After chatting with Liu Ruoying for another ten minutes or so in the restaurant, Lin Mo finally finished his share of the food on the table.
He had no intention of lingering, so he politely said goodbye, then rose to leave. As he stood up, he casually rested a hand on her shoulder and murmured softly by her ear:
"Thank you, Ruoying-jie. You're a good person."
That gentle line practically melted Liu Ruoying into her chair.
But not long after, once her brain finally rebooted and she realized she'd essentially been used as a tool, Lin Mo was already long gone.
Leaving the restaurant, Lin Mo flagged down a Delamain cab and headed toward the workshop by the Chuandao waterfront.
As soon as he stepped into the small building, he saw Gloria working diligently in the first-floor office area—phone in one hand, the other waving staff back and forth with brisk, precise motions. She had the full air of a boss: sharp and capable.
Lin Mo couldn't help feeling a bit emotional at the sight.
When he first established the studio, he'd never expected to earn much from it.
It was meant to be a front more than a business. He'd never planned to waste time turning it into something big.
As long as it provided a central base, could buy certain military-grade goods under the studio's name, and could handle some special items off the books, the money spent setting it up was already worth it.
But now, he realized he'd underestimated Gloria.
This mother, who'd once managed to spin side income off her original job just to support her son,
had now become head of the studio and somehow found a steady stream of contracts—
actually turning the place into a lively, well-running business.
Even as he stepped inside, Lin Mo could still hear the rumbling outside—
the machines in the garbage-processing bay next door grinding away.
Not wanting his arrival to disrupt their work, he quietly kicked on his Sandevistan,
slipped away to the second-floor break area in a blur, and didn't disturb anyone.
…
"Two Dots!"
"Pung!"
"Damn it, why are you always Punging my tiles?!"
The moment he reached the second floor, Lin Mo heard a string of lines that left him utterly stunned.
Jackie, David, Kitagawa Hiro, and Falco were all gathered around a mahjong table—
playing mahjong.
The corner of Lin Mo's mouth twitched violently.
This scene felt so absurd he almost doubted reality itself.
It just did not match the Cyberpunk vibe in his head.
But what was happening in front of him clearly wasn't some glitch in the simulation…
If anything, he only had himself to blame for this.
Back when he was buying entertainment gear, he'd had a brain fart and picked up a full mahjong set.
Compared to other arcade-style machines, a mahjong table was dirt cheap—
and it came with a matching skill chip.
Even someone who'd never seen the game could slot the chip and start playing a few rounds right away…
But do you guys really have to lean into it this hard?
Especially you, David—
your mom's downstairs working her ass off,
and you're up here chilling with mahjong tiles…
Lin Mo couldn't help but sigh.
That tiny exhale was enough to draw the attention of all four at the table.
They turned toward the stairwell at the same time and saw Lin Mo leaning on the handrail,
looking at them with a rather complicated expression.
"Yo, Lin Mo, you're here. Wanna sit in for a few rounds? This game's wicked, man—way too easy to get hooked." Jackie waved him over.
"Eh-heh, I win again!" David grinned from ear to ear as he pushed his tiles forward.
"The hell, how many rounds have you won in a row?" Jackie turned back, cursing under his breath.
Kitagawa Hiro's eyelid twitched. He shot David a cool glance, then quietly transferred over the money he owed.
"David picked it up pretty fast. Once he got the basics down, he stopped relying on the chip and still plays like this," Falco said with an easy smile, also paying up.
David happily swept all the winnings into his corner.
Lin Mo dragged a chair over and sat down beside them, then turned to Jackie:
"Jackie, you haven't forgotten what's happening tonight, have you?"
Jackie's brows jumped. A look of delight slowly spread across his face.
He even wiggled in his seat, shaking his shoulders in excitement like he was about to start dancing. Rubbing his hands together, he asked:
"Lin Mo, you serious? We're really going to the Afterlife tonight?
We actually have the rep to get in now?"
Since he'd joined the crew, he hadn't even run all that many gigs yet.
How were they suddenly qualified to set foot in the legend's bar?
"If I say we do, then we do," Lin Mo replied, certain.
"That's what I'm talking about!" Jackie was over the moon.
He'd never imagined he'd get to fulfill this dream so soon.
"Lin-kun, if I may ask—
is there something specific you're going to the Afterlife to take care of tonight?"
Kitagawa Hiro couldn't shake the feeling that something was off and couldn't help asking.
Lin Mo glanced at him, then gave a small, definite nod.
"If my prediction's right, the next week or two…
we're probably going to be very, very busy," he said quietly.
The four around the table all froze.
"Well, that's fine by me.
These last few days have been so quiet with no work I almost don't know what to do with myself.
Lin Mo, you landed us a fat job, didn't you?" Jackie recovered first, even more excited now.
"More or less," Lin Mo said with a faint smile.
"So we're going to the Afterlife tonight to talk business?
Need me to bring Maine and the others along?
It's better to have a big show of force when you're negotiating deals—
the bigger the entourage, the more imposing you look." Falco suggested, calm and steady as always.
"No need.
Because the person I'm meeting tonight—
no matter how big a show we put on,
it won't mean a thing in front of her.
She alone is enough to outweigh all of us put together," Lin Mo declined.
"There's someone like that?" David asked, totally lost.
But the other three all stiffened slightly.
They clearly knew who Lin Mo was referring to.
"You mean the Queen of the Afterlife—Rogue?" Jackie ventured.
"Yeah. That's her.
I mentioned it to Regina, and she was more than happy to introduce me," Lin Mo said openly.
The three fell silent again.
Only David was still blinking in confusion.
From Lin Mo's words, Jackie and the others immediately understood—
If you were hiring Rogue as a fixer,
this definitely wasn't going to be some "missing kid" kind of gig.
Of course, as the Afterlife's queen, Rogue technically took all kinds of contracts.
To keep the bar's brand alive, a top-tier fixer like her couldn't afford to turn up her nose at smaller jobs.
Big scores didn't fall from the sky every day.
Even so, they also knew:
if it were something simple, Lin Mo could've just gone to Regina.
The fact he was going through Rogue instead meant
this was only going to get complicated.
Jackie thought for a moment, then said:
"I'm done with mahjong. Let's go, Lin Mo—
we can head over to the Afterlife right now."
Lin Mo blinked. "Already?"
"Business first, man. What are we still playing for?
We gotta sort your thing out.
Besides, I've been waiting for this day for years!" Jackie clenched his fists.
Just thinking about finally stepping into the Afterlife made him visibly buzz with excitement.
"But I set the meeting for tonight…
If we go now, we'll just end up drinking in a corner waiting around," Lin Mo said, a little unsure.
Falco's brow lifted slightly, his eyes turning as he thought.
"Doesn't matter if we're just drinking.
I've always wanted to try a Johnny Silverhand there.
I've done god knows how much 'research' on that drink—
No way I pass up this chance to finally tick that one off my list!" Jackie said with a wide grin.
Lin Mo glanced at him, then checked the time.
—14:34.
If they went over now,
they actually wouldn't be waiting that long…
"All right. Let's head out now."
Decision made, Lin Mo stood up to leave.
"Safe travels, kid," Falco said with his usual warm smile,
giving Lin Mo a meaningful look.
David and Kitagawa Hiro also got up to see the two of them off.
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