Chapter 167: Illusionary City
Mumbai is experiencing the peak of the monsoon season in early August, but here we are, covered in grey-black clouds, with flashes of lightning, but no rain.
The clouds grew thicker and thicker, sweeping across until they filled the entire sky.
There were not many pedestrians on the street, and most shops had closed their doors and windows, waiting for the heavy rain to come.
Suddenly, the sound of gongs and drums came from the end of the street, and the shop owners and employees all looked over.
I saw a huge team slowly moving towards this side.
Leading the way was a truck with three big men standing on the front, waving flags, looking very majestic.
They were surrounded by people, young and old, numbering what seemed to be hundreds, all wearing matching turbans or waving flags with sun symbols.
The crowd was bustling and shouting various slogans. The marching team crossed the center of the street and headed straight to the Kimble District in the east.
There's something exciting to watch! Whether they were pedestrians on the street or shop owners and employees, they all took to the streets and looked at the team not far away.
In Bombay dialect, a disturbance is called rafda, which also means an extramarital affair or love entanglement.
Wherever there is Lavda, there are curious onlookers. When a large group of people gather together, it is best to watch the excitement closely without blinking, for fear of missing a second.
Among the onlookers were Hindus, who joined the parade at the call of "Sun God Surya".
In a place like Mumbai, there are at least a dozen ravdas every day, and the main force of ravdas are street thugs.
For example, the leader of the team, Lamore, who was standing on the front of the car waving a flag, was also a gangster from a slum.
Under his leadership, the team soon stopped in front of a small factory in Kimbul District.
Larmore waved his hands, the drummer beat his drums wildly, and the crowd danced wildly.
What's more, some people even took advantage of the chaos to throw firecrackers.
Boom! Crack! The fireworks ignited, like lightning in a dark cloud, illuminating the entire factory red.
The air was thick with the smell of sulfur, the stench of open sewage pipes, and the smell of sweat from the crowds.
The only security guard at the factory gate looked at the growing crowd with trepidation, having no idea what was going on.
But Lamor did not give him a chance to ask questions. He raised his arms and shouted, "Long live the great sun god Surya!"
The crowd echoed loudly.
"Long live the great Dr. Soul!"
The drummers beat the drums like crazy, and the flags danced like mad snakes, drawing arcs under the dark cloud sky.
Amor jumped out of the car and pointed to the lonely factory.
"For the Sun God!"
He led the way, kicked the dumbfounded security guard away, and ran towards the factory at full speed.
Behind him was a surging crowd of people, men, women, young and old, rushing into the factory with fanatical expressions.
Soon, the sounds of breaking glass, creaking wooden doors, and shouting of the crowd all broke out.
They rushed into the office, overturned tables and chairs, beat up anyone who blocked their way, and smashed everything they saw.
Some people even rushed into the workshop and destroyed things wantonly, scaring the workers so much that they ran away in panic.
The busiest place was the warehouse area, where brand new electric fans were collected and crowds of people gathered there.
Some were dragging, some were pulling, and everyone ran out happily holding the electric fan.
Now those who were originally standing outside watching the fun were no longer calm. Stimulated by the smiling faces, people joined in one after another.
This thing is free. It's such a great opportunity, why be polite?
As long as one of the three guys takes the lead, it is guaranteed that everyone on the street will go crazy.
The situation then became increasingly out of control, with people everywhere buying things for free.
The entire factory was torn apart. The employees were frightened by the riot and all fled without a trace.
Boom! A bright flash of light exploded in the clouds.
Crash! The rain came down almost instantly.
The crowd dodged everywhere, and the factory, which had just been like a battlefield, became extremely quiet in an instant.
The clearing effect is comparable to that of the police.
In the swaying and twisting rain, the newly listed Sunil Electrical Appliance Factory looked like a ruin.
In the back seat of an imported car on the side of the road, Ron watched all this in amazement.
He couldn't understand it and couldn't see it.
"What on earth happened?" Ron looked incredulous.
"Boss, as you can see, Sunil Electric is finished." Ashish next to him gloated.
"Are you sure they're not our people? Why are they targeting Sunil Electric like that? They're like crazy."
"Boss, that's how Indians are. We value friendship and loyalty. Once something bad happens, everyone gets furious."
"But... I don't even know them." Ron frowned and looked at the rain outside the window, still confused.
"You are their god." Ashish said succinctly.
"This is crazy," Ron muttered to himself.
For the first time, he realized the horror of sects. They were easily instigated, often protesting and demonstrating, and even fearless of death when they were fanatical.
It is a sharp weapon that can hurt others or yourself.
Ron secretly warned himself in his heart that this method should be used with caution.
"Restrain our people. Don't come here recently and don't talk nonsense. You'll get into trouble."
The law does not punish everyone, let alone a country as abstract as India. This matter will most likely be left unresolved, but Ron does not want to be criticized.
His golden body cannot be broken for the time being, which is very useful, especially at critical moments.
“Yes, boss,” Ashish agreed carefully.
Those people just now really had nothing to do with Sur Electric. They all became Ron's believers because of various reports.
The title of the only incarnation of the Sun God is very useful, especially since Ron has done a lot of good deeds.
But it is not necessarily true that there is no connection at all.
For example, the leader, the big man Amor, lives in the illegal area of the Sur slum.
Ron waved his hand and signaled the driver to drive.
The black Taurus sedan slowly disappeared in the rain, with only its red taillights faintly visible in the mist.
The rain is pouring and the wind is howling.
Under the gloomy sky, the dark shadow of the factory outline almost merged with the dark clouds in the distance.
Hurr! The roar of the engine pierced through the rain and fog.
A yellow and black taxi came to a difficult stop with a sharp sound of brakes.
Bania opened the car door in a hurry. Without an umbrella, he rushed to the factory in the heavy rain.
However, as soon as he entered the gate, he was stunned by the scene before him.
The ground was littered with abandoned fan boxes, torn and ravaged, and then turned into a paste by the rain.
The warehouse door was open, empty inside. The office doors and windows were broken, and the tables and chairs were toppled.
He trotted to the workshop trembling, and when he reached the door, he felt as if struck by lightning.
It’s over, it’s all over!
Baniya cried loudly in the rain, he fell to the ground and was unable to get up.
Mumbai is a city of illusion.
All these tall buildings you see are built on lies, theft and exploitation.
…
Amor lives in the Sur slum. He moved in recently, but he has the best location.
His house has solid earth walls and is even coated with cement on the outside, right next to the barbed wire fence in the legal area.
He lived with his family. Both of his brothers were married. Fortunately, the house was spacious enough to accommodate eight people after being divided into separate rooms.
After a heavy rain, Amor came back and took a shower. He was wrapped in a towel, revealing his strong chest and thick arms.
Amor is not a worker at Sur Electric; he works at a large dairy factory on the East Side Highway.
Because we are close to the water and have the first chance to see the moon, our family has collected a lot of spoils from the factory.
As soon as he sat down, his wife brought him a cup of hot milk with sugar.
It was thick buffalo milk, the semi-solid milk coagulated into lumps with black spots on them.
Amor didn't care. He tilted his head back, gulped down a few times, and drank it all.
"Did you go to Lavda again today?" His wife asked with sadness in her tone.
"You know shit. If I didn't cause any trouble, would I let you live in a house like this? Would you even be able to use any electrical appliances?"
Although Amor lives in a slum, his home is equipped with all necessary electrical appliances, including a refrigerator, electric fan, and electric lights.
Electricity comes from the legal slum next door, which has an existing water main circuit.
Residents or businesses like him who live near the wires can secretly pull back the electricity by paying a bribe.
Their lines have separate electricity meters, and every month they pay the neighboring residents a higher electricity rate than the market price.
The people in the legal slums got some extra money for free, and Amor and his friends now have electricity, so everyone is happy.
As for the electrical appliances in the house, they were all second-hand goods. They all had some problems, so Amor bought them from the scrap yard and had them repaired and put them back into use.
There is no doubt that his salary of 800 rupees is not enough to support such family expenses.
Amor also takes private jobs, such as Lavuda.
This is a business built for street thugs.
The big brothers or politicians in the underworld need them to maintain their status and give them generous rewards afterwards.
Most of them earn their income through violent means and they cannot imagine a world of peace and tranquility.
The fact that they have the status they have today, the respect they receive, and the decent life they lead is all thanks to the trouble they have caused over the years.
Since they want to cause trouble and can continue to do so, it is impossible for them to be enemies or friends and not change. Therefore, for them, friends, enemies and even human lives are relative concepts.
They climb up by stepping on the shoulders of others, trying hard to make sure they don't stand on the wrong side.
Who to ally with, who is most likely to be elected, and who gets the commission.
Is it the union, the police, the government officials, or the enemy? Just to ensure that the other party does not come to seek revenge for the time being, there are many considerations.
He had been working lately and lately to prepare for this event. A friend of his was working for him at the dairy, and Amor paid him so that he could free up his time to cause trouble.
His wife was deeply disturbed by this kind of life, and she would complain for a long time every time Amor came back.
But Amor turned a deaf ear to him. He sat in the chair drinking, then tilted his head and began to snore.
Their seven-month-old daughter was lying on the ground, reaching out to grab the overturned whiskey bottle. Her hands were too small to hold the bottle, so she burst into tears. She looked so pitiful and cute.
Amor's wife immediately picked up her daughter, fearing that she would disturb her husband's rest.
But Amor slept soundly, able to fall asleep peacefully amid the baby's crying and the noise outside.
Until there was a knock on the door outside.
(End of this chapter)
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