Hong Kong film: The cop backs down, the ladies beg me to check his license.

Huang Bingyao pondered for a moment, then leaned forward slightly and tentatively asked in a low voice, "Mr. Ye, do you think... is it possible to establish a... relatively stable information channel between our police force and you?"

Ye Tian chuckled, a hint of mockery in his voice: "Officer Huang, you must be joking. I'm a respectable businessman, a law-abiding citizen, I pay my taxes on time, and I never do anything reckless. You want to talk to me about channels? What channels?"

Huang Bingyao smiled bitterly to himself. Ye Tian had always been a troublesome yet unique figure for the police force. He wasn't a gangster in the traditional sense; he was a "gang boss" with legitimate businesses. The police couldn't fully fathom the depths of the Qi Tian Group, but those in the know understood that Ye Tian was a genuine, hidden tycoon. The methods used to deal with ordinary gangsters were completely ineffective against him.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Ye Tian stopped beating around the bush and said directly, "If you want information from me, that's fine. But you'll have to pay for it."

Huang Bingyao's spirits lifted: "You mean...we can buy intelligence from you?"

"I'm a businessman, so business is naturally possible," Ye Tian nodded. "However, my information isn't cheap. Most people can't afford it."

Huang Bingyao's mind raced, and he immediately asked a crucial question: "Do you know who killed Ni Kun?"

Ye Tian shrugged: "I know."

Huang Bingyao's eyes lit up instantly, and he unconsciously leaned forward again: "Who? Can you tell me?"

Ye Tian chuckled, his tone slightly amused: "To be honest, I'm not keen on selling you the killer's name. After all, the person who killed Ni Kun, in a way, did me a favor. I should thank him."

Huang Bingyao remained silent for a long while. The steam from the oyster pancakes on the table gradually dissipated, leaving a glistening layer of oil on the surface. He slowly began to speak: "In the past, there was an unwritten 'black and white forest' agreement between the police and triads, and over the years, everyone has outwardly adhered to it. I think this might serve as a basis for...cooperation."

Ye Tian took a sip of beer, the icy liquid making him smack his lips. "Since he's a 'benefactor'," he put down the can, looking at Huang Bingyao, "then if you want me to betray his information, I'll have to pay extra."

"Cough! Cough cough..." Huang Bingyao almost choked on his beer, coughing repeatedly until his face turned red. Finally catching his breath, he gritted his teeth and asked, "Mr. Ye, are you serious? You really know?"

"Of course," Ye Tian said casually. "You should trust me. I'm more eager for the Ni family to fall than anyone else. Only when they're down can I reap the benefits."

Huang Bingyao's eyes darted around, his mind racing, before he asked, "So... how did Ni Yongxiao deal with his four henchmen? Are you aware of this?"

Ye Tian looked at him speechlessly, as if he were a fool asking a question he already knew the answer to: "Isn't Luo Ji an undercover agent working for Ni Yongxiao? You all knew that a long time ago, why are you asking me?"

Huang Bingyao gave a slightly reserved smile, neither admitting nor denying it.

Ye Tian saw through his thoughts: "You just want to test whether I can actually offer something real, right?"

Huang Bingyao tacitly agreed.

"Alright," Ye Tian said without further ado, "I'll give you this news for free. Consider it a good start to your business."

"Ni Yongxiao was able to handle those four people because Han Chen gave him a message, and he then personally went to negotiate."

"The Ni family has four top leaders: Gandhi, Guohua, Black Ghost, and Wenzheng."

"Wen Zheng is a weather vane; he'll sway whichever way the wind blows. Don't bother with him."

"Gandhi was the most ambitious and least willing to submit to authority; he wanted to establish his own power base. He felt that with Ni Kun dead, Ni Yongxiao, a mere scholar, couldn't hold the fort."

"The other two depend on Gandhi's opinion. Gandhi has the largest territory and the most men."

"But Gandhi had a big appetite, but not good teeth, and couldn't swallow the other three. This gave Ni Yongxiao an opening."

Huang Bingyao's eyes widened, his face stiffening. He knew! Ye Tian actually knew! Even the four leaders themselves were still suspicious of each other, unable to figure out what magic Ni Yongxiao had used, yet Ye Tian knew so much detail! Huang Bingyao knew that Ni Yongxiao's success was entirely due to Han Chen providing accurate intelligence and cleverly bringing the four people together. And those present at the time were only Ni Yongxiao, his third uncle, and Luo Ji. This was simply…unbelievable!

"Of Ni Yongxiao's five top leaders, Han Chen is a staunch supporter of Ni, so we don't need to worry about him. As for the remaining four, Wen Zheng is fine to ignore. The troublesome ones are Gandhi, Guo Hua, and Black Ghost."

"Gandhi was ambitious, but his abilities couldn't support his ambition. Besides..." Ye Tian paused, a subtle smile curving his lips, "His family life was a complete mess, with troubles at home. How could he have the energy to worry about the outside world?"

Huang Bingyao's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He interrupted Ye Tian, ​​"You really... know all this? What exactly is this information...?"

Ye Tian knew these core secrets like the back of his hand. Huang Bingyao's gaze towards Ye Tian had completely changed, now filled with disbelief and a deep-seated apprehension.

Ye Tian didn't answer, and continued to eat his wontons. The wontons at the street stall had a cloudy broth, but the taste was authentic, much better than the bland broth served in high-end restaurants.

Huang Bingyao's mind was in turmoil, but having experienced much, he forced himself to calm down. A vague conjecture gradually took shape: behind Ye Tian, ​​there must be a vast and secretive intelligence network. Otherwise, he alone could never have accessed such core secrets. And each piece of such information was worth a life, and could also be exchanged for a large sum of money.

He probed again, lowering his voice even further: "How many people were involved in killing Ni Kun?"

Ye Tian didn't even look up: "One uses their brain, one acts as a go-between, and one takes action. Three of them."

"Like I said, if you want to know who these three are, you'll have to pay extra."

"And I can give you a heads-up," Ye Tian finally looked up at Huang Bingyao, "two of these three are your own people, corrupt cops. You won't lose out on this deal."

Buy! We absolutely have to buy it! We'll sell everything we own to buy it!

Huang Bingyao practically screamed those words in his mind instantly. He gritted his teeth and asked, "How much? Name your price!"

Ye Tian uttered three words: "Two million."

Huang Bingyao gasped, his voice trembling: "Two million?! Why don't you just rob a bank?"

Ye Tian found it amusing: "Is it too much? I think it's quite fair."

"This message contains information about corrupt officers within your police force. And it involves two corrupt officers from the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB). This price is already very cheap."

"Think about it yourself. If this gets out, how much damage will it do to the good reputation your police force has worked so hard to build up over the years on television and in the newspapers?"

Huang Bingyao's face paled little by little. He knew Ye Tian wasn't lying. The police force's image had once plummeted to rock bottom, rife with corruption, only slowly recovering through various propaganda efforts. If another such egregious scandal involving corrupt officers were to surface, especially in a core department like the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB)... the consequences would be unimaginable.

Ye Tian, ​​seemingly oblivious to his unpleasant expression, continued slowly and deliberately, "You know better than I what the Organized Crime and Triad Bureau (OCTB) does. You also understand better than I how dangerous it is for corrupt cops to be stationed in places like this."

"What if you're planning to arrest a key figure, and a corrupt cop makes a phone call to tip you off, or even shoots you in the back... well, that would be quite a scene."

Huang Bingyao smiled wryly: "Mr. Ye, I really don't like the way you are right now. You're like a shrewd businessman, calculating every penny, showing no mercy whatsoever."

As the head of the West Kowloon Police Headquarters, he was always the one being begged for favors and had to defer to his authority. Those who could speak directly with him were all senior superintendents, heads of powerful departments, and colleagues he had worked alongside for many years. He sincerely hoped that no problems would arise among them.

Huang Bingyao gritted his teeth, his voice extremely low: "Mr. Ye, you've always been a regular on our police station's list of social donors, always in the top three. You've done a lot for the police force. We... we have some kind of kinship. Could you... give me a discount?"

Ye Tian suppressed a laugh and deliberately put on a stern face: "Since your attitude is fairly sincere, fine, I'll give you a 50% discount. One million."

"As for the money, you don't need to give me cash directly. Just consider it another donation to the police force."

Huang Bingyao was initially delighted, but then looked troubled: "I'll... I'll give you cash instead. Police donations need to go through proper accounting and are audited. I can't make that decision."

Ye Tian curled his lip, somewhat disdainfully: "Troublesome."

But he also knew that this was probably the biggest concession Huang Bingyao could make.