EWH 9

Yang Moshou thought Xu Wanhe would come looking for him soon.

His reasoning was that the last two times they did it, things seemed to go pretty well.

But after thinking it over, Yang Moshou realized that excuse felt way too flimsy, so he kept trying to come up with other reasons.

Unfortunately, no matter how hard he racked his brain, he just couldn’t think of a single solid reason why Xu Wanhe would come back to find him.

The soup dumplings in the paper bag had gone a little cold. Yang Moshou stood by the window, staring outside as more and more people started filling the hospital grounds. The place was getting loud and chaotic.

Yang Moshou tossed the soup dumplings onto the desk, sat down, and started flipping through the desk calendar.

A colleague walked by and chuckled when he saw it.

“Xiao Yang, I’ve caught you staring at that calendar more than a few times. What are you waiting on, some special date?”

Yang Moshou picked up a carbon pen and quietly marked a cross on yesterday’s date.

“Nothing special. I was just checking when I get my day off.”

“Oh, that’s right. You’re off tomorrow.”

Yang Moshou put the calendar down, though his thoughts were somewhere else entirely.

It had already been half a month with no contact, but it didn’t matter. When the time came, he’d settle the score with that old bastard.

——

The dinner was held at a five-star hotel in Xinye. Everyone who should’ve been there showed up. So did a bunch who shouldn’t have.

Xu Wanhe didn’t like a single soul in that room, including Tang Ziyan.

But he couldn’t just throw a tantrum and leave. So he made small talk with those high-society types, throwing in a few half-assed replies here and there, while his eyes kept drifting toward the sofa across the room.

Tang Ziyan was chatting and laughing with some real estate tycoon. He turned his head casually, and their eyes met.

Xu Wanhe’s face didn’t change. “What are you staring at? I was just thinking your shirt color looks decent.”

Tang Ziyan put down his wine glass. He’d only had two sips, but his cheeks were already flushed.

“You like it? I’ll send you one later.”

Xu Wanhe gave him a cold stare. “You think I can’t buy my own shirt?”

Someone nearby chimed in with a laugh. “Xiao Tang and Xiao Xu seem really close now. I remember you two used to be so formal. The more I see you together, the more you seem like family.”

Tang Ziyan chuckled softly and ducked out to take a call.

Xu Wanhe felt a wave of irritation and got up to head to the restroom.

As he left the private room, he didn’t even glance at Tang Ziyan, who was still on the phone nearby. He just pricked up his ears and caught a few words.

“…do you want to or not…”

Xu Wanhe kept a straight face and walked into the restroom, but his brain wouldn’t stop spinning. What were they talking about? Was it “I miss you,” or “I want to fuck you”?

Disgusting. Making calls during dinner like some clingy bitch. Not even a real man.

Two damn sissies.

Xu Wanhe was seething as he stood at the sink washing his hands.

When he looked up at the mirror, his eyes fell on the damaged part of his ear. He stared at it blankly for a long time.

Thinking back on all the injuries he’d taken over the past thirty-something years, there weren’t many that hurt as much as that one.

Tang Ziyan didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. No warning, just bang.

By the time Xu Wanhe stepped out of the restroom, Tang Ziyan had already finished his call too.

Dinner dragged on for another four hours. It finally ended with some boring chit-chat and forced smiles before everyone split up and got escorted out of the hotel by their assistants.

Xu Wanhe had already had enough. He was the first to head downstairs, walking straight toward the revolving glass doors.

——

Digging into Xu Wanhe’s past wasn’t actually that hard. While on his day off, Yang Moshou grabbed a newspaper and casually struck up a conversation with a tattooed guy watching over a bunch of electric scooters. In no time, he got the gist.

They said the guy is a real piece of work.

He started running the streets in his teens. Got his head split open multiple times, his leg broken twice, and once some idiot took a crowbar and scraped off half his scalp. Took three months just for the hair to grow back. Back in those days, he was always leading a crew into street brawls. People called him the Little Tyrant of Stitches, Ju Jinhui, because he’d been stitched up so many times he practically ruled that whole area.

In short, the road to where he stood now was paved in blood and bruises.

Eventually, though, nobody used that nickname anymore. For one, Xu was no longer a little punk but had become Xu ge. The nickname wasn’t exactly flattering, and no one dared say it to his face. Besides, it had been a long time since Xu ge last needed stitches in a hospital.

But word on the street was, back when he was at his peak, Xu-ge got set up by Tang-ge. Cornered in an alley and stabbed more than a dozen times. Nearly crippled. He spent years recovering in the hospital before he made a comeback. Still, they said his power wasn’t what it used to be.

Yang Moshou’s face had gone pale. He glanced down at the time and felt like he had just wasted two hours of his life on that guy.

But the fact that Xu Wanhe was a well-known gangster was definitely true. Ju Jinhui and a bunch of the top entertainment and dining spots in Xinye were all under his name. It wasn’t even a secret in the city anymore.

Relying on memory, Yang Moshou made his way back to the place where he had first met Xu Wanhe.

Even though he knew someone like that wouldn’t stay in one spot all day, he couldn’t help but secretly place a little bet in his heart.

If fate really wanted them to meet again, then all the effort he’d poured in wouldn’t be for nothing.

So he went and waited at the five-star hotel across the street.

After all, if you’re gonna stalk someone, you need to keep some distance. Squatting right by the entrance was just stupid. Keeping your distance gave you room to move when needed.

Countless pairs of leather shoes walked across the red carpet outside the hotel. A few luxury cars pulled up one after another and stopped at the entrance. The uniformed bellboys quickly stepped up to open the doors, bowing slightly with flattery in their eyes.

Yang Moshou looked up slightly, just curious to see who was making such a flashy entrance. The moment he raised his head, he spotted none other than the flashy Xu Wanhe among the crowd.

But Xu Wanhe wasn’t alone. Walking beside him was a man. Handsome, gentle, impeccably dressed.

It was the same man Yang Moshou had seen once before at the hospital. Back then he was too far away to get a good look, but this time, though still not close, he could see him clearly.

The two of them were deep in conversation. That man’s smile was soft, his eyes slightly curved, carrying a hint of childish charm.

Xu Wanhe, with his thick neck and flushed face, spat out words full of disdain, but in his eyes was something Yang Moshou had never seen before.

Affection.

Unmistakable, even if only faintly visible. Barely hidden. But undeniably there.

Watching these two powerful men side by side, Yang Moshou suddenly felt they fit together perfectly. That guy was handsome and rich. And him? He wasn’t good-looking, didn’t have money either.

This was bad. Really bad.

Yang Moshou quickly ducked into hiding, found a quiet corner, and tried to calm the tight knot in his chest. He told himself there was nothing to be upset about.

No way that guy would really fall for Xu Wanhe anyway. Anyone with eyes could tell that big boss just had that polished, polite way of speaking. Nothing like that fool, who was all heart and sincerity.

Even with that self-comforting thought, Yang Moshou still felt a surge of anger bubbling up for no reason.

It felt like a heavy stone had dropped right onto his heart. Suffocating and bitter.

Tang Ziyan smiled as he looked at Xu Wanhe. “Alright. Let’s go with that.”

Xu Wanhe couldn’t help but glance at him a few more times. “I’ve got an office across the street. Want to come up and sit for a bit?”

Tang Ziyan didn’t respond. He simply said goodbye in a low voice and was escorted into the car by Fei Qi.

Xu Wanhe raised a brow and, flanked by a few of his underlings, headed across the street.

No one seemed to notice the shadow darting across the street at full speed.

Yang Moshou had collected several banana peels from under a nearby fruit stand and scattered them right along the path Xu Wanhe would have to walk. Then he backed away, hiding at a distance, waiting for the banana peels to do the job and give him some satisfaction.

When Xu Wanhe arrived, his brows immediately furrowed. He walked forward while dodging the mess on the ground.

“Why the hell are there so many banana peels here?”

One of his guys spoke up. “Xu ge, it was that kid. I saw him putting them down just now.”

Xu Wanhe looked up, following the guy’s pointing finger, and spotted Yang Moshou standing behind a newspaper stand, face pale with guilt and fear.

A surge of anger rose in his chest.

Just as he was about to rush over and drag the guy out for questioning, his body lost balance, and he stepped on a banana peel, slipping and falling flat on his back with all four limbs in the air.