Not a trace of emotion moved across the man’s face. In the dim light, his features still retained the outlines of the striking handsomeness he had possessed in his youth. His temples were graying, and the marks of age lay heavily between his brows.
From the moment He Chu San placed his first stone, he had been certain this man was not Xie Ying Jie. As he played, he rapidly searched his memory, but he could not recall seeing this man in any social news report, gossip tabloid, or piece of information he had previously gathered. Nor had he ever seen him at any high-society banquet or gathering in the financial-investment world. This man was not a senior police officer, not a powerful dignitary, and not anyone whose name carried public weight.
There were three possibilities. First, Master Qiao had found someone to impersonate the Old Shopkeeper. But if that were true, Master Qiao would not have needed to go to such trouble creating an elaborate deception, nor would he have arranged an abstruse Taiji painting he himself did not understand, much less pretended to be so respectful that he would not even find himself a chair. Besides, Master Qiao had no reason to do such a thing.
The second possibility was that Master Qiao had not deceived him, and this man truly was the Old Shopkeeper: a behind-the-scenes operator completely hidden in darkness, outwardly possessing no recognizable identity yet secretly capable of controlling both the lawful and underworld worlds. But what could such a man possibly rely on to possess this terrifying degree of power? How could he make a seasoned underworld veteran like Master Qiao bow at his feet? How could he control someone of Inspector Hua’s status? More importantly, every record He Chu San had found, the old photograph from twenty years ago, Lu Guang Ming’s account, and everything Brother Liu Yi had confessed to him all pointed toward Xie Ying Jie. How could any of that be explained?
That left only the third possibility. Master Qiao himself did not know this man’s true identity. This man was the Old Shopkeeper’s stand-in and representative, appearing publicly on his behalf for years. The black-and-white yin-yang painting, the game of Go, and every question asked while they played and drank tea were tests arranged at the Old Shopkeeper’s instruction, meant to probe He Chu San’s background, ability, and temperament. He Chu San had learned Go through a student activity group soon after entering university. Although he had been one of the better players among the students back then, his studies became increasingly demanding, leaving him little time to play. His skill was genuinely mediocre. Under ordinary circumstances, he could never have beaten the man opposite him, yet the man had deliberately left him a narrow path to survival again and again. He had been observing He Chu San through the game, trying to understand how he acted. He Chu San claimed to have come from poverty and to be willing to do anything to climb higher, yet the man had seen through the surface greed for quick success and realized He Chu San actually moved slowly, deliberately, and step by step, with something else hidden underneath.
The two men looked at each other with equal calm. Each had seen through the other’s disguise, and each was simultaneously trying to determine the other’s true identity and purpose.
“Do you know how dangerous what you just said is?” the man asked.
“I do. Everyone who knows who the Old Shopkeeper really is is already dead.”
“How do you intend to keep yourself alive?”
He Chu San leaned forward, planted his elbows on the table, clasped his hands, and rested his chin atop them. At that moment, he drew on every scrap of acting ability he had cultivated throughout his life and displayed the result of more than half a month spent practicing in front of a mirror. Tilting his head slightly, he slowly revealed an extraordinarily innocent yet extraordinarily sinister smile—the textbook smile of a psychopathic villain.
“That depends, of course, on what I know… and what I can do for the Shopkeeper.”
…
Master Qiao paced the corridor with his cane going thud, thud, thud, not feeling the least bit sleepy anymore. His precious He had been alone inside with the Shopkeeper for more than half an hour—something that had never happened to Master Qiao himself. The Shopkeeper normally treasured every word like gold, yet today he had appraised paintings, played Go, and asked questions nonstop like a marketplace auntie. Alarm bells rang loudly in Master Qiao’s head. This situation was slipping beyond his control. Whatever “major deal” his precious Consultant He was discussing with the Shopkeeper was no ordinary piece of business. He was probably preparing to kick Master Qiao, his stepping stone, out of the way, climb onto a higher branch, and become the Old Shopkeeper’s precious treasure instead.
Only now did Master Qiao finally wake from the sugar-coated cash and honey trap Consultant He had fed him. A chill crept down his back as he realized the adviser’s warning had not been wrong. The abacus inside Consultant He’s belly was no small abacus. The “major deal” he spoke of was clearly not something as simple as helping the Old Shopkeeper cook books or launder money. He was probably planning something capable of raising a storm.
Or perhaps Master Qiao was overthinking it? Maybe the Old Shopkeeper had simply taken an immediate liking to this promising young man and kept him behind to ask a few more questions?
That hopeful thought did not survive long. Several minutes later, He Chu San finally emerged and said the “Shopkeeper” wanted to see Master Qiao alone. Master Qiao hurried inside, only for the “Old Shopkeeper” to order him to withdraw all surveillance and tracking from He Chu San.
“Huh? This…” Master Qiao hesitated considerably.
“He works for me now.” The “Old Shopkeeper” glanced at him. “Problem?”
“No, no, no. I understand. I understand.” Master Qiao hurriedly nodded while inwardly cursing. Little bastard! This brat had definitely accepted some secret job from the Shopkeeper. Now the two of them had stuck together like flies on shit.
“Old Qiao, relax. He will continue working for you. You don’t need to concern yourself with the additional matters. You made a very good introduction. You put thought into this, and I won’t treat you unfairly.”
“Understood, understood. Thank you, Shopkeeper.” Master Qiao thanked him repeatedly, then withdrew. The moment he stepped through the door, he saw He Chu San waiting obediently outside. With several of the Old Shopkeeper’s bodyguards present, Master Qiao could not lose his temper. He merely nodded at He Chu San and walked ahead on his cane.
The two went one behind the other down the corridor and entered the elevator. The old lift climbed upward with a noisy clank-rumble, clank-rumble. Only then did Master Qiao raise the tip of his cane and jab He Chu San hard in the chest.
“You little brat. Your ambitions are enormous!”
He Chu San covered the painful spot and laughed softly, then leaned against Master Qiao and naturally hooked an affectionate arm through his. “Brother, don’t say that. Helping the Shopkeeper means helping you. If the Shopkeeper does well, then Brother does well, and naturally I do well too. The three of us are a trinity.”
“Trinity my ass!” Master Qiao raised his cane again and smacked He Chu San on his pert little backside. “All you know how to do is sweet-talk people.”
“It’s more than sweet talk.” He Chu San leaned close to his ear. “Thank you for introducing me, Brother. From now on, whenever you ask me to do something, I won’t charge you a cent in commission. And not only will I stop taking a cut from you, but whatever benefits I receive from working for the Shopkeeper, I’ll split eighty-twenty with you. Twenty percent goes to Brother.”
“Really?”
“If Brother isn’t satisfied, seventy-thirty?”
“Forget it!” Master Qiao jabbed him in the chest again. “Big Brother knows you’re considerate. I’m not going to take advantage of you. Eighty-twenty it is! Hahaha! Such a good precious darling for your big brother…”
Consultant He supported his old Brother Qiao, honey practically coating every word that came from his mouth. Master Qiao was thoroughly soothed and made pleased little noises as they walked. At the same time, he very much wanted to tie He Chu San up, drag him home, and fuck him. Fortunately, reason restrained him. He vaguely remembered the lean little muscular body he had seen in the bath that day and suspected his old bones probably could not handle it…
The two emerged from the underground club laughing and chatting and entered the parking garage. The adviser had been waiting inside the van for ages, craning his neck to peer outside. The instant he saw the old-and-young pair enjoying themselves together, his heart filled with sour misery. When they had gotten out of the van earlier, Boss Qiao had cautiously led Blind He by the hand. Now Consultant He was returning with a radiant smile while supporting Boss Qiao. One glance was enough to know that Consultant He had sweet-talked Boss Qiao senseless again underground.
The adviser was still worrying bitterly when Boss Qiao dropped heavily into the seat beside him, slapped one broad hand over his long face, and pinched his mouth into a ridiculous donkey pout. “My dear Adviser, stop making that miserable face!” Then he prodded the driver’s seat with his cane. “Let’s go!”
The adviser turned his wrinkled face toward the back row. Consultant He sat upright in the middle seat, trapped between two bodyguards, one on each side. Slowly, he gave the adviser an extraordinarily innocent yet extraordinarily sinister smile—the textbook smile of a psychopathic villain.