[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-shadow-empire":3,"chapter-the-shadow-empire-the-shadow-empire-chapter-54":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Shadow Empire",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2267674,4428,"Chapter 54","the-shadow-empire-chapter-54",54,"\u003Cp>A sandwich with ham, tomato, and egg is tastier than plain bread.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the afternoon, a group of young people walked down the street, holding ham-and-egg sandwiches fresh from the bakery, each face lit with a smile called “happiness.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were poor; even if they could afford ham-and-egg sandwiches, they wouldn’t buy them, because spending fifteen cents on food that barely filled their stomachs was less likely than spending five cents to actually fill it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Life is not a romantic thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially when you’re poor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If someone tells you that even a poor life is romantic, then think: what do you have that they might greedily want?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The path full of infinite possibilities and vitality, still capable of being developed into multiple functions, is the grain channel.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The trials life demands go beyond merely having the determination to keep walking through hardship—they also require thought, even of your bottom line.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>These young people, around twenty years old, who had probably eaten the best thing in their lives—a pound of beef for one dollar—tasted ham for the first time. Though only a few thin slices, it was enough to fill them with new hope for the future.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“It’s delicious,” Enio couldn’t help exclaiming, his cheeks bulging, “I’ve never eaten food like this—it’s far tastier than I imagined!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked down at the sandwich. “I can’t describe the taste—there’s a hint of smoke, and a unique aroma that keeps rising from my mouth.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The air I breathe out now smells like ham!” He exhaled, sniffed, and nearly gagged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mix of bad breath and ham flavor instantly ruined his appetite.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike Enio’s showy enthusiasm, Mo Lisi said nothing. He ate slowly. Though his mother earned well, he, too, had never eaten a ham sandwich.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This taste gave him… an unreal feeling, and within him stirred a quiet longing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If he had more money, he and his family would surely feel as happy as he did now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other kids all chimed in. This breakfast cost them over a dollar, but they didn’t feel it was extravagant—they each earned over ten dollars a day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s about two dollars per person on average.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Earning two dollars a day and spending fifteen cents on a delicious meal isn’t a big problem.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After finishing the sandwiches, the young men stood at the alley’s mouth. Enio pulled out cigarettes from his pocket, handed one to each, and soon they huddled together, puffing clouds of smoke.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Arriving at the alley destined to be full of “money,” Enio knocked on the wooden door. Click. A small iron panel slid open, revealing a pair of eyes behind it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“We’re here to hang out—we just came yesterday, you must’ve seen us,” Enio said, glancing at his friends with casual familiarity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The guard closed the peephole, opened the wooden door, and revealed a man they’d never seen before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He looked serious, scanning each of them with cold disinterest, then slowly stepped aside just enough to let them pass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enio’s gaze lingered on him for a moment, then he led his friends inside the gambling den.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The big man didn’t shut the door immediately. He stepped outside, glanced around, then returned, locking the door behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the group descended the stairs, they didn’t notice how unusually quiet it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yesterday, halfway down, they’d already heard the noisy chaos below—but now, only the echo of footsteps remained.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When they reached the gambling den, Enio stared in confusion at the empty space—no gamblers anywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few enforcers sat or stood beside the tables; the dealers were cleaning up the games.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the center of the den, on a sofa, a man leaned forward, idly playing with a pistol.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enio sensed something was wrong. He tried to back out—but the big doorkeeper had already blocked the stairs. They couldn’t escape.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gambling den owner sized up the young men. He recognized Mo Lisi—he often saw him here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Others he might have seen somewhere else, vaguely familiar, but not many.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He leaned back against the sofa. “Yesterday, you offered loans to my customers in my gambling den.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a declarative statement, tone absolute: “You broke the rules. You overstepped.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The enforcers all stood. Some held baseball bats; others carried daggers. The young men were terrified.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Enio trembled slightly. Though he’d once fought for his friends at school, this was probably the most violent thing he’d ever done.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To them, this might seem terrifying—but to these lawbreakers, it was just childish squabbling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I… didn’t know there were rules. This was my first time,” Enio tried to explain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The gambling den owner pulled out a half-smoked cigar from his pocket, relit it, and tilted his chin. “Give our young friends a lesson…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the afternoon, Lans returned from the Commercial Services Bureau. He had registered a labor intermediary company: “Wanli Labor Intermediary.” Its official scope was recruiting workers and leasing labor—though the paperwork wouldn’t state it so bluntly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jincheng City had many such companies; some had grown large and successful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the city’s infrastructure and development, launching this now might be too late—the biggest slice of the cake had already been snatched by others.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But for Lans, it wasn’t too late—he had his own resources.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Back at the office, he found Mo Lisi crouched by the door, Mei Luo soothing him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What happened?” Lans walked over. Both stood instantly, revealing Mo Lisi’s bruised and swollen face—he’d clearly been beaten badly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who did this to you?” he asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mo Lisi gritted his teeth. “The gambling den owner. He said we shouldn’t do business in his den. He beat us, took all our money, and held the others captive. He sent me to find you—he said you must intervene, or they’ll kill Enio and the others!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As he spoke, his body trembled slightly—either from recalling the horror, or from rage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans’s eyebrows rose. Doing business in another’s gambling den… that was indeed improper. But to beat them, steal their money, and threaten to kill the youths? That seemed excessive—likely just intimidation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He handed his documents to Mei Luo. “I’ll go check it out.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mei Luo took them, worried. “Will it be dangerous?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans shook his head. “Don’t worry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had Mo Lisi get in the car, then drove off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, he made Mo Lisi recount everything from the past two days—including what happened after they were captured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...My father always loses when he gambles, and every time I go, I see people losing everything, begging for loans. So I thought we could build something there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“...We were beaten. They wouldn’t listen to our explanations. Then they asked which company we worked for. We didn’t say.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mo Lisi stole a glance at Lans. “Enio didn’t speak at first—but when they broke his arm, he couldn’t hold back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans drove silently, listening, nodding. Soon, the car stopped outside Le Zhu.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wait in the car for a few minutes. I’ll be right back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>About Enio “betraying” him—he didn’t think it was excessive. In a sense, he and Enio were just business partners; the other had no obligation to sacrifice himself to protect him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So when he heard Enio had only spoken after his arm was broken, he didn’t get angry—he thought the boy was foolish.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was going to come out eventually. Why wait until after being tortured?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But perhaps this was also a young person’s belief—his stubbornness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Hi,” the receptionist, a pretty girl, gave Lans a half-hearted wave, then lowered her head to solve a crossword puzzle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans entered the lounge. Fu Dis was playing pinball. Seeing him, Fu Dis immediately dropped the game and hurried over to hug him. “I didn’t hear you were coming?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your boys’ last job was a bit crude—not as refined as yours—but thankfully, it ended well.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans nodded twice. He wasn’t here to discuss that. “Can I borrow a gun?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Dis’s expression hardened, then turned serious. “Weapons aren’t a problem. Need help?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans shook his head. “Minor trouble. A few friends got detained by an underground gambling den. I’m going to check it out.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Dis was slightly surprised. “If that den isn’t authorized by the Koda family, you can report it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“They’ll pay you money and handle the problem for you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a good idea. Lans asked, “How long would that take?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Two or three days. Sometimes they act more like government agencies than an organization—they’re nowhere near as efficient as a gang!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t have time. I’ll get them out first, then consider other options.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By the way, give me a knife too.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Dis thought for a moment. “If you need our help, tell me. I’m sure even the boss would be happy to assist you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He turned and walked toward the yard. “Come with me…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They crossed the yard to the second floor—somewhere Lans had never been. A large, bearded man in overalls was working at a hand-cranked lathe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Do you have a safe handgun?” Fu Dis asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bearded man glanced at him. “You’re using it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Dis tilted his head, pulled a revolver from a nearby cabinet, walked to the “counter,” and placed it down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He leaned both hands on the counter, head slightly tilted. “McGrath Police Revolver. Cops use these. Hit a vital point, it’s lethal. No serial number. I re-rifled the barrel—won’t link to any other case.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course, I hope if you get caught, you don’t drag us into it.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A stranger taking a gun meant he was going to “work.” He had to clarify things upfront.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lans nodded, checked the gun. “Can you fire two shots?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The bearded man pointed to a target on the far wall. “Of course.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After paying one hundred fifty dollars, Lans left with the gun, a box of bullets, and a speedloader.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fu Dis gave him a simple knife—ordinary, but sharp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mo Lisi saw Lans return with the gun. His panic vanished instantly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his mind, a gun meant absolute power.\u003C\u002Fp>",1656,"2026-06-19T21:10:27.799Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","6c6fd687408c95cb34585694c0c120e3403e95b69583727bbd78a8b4c50e307b","the-shadow-empire-chapter-55","the-shadow-empire-chapter-53",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-shadow-empire-cover.jpg"]