SDT 57

Chapter 57 Rupture

Near M Country were a few small islands, each under the jurisdiction of different neighboring nations, but their entry restrictions were lax. After reaching one of those islands, it would be easier to switch identities and move on to another country, erasing traces along the way. Yu Xiaowen and Ye Yisan decided to pass through one such island as a stopover before heading to L Country.

Their first destination was a fishing dock near Haitang City. They packed only what was necessary, equipment and some cash, and left the safe house together.

The two walked in silence under the night sky. When the moon rose high above them, they reached the dock.

…

On the narrow road leading toward the beach, they saw Dai Lanshan sitting on a stone block beneath a dim streetlight, staring out at the sea.

Yu Xiaowen and Ye Yisan exchanged a glance, both visibly irritated. For a brief second, Ye Yisan looked ready to kill, but Yu Xiaowen shook his head. Since Dai Lanshan had already found them, they might as well talk. Dai Lanshan, after all, wasn’t Lu Qifeng. The two walked toward him, one after the other.

Hearing footsteps, Dai Lanshan turned around and said to Ye Yisan, “Don’t look so shocked. I’ve had people tracking you for two years. Lu Qifeng only found you because he saw my data.”

“Wha—”

The revelation stunned them both. Hearing that it was this fool who’d led Lu Qifeng to them, and that he was shameless enough to admit it, made Ye Yisan furious. If not for Dai Jingxi’s connection to him, Ye Yisan might have stabbed the man and thrown him into the sea.

“Two years ago, you escaped S Country because my brother helped you,” Dai Lanshan said, standing up, his expression unusually serious. “What he can do, I can too. I’ll help you escape. But after this, you’ll never contact my brother again. Ever.”

Ye Yisan narrowed his eyes, calculating. “You came here without telling Dai Jingxi?”

Dai Lanshan chuckled. He knew exactly why that question was asked.

“You don’t trust me? You must know Lu Qifeng’s already in M Country. If even I can find you here, then with his resources, he’s probably mapped out your entire route. Maybe he’s already setting up an ambush. You believe that, don’t you?”

At the mention of Lu Qifeng’s name, Ye Yisan’s face twisted into something close to panic.

Dai Lanshan noticed the reaction, surprised by the uncharacteristic loss of composure.

Then Ye Yisan said, “You’ve harassed me for years because of your brother. Why should I believe you’re not doing this just to hand me to S Country’s intelligence and be done with it?”

Dai Lanshan raised an eyebrow and scoffed. “Please. Lu Qifeng doesn’t hand out favors. My brother would just be furious if I did that.”

He went on, “Do what you want. If you don’t take my route, fine. But if you get caught, that’s on you. Don’t drag my brother into it. Understand?”

Ye Yisan finally seemed to understand. Dai Lanshan probably didn’t know the full nature of his brother’s connection with them, but he did know that Dai Jingxi had once helped them escape S Country. And Dai Lanshan clearly understood how dangerous the Lu family’s intelligence chief was. He wanted to keep his brother far from the mess.

Even though it was late, the dock was far from quiet. Fishing boats still came and went. In the distance, a small vessel approached in silence, its mast light flashing twice, a signal. Soon it would reach shore.

Dai Lanshan glanced toward it. “Make up your mind.”

Yu Xiaowen, who had been silent the whole time, stepped forward. “I think he’s right. His route’s safer than anything we could manage alone. Lu Qifeng won’t come after him, at least not right away.”

Ye Yisan knew the logic was sound. He hesitated only a moment before nodding. “Alright. I’ll never involve Dai Jingxi in this. Ever.”

Dai Lanshan snorted. “Good. Keep your word.”

Moments later, the small boat reached the pier. The three of them walked toward it together.

As the boat settled beside the wooden bridge, Dai Lanshan crouched and gestured for them to jump aboard. Ye Yisan moved first, jumping into the vessel. But Yu Xiaowen didn’t follow.

“Ye Yisan,” Yu Xiaowen said quietly, “let’s split up.”

“…What?” Ye Yisan looked up, startled by the sudden change.

Yu Xiaowen crouched down to meet his eyes. “Be careful, alright?”

Ye Yisan was silent for a long time. Then he asked, “You’re going back for him, aren’t you?”

Yu Xiaowen said nothing.

Ye Yisan’s eyes turned cold. “Fine. Good luck. And let’s hope we never meet again.”

“San…” Yu Xiaowen murmured, but there was nothing left to say.

They stood facing each other, strangers again.

The boat didn’t linger. It soon pulled away from shore.

As the dock receded, Ye Yisan stood on deck, watching the two foolish men left behind, one who’d spent two years chasing him out of jealousy, exposing his data and drawing Lu Qifeng down upon them; the other, too deep in his own feelings to care, running headlong into danger and raising their odds of dying by several magnitudes.

This time, he knew he was never coming back.

But somehow, that thought didn’t hurt. He had always known this day would come. The stronger his solitude, the safer he felt. It was instinct, built from years of surviving in the cracks of the world.

He turned away from the dock and faced the endless darkness of the sea.

…

Dai Lanshan turned toward the lone security guard who had chosen to stay, sneering. “So seducing Lu Kongyun on that ship was your survival plan? Wake up. Alphas like him don’t fall for flings. You were just a one-time amusement. You’d be smarter to trust me instead, I’m the only one who doesn’t want you dragging my brother down.”

“Oh,” Yu Xiaowen said, his tone flat. “You actually did something decent today. I’m impressed. I hope your brother falls in love with you soon.”

“…” Dai Lanshan’s fist clenched. “Hao Dali, you looking for a fight?”

Yu Xiaowen smiled. “I meant it.”

They parted.

Yu Xiaowen made his way quickly back toward the staff dormitories near the Ye estate.

Of course, he wasn’t going back to find Lu Kongyun.

Given how things stood, he had originally planned to escape with Ye Yisan. But Dai Lanshan’s sudden arrival, and his safer escape route, gave Ye Yisan a chance to flee and gave Yu Xiaowen a chance to finish one last task.

The wristband.

If he were captured by Lu Qifeng, that would remain an S Country affair. As long as he said nothing, the Bureau would have no grounds to arrest Ye Yisan.

But if evidence surfaced proving he was truly Yu Xiaowen, then it would confirm Ye Yisan’s act of forging a new identity for an S Country officer and smuggling him into a classified medical program. Mr. Ye would “clean” him instantly.

So Yu Xiaowen could be caught, but Hao Dali could never be Yu Xiaowen. Only then would Ye Yisan remain safe.

He had to erase the last piece of proof, the wristband that tied him to his past life as Detective Yu Xiaowen.

He couldn’t tell Ye Yisan. If he did, Ye Yisan would never leave calmly. The man had already risked his life once to save him. The trouble with the wristband was his own doing. He would deal with it himself.

What if Lu Qifeng was waiting there to arrest him?

He didn’t think about it.

What had to be done didn’t require thought. Like two years ago, on that mission, it was the same.

…

The intelligence chief Lu Qifeng was still unconscious, the drugs keeping him quiet.

As night fell, Lu Kongyun followed his navigation to the Ye estate’s staff quarters. Some employees came and went in their uniforms or casual clothes.

He didn’t go in. He just stood there for a while, then turned away.

He followed the road leading from the dormitory toward the estate, not to reach it, but because he wanted to walk that road again.

Under a streetlight, an old woman was crushing plastic bottles and stuffing them into a worn sack.

One bottle rolled to his feet. He glanced at it, then at her. The rhythmic crinkle of plastic echoed softly through the narrow lane, repetitive and weary.

That monotonous sound seemed to mark time itself, an echo of every dull, identical day that had passed.

Near the end of the alley sat an old man outside a shabby convenience shop. “I have something good inside,” he said. “Want to take a look?”

Lu Kongyun turned his head toward him. The old man winked.

“Do you talk to everyone who passes by?” Lu Kongyun asked.

The old man blinked. “…?”

Lu Kongyun continued walking.

He reached the estate gates but didn’t enter. His steps continued uphill along a path lined with trees. The higher he climbed, the fewer people there were. At the end of the road, stone steps led up to a raised viewing platform.

He started up. The wind grew stronger near the top, carrying the rustle of leaves and the faint, acrid scent of smoke. Someone else was up there, doing something strange in the dark.

He hesitated, then decided to look, just once, at the estate from above before leaving.

At the top, behind a stone pillar sheltered from the wind, he saw a figure crouched beside a small fire. The person was burning something.

The wind masked his footsteps, but the figure seemed to sense his presence and turned around. Firelight flickered across their face.

They both froze, staring at each other, unmoving.

Then the figure stomped out the fire, hesitated briefly, and kicked several burning fragments down the slope.

“Destroying evidence?” Lu Kongyun spoke first, his voice low and cold. “Did Ye Yisan teach you that?”

The other man studied his face in silence. The voice that came back was soft, rustling like the leaves in the wind. “Lu Kongyun, I…”

Lu Kongyun waited for the rest. It never came. The man smiled instead, mocking. “Mr. Lu, what are you talking about? Whose evidence? I was just making an offering for my ancestors.”

Lu Kongyun’s eyes lowered. “An offering for the Qingming Festival? Then you owe me two Qingming.”

“Alright,” the other man said hoarsely.

Then he stepped back, and suddenly flipped over the railing, dropping out of sight.

Lu Kongyun lunged forward, half his body leaning over the edge. But below was no cliff, only a sloped clearing. The man landed, ghostlike, and straightened.

Before the other could look up, Lu Kongyun withdrew his hand.

“Why would I think you’re destroying evidence?” he asked. “You met someone, didn’t you? You called me back, yet you’re here. Is he nearby?”

Lu Kongyun stood still, watching that familiar body language, the same effortless motion that the city bureau had once mistaken for the failed escape of a dying man.

A small lamp on the platform cast light on Lu Kongyun’s face but left the other in shadow.

Lu Kongyun said, “What should I call you? Yu Xiaowen, Hao Dali, or are both names false?”

After a long pause, the man in the dark said, “My name’s Hao Dali. Don’t get it wrong. I’m the twin brother of a deceased police officer. That’s what you said, Mr. Lu?”

His voice echoed in the darkness, teasing, and familiar.

Lu Kongyun said nothing.

He touched his wrist. No medical stabilizer. He should have listened to Lu Qifeng, or maybe long before that.

He wanted to speak, to ask, Don’t you have anything you want to say to me? But the man was already turning away, leaving without hesitation.

Lu Kongyun watched his silhouette fade, his throat tightening, muscles trembling as he tried to speak but couldn’t.

“Next time we meet,” he finally shouted, voice breaking, “I’ll kill you!”

There was nothing left to regulate his pulse; his fingers dug into his own flesh.

The man stopped. He stood still for a long time, then swayed slightly and turned back.

From the darkness, his eyes glimmered, two small lights catching the faintest reflection.

Lu Kongyun opened his mouth, but no words came.

“Then let me look at you one last time,” the man said softly.

He lifted his head. The twin lights of his eyes fixed on Lu Kongyun, unmoving, there was something almost reverent in it.

A startled bird flew from the trees, wings flapping into the night.

And as its sound faded, the man stepped backward, slowly, slowly, then turned, without looking back, and disappeared into the dark.