Futile Devices Scans

He Chu San, who had been hiding behind the sign of a cart-noodle stall, was dragged out by Boss Xia like a chick snatched up by an eagle.

“Almost home, were you?” Xia Liu Yi sneered, his brows knitted.

With gold-rimmed glasses perched on his nose, He Chu San explained solemnly, “I hadn’t eaten dinner, so I stopped here for noodles. I was just about to leave.”

Xia Liu Yi slapped the back of his head. Fucking lying bastard, telling barefaced lies with his eyes wide open! He had been eating noodles for an hour? Who the hell was he trying to fool?!

The slap made He Chu San sway. Unhurriedly adjusting his glasses, he said, “Brother Liu Yi, I still have to work overtime tomorrow even though it’s Sunday. I won’t disturb you any longer.”

Xia Liu Yi smacked him hard on the back again to vent his frustration. “Get lost!”

He Chu San tucked his briefcase under his arm and obediently got lost. Since his promotion and pay raise required him to receive clients, he had replaced his suit as well. The new one was crisp and neatly pressed, and from behind, he looked almost respectably professional, exuding the air of a corporate elite.

However, because he was tall, thin, and entirely alone, his figure also looked somewhat lonely and desolate. He walked so slowly, pausing with every step, that it was almost as though Xia Liu Yi’s two slaps had crippled him.

Carefully counting his steps, he dawdled halfway down the street. Sure enough, two blasts of a car horn sounded behind him.

Beep—beep—

With a cigarette between his lips, Xia Liu Yi rolled down the window and said impatiently, “Get in! I’ll take you home.”

…

A’Biao drove while A’Ying sat in the front passenger seat as a guard. He Chu San accompanied the Boss in the back of the Mercedes, his head lowered as he remained silent.

Xia Liu Yi kicked him with the cigarette still between his lips. “What are you secretly smiling about, you little bastard?!”

He Chu San raised his head, and the corners of his mouth were indeed lifted. “Brother Liu Yi, have you been well lately?”

Xia Liu Yi grunted. “More or less.”

“That’s good,” He Chu San said. “Dad has been wondering whether your teeth are doing well. He was nagging me a few days ago, telling me to remind you not to eat too many snacks before bed and to remember to brush your teeth.”

The corner of Xia Liu Yi’s mouth twitched, and his teeth immediately began aching. With a dark expression, he said, “What business is it of his? Has he opened his grocery shop yet?”

“He has. Business is quite good. He also wants to sell fruit, so the apartment is piled with stock now. There’s barely any room to live.”

“Then move somewhere else.”

“Mm, I’ve been considering it. I come home late because of overtime, while he wakes up early, so I disturb his sleep. Besides, I’m being transferred to Central next month…”

Author’s Notes: Central is located on Hong Kong Island and serves as Hong Kong’s financial district, where many major financial firms maintain their offices.

“Central? You’ve become quite the elite, A’San,” Xia Liu Yi teased.

He Chu San cooperated perfectly, lowering his head with a bashful expression. “Hardly.”

Xia Liu Yi kicked him again. Give him a little praise and he immediately started preening. Why was he pretending to be a shy young man in front of Xia Liu Yi?

Just then, a ringtone sounded. A’Ying, sitting in front, took out the mobile phone reserved for the Boss, only to discover that it remained silent.

Corporate Elite He retrieved his own brick phone from his briefcase. “Hello?”

“Xiao He?” His tone became gentle.

Xia Liu Yi lit another cigarette and rolled down the window for air.

“…Yes, I’ve eaten… Not yet. I’m on my way home. Brother Liu Yi is taking me back… Mm, I’ll pick you up after work tomorrow… Anything is fine with me. What would you like to eat?… All right, I’ll try making it… Oh, Dad made some soup for you. I’ll bring it tomorrow… Of course. I’ll tell him…”

Xia Liu Yi rolled his eyes toward the street, his jaw aching fiercely. Fucking hell, they were being sickeningly sweet right in front of the Boss!

He Chu San flaunted his affection for at least five minutes. Boss Xia’s cigarette had nearly burned down to the filter before he finally closed his brick phone with lingering reluctance. “Brother Liu Yi, Xiao He asked me to give you her regards.”

Maintaining his imposing Boss demeanor, Xia Liu Yi merely grunted and could not be bothered to speak.

The car stopped two streets away from He Chu San’s home and let him out. He said goodbye to Xia Liu Yi and walked several steps before returning to tap on the window.

Xia Liu Yi lowered it.

“Brother Liu Yi, take care of yourself. Should you go up the mountain, be careful.”

Xia Liu Yi waved impatiently.

As the sedan drove farther away, Xia Liu Yi happened to glance back. The little bastard was still standing rigidly beside the road, watching him leave.

He turned around and leaned irritably against the seat.

“Boss, are we going up the mountain?” A’Biao asked.

“No. Go home,” Xia Liu Yi said tiredly.

After a pause, he added, “Have someone bring that cake to my house.”

On the night of his birthday, Xia Liu Yi sat alone at home drinking beer before Azure Dragon and Xiao Man’s memorial tablets. He burned the birthday card He Chu San had given him with a lighter, ate more than half the fruit cake, and went to sleep without brushing his teeth. When he woke the next morning, he had a toothache—a genuine one.

It worsened over the following week until his entire cheek swelled. Left with no choice, he put on sunglasses and a mask, slipped into a hospital without attracting attention, and had one inferior molar extracted—one of the teeth Dentist He had fitted the previous year.

With half his mouth stuffed with cotton and the other half full of saliva, Xia Liu Yi lay miserably in the surgical chair, listening to the machine whir inside his mouth. He wanted nothing more than to tie up He Chu San and his father and drown them both in a pig cage. Fucking little bastard! Quack dentist!

“The materials used for these teeth are all poor quality and prone to inflammation,” the doctor told him. “Mr. Xia, why not replace all of them at once?”

Hearing this, Xia Liu Yi immediately shook his head. Fucking hell, extracting a single tooth was already killing him!

“Boss, replace them all,” Xiao Ma, who had accompanied him, suggested. “Get gold teeth. Very fashionable!”

Xia Liu Yi grabbed the surgical tray beside him and hurled it, knocking Xiao Ma out of the room.

Xiao Ma fled the operating room in abject terror, then took his anger out on the subordinates outside. “Where the fuck has that damned He brat gone? He hasn’t come to cheer up the Boss in ages!”

While the He brat played hard to get with the Boss, he was also busy advancing his career. He worked in investment banking, specifically in real-estate investments, which had been growing strongly in recent years. The pressure was immense, the risks high, and the returns staggering. Hong Kong’s economy was thriving at the time, and the property market continued climbing. Young and able-bodied people rushed into finance, exhausting themselves and doing everything possible to rake in money. Neither Japan’s ongoing economic crisis nor the liquidation of a foreign-owned bank in July caused much alarm or upheaval within the industry.

He Chu San ate at the office and slept at the office. From Monday through Saturday, he worked overtime day and night, spinning from place to place like a top. The fact that he had endured an entire year without going bald was probably related to the sets of tai chi he squeezed into his schedule each day in the coffee room.

Whenever he had a little free time on Sundays, however, he rediscovered his Best Actor talents. He wore Father He’s old coat, mussed his hair, darkened his skin, put on sunglasses, and attached a small mustache. Then he loaded assorted goods onto a small cart and pushed it beneath the office building that served as Xia Liu Yi’s “head office.” He did not dare appear casually before Xia Liu Yi, but being unable to see him made his heart itch and his entire body restless, so he had resorted to this plan. He was charged protection money three times, and Brother Xiao Ma personally bought cigarettes from him once, yet his disguise was never exposed.

Xia Liu Yi entered the office once in the morning, occasionally left at noon to meet someone for lunch, returned in the afternoon, and departed again at night. He Chu San watched every appearance. Outwardly, he chewed betel nut with the careless manner of a street hawker to conceal himself. Inwardly, he repeatedly dissolved into the lovesick yearning of an adolescent boy—which also served as a way to relieve the pressure of work.

Corporate Elite He wore an innocent face while his mind was filled with indecent thoughts. His favorite sight was the sequence of movements Boss Xia performed when coming downstairs to enter the car: tilting his head to take a drag from his cigarette, throwing it away, undoing one button of his suit jacket, and bending down to climb inside. That backside was unbelievably pert.

What a pity that back when Xia Liu Yi had lain completely naked on that shabby little bed in Kau Lung Walled City, He Chu San had not grabbed it with both hands and given it several good squeezes!

…

Hong Kong was unusually warm that year. The blazing summer heat sapped even the street thugs of their energy, leaving them willing only to drink beer in the cool night breeze and play casual games of cards and drinking games. Xia Liu Yi and Fat Seven both kept their heads down and remained quiet for several months. By September, the Hong Kong Legislative Council welcomed its first group of directly elected members, stirring hidden currents beneath the surface.

Inspector Hua—a highly respected Chief Inspector in the Kau Lung district and a guardian angel and protective umbrella for the underworld—personally telephoned Xia Liu Yi. He invited Xia Liu Yi and Fat Seven to his home for a casual meal on the Saturday two days before the Mid-Autumn Festival at the end of September. Officially, it was a farewell gathering before his retirement. In truth, he intended to mediate between them and bring their prolonged conflict to an end.

No matter how much Xia Liu Yi despised Fat Seven, he still had to dress formally and attend out of respect for Inspector Hua. That evening, he took two cars full of bodyguards to Inspector Hua’s mansion in the Mid-Levels villa district. Located on Hong Kong Island, the area belonged neither to Xia Liu Yi’s Xiao Qi Hall nor Fat Seven’s He Sheng Society, making it neutral ground.

Xia Liu Yi stepped out of the car with a cigarette between his lips and saw Fat Seven emerging from a Bentley opposite him, his enormous belly thrust forward. Xia Liu Yi narrowed his eyes with a cold smile. Fat Seven’s loose jowls twitched, while bodyguards on both sides rested one hand on their guns. The atmosphere immediately became taut with hostility.

Inspector Hua emerged from the courtyard with a white beard, a belly as large as Fat Seven’s, and a cigar between his lips. He first delivered a heavy slap to Xia Liu Yi’s tense back. “Xiao Liu, my young brother!”

“Inspector,” Xia Liu Yi replied with utmost respect.

“Brother Hua,” Fat Seven greeted him as well.

“Old Seven!” Inspector Hua patted his back too. “Come inside, both of you! Stop glaring at each other out here!”

Following the rules, both sides surrendered their firearms and entered the courtyard with only two equally unarmed subordinates. Xia Liu Yi brought A’Ying and A’Biao. While standing at the entrance with his arms raised for the security guards to search him, he caught a fleeting glimpse of Fat Seven exchanging a look with the Hua family’s butler.

Immediately alert, he glanced back and signaled Xiao Ma, who remained inside the car.

Supporting himself with a platinum cane, Inspector Hua waddled ahead with his large belly. “I’m old. This should be the time for me to enjoy a peaceful life, and I originally had no desire to interfere in this nuisance. But the two of you have taken things much too far. You clearly have no respect for an old man like me! For my sake, both of you will behave yourselves today!”

“Inspector, Xiao Liu has always respected you,” Xia Liu Yi said. “Rest assured. As long as Fat Seven doesn’t make things difficult for me, I certainly won’t embarrass you.”

Fat Seven snorted upon hearing this. Inspector Hua stopped and turned to look at him. Lowering his head, Fat Seven reluctantly said, “I understand, Brother Hua.”

The group sat around a table in the second-floor dining room. Inspector Hua occupied the seat of honor, with Fat Seven and Xia Liu Yi to his left and right. Fat Seven immediately planted himself in the left-hand seat. Xia Liu Yi frowned but said nothing.

Inspector Hua’s wife and younger brother also joined them. Madam Hua was a celebrated socialite among the wealthy, while the Second Hua Brother was an experienced businessman who had seen much of the world. Together, they created a harmonious and cheerful dining atmosphere. Xia Liu Yi handled such occasions with ease, presenting himself as a respectful and modest junior who held no grudges. Although Fat Seven spoke little, he gave Inspector Hua sufficient respect and said nothing that might spoil the mood.

“Xiao Liu, I still remember when you and Xiao Man often visited our home as children,” Madam Hua said nostalgically. “Azure Dragon would discuss business with Old Hua while I took the two of you to make pastries. Later, you joined the Society and Xiao Man married, so neither of you visited very often.”

“Society business kept me occupied,” Xia Liu Yi said. “I’m truly sorry that I never had time to visit you. At home, Xiao Man often spoke about the pastries you made. She said that no matter how carefully she tried to use the same ingredients, hers were never as delicate as yours.”

Madam Hua lowered her head and wiped away a tear. “Yes. If she were still here, I could have taught her personally again.”

Xia Liu Yi did not believe that tear contained much sincerity, but his own chest nevertheless tightened painfully. Without letting it show, he took the opportunity to raise his glass. “Your kindness is appreciated. Xiao Man remembered everything you and the Inspector did for us, and Liu Yi remembers it too. I offer this toast to you and Inspector Hua.”

After the toast was completed, Inspector Hua cleared his throat. “Madam, it is rare for everyone to gather happily like this. Let us not bring up such painful matters. Go and see whether the dessert is ready.”

Madam Hua tactfully departed. The Second Hua Brother also rose. “Elder Brother, honored Bosses, I have private matters to handle and will not remain. Please continue eating and drinking.”

After they left, Inspector Hua waved and dismissed the attendants. Xia Liu Yi’s and Fat Seven’s two bodyguards also withdrew and stood guard outside the door. It was time to discuss serious business.

Fat Seven grabbed the napkin and wiped his mouth. Beneath the table, his other hand searched around and found, as expected, a pistol fastened there with transparent tape.

He had never intended to reconcile with Xia Liu Yi. He Sheng Society had operated around Kau Lung for over a decade and possessed deep, firmly established roots. Xia Liu Yi was merely a yellow-haired brat whose beard had not fully grown, yet he dared challenge him. Inspector Hua was about to retire and was like the setting sun, with little influence remaining. Fat Seven had therefore decided to go all the way: tear away every pretense, eliminate them both, and frame Xia Liu Yi for the crime.

He had bribed the Hua family’s butler and arranged everything in advance. The pistol hidden beneath the left-hand seat was for him. Its six bullets were more than enough to kill Xia Liu Yi and Inspector Hua. Guns were also concealed inside the rubbish bin outside for his two bodyguards. Moreover, his men were lying in ambush on the rooftop and in the garden, carrying not only firearms but also petrol and torches. They would burn down the entire mansion and destroy every trace of the bodies.

He glanced at the wineglass on the table. He and his men outside had agreed to use the sound of breaking glass as their signal. The moment he smashed the glass, his bodyguards would charge inside to assist him. With attackers inside and outside, Xia Liu Yi would be lucky to leave behind an intact corpse.

Inspector Hua had already lit a cigar and begun discussing the situation at length. “You both know about the change in Legislative Council members. Hong Kong is no longer what it once was. The lease on this ‘colony’ will expire in a few years, and Beijing has proposed numerous conditions. The demolition of your Kau Lung Walled City, Xiao Liu, is among them. Originally, I should have been allowed to appoint my own successor, but the higher authorities are withholding approval. O Division arrested Third Brother Sha some time ago, and the ICAC has also been making small moves recently. Countless eyes are watching me—and watching both of you. At a time like this, instead of joining forces and helping one another, you insist on fighting among yourselves.”

Fat Seven said, “Brother Hua, when has my He Sheng Society ever shared the same ‘nest’ as his Xiao Qi Hall? Ten years ago, the sons of the He clans swore a blood oath, worshipped Heaven and Earth, acknowledged our founding masters, and established our ranks. Xiao Qi Hall wasn’t even qualified to cross the threshold! Even Azure Dragon never dared provoke me while he was alive! Yet Xia Xiao Liu refuses to remain obediently in Kowloon City and crosses the boundary to trample my territory. What kind of reasoning is that?”

“Fortunes rise and fall, and the times create their heroes,” Xia Liu Yi said. “Hong Kong is only so large. It’s a free market—whoever has the ability gets to call the shots. You claim that territory belongs to you, so it does? Is your name written across it?”

“Xia Xiao Liu!” Fat Seven roared, seizing the opportunity to grab his wineglass and prepare to smash it.

Inspector Hua immediately caught his wrist. “Old Seven, speak properly! Why lose your temper?”

The Chief Inspector, who regarded himself as the guardian of justice, used his still-considerable strength to force Fat Seven’s hand back onto the table. He removed the wineglass from his grip and placed it squarely in the center.

“If you continue fighting like this, these old bones of mine won’t be able to restrain you. Should the matter disturb the Old Shopkeeper, neither side will escape unharmed.”

At the mention of that name, both Fat Seven’s and Xia Liu Yi’s expressions became guarded.

The man known as the “Old Shopkeeper” was a powerful figure in the underworld whose reputation was heard everywhere, yet whose face was never seen. His influence penetrated the highest levels of both Hong Kong’s respectable society and its criminal world. He collected layers of tribute from every faction and secretly reversed black and white, manipulating events from behind the scenes amid the chaos. Whoever he wanted to decline would steadily fall into ruin; whoever he wanted to rise would enjoy meteoric success. The advance of white and retreat of black, or the advance of black and retreat of white, were all controlled by the invisible scale in his hand.

Over the years, Fat Seven had sent plenty of tribute to the Old Shopkeeper through Inspector Hua, yet he had never been considered worthy of seeing the man himself. He worried that Xia Liu Yi had secretly presented the Old Shopkeeper with generous offerings and drawn him into the conflict. Uneasy, he began hesitating over whether to act. “Brother Hua, does the Old Shopkeeper already know about our dispute? Did he send you to warn us?”

Inspector Hua scoffed lightly. “The old gentleman deals with countless affairs every day. Where would he find the time to concern himself with the two of you? But if you continue causing trouble, I cannot promise he will remain unaware.”

Seeing the tension between them ease slightly, Inspector Hua sincerely attempted to persuade them. He said to Xia Liu Yi, “Xiao Liu, to be fair, you truly crossed the boundary in this matter. Old Seven is your senior, after all. You should show him some respect. Everyone is merely trying to earn a living. If each side takes one step back, the world will open before you. Wouldn’t it be better to make money together?”

Those words would have been better left unsaid. Instead, they reminded Xia Liu Yi of something. He sneered. “Make money together? He certainly considered that before. He once proposed a partnership with Azure Dragon. Xiao Qi Hall’s ‘goods’ would enter and leave through the fishing piers under his control, and he would receive a share of the profits. But Azure Dragon rejected him, so he encouraged Xu Ying to seize power and murder Azure Dragon!”

At these words, Inspector Hua’s expression loosened for a fleeting instant. He immediately frowned again and stared at Fat Seven with righteous severity. “Old Seven, is this true?!”

“Of course not!” Fat Seven cried indignantly. Calculations turning inside his mind, he once again secretly reached toward the wineglass.

“Xia Xiao Liu, you are now the leader of an organization and a Dragon Head Boss. If you insist on making unreasonable accusations, you should at least provide evidence,” he argued with a righteous expression. “Not everyone had something to do with your ‘Eldest’s’ death. I think grief has driven you out of your mind!”

He deliberately emphasized the word “Eldest.” One hand lifted the wineglass while the other tore at the tape beneath the table, and a mocking note entered his voice.

“I heard that since Azure Dragon died, the new Dragon Head has never touched a woman. Instead, you’ve become very close to some male university student. What’s wrong? Can’t you get it up, or do you prefer using the back door? Could it be that you and Azure Dragon…”

Before he could finish, a wet thud exploded against his head, spraying blood and flesh. Xia Liu Yi had seized an ashtray and smashed it viciously into his skull!

After the dull impact, Fat Seven toppled over with his chair. The wineglass fell back onto the table, rolled slightly, and was stopped by a plate. The tape securing the pistol had not been torn away completely, leaving the gun dangling beneath the table.

Fat Seven lay on the floor, clutching his split forehead and groaning. Xia Liu Yi strode forward, picked up the blood-soaked ashtray, and slammed it heavily into his face again, bursting one of his eyes!

“Xiao Liu!” Inspector Hua shouted.

Xia Liu Yi ignored him. Grabbing Fat Seven’s hair with his right hand, he raised the ashtray and struck again.

The blow nearly flattened Fat Seven’s nose. The enormous man who normally terrorized everyone around him released muffled whimpers. His thick limbs flailed wildly, his face covered in blood as he desperately tried to rise.

Crouching on the floor, Xia Liu Yi sneered as he watched him struggle at death’s door. Fat Seven’s limbs convulsed as he groped blindly across the floor. One trembling hand reached beneath the dining table, trying to grasp the pistol hanging in midair.

Xia Liu Yi stood, planted one foot on the back of his neck, bent down, and tore away the gun. He picked it up and waved it toward Inspector Hua.

“What is that?!” the old Inspector exclaimed.

“You should replace your butler,” Xia Liu Yi said with a cold laugh.

At that exact moment, Fat Seven, who was thrashing beneath his foot, used the last of his strength to seize the table leg and shake it violently.

A wineglass beside one of the plates finally rolled toward the edge of the table.

Crash—!

Fierce gunfire immediately erupted outside the door!

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