Chapter 22: The Gambling Father, The Early Death of Mother, and His Reluctant Early Maturity
```
"Is the wound on your hand okay?" he asked, and Li Ming shook his head, "It's just a scratch."
Li Ning nodded, then followed up, "I've looked at that corpse. The injuries and the method of death are completely different from the two bodies in Red Street. We can conclude they were committed by different people."
Li Ning had taken a lot of photos, covering all angles. Li Ming glanced at them. The victim had died from a stab wound—one fatal strike to the back of the head. It was precise, accurate, and ruthless, not a crime of impulse.
"Sigh, when it rains, it pours. The interstellar alliance's inspection team is about to arrive, and now this happens," Li Ning said with regret.
"Inspection team?" Li Ming couldn't help but show a trace of inquisitiveness. He seemed to remember seeing news about it but hadn't paid much attention.
"Yes, they're coming to investigate the Star Creation Company's excessive mining," Li Ning said, grinding his teeth, "Damn Star Creation Company, if it weren't for them, Silver Grey Star wouldn't be in this state now."
"Blue Star was originally supposed to build five hundred habitable cities here…"
Li Ning muttered a lot, mostly expressing dissatisfaction with Star Creation Company. The chaos in the outer city was also inseparable from them.
And so, the two returned to the City Defense Headquarters. It was nearing eleven o'clock, and Yang Peng was not there, having gone to a meeting.
"Li, how about it, do you want to vent some anger tonight?"
Li Ning was organizing the photos taken today for the upcoming report when he looked at the middle-aged man by his side, who was making faces and was slightly balding.
"Old Qi, you talk so much, yet you're not brave enough to go," Li Ning glanced at him. Old Qi pouted, "It's no fun, you were more entertaining when you first arrived."
He then asked curiously, "By the way, how is the new guy doing? Didn't lose control in front of those flirty women at the Rose Society, did he?"
Li Ning stopped what he was doing, his face showing an odd expression, and finally asked, "Where did you guys get the information that Li Ming is a shy turtle, too timid and bullied to attend school?"
Old Qi asked perplexedly, "Old Diao and the others said so. They've even met the kid a few times, what about it?"
"It's nothing…" Li Ning shook his head, saying nothing more.
These old slickers had teased him plenty in the past. When they found out Li Ming was nothing like their impressions, their faces would certainly be a sight to see.
At noon, they went to the City Defense Department's cafeteria for lunch, located on the 200th floor.
The food wasn't bad. The city defenders all had exceptionally high physical requirements, naturally resulting in greater nutritional needs.
"Wow, today we have sprinting pig meat…" On their plates was a piece of meat the size of a palm, exuding a delightful fragrance, accompanied by some stir-fried dishes.
"Don't underestimate this piece of meat; it's more expensive than the usual nutritional supplements." Li Ning reminded. Li Ming took a taste. It was juicy and as soon as it was swallowed, it was rapidly decomposed, with its nutrients voraciously absorbed by his cells.
The City Defense Department's benefits were not bad.
They had not been eating for long when a message came through the smart terminal—Yang Peng was gathering them.
They exchanged a glance, hurriedly finished their meal, and then went upstairs. The room was almost full, and Yang Peng's eyes landed on them.
He seemed restless, his arms crossed over his chest, but his fingers kept tapping on his upper arm.
"Li, how was it with the Rose Society this morning?" Yang Peng asked.
"They were very cooperative," Li Ning replied. Yang Peng nodded and once everyone arrived, he said in a deep voice:
"There might be a significant operation tomorrow. Department dismissed early today; do whatever you need to do."
Yang Peng waved his hand dismissively and, regardless of everyone else's reactions, returned to his office.
The atmosphere among the others changed—significant operation!
"I knew it, these times were never going to be peaceful," the expression on Li Ning's face shifted as he sighed, "It definitely has something to do with those dead guys."
Was it because of the information I provided? Li Ming speculated to himself.
While packing up his things, Li Ning murmured, "I feel like Captain Yang wants you to earn some merits in the field and then find an opportunity to transfer you to logistics."
```
"This time, you shouldn't be tasked with a mission that's too dangerous."
"Generally speaking, do operations like this carry a high risk?" Li Ming asked,
Li Ning said pensively, "What do you think is the reason for the city guards' annual death rate being as high as 23%? If every day was like today, it would be impossible to have fatalities."
"Our Silver Grey City is not exactly peaceful..."
"Because of the Star Creation Company?"
Li Ning sighed, "You guessed it?"
Li Ming said offhandedly, "If they don't shift the conflicts elsewhere, the conflicts can only fall on them."
Initially, Li Ming had thought that the chaos in Silver Grey City was due to the inaction of the city guards, but now it seemed that the city guards were not as he had imagined them to be.
Whether it's in the outer city or the inner city, most of the grey areas have the backing of the Star Creation Company, and of course, there is also the cooperation of Silver Grey City's upper echelons.
The excessive exploitation by the Star Creation Company had caused Silver Grey Star's commercial value to plummet sharply.
All kinds of supporting measures could not only not be established, but housing prices had fallen sharply. How could the immigrants of Silver Grey Star accept this?
Unless there were other conflicts to distract them.
Li Ning looked at him in surprise, not quite understanding what he meant, and frowned, "Sometimes, the gang influence in the outer city extends too far, or they cause significant public sentiment, and we always have to take action."
His expression grew melancholic, "Go back and rest up well, we have a tough battle tomorrow."
Li Ming nodded thoughtfully and then suddenly asked, "Brother Li, could I borrow some money from you?"
"Money?" Li Ning was startled.
"Yeah, I can pay you interest," Li Ming added.
Only then did Li Ning suddenly remember, Li Ming's excessive maturity had made him overlook the fact that the other's father had died not long ago.
Li Ming had also been without a job for some time, and it was said that his father had even mortgaged the house before he died, and the money was spent on who knows what – in any case, there wasn't a cent left in his account.
A few old birds speculated that Li Changhai might have ended up in the underground gambling dens.
A gambling-addicted father, a mother who died early, and his resigned precocity... Li Ning's gaze softened, and he chuckled, "Look at you, talking like that, I can't let you call me bro for nothing, can I?"
"I've reasonably filled my belly without my family going hungry. I've indeed saved a bit of money, how much do you need?" he asked.
Li Ming held up two fingers.
"Two thousand, huh? Easy, give me your account number," Li Ning said nonchalantly.
"Twenty thousand."
Li Ming could clearly see Li Ning's face stiffen a bit.
"I'm in the process of working out my body, so I'm consuming quite a bit," Li Ming explained, "I also want to increase my strength as soon as possible."
"I see..." Li Ning thought for a moment and nodded, "No problem, give me your account number."
He wasn't worried about Li Ming not returning the money because if there truly was a problem, Captain Yang Peng would likely cover for him given his personality.
He was just a bit shocked by the amount, but understanding Li Ming's needs, he realized how great the consumption was for body strengthening, especially in the latter stages.
"But you don't need to hurry too much, good quality gene seeds are ridiculously expensive, and you still have to wait in line for a quota from the department. I've been queued up for several years now," Li Ning said self-deprecatingly, offering consolation.
Li Ming gave his account number, and the transfer was quickly completed. The two descended from the building and went their separate ways.
Li Ming didn't go back. With "substantial funds" in hand, it was time to spend. His metal energy was running low; he needed to find a way to get some.