Being carried onto an ambulance at the start? But this is America!

Fletcher and Devon were in the backyard, along with six newly recruited street youths.

Two Black men, three White men, and a burly Mexican-American.

One of the young white men had dark circles under his eyes; he was said to be an honest man who used to be bullied by the Shield Gang.

Seeing Li Ping approach, Fletcher raised an eyebrow and gestured towards the six men with his lip.

"Everyone, perk up, the boss's here."

"Hello, boss!"

The six people shouted in unison, their eyes filled with curiosity and suspicion as they looked at Li Ping and the others.

It's rare to see two Asian leaders. Do most Asians go to Chinatown's Koreatown?

However, upon seeing Li Ping's tall stature and strong physique, and the even taller and more athletic Li Fan following behind him, they immediately became obedient.

Let alone the boss, you'd know they're not to be messed with if you saw them on the street.

"From now on, call him Boss."

Li Ping corrected him, his voice low but clear, "We are not a gang, we are a cooperative association."

Follow me, and you'll have plenty of serious work to do—cleaning, moving, recycling, and shop management.

Our goal is to earn clean money, sleep soundly, and live like a human being, understand?

The six men looked at each other, their expressions even more strange, but they still shouted loudly.

"Hello, boss!" *6

I'm just trying to make a living on the streets, and this is the first time I've ever heard of the terms "boss" and "legitimate job."

Looking at Devon and Li Fan, who stood like iron towers behind Li Ping, it was clear that this gang was quite powerful; whatever the boss said went.

Of course, if it's true, that would be even more exciting.

They weren't hotheads; after years of roaming the streets, they were well past the age of youthful exuberance.

They have never been exposed to drugs and are all people who yearn for a normal life.

They would be more than happy if their boss could take them out onto the streets.

"Alright, go do what you're supposed to do and keep an eye on our territory."

Li Ping waved his hand, showing no interest in further motivation.

The pie has been drawn; whether they can actually eat it depends on their next choice.

After his underlings left, Fletcher pulled Li Ping aside and quickly described the work he had done that morning.

It had a somewhat boastful tone.

"Boss, taking over Franklin's shop this morning is like planting a flag on Eighth Street."

"With the White Ravens and the Holy Shield gone, there are plenty of empty spaces available, and other homeless gangs are vying for them."

"In addition, we quickly occupied the back alley of Fiery Rose and took over the Seventh Block. Together with those two recycling points, we are now nominally all our territory."

"Should we take two more streets? If we act now, we're very confident of success!"

With the downfall of two major street gangs, there are now many people vying for territory, and the area is currently in a land grab.

There has been no major conflict yet.

Li Ping shook his head: "We have enough territory. We are a cooperative, and two blocks plus the recycling point are enough for us to handle. Let's secure what we have first."

He paused, then asked, "How are things going with Mike and Tom?"

"Mike is reliable!"

Fletcher gave a thumbs up. "Mike found two veterans, and Tom took them to see the recycling point."

Those two veterans were burly men in their thirties, unlucky guys who had been kicked out of the family by their wives after they had taken their money. They were tough guys, and the Shield Gang had tried to recruit them before but failed.

Mike is now contacting other veterans.

Li Ping nodded, feeling much more at ease upon hearing that so many people had joined.

When Michael wasn't drinking, he was indeed a reliable person.

With their familiarity with the area and without the obstruction of any gangs, doing these things was a breeze.

It's still a bit surreal; I never imagined that I would go from being a penniless homeless person to building a cooperative with a team of more than a dozen people, occupying two blocks, two recycling points, and a grocery store so quickly.

But Li Ping knew very well that this kind of alliance based on interests was very fragile.

Devon wanted stability, Fletcher wanted to make a name for himself, Mike wanted to find something to prove he wasn't useless, Old Tom wanted to use his skills to earn money, and his underlings were just trying to make a living.

If this boss doesn't quickly give everyone hope and real money, the team will fall apart.

It's time to keep our promise.

"I've taken on a moving job for tomorrow. It's for a middle-class couple, introduced by the church."

Li Ping snapped out of his daze and said to Devon and Fletcher, "Devin, you come with me and Li Fan. Fletcher, you stay here and watch the streets."

"Okay, boss!"

Devon smiled simply; he couldn't be happier to have a proper job.

This is a good beginning.

Fletcher grinned and said, "Boss, you have a good eye for people. I'm better suited to keeping an eye on things on the street. Those kids get too cocky without me watching them."

Li Ping nodded. These tedious street chores were best left to Fletcher, who was familiar with the rules.

Moreover, this is what he is most interested in and good at.

Fletcher then added the Li brothers to a WordPress group, which was a street chat group for their cooperative association.

As times change, the way gangs communicate remains simple and unpretentious.

This thing works similarly to a WeChat group, and Li Ping was warmly welcomed after joining.

The younger members call him "boss" in the group chat, and they're much more active online than offline, which is quite pleasant.

The gang is newly formed, and there is still much to be done.

After understanding the current situation, Li Ping concluded, "Let's meet again tonight to see how the street's revenue is and then decide on our future plans."

With the arrangements made, everyone dispersed.

Fletcher led his men to familiarize themselves with the territory, while Devon and Li Fan, two giants, accompanied them with their underlings.

The two men, wearing thick-soled work boots that Fletcher had somehow gotten his hands on, looked to be over two meters tall, like two moving iron towers, as they patrolled the seventh and eighth blocks.

Its sheer size and silent presence alone are enough to scare away many ill-intentioned individuals.

Li Ping didn't go out with them. He wandered around the grocery store slowly. He wasn't really just a street hustler; he let them do whatever they wanted.

Franklin followed behind, showing Li Ping various goods, afraid of being abandoned.

The selection is indeed comprehensive, ranging from snacks and drinks to simple tools, from cheap clothing to secondhand small appliances, like a mini department store.

But all of this was built on the $100,000 loan that Franklin took out, plus $80,000 in various payments and $20,000 in rent.

It's not worth it at all. These goods are worth at most $40,000, and the rest has long since been spent somewhere else.

The Shield gang isn't any better; they squeeze every last drop of value out of people.

Unfortunately, the gang's other assets, such as the strongholds of the gang leader and several other core members, had long been cleared out by the police, leaving them with nothing.

Turning to the corner of the warehouse, Li Ping saw a pile of bright orange T-shirts, in all sizes.

An idea suddenly popped into his head: their team was missing something iconic.

He immediately contacted Zack and asked him to use AI to design a simple logo: a simple silhouette of a bridge with the word "Cooperation Association" in bold capital letters below.

The pattern features strong lines and is highly recognizable.

"Where can I get this logo printed on all these T-shirts?"

Li Ping said to Franklin, "Print some more business cards, with the name of the cooperative association and our contact number on them."

"Boss, what's this?" Franklin was a little confused.

"Work clothes and business cards."

Li Ping picked up an orange T-shirt and gestured with it, "Everyone should wear this when we go out to work tomorrow. When we're working, it'll be called 'Working Guy'."

At first glance, you can tell they're cooperative, professional in their work, and honest people.

He could almost see a group of strong young men in matching orange T-shirts methodically moving furniture and cleaning the yard.

Franklin was surprised to find that his boss actually intended to develop in that direction.

"Print fifty copies first," Li Ping decided.

This small investment is worthwhile.

Franklin knew this neighborhood well and told Li Ping about a place.

In the end, Li Ping spent two hundred dollars to personally handle these matters.

I also sold the gold necklace while I was there.

With gold priced at $55 per gram, and the necklace weighing a full 28 grams, the purchase would yield $1,500.

My savings instantly reached four thousand!