Elite He’s lukewarm war dragged on for two weeks. Every day, he left early and returned late, limiting his communication with Boss Xia to one or two telephone calls and secretly getting handsy after coming home in the dead of night, once the Boss was supposedly “fast asleep.”
In truth, Xia Liu Yi had only guessed half of it. He Chu San was not deliberately neglecting him the entire time—he genuinely was busy. Overbearing CEOs who could spend all day wrapped up in romance while effortlessly earning a fortune only existed in prime-time soap operas. He Chu San came from an ordinary family. He possessed neither vast family wealth nor a powerful patron, so he could only bury himself in work while squeezing his pursuit of the Boss into every available gap. His days were exhausting and hectic, bitter yet sweet.
Of course, being busy also gave him a convenient excuse to leave the Boss hanging and make his position clear. He did not seriously expect Xia Liu Yi to yield and honestly reveal every secret. Xia Liu Yi was the kind of stubborn donkey who insisted on carrying everything on his own back—and a Dragon Head-sized donkey at that. What could He Chu San possibly do with him? For now, he would slowly wear him down. One day, that donkey was bound to let a hoof slip.
Xia Liu Yi did not know exactly what He Chu San was scheming—he knew the brat had schemes, just not what they were—and had no time to investigate. Boss Xia, freshly released from both prison and the hospital, was equally busy. The “going legitimate” he had promised He Chu San was not as simple as saying those two words. It involved tangled interests, consolidating assets, and transferring personnel, all of which would encounter enormous resistance within and outside the society. Moreover, he still needed Master Qiao to introduce him to the Old Shopkeeper. To win over Master Qiao and the Old Shopkeeper, he had to transform from black to white in public while secretly continuing certain businesses that could never withstand daylight. He had to hide them from the cops and from the Boss’s wife. The Boss was also exhausted and miserable.
…
November in Hong Kong brought a faint chill to the autumn wind. It had rained throughout that particular day, leaving the air oppressively damp. Xia Liu Yi’s bones ached all over as he recovered from his serious injuries. Sprawled at home, he made several telephone calls to direct his subordinates, sent the bodyguards out to buy fish balls, beef offal, and beer, then wrapped himself in a blanket and spent the afternoon eating, drinking, and watching videotapes.
The alcohol worsened his joint pain. That night, Boss Xia suffered the consequences of his own actions and remained awake in pain until well past midnight. Since he would rather suffer than lose face, he could not bring himself to telephone the bodyguards renting the apartment next door and ask them to come massage him. He could only toss and turn, stubbornly enduring it alone.
He Chu San returned in the middle of the night, quietly removed his rain-soaked clothes, took a steaming shower, and entered the bedroom intending to sneak his usual embrace. Instead, he found Xia Liu Yi sitting cross-legged on the bed with a cigarette between his lips and the blanket wrapped around him. His hair was a mess, and his scrunched-up face glared fiercely at He Chu San, making him look exactly like a wrapped rice dumpling with a cigarette stuck in it.
He Chu San failed to suppress a laugh. Boss Xia’s glare immediately sharpened. He Chu San turned and switched on the bedroom light. In the warm, brightly lit room, he smiled helplessly. “Brother Liu Yi, why are you smoking in bed… What’s wrong?”
Only then did he properly see the cold sweat covering Xia Liu Yi’s forehead and the unnatural pallor of his face. He quickly approached, tested Xia Liu Yi’s forehead with the back of his hand, wiped away the sweat, then cupped the man’s cold face between his warm palms. “What exactly is wrong?”
Held between those warm hands, Xia Liu Yi felt a powerful urge to rub his face against them. He forcibly restrained himself, awkwardly pulled free, removed the cigarette from his mouth, crushed it out, and tossed it beside the bed. “Nothing. It’s raining. I don’t feel well.”
He Chu San slipped a hand beneath the blanket and felt across Xia Liu Yi’s sweat-damp body. When he saw the snack containers and beer bottles piled beside the bed, he immediately understood most of what had happened and released a long sigh.
Hearing that familiar old-man sigh made Xia Liu Yi want to hit him. He Chu San, however, turned and hurried away. Before long, he returned carrying a basin of hot water. He wrung out a hot towel and wiped the sweat from Xia Liu Yi’s entire body, then took out medicated oil and carefully massaged every aching joint and muscle. Finally, he dressed him in clean, comfortable pajamas—Boss Xia had previously been wearing nothing except underwear—and replaced the cold, damp sheets and blanket.
The entire process took almost an hour. While He Chu San changed the bedding, Xia Liu Yi waited on the living-room sofa wrapped in a blanket, so comfortable that he began drifting off. He Chu San shook him awake and fed him a cup of warm milk, then handed him warm water to rinse his mouth before tucking him into the dry, soft bed.
Xia Liu Yi had felt miserable all day and only received the warmth of home at the very end of the night. He became so comfortable that he could barely keep his eyes open. He drowsily held on until He Chu San climbed beneath the blanket, then immediately wrapped an arm around him, pulled him into his embrace, and began snoring softly.
He Chu San rested against his head and sighed something. Xia Liu Yi regained the tiniest trace of consciousness and murmured, “Mmm?”
He Chu San repeated himself. “You really do need someone to control you.”
Fuck off, little bastard, Xia Liu Yi thought. However, he only released a faint grunt of protest before sinking immediately into sleep.
…
Boss Xia slept until noon. When he opened his eyes, warm but dazzling sunlight streamed through the blinds. He instinctively reached toward the space beside him and, unexpectedly, found it empty again. His previously lazy, contented mood somehow became irritable.
He climbed out of bed and sat on the edge with his hair pointing in every direction. Looking around for a cigarette, he discovered that the bedroom had been cleaned and tidied. Even the disorderly clothes that had accumulated over the past two weeks had been sorted and washed. He shuffled into the living room in his slippers and found it equally spotless.
Naturally, cigarettes had disappeared from the apartment once again. They had been replaced by several lollipops standing in a vase on the coffee table.
Boss Xia looked down on such childish things. He gave a disdainful snort and went into the bathroom to wash. Afterward, he took a telephone call, fixed his appearance, and left with impressive swagger.
…
The autumn sunlight was warm and gentle. He Chu San carried two bags of ingredients through the wet market in an excellent mood, enjoying the sunshine. As he passed a fish stall, the owner greeted him with a smile. “Young man, you haven’t come to buy groceries in a long time.”
“That’s right. Please choose a grouper for me.”
The owner skillfully cleaned the fish. His wife emerged from the back, saw He Chu San, and smiled as well. “Young man, you’re here again. Buying groceries to cook for your girlfriend?”
The young man lowered his head and smiled shyly, which was practically an admission.
“You treat your girlfriend so well. When are you getting married?”
He Chu San smiled shyly again, thanked them, accepted the cleaned fish, and left.
“Young people are shy,” the stall owner told his wife. “Stop teasing him so much.”
“But he’s adorable.”
The adorable young man returned home smiling, now carrying three large bags of ingredients. Thinking of Brother Liu Yi wrapped in the blanket and snoring softly filled him with peace and happiness. He truly had been too busy recently. He reflected that whenever he was not busy, he should cook for Brother Liu Yi every day. Even at his busiest, he ought to reserve at least one day each week to accompany him. That was why he had specifically taken the day off and planned to prepare a long-overdue feast for the Boss.
When he opened the apartment door, however, he found the entire place cold and empty, with a wrinkled pajama top carelessly thrown across the sofa. He Chu San stared blankly for a moment, then sighed and rubbed his temples.
He had become so busy that he had forgotten to ask whether the Boss had plans that day.
…
The Boss who had plans ate a casual meal at a cha chaan teng and was now sitting in the rear seat of a car. A lollipop rested between his lips as he hummed and used another still-wrapped lollipop to beat time against his knee. Seeing that the Boss appeared to be in a good mood, A’Nan, sitting in the front passenger seat, boldly chatted with him. “Boss, where did you get those lollipops?”
“You want one?” Xia Liu Yi asked, one corner of his mouth lifting.
“Yes.”
“Buy your own if you want one! Little bastard! You even dare ask for the Boss’s lollipop? A’Mao, pull over. We’re picking up Xiao Ma.”
The car stopped outside the head office. Xiao Ma had been suffering beneath the sun, crouched by the roadside with two subordinates and smoking. When he saw the Boss’s car, he hurriedly dismissed the men and came over to open the door.
“Throw away the cigarette! Throw it away! Stand outside and air yourself out before getting in!” Xia Liu Yi immediately ordered. Damn it, if the smell rubbed onto his clothes, even jumping into the sea would not wash him clean.
Xiao Ma miserably fanned himself outside for a long time. After climbing in and sitting beside Xia Liu Yi, he looked at the Boss sucking on a lollipop with a sweet, contented expression and immediately detected the familiar sour stench of romance. His own heart became miserable. “Boss.”
“Have your injuries healed?” Xia Liu Yi lightly slapped his back.
Xiao Ma shrank his neck. “They’re healed. They’re healed.”
“Was I wrong to beat you?”
“You were wrong, you were wrong… No! I was wrong! I was wrong! The Boss wasn’t wrong!”
Xia Liu Yi gave his forehead another moderate slap. “Ma Ru Long, honestly! I wasted my breath telling the elders you possessed both courage and intelligence. Use your brain in the future! How is Jade Guanyin? Has she caused any more trouble?”
“No, no. She’s recovering at home and behaving herself.” Apart from pinning him down every few days and forcing him to participate in some improper exercise.
“Jade Guanyin is deeply calculating. There’s no telling what she came to Hong Kong to do. Golden Maitreya will eventually discover that Xiao Qi Hall is protecting her, and we may have to package her up and send her back. Don’t become too entangled with her. Use your own judgment,” Xia Liu Yi said.
“B-but she said she came here to help you, Boss…” Xiao Ma boldly spoke on Jade Guanyin’s behalf.
“What the fuck can she help me with? Causing trouble? Killing people?” Xia Liu Yi scoffed.
Xia Liu Yi had never possessed much patience or goodwill toward Jade Guanyin’s perverse temperament. If not for the fact that she had frequently played small tricks over the years without ever truly harming him, and had once helped him out of trouble before Golden Maitreya, he would have packaged her up and thrown her back to Thailand long ago.
In truth, he had always doubted Jade Guanyin’s position. Her methods were vicious and her behavior unpredictable, but in most situations she merely followed Golden Maitreya’s orders, serving as the beautiful puppet he used to confuse outsiders. Jade Guanyin appeared completely obedient to Golden Maitreya, but no one could say what she truly thought in private. Now that she had actually dared turn against him, she must have grown tired of being his puppet and seized some painful weakness of his. Xia Liu Yi was extremely curious about that weakness, but pretended not to care. He intended to leave Jade Guanyin hanging in the cold until the right time came and she spoke on her own.
…
The car stopped outside an extravagant bathhouse and spa. Xia Liu Yi crunched up and swallowed the remaining half of his lollipop, then entered with Xiao Ma under the reception manager’s enthusiastic welcome. He had come to join Master Qiao for a sauna, discuss business, and introduce Xiao Ma to several junior leaders beneath the He Yi Society.
The bodyguards from both sides guarded the entrance while the two bosses occupied an entire bathing pool, talking amid the heavy steam. Master Qiao analyzed the recent situation in impressive detail. Whenever Xia Liu Yi indirectly asked about the Old Shopkeeper, however, Master Qiao only said the authorities had been watching too closely recently and no one had heard anything about the Old Shopkeeper for a long time.
“Twin-Blade Xia, there’s no need to worry. The Old Shopkeeper knows who is loyal to him.” Master Qiao spoke in his hoarse voice with an ambiguous smile. He suddenly coughed several times, turned his head, and spat a thick wad of phlegm onto the floor beside the pool. Believing himself hearty and uninhibited, he released several rasping laughs. “When there are benefits, you won’t be forgotten.”
Xia Liu Yi expressionlessly looked away. He strongly wanted to lift the filthy, sickly old fox and throw him out the window. His thoughts immediately wandered elsewhere. The little bastard surnamed He was much better—pale and clean, gentle and virtuous. Even the clingy way he murmured “Brother Liu Yi” was pleasing to hear. The sunlight was so beautiful that day. Xia Liu Yi should have dragged the little bastard to the beach for a barbecue or taken him fishing at sea, rather than sitting in a windowless bathhouse soaking in stagnant water with an old fox.
Boss Xia wanted information about the Old Shopkeeper from Master Qiao, while Master Qiao wanted access to Golden Maitreya’s channels through Boss Xia. The two verbally circled each other throughout the afternoon without either gaining the advantage. They soaked in the bath, entered the sauna, received massages, and even followed the latest fashion by getting facials. Boss Xia found having a stranger touch his face almost unbearable, and he felt the woman massaging him was about to drip saliva onto his forehead.
After the massage, Master Qiao offered to take him to dinner at his newly opened restaurant and then visit the underground fighting ring that evening. He said there would be a spectacular match under a contract allowing death, with one fighter facing five opponents. His illegal fighting business in Hong Kong was extremely successful, and he hoped to persuade Xia Liu Yi to join him in expanding into Macau. Macau had its own local powers, and Master Qiao found them difficult to oppose alone.
Xia Liu Yi rode in his own car behind Master Qiao’s. Together with the bodyguard vehicles from both sides, the long convoy traveled impressively toward the restaurant. Xiao Ma had spent the afternoon entertaining several junior He Yi Society leaders at the bathhouse. He now sat beside Xia Liu Yi looking completely drained and on the verge of collapse.
“What’s wrong?” Xia Liu Yi kicked him. “Why do you look as though someone died?”
“Boss, I… I…” Xiao Ma’s voice nearly broke into tears. He glanced at the two bodyguards in front, leaned closer, and whispered, “I think I can’t perform anymore.”
“What can’t perform?” His Boss did not immediately understand.
“That, Boss.” Xiao Ma looked depressed and embarrassed.
“What the fuck is ‘that’?”
The two bodyguards in front trembled while suppressing their laughter. Xiao Ma glared at them, then faced the increasingly impatient Xia Liu Yi and miserably raised his hands, demonstrating one finger entering a circle.
“…” His Boss stared at him.
“The girl who massaged me today had breasts this big.” Xiao Ma exaggerated with his hands, indicating the size of basketballs. “I didn’t feel a fucking thing. I’m finished, Boss. I, Xiao Ma, have been romantic all my life, yet I’ve declined before my time…” He covered his face, curled beside the window, and began mourning.
As someone who had secretly been “unable” for many years because of his lack of sexual interest, Xia Liu Yi felt deeply awkward. He had no position from which to mock Xiao Ma and no idea how to comfort him. Seeing his brother’s desolate back, he could only pat it kindly in consolation.
The two bodyguards in front were close to exploding from suppressed laughter. Both sets of nostrils flared desperately as they nearly suffocated.
…
Dinner began too early, and Xia Liu Yi had no appetite for the extravagant banquet covering the table. Master Qiao sat beside him and chatted with several subordinates who had joined them. Suddenly, Xia Liu Yi’s brick phone rang, and Master Qiao glanced at him from the corner of his eye.
Xia Liu Yi checked the number and answered calmly. “Hello?”
Hearing his cold tone, He Chu San understood that people were nearby and that it was inconvenient to speak. He did not call his name and merely asked quietly, “Will you be home for dinner tonight?”
Xia Liu Yi looked at the flavorless abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, and fish maw before him and strongly wanted to overturn the table, rush outside, and race home. However, he glanced at Master Qiao beside him and answered coldly, “Do as you see fit. I’ll be back later.”
After hanging up, he met Master Qiao’s gaze and cursed impatiently, “Fuck, those useless idiots bring every insignificant matter to me.”
After dinner, Master Qiao invited Xia Liu Yi to ride with him to the fighting ring. Unable to decline the warm invitation, Xia Liu Yi whispered to A’Nan before climbing into the car. “Telephone Mr. He. Tell him I’ll return very late and not to wait.”
The convoy twisted through a series of roads until it reached an isolated abandoned factory, where groups of young thugs stood guard and patrolled outside. Master Qiao led Xia Liu Yi through the VIP entrance. The instant they entered, a deafening wave of sound struck them.
A tall boxing ring had been erected in the center of the factory. An enormous crowd surrounded it from every direction, and gamblers who had placed bets shouted the names of the fighters they supported. The match had not even begun when several spectators started fighting over an argument. Strong, vicious bodyguards immediately knocked each of them unconscious with a single punch and threw them outside.
Master Qiao brought Xia Liu Yi to the elevated VIP seats. Looking over the dense crowd, they saw a comical referee with a narrow, monkey-like face climb into the cramped ring first. Several muscular men followed, pounding their chests and roaring challenges at the crowd. The audience immediately became excited. People in the front rows even ignored the bodyguards and lunged forward to pound the edge of the ring while shouting. Soon, the entire venue joined in chanting a ring name.
“White Dragon! White Dragon! White Dragon! White Dragon!”
Elio’s Notes: White Dragon is translated from 小白龙 (Xiao Bai Long), literally “Little White Dragon.” Here, 小 suggests youth rather than small size. Since “Little White Dragon” sounds somewhat cute in English, the ring name has been shortened to White Dragon to better suit Qin Hao’s formidable image in the underground fighting arena.
Master Qiao smiled proudly and turned to explain to Xia Liu Yi. “He arrived last month. Ten days, ten matches, and not a single defeat. Tonight, he’s challenging five men at once.”
He then released his signature hoarse laugh and added meaningfully, “Once you see him, you’ll definitely ‘like’ him.”
Xia Liu Yi had no interest in businesses that traded human lives for money. He smiled politely, turned away to hide a yawn, and secretly rubbed his stomach. He was beginning to feel hungry.
When he looked back listlessly, he suddenly frowned. His gaze fixed firmly on the face of the fighter emerging amid the roaring cheers.
White Dragon had a lean, muscular body and a tall, slender figure. His handsome young face was extremely familiar, while his expression remained proud and distant. It was Qin Hao, who had disappeared without a trace after completing his sentence and leaving prison one month earlier.
Xia Liu Yi looked speechlessly at Master Qiao. Master Qiao continued wearing an ambiguous smile, believing he had delighted Twin-Blade Xia, who was rumored to be fiercely loyal to Azure Dragon. “What do you think?”
Xia Liu Yi raised an eyebrow, took Master Qiao’s cigar case from his hand, removed one cigar, tapped it several times, placed it between his lips, and lit it. “Not much. He’s only an imitation.”
“The boy is extremely skilled and a real money tree,” Master Qiao said. “If you like him, he’s yours.”
Xia Liu Yi smiled without committing himself, while still strongly wishing he could pick Master Qiao up and throw him into the ring below.
His gaze returned to the ring. The referee’s whistle had already sounded. Qin Hao leaped and delivered a rapid sweeping kick directly into the head of one muscular man, sending him flying. The audience’s crazed cheers were deafening, nearly lifting the factory roof.
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