Lu Liang, wearing a formal suit and carrying his resume, entered through the main doors of the Police Affairs Department headquarters with a complex expression on his face.
It was his first time stepping onto police turf as a member of the underworld, and the situation felt as absurd as a mouse coming to pay New Year’s respects to a cat.
The benefits of the Great Good Citizen Certificate were simply too tempting—Lu Liang had no choice but to take the risk.
He had considered whether this might be a trap, but in the end, he thought, if it was a trap, then he’d just go out with Lin Deqing in a blaze.
Better both lose than let one win alone.
“Are you here to apply for the position of Cleaner?”
The security guard at the entrance glanced at Lu Liang’s attire, clearly no stranger to such sights.
After confirming whether he was here for the job, the guard let him in:
“Go wait in the lounge first. When it’s your turn, you’ll be called.”
Entering the lounge, Lu Liang was a bit worried—his slightly roguish image might not sit well with the interviewer—but as soon as he saw the other candidates, he realized he’d been overthinking.
In the room, there was a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair, black suit, sunglasses—a classic 90s gangster look.
There was a burly man with a toothpick dangling from his mouth, a few knife scars on his face, and a beefy, intimidating aura.
There was a yellow-haired rookie, looking uneasy, hands tightly clasped as he glanced around nervously—a typical newbie thug.
And there was a well-dressed, scholarly scoundrel, exuding a refined yet sinister air.
To sum it up in two lines: there wasn’t a single good citizen among them; they were all villains. Compared to them, Lu Liang seemed almost human.
He casually took a seat beside the yellow-haired rookie and quietly waited for his turn.
“Hey, bro, what should I call you?”
The yellow-haired guy glanced at Lu Liang.
Among all the oddballs here, Lu Liang looked the most normal, which made the yellow-haired one feel a sense of kinship in a foreign land.
“Lu Liang.”
Lu Liang gave the yellow-haired guy a quick look and replied.
“Oh, I’m Lu Fengsheng. I hang out around North Alley Street. Bro, if you ever run into trouble over there, just use my name—call me Brother Lu, I’ve got your back.”
This yellow-haired kid looked about high school age, right in the prime of being young and rebellious.
When he smiled, his teeth were bright and white—not so much roguish, but rather innocent and inexperienced.
“Mm.”
Lu Liang replied politely.
“Hey, bro, since I’ve said I’ll look out for you,” Lu Fengsheng suddenly lowered his voice and said mysteriously, “Can you help me check my resume? I’m worried I messed something up.”
Lu Liang’s mouth twitched, but he didn’t refuse the request.
Taking the resume, Lu Liang quickly scanned it and pointed to several places on the paper:
“Here, here, and here—these are all typos.”
“Damn!” Lu Ansheng’s eyes widened:
“Sorry, bro, I dropped out of middle school and started running with a gang. Sigh, my old teacher always said if you don’t study, even gangsters won’t want you. Seems he was right… How do I fix this? Bro, could you help me correct it?”
Lu Liang decided to just be helpful to the end and corrected each typo for Lu Ansheng.
If you divided all yellow-haired thugs in the world into two types, one would be those with zero social skills who instinctively mocked everyone and hit on every girl they saw.
Lu Ansheng was definitely the second type—a rare high-EQ yellow-haired thug.
As Lu Liang corrected his mistakes, Lu Ansheng provided plenty of emotional value—every time Lu Liang fixed a character, he praised him for it.
“Impressive, bro, you can write this character too!”
Lu Ansheng gave him a thumbs up:
“Bro, did you graduate high school?”
“No, I graduated from university.”
“What! University graduate!” A trace of shock flashed in Lu Ansheng’s eyes.
Not just him—upon hearing this, the other candidates nearby all turned to look at Lu Liang, their eyes filled with wariness.
They hadn’t expected a university graduate to show up among this nest of hidden dragons and crouching tigers!
Damn, in this world where academic qualifications are everything, didn’t this mean Lu Liang had a major advantage others lacked?
Thinking of Lu Liang as a strong competitor, the other gangsters—most with only elementary or middle school diplomas—began eyeing him with increasing hostility.
Some even stood up from their seats, glaring menacingly at Lu Liang.
If they could just get rid of Lu Liang now…
“Hey! Hey! What do you think you’re doing!”
Sensing the tension in the air, with the burly thugs on the verge of action, Lu Ansheng grew anxious.
He instinctively looked toward the police officers at the door, hoping they’d notice the situation, but to his surprise, the officers only laughed and chatted, making no move to intervene—as if they were treating whatever was about to happen as their entertainment for the day.
Seeing that the officers weren’t going to stop anything, Lu Ansheng had no choice but to brace himself and stand protectively in front of Lu Liang.
Faced with the hostile stares of the big guys around them, Lu Ansheng’s legs trembled subconsciously, but he gritted his teeth and didn’t back down.
After all, he’d just said he’d cover for Lu Liang—if he chickened out now, wouldn’t he lose face? How could he keep hanging out on the street?
“I’m warning you, don’t touch him. I’m covering this bro—come on, we’re all in the business, let’s give each other some respect.”
Seeing Lu Ansheng’s stance, Lu Liang was actually the one who froze in surprise. He hadn’t expected that at this crucial moment, the yellow-haired kid would really stand up for him.
He had underestimated the yellow-haired thugs of the world.
“Actually, you don’t need to stand up for me…”
Lu Liang patted Lu Ansheng on the shoulder.
Ever since he became a mutant, his body had fundamentally changed—these ordinary people might not even be able to beat him.
“No need, bro, thanks for your concern. But don’t worry, I said I’d look out for you, so I will.”
Hearing Lu Liang’s attempt to dissuade him, Lu Ansheng was so moved he was nearly in tears.
Honestly, he was already starting to regret stepping up, but thankfully, this bro was a straight shooter and didn’t just leave him hanging!
But if he backed off now, wouldn’t he seem too cowardly? Lu Ansheng forced himself to look calm, deciding that after Lu Liang tried to persuade him one more time, he’d “reluctantly” back down.
But unexpectedly, after he said his piece, Lu Liang just nodded and didn’t try to stop him again.
Lu Ansheng instantly wanted to smack his own big mouth.
Just as the atmosphere was getting more tense by the second, suddenly, the Police Affairs Department director’s office door opened:
“Next applicant, please come in.”
Upon hearing the voice, the burly men nearby sat back down and stopped causing trouble.
Lu Ansheng heaved a sigh of relief and put on a troubled expression:
“Bro, it’s not that I don’t want to help you, but it’s my turn for the interview. Be careful by yourself, if anyone tries anything, I’ll stand up for you when I get out.”
Lu Liang nodded with interest—this yellow-haired kid was pretty amusing.
Lu Ansheng entered the office, and the person who had been inside before also came out.
He was about to return to his seat, but when he caught sight of Lu Liang, he stopped.
Then, grinding his teeth, he sat down next to Lu Ansheng’s empty seat.
“What a small world!”
“You’re…” Noticing someone suddenly sitting beside him, someone who seemed to recognize him, Lu Liang thought for a moment and suddenly recalled the name:
“You’re Yaomou?”
“I’m called Night Owl! Do you remember what you did to me in the sewers?”
Night Owl exploded, cursing:
“Brat, to think I’d run into you here. Heh, the grudge from the sewers—I never thought I’d get my chance for revenge so soon!”
“You sure you want to do this here?”
Lu Liang glanced around the room, implying something.
“Heh…” Night Owl considered, then suddenly sneered:
“No, I won’t deal with you here. But, you’re here for the Black Glove position, right? Bet you didn’t know—the Black Glove spot was reserved for me a long time ago…”
“Hmm?”
Lu Liang frowned, realizing things weren’t so simple:
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t worry, you’ll find out soon enough.”
“Riddler, get out of Gotham City.”
Lu Liang hated Riddler the most. He grabbed Night Owl by the shoulder:
“I want to know right now.”
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