Su Chengyu headed to the stall of the little girl. At that moment, a group of ruffians approached, going from stall to stall collecting stall fees. This section along the river was officially designated for night markets, and all vendors need to pay a monthly garbage collection and stall fee.
But there were still hooligans demanding protection money in the area. If vendors refused to pay, these gangs would trash their stalls and harm them.
The vendors, who were all just hardworking common folk, dare not provoke these street gangs. They reluctantly part with their money. These days, it wasn't easy to set up a street stall to make a little money.
"We just paid the protection fee for the month last week, why are you asking for it again?" some vendors protested.