficult.

  He was in a difficult situation, and the two behind him exchanged glances, and then they started to stir up trouble. Da Bao Li Xiao said with a smile: "Lei Dapeng, if you can drive them away, not just us, but the whole team will recognize you as their brother... However, on one condition, don't get driven away afterwards."

  "Right, you want to drive him away. I was the first to acknowledge you as my big brother. That family, the old couple, that old man is really experienced, every time he lies on the ground shouting 'Urban Management beats people', now whoever sees him in our team is afraid, fearing being blackmailed." Er Pang Bai Shuguang also instigated.

  "I'll give it a try, at worst I'll be driven away, at worst I won't do it anymore."

  Lei Dapeng got off the car and left. The two fat men looked at each other and laughed, not stopping him, watching from a distance to enjoy the joke.

  Getting closer, getting closer, within ten steps, Lei Dapeng stopped, that old couple, in their fifties and sixties, selling meat pies, the woman was baking, the man was hawking, this three-yuan meat pie couldn't make much money, along the road on both sides were old and young people, all dressed in tattered clothes, forming a stark contrast with the luxury cars entering and exiting the residential area.

  It's troublesome, Lei Dapeng walked a few steps back and forth, but didn't know what to do. He accidentally stepped on something and almost fell over. Upon closer inspection, it was a rotten apple. Looking around, he saw that the entrance of the residential area had been littered with plastic bags and disposable chopsticks. Furthermore, there was a street vendor wearing a hat at an angle, peeling apples and carelessly throwing the scraps onto the ground near Lei's feet. Lei Dapeng rolled his eyes and cursed under his breath.

  This is a dilemma. As the saying goes, "A pitiful person must have a hateful place." If it were at his own doorstep, he would have to roll up his sleeves and slap them in the face. However, Lei Dapeng knew that acting impulsively was not an option, especially when wearing this skin. Once something happened, the son of a turtle would be reflected in the mirror, and no matter what, it would still be a turtle egg.

  After thinking for a long time, Lei Dapeng touched the phone and dialed the most familiar number, asking in a low voice:

  "Egg brother, for the sake of our country and party, you have to help your brother out. We can't let others look down on us. There's a difficult matter..."

  ……