Xia Liu Yi smiled smugly. “Thanks for the compliment. Inspector Xie, you’re not afraid I poisoned it?”
“Mr. Xia isn’t the kind of person who would use poison.”
Xia Liu Yi laughed. “Inspector Xie might understand me better than some of my own brothers. So what brings you here this time? I haven’t done anything illegal lately, have I?”
…
Xie Jia Hua set down his bowl of sweet almond soup and took out a handkerchief to wipe his mouth and hands. “If I asked Mr. Xia what crimes you’ve committed, I doubt I’d get an answer.”
“Didn’t Inspector Xie send Qin Hao to ask?” Xia Liu Yi smiled as though they were chatting about ordinary household matters. “I haven’t seen him in a long time. How has he been?”
“…” Xie Jia Hua said nothing, remaining guarded.
“Relax, Inspector Xie. He saved me twice. Whatever was between us is settled. I swear to Heaven I won’t make trouble for him or his sister.”
Xie Jia Hua’s expression turned stern. “The police are perfectly capable of protecting him and his family. We don’t need Mr. Xia’s promise. If you dare hurt him, it won’t be Heaven that refuses to spare you. Hong Kong law won’t spare you.”
Rather than becoming angry, Xia Liu Yi laughed again. He lifted his bowl and took a sip, then sighed leisurely. “Inspector Xie is still so serious. Even sweet soup can’t sweeten that mouth of yours. Admirable. If you didn’t come here to arrest me, what did you come for?”
“I want to ask about the truth behind Azure Dragon’s death.”
The smile on Xia Liu Yi’s face faded slightly. Calmly, he said, “What does Azure Dragon’s death have to do with the police? He’s been dead four years. You still want to dig up his grave?”
“Mr. Xia misunderstands me. I’m not here to disturb the dead. While investigating several old cases, I discovered suspicious circumstances surrounding the death of Azure Dragon’s father, Hao Wei. The officer responsible for that investigation at the time, Hua Zhen Yun—known in the underworld as Inspector Hua—destroyed part of the case file. Four years ago, Azure Dragon’s case was also closed at Inspector Hua’s urging. Underworld rumors say Xu Ying killed Azure Dragon and framed you, after which Uncle Yuan executed Xu Ying. I want to know whether that was actually true.”
Xia Liu Yi lowered his eyes and slowly stirred his sweet almond soup with the small spoon. “Oh? Inspector Xie thinks it was false?”
“I think someone else killed Azure Dragon and his father. Inspector Hua was burying the evidence, and Uncle Yuan hurriedly executed Xu Ying in order to silence him. Although you benefited the most from Azure Dragon’s death, you loved him like a brother, and you were far too young when his father died, so that person could not have been you. Over the past several years, Inspector Hua, Golden Maitreya, and Uncle Yuan—all people who once had close dealings with Azure Dragon and his father—died one after another, and every one of their deaths was connected to you. Inspector Hua protected Xiao Qi Hall for years. Golden Maitreya was Xiao Qi Hall’s business partner. Uncle Yuan was the Grand Elder who supported you when you took power. Their existence benefited you rather than harmed you. Logically, none of it makes sense unless there is only one explanation: you had a deep blood feud with them, and you had to get rid of them.”
Xia Liu Yi set down his spoon. “Inspector Xie, don’t you police need evidence before you do things? Somebody dies and suddenly it has something to do with me? You can just open your mouth, come over here, and pin whatever accusation you like on me?”
Xie Jia Hua stood, removed his coat, and set it aside, then turned to show Xia Liu Yi the back of his shirt. “Your bodyguards searched me when I came onto the island. I’m not carrying a gun or a listening device. Whatever you say today will never become evidence presented in court. I only want to confirm whether my guess about the truth is correct.”
Xia Liu Yi snorted with laughter. “And what do you think the truth is?”
“They conspired to murder Azure Dragon and his father. You revered Azure Dragon, and your own sister was killed alongside him. You spent four years painstakingly uncovering the truth, then killed Inspector Hua, Golden Maitreya, and Uncle Yuan one after another. You were taking revenge.”
To Xie Jia Hua’s surprise, Xia Liu Yi did not react with shock or anger at being exposed. Instead, he smiled. Then he could no longer hold back a laugh. Finally, he threw his head back and burst into loud laughter.
“Inspector Xie really is clever! You heard a few scraps of underworld gossip and managed to invent such a wonderful story! Hahahahaha!”
You’re so clever. How come you still haven’t guessed that your own father is the real mastermind? A Gu King commanding both the lawful and underworld worlds, yet he somehow raised a son so incorruptibly righteous. Who exactly is supposed to inherit everything he’s spent all these years accumulating? Show you even the corner of that mountain of gold and you’d probably drag him into court yourself.
Elio’s Notes: In traditional gu lore, poisonous creatures are placed together until only the deadliest survives; the strongest survivor may be called a “Gu King.” Xia Liu Yi is using the image metaphorically for a hidden mastermind who dominates a vicious network.
“Hahahahaha! Hahahaha…”
Xie Jia Hua heard the intense mockery in Xia Liu Yi’s laughter, and his expression darkened. Once Xia Liu Yi had laughed enough, he wiped tears of laughter from his eyes and said, “I didn’t kill Inspector Hua. Fat Seven did. I didn’t kill Golden Maitreya either. His godson did it. I certainly didn’t kill Uncle Yuan. Everyone knows he lost his entire savings and jumped into the sea. I respected the old man, and I’m still paying to support his family. Azure Dragon was killed by that traitor Xu Ying. Everything you just said was bullshit. None of it has anything to do with me.”
“What about He Chu San? He has something to do with you, doesn’t he?”
The smile vanished from Xia Liu Yi’s face in an instant. “What does Inspector Xie mean by that?”
Xie Jia Hua truly understood him better than some of his own brothers. Seeing that Xia Liu Yi refused to cooperate, he simply pressed hard on the sorest spot. “I know He Chu San’s feelings for you are real. Master Qiao may believe that story about him usurping power and becoming Dragon Head, but I don’t believe a word of it. He’s an upright, outstanding university graduate. Even without taking crooked paths, he could live comfortably and prosperously. You gangsters may fight until your heads crack open over the ‘Dragon Head’s throne,’ but to him it’s no different from a rotten chair in a dumpster. He only got dragged into gang conflict because of you. If he truly tried to seize power from you, how could you still be sitting here perfectly fine without even losing a hair? And he certainly didn’t kill Cui Dong Dong. For all I know, she’s hiding upstairs in this very house.”
…
In the upstairs bedroom, Cui Dong Dong was sprawled on the sofa clutching her stomach when she suddenly gave a tiny sneeze. She immediately looked warily toward the bedroom door. “Why do I keep getting this creepy chill? Did that Xie bastard guess we’re up here? Is the door locked?”
“Even if it is, he can kick it in,” Xiao Luo said from the bed, where she was knitting a scarf.
“Then what do we do?”
Without even looking up, Xiao Luo reached into her sewing basket and pulled out a gun. “Take him out.”
“Don’t, don’t, don’t…”
…
Downstairs in the main hall, Xie Jia Hua watched Xia Liu Yi’s face grow darker and darker before delivering his next line. “I’m guessing that all the trouble you’ve gone to lately to stage such a huge incident is still about avenging Azure Dragon. You pretended to fall out with He Chu San so he could gain Master Qiao’s trust. You want him to infiltrate He Yi Society and kill someone for you. Master Qiao? Or someone even farther behind Master Qiao? For revenge, you used He Chu San’s feelings and threw him straight into the fire. Do you understand that this could get him killed? Xia Liu Yi, you’re heartless…”
Xia Liu Yi suddenly flung aside his bowl of sweet almond soup, vaulted across the coffee table, and slammed Xie Jia Hua down onto the long bench. His face twisted ferociously as he clamped both hands around Xie Jia Hua’s throat. “Shut up! I’ll kill you and bury you in the mountains. No one will ever know for the rest of this lifetime!”
Struggling beneath him, Xie Jia Hua choked out, “Now that’s your true nature… Blood Asura… Twin-Blade Xia… Growing flowers, planting grass, making sweet soup—it’s all fake… Deep down, you’re still a gangster with hands covered in blood… You’re the one who ruined He Chu San…”
Xia Liu Yi let out a furious roar. Releasing his throat, he smashed a fist into Xie Jia Hua’s face. Xie Jia Hua did not hold back either. He drove a knee into Xia Liu Yi’s abdomen, then punched him in the jaw. As the two grappled, they knocked the long bench over. The solid wooden back crashed beneath their combined weight with a splintering crack. Xia Liu Yi grabbed a broken length of wood and swung it wildly at Xie Jia Hua’s head, while Xie Jia Hua snatched up the “A Harmonious Family Prospers in All Things” cushion and brandished it in self-defense.
…
Downstairs, the main hall erupted in crash-bang-crash. Cui Dong Dong pressed herself against the bedroom door to listen and asked Xiao Luo, “Sounds like they’re fighting. Should I go down and help?”
“Men fighting is no different from male dogs biting each other. Leave them alone,” Xiao Luo said. “If Boss can’t even beat a cop, he might as well quit the underworld.”
“But that cop is Inspector Xie. I heard he places first in the police force’s free-fighting competition every year, and Boss can barely use his right hand…”
“Xiao Ma will break up the fight in Boss’s favor. If that still isn’t enough, I’ll go downstairs and shoot him.” Xiao Luo picked up the gun again.
“Don’t, don’t, don’t…”
…
By the time the “A Harmonious Family Prospers in All Things” cushion had been stabbed open and half its stuffing was coming out, Xiao Ma finally heard the commotion from the backyard where he had been working hard. He rushed inside panting with several bodyguards to break up the fight—very selectively. First, amid the chaos, he punched Xie Jia Hua once and immediately received a kick to the stomach in return, making him bare his teeth in pain. Then he and A’Mao grabbed Xie Jia Hua from either side while A’Nan desperately restrained the furious Boss across from them.
“Don’t, don’t, don’t! Boss! You can’t! You really can’t!” Xiao Ma shouted at the top of his lungs. “Somebody definitely knows he came here today. If you kill him, you’re finished!” Then he turned to remind Inspector Xie, “Inspector Xie! Get this straight—we did not assault a police officer! You hit our Boss first!”
“I started it! I’m killing him today!” Boss Xia shouted, his mouth full of blood and his fury having completely overwhelmed his reason.
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