Luke wasn't worried about the old beggar's safety at all. That guy was just a con artist with a few tricks up his sleeve. He usually acted profound and mysterious, but the moment danger struck, he'd turn into a spineless coward. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been expelled from his sect and landed on the government's blacklist.
The saying, "Good people don't live long, but scourges last a thousand years," perfectly described him.
In fact, there were no good people living within the Hung Mun, except for undercover agents. What good person would join a gang?
The essence of a gang is an anti-social, anti-government organization. Looking at major gangs around the world, which one wasn't established during times of chaos? The Italian Mafia, Japan's Yamaguchi-gumi, Taiwan's Bamboo Union, Hong Kong's Triads, East Asia's Yakuza, and so on and so forth.
The more stable society is, the weaker gangs become. Conversely, the more chaotic the times, the stronger gangs become.
The Hung Mun is the best example. In its early days, the Hung Mun was the largest Chinese association in the United States. Any Chinese, and even Southeast Asians, who came to America to make a living would first visit the local Hung Mun organization upon arrival to seek protection.
Things are different now. Compared to the Hung Mun, which has a gang-like nature, they are more willing to trust the American government. This is an inevitable trend of social development that cannot be stopped by human effort.
With fewer members, their influence naturally declined, especially in the new century, where the downward trend became increasingly apparent. Even local police dared to openly raid the Hung Mun headquarters. What was even more disheartening was the internal strife.
Since the 1990s, the Hung Mun's annual income had been declining. Economics meant livelihood, and the Hung Mun's high-ranking members, accustomed to a good life, were dissatisfied with the current situation. To secure ample material enjoyment, they chose to cooperate with Mexican drug traffickers, getting involved in the business of drug transshipment.
These fools thought they were being very discreet, but little did they know that everything was under the FBI's control. After only a month, they were caught by the FBI, both people and goods. After the incident was exposed, it caused an extremely negative impact on the Hung Mun's reputation.
Grandpa also resigned because of this incident, choosing to retreat, but he didn't want to give up just like that. The Xiao family had intricate ties with the Hung Mun. His ancestor was a lodge master of the Heaven and Earth Society, fighting his whole life to overthrow the Qing and restore the Ming. His second ancestor served as the head of the Heaven and Earth Society, but was later killed by the Qing court. His third ancestor inherited his father's last wish and also fought tirelessly until he was betrayed by a traitor. It was only then that he was forced to travel to America on a gold prospecting ship to make a living. Upon arriving in the United States, he immediately joined the Hung Mun.
From his great-grandfather's generation onwards, every generation was a high-ranking member of the Hung Mun. It could be said that the history of the Hung Mun's development was the history of the Xiao family. How could Grandpa allow the Hung Mun, into which generations of his family had poured their hearts and souls, to decline?
He hadn't read many books, but he had an extremely broad vision. Society was changing, and the tide of the times was surging forward. The old ways no longer worked. To revitalize the association, reform was necessary. Only through reform would the Hung Mun avoid the fate of being eliminated.
The word "reform" sounds simple, but it is extremely difficult to implement. It involves intricate conflicts of interest in all aspects, and only those with great resolve can accomplish it.
Grandpa weighed his options and finally decided to entrust this heavy responsibility to his most beloved and capable grandson.
Then, Luke unhesitatingly ran away from home, fleeing from the west coast of America to the east coast, not answering calls or emails, completely disappearing.
Luke had over a dozen plans for the future, and none of them were related to the Hung Mun. A gang is a gang; no matter how much it's whitewashed, it can't change its true nature.
If he became a gang leader, there would be many things he couldn't do. It was a murky swamp, easy to step into, but difficult to get out of.
After learning that his beloved grandson had run away, Grandpa was so angry he cursed loudly. After cursing, he could only sigh in loneliness. What could he do? That rascal was smarter than a monkey and simply didn't want to get involved in this mess.
After a few months passed, Grandpa gave up his initial idea.
So, Luke, laden with gifts, scurried back. The two had a tacit understanding, neither mentioning the Hung Mun. This was good; family was family, and external matters shouldn't create a rift.
The only downside was his two uncles.
The BMW arrived in front of a detached villa in the East End's affluent area.
Luke got out of the car and rang the doorbell. Soon, the door opened, and a beautiful, graceful middle-aged woman walked out. Seeing who it was, she jumped up in surprise,
"Oh! Little Luke, when did you get back? Auntie missed you so much!"
"Come, give me a kiss."
Luke quickly stepped back, "Auntie, I'm almost eighteen."
"What's wrong with eighteen? Eighteen is still a child. I still remember you wearing open-crotch pants when you were little!"
Luke was speechless for a moment and quickly handed over the gifts,
"These are all for you, Auntie. Bags, jewelry, cosmetics, all limited editions. And there's a jade necklace I commissioned a famous Italian artist to make specifically for you. It has twenty-six different colors, absolutely beautiful."
"Really!"
The woman's eyes lit up. She grabbed the young man's face and gave him a big kiss. "My little Luke is still the most thoughtful, unlike that blockhead who only knows how to fight and kill all day. We've been married for twenty years, and he hasn't even given me a decent gift. He infuriates me."
"Come, quickly, come in."
The two walked into the living room, and the woman called out loudly,
"Julianne, Danny, hurry down, Luke is back!"
Footsteps pattered, and soon, a boy and a girl, both around twenty years old, ran down from upstairs. The boy was Danny, and the girl was Julianne. Being fraternal twins, they resembled each other, but Danny was tall and strong, while Julianne was a bit smaller and sweeter.
As the only girl of this generation in the Xiao family, Julianne had a very good relationship with Luke. She pounced on him as soon as she saw him,
"Luke, you finally showed up! I thought you went to see Jesus."
The woman lightly slapped her. "You brat, what kind of talk is that?"
Danny had matured quite a bit and gestured to Luke, who nodded, indicating he understood.
Luke handed the gifts he brought to the siblings, said a few more words, then turned to his aunt and asked,
"Is Uncle home?"
"He's been holed up in his study since morning, I don't know what he's doing."
"I want to talk to him."
"You go up. I'll go make some tea."
The woman sighed softly and went to the kitchen. She didn't want to get involved in the Hung Mun's affairs, and she couldn't. That blockhead, she didn't know what he was thinking. Little Luke had run away from home, and he was still nagging. Did he really think he was so capable?
Danny stood up and said in a deep voice, "I'll go with you."
Luke nodded slightly, saying nothing, and went upstairs to the study with the young man who was his cousin on the surface but his confidant in reality.
Pushing open the door, a cloud of smoke billowed out.
In the dim light, a short-haired, well-built middle-aged man sat in an old swivel chair, a cigar clamped between his fingers, staring intently at the oil painting on the wall.
It was a painting depicting a shipwreck. Beneath the turbulent, surging tides, flames blazed fiercely. Through the firelight, one could vaguely see the struggling crewmembers submerged in the seawater and the shattered remains of the ship.
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