155 Little Girl on the Streets of Paris

(Today, I’ve been working overtime at the office since morning, and the tasks are still unfinished. I managed to squeeze in a chapter! I’ll try to do more after returning tonight!)

Li Changjiang was by no means short of money.

Previously, the Russian had given him three million US dollars. Apart from withdrawing a portion to give to his parents and transferring some to Meng Yao, he had hardly touched the rest. The reason for not giving too much to his parents was that he understood sudden wealth wasn’t always a blessing, and it was wiser to keep financial matters discreet.

His parents had lived simple lives as rural craftsmen and homemakers. Even thirty thousand dollars would be a considerable sum for them, let alone three million in US currency.

Although three million dollars was no small fortune, a large part of that money was actually inheritance left by Louis to his daughter, Lucia. The Russian never mentioned this, but Li Changjiang would never claim that money as his own.

Louis—

After all, he was the one who had guided Li Changjiang into the mercenary life.

Aside from the three million dollars, Li Changjiang’s remaining funds were limited. The mercenary group had just two remaining sums.

One was the two million dollars originally paid by Hamis when hiring him and the Russian. Although Shi Junqiang never handed it over to Hamis, the Russian had already instructed Policar to send the intelligence Hamis wanted.

Policar had said, “People like Hamis—if you can’t kill them, it’s best not to make enemies.”

After paying the commissions for Tank and the others and purchasing weapons, less than 1.2 million remained from that sum. But that money was shared only between him and the Russian; the others had no claim to it.

After dividing that money with the Russian, what was left was a stash of gold.

There were 25 gold bars, each weighing 35.27 ounces—about two kilograms. Li Changjiang and the others didn’t know how to handle such items, so Policar gave them an approximate value based on the market price.

And it was in US dollars!

A hefty sum of 1,700,000 dollars!

“This is the money from the gold sale. How should we divide it now?”

With a loud thud, the Russian grabbed a large woven bag from the floor and slammed it onto the table. The bag’s mouth opened to reveal stacks upon stacks of crisp new bills—all hundred-dollar notes.

“Boss, you decide!”

“Yes, boss, you divide it!”

“I have no objections!”

After a brief hesitation, almost everyone looked toward Li Changjiang. The sum was not insignificant, but considering the increased number of members, an equal split wouldn’t amount to much. Moreover, this was no longer the time of a free-for-all mercenary group, so equal sharing was out of the question.

As the leader, Li Changjiang had to take a larger share to maintain his authority and position—there was no doubt about that.

However, although William was the deputy leader, he, along with Bob, Tim, Elisa, and Shi Junqiang, were actually not entitled to this share of the money this time.

This complicated matters.

Li Changjiang hesitated for a moment.

He was weighing the options.

Because this distribution principle would likely set the precedent for the Hunter Mercenary Group’s future profit-sharing. Once established, it would be difficult to change.

Hence, he had to be cautious.

“Boss, I think you should take a larger portion than us. Does anyone have objections?”

The Russian’s voice was abrupt. Li Changjiang glanced at him thoughtfully but did not refuse; he understood the Russian’s intention.

With everyone nodding in agreement, the matter immediately simplified, and the distribution plan was quickly approved.

The Russian, Tank, the Assassin, Keyboard, the Doctor, and Angel—six people—each received 150,000 dollars, as they were the direct executors of the mission and participated in the entire combat process.

This gold was not originally commission, so by average distribution, William, Tim, Bob, Shi Junqiang, and Elisa each received 60,000 dollars.

That totaled 1.2 million. From the remaining 500,000 dollars, Li Changjiang took 60%, which was 300,000 dollars. The last 200,000 was entrusted to Elisa for safekeeping as the group’s operating funds.

The final commission distribution plan was: 70% of the money would be shared equally among the mercenary members, and from the remaining 30%, Li Changjiang, as the leader, would take 60%, with the remaining 40% used as the group’s public funds.

For new members, a voting system was adopted: if over 90% of the team approved, they would become official members sharing the commission equally. Until then, they would be paid weekly wages from the group’s public funds, with specific amounts decided by the leader.

After receiving the initial 600,000 and now this 300,000, Li Changjiang’s pocket quickly swelled.

For the truly wealthy, 900,000 dollars might be less than the price of a luxury item, but for Li Changjiang, it opened many possibilities.

For example, the very first thing was to buy a ticket from Marseille to Paris. Alongside him were Elisa and the Russian; the rest could move about freely. They would regroup at the Marseille port in three days, where Policar would send them to Alexandria in Egypt.

As the city of fashion and romance, Paris impressed Li Changjiang from the moment he felt the ancient artistic atmosphere and rich romantic charm brushing against him, especially with early August temperatures just under 30 degrees Celsius.

No scorching summer heat, no biting winter cold!

That alone was enough to reveal Paris’s allure.

Of course, Li Changjiang had little time or mood to savor Paris’s luxury and romance. After getting off the train, the three took a taxi directly to the Russian’s impression of the 11th arrondissement, a district known as a gathering place for ordinary Parisians.

Voltaire Avenue cut through the city.

Upon alighting, Li Changjiang stared incredulously at the scene before him. The plane trees lining both sides of the street nearly blocked all sunlight. The buildings were tightly packed and low-rise, but tangled electrical wires and shabby decorations made it clear this was not a wealthy area.

People passed by in small clusters along the road, mostly elderly folks. Among them were an East Asian man, a woman who was clearly Arab, and a burly white man.

The trio’s appearance was somewhat eye-catching, but Li Changjiang ignored their gazes and followed the Russian toward the far end of the street.

After passing through the plane-tree-lined street, the Russian seemed a bit lost.

“I can’t quite remember. It should be here.”

“Have you been here before but can’t recall the way?”

“Damn it! The last time I came, it was already dark!”

Sure enough.

A person without foresight always did unreliable things.

Li Changjiang looked around, intending to ask someone for directions.

But soon, a voice pierced his ear.

“Nobody wants Lucia! Hahaha!”

Hearing English in France wasn’t unusual.

But when the phrase included the name Lucia, it was surprising.

Li Changjiang and the Russian almost simultaneously sprinted toward the source of the voice.

Around the corner stood a girl about ten years old, clutching a large bouquet of flowers. Her doll-like delicate face was streaked with tears.

Yet in her eyes, Li Changjiang saw a flicker of hope and longing.

In the storefront window before her stood a Barbie doll about her size.

“Lucia!” (To be continued.)