Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

On a winter night in 1983, the neon lights of Hong Kong Island looked particularly dazzling in the cold rain, like shattered gems scattered on both sides of Victoria Harbour.

The targeted anti-gang campaign, codenamed "Digital Operation," launched jointly by Lam Lei-meng and Luk Kai-cheung, has been pounding away at Hong Kong's underworld for three full days.

During those 72 hours, the sirens over Victoria Harbour were almost constant, and the heavy boots of the Police Tactical Unit (PTU) traversed every corner of the Western District, Yau Tsim Mong, and Sham Shui Po.

The number gang, led by the Ni family, became the biggest casualty of this operation. The once brightly lit nightclubs, the underground casinos that made a fortune every day, and even the money laundering stalls disguised as trading companies all fell apart under the heavy blows of the police.

However, as the operation progressed into the late night of the third day, a strange and ambiguous atmosphere began to spread between the police leadership and the Governor's House, which overlooked all living beings.

Lu Qichang sat in the smoke-filled command center of the West District Police Station, the ashtray in front of him overflowing with extinguished cigarette butts. The phone in front of him had rang five times in just one hour, and each time he answered, the voice on the other end carried a chillingly powerful pressure.

"Inspector Lu, that's enough. Although Ni Yongxiao has caused a huge uproar, you've now shut down the entire number gang's business, and those big fishermen in Central are very unhappy about it."

"Inspector Luk, you need to be mindful of our international image. We live in a society governed by the rule of law, and this kind of blanket clearance will be difficult to explain to the Legislative Council. What the public needs is for the case to be solved, not for the streets to be filled with uniformed police officers."

The meaning behind these calls is all too clear—after the initial attempt to establish authority and the venting of anger over burying police officers alive, the attitude of the police leadership has quickly become ambiguous and wavering.

During this particular historical period, although triads were the dark side of society and a breeding ground for crime, ironically, the social order of Hong Kong Island was, to some extent, extremely dependent on the existence of triads.

Lin Leimeng and Lu Qichang were well aware of a harsh reality: gangs could be suppressed, or even eliminated in stages, but they should never be driven to the point of desperation.

For the Western government, the police force maintains the surface security of Hong Kong Island, while the triads maintain a different kind of balance at the bottom of society using their own jungle law in places where the sun doesn't shine.

As Uncle Tang of the Wo Luen Shing famously said, once triads truly abandon their duties or are driven into a corner, the hundreds of thousands of unemployed young people on Hong Kong Island, operating in the gray area, will instantly lose all restraint. Without triad leadership, these energetic and money-hungry hormones will instantly transform into countless acts of violence, completely clogging the city's capillaries. Hong Kong Island will rapidly descend into an immeasurable and immense chaos, a chaos that no police force of any size can withstand.

Even if such an extreme situation does not occur, the mere fact that community groups initiate a "strike" is enough to give the Hong Kong government a run for its money.

In this era of Hong Kong, triads are not just involved in illegal businesses; their tentacles have long since extended into the cracks of every legitimate industry. They not only operate in the drug trade and casinos, but have also infiltrated transportation, logistics, and even seemingly insignificant service industries.

Take the simplest example of "parking." This is not only the most basic source of income for triad members, but also an indispensable part of the operation of Hong Kong Island. Land is extremely valuable on Hong Kong Island, resources are extremely scarce, and parking spaces are extremely rare. Whether it's the well-dressed banking elites in Central or the white-collar workers in the office buildings in Wan Chai, most of them face the awkward situation of having a car to go out but no parking space after get off work.

Thus, the triads naturally launched this parking service, which was essentially a "protection fee." Car owners would pay a few dozen Hong Kong dollars a day to hand over their car keys to shady-looking valet-wearing valet parkers on the roadside. These valet-wearing ...

This has become a way of life for people on Hong Kong Island, and even a distorted form of social welfare. If triads were to go on strike due to police crackdowns, one can imagine that traffic on the entire island would be completely paralyzed during the morning rush hour. Streets would be jammed with haphazardly parked vehicles, and ambulances and fire trucks would be unable to move an inch.

This situation requires immense perseverance and sophisticated methods to manage, but clearly the Western government lacks this capability. It is foreseeable that, at least before the handover, triads will be an essential, albeit unsightly, component of Hong Kong's social ecosystem.

Looking at the still-flashing police lights outside the window, Lu Qichang felt a deep sense of powerlessness. He and Lin Leimeng were full of enthusiasm, but they couldn't obtain conclusive evidence to definitively convict Ni Yongxiao. Uncle San was like a stubborn rock in the interrogation room, impenetrable; and the top-notch legal team Ni Yongxiao had hired was ready to sue the police for illegal detention. However, if things ended so abruptly, they would not only have failed the "dead" Ka-Kui, but also become a laughingstock in the eyes of all Hong Kong citizens.

Just when the operation was stalled and the task force was at a loss, on the third night, Lu Qichang's personal cell phone, which he had placed on his desk, suddenly started vibrating violently.

He glanced at the number, which had no name on it but was already etched in his memory, and his eyes lit up instantly. He stood up abruptly, pushed open the dusty window, letting the cold air rush into the stuffy office, which also masked his slightly rapid breathing.

"Alright, alright! That's it for tonight's operation. All personnel remaining in their posts, everyone else, go home immediately and get a good night's sleep. The real battles are yet to come."

Lu Qichang loudly issued orders to the task force members. After his subordinates left one by one, exhausted and confused, he quickly changed out of his conspicuous inspector uniform, put on an extremely ordinary dark gray old jacket, wore a baseball cap, and quietly left through the back door of the police station under the cover of night.

……

Half an hour later, in Central, in a dark alley behind an office building where most of the lights had been turned off.

This is the quietest shadow in the entire city. Apart from the occasional sound of waves in the distance, only a few stray cats rummage through the trash cans for scraps.

Lu Qichang leaned against the mottled brick wall, took out a cigarette from his pocket and lit it. The firelight flickered in the darkness, illuminating his face, which was etched with vicissitudes and weariness.

A few minutes later, a tall, slender figure walked slowly from the other end of the alley. The person walked steadily, stopped beside Lu Qichang, and without saying a word, simply took a cigarette from the cigarette case in Lu Qichang's hand with utmost ease.

"clatter."

Lu Qichang flicked on his lighter, and the flame leaped. In this dim light, their eyes met in the air.

The man before me had a deathly pale face and eyes as cold as ice.

Luo Ji, the man who always followed Ni Yongxiao around like a shadow, known as the "cold-blooded leader." But beneath this dark exterior, his true identity is that of a spy Lu Qichang planted in the Ni family seven years ago.

Seven years in total.

Luo Ji started from a small blue lantern in the Ni family and worked his way up to where he is now. When Ni Kun was still in power, he was just an insignificant henchman. However, with Ni Kun's sudden death and Ni Yongxiao's return to Hong Kong to take over the reins, this financial godfather promoted a group of young, taciturn, and ruthless newcomers as his absolute confidants in order to purge his old subordinates.

With his almost superhuman composure and the merits of repeatedly shielding the Ni family from bullets, Luo Ji successfully entered the core of the Ni family's power. Now, Luo Ji is not only the Ni family's bodyguard captain, but also Ni Yongxiao's most trusted ally in the shadows.

"It's been very windy lately, and Ah-Xiao is in a bad mood." Luo Ji took a deep drag on his cigarette, the smoke slowly exhaling from his nostrils, masking the somewhat numb expression he had developed from being an undercover agent for so long.

"So, was it him who did what happened to Jiaju?" Lu Qichang's voice was very low, with a slight, restrained tremor in his tone.

Luo Ji remained silent for a moment, then took out a neatly folded document from his pocket and handed it to Lu Qichang.

"Yes, but the Ni family was also set up... We've found the person who set up Chen Jiaju," Luo Ji's voice was flat, yet it exuded a chilling confidence. "It wasn't Ni Yongxiao who wanted to kill the police; the Ni family had been trying to avenge Ni Kun all this time, but they ended up being tricked by a seller named Lin Kun."

Lu Qichang took the document and quickly scanned it by the dim light of his flashlight.

"Lin Kun?" Lu Qichang's brows furrowed tightly. He searched his memory but had no recollection of the name.

"Ni Yongxiao received an extremely detailed anonymous intelligence report containing all the details of how Lin Kun colluded with General Jinsha of the Golden Triangle and how he used the biker gang to lure Chen Jiaju to Luanshigang," Luo Ji said, looking down at the ground. His tone became more urgent. "The arrest of Third Uncle and the sweeping of the Ni family were all orchestrated by Lin Kun behind the scenes, who wanted to play a game of 'using someone else to do his dirty work'."

Lu Qichang's hand trembled slightly, and cigarette ash fell onto the back of his hand, but he didn't notice.

"So, what does Ni Yongxiao plan to do?"

"A man like Ni Yongxiao, of course, will retaliate in kind," Luo Ji sneered, a complex glint in his eyes. "He's looking for Lin Kun's warehouse. According to Ni Yongxiao's information, Lin Kun thinks he has the upper hand and is eager to take over the Tsim Sha Tsui share, preparing to receive a shipment of top-quality goods from Sands. Ni Yongxiao plans to double-cross him; in the next couple of days, he'll intercept Lin Kun's goods and uproot Lin Kun completely."

Lu Qichang gripped the documents in his hand tightly. This was an extremely unexpected gain. He had originally thought that this operation would be aborted due to pressure from higher-ups, but he never expected that Ni Yongxiao and Lin Kun, these two cancerous tumors, would start a self-destructive internal conflict at this critical juncture.

"Be careful." Lu Qichang looked at Luo Ji with the solemnity and heartache characteristic of an old superior. "Luo Ji, once you've confirmed Lin Kun's pickup location and warehouse location, spread the word as quickly as possible, while ensuring your own safety. We need this shipment as evidence, not only to implicate Lin Kun, but also to send Ni Yongxiao, this 'godfather,' to hell."

Luo Ji nodded, stubbed out his cigarette, and carefully put the butt into his pocket—a habit he had developed over the years to avoid leaving any biological traces that might reveal his identity.

"Ah-Hsiao suspects that Ka-Kui isn't dead," Luo Ji suddenly dropped a bombshell before leaving. "He's also looking for Ka-Kui so that Third Uncle can get out of prison. If you have any information about Ka-Kui, you'd better keep it a secret."

Lu Qichang's heart skipped a beat, but he simply nodded calmly.

The two men parted ways in the dark alley, each heading in a different direction. Lu Qichang walked back into the neon lights of Central, while Luo Ji slipped into the black Mercedes-Benz, transforming once again into the cold, stone statue beside Ni Yongxiao.

Lu Qichang walked along the empty street, feeling the chill of the winter night. He knew this game wasn't over yet. Since Lin Kun, this venomous snake that had always lurked in the shadows, dared to show his face, he had to be prepared to be crushed by the entire police force and the Ni family at the same time.