Futile Devices Scans

Xia Liu Yi did not distrust He Chu San. He knew He Chu San’s feelings for him were sincere and that He Chu San would never harm him. But inside that law-abiding, upstanding-citizen mind of his, right and wrong, justice and morality, whether something counted as “harming” someone or “saving” them—none of it would be judged by the same logic Xia Liu Yi and his people used. The better Xia Liu Yi understood him, the more clearly he understood what He Chu San might be willing to do for his sake.

He only hoped He Chu San understood that betraying and harming his brothers was his greatest taboo and his final line. No matter how dearly he loved He Chu San, he could not tolerate him crossing it. He hoped He Chu San was clever enough not to force him into truly turning against him, not to leave their relationship with nowhere left to go.

Installing the listening device was less about suspecting He Chu San of plotting something than about convincing himself and putting his own mind at ease. He hated himself for doubting the person beside his pillow. Only by clearing He Chu San of suspicion could he rid himself of that unease.

He Chu San went straight to the office. Downstairs, he exchanged a set of work materials with a colleague, then spent some time at his desk doing paperwork to the clack-clack-clack of the keyboard. Afterward, he went out to meet a client and expertly presented a promising project. Near noon, he got out at a market. Amid the vendors’ cries and the general commotion, he bought several crabs and a few kinds of vegetables.

Xia Liu Yi’s brick phone rang. When he answered, He Chu San’s smiling voice came through. “Are you awake? I bought crabs and choy sum. Is there anything else you want? How about pork chops?”

“Mm. Pork chops,” Xia Liu Yi replied distractedly.

After ending the call, He Chu San began haggling with a pork vendor. Xia Liu Yi put down the brick phone and picked up the listening headset again, but instead of putting it on, he turned it over absently in his hands and stared into space.

He Chu San had done nothing suspicious all morning, yet Xia Liu Yi still felt uneasy. He could not stop thinking about the silent call from the previous night. The number ended in 991, and for some reason it looked vaguely familiar.

He called Cui Dong Dong and told her to check Xie Jia Hua’s information again. When her reply came, the ringtone of He Chu San’s brick phone sounded at the same time through the listening headset lying on the table.

Xia Liu Yi pressed the speakerphone button. Cui Dong Dong’s voice came from his brick phone at the same moment He Chu San answered through the headset.

“Boss, the last three digits of Xie Jia Hua’s brick phone number are 991.” “Hello? Inspector Xie.”

Xia Liu Yi violently swept the headset onto the floor. He closed his eyes and remained rigid for a long time, feeling an icy chill spread through his blood.

…

He Chu San came home carrying a cloth bag full of ingredients and began bustling around the kitchen amid a steady clatter. After being home for quite a while without seeing Xia Liu Yi, he called upstairs, apron still on. “Brother Liu Yi?”

Only after a long while did Xia Liu Yi emerge from the bedroom with a cigarette between his lips. He stood at the top of the stairs and looked down at He Chu San without expression.

“Come downstairs and walk around a little. You skipped breakfast again, didn’t you?”

Xia Liu Yi descended slowly, leaned against the kitchen doorway, folded his arms, and silently smoked while watching He Chu San chop vegetables.

“What’s wrong?” He Chu San turned and noticed his distracted expression. He wiped his hands on his apron and leaned closer, intending to kiss him.

Xia Liu Yi turned his head, allowing the kiss to land only on his cheek. He pressed one hand against He Chu San’s chest and pushed him away. “Finish cooking first.”

“Hungry?” He Chu San smiled, then immediately sensed something wrong with Xia Liu Yi’s mood. “Did something upset you? Are you worried about Big Scarhead?”

“Mm,” Xia Liu Yi answered. He pushed past him, walked over to the sofa, sat down, and switched on the television.

Though the meal had salt, it seemed tasteless. He Chu San chatted and joked throughout it, while Xia Liu Yi merely lowered his head and picked at his food with a cold expression.

“What happened?” He Chu San asked for the third time, resting his cheek against one hand and still looking perfectly candid and concerned.

Xia Liu Yi suddenly felt sick. Best Actor He’s expression looked more genuine than the real thing, so innocent and sincere that it seemed nothing had happened at all. Yet only an hour earlier, he had spoken on the phone with Boss Xia’s mortal enemy and arranged to meet him that afternoon.

From the moment He Chu San had said “Inspector Xie,” Xia Liu Yi’s thoughts had been in chaos. Yet deep down, he still refused to believe it. He kept telling himself that He Chu San might have another reason for meeting Xie Jia Hua, or perhaps Xie Jia Hua was threatening him. He waited for He Chu San to return at noon and confess, but judging from He Chu San’s behavior, he had no intention of mentioning it.

Xia Liu Yi felt that what he had raised beside his pillow was not a little fox but a weasel—one that had torn open his chest, devoured his heart and lungs, drunk his blood, and then grinned at him with a row of bloodstained white teeth.

“Nothing. I’m in a bad mood.” Xia Liu Yi put down his chopsticks and lit a cigarette. “Come to the seaside with me this afternoon. I want to clear my head.”

He Chu San’s chopsticks paused. Then he smiled as though nothing had happened. “I have something to do at the office this afternoon. Can I come with you tonight instead?”

Xia Liu Yi stared at him darkly. He Chu San remained calm and natural, still smiling as he leaned over, took the cigarette from Xia Liu Yi’s hand, and kissed his cheek. “I’ll come back as soon as I can. Shall I treat you to Western food tonight?”

The corner of Xia Liu Yi’s mouth twitched. “Sure.”

After lunch, He Chu San cleaned up briefly and hurried away. Xia Liu Yi stood in the doorway watching his departing back, his eyes cold and his figure desolate, like a wronged wife watching her husband sneak out to meet a lover. He frowned, abruptly turned around, hurried upstairs, and put on the headphones.

He Chu San had arranged to meet Xie Jia Hua at Honolulu Cafe, not far from the police station—a crowded public place where neither of them made the slightest attempt to hide. Xie Jia Hua wore an immaculate, sharply pressed suit and the same eternally expressionless face, silently drinking a glass of water.

He Chu San pulled out a chair, sat down, ordered an ordinary coffee, and greeted him politely. “Inspector Xie.”

“You and Xia Liu Yi are together again,” Xie Jia Hua said.

“As a servant of the people, Inspector Xie is remarkably considerate to take such an interest in a citizen’s private affairs,” He Chu San replied with a smile.

Xie Jia Hua ignored the pleasantry and went straight to the point. “Yesterday morning, the police arrested Xu Jin He, also known as Big Scarhead. He is one of Xia Liu Yi’s Red Poles, so I assume you know him. Big Scarhead has confessed to many of Xia Liu Yi’s crimes, but one man’s testimony is not enough. I need other people with inside knowledge to provide information and help corroborate the case.”

“I’m sorry, Inspector Xie.” He Chu San remained composed. “I know nothing. I can’t help you.”

Xie Jia Hua opened a folder and pushed a stack of blurry photographs toward him. “At five-fifteen yesterday morning, the East Kowloon police received an anonymous report. A man claimed that a group fight was taking place in Hung Hom. When officers arrived, they found Big Scarhead organizing illegal gambling and carrying a large quantity of narcotics. I investigated the call. It was made from a public telephone only fifteen minutes from your office. Surveillance footage from downstairs at your company shows that you left at five that morning and did not return until seven. You are closely involved with Xia Liu Yi, so you had access to the information and enough time to make the report. You made that call.”

He Chu San nodded his thanks to the server who set down his coffee. He lifted the cup, took a calm sip, and asked, “What was my motive? Why would I make that call?”

“You were born in Kau Lung Walled City. Your biological parents both died because of gang conflict, and you were adopted by the dentist He Bing Xian. He Bing Xian is an honest man who taught you propriety, righteousness, integrity, and a sense of shame. You excelled academically from childhood, had no criminal record, and received a first-class scholarship every year after entering Lung Gong Polytechnic University. You are an upright and outstanding young man. Your initial involvement with Xia Liu Yi began because he forced you to write scripts for his film company. In my view, you made that call because you could no longer tolerate Xia Liu Yi’s actions—or perhaps you approached him from the beginning intending to destroy his drug-trafficking organization.”

He Chu San gave a rueful chuckle and rubbed his aching temple. “Inspector Xie, I’m not nearly as noble as you imagine. And I only just found out that Dad isn’t my biological father. That is quite a bombshell.”

He picked up the photographs and examined them one by one. “These pictures only prove that I left my office at five. I had worked through the night and was supposed to take a client to morning tea the next day, so I went back to Dad’s place in Kowloon Tong to shower and change. You can check the surveillance footage around the Star Ferry Pier at about five-fifteen. I crossed the harbor from there back to Tsim Sha Tsui. I couldn’t possibly have been in Causeway Bay at the same time. I didn’t make that call.”

“Besides,” he added with a sigh, “Brother Liu Yi’s men place great importance on their so-called code of honor. Big Scarhead would never talk that easily. Your claim that he confessed to Brother Liu Yi’s crimes was only meant to trick me into revealing something.”

Xie Jia Hua’s expression darkened. He studied He Chu San for a while before asking, “Can you truly tolerate all the filthy things Xia Liu Yi does? Big Scarhead’s arrest has opened a door. With only a little cooperation from you, we could destroy the entire criminal organization. Are you really unwilling to help me?”

He Chu San sighed. “Inspector Xie, you learned very little from Big Scarhead. Otherwise, you wouldn’t need my help. As for me, Brother Liu Yi and I do disagree about right and wrong. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have dumped me by the roadside last time. But I already told you that I’m selfish. I know what he cannot tolerate. I don’t want him to hate me.”

He put down his coffee cup and gave Xie Jia Hua a bitter smile. “Inspector Xie, I have always admired you, and I sincerely hope Hong Kong will one day become a clean, peaceful, civilized society. Call me hypocritical, selfish, or cowardly if you like, but all I can do is back away like this. I’m sorry. Please don’t contact me again. I’m afraid Brother Liu Yi will misunderstand.”

A wash of static sounded through the listening headset. It sounded as though He Chu San had pushed back his chair and stood to leave the cafe. Xia Liu Yi removed the headphones with a complicated expression and stared at the corner of the room for a long while. Then he lowered his head and lit a cigarette.

He smoked silently for several drags before suddenly slapping himself hard across the face.

…

Shortly before six, He Chu San drove a white MPV to the village house to pick Xia Liu Yi up for dinner. A’Nan, standing guard outside, greeted him. “Mr. He, new car?”

“It belongs to my manager. He’s away in Europe for a few days and lent it to me,” He Chu San replied with a smile. On the way over, he had even stopped at a salon to have his hair styled into a fashionable, handsome side part. A large piece of gauzy fabric suspiciously covered the entire back seat.

Xia Liu Yi finally emerged, hurriedly tying his necktie as he walked. When he looked up and saw He Chu San’s “new car,” he froze.

“Elite He, did you buy a car?” he asked suspiciously.

“I borrowed it from my manager.” He Chu San smiled. “Get in. I reserved a table at a terrace restaurant, and we need to hurry.”

Boss Xia climbed into the car while muttering and tugging uncomfortably at his tie. “Damn it. It’s not like I’ve never eaten Western food before. Why are you making it so formal?”

He Chu San merely smiled at him. Then his brows suddenly drew together, and he touched Xia Liu Yi’s left cheek. “What’s this red mark? Who hit you?”

Xia Liu Yi coughed awkwardly and slapped his hand aside. “I slept on it. Drive!”

He Chu San still tried to hold his face and examine it more closely. A’Nan and A’Sen, standing guard at the entrance, saw the blatant display of affection and immediately launched into a frantic cough, cough, cough to warn them, afraid the cops monitoring them from the house across the road would notice. Humiliated and furious, Boss Xia smacked Elite He across the forehead with one large paw. Smack! “Are we leaving or not? If you won’t drive, I will!”

As He Chu San drove, he repeatedly checked their surroundings. Once the police car tailing them had fallen far enough behind that its occupants could no longer see clearly into their vehicle, he asked Boss Xia to hold the steering wheel. He then turned around and pulled away the large cloth covering the back seat. The rich fragrance of flowers instantly filled the entire car.

“Fuck!” Xia Liu Yi’s hand jerked, and he nearly lost control of the wheel. “He! What the hell are you doing?”

He Chu San rustled and shuffled back into place, then shoved a huge bouquet of brilliant red roses into Xia Liu Yi’s arms. “They’re for you.”

It was the first time anyone had ever given Boss Xia flowers. He held the bouquet as though it were a package of explosives, his weathered face instantly growing hot. “What the hell is this? Isn’t this disgusting?”

“How is it disgusting?” He Chu San looked deeply aggrieved. “Roses represent my heart.”

“Sappy. Shut up,” Xia Liu Yi snapped irritably. He Chu San glanced sideways—Boss Xia’s face was as red as an apple.

Pfft…

“…”

“Ow, ow! I was wrong, I was wrong! I won’t laugh anymore! Stop kicking me or we’re going to crash…”

They sat facing the sea at the terrace restaurant. Xia Liu Yi had left the humiliating bouquet—and his bright red face—inside the car. As he cut his steak with feigned indifference, he repeatedly glanced at He Chu San. Elite He sat with his chin propped in both hands, staring at him without moving, his eyes full of laughter.

At last, Xia Liu Yi could no longer endure it. He slapped down his knife and fork, leaned back, crossed his arms, and demanded, “Out with it. What the hell are you plotting today? You’ve been acting suspicious all evening!”

“Brother Liu Yi, have you forgotten? Today is April sixteenth.” He Chu San smiled brightly.

Xia Liu Yi searched his memory but could not think of any holiday on that date. “So what?”

He Chu San held up three fingers. “Three years ago today, you had your men kidnap me and force me to write a screenplay.”

“…” Xia Liu Yi remained silent for a long while before asking speechlessly, “That’s what this is about?”

“It’s the anniversary of our first meeting. That’s a big deal,” He Chu San said solemnly.

“Are you a little secondary-school girl? What is there to commemorate?!”

“Hehe.” He Chu San continued enjoying himself. “It’s meaningful, Brother Liu Yi. When you first saw me climb out of that burlap sack, what was your first impression?”

Xia Liu Yi scoffed. “A wet-behind-the-ears brat.”

He Chu San continued gazing dreamily at him with his chin in his hands. “I remember thinking, Is this really a gangster? How can he be so handsome?”

“Hmph.”

“Later, when you made me write the screenplay, you were always sitting on my desk eating beef offal. I’d look at you and think, That ass is so small and round. I really want to lift it up…”

“He. A’. San.” Xia Liu Yi clenched his fork. “Don’t assume I won’t beat you just because we’re in public.”

He Chu San wisely changed the subject. “Maybe I was born attracted to men, and maybe I fell for you at first sight. That must be why I liked you so much when we first met, even though I soon discovered you were a tyrant. Ahem… But a lot happened afterward. You saved me, protected me, and cared for me.”

You trusted me, tolerated me, cherished me, spoiled me, told me your secrets, cried in front of me, let me stay beside you when you were hurting, and slept in my arms when you were drunk.

“You also took me to the movies, treated me to Western food, played billiards with me, took me to the seaside for a barbecue, and kissed me in the hospital…”

Xia Liu Yi coughed unnaturally and shoved a large piece of steak into his mouth to hide his discomfort. Damn it. The way he tells it, you’d think I was the one chasing him all along!

“Will you be with me, Brother Liu Yi?” He Chu San asked. With great care, he slowly pushed a beautifully wrapped little box across the table. “I love you.”

Xia Liu Yi sat with his fork clenched in his hand and a crumb of steak still stuck at the corner of his mouth. The unexpected confession struck him head-on, leaving him frozen for a long while. At last, his throat moved as he tried to speak, only for the mouthful of beef to choke him.

“Cough, cough, cough… Damn it, why are you being so sappy?” He swallowed the meat in a thoroughly undignified state. His cheeks felt hot enough to melt, and he even began to stammer slightly. “You—damn it, you… don’t you already live at my place?”

What did he mean, “be together”? They had already lived together. And now he was giving him a ring. Was this… was this bastard proposing?

Xia Liu Yi put down his fork, his face faintly red, and opened the box. Then his face turned green.

Inside was nothing but a poor-quality jade Buddha.

“…”

Utterly speechless, Xia Liu Yi turned the box around to face He Chu San. “What the hell is this?”

“A consecrated Buddha I got for you on Lantau Island.” He Chu San looked completely innocent. “I originally wanted to buy you a ring, but Dad said the grocery shop needed expanding, so I gave him the money first.”

“…”

Who the hell confesses with a cheap jade Buddha?! After all that sickening mush, I open the box and you show me a worthless green fatty?! Little bastard!!

Penniless Elite He, who had once given him a paper cake as a birthday present, lowered his eyes with restrained embarrassment. “It’s the thought that matters, not the form. Keep this for now. I’ll make it up to you next year.”

Make it up, my ass!

Boss Xia stuffed the jade Buddha into his pocket with a dark expression. He wanted to throw his table knife at He Chu San, but when he saw that deeply affectionate, innocent face, he ultimately could not bring himself to do it.

Having narrowly escaped death, He Chu San asked excitedly, “So are we officially together now?”

“How much more together do you want to be? Shall we go to Europe for our honeymoon?”

“Ahem. That depends on whether I can get leave at the end of the year. If I can, we’ll go. I rented a flat in Tsim Sha Tsui. It’s close to your ‘company’ and to the Star Ferry Pier, so it’ll be convenient for both you going to work and me crossing the harbor. Will you move in with me?”

Xia Liu Yi stared at him darkly. He Chu San looked back with open expectation, smiling with a mouthful of pure, honest white teeth.

“Take me to see it later,” Xia Liu Yi said.

He Chu San had rented a two-room flat plus a living room in a somewhat dated apartment building in Tsim Sha Tsui. One room was the study and the other their bedroom. According to him, they also had private access to the rooftop, where they could admire the night view and have barbecues. When Xia Liu Yi inspected it in person, he discovered that it was only one tiny room larger than the leaky dump He Chu San had rented in Sai Wan. It was still cramped and shabby, while the rooftop was covered in rusty pipes.

“I’ve been working overtime lately and haven’t had time to clean the rooftop,” He Chu San explained. “Let’s go inside and sit down first.”

The interior, at least, was clean and neatly arranged. The walls and ceiling had been freshly painted, and the windows were decorated as always with red paper cuttings made by Father He. The fabric sofa, tablecloth, and curtains were all a warm camel color, while the floor lamp cast a quiet, intimate glow. Pajamas, slippers, sofa cushions, kitchen bowls and chopsticks, bathroom toothbrushes—everything came in pairs.

“You little bastard.” Xia Liu Yi cursed as he looked around. “You planned all this in advance? When did you rent the place?”

“Last month. It’s convenient for both our offices.”

Xia Liu Yi snorted. “It’s too small. Don’t think I’m going to live here.”

“Why don’t you look at the bedroom first?” He Chu San coaxed.

Xia Liu Yi continued cursing and complaining with great disgust, yet still slipped his feet into a pair of matching couple slippers identical to He Chu San’s and headed toward the bedroom.

He pushed open the half-closed door and switched on the floor lamp. Warm yellow light filled the room, and he froze.

A poster nearly half a person tall hung on the wall. A young woman smiled happily at the camera, holding a large bouquet of baby’s breath. She wore a white gauze dress, and her long black hair had been woven into a single elegant braid. Behind her stretched a green sea of flowers.

The poster, now yellowed with age, was almost ten years old. It had been released with the only record Xia Xiao Man ever made after she began studying singing. The record had sold poorly, and no second album followed. The poster itself had been a limited edition. When the villa burned on the night Azure Dragon and Xiao Man died, Xia Liu Yi lost even his own copy and had nothing left to remember her by.

Xia Liu Yi stood motionless, staring at Xiao Man’s innocent smile from before the suffering of later years had touched her. The hand resting against the light switch began to tremble faintly.

“One of my colleagues collects old records and happened to buy this one back then. He gave me the record too. Would you like to listen to it now?” He Chu San whispered close behind his ear.

Xia Liu Yi abruptly switched off the light and, in the darkness, seized He Chu San and pinned him down on the bed!