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After sending off Brother Leopard, Zhang Qiu led everyone back to White Day Fire. The electric roller shutter closed again, and outside the door, police cars passed by with sirens blaring.
"Brothers," Zhang Qiu said loudly as he looked at the crowd in the hall, "I apologize for the inconvenience tonight. Those who want to continue playing can stay on the first floor all night, while those who wish to rest can go to the second floor; there are sofas in the private rooms."
Only a small portion of people chose to rest; most opted to stay up all night. For many, it was their first time in a bar—not that they didn't want to come before, but their financial situation had not allowed it. Now that they had the benefit of enjoying the bar for free, they certainly didn't want to miss out.
Despite having gone through a tumultuous event, White Day Fire still operated effectively. At the beginning of the conflict, the staff had retreated to the second floor under cover; apart from two waiters standing by the door, no one was injured. At this moment, the male waiter was impeccably dressed while the female waiters were dressed in various costumes, leaving the students who had been cooped up in classrooms wide-eyed with amazement.
After the turmoil, there was much to discuss among the brothers. Zhang Qiu, Yang Yu, Gao Zhi, Zhao Pingchuan, Wang Zhengxiang, Yao Yu, Rui Rui, Jiang Xue, Taolengman, and Tao Ya gathered in the Second Floor Office. The sofa that was usually sufficient now felt extra spacious.
"Brother Qiu, congratulations!" Gao Zhi said cheerfully to Zhang Qiu. "This time, we really hit it big."
"Yeah, Brother Qiu. I didn't expect us to develop this quickly."
"…"
The brothers exchanged words while Zhang Qiu remained silent. Brother Leopard had entrusted him with what remained of the Stone Dagger Gang's territory and brothers, which indeed significantly strengthened Hall Society's capabilities. However, good fortune often comes with hidden dangers.
With Stone Dagger Gang in disarray and leaderless, would these people obey a student organization’s orders? If not handled properly, they could become more of a liability than an asset. Furthermore, Hall Society's rising fame would inevitably attract attention from other forces. As Zhang Qiu had experienced before, with limited resources available—like a cake that could only be divided so many ways—conflict was unavoidable. Additionally, his uncle He Jun's upcoming actions posed the greatest threat.
"Brother Qiu, what are you thinking about? Your brow is almost furrowing into your forehead!"
"Huh?" Zhang Qiu looked at Gao Zhi. "I was thinking about what happened tonight."
"Although tonight was a bit grim, the gains are still quite evident."
"That's true. Since we're on this topic, let's discuss it together." Zhang Qiu straightened up and said, "Brothers, while the situation seems stable for now, there are still hidden dangers everywhere. This thrilling counterattack has revealed our shortcomings. Next, let’s focus on discussing what areas we need to improve and which aspects we did well."
Zhang Qiu's words were taken seriously. Yang Yu, Gao Zhi, Zhao Pingchuan, and Wang Zhengxiang were already accustomed to Zhang Qiu's style. Ever since the Ancient City Battle, Zhang Qiu had fully embraced the tradition of summarizing experiences.
"Brother Qiu, I believe our intelligence capabilities are quite weak," Wang Zhengxiang was the first to speak. "I usually prefer to give orders and conquer; it's not that I want to talk about games, I'm just using it as an example. When I play in America, I always deploy drones at the start, so I know exactly where the enemy is coming from. I think we should establish our own intelligence system moving forward; we can't always wait until something happens to find out, that's too passive."
"That's right, it makes a lot of sense. This is indeed my oversight. The heroes in Water Margin were already opening hotels at Liangshan Marsh to gather information. Now that our organization has developed to this scale, it's time for us to establish our own intelligence system as well. However, we don't have any experience with intelligence systems, so we'll have to explore it slowly. It's okay if it takes time, as long as we get started."
"Zhang Qiu, let us at Butterfly Hall handle the intelligence," Jiang Xue volunteered actively. "We at Butterfly Hall are girls, and we have an advantage in this area compared to you guys."
"Xue'er, you aren't planning to use seduction tactics, are you?"
"Cut it out!" Jiang Xue shot him a glare. "If that's what you think, then I wouldn't dare to do it."
"Come on, I'm just joking with you. Alright, you can take care of the intelligence work; if you need any assistance, I'll fully support you."
"Hehe." Jiang Xue smiled gently and agreed with Zhang Qiu.
"Brother Qiu, I have something to add as well. Based on today's situation, our bar's defenses are clearly weak. There was an incident before where a stranger came in with a gun; we couldn't stop that. Today, Mao Tong brought people in with knives, and we still couldn't defend ourselves. This won't do. I believe we need to strengthen our defenses," Rui Rui responded very proactively. She thought about this issue every time the bar faced an attack.
"That's good; our bar has been focusing on economic matters lately, which has indeed left us vulnerable in terms of defense. I've seen their defenses at Azure Blue Rose; their allocation is quite good. We can borrow some ideas from them." Zhang Qiu shared what he observed that night at Azure Blue Rose with everyone. He also mentioned that spotlights must be installed on the rooftop and that no fewer than five people should be stationed there.
Gao Zhi was puzzled about the need for rooftop guards and said, "Brother Qiu, is it really necessary to assign people to the rooftop? It's fine now since it's summer, but when autumn comes and it gets cold up there, it'll be quite uncomfortable."
"When it's time to endure discomfort, we must endure it. Of course, we can't be too harsh; let's have the Brothers take turns guarding the rooftop and pay triple wages based on holiday overtime standards. You all might not know this, but I was able to bring down Chen Hu with the help of the police because no one was guarding the top of Blue Enchantress Building. So I'm quite afraid other gangs might try the same tactic."
The Brothers only knew that Zhang Qiu had obtained a police banner—the banner hung in the office where everyone could see it coming and going. But no one knew why Zhang Qiu received the banner—he had never explained the reason.
"Don't worry, Brother Qiu; I'll personally ensure the rooftop defense work is implemented," Yang Yu volunteered.
"Good. Next, we need to discuss incorporating the Stone Dagger Gang brothers into our group. I have a concern: we're all recent graduates; will these older individuals with more life experience be willing to listen to us?"
"Brother Qiu, I've been thinking about this issue since Brother Leopard brought it up. I believe we should disperse these individuals and evenly distribute them among the various halls. By breaking up their collective, it will make our unified leadership much more manageable and minimize potential risks."
"Zhao Pingchuan is right; we should indeed disperse these people. As soon as dawn breaks, we will start this work immediately. You all have memorized the political textbooks during class, right?" Zhang Qiu smiled as he looked around at everyone. "I don't care how you guide them; within a month, I want these individuals to fully integrate into the collective."
Zhao Pingchuan chuckled, "Brother Qiu, isn't this politics? It's history!"
"Exactly, history tends to repeat itself in unexpected ways."
After discussing the major aspects, everyone reached a consensus. They continued to discuss other matters with great enthusiasm. With the college entrance examination over, they were free from the constraints of studying and had more time to devote to club activities. More importantly, the club was advancing at an astonishing pace.
Initially, the goal was to repay Brother Leopard one million before the exams, which was already considered an achievement. Looking back now, that target was clearly set too low. The Hall Society was worth far more than a million; after acquiring the assets of the Stone Dagger Gang, they had ten times that amount.
Zhang Qiu looked at the excited brothers and felt a surge of motivation within himself. However, he did not let victory cloud his judgment. Behind the flourishing success, Zhang Qiu saw danger and challenges ahead. If the Hall Society did not move forward, his burdens would only increase. Without caring that it was already midnight, Zhang Qiu dialed Liu Fangfei's number.
"Zhang Qiu, what's wrong? Calling me so late—do you need something?"
In a rented apartment in D City, Liu Fangfei sat at her desk with a warm-toned lamp casting a gentle glow over her. In front of her was a lightweight business laptop; she was reviewing a draft while answering the call.
"Sorry for disturbing you so late, sis. Are you still awake?"
"No worries; there's no need to be polite with me. I'm still awake. There hasn't been much news lately; I've been racking my brain trying to find a topic." Liu Fangfei stretched lazily; she had unknowingly been sitting in front of the computer for two hours, yet her document still hadn't reached four digits.
"You called me this late because you have something to discuss?" Liu Fangfei asked.
"Indeed I do; I have some topic suggestions for you. I just don't know if they'll be suitable."
"You." Liu Fangfei's eyes lit up; she had a feeling that whatever Zhang Qiu wanted was extraordinary. She had been worried about not having good ideas herself.
After the eleven-day holiday, Liu Fangfei's work at the Newspaper was going smoothly, having published several impactful articles. The incident involving Wang Guodong being imprisoned in Beilan County added a layer of prestige to Liu Fangfei; whenever her name appeared in the newspaper, sales would soar. This was also why Liu Fangfei was working late—her superiors wanted her to write, but there were no suitable topics.
"Just two hours ago, chaos erupted in Beilan County as two major gangs clashed, resulting in dozens of fights. The Daylight Fire Bar where I was located was caught in the crossfire. Hundreds of students were gathered here, and despite our attempts to identify ourselves, the opposing group still targeted our students."
"Zhang Qiu!" Liu Fangfei interrupted him, "Are you okay?"
Zhang Qiu felt warmth in his heart and replied, "I'm fine, Fei Jie. Don't worry."
"That's good to hear. Go on; let me see if I can come up with some ideas for writing."
"The students fought back bravely, and the staff at White Day Fire did everything they could to protect them, with nearly everyone getting injured. In the end, we held out until the police arrived."
"That’s a great story!" Liu Fangfei told Zhang Qiu directly. "Please write a detailed document about what happened and send it to my email. Make sure to emphasize how the staff at White Day Fire protected the students. You've written for the newspaper before, so I believe you can handle this. I'll take care of the editing; it will definitely get published!"
"Okay, I'll write it right now. I’ll also send you the photos."
"Photos too? That's wonderful." Liu Fangfei loved news articles that were rich in both text and images.
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