Futile Devices Scans

Just as faint morning light appeared on the horizon, the owner of the Er Ye Motel was woken up to settle the bill.

“Room fee 80.” The sixty-something owner glanced sideways at Xue Bao Tian. “Three boxes of condoms, strawberry-flavored 25, spiral type…”

“No need to list it!” Xue Bao Tian gritted his teeth and cut him off. “Just give me the total.”

The owner calculated on his little notebook for a while: “165, just make it 160.”

Xue Bao Tian pulled out five large bills and tossed them over, raising his brows: “Old man, can you clean the place up? It’s 80 a night—I’m paying 40 to sleep, and the flies, mosquitoes, and cockroaches are paying the other 40. I came here to sleep, not to watch a low-budget Animal World.”

The owner put on his glasses, held the bills up to the light, and said leisurely: “You still had time to watch Animal World?”

“I…” Xue Bao Tian pulled his clothes together, seemingly blushing. “That… the condoms weren’t used. I… my buddy just opened them to take a look.”

The owner stuffed the money into the drawer, playing along: “My rooms are soundproof, can’t hear a thing.”

“Fuck.”

Xue Bao Tian kicked the door open and saw Zhang Chi waiting by the roadside.

With both hands in his pockets, he swaggered over, mocking: “You gays don’t pay for the room after sleeping with someone, huh?”

Zhang Chi’s money had all been given to Brother Dao yesterday; now his pockets were empty. Xue Bao Tian thought he should feel ashamed, but Zhang Chi instead said calmly and openly: “This time, I owe you a favor.”

“How are you going to repay it?” Xue Bao Tian glanced sideways. “When I want to mourn, how about you die once? Damn, nowadays even useless people can owe favors.”

He took out a cigarette and tossed it into his mouth: “Zhang Chi, we agreed yesterday—just once. But you opened three boxes of condoms, used one from each. So I was watching Animal World, and you were watching an educational channel, huh?” He lit the cigarette, took a deep drag, and blew the smoke into Zhang Chi’s face. “Tell me—how do we settle those extra two times?”

Zhang Chi waved away the smoke and replied calmly: “Two hundred yuan, what a man says in bed can’t be trusted.”

Those words sounded all too familiar. Xue Bao Tian himself had used the same excuse countless times before—walking away after getting what he wanted. Now that it was used on him, he felt a faint sense of karmic payback.

“You motherf—.” Xue Bao Tian laughed in anger. “Fine, Zhang Chi, I admit defeat. Get the hell out. Take your strawberry-flavored spiral condoms and get as far away as possible. Don’t let me see you again. That’ll be the biggest favor you can repay me!”

A newly joined pharmacy under Ruixiang Pharmaceuticals opened. It happened to fall on June 6th, an auspicious day for wealth and business. To celebrate, all the company’s shareholders showed up, and the ceremony was grand, with drums and gongs loud enough to make one’s head throb.

Xue Bao Tian hadn’t slept well the previous night and had been thoroughly exhausted. Now his waist ached, his legs felt weak, and his steps were unsteady, like walking on cotton.

He leaned against the wall at the edge, smoking, watching coldly as his brother-in-law bustled around, showing off his presence.

“Is that the boss of Ruixiang who traded a kidney for hundreds of millions?”

Xue Bao Tian narrowed his eyes and saw a few onlookers whispering nearby.

His family’s messy affairs had been talked about across Yan City for ten years. A few more idle comments didn’t matter. He exhaled smoke and ignored them.

“I heard the current boss of Ruixiang is actually the illegitimate son of the former female boss. Because of his status, he couldn’t be acknowledged. Later, she got sick, needed a kidney transplant, and only his matched. That’s how he got accepted and eventually inherited such a large business.”

Another person shook his head, disagreeing: “That’s not it, is it? I heard the current one is actually her lover…”

Before he could finish, someone nearby cut in: “The current chairman of Ruixiang Pharmaceuticals, Xue Kun, is a distant relative of the former chairman. Distant relative—do you understand? At forty, Xue Kun matched her and saved her life. She had no children, lived three more years, and before she died, she handed Ruixiang over to him. He’s not an illegitimate son, and definitely not her damn lover. Got it?”

“Among the rumors, there is indeed your version, but it doesn’t feel real.” The crowd suddenly caught on. “Wait, we’re just chatting—why are you cursing?”

“Fuck!” Xue Bao Tian viciously tossed his cigarette. “Cursing? I fucking want to hit someone!”

Xue Bao Tian still remembered that year when a group of well-dressed elites trampled his home’s threshold. His father, not even knowing what had happened, was suddenly crowned chairman of Ruixiang Pharmaceuticals.

A bumpkin who once struggled to make a living in a small town suddenly moved into a villa and stood in a position of public attention. The kidney he had donated was buried with that distant relative, while the one he kept now wore fine clothes and enjoyed abundant rewards.

At sixteen or seventeen, Xue Bao Tian suddenly became rich alongside his father. The flashy world dazzled his eyes, and he indulged recklessly for several years. It wasn’t until his brother-in-law, who had graduated from MIT, entered the family that he finally felt a sense of crisis, reined himself in a bit, and began to focus on proper matters.

Ribbon-cutting, firecrackers, the red ribbon falling—the ceremony was complete.

Finally enduring the end of the celebration, Xue Bao Tian bit his cigarette, in a terrible mood, and followed the crowd as they left. The parking lot was nearby, lined neatly with luxury cars. Only one white sports car was different—it was lifted into the air by a forklift, with all four wheels removed.

“Xue Bao Tian!” Xue Kun, surrounded by people, angrily called his son’s name. “Get over here!”

The crowd, with subtle expressions, instinctively made way, watching as the gloomy-faced young man stepped forward.

“What is this?” Xue Kun pointed at the sports car. “What kind of disgrace are you making now?”

Xue Bao Tian exhaled smoke, lifted his drooping eyelids, glanced fiercely at his car, and lazily replied: “Step-by-step promotion. Dad, look how high it’s risen.”

Xue Kun, furious, could only leave angrily under everyone’s watch. Meanwhile, his brother-in-law Wei Hua approached, putting on a fake show of concern: “Bao Tian, if you need help, just tell your brother-in-law. We’re family, no need to be polite.”

Xue Bao Tian smiled and replied: “I do need your help right now. Monica has been imitating your way of speaking lately. Even if it’s just a dog, it shouldn’t act too dog-like, right? So maybe, brother-in-law, you should talk less at home, so it won’t copy you.”

Wei Hua’s expression changed drastically. Grinding his teeth, he said angrily: “Xue Bao Tian, all you’ve got is that sharp mouth.”

Xue Bao Tian put an arm around him, smiling, and whispered softly: “Brother-in-law, everyone’s watching, including the President Xue you respect so much. Even if I’m his useless son, he hasn’t scolded me yet, so it’s not your turn, right? So you should smile, otherwise how will you keep up appearances in front of everyone?”

Forcing a stiff smile, Wei Hua’s voice dropped: “Xue Bao Tian, if you didn’t have the surname Xue, you’d be nothing.”

Xue Bao Tian patted his shoulder kindly, delivering a cutting remark: “If you didn’t rely on a woman, you wouldn’t even be worth a fart.”

The sports car remained suspended by the forklift, casting a rectangular shadow on the ground.

Xue Bao Tian sat in that shadow, holding cash between his fingers, exchanging it with a child for a lollipop.

He unwrapped it and put it in his mouth. Glancing at the assistant crouching nearby, he spoke lazily: “Go on. Who did it?”

“I checked the surveillance and the forklift company, found the driver,” the assistant said. “He said the person who hired him didn’t leave a phone number and paid in cash. But the guy was tall, with a mole at the end of his eyebrow. Thinking about it, he looks like the secretary beside Huang Zheng.”

“Huang Zheng?” Xue Bao Tian puffed his cheeks as he thought. “The one whose family runs a hotpot chain? When I booked his restaurant, I paid. Why the hell would he mess with me?”

The assistant avoided eye contact, muttering softly: “You booked his restaurant, invited his ex-girlfriend to eat, and ordered a table full of green vegetables. Anyone would lose it.”

Xue Bao Tian sucked on the lollipop and lifted his eyelids: “Because he was trying to show off in front of me.”

“Vice President Xue, what should we do now?”

“Now?” Xue Bao Tian gave a sinister smile. “We’re having hotpot tonight. Find me some small animals that don’t belong in hotpot.”

He stepped out of the shadow, looked up at his sports car missing all four wheels, and added: “Forget small animals—get something bigger.”

Xue Bao Tian was blocked inside the hotpot restaurant. Huang Zheng, along with several chefs, surrounded him.

The restaurant had already been cleared out. The hotpot broth was boiling, churning with disgusting things.

“So what? Your hotpot has something dirty in it, and customers aren’t allowed to complain?” Xue Bao Tian sat with one leg crossed over the other, tapping the table. “President Huang, Wangchuan is one of the top ten hotpot restaurants in Yan City. With hygiene like this, how can you live up to your golden brand?”

Xue Bao Tian had calculated that Huang Zheng wouldn’t dare let personal grudges affect the restaurant’s business. Huang Zheng ranked fourth in his family and wasn’t favored. He had to tread carefully just to get a share. Now that customers had been scared off by what was in the pot, Xue Bao Tian believed Huang Zheng was only putting on a tough front, like a balloon that would burst at a poke.

He waited for Huang Zheng to back down, to lose face, and come begging.

But Huang Zheng gave a signal, ordering people to lower the restaurant’s street-facing curtains. Xue Bao Tian frowned—this wasn’t what he expected.

“Take the young master’s phone,” Huang Zheng instructed the chefs.

Xue Bao Tian tensed up: “What do you mean?”

Tonight, Huang Zheng was unusually forceful: “What do I mean? I’m teaching you a lesson!”

The chefs were tall and strong. In no time, they snatched Xue Bao Tian’s phone. The phone spun between Huang Zheng’s fingers, then hovered over the boiling hotpot: “Didn’t the young master want to contact the health department?” With a flick of his fingers, the phone dropped into the bubbling broth. “Take it out, then you can call.”

“Fuck your mother!” Xue Bao Tian kicked Huang Zheng. “When I was playing these kinds of games, you were still getting your ass kicked by your three older brothers!”

Huang Zheng clutched his chest, furious, and asked the chefs: “Did you turn off the surveillance cameras?”

“They’re already off.”

“Then what are you waiting for? Beat him!”

At the command, the chefs rushed forward. Xue Bao Tian was outnumbered and took several blows. Just as things were getting intense, the restaurant door was suddenly pushed open, and several men walked in.

The struggle in the room seemed to freeze. Huang Zheng was stunned and asked through gritted teeth: “Didn’t you lock the door?”

The man beside him shrank back: “We put up a ‘closed today’ sign.”

Huang Zheng cursed under his breath, then forced a smile at the newcomers: “Sorry, we’re not open today.”

Taking advantage of the moment, Xue Bao Tian tried to escape, but the chefs restrained him tightly, leaving him unable to move. He shouted loudly, trying to get the newcomers to call the police.

The newcomers raised their brows, smiling silently. They walked in calmly and left just as calmly, as if unconcerned about his fate.

Only one person stepped out and then came back, raising his voice: “Two hundred yuan, want me to repay the favor?”

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