After making sure that group of patrolmen had left, Logan Reed finally returned to the office and gently knocked on the cabinet door.

The cabinet door slowly opened, and a lazy voice said, “Damn! That took so long, I almost fell asleep!” His words carried a thick Shandong accent.

Logan Reed looked at the fat man curled up in the wardrobe like a ball of meat, and immediately felt a surge of nameless anger. He grabbed the guy’s small ear and cursed, “Damn it, are you blind? You ruined my big plan!”

Blind Jack begged for mercy while struggling, and only after much effort did Logan Reed let go. Then, swaggering, he plopped himself down in Logan Reed’s chair, took off his melon-skin cap and tossed it aside, landing it perfectly on the coat rack. He then stretched out his plump white hands, pinched the gold-rimmed glasses with his thumb and middle finger, and carefully removed his sunglasses. Under his sparse eyebrows, his small eyes sparkled with light. His real name was Derek Andrews, but people called him Blind Jack because his vision was blurry during the day—he couldn’t even make out people’s faces within a meter. But at night, his eyesight would improve several times over, allowing him to see easily in pitch-black darkness. Of course, very few people knew this secret, and among them was his best friend, Logan Reed.

“Big plan?” Blind Jack looked at the blurry outline of Logan Reed just a step away, then took a deep breath. He could still smell the lingering scent of powder in the air, and like a hound, he sniffed twice more: “Others might not know you, but I do! You’re just a sanctimonious conman, using the guise of preaching to take advantage of good women and deceive innocent girls. Jesus shepherds the flock, but you’re the wolf in sheep’s clothing, eyeing the ewes!”

Logan Reed wasn’t angry at all; instead, he laughed and half-sat on the desk: “I swear to Jesus, I, Logan Reed, have never done anything utterly immoral. I’ve always stood up to evil and helped the poor. Now that it’s getting cold, the kids at Gospel Primary School still don’t have winter coats, and many of them are sick. I was going to persuade the commissioner’s wife to sponsor them today, but you, you bastard, ruined my good deed.”

Blind Jack smiled meaningfully, his small eyes narrowing to slits: “We used to be from the same hometown, then classmates, and now we’re a pair of unlucky bastards. Don’t think I don’t know what kind of fake pastor you are?” He pulled out a wallet from his waist, took out five silver dollars, and slapped them heavily on the desk. Then, looking smug, he propped both feet up on the edge of the desk, one at a time, looking very pleased with himself and just begging for a beating.

But Logan Reed shot out his hand like lightning, snatched the wallet from Blind Jack’s hand. Blind Jack was startled and tried to grab it back, but Logan Reed poked him lightly in the chest, making him lose his balance. With the chair, he toppled over onto the floor, arms and legs flailing. By the time he scrambled up, Logan Reed was already sitting on the sofa opposite, having not only taken the wallet but also the five silver dollars Blind Jack had just put on the table. As he counted the money, he said, “Not a bad haul! Still as quick-fingered as ever!”

Blind Jack pointed at Logan Reed, his face red with frustration: “You’re not playing fair! At least leave me half…”

At that moment, Logan Reed pulled a photo out of the wallet. The photo showed a beautiful young woman in a traditional banner dress. He paused, but what caught his attention wasn’t the girl’s beauty.

Blind Jack rushed over in a panic, trying to take advantage of Logan Reed’s distraction to snatch the wallet back. But before he could get close, Logan Reed tripped him with his right foot, making him lose his balance again and fall to the floor like a small mountain. The floor creaked and groaned under his weight.

Logan Reed had already stood up, tossed the now-empty wallet onto Blind Jack’s broad back, pocketed all the cash, and, holding the photo, strolled unhurriedly to the window to examine it in the afternoon light.

Blind Jack was thick-skinned and sturdy. Even after falling twice, he was still fine, though his once slicked-back hair was now a bit messy. He blew hard, sending the stray lock on his forehead back, and stubbornly got up again. But after failing twice, he didn’t dare try to snatch it by force anymore. Grinning ingratiatingly, he sidled up to Logan Reed: “Come on, brother, can’t you let me have a taste if you’re eating meat?”

Logan Reed ignored him, his gaze still fixed on the photo.

Blind Jack was getting impatient and complained angrily, “What the hell are you looking at? It’s just some chick!”

Logan Reed handed him the photo. The two-inch photo looked especially tiny in Blind Jack’s plump white hands. He brought it right up to his nose, and when he finally saw the girl clearly, his grin grew even wider, showing his molars: “Not bad! Delicate features, fair and tender, tall and graceful, so lovely—she’d be a perfect match for me, Derek Andrews!”

Logan Reed picked up the chair that had fallen behind the desk, sat back down, propped his legs up on the desk, interlaced his fingers over his stomach, and frowned slightly: “Her name is Grace Young, the newly popular top singer at the Paramount.”