Mong Kok is a place with numerous gangs, big and small, all clustered together. While it's not as large as Tai Po, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan, or the North District, it's bustling with high consumption. Often, the protection fees collected on a single street in a month almost equal those of dozens of streets in other areas. Currently, the gangs with a presence in Mong Kok include the big ones like Hong Xing, Tung Sing, and Number Help, as well as smaller ones like Hung Lok, Hung Tai, and Hop Tu. It's not wise to provoke gangs like Hong Xing, Tung Sing, and Number Help right now, so the target has to be those smaller ones.
Among those smaller gangs, Hung Tai has the largest territory - a whole four streets. To get Ah Bao promoted, Hung Tai is a good target. There's no need to take over the entire gang; just two streets will do. Didn't he just need two streets from Cheung Lok to get his position?
The main issue is that Ah Bao is too young, just like him. He hasn't been around long and his seniority is low. To climb the ranks, he needs to achieve something, otherwise he'll have to wait two or three years before getting promoted.
“Got it, I'll go and do it now.”
Just hearing that got Ah Bao fired up. As soon as Chen Dong finished speaking, he rushed out to find someone.
......
“Uncle Deng, I heard that you enjoy drinking tea, so I brought you some Da Hong Pao... ”
In the afternoon, assuming Ah Bao was busy sharpening his knife and unavailable, Chen Dong drove to Uncle Deng's house.
Uncle Deng didn't live in a grand mansion, but in an old building with a strong sense of history.
“Have you been to see Ah Tong today? How is he doing?”
After the servants left, Uncle Deng smiled while showcasing his tea-making skills.
Overall, he was quite optimistic about this young man. Otherwise, he wouldn't have shamelessly asked Ah Tong to take him in years ago. He had observed this young man's dedication to Ah Tong over the past month. He was even more satisfied with him because of it. They, the ones who started mixing it up in the 50s and 60s, valued loyalty above all else. This young man had shown respect for their generation in many ways - whether it was helping Ah Tong manage his assets, sending his children to school, or lending money to Ah Tong for his court case, even while his own territory was in chaos. These things were not seen in other people.
Unfortunately, he was too young and lacked power. Otherwise, Uncle Deng would have even considered making this young man the next leader.
Chen Dong looked at Uncle Deng, who was performing with a flourish, unaware of his thoughts. If he knew, he would have knocked that old geezer’s head off.
Be the leader of the gang?
If he could, he wouldn’t even want to be the leader of Mong Kok. Didn’t he know how tiring it was to manage so many underlings?
But the world of gangs was a cruel one, and this chance was right in front of him. If he didn’t take it, not only would others look down on him, but even his own subordinates wouldn’t respect him anymore.
“I went, just came back. Uncle Tong is doing okay, just that conditions in Chi Lin are harsh, he’s lost a lot of weight. I plan to continue appealing, see if I can get his sentence reduced by a few years. Uncle Tong is old, I’m worried he won’t be able to hold on.”
Chen Dong furrowed his brows and nodded.
“Ah...Ah Tong started following me when he was a teenager, and now so many years have passed. You are doing well, it's good that you have this heart. But there's no need. As the old saying goes, those who play the game, eventually have to pay the price. Ah Tong ending up like this was also his fate. At this age, a few more years or fewer years won’t make a difference. You handle that debt you have with Tung Sing. If you can’t do it yourself, I’ll take care of it. You are still young, no need to waste your time on us old guys. I know you’re being watched by the police. I’ll put in a good word for you later. ”
“You are a leader now, don’t act rashly. It’s not the era of the Four Great Detectives anymore, but you can’t be too low-key either. After all, we are the 14K, one of the biggest gangs.”
Uncle Deng nodded approvingly, but shook his head, and then spoke.
He might not have a chance in this election, but this young man was still young, and he could have another chance in the next one. So Uncle Deng decided to give him a nudge. He thought this young man was more suitable than Ah Lek or Big D. Firstly, he was Ah Tong's subordinate, meaning he was one of them. Secondly, as seen in the Ah Tong affair, he was loyal and respectful to their generation. The only problem was that this young man was too weak and needed to develop more.
“.... I want to get Ah Bao promoted. He’s been working hard for the gang for the past few years, and he’s made significant contributions to those two streets in Mong Kok. What do you think...”
Chen Dong was a little confused by Uncle Deng’s words. These old guys always talked in riddles, didn’t they know he was more familiar with farm machinery?
Was Uncle Deng hinting at something?
But regardless, he took the opportunity to speak, asking in a low voice,
“....Is he the young man who came with you to the headquarters that day? We are all old, it’s time to give the young ones a chance...please have some tea.”
Uncle Deng seemed to be recalling who Ah Bao was before slowly nodding his head.
“.......Good tea!”
Chen Dong picked up the cup and took a small sip in imitation of Uncle Deng. To be honest, he had no idea what kind of tea it was, it was bitter, but he copied what he saw on TV, no matter how good or bad it was, everyone praised it.
“....Oh? This bitter tea is not something young people can handle. I didn’t expect you to like it. I’ll have someone bring you some later.”
Uncle Deng looked at him in surprise, he didn’t know if he knew that Chen Dong was putting on an act.
“Cough, cough...uh, no need to bother, I rarely drink tea, taking it back would be a waste of your precious tea. There are still things to do on my territory, I won’t disturb your rest.”
Chen Dong almost choked, quickly stood up and made his excuses.
“...He he, this young man is quite clever.”
After Chen Dong left, Uncle Deng poured himself another cup of tea and sipped it slowly.
He had thought that his hints were not direct enough and that this young man wouldn’t understand, after all, schools barely taught classical Chinese anymore.
He didn't expect that this young man was not only capable of fighting but also understood his subtle hints.
.........
“Damn, talking to these old guys is so tiring.”
Walking out of the house, Chen Dong thought to himself as he walked on the road in the movie “Initial D”. These old guys were better at taking corners than Takumi Fujiwara himself. If it wasn’t for his exceptional understanding, he probably wouldn't have understood them.
From what Uncle Deng had said, he was pretty sure Uncle Deng was hinting at him, wanting him to grow stronger and achieve greater things.
But he couldn't quite figure out what Uncle Deng meant. Did he think that Big D, who liked to fish without a helmet, was too powerful, and was pushing him forward to challenge Big D?
No way! Wouldn’t that make him the “佐敦画饼乐” (someone who promises a lot but delivers nothing)?