Chapter 1489: Reunion

"You're making this a very poor experience for me."

At an open-air food stall, Wang Yan ate stir-fried crab, roasted goose, and wonton noodles while watching the triad boss sitting opposite him smoking.

"Wang Sheng jokes too much; since you've come to our territory, we naturally must entertain you well," the triad boss said with a ingratiating smile, speaking awkward Mandarin that sounded exceedingly sincere.

If only the triad boss didn't look like he was facing death...

Wang Yan shook his head: "You are a hooligan, a member of the underworld; you traffic drugs, loan shark, fight, and seize territory—is this how you entertain? Where are your bottom lines?"

"Wang Sheng, I'm just a rank-and-file member; the big boss favors me and lets me watch over the business. Could you please stop messing with me..."

"You guys are useless," Li Kui couldn't bear to watch anymore. "Last time we came, wasn't there someone called Brother Chicken? You should learn from him."

"Mr. Li, Brother Chicken has already been fed to the fish..."

"No way, you're this ruthless even to your own people?" Li Kui widened his eyes; although they caused quite a disturbance last time, they hadn't taken any lives.

He wasn't afraid, merely feeling that Hong Kong's hooligans were too vicious, truly living up to their reputation as the underworld; if it were him alone, even with eight times the courage he wouldn't dare provoke these people, but clearly he wasn't alone; looking at his good brother eating and drinking heartily, his heart settled firmly in his belly...

The triad boss wore a bitter expression: "Those Red Poles who previously provoked conflicts with Wang Sheng, causing our society to lose face and pay compensation, every single one of them was killed; Wang Sheng, I don't want to die; I joined the underworld just to make money; in Hong Kong, no matter what you do, it's impossible to sever ties with the society."

"Wang Sheng, there's truly no other way; walk down any street and one in ten people belongs to a society; if you don't want to be bullied, you must join a society; I have no education, my family has no connections, my parents burning incense would be lucky just to find work, plus I have younger brothers and sisters to put through school, and I must take care of my family."

"Look at what they've driven him to; he's even learned to play the emotional card," Tian Fang couldn't help but remark sarcastically.

Li Kui glanced at her: "If we weren't with Brother Yan, you might have been tricked into becoming a prostitute by now."

Tian Fang glared at him: "I'm not pitying him! Li Kui, your words are too harsh!"

"I'm just stating facts," Li Kui waved his hand. "Eat your food; don't interrupt randomly."

Tian Fang shot Li Kui a fierce glare, then looked again at the triad boss smiling obsequiously, and again at Wang Yan eating and drinking heartily; ultimately she held her tongue, planning to reason with Li Kui once they returned...

Wang Yan said cheerfully: "Xiao Fang isn't wrong, and Dayong isn't wrong either; look at this kid acting like a lapdog, smiling and currying favor, yet when he bullies people later, he won't hesitate in the slightest; why is he cowering now? Because our fists are bigger."

The triad boss just kept smiling, refusing to engage, letting them say whatever they wanted.

"If you don't cause trouble for us, yet we actively seek trouble with you, that wouldn't be appropriate, right?"

"Yes, yes, yes; Wang Sheng, harmony brings wealth," the triad boss nodded repeatedly.

Wang Yan said: "But I've worked hard to come to Hong Kong just this once; you can't let me come for nothing, can you?"

"Uh..." the small boss dared not speak.

"Here's what you do: tell your Dragon Head that our county is poor and suffering, needing your help and support; last time we brought back several dozen vehicles, intending to establish a bus system in the county, but there weren't enough cars, and those vans weren't large enough to carry many people or much luggage."

"I've calculated that last time I clashed with sixteen different societies; have your Dragon Head spread the word: each society must provide two large buses to support our Lin County's construction."

Seeing the small boss hadn't moved, Wang Yan clicked his tongue and said with apparent dissatisfaction: "What are you hesitating about? Do you have the authority to decide? Go make the call!"

"Yes, yes, yes; Wang Sheng, please wait a moment; I'll immediately contact the big boss and have him speak to the Dragon Head," the small boss jolted awake, quickly nodding and bowing before running off to make contacts.

Tian Fang looked at Li Kui, who was slurping fragrant crab, and asked hesitantly: "Brother Yan, doesn't one large bus cost several hundred thousand?"

"No, why do you have so many questions? Did Brother Yan bring you along just to ask questions?" Li Kui became unhappy again.

"It's fine, Dayong; she hasn't experienced this before; since we're all our own people, asking doesn't matter," Wang Yan said amusedly, waving his hand as he explained to Tian Fang: "They're all involved in smuggling; large buses certainly aren't cheap, but relatively speaking they have quite a lot; moreover, their money comes from illegitimate sources, so asking each of them to contribute several hundred thousand will merely make them bleed a little, not reach the point of breaking bones or damaging tendons, so it's no big problem."

"What if they refuse to give?" Tian Fang continued asking.

"Whoever refuses, we cause trouble for them; we take their lives," Wang Yan said cheerfully. "This is Hong Kong! A place where the underworld runs rampant, filled with fraud, deception, fortune-seeking, and murder; isn't it natural for some problems to arise?"

"Uh..." Tian Fang felt somewhat frightened, momentarily at a loss for words.

"See, I told you not to ask; knowing this won't add two ounces of flesh to your body," Li Kui said somewhat irritably. "I'm not letting you ask for your own good; do you think I'm trying to save face in front of you? Brother Yan, please don't take general offense at her."

"Alright, saying a couple of sentences is enough; didn't you used to ask about everything too? Come, come, let's drink, let's drink."

While the two ate and drank, over ten minutes passed before the small boss returned.

"Wang Sheng, our Dragon Head said it's no problem, but..." the small boss dared not continue speaking.

"Look, a big boss actually lets his underling deliver threats," Wang Yan said with utter disdain. "He's pushing you out front, wanting me to vent my anger on you; what's the point of following such a boss? Contact him again; tell him to provide five vehicles; if he can't supply that number, then tell him to run quickly, as there's no place for him in Hong Kong; he's just a triad boss; what business does he have pretending to be a big shot with me?"

"Wang Sheng..."

"I told you to make the call!" Li Kui slapped the back of the small boss's head. "So much nonsense; if not, will you provide the five vehicles yourself?"

Thus the small boss ran off shamefacedly to make the phone call.

Seeing Tian Fang looking at him, Li Kui smiled: "It's just borrowing the fox's power to intimidate the tiger; with Brother Yan sitting here, even if we beat him to death today, there would be absolutely no consequences."

"Don't speak so arrogantly; are you a member of the underworld?" Wang Yan gave him a slap. "When handling affairs, one must consider the impact; is killing someone such a glorious thing? If we must kill, we should do it secretly; otherwise, we'll face punishment once we return."

"Yes, yes, yes; what Brother Yan says is correct," Li Kui grinned with a simple smile.

Shortly afterward, the small boss returned again: "Wang Sheng, our Dragon Head said five vehicles are acceptable."

"Did he deliver any threats this time?"

"No, he said nothing at all," the small boss looked left and right, leaned closer, and spoke softly: "The Dragon Head called me directly; his breathing was rapid, he was extremely angry, but he didn't say much more."

"You seem quite pleased by his misfortune," Wang Yan said amusedly, looking at him.

"I'm just a rotten kid; they can discard me anytime; no matter how much money is involved, none of it reaches my hands, so it has nothing to do with me," the small boss spoke with extreme honesty.

And so the matter was settled; Wang Yan's trip to Hong Kong yielded abundant harvests once again; although Elder Liang had summoned him for a scolding, what did that matter? It was all consensual.

This wasn't the 1980s or 90s; hooligans also needed to choose sides early; nowadays, hooligans weren't very honest; the saying that police and bandits were one family wasn't a joke; this was already the peak period of the famous Five-Hundred-Million Detective, when the Royal Hong Kong Police and triad societies were deeply intertwined.

Wang Yan dealing with hooligans without causing too much disturbance naturally presented no problems.

However, Wang Yan had come to Hong Kong twice, causing the hooligans to start reporting to their parents, thereby understanding Wang Yan's destructive power.

After all, not just anyone could succeed; if it were truly that easy, why hadn't others extracted money from the hooligans? Ultimately, it was because Wang Yan himself was formidable; being able to report to their parents was the hooligans' good fortune; by the time they no longer needed to report, grass would already be three feet high on their graves.

If they could truly kill Wang Yan, how could they possibly do nothing?

The first time Wang Yan came, they were uncertain; after more than two months had passed, could they still not inquire about Wang Yan's situation?

Wang Yan was special, but regarding whether he possessed great power or could influence major affairs, the answer was negative; it was still Wang Yan's personal capability that left them helpless; after all, truthfully speaking, any single leg Wang Yan broke in Jingcheng was far more precious than the lives of these triad bosses...

It was best that Wang Yan openly demanded money from them; if he appeared at midnight at the bedside of some Dragon Head or Hall Master, that would be truly terrifying.

With Hong Kong matters concluded, the large buses would still take some time to be delivered; after all, there were several dozen vehicles; to deliver every single one to Lin County without loss would certainly take until next year.

The three departed carrying a heap of miscellaneous items; Wang Yan did not travel together with Li Kui and his wife, but instead transferred several times, taking a sleeper berth to reach a certain division headquarters in the north.

By now it was already late October; snow had fallen here, turning the world into a vast expanse of white.

Wang Yan disembarked from the train, made his way to the reception house, picked up the phone, and called the division headquarters to report that he had come to visit relatives, looking for Zhou Xiaobai...

At this moment, Zhou Xiaobai was in the clinic's office, propping her chin on her hand, feeling quite bored.

"Missing Wang Yan again?" Luo Yun fiddled with an enamel mug as she sat down at her own desk, sighing with emotion, "How did we fail to see it back then? Who would have thought Wang Yan would become so formidable?

We originally thought that after he went to the countryside to join the production team, he'd never return in his lifetime, yet no one expected him to actually achieve something on that Loess Plateau. He became the director of a furniture factory, took up painting, even attended the Canton Fair and went to Hong Kong? Back then, when I looked at him, he seemed nothing more than a hooligan."

"Get lost! When was Wang Yan ever a hooligan?" Zhou Xiaobai glared at her dissatisfiedly. "He was dedicated to his work, not one of those alleyway loafers."

"Oh, I was just saying that; look how agitated you've become," Luo Yun said with a laugh. "But speaking truthfully, Wang Yan is far more formidable than any hooligan. Just look at what he did back in Jingcheng, beating up those people. I heard they still haven't recovered; the ones whose legs he broke will limp for the rest of their lives.

That Li Yuancheng suffered even worse; both his legs and one arm were broken. I heard his temperament changed drastically, acting like a madman. As for the one who fired the gun, needless to say, he fared even worse than Li Yuancheng—all four limbs were broken, and I heard he's already been frightened into insanity."

"How did you hear all this? You can hear about things from such a distant place?" Zhou Xiaobai questioned skeptically.

"Not everything has been revealed yet; I have many friends, and quite a few of us exchange letters. Unlike you, who spends all day thinking only of Wang Yan," Luo Yun pursed her lips, feeling that Zhou Xiaobai's behavior was improper.

Zhou Xiaobai didn't bother arguing with Luo Yun at all; she simply sat there alone, propping her chin with both hands.

Luo Yun knew that Zhou Xiaobai was once again reminiscing about the wonderful times she had dating Wang Yan back in Jingcheng...

Just then, the telephone on the desk rang; Luo Yun went over to answer it, but after speaking only two sentences, she became completely stunned.

The sudden silence brought Zhou Xiaobai back from her reverie, and she asked perplexedly, "What's wrong, Luo Yun?"

"Our director wants you to go see him; he says Wang Yan has come to visit you?"

"Wang Yan?" Zhou Xiaobai paused for a moment, then instantly sprang up from her stool, swiftly opened the office door, and hurriedly walked to the director's office.

"Little Zhou has arrived? Sit down," the director greeted kindly as Zhou Xiaobai pushed the door open and entered directly.

"Director, I won't sit; where is Wang Yan?"

"He's at the reception house outside," the director asked with a chuckle, "Little Zhou, is this Wang Yan the one written about in the report in the People's Daily?"

"Yes," Zhou Xiaobai nodded, a hint of pride in her voice, and she said, "Director, I'm taking two days off! I'm leaving now."

"Hey..."

The director wanted to say a few more words, but Zhou Xiaobai had already run off...

Zhou Xiaobai took off her white coat and anxiously ran out of the clinic, heading outside.

As soon as she reached the main gate of the division headquarters, she saw Wang Yan standing there with a cigarette dangling from his mouth.

Without slowing her pace, Zhou Xiaobai dashed straight toward Wang Yan, throwing herself into his arms, where she sobbed uncontrollably.

Wang Yan tossed away the cigarette in his hand and patted her back to comfort her: "There, there, there will be plenty of time for hugging later. Comrade Zhou Xiaobai, you must mind the impact; otherwise, you might face disciplinary action later."

"Disciplinary action then; I'm not afraid."

"This isn't about being afraid or not; it's about attitude. You're wearing a military uniform; this isn't appropriate. We'll embrace when it's just the two of us."

In the end, Zhou Xiaobai let go of Wang Yan with red-rimmed eyes: "Why did you come without any prior notice?"

"To give you a surprise."

"It's not a surprise; not even a little bit. You should have written to me long ago; that way, I would have been happy from the moment I received the letter until now!"

These words sounded very familiar...

Wang Yan didn't overthink it; he reached out to wipe away her tears: "There now, why cry over something happy? It's the dead of winter; freezing would be so uncomfortable? Let's go; we'll eat first. All the way here, I suffered terribly on the train; I couldn't eat well or sleep well, so I need to eat more to make up for it."

"Let's go!"

With red-rimmed eyes, Zhou Xiaobai was nevertheless happy, nodding very forcefully...

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