“Hiring someone to do the dirty work.” The man said with a smile, “Spend some money to let others do what you can’t. Of course, there are risks involved. Whether it succeeds or not is uncertain, and the person who takes action also risks being caught and confessing. So, the result is that it’s still very hard for you to keep yourself out of it.”

James Carter was dumbfounded. He swallowed hard and asked, “Then... what’s the third way...?”

The man said, “The third method is much more sophisticated, and it also requires you to have the patience to wait.”

“Wait for what?”

“Wait for an opportunity.”

“What kind of opportunity?” James Carter looked completely confused.

“An opportunity that you can be absolutely sure of, and that also allows you to keep yourself out of it.”

James Carter lowered his head thoughtfully and muttered, “How could there be such an opportunity? If I have to wait, how long would that take?”

“Heh.” The man chuckled, “That depends on whether you want to be a hunter or prey. If you want to be a hunter, an excellent one, then you need to have a heart that can endure impatience. In the forest, a hunter can wait for days or even dozens of days to catch prey. In society, a hunter who wants to succeed often has to wait for years, even more than a decade. If you don’t have that kind of patience, then don’t talk about avenging your friend in the future, because you won’t succeed.”

“Nowadays, many people lament that they were born at the wrong time and missed good opportunities. In fact, opportunities don’t just fall from the sky by luck—they come from patiently waiting. A few people are already prepared, just waiting for the opportunity to arrive, while most people muddle through life. Even if an opportunity comes right in front of them, they can’t seize it, wasting it for nothing, and then they complain and sigh about being born at the wrong time.”

James Carter listened intently. Suddenly, he felt as if a window had opened in his mind, as if he had been enlightened. Deep down, he felt that what the man said made sense. No one had ever told him such things before.

After a while, he couldn’t help but ask, “Uncle, what exactly do you do?”

The man grinned, but this time his smile felt warm to James Carter, no longer like a fake mask. He said, “Do you know what a middleman is?”

“A middleman?”

“Someone who connects people.” The man shrugged and said, “Now, I suppose I’m a retired middleman.”

“I don’t really know what a middleman does, but I think what you said makes a lot of sense. I still want to become your apprentice.”

James Carter was now even more determined in his thinking. Somehow, he just had a feeling that he would learn things from this uncle that would benefit him for a lifetime.

In fact, that was exactly the case.

This uncle truly changed James Carter’s outlook on life, becoming the most important mentor in his life. Later, many people would call him a cunning opportunist, and it was precisely because of this uncle’s influence.

The uncle looked at James Carter and asked with a smile, “I can’t tell you my name—it wouldn’t do you any good. I also can’t let you have any connection with me—that would be even worse for you. But, I can teach you some skills, skills to strengthen your body.”

Whether or not he accepted him as a formal apprentice didn’t matter to James Carter; what mattered was that he was willing to teach him something. Hearing the uncle’s words, he was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly, asking, “Uncle, what are you going to teach me?”

“You’re in high school now, right?”

“Yes.”

“Mm.” The uncle nodded, then asked, “How far is your home from school?”

This really stumped James Carter. He thought for a long time but couldn’t figure it out. Scratching his head, he said, “I only know it’s six bus stops away.”

“Six stops... Each stop is about one to one and a half kilometers. In the city, it’s usually less than a kilometer per stop. Six stops is about five kilometers.”

The uncle calculated for a moment, then said to James Carter, “From now on, don’t take the bus to and from school. Start running to and from school instead. No matter what you want to do in the future, having a strong and healthy body is always the most important thing.”

James Carter listened and nodded, firmly remembering his words. After waiting for a while and seeing that the uncle didn’t say anything more, he asked, “Uncle, and then?”

“And then?” The uncle looked up and laughed, “First, stick to what I just told you. Then we’ll talk about what’s next.”

“That’s easy...”

“Easy? Doing it for a day or two is easy. The hard part is sticking with it.” The uncle glanced at his watch, then picked up his cup and downed the beer in one gulp. He immediately stood up and said, “Alright, I have to go now. See you next time.”

James Carter hurriedly stood up as well and asked, “Can I really not know your name, uncle?”

Seeing the hopeful look in his eyes, the uncle seemed to be lost in thought for a moment. His lips moved, but in the end, he just smiled and said, “It’s better if you don’t know.” With that, he didn’t linger any longer and strode out.

Chapter 4 Entrustment

The uncle was very mysterious. This was the conclusion James Carter came to after interacting with him a few times. Although they talked a lot when they were together, as soon as the topic touched on the uncle himself, the conversation would abruptly end.