Spy-x-War Showdown
Chapter 115 - 114: Good Little Brother

Chapter 115: Chapter 114: Good Little Brother

Zhang Yong harbored deep resentments, feeling that he had been deceived by Yang Yi, because although he knew Yang Yi was smart, he was unaware that Yang Yi possessed an eidetic memory bordering on genius.

It’s easy to say "just remember the cards," but how many people can truly memorize an entire deck? Not to mention that card counting is practically impossible in blackjack and Texas Hold’em when only a few cards are dealt. Even in a relatively simpler game like Fight the Landlord, few can clearly recall every card that’s been played.

Thus, Yang Yi could only promise to teach Zhang Yong a mnemonic method. Just like starting with physical strength when training in martial arts, learning to play cards with Zhang Yong began with memorization, alongside some simple formulas to calculate odds and probabilities.

The entire afternoon was spent with Yang Yi teaching Zhang Yong mental arithmetic, and then he felt exasperated because, in his eyes, what seemed incredibly simple was somehow incomprehensible to Zhang Yong.

It was like during their sparring sessions, where Zhang Yong would repeatedly strike him in the same way, and Yang Yi just couldn’t seem to dodge it.

By dinner time, Yang Yi stopped teaching. He was still concerned about his underlings. He might have been out of trouble, but Scollin, Keri, and Rodriguez had all been taken away, and he didn’t know if they had been put in solitary confinement.

When dinnertime came, Yang Yi saw that his underlings had already been waiting for him in the cafeteria.

Although it’s expected for subordinates to cover for their boss when he’s unavailable, seeing his few underlings still made him feel somewhat embarrassed, but of course, he was also reassured that they hadn’t been put in solitary confinement.

Keri, who had been taken away in Yang Yi’s place, felt different than before; he was even more obsequious towards Yang Yi, but he seemed rather haughty towards Hamer Phil who had left earlier than others.

Scollin was the same as always, but he seemed quite happy, probably because he had been taken away without further incident and had gotten a bit of notoriety out of it.

Rodriguez was indistinguishable from his old self.

Zhang Yong said one should "keep their eyes on people," and without eyes, of course, one can’t see anything, but having eyes doesn’t guarantee one can see clearly.

Yang Yi now had a rough ranking for his underlings. First was Gweil, the chemistry professor who was a talent worth learning from and valuable for his use.

Hamer Phil was also a talent; performance skills are important for a spy and worth the effort to learn, so the toad had his use.

Keri was nothing more than a sycophant; he had spent a long time in prison, knew a lot, was relatively well-informed, and was adept at flattery. It wouldn’t be bad to keep him for running errands, but Yang Yi resolved never to entrust him with important matters.

Scollin was a typical hanger-on. Not wanting to join a gang nor eager to go it alone, he looked for a strong boss to lean on. He’d fulfill any tasks required of him, shirking whatever he could and bearing the responsibilities he couldn’t refuse—just an ordinary underling, neither more nor less substantial if he were not around.

As for Rodriguez, Yang Yi was a bit uncertain.

Logically, if underlings were clinging to a big shot, it was for self-protection, not to be someone’s personal shield, to rush into danger first, or to proactively shoulder responsibilities. If one did all that, they might as well just endure prison on their own.

Yang Yi always felt that Rodriguez’s behavior seemed excessive and not typical of a randomly recruited underling in prison.

Yang Yi sat on a chair, looked around at the underlings surrounding him, and then he frowned and asked, "Got beaten up?"

Keri had injuries on his face, but he nonchalantly said, "It’s nothing serious, getting beaten is no big deal, as long as the boss is fine."

Scollin shifted his body and grimaced, "Those cops hit really hard."

Only Rodriguez spoke nonchalantly, "It was okay, just a few random hits."

Rodriguez was a sincere guy, Yang Yi nodded and didn’t say anything further, simply starting to eat.

At this moment, Keri chuckled and said, "Boss, a lot of people want to join us, but many can’t bring cigarettes, what do you think?"

Yang Yi nodded and said, "Hmm, tell them if they don’t have cigarettes, instant noodles will do, two packs of instant noodles per person for my protection, but I don’t want to see them today, let them prepare the stuff and come back tomorrow."

If even two packs of cigarettes or instant noodles couldn’t be spared by a would-be follower, what use would Yang Yi have for them? He only needed a few people for running errands and he didn’t want to lead a large group into fights, so why recruit so many?

After he finished eating, Yang Yi waved his hands and said, "Everyone go back, be careful not to get caught up in retaliation. See you tomorrow. Rodriguez, wait for a moment, I have something to talk to you about."

Once the other followers had left, Yang Yi said to Rodriguez, "Have you been in a gang before?"

"I have, but it was just a small gang in Ecuador, not many people. After I got to the United States, I stopped contacting them because all my brothers ended up in jail, just in Ecuador’s jails."

"Rodriguez, why did you, why? Hmm, what have you been doing to make a living in the United States?"

"I... robbed, stole things, occasionally sold drugs, but I didn’t do this often, because you need to be part of a gang for that."

"You seem to be quite familiar with gangs, so why didn’t you want to join one in the United States?"

Scratching his head with a troubled expression, Rodriguez said, "I just didn’t want to join a gang anymore, I felt it was unfair. I had to do the most dangerous tasks, but could only get a little money. Plus, if anything happened, they’d throw me out to take the blame. I don’t like that."

"Then why do you hang out with me?"

Rodriguez gaped, then looked at Yang Yi earnestly and said, "Boss, we’re not a gang, right?"

"Right, not a gang."

"That’s right, because we’re not a gang. You’re strong, so I asked for your protection. That way no one will bully me anymore."

"Just like that?"

"Is there anything else?"

"Hmm, then why are you willing to go into solitary for me?"

Rodriguez was incredibly surprised, gaping for a long time before he looked at Yang Yi in amazement and said, "Isn’t that what a little brother should do? Even if we aren’t a gang, the boss is still the boss, right? If a little brother is of no use at all, then why would a boss need him?"

Rodriguez put forth a very simple yet correct reason, although he took his loyalty a bit too far.

All in all, Rodriguez was a very good follower, a delight for any boss who lives in luxury and sends others to their deaths; Rodriguez was a really good follower indeed.

Yang Yi was satisfied, he stood up, patted Rodriguez on the shoulder, and said, "Good job, keep it up, I have my eye on you."