Fierce waves surged forward and then slowly receded, each crest higher than the last, rising and falling in endless succession.
Xue Bao Tian felt as though he were adrift in the sea, bobbing up and down, carried helplessly by the tide.
But it hurts.
The pain in his limbs and bones gradually sharpened. It felt as if his body had been dismantled and then crudely reassembled—every breath tugged at countless nerves that had yet to settle back into place, setting off waves of aching agony.
There was another kind of pain, too—strange and difficult to describe.
It came from an unspeakable place, a dull ache mixed with soreness, lingering and winding, subtle yet impossible to ignore amidst the greater pain.
His mind was foggy, too weak even to open his eyes. Xue Bao Tian struggled several times before finally managing to pry them open a sliver.
What greeted him was a rust-covered sheet-metal wall. In the corner hung a large spiderweb, and a plump, bare-bodied spider clung to it, staring right back at him.
Xue Bao Tian shuddered and hurriedly looked away. He had always been afraid of multi-legged creatures—so much so that he once cried like a little girl when frightened. Now nearing thirty, the habit hadn’t improved; if anything, it had worsened.
That fright cleared his mind somewhat. Only then did he realize he was lying face-down on a crude bed.
What the hell is going on?!
He shook his head, becoming more alert. Then he heard it—a heavy breathing sound. A man’s breathing.
!!!
A light drizzle pattered against the car window, streaking downward. The windshield wipers scraped back and forth across the glass with a swishing noise, grating on the nerves.
Xue Bao Tian fiddled with a cigarette. His gloomy expression, half-hidden in the white smoke, looked almost menacing. The rain distorted his vision—along with the shabby sheet-metal shack outside the window.
Yesterday, when he woke up, it had been in that place—barely better than a latrine. Even now, he could still remember the humiliation of having his head pressed into the pillow by a man’s large hand.
Sitting in the car, Xue Bao Tian wiped the corner of his eye with his thumb and took a deep drag of his cigarette.
Damn it—his backside hurt. Gritting his teeth around the filter, he shifted slightly, trying to ease the soreness from yesterday’s ordeal.
Click. The irritating wipers were switched off. Following the arm that had moved, Xue Bao Tian turned to look at the burly man in the passenger seat.
The man wasn’t young—around forty—with a sturdy build and knotted muscles. His voice was rough, as if ground through sand, unpleasant to hear. “Master Xue, who do you want taught a lesson? You’ve kept me waiting long enough—just say the word.”
Xue Bao Tian pointed with the cigarette between his fingers. “That migrant worker living in the tin shack—mid-twenties, tall, looks… not bad, I guess.”
“What’s his name?”
“Zhang Chi.”
“Which ‘Chi’?”
“Why do you care which ‘Chi’? The ‘Chi’ like a loosened belt.”
The middle-aged man raised a brow and tapped his fingers against his leg. “And how do you want him dealt with? We don’t take on dirty jobs.”
“Are you on the donation list for the China Charity Federation?” Xue Bao Tian bit down on his cigarette. “Want me to keep it pure and kind for you?”
He cracked the window open slightly and flicked the cigarette butt out. “No killing, no blood. Just scare him, beat him up—fine? Most importantly, I want him kneeling and calling me ‘grandpa’.”
The middle-aged man nodded. “We’ll do as you say, Master Xue.” Then he got to the point. “What’s the price for catching this pig?”
The rain against the car grew heavier. The sky seemed draped in a gray tarp. Smoke still lingered inside the car, and beneath the dim light, Xue Bao Tian’s eyes burned with ferocity and hatred.
“Two hundred, sound good?” he forced out through clenched teeth.
The middle-aged man dug at his ear. “Two hundred?!”
—Time rewinds one turn. Yesterday.
With a sharp smack, the young man slapped two hundred yuan down beside Xue Bao Tian’s face.
“Fuck your mother—!”
Xue Bao Tian was no saint; his words came out filthy and vicious.
“Not satisfied?” he heard the man say. “I can’t give you more. You’re not that good-looking—you’re not worth it.”
What kind of bullshit is that?!
Freed from restraint, Xue Bao Tian burst into curses.
But just as he got started, his voice abruptly cut off. The man who had risen and turned to look at him in the dim light exuded strength—his powerful build and sharp gaze made Xue Bao Tian, already at a disadvantage, feel a surge of fear. His muscles tensed, and he instinctively shut his mouth.
Swallowing back half a curse, Xue Bao Tian felt both aggrieved and humiliated. He had ended up in bed with someone for no clear reason—and now he didn’t even dare to curse properly.
Enduring the pain, he climbed up to find his phone. The man, already dressed in pants, rummaged through the pile of clothes and handed it to him.
Xue Bao Tian snatched it angrily, unlocked the screen, and began dialing. “I’m calling the police right now!”
“What are you doing?” The man snatched the phone away, ended the call, and frowned at him. “Why did you call the police? We already made an agreement.”
“Bullshit! I’m a damn straight guy!”
The man clicked his tongue and slowly crouched by the bed, looking at Xue Bao Tian.
“I heard from others that on Bar Street you can hook up with people. In that alley, there was only you. You begged me to take you away. I said I was looking for someone to sleep with, and you said okay. I said I lived a bit far, and you said it didn’t matter—as long as I took you out of that alley, anywhere was fine.”
“That’s nonsense… utterly nonsense…,” fragments of chaotic images seemed to flash through Xue Bao Tian’s mind. A tall figure, just like now, crouched in front of him and said, “My place is a bit far, and the conditions aren’t very good.”
“I… I was beaten senseless at the time. Couldn’t you tell that was delirious talk?!”
“Hard to distinguish.”
“Besides, I was covered in injuries. You could still bring yourself to do it?”
“You were indeed quite ugly, but you were the one who begged me, begged me to take you away. I’m soft-hearted.”
“Damn it! I’ll fucking kill you!” Xue Bao Tian suddenly slammed the steering wheel. He turned to look at the middle-aged man. “Your Grandpa Xue can afford your money. Grab that pig for me properly! Also, help me find out which two bastards knocked me out in the bar’s back street yesterday!”
Author’s Note:
At the beginning, I’ll write a few words to help everyone avoid pitfalls:
- Xue Bao Tian isn’t ugly. Don’t build his image based on the initial impression from Four-Faced Buddha. He’s not old, not fat, and not greasy. As for what he actually looks like, read the story.
- Regarding the protagonist’s name, although “Xue Bao Tian” sounds rustic, it matches his background of being poor in childhood and later becoming nouveau riche, and it fits his personality. The more I write, the smoother it feels, and the more I like it, so I won’t change it. As for the commonness of the name “Zhang Chi,” there’s no need to associate it with your own brother, classmate, or second uncle, because that’s actually not his real name—it’s just an initial placeholder.
- The first few chapters will contain some repeated plot elements from Four-Faced Buddha. This is part of how the two first meet, which can’t be avoided. So for old readers, take another look and refresh your memory; after that, everything will be new content.
- This novel is purely a self-indulgent work. The shou might be annoying, cringey, or too much for some readers—if this makes any readers uncomfortable, please feel free to drop the story and come back for the next one.
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