After my divorce at thirty, I developed an intelligence network.

Evening, at the courtyard where characters are dismantled.

Gong Yuelong didn't sit down, but stood in front of the old, cracked octagonal table. On the table was a preliminary budget draft for the Xinke factory project, with several sheets of white paper filled with numbers.

There were already four or five cigarette butts in the ashtray.

"Initial investment, factory building, materials, labor, machinery rental, water and electricity supply... all in all, even with a tight belt, it will take at least forty months," he muttered to himself.

He took out his cigarette case and lit another one.

Smoke rose, blurring the alarming numbers on the paper.

All I have on hand is a little over 300,000.

The shortfall is at least 100,000.

In this day and age, 100,000 yuan can build several rows of sturdy bungalows and buy two decent trucks. It's an amount that an ordinary worker can't save up in twenty or thirty years.

"A drop in the ocean," Gong Yuelong uttered four words.

This new project is the first hard brick he needs to pry open in the high-tech zone; he must succeed, and he must succeed at it.

But this first step was choked by money.

And then there are the unseen expenses.

Managing relationships, dealing with various inspections, preparing for emergencies... every single one of these requires scraping together what's left of the limited 300,000 yuan.

He remembered the bowl of hot soup noodles that Widow Qin had brought him that evening, with a poached egg in it.

I enjoyed the meal at the time, but now that I think about it, if my business had collapsed, the brothers who relied on me for their livelihood would probably have trouble even getting a bowl of noodles with meat.

Gong Yuelong pinched the space between his eyebrows, feeling a throbbing sensation in his temples.

"Three hundred thousand..." He stared at the number on the paper, his eyes sharpening. "If it's not enough, we'll find a way to make it enough."

He picked up his pen again and started scribbling on another blank sheet of paper.

It needs to be open source.

His gaze fell on the words "labor service company qualifications".

Perhaps... I could proactively take on a few smaller, quick-paying, piecemeal projects?

By assigning a portion of the original team to the task, we can maintain the team's operation and quickly recover some resources.

It's just that it'll be a bit tiring, running between two places.

Or... find Jiang Yan?

Forget it.

Gong Yuelong put down his pen, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes.

Three hundred thousand is too little.

But that's enough for him and his brothers to make a name for themselves.

……

The lights in the courtyard where the characters were split were turned off.

Gong Yuelong was not sleepy, so he went to check out the new project and scout out the location where the battle was about to take place.

As he approached the construction site, he saw a faint light shining through the fence, which looked more like the beam of a flashlight than the tungsten-halogen lamps used in actual construction.

A thought struck him, and he tiptoed closer, holding his breath as he looked.

It was Wang Biao. His left leg was still in a cast, and he was using a thick wooden stick as a crutch as he stood there directing.

Two unfamiliar men were unloading things from an unlicensed 130 truck.

What was unloaded were several bundles of rebar.

Under the dim light of a flashlight, the threads on the surface of the steel bar were clear and the color was uniform, with a clear blue label on one end.

Gongyue Longan is a well-known large factory in the province, and its quality has always been excellent.

Wang Biao lowered his voice: "Just put it here, towards the back, and cover it up with that pile of scrap templates."

The two men moved swiftly, grabbing some tattered templates and tarpaulins to hastily cover the area.

"Brother Biao, isn't it a waste to leave such good material here?" a man asked in a low voice.

"You don't know anything," Wang Biao said hoarsely. "Just release it. Stop talking nonsense. Someone will find it tomorrow during the day. It'll be very useful."

Another man muttered, "What if someone sees this..."

"See them?" Wang Biao sneered. "That's exactly why I'm afraid they won't see them. Hurry up, finish this and get out of here."

Gong Yuelong's heart skipped a beat, and he understood in a flash.

This isn't stealing materials; it's framing someone by secretly placing steel bars on Gong Yuelong's construction site.

If it's discovered tomorrow, Wu Jinshui can easily accuse him of stealing steel bars.

That's a really underhanded trick. It works silently, yet it ruins your reputation.

The two men covered the steel bars and jumped into the car.

Wang Biao, leaning on his crutch, shone his flashlight on the hiding place again to make sure there were no flaws before limping into the passenger seat of the truck.

The car drove slowly away from the construction site without its headlights on, disappearing into the night.

Darkness and silence returned to the open space.

Gong Yuelong walked out from behind the mixer, lifted the tattered template and tarpaulin, and the beam of his flashlight fell on the bundles of brand-new steel bars.

He stared at it for a few seconds, his face expressionless. Then he called Shunzi.

"Get three people and an 8-ton truck crane. There are a few bundles of steel bars; take them to the old warehouse. Come now, and be careful not to disturb anyone."

Shunzi paused for a moment, but didn't ask any more questions: "Okay!" He quickly went to call someone.

A short while later, the car arrived.

Gong Yuelong personally led and directed the hoisting of the bundles of steel bars onto the truck.

"Brother Long, where did this steel bar come from? The brand looks pretty good." A worker couldn't help but ask.

"I found it." Gong Yuelong said succinctly, "Store it in the warehouse first, don't tell anyone. I'll deal with it tomorrow."

The truck drove away, carrying those bundles of high-quality steel bars.

Gong Yuelong stood there, watching the car lights disappear into the distance.

Wu Jinshui's move was ruthless, but not clever enough.

I've accepted the good stuff you sent.

Standard rebar. One bundle... based on standard weight, it's roughly 2 tons?

There are five bundles. Brand new, with all tags intact, from a major factory, according to current market prices...

If handled well, it's possible to cash out 70,000 to 80,000, or even more.

Gong Yuelong slowly exhaled a puff of smoke. His lips twitched almost imperceptibly, not in a smile, but in a fleeting glint of sarcasm in his eyes.

One hundred thousand.

When the number popped into his mind, he paused for a moment.

Wu Jinshui was truly willing to go to such lengths to set a trap for him.

I was just worrying about the shortfall of 100,000.

That evening, someone delivered valuable goods worth 100,000.

Satire.

But... it was a real lifesaver.

They're even better at giving gifts than their friends.

……

"Shunzi, help your brother Yong. Old Chen's stall at the intersection should still be open."

Old Chen's night stall was just two streets away at the corner, and the three of them found a table further inside and sat down.

Gong Yuelong ordered skewers, a bundle of chilled beer, and a plate of edamame and peanuts.

Cao Dayong lowered his voice, "Those bundles in the warehouse... what's going on? They all look like good quality material, with all the labels, from a big factory."

Shunzi looked up, her eyes filled with curiosity and lingering fear: "Exactly! My heart was pounding. If someone had seen us, they would have thought we stole it."

Gong Yuelong didn't rush to answer. He picked up a peanut, put it in his mouth, and chewed it slowly.

After a few seconds, he spoke, "It wasn't stolen."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Someone... eagerly brought it over."

Cao Dayong and Shunzi were both stunned.

"A gift?" Shunzi blinked. "Who is it? Sending steel bars? And specifically choosing the middle of the night to deliver them to our construction site?"

Gong Yuelong's lips twitched very slightly. "Wu Jinshui and Wang Biao. They specially sponsored some materials because they were worried that we wouldn't have enough for our new project."

Cao Dayong, quick-witted, immediately understood, his expression changing drastically: "Damn! Framed?!"

"Hmm." Gong Yuelong nodded. "The material is really good. I made a rough estimate..."

He held up two fingers. "It's worth this much."

Cao Dayong took a breath: "Twenty thousand?"