Chapter 67

On Friday, Xu Ze went home, ate dinner, did two hours of problems, and at nine in the evening got up and went out. He waited a while in the stairwell; a bodyguard emerged from somewhere and asked him, 'Going out?'

Xu Ze nodded. 'I can go on my own.'

'Sorry, no.' The bodyguard refused decisively. 'Where to?'

Knowing he couldn't hide it, Xu Ze could only answer honestly: 'Chengxi.'

He'd expected to be stopped, but the bodyguard just gave a nod. 'No problem.'

At the parking lot, three bodyguards and Xu Ze got out of the car together, then entered the Underground Club separately; in the blink of an eye Xu Ze couldn't find any of them.

Even wearing a cap, Xu Ze was recognized at once by the Omega host at the front desk. The other waved at him and mouthed 'Number 17.' Xu Ze walked over; the Omega pulled him aside. 'Why'd you suddenly come back?'

Before he could answer, accompanied by some drunkard's impatient 'Get lost,' an Alpha was kicked aside like garbage and crashed right into Xu Ze.

Xu Ze immediately drew the Alpha behind him, raised his other hand to catch the drunkard's swinging fist, and flung it aside. His strength was clearly professional; his eyes beneath the brim carried warning, and the drunkard spat, muttered, and slouched off.

'Number 17?' The Alpha poked his head out from behind him — it was Xiao Feng. He asked in surprise, 'How come you're here?'

'Something came up. Do you have time now?'

'Yeah, yeah.' Xiao Feng answered at once.

Xu Ze nodded, turned to the host, and said softly, 'I'm heading off first.'

'Mm.' The Omega watched him without looking away. 'Be careful.'

'Okay.'

'I heard you broke the contract with the Boss — it's dangerous for you to be here now.' Xiao Feng walked close beside Xu Ze, his tone worried. 'I'm sure someone just now noticed you; they'll definitely report it to the Boss.'

Xu Ze only asked, 'Has Boss Shao from the Casino been coming lately?'

'Oh, Boss Shao — he comes a lot, because he has to help the Boss look after the other areas. You know how the Underground Club's been getting more and more chaotic; I heard it might get torn down soon, everyone's scrambling to grab money while they can.'

'And you?'

'Same old, same old — selling cigarettes, selling pills, working as a junket agent. If the Underground Club really goes under, I'll go somewhere else; maybe I won't even have to pretend to be an Alpha anymore.' Xiao Feng seemed to only just now register the pain, rubbing the hip he'd been kicked in. 'Still gotta thank you, for getting me the Pheromone Spray.'

'It's nothing,' Xu Ze said.

Xiao Feng was fifteen this year — a child in the truest sense. He'd been out on his own since just past ten, surviving beatings and abuse. Last autumn, owing to a naturally low Pheromone Level and the lack of corresponding nutritional supplements during development, Xiao Feng had devolved into a Beta; it was Xu Ze who'd found a way to connect him with the right Alpha spray and helped him keep it secret.

Being born a Beta is normal enough, but devolving from Alpha to Beta — Xiao Feng knew he'd be laughed at mercilessly; people would have one more way to insult him, especially here.

Xiao Feng thought Number 17 was the best person in the Underground Club.

So when the rumors about Number 17 and the Boss first reached him, Xiao Feng had even been a little glad — because that way, Number 17 wouldn't be put into dangerous fights, wouldn't have to scramble for money. But the fact proved otherwise: Number 17 hadn't been kept by the Boss, and still bled plenty and took heavy injuries in the Octagon Cage.

The Casino had two floors — the first was the common floor, open to everyone; the second was the VIP floor, used not only for gambling but also as a meeting room for business. Xiao Feng fished a handful of chips from his pocket and stuffed them into Xu Ze's hand. 'Standing around empty-handed makes you a target.'

'Thanks.' Xu Ze found a table; he'd worked a dealer's job here before and knew which game was safest. What mattered was that from his current position he could see the entrance.

After a few hands, the chips in his hand had grown four or five times over. Xu Ze kept lifting his head to glance at the entrance — Tang Feiyi's people usually arrived at the Underground Club between half past nine and ten.

Within two minutes, bodyguards entered the Casino. Just as a hand ended, Xu Ze swept all the chips on the table into a box and handed it to Xiao Feng. Xiao Feng was still caught up in Xu Ze's deft gambling technique and instinctively clutched the box. Xu Ze watched the entrance — walking in were not only Shao Ping but also an Alpha not unfamiliar to him: He Yu.

He and He Yu had only met a handful of times. The first was when He Wei had brought He Yu to watch a match, wanting to sign him; later Xu Ze had happened to see He Yu at the Underground Club walking alongside Tang Feiyi. Some time ago Xu Ze had heard from He Wei that He Yu had been kicked out of the company and gone missing.

Xu Ze turned his head and saw Xiao Feng staring unblinkingly at Shao Ping's group, not sure who he was looking at.

'Know them?' Xu Ze asked.

Xiao Feng answered half a beat late: 'Oh… that, that's Boss He. He's been coming here for a while — he handles goods transport. Boss Shao's very wary of him, because Boss He's power is about to overtake his.' He paused, then said, 'But I think Boss He's a good person; he's helped me out a few times.'

Xu Ze's gaze stayed on Shao Ping's face until he went upstairs. He Yu didn't go up — because after entering, he'd happened to glance Xu Ze's way, startled, as if he'd recognized him.

He walked over, stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray at the corner of the gaming table, glanced at the chips in Xiao Feng's arms, and said with a smile, 'Won all that?'

Xiao Feng seemed nervous, answering haltingly, 'Y… my friend helped me win it.'

He Yu looked at Xu Ze then. Xu Ze touched Xiao Feng's head. 'Thanks, I've taken up enough of your time today.'

Xiao Feng caught on quickly. 'Oh, I'll head off then.'

The area was crowded and full of eyes; the two moved to a secluded corridor. He Yu lit another cigarette and put it between his lips, then offered the pack to Xu Ze. Xu Ze shook his head, indicating he didn't smoke.

'How's Xiao Wei been lately?' He Yu took a drag and asked.

Still loves sleeping, but spends more time studying now, and takes it seriously. Xu Ze answered, 'He's alright.'

'Heard you broke contract with Tang Feiyi, and never paid the Breach of Contract Incident fee.' He Yu smiled. 'Even though that kind of contract never made much sense to begin with — how dare you come here alone?'

'I need money,' Xu Ze said quietly.

He Yu looked at him for a moment, then smiled again. 'Everyone says you were being kept — turns out the Chairman's son is this stingy?'

Xu Ze didn't argue the point — the premise of that conclusion was wrong to begin with. But he knew why they'd think so: a Chairman's son couldn't possibly be with a poor Alpha; paying for novelty and excitement was indeed the more reasonable explanation.

Seeing Xu Ze silent, He Yu asked again, 'You think coming to work at the Casino means Tang Feiyi won't find you?'

'Don't know.' Xu Ze lowered his eyes. 'Just came to see if I could work under Boss Shao.'

'Shao Ping?' He Yu seemed surprised enough to find it absurd. 'Tang Feiyi was raised by him single-handedly. A man like that will only be more vicious than Tang Feiyi — he'll do anything. I'd advise you to drop that idea.'

Xu Ze pressed his lips together as if thinking; a few seconds later he said, 'I'll think about it again.'

'Nothing to think about. You're still so young — it's not worth rotting here. Don't come back.' He Yu glanced at his watch. 'I've got things to do. Can you get out on your own?'

'I can,' Xu Ze said. 'Thank you.'

'Don't mention it.' He Yu raised a hand. 'I'm off.'

Out of the corridor, Xu Ze sensed something was off. He started heading for the bar, pushed through the crowded masses into the restroom, then locked the main door from inside and walked straight to the last stall. Xu Ze gripped the edge of the transom with both hands, planted a foot on the toilet tank, and the instant he slipped through the window, he heard the restroom door being kicked open and the Alphas inside shouting and cursing. Xu Ze stepped on the wall and dropped cleanly into the alley, running as he messaged the bodyguards, telling them he'd be at the parking lot shortly.

After waiting in a corner for the better part of a minute, Xu Ze saw three bodyguards come out of the building; he walked over and got in the car.

Once the car was on the main road, the bodyguards' expressions remained grave. They'd lost him on the way to the bar; inside the Underground Club Xu Ze was like a fish, intimately familiar with every path and every exit — but that kind of familiarity was, for them, a dangerous lack of control.

'I'm sorry,' Xu Ze said. 'Next time I'll go in alone, and come find you to regroup when I'm done.'

One bodyguard stated immediately, 'There won't be a next time.'

Over the next few days, Xu Ze got busy with applications and the property transfer. His birthday was next Saturday; once it passed, the house could be transferred into his name — Xu Ze wanted to sell it as soon as possible to put together the surgery fee for Ye Yunhua's lung transplant.

Many schools had already reached out, through teachers or privately, hoping he'd apply. Xu Ze didn't hesitate much before ruling out every institution outside the Capital City. He had no particular major he was set on, no academy he had to attend — he simply wanted to stay in the city.

And then, He Wei — who had been behaving himself all semester — suddenly lost it: the application deadline was ten o'clock Wednesday morning; at five to nine he pulled out his tablet, logged into the application system, deleted all three schools the family had hired a professional consultant to fill in for him, and submitted only one before immediately shutting the device and dropping his head onto the desk to sleep. Within half an hour, two bodyguards arrived at the class, wordless, and dragged He Wei away.

Xu Ze didn't tell He Wei he'd run into He Yu at the Underground Club; he figured He Yu wouldn't want He Wei to know either.

After coming back from Chengxi last time, Xu Ze had expected Lu Heyang to message or call to ask about it — he'd even made up a suitably plausible excuse, and to avoid slipping up he'd quietly rehearsed it over and over. But Lu Heyang hadn't reached out.

That unsettled Xu Ze more than being questioned would have — because it meant Lu Heyang might actually be angry, or thoroughly disappointed in him.

On the weekend, Xu Ze went to the Sanatorium. Ye Yunhua had not been in good shape lately — frequent difficulty breathing, long hours on oxygen — but her mood seemed much calmer, lying quietly in the hospital bed, no longer asking Qiao Yuan when she'd come take her home.

On Wednesday, Xu Ze sat for the first school's preliminary exam. It was the seventh day He Wei hadn't come to school, and the sixteenth day he and Lu Heyang had been out of contact.

Thursday — today was the Military General Hospital preliminary exam, one Xu Ze had seen on the official website; as for why he'd gone browsing the Military General Hospital's official site — it seemed to be the only thing he could find that had anything to do with Lu Heyang.

Xu Ze hadn't gone back to the auto repair shop since signing up, focusing on exam prep. Recently, pulling back from the tangle of events, Xu Ze had vaguely realized that whatever the purpose of that text message, it certainly wasn't a simple, well-meaning disclosure of the truth behind his father's death in the line of duty. His last trip back to Chengxi had already been half a foot into a trap — he had to stop first.

The Mobile Phone buzzed. Xu Ze picked it up: the screen showed 'Number 9' — the number Lu Heyang had used. Xu Ze unlocked it at once and opened the message. Lu Heyang had sent a URL; the attached note was just three words: Sign your name.

He opened the link — it was an electronic signature form for a subsidy application. Xu Ze skimmed it once, signed his name, then closed the page and messaged Lu Heyang back: Signed.

After a while, Lu Heyang didn't reply. Xu Ze gathered his courage and asked: Can I call you now?

A few seconds later, Lu Heyang replied: Go ahead.

Having been given permission, Xu Ze called. The moment he heard that 'hello,' he suddenly didn't know how to begin — he hadn't actually thought of anything to say; he just wanted to hear Lu Heyang's voice.

'Been in closed training, haven't really been using the phone.'

Lu Heyang's tone was flat; Xu Ze guessed it was from exhaustion. He gave an 'mm' and asked, 'Last time you called me — was there something you needed?'

That night he'd been too distracted by the unfamiliar text to think straight; afterward, checking the call log with Lu Heyang, he'd realized it was only a dozen seconds or so — barely enough to pick up and say a few words before hanging up.

'Asking only now — isn't that a little late?'

It was more than a little late. Xu Ze was about to apologize when Lu Heyang asked him back, 'Is there something you needed, calling me now?'

'No,' Xu Ze answered.

'You're sure there's nothing?'

Really nothing — he just wanted to hear the voice. Xu Ze answered again, 'I'm sure.'

'Then let me ask a different question. In the past half month or so, has anyone strange contacted you, or have you received any strange messages?'

Xu Ze had expected Lu Heyang to ask about the Underground Club, but hadn't anticipated Lu Heyang skipping the behavior and going straight to the original trigger. The fake excuse he'd rehearsed over and over was forced into disuse; after a long pause, Xu Ze said, 'I don't think so.'

'Is that "I don't think so," or "definitely not"?'

Lu Heyang's tone remained even — unhurried, patient, calm, without a trace of aggression — but Xu Ze felt the tension of an interrogation room, and instinctively held his breath.

'Xu Ze.' Lu Heyang called him again at this point. 'Can you give me an answer without lying or hiding anything?'

Xu Ze lowered his head; four or five seconds later he said, 'I can.'

Lu Heyang said nothing, waiting for Xu Ze to continue.

'Last time at the hotel, in the evening I got a message with a few pictures — about—' Xu Ze paused, '—about my dad. It seemed to involve an Alpha from the Underground Club.'

Without asking what the connection was, Lu Heyang only asked, 'Can you figure it out yourself? While staying safe and not affecting your upcoming exams?'

The answer was too obvious. Xu Ze wasn't without self-awareness, but it seemed only now that the helplessness truly welled up in him. He pressed the corner of his eye and admitted, 'I probably can't… handle it on my own.'

'It's alright. Send me the pictures.' Lu Heyang's voice softened a touch. 'I'll handle it.'

At ten that evening, Lu Heyang and Gu Yunchi came out of the training camp dormitory and got into the car headed for the Airport. Today the Military General Hospital preliminary exam had ended, meaning the basic training course was temporarily over; next they needed to determine which branch of the military to apply to, then undergo targeted training and exams.

Once in the car, Gu Yunchi put on earphones and an eye mask to rest. Lu Heyang opened his tablet and began looking at the pictures Xu Ze had sent him.

The case records were fine, the Capital Bureau's stamp was fine, but Lu Heyang kept feeling something was off. He flipped to Shao Ping's photo — that black-and-white surveillance video still — and stared at it for a long time, until Lu Heyang realized where the anomaly lay.

He jumped back to the first image. The case file's time of incident and the surveillance footage's timestamp were the same day — no error there. Lu Heyang switched back to the main screen, found a folder, and hesitated for a rare moment before opening it.

The folder held the materials Jiang Wen had previously sent about He Yi's family. Lu Heyang's gaze swept line by line — the date of the general election ten years ago, the locations of properties under He Yi and his spouse's names—

Before this, Lu Heyang could guess who had sent Xu Ze the message; but now that was no longer the most important thing.

Tall streetlamps streaked past the window; the car was hurtling at a hundred kilometers an hour down the highway to the Airport. Inside the car it was quiet and dim. Lu Heyang closed the tablet, sat in the same posture for several minutes, then picked up his Mobile Phone and dialed the landline in the living room at home.

The housekeeper answered quickly: 'Hello.'

'Auntie, have you cleaned my room these past few days?'

'Yes, every day.'

'Has anything new appeared in my room?'

'Yes — a few days after you went abroad, I noticed a very thick document bag on the desk. Would you like me to send it over?'

The headlights refracted a sharp white glare off a sign hanging ahead; it flashed once across Lu Heyang's eyes. He slowly leaned back against the seat, finding support for his body, then answered, 'No need. I'll be home in the early hours of the morning.'