Trickster Hunter.

Chapter 462 Happy Supermarket
"According to the financial transaction records, Lin Lun has had dealings with several gangs in Liusu District..." The mainframe then released another piece of information.

"Huh? Gang organization?" Sun Hang asked doubtfully. "Didn't they say he had no criminal record? I don't believe someone who deals with gangs can have such a clean record."

"Lin Lun indeed has no criminal record... According to the information from the Liusu District Public Security Bureau, Lin Lun has provided funds to the leaders of several gangs in Liusu District on multiple occasions and asked them to maintain the security and order of Liusu District. Thanks to his efforts, the security level of Liusu District has improved significantly in recent years, and the crime rate has also dropped a lot."

The mastermind continued, "The Liusu District Public Security Bureau initially investigated Lin Lun's true motives for associating with these gangs, but according to the leaders of those gangs, Lin Lun's only condition for providing them with funds was that they assist the Public Security Bureau in maintaining order in Liusu District..."

"Giving money to gangs to have them help the police maintain order in the area?" Sun Hang was slightly surprised. "So, he's a great philanthropist?"

"Based on the information we have so far, yes," the mastermind said. "The Liusu District Public Security Bureau has also held several internal discussions, but the results of each discussion are more or less the same."

"I bet those sheriffs were definitely unwilling to have gangsters do their work, and some might even feel it was an insult—they were practically calling them incompetent. But in a place like Liusu District, where most of the area is slums, home to a large number of undocumented immigrants, and contributes very little to tax revenue and GDP, the budget allocated to the local police department is probably pitifully small, right? As for the sheriffs assigned here, they were either the worst off in the lottery or the worst students in the sheriff training academy... Faced with this harsh reality, those sheriffs had no choice but to bow their heads and tacitly approve of some of Lin Lun's actions, right?"

“Your judgment is absolutely correct,” the mastermind replied. “Moreover, due to the sensitivity of the sheriff’s position, gang members actually have a greater advantage in managing order in Liusu District. During the final discussion at the Liusu District Security Bureau, the then deputy director proposed the idea of ​​‘prevention is worse than cure.’ He believed that since it was impossible to eliminate all illegal vagrants in Chunming City, it would be better to use Liusu District as a ‘floodgate’ to accommodate them. This would not only improve the stability of other areas but also allow the illegal vagrants to achieve a certain degree of ‘self-management’—after all, the vast majority of gang members are also among these illegal vagrants.”

"Looking at it this way... Lin Lun really did a great thing, didn't he?" Sun Hang muttered. "Didn't the Public Security Bureau give him a banner or a certificate as a token of their appreciation? After all, he spent real money to help the Public Security Bureau solve a tricky problem."

"Such a proposal has been made, but it was immediately met with more opposition. Publicly praising Lin Lun would easily undermine the credibility of the Public Security Bureau, reduce public trust in official institutions, and could even trigger a series of negative effects. Therefore, no public praise was given to Lin Lun. Instead, the Huangdaoceng Liusu District Public Security Bureau will make every effort to provide convenience when dealing with people and matters related to Lin Lun."

“I have a question,” Sun Hang suddenly asked.

"Please feel free to ask any questions. With your level of authority, I will answer to the best of my knowledge," the mastermind said.

"This Lin Lun, he's in the Willow Constellation area of ​​the zodiacal layer... Does his word carry more weight than the local police station chief?"

"In a sense, yes."

"I understand." Sun Hang nodded. "They're local bullies."

Sun Hang and his team's vehicle remained far behind the two modified containers that were floating vehicles. Although Sun Hang had modified the vehicle's exterior to resemble a dilapidated, cheap car, he hadn't altered the engine or anything else inside. Given the vehicle's performance, there was absolutely no possibility of it being outmaneuvered.

Not to mention the mastermind providing a comprehensive tracking view.

Many public facilities in the Huangdaoceng Liusu District have been in disrepair for years, and the coverage of surveillance cameras is less than 30%. However, surveillance at major intersections is still guaranteed. No matter how dilapidated the Huangdaoceng Liusu District is, it is still part of Chunming City. The small budget is only relative to other districts of Chunming City. Compared with the small towns in the border areas of Shuzhou, even a starved camel is still several times bigger than a horse.

The "AirWing" economy car suddenly stopped in front of a building that looked like an unfinished building, and the hovercar that Sun Hang was riding in also stopped at an intersection more than 100 meters away from them.

“I have a feeling… we’re being a bit too conspicuous,” Xue Yue said softly. “Few hovercars come in here… they might have already noticed we’re following them.”

"So what if they found out?" Sun Hang said nonchalantly. "What, are they going to sue me?"

To be honest, Sun Hang was actually looking forward to them doing that—then he could finally shout out that famous line he'd always wanted to say: "Who in the audience dares to accuse this official?!"

The Airwing Economy model stopped for a few seconds in front of the unfinished building before turning into the elevated ground floor beneath it.

"Target out of sight," the AI ​​immediately reported. "Should we send a drone inside the building to continue tracking?"

“No need, don’t alert them,” Sun Hang immediately objected. “We just need to keep an eye on the building’s exits.”

The two modified containers didn't keep Sun Hang waiting for long; in less than five minutes, they walked out of the building.

"Looks like they just went to park the car."

Both of them were wearing overcoats that reached their knees. Compared to the Tian Shi Yuan, where the temperature was basically the same as the outside world, the ecliptic layer, which had no sunlight and no weather simulation system, was much colder. When Sun Hang drove the car into the vertical dock, the dock's intelligent management system had reminded him that the temperature difference between the ecliptic layer and the Tian Shi Yuan was huge, and that he should prepare suitable change of clothes.

Besides their coats, they all wore old woolen hats and industrial-grade dust masks... The air purification system in the Willow Constellation area of ​​the zodiacal layer was also facing the problem of disrepair. In addition, since this area is an industrial zone, the air quality is among the worst in all areas of Chunming City. Wearing masks on the street would not attract the attention of others.

The two covered almost all of their exposed skin, and even wore gloves on their hands.

The only thing exposed was a pair of emotionless eyes.

The two looked like emotionless killers on their way to kill a target living there.

"Get out of the car," Sun Hang said to Xue Yue.

"Are we going to follow them the whole time?" Xue Yue asked, a hint of fear in her eyes. "What if... what if they lead us into some kind of trap?"

"Can you fight?" Sun Hang asked.

Xue Yue hesitated for a moment, then shook her head vigorously: "I...I won't hurt humans...I...I just want to stay here...If I attack humans, the Anomaly Investigation Bureau will..."

Sun Hang looked at Xue Yue with a strange expression, wondering to himself... Could there be beings among the monsters who are born with the lawful good alignment? This girl clearly has extremely strong strength, but she is more law-abiding than 99% of the people in Chunming City... It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe her personality as weak.

When Sun Hang cornered her, she didn't use any offensive tactics against him, nor did she use her excellent "etherealization" ability to ambush him. Instead, she only thought about escaping... It must be fun to bully someone with this kind of personality, right? A somewhat wicked thought suddenly popped into Sun Hang's head.

"Just mind your own business; leave the physical work to me."

After Sun Hang finished speaking, he quickly followed.

The two modified containers walked along the street for several hundred meters, then turned a corner and went into a supermarket.

Although it's called a supermarket, it's more like a general store that also sells secondhand goods. The stalls at the entrance are filled with all sorts of old items, and the prices of these items are written in chalk on the blackboard next to them. Sun Hang even saw a rubber cup wrapped in plastic wrap.

This thing can be sold secondhand?
“I know this store,” Xue Yue tugged at Sun Hang’s sleeve. “It’s Happiness Supermarket.”

“I know it’s called Happiness Supermarket. Aren’t those four big characters hanging under the eaves?” Sun Hang pointed to the four dusty lettering light boxes, which he didn’t know if they could still light up.

"The owner of this supermarket is very fierce. If you buy things from him, he will drive the price down very low... That hair dryer was sold by Aunt Liu, who lives across from me. Aunt Liu said she only sold it for fifteen yuan."

Sun Hang glanced at it and saw the words "A sixteen-year-old female high school student's personal brand hair dryer, 90% new, fixed price of eighty yuan" written on the blackboard.

"Wow, it's a shady business," Sun Hang asked. "If it's so shady, why did you sell your stuff to it?"

“Because only the owner of Happiness Supermarket accepts everything, and as long as the price is agreed upon, he always pays the money and delivers the goods on the spot, without any delays… When people urgently need money, the first thing they think of is Happiness Supermarket,” Xue Yue replied.

"It looks a bit like a pawn shop... So, can you redeem the items you sell?"

"Yes... we can buy it back at the price the boss listed."

"...Speaking of which, besides selling secondhand goods, what else does this Happiness Supermarket sell? Since it's a supermarket, it should also have its own products, right?"

"They sell everything—food, household goods, clothes, books, appliances, medicine, and even cars," Xue Yue said. "The owner of Happiness Supermarket is very capable. If you want something, as long as you can afford the price he asks for, he can find a way to get it for you."

"Does this boss have any connections with gangs in Liusu District?"

"I...I don't know."

“If someone with such connections says they don’t have any, I’d never believe it even if you beat me to death.” Sun Hang walked out of the alleyway where he was hiding, and as he walked, he asked in a voice that only the mainframe and Xue Yue could hear, “Mainframe, did those two guys who went in come out from the back of Happiness Supermarket?”

"No one was found to have left the building."

How long have they been inside?

"Six minutes and seven seconds."

Can drones monitor what's happening inside a supermarket?

"It's a bit of a stretch... but so far we haven't been able to hear anyone talking inside the supermarket."

"Whether you're buying or selling, you can't just not talk... It seems like there's something wrong with this supermarket." Sun Hang used the reflection from his wristband screen to examine his face, then tugged at the slightly wrinkled area of ​​his T-shirt and strode into "Happiness Supermarket."

The supermarket shelves were packed tightly together, with barely enough space for a person to squeeze through sideways. The shelves were filled with a wide variety of items, but most of them were covered in a thick layer of dust. Sun Hang glanced at the nearest bag of wafer biscuits, and the expiration date on the packaging told him that the biscuits had expired four years ago.

"Are you buying something... or selling something?" A somewhat shrill voice came from the cashier in the corner. Sun Hang pretended to have just noticed someone there and turned his head to look with slight surprise.

A stout man huddled behind the cashier, one hand holding two large, shiny walnuts, the other gripping a mouse with a patina thicker than the walnuts.

The man had one eye fixed on Sun Hang, while the other was on the card game on the computer screen. The ashtray next to him was piled high with cigarette butts.

"Are you the owner here?" Sun Hang asked.

"Nonsense, if I'm not the boss, then who are you?" the man said impatiently. "My time is precious. If you don't have anything to buy or sell, get out of here and don't disturb my card game."

“I need to buy something.” Sun Hang took a step closer to the cashier. “But it’s some things that are a bit hard to get… I heard that you have some channels that others don’t, so I’m here to try my luck.”

"Hmm?" The man released the mouse and stopped fiddling with the walnuts in his hand. He reached up and smoothed his sparse and greasy hair, squinting as he looked Sun Hang up and down again. "Are you sure you're not here to make fun of me? Let me make this clear beforehand, I have a bad temper."

"Of course not, I'm just worried that the boss won't be able to get what I want."

"Hmph, I was worried you couldn't afford my price... Go ask around in Liusu District, is there anything I can't get here?" The man opened the cashier's drawer and put two walnuts inside. "So, what do you want to buy?"

“A strange creature,” Sun Hang said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)