Using the money meant for Limping Sha’s wife and children as leverage, Xia Liu Yi forced Limping Sha to give up his claim to seniority, and the two became sworn brothers despite the difference in age. Brother Sha still resented this Brother Xia, who was more than ten years his junior, and every so often looked for some way to vent his frustration. Sharing a hospital room, the two bickered from morning till night, dragging up every old score from years ago—who had raided whose turf, who had stolen whose goods. Whenever their tempers flared, they would even yank open the curtain and wage war across the aisle with pillows. Only during the five minutes each day when He Chu San secretly slipped in wearing a doctor’s coat would Boss Sha tactfully call a truce, pull the blanket over his ears, and silently invoke Jesus Christ—Twin-Blade Xia’s little rabbit was so nauseatingly sweet when he whispered love talk that an outsider could hardly bear to listen. The moment He Chu San rustled his way out again, the two bosses immediately resumed their battle…
After an enormous bond was paid, Xia Liu Yi’s medical parole was officially approved. He was transferred to a private hospital and parted ways with Boss Sha. On the day of the transfer, He Chu San arrived as a “family member,” wearing gold-rimmed glasses, a tailored suit, and leather shoes. He helped Xia Liu Yi into a wheelchair, told him to sit beside him for a while, and began packing his clothes.
Boss Sha had never made his presence known while He Chu San was visiting. The young couple had only five minutes together each day as it was; if he dared disturb them and left Xia Liu Yi frustrated, Xia Liu Yi might stab him again. But now he finally could not resist pulling aside a corner of the curtain for a glimpse of Xiao Qi Hall’s legendary sister-in-law.
Xia Liu Yi had already given He Chu San a discreet cough during his second “sick visit” to warn him that another inmate was lying nearby. So when He Chu San saw Boss Sha, he showed no surprise. He merely smiled politely at him and continued folding the clothes Xia Liu Yi had just taken off.
Boss Sha looked He Chu San up and down with interest. “Brother Xia, there’s something that’s been bothering me these past few days. No matter how I think about it, I can’t make sense of it. I have to ask you.”
The gauze had already been removed from Xia Liu Yi’s eyes, restoring his sight. Sitting in his wheelchair with a thermos in his arms, he noisily ate the coconut milk hasma pudding He Chu San had made for him. His cheeks bulged as he ate, and he did not even raise his head. “Brother Sha, if you’ve got something to say, spit it out. Why are you talking like some scholar?”
“You two…” Boss Sha glanced at He Chu San again, still unable to believe it. This little rabbit looked fair, gentle, and scholarly, nothing like someone capable of locking Boss Xia up and fucking him to death. “Are you the one who gets topped?”
“Cough!”
Xia Liu Yi choked on the hasma pudding. Grabbing his throat, he glared at Boss Sha and coughed violently.
He Chu San hurried over to pat Xia Liu Yi’s back. One arm wrapped soothingly around his shoulders as he explained to Brother Sha with impeccable dignity, “Brother Sha, you’re joking. Of course I’m the one who serves him. Even if I had ten times the nerve, I wouldn’t dare top my superior.”
Boss Sha’s eyes shifted suspiciously. “Really? That’s not what you said the first day you came in.”
He Chu San smiled bashfully and leaned delicately against Xia Liu Yi. “I only said that because I was upset when I saw him injured. I lost my temper and got carried away. Who knows how our Boss will punish me once we get back? Brother Sha, have mercy and put in a good word for me. Ask him to spare me, all right?”
Xia Liu Yi was coughing too hard to speak, his whole face flushed scarlet. Unable to take another second, he smacked He Chu San hard on the ass.
Best Actor He, have you had enough of acting yet?
The slap sent He Chu San staggering. Clutching his backside, he gave Boss Sha an aggrieved look that plainly said, See?
Boss Sha watched the two of them leave with lingering doubt.
The officer guarding the door came in to inspect the room. Finding nothing unusual, he signed the register and handed it to Xia Liu Yi for his signature.
“You…” The officer studied He Chu San uncertainly. He looked strangely familiar. “Are you his younger brother?”
“I’m his cousin.” He Chu San calmly met the officer’s gaze. Whenever he had come disguised as a doctor, he had always worn a mask. There was no reason he should be recognized.
“You came to pick him up by yourself? Where’s the transfer vehicle?”
“The others are waiting in the parking lot.”
The officer hesitated for a moment before finally letting them through. As they left, he slapped the back of Xia Liu Yi’s wheelchair. “Behave yourself once you’re outside! Don’t end up back in there again!”
Xia Liu Yi did not turn around. He merely raised one hand and lazily made an OK sign.
He Chu San pushed the wheelchair into the elevator. The doors had barely closed when Xia Liu Yi twisted around and smacked him on the ass again.
“Ow! Why are you hitting me, Brother Liu Yi?”
“For spewing nonsense, little bastard!” Xia Liu Yi’s face was still bright red.
“Wasn’t I just explaining that I’m the one who gets topped?” He Chu San sounded genuinely aggrieved.
“I’m beating you for the bullshit you said the first day you came!” Xia Liu Yi grew even more embarrassed. He groped around, found the thermos hanging from the back of the wheelchair, and promptly started hitting him with it.
“Ah! Ow! Stop, Brother Liu Yi! The hasma pudding is going to spill! Ow…”
…
Cui Dong Dong and Xiao Ma were waiting in the parking lot with several bodyguards, fresh flowers in hand, ready to solemnly welcome home both the Boss and the sister-in-law. The instant everyone saw sister-in-law walking with a suspiciously awkward gait and equally suspicious red marks on his face, realization dawned. One after another, they turned away to snicker—the Boss really had been impatient.
Cui Dong Dong could barely stand to look at him. She helped the orderly lift Xia Liu Yi into the private hospital’s transfer ambulance, then sat beside him and condemned him in a low voice. “You’re an animal!”
“What the hell did I do?” Xia Liu Yi was baffled.
Cui Dong Dong pointed at He Chu San, who was cautiously feeling the opposite seat and baring his teeth as he tried to sit down. “You actually fucked him right there in the hospital room? This is a hospital. Couldn’t you rein yourself in? You’re not even healed yet—what was the rush?”
“I fucked—” Xia Liu Yi’s voice immediately rose, only for him to hurriedly lower it again. “Fucked him, my ass!”
“Quit trying to cover it up!” Cui Dong Dong glared at him, abandoned him on the spot, and went to fuss over He Chu San instead. “Sammy Boy, don’t sit down yet. Sister will put a blanket under you.”
Xia Liu Yi watched as He Chu San bashfully lowered himself onto the blanket Cui Dong Dong had laid out, looking every inch like someone who had just been thoroughly ravaged by the Boss. Xia Liu Yi was so furious his nose nearly twisted out of shape. Then he turned and saw Xiao Ma wearing the exact same righteous, indignant expression.
Xiao Ma leaned over and quietly complained, “Boss, this kid really is too inconsiderate! You’re injured this badly, and he still seduced you. He really doesn’t know how to behave!”
Xia Liu Yi slapped him away. “Get lost!”
…
In broad daylight, a crowd of underworld figures threw a wild celebration inside the luxury ward of a private hospital. Champagne and red wine flowed freely. Flowers and fruit covered the tables, chairs, and hospital bed; ribbons and balloons hung from the chandelier overhead, while a huge banner stretched across the wall:
WELCOME HOME! THE BOSS IS THE HANDSOMEST!
“Quiet! Quiet!” Cui Dong Dong stood on top of a table and shouted, “Brothers, today we’re celebrating two things! First, the Boss has returned safe and sound. Sure, he’s wrapped up like a mummy, but at least he’s still alive! Hahahaha!”
Laughing, she ducked the pillow Xia Liu Yi hurled at her.
“Boss, don’t rush me! Let me finish! Second, we missed Children’s Day this year, so no matter what, we have to make up your birthday celebration properly! Bring out the cake!”
Xiao Ma came in with another group of men, all belting out the birthday song in mangled English as they pushed in a huge three-tiered cake. A small red flag stood on top. Xiao Ma plucked it out and loudly read the inscription: “May the Boss’s fortune be as boundless as the Eastern Sea, his life as enduring as the Southern Mountains—and may he stay eighteen forever!”
“Eighteen, my ass!” Xia Liu Yi laughed from the bed and hurled his other pillow at him.
“The Boss has thrown both pillows! He’s out of weapons!” Cui Dong Dong raised an arm from her lofty position. “Brothers, charge! Hold down the Boss and pour alcohol into him!”
A swarm of men roared and rushed forward, shoving bottles into Xia Liu Yi’s hands.
“Boss, drink!”
“Boss, let me toast you!”
“Boss, mine first!”
“He’s injured. He can’t drink.” He Chu San, sitting beside Xia Liu Yi, hurriedly moved in front of him to block them.
Cui Dong Dong gave an immediate order. “Pick up Sammy Boy and throw him away!”
The burly men cheered, lifted He Chu San bodily into the air, and began tossing him upward.
“Whoaaa—!”
“Whoaaa—!”
“Throw him! Throw him farther!” Xia Liu Yi laughed and cursed from behind them. “Bring me the alcohol! Light me a cigarette too!”
The nurse on duty heard the commotion and came in to intervene, only to be hoisted into the air by the lawless bastards as well. She shrieked as she was tossed up and down alongside He Chu San. Outside the door, several bodyguards stuffed red envelopes into the hands of every patient who passed.
“Good health!”
“May you live to a hundred!”
Behind them, cheers, champagne corks popping, toasts, and screams reverberated through the entire hospital…
…
Toward evening, Xiao Ma returned slightly drunk to the nightclub he managed, humming as he staggered inside. Several of his men immediately surrounded him.
“Boss Xiao Ma!”
“Boss Ma!”
“How’s the Boss doing?”
Xiao Ma pointed at the faint outline of a slap on his cheek. “See that? He’s doing great! Full of energy!”
The men took turns crowding closer and pawing at his face.
“Yeah, yeah, that definitely looks like the Boss’s handiwork.”
“Wasn’t the Boss injured? He can still hit this hard? Incredible.”
“I wish the Boss would hit me once too. What an honor.”
“Get lost, get lost, get lost…” Xiao Ma chased the obnoxious bastards away, crossed the crowded dance floor, and went up to his office on the second floor. He locked the door, sorted through the latest accounts, then swayed drunkenly upstairs to the third floor.
The third floor was far more rudimentary than the two below it. The plaster walls were chipped and battered, the concrete floor pitted and uneven, and the enormous living room contained nothing but a television and a single sofa. This was one of Xiao Ma’s temporary residences. Unlike Xiao Qi Hall’s other leaders, he had never bought a home and had no fixed address. He merely kept temporary bedrooms near several businesses under his management and separately rented several apartments around the city. A crafty rabbit has three burrows; Ma Ru Long was unquestionably Xiao Qi Hall’s greatest expert at hiding himself.
He unlocked the bedroom at the far end of the apartment. The person he had hidden there for a month raised their head from the messy bed. Long, tangled hair obscured the face. A hand with long, pointed fingernails lazily pushed aside a few strands, identified Xiao Ma, then let the hair fall back again.
Xiao Ma glanced at the table. Neither the bread nor the dried meat he had left there had been touched. Only half the water was gone.
“Get up and eat something.” Xiao Ma kicked the bed. “Are you trying to starve yourself?”
The person stretched long arms and legs beneath the blanket, twisting their lazy waist into a strange pose. Only after a long while did they mumble, “I want steak.”
“There’s no steak here.”
“Take me outside to eat.”
“Are you trying to get yourself killed? Didn’t you say your godfather sent assassins after you?”
“Those useless bastards haven’t found me in an entire month. Why would I be scared?” The person slowly sat up and threw off the blanket.
Xiao Ma hurriedly turned his face away. “Damn it, you’re sleeping naked again?! Aren’t you disgusting? Put something on!”
The person giggled, grabbed a ribbon from the bedside, and tied back the tangled hair, revealing a beautiful yet sinister face.
It was Jade Guanyin.
“What are you embarrassed about?” Jade Guanyin’s smile was sickeningly sweet. “We’ve already slept together.”
“Shut up! You’re never allowed to mention that again. I was drunk!”
“Who are you fooling?” Jade Guanyin suddenly wrapped herself around him from behind, making Xiao Ma go rigid. “Drunk men are the ones who can’t get hard. You were so hard that night. You fucked me again and again—you tore open the wound on my back and nearly killed me.”
As she spoke, she rubbed her half-hard crotch against Xiao Ma’s thigh. Xiao Ma shuddered and, with considerable effort, finally tore himself out of her embrace.
“I told you, I was drunk! Drunk means drunk! I have no interest in a pervert like you, you shemale! None! Stay away from me! D-don’t come any closer!”
Jade Guanyin advanced through Xiao Ma’s miserable stammering and cursing, backing him into a corner within moments. Xiao Ma was a tall, powerfully built man, yet this slim-waisted, long-legged “weak woman” had him pinned flat against the wall like a pancake. He wanted to reach out and shove her away, but she was stark naked, all smooth pale skin with her breasts right in front of him.
There was nowhere safe to put his hands.
“Aaah—!” Xiao Ma finally lost it and began cursing incoherently. “Get away! Pervert! Damn shemale! Bastard! Fuck your mother! Ah…”
The pitch of that final cry suddenly changed.
“You obviously got hard the moment you saw my breasts.” Jade Guanyin laughed and grabbed him by the crotch. “See? This is very nice. Xiao Yu likes it.”
“L-let go…”
“You’ve been drinking again, haven’t you? I can smell it on you. Hehe… such a manly scent…”
“N-no… let go… Ah… ah… Help! Somebody save me—!”
…
At midnight, the nightclub below was blazing with lights, right in the middle of its busiest hours, with demons writhing wildly across the dance floor. The uproar of voices and violent pounding of drums traveled faintly through two floors. Even the slight vibration of the floorboards made a pillow that had fallen to the bedroom floor tremble.
A thick, muscular arm slick with sweat emerged from beneath the crumpled blanket. A hand smeared with suspicious fluid seized the gun on the bedside cabinet. Immediately afterward, a pale, slender arm snaked out, caught the gun-wielding hand, and dragged it back under the covers.
A muffled struggle broke out beneath the blanket.
“Let go of me! I said no more!”
“Mwah. Just one more time.”
“It’s already been four times! You—you—you’re some kind of fox spirit, aren’t you? Do you live by sucking men’s vital essence?”
“Hehehe. Brother Ma is so cute. Now I want you even more.”
“Touch me again and I’ll shoot you!”
“Come on, then. Hurry up and kill me. Once I’m dead, preserve me in formalin so I can stay beside you every day.”
“Aaaah! You pervert—! L-let go of my junk… Grandma! Sister Dong Dong! Boss! Somebody come save me—!”
…
Dozens of kilometers away, his Boss was currently pinned to a bed by sister-in-law and being kissed so thoroughly that he could not even save himself, much less anyone else.
Still kissing him, He Chu San slipped one hand beneath Xia Liu Yi’s hospital gown and began openly rubbing and pressing his nipples. Xia Liu Yi’s eyes flew wide. He raised a hand to hit him, only for He Chu San to pin it down. He Chu San’s tongue tangled fiercely with his as he sucked deeply at his mouth, while his fingers continued circling and pressing those sensitive nipples. Xia Liu Yi gradually went limp beneath him, able to produce nothing but muffled groans through his nose.
Saliva ran from the corner of Xia Liu Yi’s mouth and soaked into the pillow.
Only when Xia Liu Yi could no longer breathe at all and began weakly pounding He Chu San’s back with his powerless right hand did He Chu San finally release him, still visibly reluctant to stop.
He buried his face behind Xia Liu Yi’s ear and panted for a while before saying in a restrained voice, “Once you recover, we’ll settle everything slowly.”
“Settle what?” Xia Liu Yi shoved him, but failed to move him. “What do I owe you now?”
“You owe me a lot.” He Chu San kissed his swollen lips again with a soft smack. “You owe me a future where you’re safe and sound. And you still owe me a Children’s Day.”
“Get lost, you child!” Xia Liu Yi punched him in the chest, only for his fist to strike something hard. “What’s this?”
He Chu San took the jade Buddha from around his own neck and put it around Xia Liu Yi’s. “I got it back from the doctor. You have to keep wearing it until I bring a ring to replace it. Until then, you’re not allowed to take it off again.”
“Sappy. Disgusting.” Xia Liu Yi habitually rubbed the jade Buddha, then tucked it beneath his clothes.
“Right—how do all my brothers know you?” he asked suspiciously. Originally, only Xiao Ma, Dong Dong, and a handful of bodyguards were supposed to know He Chu San’s identity. Yet all the junior leaders from Xiao Qi Hall who had come to celebrate at the hospital today had seemed extremely familiar with him.
He Chu San answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Because I’m the Boss’s Wife.”
Xia Liu Yi raised a hand to smack him. He Chu San ducked while protecting his head and immediately amended his answer, embellishing the truth just enough to save himself. “Didn’t you promise to go legit? Sister Dong Dong said the two of you had already discussed it. So she asked me to serve as your company’s investment adviser and look into its ‘transformation.’ I’ve been going there quite often lately, so some of the brothers in charge know me now.”
He caught the hand Xia Liu Yi had waved at him and pulled it against his chest. “Sister Dong Dong set up a small company earlier and invested in several projects through me. The returns are pretty good now, so you have more than enough working capital. I’ve also spent this time discussing with Sister Dong Dong how to restructure the businesses run by the other companies. Within a year, Xiao Qi Hall can complete its entire ‘transformation.’”
He blinked at Xia Liu Yi, his eyes full of hope. “Then we can finally be together, safe and sound.”
Great waves immediately surged through Xia Liu Yi’s heart, but his expression remained perfectly calm. He affectionately pinched He Chu San’s cheek and said softly, “Silly boy. We’re already together, safe and sound.”
…
Deep into the night, He Chu San fell sound asleep on the companion bed beside him. During this period, he had been working at his own company, handling Xiao Qi Hall’s affairs with Cui Dong Dong, and finding opportunities to sneak into the hospital every day. He was utterly exhausted. Xia Liu Yi had never once heard him snore, yet tonight several small, almost playful snores escaped him.
Little bastard. Xia Liu Yi tilted his head and studied He Chu San’s worn-out back. Tomorrow I’ll have to ask if he’s caught a cold, then pin him down and make him take his medicine or get a shot.
Once he was certain He Chu San was sleeping deeply, Xia Liu Yi secretly reached for the brick-sized mobile phone on the bedside cabinet. Hiding beneath the blanket, he called Cui Dong Dong and quietly said a few things to her.
Then he called Xiao Ma.
…
Inside a pair of trousers discarded on the floor, a brick-sized mobile phone suddenly rang.
The blanket was violently thrown aside. Xiao Ma’s pale, exhausted face emerged. Half dead, he crawled out of bed, picked up the phone, and sat wearily on the edge of the mattress.
“Hello?”
Several seconds later, he respectfully gave an answer and hung up.
Jade Guanyin slithered over like a snake, pressing her naked body against his back and resting her chin on his shoulder. “Was that A’Liu?”
“Mm.”
“He wants you to see him tomorrow?”
“Mm.”
“Are you going to tell him I’m here?”
Xiao Ma sighed. “Do you want me to tell him?”
“If I say no, will you really keep it from him?”
“Depends.”
“On what?”
“On whether you’re planning to hurt him. If you are, I’ll kill you first and tell him afterward.”
Jade Guanyin broke into another coquettish smile. “Brother Ma is so loyal. So handsome. Xiao Yu likes you so much.”
She wrapped herself stickily around Xiao Ma and rubbed against him. “Don’t worry. I like A’Liu too. I won’t hurt him. I came here to help him. But neither his injuries nor mine have healed yet, so I’ll wait a little longer before I go see him.”
Xiao Ma sighed again. “You’re a pervert and your mouth is full of lies. I don’t trust you. Just stay here and recover properly. Don’t get any clever ideas.”
“I know. You’ve already locked me in here. You won’t even let me have steak.”
“What lousy steak?” Xiao Ma snapped impatiently as he wrestled himself free. He opened the wardrobe, pulled out one of his shirts, and threw it at her. “Put some clothes on! You haven’t eaten all day, yet you still insisted on fooling around with me. Starve, then! I’m going to make you a bowl of noodles with a fried egg. Eat it or don’t.”
Leave a Reply