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

The phone rang a few times before being answered; the background noise was a bit loud, as if it were in some kind of setting.

"Feed? Are you done talking?" Jiang Yan's voice came through.

"We had a general discussion, and General Manager Li gave us a draft contract." Gong Yuelong said as he walked around, looking at the construction notice board on the fence. "But he made a condition."

"Um?"

"I need to show him that I can handle that Boss Wu in the High-tech Zone, at least to prevent the construction site from stopping because of his people causing trouble."

There was a two-second silence on the other end of the phone. "He's straightforward; he doesn't want to get involved in anything scandalous." She paused. "You want to ask about this Boss Wu?"

Say as much as you can.

Gong Yuelong stopped at a gap in the fence and looked inside, where some discarded templates were piled up.

"Wu Jinshui is a local. He used to be involved in the underworld, but later he cleaned up his act and went into the building materials business, making a living in the High-tech Zone."

Jiang Yan read from documents, "He has a group of fellow villagers and ex-convicts under his command. On the surface, they are a transportation team and a labor team, but in reality, they monopolize the supply of sand, gravel, and concrete, engaging in forced buying and selling. Their prices are 30% to 50% higher than the market price."

In the last two years, we've become bolder and started undertaking projects.

"Is nobody above in charge?"

"If you manage it, you'll tone it down while things are in the spotlight, but once the heat dies down, you'll escalate it even further."

He is said to have had some shady dealings with certain people, but there is no concrete evidence.

This person is cunning. He won't kill you, but he'll disgust you and make you do the math and realize that it's more worthwhile to pay him a management fee.

Many construction companies from other places, unfamiliar with the area and unable to afford the delays, simply accepted the situation.

What are his weaknesses? Or, what does he like?

"Weakness? Greed, but he values ​​face even more. Making him lose face is more troublesome than making him earn less money. He likes... I've heard he's a gambler, and he plays at random places, winning or losing big."

In addition, they are quite superstitious about feng shui and like to consult a fortune teller before starting any construction work.

Jiang Yan advised, "This person has some shady dealings, so don't confront him directly. It's best to find a mediator to speak with him and find a way for both sides to back down gracefully."

"Would Yang Ruyan be suitable as a middleman?"

Jiang Yan seemed to chuckle on the other end of the phone: "Her? Hard to say. They're not on the same path; they've taken different routes."

"Thanks, Mr. Jiang."

"You're welcome. You should think it over yourself; this is a dangerous situation." Jiang Yan hung up the phone.

Gong Yuelong put away his phone and continued walking forward.

At the end of the fence was a patch of undeveloped wasteland overgrown with weeds half a person tall.

Information is crucial.

They learned about Wu Jinshui's background, his style of doing things, and his possible weaknesses.

But how to use this information, and whether it can be used at all, is another matter.

Who should we contact to deliver the message? What message should we deliver? Where is the bottom line for compromise?

What exactly does Mr. Li mean by a reassuring statement?

He crouched down, picked up a piece of broken brick, weighed it in his hand, and then threw it back into the bushes.

They had the intention to develop the project, but lacked the means to deal with the local bullies, and the contract was just a piece of paper.

In this industry, skills and capital are certainly important, but the information hidden in interpersonal relationships and local rules is often the key to whether you can get work and whether you can complete the work smoothly.

Keys are expensive, and sometimes you can't buy them even with money. You have to rely on connections, luck, or even your own risk-taking.

He stood up, dusted off his hands, and took one last look at the open space.

Once the factory is built, we can get the money...

Just as Gong Yuelong was about to turn and leave, three or four people emerged from the path leading to the back door.

He was wearing work clothes covered in grime, but his gait was loose and his eyes were darting around, unlike someone who was actually doing a serious job.

The leader was a dark-skinned, thin man in his early thirties with high cheekbones and a cigarette dangling from his mouth.

He spotted Gong Yuelong at a glance, paused, squinted to examine him closely, and then put on an expression that was hard to decipher, whether it was a smile or something else.

"Hey! Who do we have here!" he said loudly as he walked over, attracting a few people who gathered around him.

"Isn't this... Boss Gong? You've made it big? You're all here looking at big projects?"

Gong Yuelong stopped and looked at the person who had come.

Wu San.

I'd met him before when I frequented the labor market, but we weren't exactly close.

This man was a small-time contractor, but he was dishonest and often deducted money from his workers' wages. He also liked to take on dirty work that skirted the law, and he had a very bad reputation.

Later, I heard that he had climbed up to some big shot in the High-tech Zone, so he stopped competing for a living at the bottom of the labor market.

"Wu San." Gong Yuelong nodded, acknowledging the greeting.

"Look at him, it really is Boss Gong!"

Wu San walked closer, looked Gong Yuelong up and down, his gaze lingering on his clean and tidy clothes for a moment, then chuckled.

"I heard you've been doing quite well lately, starting your own team and even getting the necessary qualifications? Impressive!"

The sour undertone in his words was impossible to hide.

A blond-haired lad behind him chimed in, "Third Brother, who's this? I've seen him hanging around the market doing odd jobs a lot before!"

"Shut up." Wu San said, feigning a reprimand, then turned to Gong Yuelong and took half a step forward.

"Boss Gong, is this... you've got your eye on the new champion?"

He gestured with his chin towards the factory building. "This place is dangerous; it's not a good place to start."

"Just browsing." Gong Yuelong didn't want to get entangled with him any longer and prepared to leave.

"Don't rush off," Wu San said, gesturing for him to leave, his smile fading slightly.

"Since we've known each other before, let me give you a heads-up. Not everyone can handle things well in the High-Tech Zone. There are some rules you need to understand first. Otherwise, you might choke, understand?"

He has already put it very bluntly.

"Thanks." Gong Yuelong glanced at him, said nothing more, walked past them, and headed straight for where he had parked his car.

Wu San's voice came from behind, neither too loud nor too soft, with a hint of mockery:

"Some people, they've just climbed out of the mud and they think they can fly to the sky... They don't even know whose sky is above them."

The faint sounds of laughter from Huang Mao and his gang could be heard.

Gong Yuelong didn't stop walking. He opened the car door, got in, and started the car.

In the rearview mirror, Wu San and his group were still standing at the edge of the wasteland, looking this way and pointing.

Little devils are hard to deal with.

Wu San is a person who doesn't have much power, but he's like a rock in a latrine—stinky and hard. He's also a sentinel for those big devils to scout out and disgust people.

Mr. Li's test, Boss Wu's shadow, and now even henchmen like Wu San are jumping out to assert their presence.

With each step forward on this road, you can feel an invisible net tightening and more eyes watching from the shadows.

He stepped on the gas, and the car drove away from the factory area.

Information wasn't just in the hands of high-level connections like Jiang Yan, but also in the snippets of conversation and attitudes of low-level underlings like Wu San.

Wu San's arrogance precisely confirms Wu Laoda's control over that area, and also shows that he, as an outsider, has already attracted the attention of some people.

Who should I call next?

Yang Ruyan? Or... we should think of another way.

……

Gong Yuelong sank into consciousness.

Blue light appeared in my mind.

[Current Context: The target (Wu San) is linked to local power brokers in the High-Tech Zone and is behaving abnormally. A solution is needed.]

[Suggested approach: Routine contact is time-consuming and passive. A proactive strategy is advisable to create variables and observe reactions.]

Strategy Summary: Stir up trouble and alert the enemy.

Startle the enemy in the grass?!