Chapter 149: Neighbors

Does this serial number carry any other meaning? Or was it just randomly generated?

Tsao Fusheng clearly remembered that Chu Wei's serial number seemed to have five digits, running well into the tens of thousands.

Yet, Gao Yi's just now was 0502, merely four digits. This... it had to be a random mess, right?

Some things defied understanding, so he simply stopped pondering them. A mere serial number wasn't going to cause any chaos anyway.

"Let's go, let's tidy up and get ready to head out, find a place to burn those electronic devices," Tsao Fusheng put away his stray thoughts and said.

"Alright!"

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The group of three, accompanied by Little Ye, headed down to the public open area on the next level.

This was the open zone belonging to the Upper Citizens, and the entire span of the 400th level was mostly filled with ordinary restaurants and dining areas.

Even so, the flow of traffic was far from sparse. Many people cast frequent sideways glances, their attention entirely focused on Little Ye.

For many of them, this was the first time they had ever laid eyes on a human-raised pet inside the Sky Pillar.

"Why is that person allowed to bring a pet?"

"Seriously! The only time I was ever lucky enough to see one was when Department Head Tong, the goddess, kept a big orange cat. What kind of status do these people have?"

"I recognize them! Those people who fought their way in from the outside yesterday—it looks like it's them!"

"Whoa, incredible! I heard the rumors saying that our Sky Pillar managed to survive this crisis purely thanks to these people!"

The surrounding residents gathered in growing numbers, pointing and whispering from time to time as if they had stumbled upon a sensational news story.

Soon after, a team of Enforcement Department personnel rushed over, dispersing the slowly clustering crowd entirely.

This was ordered personally by Department Head Xun: treat this fellow on the 401st level well, and try not to disturb or provoke him as much as possible.

To ensure his subordinates took the matter seriously, Xun Xin had even distributed screenshots of Tsao Fusheng.

Of course, this was entirely Department Head Xun's personal decision. He felt it was necessary, so he went ahead and implemented it.

"Captain Tsao, apologies. You folks have been rather prominent in the spotlight lately, so it's easy to draw everyone's discussion," a member of the enforcement team chuckled as he approached with an explanation.

Tsao Fusheng smiled mildly and said, "Understandable. Sorry for giving your work extra trouble, though."

"It's no real trouble... Though taking a dog for a walk in broad daylight like this is indeed a bit against the rules. However, our department head did give word that unless something major happens, there's no need to sweat such trivial matters," the man said with a troubled expression.

"Understood, we'll be more mindful next time. Sorry to bother you," Tsao Fusheng replied with a sense of apology.

He had been unaware that bringing pets out was forbidden inside the Sky Pillar, mostly because the handbook didn't explicitly state it. It seemed this fell under the category of unwritten rules.

After all, he had just overheard the surrounding gossip; Department Head Tong of the Medical Department had once brought a large orange cat outside.

"No worries at all! If Captain Tsao wants to bring it along, feel free. It's no big deal anyway. Oh right, let me introduce myself. I'm the head of the enforcement team for the upper public open area. Just call me Lei Bin." Lei Bin wore a smile, appearing to be around forty years old and quite a smooth character.

Naturally, someone with this level of worldly experience handled matters in places like the public open area with greater ease.

Little Ye stared at Lei Bin, saliva continuously dripping down. Seeing this, Han Shuqing hurriedly pulled the creature into her arms, stroking the fur of this man-eating entity to keep it calm.

She needed to soothe its mood first—heaven forbid it got too hungry and actually started eating people inside the Sky Pillar; that would blow things up into a massive disaster.

Not even the Boss stepping in personally could protect it then, and the worst part was that it would implicate the three of them.

Tsao Fusheng nodded and asked with a puzzled tone, "Oh right, Brother Lei, I wanted to ask if there's any place inside the Sky Pillar where we can burn things?"

"Burn things? Um... May I ask what you're planning to burn? Is it convenient to share?" Lei Bin's expression shifted, and he asked with nervous tension.

He desperately hoped they weren't stirring up anything thorny. If he couldn't handle it, he'd have to report it up to Department Head Xun, and Department Head Xun had been fuming in a foul temper ever since yesterday.

Besides, the man was so busy all day that he never stepped outside; Lei Bin had no desire to walk into the line of fire right now.

"It's nothing much. Before we entered the Sky Pillar, one of our brothers sacrificed his life. So we want to burn some items for him, sort of fulfilling a regret from his lifetime," Tsao Fusheng spoke the truth, as there was nothing to hide.

Lei Bin let out a breath of relief and said softly, "We have strict regulations here. Even trash is collected by designated personnel and uniformly sent to the clearance facility for disposal. If you want to burn things, you can only go to the clearance facility. Open flames are strictly prohibited everywhere else in the Sky Pillar. Even smoking is restricted to the exclusive smoking rooms on each floor."

Tsao Fusheng thought for a moment, drew a lighter from his pocket, placed it in Lei Bin's palm, and said, "The clearance facility should have fire, then. We have to follow the rules."

Lei Bin beamed with joy. This Captain Tsao really knew how to play the game! It saved him a lot of trouble, and even though the man had saved the Sky Pillar, he didn't act arrogant at all, remaining modest enough to instantly win people over.

"Yes, yes. Just explain the situation when you reach the clearance facility. I believe that with Captain Tsao's prestige, they will grant you this little wish. Our local clearance facility is on the 389th level. Go down a few floors and consult the office on that level; they'll clear it up for you," Lei Bin kindly reminded him.

"Got it, thanks a lot, Elder Brother Lei."

"Not a problem at all!"

Tsao Fusheng and his companions departed, while Lei Bin stayed behind to chat with his squad members.

"Did you see that? That's what you call knowing how to conduct yourself, Captain Tsao! Department Head Xun gave us explicit instructions, and you've all heard about what happened yesterday—Captain Tsao took down five of us in a single second, went to the top floor to attend meetings with the bigshots, and rendered great service to our Sky Pillar. Yet he can still maintain that attitude. All of you, learn from this! When any of you little punks eventually make something of yourselves, don't walk around with your noses in the air!" Although Lei Bin spoke sternly, a smile still lingered on his face.

His subordinates were well accustomed to this direct superior of theirs; he talked more seriously than anyone else, yet handled matters more reliably than anyone else, and treated his brothers quite well.

At first, upon seeing the situation here, Lei Bin's heart had been pounding anxiously. What if this fellow turned out to be an arrogant snob? Communication would have been a headache.

After all, Tsao Fusheng lived on the floor right above them, and since they were permanent residents of the Sky Pillar, interactions would be frequent. Deep down, he disliked dealing with people who looked down their noses at others.

He would have suffered unprovoked grievances simply because his supreme superior, Department Head Xun, had issued a strict order.

In terms of rank, his position was actually one tier higher than Tsao Fusheng's small-captain rank.

Yet now, he could finally rest easy. He could appropriately grow closer to Tsao Fusheng. After all, this was a man capable of sitting side-by-side with the department head in meetings.

His future prospects were bright!

Most importantly, Tsao Fusheng's room was Room 404 on the 401st level, while Lei Bin's was Room 407 on the 401st level—they were legitimate neighbors.