Futile Devices Scans

That evening, He Chu San returned to the apartment building where he rented a place.

The elevator doors slowly opened, revealing A’Nan and A’Mao standing anxiously in the corridor, waiting for him.

A’Nan and A’Mao had been sleeping in that morning when a phone call from the Boss woke them and informed them that Sister-in-law had actually disappeared! When Xia Liu Yi heard that He Chu San had not returned to the Chinese temple in Nakhon Pathom, he became certain that He Chu San had gone back to Hong Kong. The bodyguards hurried to Bangkok to meet up with the frantic Boss, then took the nearest flight back to Hong Kong. They searched He Chu San’s apartment, his company, Father He’s home, and even Xin Xin’s art school, but found no trace of him. With nothing else they could do, they returned to his apartment to wait. Now that Sister-in-law had finally appeared, both men visibly relaxed, only to immediately give him looks full of sympathy. A’Nan pointed toward the apartment and used his expression and gestures to convey a very clear message: the Boss was furious.

He Chu San calmly nodded to them, took out his key, and opened the door.

The lights were off. Light from the corridor spilled through the doorway, illuminating Xia Liu Yi’s figure on the sofa, his dark expression, and the mess scattered across the floor.

He Chu San remembered the shabby little apartment he had rented in Sheung Wan years ago, when Xia Liu Yi had found the photographs he secretly took and waited at home to “interrogate” him. The scene before him was astonishingly similar, yet He Chu San felt none of the guilty panic he had felt back then. And what right did Xia Liu Yi have to sit there with that dark expression and interrogate him now?

He turned and closed the door without switching on the lights. One stood and one sat, staring at each other through the darkness.

“Where did you go?” Xia Liu Yi demanded anxiously. “Why didn’t you answer the phone?! Why did you come back to Hong Kong alone?!”

He Chu San did not answer. Instead, he calmly asked, “Why did you go to Thailand? What secret is hidden in that photograph?”

Xia Liu Yi drew a deep breath, suppressing the emotions threatening to erupt inside him. “It’s none of your business. Don’t ask so many questions. Give me back the photograph.”

“I recognized one of them. He’s Azure Dragon’s father. Did you go to Thailand because of Azure Dragon? Were you looking for this photograph, or for someone in it? How did Brother Xiao Ma die? Why were you and Qin Hao injured? What else are you planning to do—”

“I said it’s none of your business.” Xia Liu Yi shot to his feet and impatiently cut off the relentless barrage of questions.

He Chu San suddenly tore the ring from his left hand and hurled it viciously at Xia Liu Yi! The ring grazed Xia Liu Yi’s cheek and struck the window behind him with a clear ting! The diamond’s glimmer vanished into the darkness.

“I’m your husband! Everything about you is my business!” he roared, finally releasing all the fury he had suppressed for days. “How many more things are you going to hide from me?! Do you have to die right in front of me before you’ll be satisfied?!”

“Why are you going crazy?!” Xia Liu Yi snapped. He had never seen He Chu San lose control so completely, and He Chu San’s sudden burst of rage seemed utterly inexplicable to him.

“You’re the one who’s crazy!” He Chu San shouted. “Where’s your ring? I’ve wanted to ask you since my first day in Thailand. Where is your ring?!”

Xia Liu Yi froze, unable to answer.

The ring he had worn on a chain against his chest had disappeared at some unknown point during that miserable escape, swallowed somewhere in the vast sea of forest.

He had no answer and remained silent for a long time. In the darkness, He Chu San gave a small, disappointed laugh.

“It really is that hard for you to just live a good life with me!”

He turned and opened the door. Xia Liu Yi instinctively lunged forward and grabbed his arm. Their combined weight slammed the partially opened door shut again.

“Listen to me! A’San!” Xia Liu Yi’s heart was beating faster than it ever had, pounding so loudly it seemed to strike against his eardrums. He Chu San was pinned against the door but did not struggle at all. Even so, Xia Liu Yi felt as though the other man might disappear from between his fingers at any moment.

He Chu San stared directly into his eyes. His sharp gaze pierced straight through Xia Liu Yi’s soul, leaving him nowhere to hide. Silently, he waited for Xia Liu Yi’s “explanation.”

But Xia Liu Yi could not explain. He had gone to Thailand for revenge. Xiao Ma had died because of Interpol’s pursuit and Jade Guanyin’s betrayal. The people in the photograph had caused the deaths of Azure Dragon and his father. He still had to keep investigating. He still had to pretend to flatter and associate with dangerous people. He still had to kill. He still had to risk his life on dangerous ventures—He Chu San would worry, would try to stop him, and, more importantly, knowing the truth would place He Chu San himself in danger.

Meeting He Chu San’s gaze, Xia Liu Yi forced himself to speak. “It isn’t what you think. I lost the ring during the fight. I went to Thailand because Xiao Ma offended a local Boss there—the Thai man in that photograph. He used to be an old acquaintance of Azure Dragon’s father. Xiao Ma was detained in Thailand, so I took Qin Hao with me to rescue him…”

He described everything that had supposedly “happened” in painstaking detail. He had rehearsed the story countless times, to the point that every dangerous detail of the imagined rescue existed vividly in his mind. He Chu San remained silent and listened until he had finished everything.

“…I carried the photograph because I wanted to use their old connection to get close to him,” Xia Liu Yi concluded. “That’s all. Do you understand now?”

He Chu San lowered his eyes. In the dim light, Xia Liu Yi could not see his expression.

“So you’re saying your trip to Thailand had nothing to do with Azure Dragon?” He Chu San’s voice had become calm again.

“Nothing at all. You were imagining things.”

He Chu San gave another soft laugh.

“I really was imagining too much. I thought that even if I could never compare to him in your heart, at least I still held half of it. I really was imagining too much. I gave it everything I had, but I can’t change the past you shared with him. From the moment he died, I had already lost. I don’t blame you for still loving him, but I can’t accept my husband lying to me like this again and again and again. And I don’t want to keep sharing your love with someone else.”

He pulled the photograph from his pocket and shoved it into Xia Liu Yi’s hand, then pushed him away and stepped aside. “This is my home. I’m not the one who should leave.”

Xia Liu Yi stared at him in shock, looking at the indifferent expression on his face. He could barely understand what He Chu San meant!

“What the hell has gotten into you?” He tried to grab He Chu San, but He Chu San quickly stepped back again.

“Take every bodyguard outside with you. I have nothing to do with their Boss anymore.”

“A’San!” Xia Liu Yi called, alarmed and anxious.

“Xia Liu Yi,” He Chu San said calmly. “You said this had nothing to do with Azure Dragon. But on Lunar New Year’s Eve, the night you had that nightmare, you held me and called for ‘Eldest’ all night. You kept begging him to ‘come back.’ You kept saying, ‘I’m going to kill them. I’ll avenge you.’”

“…”

The color drained from Xia Liu Yi’s face. His heartbeat thundered beside his ears, and through that deafening pounding, he heard He Chu San’s final words.

“You should go.”

…

Early the next morning, the brick phone beside the bed began ringing. Cui Dong Dong was awakened from warm, fragrant softness and irritably burrowed downward, burying her face directly against Xiao Luo’s chest.

“Answer it,” Xiao Luo mumbled, pushing her.

“You answer it.” Cui Dong Dong remained happily immersed in the wonderfully large, warm, soft sensation beneath her face.

“It’s on your side.” Xiao Luo pushed her again.

“Ahhh, damn it.” Cui Dong Dong scrunched up her face, rolled over, and with enormous effort shifted one arm and her waist until she finally managed to grope around and reach the brick phone on the bedside table. She snatched it up and immediately began cursing. “Who the fuck has a death wish, calling this early in the morning and waking me up?!”

The person on the other end spoke for several sentences. Cui Dong Dong shot upright. “What? The Boss came back yesterday? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

She hung up and roughly nudged Xiao Luo. “The Boss is back. I’m going to the company. Hurry up and make me breakfast.”

“I want to sleep. Go eat outside.” Xiao Luo rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head.

“Hey? What kind of wife acts like this?” Cui Dong Dong pushed her again.

“Who’s your wife? Go marry whoever you want.” Xiao Luo’s muffled voice came from beneath the blanket.

Cui Dong Dong pushed her again, climbed out of bed indignantly, and began rummaging through the wardrobe for clothes. “Damn it, your temper gets worse every day. Who’s the Big Sister here, you or me? Believe me, I’ll divorce you.”

“You’re so noisy. Hurry up and leave.”

“…”

…

Cui Dong Dong sulkily drank a cup of coffee and ate two pineapple buns in the car, wishing she could chew off both of Xiao Luo’s breasts, one bite apiece. Once she was full, her mood improved. She entered the company in high spirits, intending to welcome the Boss who had narrowly escaped death and had kept her worried for so many days. Before she reached the executive office, however, A’Nan and A’Mao exchanged glances and cautiously pulled her aside to whisper a few words.

“What? He got thrown out?” Cui Dong Dong exclaimed, prompting A’Nan to hurriedly cover her mouth.

“Then where did he sleep last night?” she whispered after lowering her voice.

A’Mao gloomily pointed toward the office. “He stayed in there all night. Never slept.”

“The Boss must be heartbroken,” A’Nan said anxiously. “We’re all worried he’ll do something. Big Sister, please comfort him. None of us dares go inside. We’re counting on you.”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. What goes around comes around. So even the Boss gets a day like this,” Big Sister remarked. “He used to tell people to get lost all day long. Must feel absolutely fantastic now that it’s his turn, huh?”

“…”

“…”

Big Sister, if you go in there looking that delighted at his misery, the Boss is going to chase you around with a knife.

Cui Dong Dong smacked each man on the head, knocking away their worried looks. She lowered her voice. “What are you staring at? Big Sister knows when to stop! This concerns the Boss’s dignity, so no one else is allowed to hear about it. Otherwise, the two of you are going to be…” She drew a finger across her throat.

A’Nan and A’Mao nodded frantically like chickens pecking at grain.

After frightening and teasing the bodyguards enough, Cui Dong Dong straightened her appearance, arranged her face into an expression of grave seriousness and complete ignorance regarding the previous night’s gossip, knocked on the office door, and strode inside with dignity.

Contrary to what she expected, the room was not wrecked or littered with debris. Xia Liu Yi sat back in the boss’s chair, idly playing with the group photograph of the brothers on his desk.

Without looking up when she entered, he said, “You’re here? Sit.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you came back yesterday?” Cui Dong Dong asked as she closed the door. “Have you eaten? I brought you two pineapple buns.”

She set the takeaway coffee and pineapple buns on the desk and secretly studied the Boss. He looked unusually calm. Apart from the faint stubble on his chin and the slight exhaustion on his face from having stayed awake all night, almost nothing seemed wrong.

Xia Liu Yi took the coffee and buns and began eating as though nothing had happened, showing no sign of having lost his appetite whatsoever. Cui Dong Dong felt a chill run through her. Every previous time the Boss fought with Sister-in-law, he either raged and jumped around or became dejected and miserable. This time he was actually calm? He had to be hurt badly. What the hell had Sammy Boy said to him? And where had Sammy Boy found the nerve to throw the Boss out of the house? He really wasn’t afraid of getting his ass pounded by ten thousand men!

That thought sent Cui Dong Dong’s imagination careening in another direction. Come to think of it, Sammy Boy had the Boss completely wrapped around his finger. Was he really the bottom? Unless he…

“What nonsense are you thinking about?” Xia Liu Yi swallowed a mouthful of bun. “Get that gossiping look off your face.”

“Cough.” Cui Dong Dong hurriedly rearranged her expression.

“Those two told you?” Xia Liu Yi gestured toward the door.

“No, no, no… cough. They were only worried about you and afraid something might happen.”

“What could happen to me?” Xia Liu Yi said. “We had an argument, that’s all. What, am I going to take a knife and chop him up?”

His expression was normal and his voice calm, yet from his hollow, lifeless eyes and that slightly impulsive suggestion of chopping He Chu San up with a knife, Cui Dong Dong could clearly tell just how utterly heartbroken and devastated he was. She walked around to the boss’s chair, plopped herself down on the armrest, hooked an arm around Xia Liu Yi’s neck, pulled his head toward her, and patted him soothingly. “All right, don’t be too upset. No matter what nasty things Sammy Boy said, it was because he cares about you. You didn’t see how fiercely he came in here and made a scene at me before. From where I’m standing, he loves you so much he’s gone crazy over you. Give him some time to calm down. He’ll come around.”

Xia Liu Yi remained silent within the crook of her arm for a while before saying, “He won’t come around unless I tell him everything. But I can’t tell him everything. That wouldn’t just interfere with my plans; it would put him in danger too. I spent all night thinking and still couldn’t come up with a way to protect both sides.”

He paused, his expression dimming as he sighed. “Maybe being apart for a while is better. Being with someone like me is too exhausting for him. I understand him. My heart aches for him, but I can’t stop.”

Pain and grief entered his eyes as he looked up at Cui Dong Dong. “They killed Azure Dragon and Xiao Man. I can’t stop. You understand, don’t you?”

“I understand.” Pain appeared in Cui Dong Dong’s eyes as well. She pressed Xia Liu Yi’s head against her shoulder. “I understand.”

Xia Liu Yi drew several deep breaths against her shoulder before regaining his earlier composure. He patted Cui Dong Dong’s arm in thanks, straightened, and said, “Let’s talk business. Qin Hao and the doctor are still in Thailand. Send someone to bring them back. Xiao Ma is gone. His position… I want Qin Hao to take it.”

“He only joined us recently and you want to make him a Red Pole already? I’m worried the brothers will complain.”

“Everyone knows Qin Hao can manage the venues, and everyone knows what he can do in a fight. Besides, he took a bullet for me in Thailand and risked his life getting me out of the mountains. By every reasonable measure, he deserves to move up. Don’t give him as much real authority as Xiao Ma had. Just give him the title of Red Pole. Split Xiao Ma’s old responsibilities into three portions: one for Qin Hao, one for Black Chicken, and one for Tiger Head.”

Black Chicken and Tiger Head were younger men who had risen through the society over the previous two years, mid-level members Xia Liu Yi and Cui Dong Dong had deliberately cultivated. Although this division of authority favored the newly arrived Qin Hao somewhat, it was still reasonable. Ever since Xia Liu Yi became Dragon Head, Xiao Qi Hall had stopped ranking people according to seniority. Whoever had ability was the one who got a say. Given Qin Hao’s capabilities, even if some brothers initially objected to the arrangement, once he took over management and produced tangible benefits for everyone, he should be able to win them over. Cui Dong Dong therefore raised no further objection.

“While you were in Thailand, you told me to keep a close watch on Uncle Yuan,” she said. “What do you want to do with him now?”

“Where is he?”

“He’s been playing mahjong for the past few days with several of his mistresses at his old house on Lantau Island.”

“He’s the Grand Elder. He can’t simply disappear without explanation. Set up a cover story for him.”

…

Two days later, Uncle Yuan—the most senior member of Xiao Qi Hall, once the man with the greatest authority to oversee and influence its affairs and now supposedly retired at home to enjoy his old age—received a private gift from Deputy Hall Master Cui Dong Dong: a VIP ticket aboard a luxury cruise ship. Using it, he boarded a gambling ship bound for international waters early the following morning. There, he supposedly lost several million dollars of his retirement nest egg in one sitting and, overwhelmed by despair, threw himself into the sea. All that remained was a suicide note, along with clothing and identification sufficient to establish his identity.

Late that same night, however, Uncle Yuan, trussed up like a dumpling, was carried out of a shipping container aboard a cargo vessel, stuffed into the trunk of a car, and transported to an isolated abandoned factory.

…

That same night, after driving the Boss out of his home and spending two days free of bodyguards, able to run around investigating as he pleased, He Chu San shut himself inside his apartment. He carefully organized everything he had learned over the previous several days, then dialed a telephone number from memory.

“Hello? Lu Sir? This is He Chu San. I’d like to meet you and talk.”

…

Uncle Yuan was hauled from the trunk and dragged into the factory. The Grand Elder had spent his entire life in the underworld and believed himself fortunate enough to have gotten out in one piece and enjoy his remaining years. Even now, he had no idea whom he had offended or why he had been kidnapped. He continued struggling while muffled curses and groans emerged from behind the gag in his mouth.

He was thrown into the open center of the factory floor, and the men who had dragged him there quickly disappeared. An eerie silence settled over the surroundings. Uncle Yuan turned his head frantically, but he could see nothing. The place was completely dark, and a sharp stench of decay hung in the air. Having spent decades fighting and clawing his way through the underworld, he knew exactly what that smell meant. His body began trembling as violently as chaff in a sieve. After watching so many others live and die, today his own turn had finally come.

Clunk! A heavy sound rang through the factory, and a blinding beam of light struck his face. He turned away painfully and heard two sets of footsteps drawing closer. Squinting, he struggled to see and finally recognized Xia Liu Yi and Cui Dong Dong standing before him. His eyes widened in shock, and muffled sounds escaped his throat.

Xia Liu Yi wore no expression. He crouched and pulled the cloth from Uncle Yuan’s mouth. Deep emotions lay suppressed beneath his low, hoarse voice, though he appeared calm as he said, “You’re old. Leave yourself some dignity. Don’t make me use force. Tell me yourself.”

Uncle Yuan strained to lift his head and stare at him, his face still filled with confusion and disbelief. “X-Xiao Liu? What do you want me to say? Why did you bring me here? I don’t know what’s happening!”

Xia Liu Yi took out a photograph and gently placed it on the floor before him.

“Seen this before?”

Uncle Yuan’s expression changed the instant he saw it.

“This… this…”

“Golden Maitreya gave it to me before I killed him.”

“Y-you killed Golden Maitreya?” Every trace of color disappeared from Uncle Yuan’s face.

His reaction told Xia Liu Yi that his guess had been correct. Expressionless, he patted Uncle Yuan’s cheek. “I know you had a hand in Azure Dragon’s death. Back then, he found this photograph inside the Dragon Head ledger and suspected there was something suspicious about his father’s death. He brought it to you and asked about it. Instead, you informed Golden Maitreya, encouraged Xu Ying to seize power, and eventually silenced Xu Ying with three knives and six holes.”

Unable to control his trembling, Uncle Yuan still attempted a desperate denial. “N-no, that isn’t what happened. Xiao Liu, listen to me…”

“Shh. Shh.” Xia Liu Yi raised one finger to Uncle Yuan’s lips and spoke as calmly as if soothing a child. “You aren’t walking out of here today. But your wives and children are all in my hands. If you don’t want them buried with you, don’t waste a single word. Tell me exactly what happened back then. What does this photograph mean? Besides Hao Wei and Golden Maitreya, who is the other man in it? What does any of this have to do with Azure Dragon’s death? Think carefully and take your time. I already know parts of the story. Every time you get one thing wrong, I’ll cut a hand or a foot off one of your wives or children.”

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