Chapter 42: Things of the Past

11TH APR 2023~ VERALUCTL

For once, Zui She didn’t run his mouth, and instead carefully described the rat-water Bai Zhihe managed to make. “Half-translucent and a little dirty, I presume from the cells or materials or whatever else that was inside the rat’s body. The sequins floating inside it were alive, I’m certain. If they weren’t, you can pluck out my two eyes and go right ahead and step on them.”

“He said that the mouse’s brain plasma and nutrients were all sucked out?”

Zui She nodded.

“Then it really might be what I encountered in the desert.” An Jie considered. “And Mo Cong thinks that Li left it behind on purpose?”

“About that, your little lover has sharp eyes.”

“Fuck off, he’s your little lover!” An Jie slumped in his chair, his arms hugging his chest, his long legs stretched out. He said in annoyance, “What did that old devil mean by that? The four-eyes I met today, I keep feeling like he was trying to tell me something, but he never said a thing.”

“Why didn’t you force him to stay?” Zui She frowned.

“I had the kids with me, what was I meant to do? Plus…” An Jie paused. “He said that he couldn’t beat me, but if we really were to fight, I’m not so sure. He left so easily and so quickly that I didn’t have time to react.”

“You didn’t have time to react?” Zui She’s eyes widened.

An Jie sighed and nodded. “That might be an exaggeration, but he really did move too fast. Such a young man… really, the younger generations will surpass us all in time.”

Zui She’s face had turned serious but after hearing that, for some reason he bursted into laughter. “Don’t – brother, it’s so funny for you to say ‘the younger generations will surpass us all’ so seriously with such a young face. Hey, that Chancellor of yours, he didn’t look like some innocent lovesick boy to me at all. Why is he into you?”

“Get lost, don’t mention him to me. My head hurts every time I hear his name.” An Jie’s fingers traced the edge of the cup, his brows knitting harshly. “But the kid really is fast: his eyes are sharp and he’s both decisive and ruthless. Even now, I might not be as good as him, let alone when I was younger. He said that they deliberately left the drugs in the syringe to let you know what was inside… Why?”

“Don’t think about that now, you told Chancellor about Li,” Zui She suddenly said.

An Jie agreed absentmindedly.

“And about your identity.” Zui She looked at him meaningfully.

An Jie raised his cup for a sip of water, then paused and neither shook his head nor nodded. “I didn’t say it explicitly. But with that brat’s intelligence, I’m guessing he understood anyway. What about it? Why are you asking?”

Zui She chuckled and shook his head. “With that brat’s intelligence… Who are you trying to call out here? Shui Shi? He Du Lang? And ‘what about it’? Nothing at all. But if you’re even covering up for him by telling him these things about Li so he’ll know what to do and back off… Say, Zhai Shui Shi treats him like his master tactician, his little darling, and He Du Lang is even worse – he’s going up against him. Only you still treat him like a kid.”

“Even if I didn’t tell him, Zhai Haidong would have let him know sooner or later.” An Jie lightly brushed over it and sneered. “I’ve looked down on Zhai Haidong since ten years ago. Treating a barely grown child like some valuable… I’ll say it right now: that old bastard only managed to get his name out there because he was ruthless enough; and now he acts like he’s the real deal? Others might not know what kind of trash he is, but you and I both know.”

Zui She stopped smiling, a sense of seriousness appearing on his playful face. His tanned skin and dark eyes along with the scar on his brow even gave him an aura of responsibility. He said in a low voice, “Do you still hold a grudge against him for stabbing you in the back?”

An Jie hesitated, then gave him an unnatural smile. “What?”

“Yin Hu, how many years has it been? You still hate Shui Shi for that? Just because of a woman, will there be no turning back?”

An Jie’s smile grew wider until it couldn’t be held back. His voice was quiet, but his shoulders shook violently. “I hold a grudge against him… I hold a grudge against him? Haha, you’re becoming more and more… more and more corny. I hold a grudge against him?” His narrow shoulders curled up slightly between maddening laughter, appearing even more delicate. This person who kept everything behind a calm temperament suddenly broke down from what Zui She had asked so lightly.

Ten years, it had been ten years.

An Jie viciously wiped away the tears of laughter. Those eyes of his which were always shrouded by a thin layer of gentleness were now terribly cold and sharp. A coldness seemed to be seeping from his very bones as he looked at Zui She.

At that moment, he was no longer the good neighbor who would secretly place annotated copies next to classic texts; he was no longer the senior who allowed Mo Cong to mess with him, exasperated but not knowing what to say; he was no longer the older brother who could open his arms for a child to cry in at the loss of his father; he was no longer the gentle young man who would run around for a classmate without complaint.

He was An Yin Hu, the bloody legend who disappeared ten years ago.

He said, “Because of a woman – Zui She, do you know that just for that one sentence, I could very well take out my gun and shoot you right now?”

A look of sadness flashed across Zui She’s face. “Yin Hu.”

An Jie took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, leaned into the chair, and squeezed the words out of his mouth. “Don’t bring up that name ever again.”

“I don’t understand,” Zui She asked quietly after a while. He was always so rowdy – everywhere he went would be sent up into chaos. It was so rare for him to speak in such a low, almost gentle voice. “It’s like I wasn’t a part of what happened back then. In just one night, all of my brothers… all of my brothers suddenly turned on each other and from then on, they all had their own goals and kept fighting against one another. I don’t understand!”

An Jie lowered his eyes quietly; his thick eyelashes seemed almost like a painting under the dim light, and even his breathing was barely audible.

“Weren’t we good before?” There was something imperceptibly torn and choked in Zui She’s voice. His lips trembled and he wiped his face. “When you found out that Li killed your father, it was so difficult and so dangerous but we managed to get through it together. Even if we ignore the ten years we grew up with each other, we’ve been through life and death together, Yin Hu! I thought that not even blood brothers could be this close, but then still, everything changed!”

An Jie’s expression was numb.

“I barely understood what was going on when Du Lang and you suddenly started clawing out each other’s throats; what were you doing back then? How much hate could there have possibly been between you? Huh?” Zui She pressed both hands on the table; his voice grew quieter but his tone became more and more agitated. “Do you know how I felt when I saw you and Du Lang point your guns at each other? Do you know what I felt when I suddenly saw Shui Shi behind you… and he… he…”

“Alright, stop it,” An Jie quietly called. His expression slowly softened, a little helpless, a little confused, as if he was reminiscing. He shook his head. “Stop it.”

“Why should I stop just because you said so? Why can’t I…” Zui She was in an extremely agitated state. He had already stood up, but his words suddenly caught in his throat.

The next moment, he kicked hard against An Jie’s chair. There was so much power behind the kick that the chair moved a few inches to the side while An Jie was on top; the bullet almost grazed the side of his trousers and hit the floor.

Zui She was not one to take a loss. The figure moved and he immediately fired after them. Gunshots sounded in the small cabin of this underground gambling den and for a while, there was a great deal of scurrying and confusion.

An Jie saw the person who had opened fire very clearly – it was that yellow monkey again! He cursed under his breath and chased after him without even notifying Zui She. It was only when the men under Zui She finally got it together, calming down the den, becoming alert and pausing the situation just enough for a breather, that Zui She realized the person who had been next him had vanished.

“Yin… An Jie?!” Zui She felt his head explode. He grabbed onto the collars of the unfortunate man next to him, “Where is the young man who was just next to me?”

“I… I, I didn’t see…”

“Shit!”

The opposing gang were clad in a strange uniform with goggles that looked like fly eyes, a collection of people much like an alien invasion. They and Zui She’s men held each other at gunpoint, both refusing to budge. But for some reason, Zui She’s instincts told him that they were also caught by surprise.

A path slowly separated the crowd and a young man with black-framed glasses walked out. He was around twenty-six and he hid his expression well, his posture firm as if he was certain of something. He quietly coughed. “Mr Zui She, apologies that I’m not aware of your surname.”

Zui She put back the sunglasses he was holding in his hands and carefully inspected this person — the one An Jie had mentioned, Sixteen.

“Please believe me when I say that I hold no animosity towards you all, Fifteen was just reckless.” Sixteen bent down slightly and pushed his hands down. The fly army obediently and immediately lowered their guns.

Zui She ignored him. He lit himself a cigarette and quietly waited for his next words.

Sixteen’s smile was a little rigid. “I’ve met Yin Hu already, but R felt that the meeting was neither formal nor polite enough. He requested for us to greet you both in an official capacity. Who knew that Fifteen would have something against Yin Hu and open fire? I hope that Mr Zui She will not misunderstand.”

“Misunderstand?” Zui She chewed on the cigarette and replied vaguely.

“Yes.” Sixteen put his hands behind his back. “I hope Mr Zui She will not think of us as vile men who only attack under the cover of darkness. R did not wish to start a gun fight in the capital; he wishes to win in the same way he lost…”

Before he could finish his sentence, another gunshot sounded. Both parties jumped and Sixteen snapped his head back–

Author’s Notes: School’s started, pain…
As a summer holiday fan, the sorrows, sigh.
I returned to pages of comments from you guys, I’m super touched… What good children, good children.
In return, I will write my story.