Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

They had already received instructions to deliberately make things difficult for themselves, claiming that because of the Luxembourg princess's disappearance, there weren't a single guest room available. In reality, the Pinkerton detectives wouldn't bother with something that offered no financial reward. And the Luxembourg princess had already been mutilated and turned into a filthy little beggar.

The boss in front of them, however, showed no intention of making things difficult for them. From the moment they got off the train, Zhang Renfeng witnessed a bustling scene: a sea of ​​voices, all sorts of people gathered in this civilized city, shoulder to shoulder. Walking on the street, the sounds of conversation rose from the ground like steam, reaching their ears.

Zhang Renfeng was somewhat relieved that he hadn't chosen to ride a horse; with such a large flow of people, horses simply couldn't get through. People were packed together so tightly that even walking was incredibly slow. The two outsiders wandered around the city for quite some time before finally finding a somewhat remote inn.

As for $4 a night... that price is practically robbery, but scarcity drives up prices, and faced with such a high price for accommodation that was impossible to find, Xiaomei had no choice but to grit her teeth and accept it.

"Sigh... alright, one room it is, I'll take it." Xiaomei sighed, obediently took out a stack of US dollars, and slapped it on the table. "Reserve it for two weeks first."

"Oh my, I didn't expect you to be a businesswoman, Miss." Ordinary people would never be able to come up with this much money. Seeing her so generous, the shopkeeper's eyes lit up. He quickly swept the money under the table and reminded her, "If you're here to see Mr. William, you'd better make an appointment in advance. There are plenty of people who want to see him."

"besides……"

He lowered his voice and glanced at Zhang Renfeng, who was standing not far away, pretending to carry his luggage. "Since there's only one room, don't let this barbarian stay there. It's really not safe."

Zhang Renfeng was already used to this well-intentioned "advice" and showed no reaction, while Xiaomei could only smile bitterly.

However, just when everything was about to get back on track...

A loud bang shattered the lively atmosphere in the hotel lobby.

----

"Bang---!!"

The noise was so loud that Zhang Renfeng instinctively thought someone had fired a gun indoors, and he was clearly not the only one who thought so.

Everyone in the lobby on the first floor stopped what they were doing and looked toward the source of the sound: a girl who had fallen heavily to the ground. She had almost smashed the door open with her head, and her whole body leaned forward, making intimate contact with the floor. The wooden box in her hand flew out, and the papers inside scattered all over the floor like a shower of petals.

"Ah...it hurts..."

The girl clutched her head, tears welling in her eyes from the pain, but her first reaction wasn't to check her injuries. Instead, she frantically tried to pick up the documents scattered on the ground. Fortunately, they weren't money, just densely packed forms and numbers printed on paper, preventing a looting frenzy.

Several men with burly faces, leaning against the wall, gave her strange smiles. After exchanging a few glances, one of them, a stout man with a mustache, slowly stepped forward and deliberately stepped on a form she was reaching for.

"Uh, well... that..."

The girl adjusted her round glasses, looked up at the man with a blank expression, and asked, "Sir, could you please lift your foot a little?"

"What do you do?" The short, stout man with a mustache squinted, looked her up and down, and asked bluntly.

"I... my name is Eva. I'm a clerk at the New Elizabeth branch of Eastbright Bird Bank, currently in my probationary period. The Lantern Festival is about to begin, and the funding for all the activities... needs to be secured in advance. The city government requested the bank to borrow staff to assess the financial situation, so I... I came here..."

Eva sensed something was amiss from his attitude. Her hunched posture revealed that she was inherently a very bold person. Now, being stared at by so many eyes, she was naturally pale and her voice trembled.

"Ha, ha ha ha—!!" The short, stout man seemed to have heard a joke, spitting as he turned to his companion and laughed, "It's a woman! Iverson, did you hear that? It's a woman!"

A burst of laughter, like a hurricane, erupted in the hall and swept towards her.

"It's ridiculous that a woman would dress so elegantly to go to work."

"Where are all the men in your bank? Are they all dead?!"

"Keep talking about the municipal government, how shameless! That's a man's world, how could they possibly choose you?"

"She's either a fraud or a witch!"

……

In this small world, once the fun begins, it won't stop easily.

A flicker of surprise crossed Xiaomei's face, followed by a complex mix of emotions. Her father had indeed said something like that to her—"If you weren't a girl, you would definitely be an excellent mounted police officer." At the time, she was too young to understand the cruel deeper meaning behind those words.

In the days that followed, even within a gang, Xiaomei never experienced discrimination because of her gender. Zhang Renfeng and Yige, the two pillars of the Red Center Gang, one with yellow skin and the other a dwarf, were people who suffered constant cold shoulders. Naturally, they wouldn't allow any discrimination to occur within the gang.

She realized that she had always been well protected by the adults in the gang.

The situation of this girl who has just entered the workplace may be the true picture of reality.

She instinctively reached for the revolver at her waist.

A firm, strong hand gently pressed down on her shoulder.

"...Mr. Zhang?"

"Step back." Zhang Renfeng pulled her back a step, and at the same time, he used two fingers to clamp the wooden table, and with a little force, twisted off a corner from it.

Everyone's attention was elsewhere, and apart from Xiaomei, no one saw this frightening scene.

----

"You still don't seem to understand what I mean. Fine, let me explain it more clearly." The short, fat man not only didn't let go of his foot, but seemed even more smug. He twisted his ankle and wringed the paper under his foot, his face turning fierce. "Everyone and everything should follow the rules. The job you should be doing is either a waiter in a tavern, a kitchen helper in a restaurant, or a factory worker!"

“We don’t like the way you parade around here dressed like a man. And I guarantee that most men in this city share my opinion!”

"If you know what's good for you, you'd better pack your things and get out of here..."

……

"Thump—!!!"

The next instant, his jaw was struck by a sudden projectile. A ripple spread across his chin, the immense kinetic energy instantly clouding his mind.

The short, stout man's body spun almost in mid-air around this axis before crashing heavily to the ground, his eyes rolling back and foaming at the mouth.

Zhang Renfeng controlled the force perfectly, enough to knock him unconscious without leaving any external injuries.

……

"A witch...she's a witch!"

Chaos erupted as everyone screamed. They could clearly see that Eva hadn't done anything, which only made things worse. Interestingly, once they were convinced that Eva was indeed a witch, they dared not do anything to her anymore; instead, they changed their attitude and scattered in all directions.

The small piece of wood fell to the ground, was kicked around, and soon disappeared.

Chapter 603: Eva

"Don't...don't step on it...don't step on it..."

The crowd surged forward, and before Eva could pick up the form, the wooden box she had just placed on the ground was kicked over again.

The girl's physique was far too small compared to these adult men, and she was jostled and pushed about. But she still stubbornly pushed her way towards the wooden box in the crowd, desperately trying to reach it, as if the box contained not paper, but a pile of money that could be exchanged immediately.

Before she was stepped on by the sole of the shoe, a large hand descended from above, grabbed the back of her collar, and lifted her up like a cat.

Taking advantage of the chaos in the hall, Zhang Renfeng grabbed the girl by the collar and carried her and the wooden box to the last room they had just bought.

This last room was in a rather remote location, tucked away between walls. Pushing open the wooden door, a musty smell wafted out. The room's layout was also very simple: a table, a fireplace, a mirror, and a bed—that was all it had.

……

"56, 8732, 21, 9, 5822..."

"Are you alright?" Xiaomei heard Eva muttering some numbers to herself, so she stretched out her hand and waved it in front of her.

"Huh? Ah, I... I'm fine, thank you for helping me..." Eva seemed to be startled awake from a dream, and suddenly shrank her shoulders. Even though she was facing people her own age, who were also girls like her, her first reaction was still to subconsciously step back and adjust her glasses—the frames of her glasses, which were perched on her nose, had been crushed by a foot in the chaos just now.

"Thanks to you all, these precious data manuscripts were saved. Thank goodness." Eva sighed and muttered, "If such a big project had gone wrong, I would definitely have been fired."

……

Zhang Renfeng scrutinized the girl's appearance. He hadn't looked at her closely before, but now that he was closer, he saw that she was wearing a dark black double-breasted morning dress with a vest underneath. A platinum pocket watch chain hung from the fifth button of the dress.

He realized that this outfit was almost identical to Louis Osborne's, except for the material of the pocket watch chain. Perhaps this was also a symbol of a certain status within the Donghao Bird Bank.

This is a classic outfit for elite men in civilized society, but it looks too big on a young girl, making it somewhat comical.

Behind the glasses were rare, grayish-blue eyes. Her small, slightly upturned nose gave her a girlish innocence, but her lips, like pale rose-colored blades, were tightly pursed due to tension. Her fair skin had a mother-of-pearl sheen, but a sickly pale red tinge clung to her cheekbones.

Xiaomei noticed that Eva's fingers were long and pale, with thin calluses at the joints from years of holding a pen. Her nails were neatly trimmed and painted with trendy light pink pearl polish, but her right ring finger was always stained with ink—clearly, it was the mark of fountain pen ink left from writing various kinds of texts.

"Are you really a bank teller?" Xiaomei looked the girl up and down and said with admiration, "It must be very tough for you."

"I'm just an intern." Eva adjusted her broken glasses, her gray-blue eyes avoiding her gaze, revealing an embarrassed and shy smile. "I just started working after passing a series of exams, and I don't have much experience... I can only do this kind of work. I'll start with the basic tasks."

"This kind of thing has never stopped, I'm used to it, as long as it doesn't happen at crucial moments. It's alright inside the bank, but as soon as I go outside, this is the first thing that happens. This is still considered good, when I came here by train, someone said even worse things to me..."

As she spoke, Eva bit her rosy lips, leaving a faint tooth mark, but she quickly changed the subject, "May I ask who you two are?"

"I'm a special purchasing agent from Sanyuan Timber Company. Just call me Xiaomei. This is my... um..."

Xiao Mei hesitated for a moment, but still didn't refer to Zhang Renfeng as a "servant." She simply said, "He's my friend, Bruce Zhang. Zhang is a bounty hunter. I hired him to protect me when I travel."

“Our company has some business dealings with your bank, and you provided us with a lot of support in the early stages of our business,” Xiaomei said softly. “We just arrived in this city, and there are so many people at this event that we don’t know what kind of event they’re holding. I guess there aren’t any spare rooms available.”

At this point, Xiaomei glanced at Zhang Renfeng questioningly, and seeing him nod slightly, she continued, "...If you don't mind, you can live with us."

"Huh? Is that okay?!" Eva raised her eyebrows slightly, looking quite surprised. "But, if I live with you, will it bother you...?"

“It’s alright, you two girls can sleep in the bed.” Zhang Renfeng nodded slightly to her. “I’ll just lay out a blanket and sleep on the floor.”

Eva turned around and looked at him with some surprise. Clearly, she could read the underlying superior-subordinate relationship between them from that simple sentence.

She hesitated again, "This...wouldn't it be a bit..."

“It’s alright. When you’re out and about, you should help each other out if you can.” With Zhang Renfeng’s approval, Xiaomei became more relaxed and even took Eva’s slender wrist, saying generously, “You help me, I help you. Isn’t that how friends help each other?”

At this moment, Xiaomei felt a deep admiration for this girl of the same age.

Her position as a special purchasing agent was largely due to "internal channels," and the entire timber company was essentially a cover for the Hongzhong Gang. This young woman, indeed, was truly and genuinely working alone in this dangerous place as a "woman," which she considered quite remarkable.

Her meaning was naturally the same as Zhang Renfeng's. He never minded offering an umbrella to strong and brave people.

"Thank you, thank you!" Eva's voice trembled slightly. Compared to everything she had just experienced, the two people seemed almost unreal, as if they were not real.

"Well... I don't have much standing in the bank right now, so I probably... can't help you much..."

“No need for all that,” Zhang Renfeng changed the subject. “Actually, there’s something you can do to help us right now.”

……

It's normal for any act of help to be mixed with self-interest. As a banker, Eva naturally understood what an exchange of interests meant. She nodded vigorously, and the broken frame of her glasses almost slipped off her nose, but ended up hanging on her high nose, making her look rather adorable.

"Please feel free to ask for anything that I can help with."

"You were just saying outside that the Brightlight Room is going to hold some kind of festival and they're short-staffed, so the bank transferred you here... right?"

Zhang Renfeng asked, "Specifically, what holiday is it?"

Chapter 604: Bread and the Circus

No amount of talking can compare to seeing it for yourself. After putting down their luggage, the three of them went out onto the street together. The closer they got to the city center, the more pedestrian traffic there was, but the roads were indeed much wider and smoother, making them seem less crowded.

With the crowd dispersed, Zhang Renfeng was able to observe the city more closely—the roads beneath his feet were sturdy and neat stone slabs, lined with all sorts of tall buildings, and he even spotted a photo studio. These novelties were not things that ordinary villages and towns could have.

The city was filled with gentlemen in suits, chatting eloquently; and ladies in long dresses, elegant and graceful, their hats adorned with feathers half a foot high, further enlivening the already bustling City of Lights. Zhang Renfeng had seen the scale of several large cities, and while it couldn't compare to Lagras, the city of con artists, it was roughly the same size as Saint Quintac.

In the city center, all the roads converge at one point, where a stone statue stands. The road was designed so that no matter which direction one enters the city from, one will eventually see it—a tall, resolute middle-aged man with a curly beard, wearing a trench coat, waving one hand into the distance, and holding a kerosene lamp in the other, frozen in a pose of searching forward in the mist.

The inscription below reads: William Heisen, who brought light to the world.

"Such arrogance! Who is this guy?" Zhang Renfeng squinted and looked him up and down. "'Haisen'... I feel like I've heard that surname somewhere before."

"Huh?" This time it was Eva's turn to be surprised. "You... don't know the Hysen family? Then what are you doing in Brightlight City?"

Xiao Mei quickly waved her hand, trying to cover up her mistake while frantically winking at Zhang Renfeng, "It's just that it's so common, we see it all the time, so it's easy to overlook. Isn't this the name you often see on kerosene lamps? We just don't know how big his business really is."

Upon hearing her say that, Zhang Renfeng suddenly realized that the name Haisen was indeed printed on the base of those kerosene lamps! Since meeting Tao, the only lamp Zhang Renfeng had worn on her waist was an electric lamp. Counting on her fingers, it had been quite a long time since she had used a kerosene lamp.

"William Heissen is the current patriarch of this family, who pride themselves on 'selling light.' The Heissen family's market basically covers all the major southern states and counties. Whether in cities or towns, people who want nighttime lighting will inevitably need to buy gas lamps."

Noticing that the two were unfamiliar with the city, Eva didn't say much, but explained to them in a tour guide-like tone, "After so many years of operation, the Haisen family has managed to integrate the raw materials, production, and sales processes."

"The war had just ended, and this was just an ordinary little town. William Heissen keenly sensed a business opportunity and spent a lot of money to establish a corresponding production factory in the town. The large amount of economic exchanges led to the rapid expansion of the town, and the Heissen family's reputation also soared. Taking advantage of the fact that the post-war market structure was not yet clear, they made great strides and eventually became the southern hegemon of the gas lamp industry."

"This city was thus renamed 'Beacon City'."

"In two weeks, it will be William Hysen's birthday. According to local custom, a lavish banquet is held every year on this day, inviting many members of high society to attend. Of course, the Hysen family also pays for the banquet. The locals simply call it the 'Festival of Lights,' which is quite a local specialty."

"It's not even that lively yet. Wait another two weeks, and when the festive atmosphere really kicks in, the crowds will be even bigger. They've also prepared programs for the public, including horse racing, boxing, theater, acrobatics, magic shows... Anyone in the city, regardless of their status, can watch for free."

"Ah."

At this point, Eva suddenly let out a cold laugh, “...What a ‘bread and circus’ story.”

Zhang Renfeng heard it clearly, "What circus?"

"Did I say that?" Eva instinctively paused for a moment, her eyebrows furrowing slightly before reverting to her somewhat naive expression. "Well... in short, it was very, very, very lively. I heard that a very important guest was invited to this banquet."

"A wealthy tycoon who was the top in three sectors: oil, sugar, and railroads—Ryan Cheddar."

……

At this point, the reality that Zhang Renfeng knew finally matched the intelligence.