stjorthotic Chapter 63 A homeless man walking his dog in a downpour?
Chapter 63 A homeless man walking his dog in a downpour?
Lin Simon stopped the car, pulled Marcus back, and returned to the camp.
Marcus was soaked to the bone, his wounds were white from being soaked in the rain, and he could barely stand.
Lin Simon threw him to the ground and kicked his leg: "Tell me, where are the hamburger toppings?"
According to Marcus, Simon Lin learned that the Black Penguin Group had stored all the hamburger ingredients in a warehouse on Delas Street and had left several team members to guard them.
Wow, they've hidden so many good things!
Gloria leaned closer, her face full of amazement. She hadn't expected the Black Penguin team to have so many burger ingredients hidden away.
This level of team management is something few homeless groups in the entire poor neighborhood can match.
Riley exclaimed, "How many jars would we have to collect to get all this meat patty and toppings?"
Jerome's mouth watered at the thought, his mind filled with images of sizzling, oily meat patties.
Lin Simon was satisfied with everyone's reaction. He wasted no more time and stepped forward to deliver a heavy punch to one of Marcus's team members. The three underlings instantly rolled their eyes back and passed out.
Only Marcus was still swaying slightly. Without saying a word, Simon Lin delivered another punch, knocking Marcus unconscious.
"All done," Lin Ximeng clapped his hands and announced to everyone in the camp.
"How about I go and bring back all the hamburger ingredients from that warehouse?"
Isidora frowned upon hearing this: "Buddy, you're crazy. This is dangerous. We'll completely offend the Black Penguin and face a furious retaliation."
Gloria was also somewhat worried: "It felt good to beat them up just now, but that was self-defense. But if we went to their door and tried to rob them, wouldn't that be a different story?"
Riley said, "It's just some hamburgers. Simon, if you want some, I've saved up some money from collecting cans these past few days, I'll treat you to some later."
Simon Lin shook his head slightly, indicating that he didn't want to eat a hamburger.
He scanned the crowd and said, word by word,
"As you all know, the Black Penguin has wanted to take over our bridge camp for a long time, but he just hasn't found the opportunity to do so yet."
Their willingness to send a small team to their door this time is a test.
If we keep backing down and don't retaliate, we're doomed.
These words hit the nail on the head, and Gloria and Isidora both fell silent.
Jeff nodded in agreement first, but his tone still held hesitation: "You're right, constantly taking hits isn't a solution, but why today?"
Lin Ximeng smiled and added, "
Because today's heavy rain is the best opportunity.
With such heavy rain, there will be traffic jams. Coupled with the food shortage, there will definitely be many homeless people coming out tonight to find food and warmth. The streets of Los Angeles will be much more chaotic than usual.
We were the first to raid the hamburger toppings, but we won't be the only camp.
"By then, with so many people rushing to rob the warehouse, they won't be able to distinguish who stole it, and naturally won't be able to retaliate against us precisely."
Lin Ximeng's meaning is easy to understand: he wants to launch a zero-yuan purchase event targeting the exposed warehouse of Black Penguin.
As long as there are enough participants, what can the black penguins do?
Isidora was still somewhat skeptical: "How can you guarantee that other homeless groups will come?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Ximeng reached out and pulled Donal, who was standing in the corner, to the front of the crowd, saying, "Rely on him."
Then he told the people in the camp about how Donal and a dozen men had come to help him when he last fought the boxer Brock.
Seeing the questioning looks from the people in the camp, Donal immediately straightened his back and nodded, saying, "I will definitely fulfill Mr. Horus's request. As long as I give the word, I guarantee I can gather a group of people to join in the fun."
Simon Lin added:
I also know of an abandoned machinery factory in the suburbs, which is filled with a lot of machine parts and tools.
"I'll go there with Jerome first, use the parts to modify some makeshift weapons, and then it'll be easier to move the ingredients."
Jerome's eyes lit up instantly when he heard that weapons were to be made; as a former technical officer, this was one of his strengths.
Seeing that the crowd was somewhat interested, Lin Ximeng continued, "
Moreover, after the rain, there will definitely be areas in the community that lack food.
"Then, we'll push our food cart onto the street and sell hamburgers; making over five hundred dollars won't be a problem."
Upon hearing this, Gloria immediately became excited: "Five hundred dollars? That's a huge sum of money! I'd be willing to take a risk for that money!"
Her obsession with making money far outweighed her concerns about the risks, and she immediately gave her approval.
Jeff also agreed:
"You're right. I learned this from my time selling insurance: the most profitable policies always come with risks."
The others also thought Lin Ximeng's plan was feasible.
After reaching a consensus, Simon Lin didn't hesitate. He brought over a bucket of cold rainwater and poured it over Marcus and a black hoodie next to him.
The two shivered and suddenly woke up from their coma.
The young Black man in the hoodie was soaked to the bone, shivering uncontrollably from the cold wind. His eyes were filled with terror as he looked at Simon Lin: "What...what are you going to do?"
Marcus didn't say anything, but his body stiffened completely, clearly showing that he was just as nervous.
"Name," Lin Ximeng asked.
The young Black man quickly replied, "Jeremy... Jeremy."
"Okay, Jeremy, from now on you're my driver."
Lin Ximeng patted his face: "Drive properly. You don't want to end up like Marcus, with me dragging you around in the cockpit, do you?"
Seeing Marcus covered in wounds, Jeremy dared not resist and hurriedly nodded, "I'll drive, I'll drive!"
Simon glanced at Marcus again, signaling Isidora and the others to keep an eye on him and his two other underlings. Then he pulled Jeremy to his feet and walked with Jerome, who was already itching for a fight, toward the red Kia in the rain.
......
The abandoned United Machinery Factory in the old industrial area of Nancheng District is an old factory in Luocheng that was built more than 100 years ago. Due to urban planning, it is now located in what is considered the suburbs.
The car had been driving for two hours, and the scenery outside the window was a stark contrast to downtown Los Angeles.
Located on the outskirts of Los Angeles, what Lin Ximeng saw was a scene of utter desolation and ruin:
The old factory walls are mottled and peeling, the exposed steel bars are rusted, the abandoned rails are embedded in the mud, and there are overgrown weeds.
The coldness was even more apparent amidst the torrential downpour.
"How much longer?" Lin Ximeng asked.
"I...I'm a little unsure," Jeremy said nervously from the driver's seat.
"The signal here is very bad. The location on my phone's map app keeps changing, and the navigation seems to be malfunctioning."
Suddenly, his phone displayed a "signal lost" notification. Jeremy slammed on the brakes, his voice filled with panic.
"There's no signal, and there's a fork in the road ahead. I don't know which way to go!"
Lin Ximeng glanced at his phone, which also showed a lost signal, and couldn't help but shake his head inwardly:
Five years ago, Los Angeles residents complained daily about the poor signal from base stations in the suburbs and made numerous complaint calls to the city hall.
Later, the city hall took notice, saying they spent hundreds of millions of dollars upgrading the infrastructure.
Seeing that it's still in this state, I wonder how much of that money ended up in Commissioner Smith's pocket.
Jerome peeked out and looked around. All he saw was the raging wind and rain and dilapidated buildings. He couldn't help but feel impatient: "There's not a soul in sight in this godforsaken place. We can't just wander around aimlessly, can we?"
Lin Ximeng gestured for everyone to calm down. His gaze swept around and he suddenly noticed a ragged figure huddled at the base of an abandoned wall a few dozen meters away, with a small dog lying beside him. It was clearly a homeless person.
Lin Ximeng casually remarked, "The homeless people on the West Coast really love dogs; even in this torrential rain, they still come out to walk their dogs."
Marcus in the back seat scoffed, retorting with a tone full of disdain:
What dog walking? He's clearly just spending too much money on in-game currency!
Look at how he's shaking and convulsing; he must be really getting into it.