He Chu San curled up in his seat and refused to get out of the car, so Xia Liu Yi seized him by the collar and dragged him outside. Xia Liu Yi used his gauze-wrapped left hand to pull him, leaving He Chu San afraid to struggle too hard.
Hugging his backpack with his collar hanging crookedly, He Chu San stumbled along as Xia Liu Yi dragged him. “Brother Liu Yi, Brother Liu Yi! Why did you bring me here?”
“Your Brother Liu Yi had a good time today, so I’m treating you to your first taste.” Although Xia Liu Yi’s tone sounded cheerful, he did not look at him once. He strode into the lavishly decorated lobby, dragging He Chu San behind him.
“I don’t need—”
“Shut up.” A chill entered Xia Liu Yi’s voice.
“Brother Liu Yi, I really don’t—”
“Shut up!” Xia Liu Yi snapped coldly.
“I’m not going inside!” He Chu San shouted even louder than him.
He did not dare touch Xia Liu Yi’s injured hand, so he awkwardly raised both arms, wrapped them around Xia Liu Yi’s forearm, and planted his feet firmly on the floor.
His little backpack fell onto the gleaming floor with a heavy smack.
The manager was already approaching with several girls. From a distance, he recognized the Boss and prepared to greet him enthusiastically, only to notice that the two men had frozen in the corridor and that something was wrong with the atmosphere. He immediately stopped the chattering girls and remained several steps away to observe.
Xia Liu Yi turned and looked expressionlessly at He Chu San. He Chu San twisted his neck and stared back, his feet planted in a firm horse stance, as immovable as a mountain.
Their gazes clashed soundlessly in the air, and the atmosphere seemed to freeze with an audible creak.
The two had spent the entire journey silently matching wits, courage, and stubbornness. Now, with their eyes locked, they understood everything without needing to speak—He Chu San’s secret intentions and Xia Liu Yi’s deliberate performance had both been laid bare in the open.
Only minutes earlier, He Chu San had still been nervously but secretly delighted. In the blink of an eye, he was treated like this. That brief trace of indulgence and ambiguity from before had burst even faster than a soap bubble.
He had been struck completely unprepared by this bolt from the blue. Xia Liu Yi’s move was not merely intended to put an end to his hopes. It made it clear that Xia Liu Yi regarded him as nothing more than an inexperienced virgin who had never tasted sex and had mistakenly directed his feelings toward another man. Bitterness filled He Chu San’s heart, making his gaze increasingly aggrieved and furious. Xia Liu Yi, meanwhile, had tolerated He Chu San’s touches and covert rubbing throughout the journey and was already brimming with frustration. Seeing the brat actually dare to tear away the pretense and challenge him openly made his expression grow even colder.
“A’San, are you even a man? Don’t you have any normal needs?” Xia Liu Yi sneered.
“I don’t do this kind of thing!” He Chu San said. “I don’t come to such sleazy… places!”
“Ha! This place is too disreputable for you? It would dirty the face of an esteemed university student like you? I’m the owner of this place! I come here and fool around every day! If you fucking look down on it so much, why do you keep following me around?!”
He Chu San gritted his teeth for a long time. “You don’t. You’re not that kind of person.”
Xia Liu Yi gave a cold laugh, turned toward the manager, and ordered, “Bring Xiao He out!”
The manager hurried off personally to find Xiao He. On the way, he grabbed a waiter and whispered urgently for him to locate General Manager Cui and bring her back to save the situation—General Manager, heaven help us! The Boss brought a student here to smash up his own establishment!
Xiao He cultivated an innocent image at the club. She had received no warning that any boss would be coming tonight, so she was currently wearing a short Japanese schoolgirl skirt while drinking with several wealthy businessmen. Summoned without warning, she arrived wearing light makeup, with a streak of red lipstick smeared from the corner of her mouth. From a distance, she resembled a bloodsucking female ghost from a Japanese school horror story.
She hurried over behind the manager. Up close, however, her features were delicate and her face sweet and obedient. The moment she came within reach, Xia Liu Yi roughly pulled her into his arms, seized her chin, and forced her to raise her face.
“See her? This is the sort of woman I’ve slept with. She looks decent enough, but she’s too dull in bed. No matter how much you fuck her, she only knows how to make the same few sounds! I prefer someone more wanton, so I’m not particularly interested in her type, but she’s perfect for a chaste man like you! Tonight, she’ll teach you how to become a man. Xiao He, take him inside!”
Obeying, Xiao He walked forward to take He Chu San’s arm, but he violently shook her away. “Don’t touch me!”
Xiao He was frail and delicate and immediately stumbled from the shove. Xia Liu Yi caught her around the waist. He Chu San lowered his head, picked up his backpack, and said, “I’m going home.”
He turned to leave and heard Xia Liu Yi roar behind him, plainly furious beyond endurance.
“Stop!”
He Chu San halted.
“You’re throwing a tantrum at me?! You come when you like and leave when you like. Do you think this place is a public toilet?!”
“You were the one who dragged me inside.” He Chu San did not turn around.
“Did I give you permission to leave?! I’m telling you, A’San! If you dare refuse her tonight, I’ll have someone strip her naked and throw her into the street for the dogs!”
Xiao He looked up in surprise, first glancing at Xia Liu Yi. She immediately understood, then turned to He Chu San with a pitiful expression.
“You wouldn’t do that.” Hugging his backpack tightly, He Chu San continued toward the exit.
“Strip her, slap her ten times, and throw her outside!” Xia Liu Yi ordered over his shoulder.
Two bodyguards stepped forward in response and genuinely began stripping Xiao He in public. Xiao He burst into loud sobs. The bodyguards tore at her skirt and then her underwear as she knelt on the floor and struggled desperately. She clung to Xia Liu Yi’s leather shoes, weeping beautifully, then crawled over and hugged He Chu San’s leg. “Boohoo… Young sir! Save me! Please save me… Boohoo…”
While wiping her tears, Xiao He secretly signaled a familiar bodyguard. The man had originally intended only to raise his hand and put on a show, but after seeing her signal, he had no choice but to swing his palm with genuine force.
He Chu San caught sight of the shadow on the wall from the corner of his eye. He hurriedly turned, stepped forward, and blocked Xiao He, taking the bodyguard’s slap directly across his forehead.
A heavy smack rang clearly through the corridor.
Watching from several steps away, the corner of Xia Liu Yi’s eye twitched and his chest tightened. That powerful slap was far more forceful than the fake smacks he usually gave He Chu San!
Seeing He Chu San knocked sideways by the blow, he instinctively started forward to catch him.
One of his long legs had already taken a wide step when Xiao He, dutifully maintaining the act, grabbed He Chu San before Boss Xia could reach him.
As though clinging to a lifeline, she wrapped herself tightly around He Chu San and used her body to block Boss Xia, who had nearly exposed the entire performance. Her ruined makeup smeared across He Chu San’s clothes. “Boohoo… I’m so frightened… Boohoo…”
Xia Liu Yi quietly withdrew his foot, mentally awarded Xiao He the prize for best employee, and cursed inwardly—fuck! Everyone around me is either Best Actor or Best Actress!
It took He Chu San quite a while to recover from his dizziness. Supporting himself against the wall, he awkwardly tried to extract himself from Xiao He’s soft embrace.
“What are you standing around for? Keep hitting her!” Seeing that he was fine, Xia Liu Yi resumed cursing.
The two bodyguards vigorously charged forward again. Xiao He was closest to He Chu San and heard the nearly inaudible sigh he released.
He Chu San extended his arms and supported Xiao He.
“Let’s go, Xiao He. Take me to your room.”
Without looking at Xia Liu Yi again, he expressionlessly helped Xiao He back down the corridor.
The neon lights ahead shone in a confusion of brilliant colors, closely resembling the disorder inside his heart. That thunderous slap had shattered all his passion and impulsiveness. It had also made him deeply recognize his previous mistake.
He had pushed too far, acted too rashly, and been too childish and naïve. Beneath the fierce arrogance and seemingly indestructible exterior of the man he faced lay an inborn fragility and instinct to flee from emotion. This was a man capable of willingly handing the person he had loved for ten years over to someone else. What, then, did He Chu San amount to?
He had chosen the wrong beginning. He did not mind starting over.
…
Cui Dong Dong arrived eagerly with gossip written across her face. Before she even entered the office, her voice reached it. “Boss! I heard you forced an innocent man into prostitution tonight!”
“…” Xia Liu Yi sat in her executive chair drinking her private wine collection, both long legs propped on the desk. His face was livid, and he remained silent.
Cui Dong Dong gleefully tossed him a cigarette and continued making fun of him. “You haven’t visited Xiao He once all year, but the moment you come, you order her stripped naked and thrown outside, then find a young virgin to become her new lover. Isn’t that a little cruel?”
“I’ve never treated her badly,” Xia Liu Yi replied impatiently. “Besides, she seemed to enjoy performing.”
“I meant that you were cruel to the boy,” Cui Dong Dong said.
With the cigarette between his lips, Xia Liu Yi abruptly raised his head and glared at her. Cui Dong Dong shrugged, wearing an expression that plainly said, Stop pretending. I know everything.
Xia Liu Yi irritably flicked away his ash. “What the fuck do you know?”
“I know that boy likes you,” Cui Dong Dong said.
“Fuck! Stop talking nonsense!”
“Ah, Xiao Liu!” Cui Dong Dong squeezed beside the executive chair, wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and patted him earnestly. “Your Sister Dong Dong is still a woman, after all. Haven’t you heard of a woman’s intuition? I’ve known what that boy was plotting for a long time!”
“…” Xia Liu Yi stared at her.
“Back then, he risked his head to hide you and faced bullets to deliver your message. If you say that was because you had once saved him, then perhaps it barely makes sense. But what about the year afterward? He’s a university student at a prestigious school with a brilliant future, yet he spends every day mingling with gangsters. If he doesn’t like you, then he can only be an undercover agent.”
“Bullshit!” Xia Liu Yi said. “I was in a good mood and accepted him as my underling! He comes over to keep his Boss entertained!”
Cui Dong Dong gave another helpless shrug and was forced to deploy her killing move. “That day when we watched The Godfather, I went to the restroom and came back. Everyone else was staring at the screen, but he was staring at you. The affection in his eyes…”
“…” Xia Liu Yi had not noticed that at all!
Unable to respond, he picked at the chair’s armrest and gritted his teeth for a long time. “You fucking knew he was acting suspicious and never told me?!”
“You should have discovered that he was interested in you afterward!” Cui Dong Dong shrugged. “He’s always made it so obvious. Don’t tell me you never noticed. That’s impossible, isn’t it?”
“…” Xia Liu Yi, who had indeed noticed, remained silent.
With nothing to say, Xia Liu Yi leaned irritably against the executive chair and smoked. Cui Dong Dong casually sat on the edge of the desk. “Well? You don’t have feelings for him?”
“Aren’t you supposed to be all-seeing? You can’t tell this time?!”
“I honestly can’t,” Cui Dong Dong said. “Based on my previous experience, the more you care about someone, the farther you run from him. Not only have you never avoided this boy, you frequently go out on happy little dates with him…”
“Dates my ass!” Boss Xia slammed the executive chair.
“All right, all right. They aren’t dates. They’re brotherly gatherings,” Cui Dong Dong said. “Why the fuck are you trying so hard to hide it?”
“…” His face green, Boss Xia dug his fingers into the chair’s armrest and seriously considered replacing his deputy hall master.
“So what exactly do you think of him?” Cui Dong Dong asked.
“I don’t have feelings for him! Not ‘those kinds’ of feelings!” Xia Liu Yi said. “He’s only an underling I accepted!”
Cui Dong Dong raised an eyebrow, nodded, and sighed. “You really are cruel.”
Ignoring her provocation, Xia Liu Yi said irritably, “He’s studied so much that something went wrong with his brain. He only needs to get laid once!”
Cui Dong Dong released another long sigh. “Boss Xia, if getting laid solved anything, how could there be so many lovesick men and resentful women in the world? Didn’t you try it back then? Did it work?”
Xia Liu Yi’s expression abruptly darkened. “Enough.”
Cui Dong Dong shrugged and tactfully changed the subject. “What happened to your hand?”
“Someone caused trouble in Xiao Qi Hall’s territory by pretending to be one of Xiao Ma’s men and committing robbery.”
“Fat Seven?”
“It doesn’t seem like him. Whoever did this wants to make the situation bigger and bring the police down on me. Fat Seven isn’t intelligent enough to think of it.”
“Sha Jia Jun might have given him the idea.”
Xia Liu Yi shook his head. “Underworld matters are settled within the underworld. We never allow the police to interfere. Sha Jia Jun is no good man, but he is at least straightforward and should understand that rule. Besides, once the police begin watching us, they will inevitably begin watching Fat Seven and Sha Jia Jun too. Neither of them would lift a stone only to drop it on his own foot. Whoever planned this was extremely deliberate and went through all these twists and turns. His objective doesn’t appear to be fighting over territory.”
Cui Dong Dong considered this for a moment. “I’ll send someone to investigate.”
“Also, the Straw Sandals can’t always be Uncle Yuan’s men. Pay attention and insert a few of our own people.”
“Okay.” Cui Dong Dong rolled her shoulders and back before standing. “If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving. A spring night is worth a thousand pieces of gold!”
“Get lost,” Xia Liu Yi said.
Cui Dong Dong spun lightly, turned toward the door, and strode outside. “Oh, right. You gave Xiao He away, and you don’t like any of the others. I suggest you sleep alone on the sofa. One precious spring night of pure masturbation!”
Xia Liu Yi hurled his cigarette butt at her back, but the closing door blocked it.
Boss Xia, overflowing with murderous intent, had been worked nearly to death by every year-end affair and was irritated beyond endurance. He had originally planned to relax today by finding that little bastard, playing a satisfying game of billiards, having a meal, and watching a film. He was forced to admit that most of the time he spent with the brat was relaxed and enjoyable. Yet this disaster had erupted at night and ruined the rare good mood he had enjoyed all day.
He slammed the desk furiously, leaned back against the chair in frustration, and sulked for a long while before looking at his left hand, where blood was seeping through the wound.
“Fuck!” he cursed at the carefully wrapped gauze.
That damned A’San! Xia Liu Yi was already exhausted to death, yet the brat still caused trouble! Couldn’t he simply kowtow before his Boss, perform the proper rites, and obediently remain a little brother? The brat had eaten the heart of a bear and the courage of a leopard and now wanted to become the boss’s wife! Did he think Boss Xia was someone he could afford to pursue?!
Xia Liu Yi’s stomach was full of resentment. When he remembered that He Chu San was currently tumbling through clouds and rain on Xiao He’s bed, experiencing the pleasures of sex for the first time, his anger grew even fiercer. He was only in his twenties, yet he already had to work hard disciplining such a large puppy. Not only did he have to provide the brat with proper sexual education, but he even had to force him into bed!
The suffering involved was simply unbearable to recall.
He kicked the desk viciously. Irritably covering his forehead with his injured hand, he stared blankly for a long time before reaching into his trouser pocket and taking out the old black leather wallet.
He removed the photograph of himself and Xiao Man from the front and placed it on the desk. Then he raised the wallet and looked through its slightly dirty plastic sleeve at the individual photograph inside.
The silent profile of that man amid the thin, desolate smoke remained carved deeply and painfully into his heart, into every dream that made him awaken abruptly on freezing nights. He did not know how to forget or how to begin again. He had no idea what he should do, so he simply cast it aside and refused to think.
Yet this impossibly audacious brat insisted on forcing him.
His right hand could not bear much weight and began aching faintly after being raised for only a short time. Xia Liu Yi released a low sigh and closed his eyes. His fingers relaxed, and the open wallet dropped with a smack directly onto his face.
…
Tormented by love, Boss Xia tossed and turned across the large sofa and smoked throughout the night. When he awoke the following morning, his shirt was riddled with cigarette burns.
He went downstairs, took a shower, and sent an employee out to buy him a new outfit. Forcing himself to regain his energy, he put on a radiant and imposing appearance and entered Xiao He’s room to conduct an inspection.
Xiao He was fully dressed and sat quietly beside the bed organizing records. She appeared to have been awake for quite some time.
“Where is he?” Xia Liu Yi looked around and frowned.
“He left. He said he had to hurry home and write his thesis,” Xiao He replied.
Xia Liu Yi clicked his tongue. “How did he perform last night?”
“He also enjoys listening to Audrey Hepburn’s songs,” Xiao He said.
Xia Liu Yi’s expression stiffened. “Didn’t I tell you to sleep with him?”
Xiao He shook her head. “He listened to music for an hour and fell asleep.”
Xia Liu Yi’s stiff expression turned cold. In a low voice, he asked, “Did he know?”—about Xia Liu Yi and Xiao He.
Xiao He hurriedly shook her head. “No! I haven’t told anyone! It was him—um, he, he said…”
“What did he say?!”
“He said premarital sex was wrong…”
“Premarital sex, my ass!” Xia Liu Yi abruptly roared so loudly that he nearly tore his throat. “Why is he pretending to be some chaste man? You didn’t force him?!”
Xiao He looked rather aggrieved. “He’s tall and strong. I couldn’t overpower him. I stripped completely naked in front of him, but he didn’t even glance at me. He also said, ‘Romance should begin with a date’…”
A date, my ass!
Thud! Xia Liu Yi punched the wall with his gauze-wrapped hand. Dust immediately showered from the unfortunate surface.
A drilling pain shot through his wound, but he endured it through gritted teeth.
Seeing the Boss lose his temper, Xiao He quickly soothed him in a gentle voice. “He said he has a very favorable impression of me and wants to take me shopping this weekend.”
“…”
A favorable impression, my ass! Shopping, my ass! A date, my ass! Boss Xia’s stomach filled with roars he could not release. Damned A’San! Keep pretending! Fucking Best Actor at the Oscars!
“In any case, I don’t care how you do it! You must keep him tied down! If he wants romance, then date him! If he wants to shop, then go shopping with him! I want to see what sort of tricks he can produce from a shopping trip!” Xia Liu Yi raged.
Xiao He nodded obediently and meekly. “Yes. I understand.”
Boss Xia stormed out and slammed the door with a dark expression. Xiao He calmly rubbed her ears, then silently returned to the bedside and lowered her head to continue organizing her records.
This steady young woman, who knew how to keep her mouth firmly closed, had not lied to Xia Liu Yi. Everything she reported had indeed been He Chu San’s exact words. She had merely withheld the other things he said.
“Are you Hu Qing He? I’m He Chu San, your elementary-school classmate. Do you still remember me? We both used to live in Kau Lung Walled City. You left school in the fifth grade. Do you remember A’Wei from the class next door? He works at the same cafeé as I do now and often mentions you…”
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