At that thought, Tian Chengfu curled his lips and spoke unhurriedly: “A little caution never hurts.”
“Indeed. Boss Tian has mountains of silver, a beautiful young wife at home, and a newborn son. It would be a shame if you died so soon, wouldn’t it?” Xiao Cheng crossed his legs, a smile spreading across his face—but it didn’t reach his eyes.
Hearing this, Tian Chengfu’s smile slowly froze. How did he know about that?
Few people besides his most trusted confidants knew about Ge Le and Xiao Long’s existence. Had someone leaked the information?
The realization that there might be a traitor among his men made his expression darken for a moment—but just as quickly, he regained his composure.
Tian Chengfu narrowed his eyes and finally looked at Xiao Cheng properly. Under the dim lamplight, the young man’s features were sharp and handsome, his proportions perfect. Leaning quietly in his chair, he didn’t look frightening at all—it was hard to connect him with the legendary King of Hell.
While Tian Chengfu studied Xiao Cheng, the latter was doing the same.
Tian appeared to be around fifty, always wearing a genial smile, his clothes understated. No one would guess that this plain-looking old man was the de facto ruler of Jiangming Province, controlling the majority of the region’s underground businesses.
But the higher you climbed, the colder it got. With the situation tense and rivals lurking in the shadows, many were waiting to tear him down and carve off a piece of his empire.
It was anyone’s guess how much longer he could hold onto his position.
Tian Chengfu was clearly aware of this himself, which was why he’d chosen to cooperate with Xiao Cheng—to secure another way out.
“Mr. Xiao, you jest. The money belongs to everyone—what does it have to do with me?” Tian Chengfu was still playing the diplomat, leaving no openings. But Xiao Cheng had no patience to keep circling around trivialities. He shifted the conversation to the main point.
“Boss Tian didn’t ask me here just to chat, I presume?”
“Of course not.”
Tian Chengfu leaned forward, picked up the teapot, and poured two cups with practiced ease. He set one in front of Xiao Cheng and brought the other to his lips, moistening his cracked lips before speaking slowly: “Times really have gone topsy-turvy. An uncle would actually join forces with outsiders to kill his own nephew.”
He paused, raised an eyebrow, and smiled: “But I’m a businessman—I don’t do losing deals. I wonder if you and I are of the same mind on this, Mr. Xiao?”
Hearing such weighty news, Xiao Cheng’s expression didn’t change. He glanced at the tea Tian had poured but didn’t touch it. A half-smile played on his lips: “Xiao Jingquan has wanted me dead for three years now. This time, he’s finally grown a backbone—knows to cooperate with Boss Tian.”
Here he was, right in Tian’s territory. Even a mighty dragon couldn’t overpower a local snake—killing him here would be far easier than elsewhere. Indeed, no matter how well he’d concealed his movements, Tian Chengfu had found him through traces and clues, leading to this meeting.
Xiao Cheng had subtly flattered Tian, and the older man smiled, taking a sip of tea. “Cooperate? Not yet. He and I aren’t allies.”
Xiao Cheng didn’t respond. His slender fingers rested on his chin as if weighing Tian’s credibility. After a long pause, he said: “Then what does Boss Tian want?”
“Xiao Jingquan’s terms don’t interest me. Killing you does me no good either.” Tian Chengfu stopped beating around the bush and lowered his voice: “I heard you’ve opened up the entire northern market on your own. You hold most of the transport routes, don’t you?”
“Oh? Who told Boss Tian that? I don’t understand.” Xiao Cheng shook his head, looking bewildered. He leaned back, resting his hands on the chair, a master of playing dumb.
“You’re Xiao Zhengyong’s son—with such a fat piece of meat in your hands, I refuse to believe you’d just hand it over.” Tian Chengfu wasn’t ruffled by Xiao Cheng’s evasiveness. He danced around the subject and added meaningfully: “I don’t want to get involved in your family’s affairs. I just want to make a deal with you.”
“A deal? That depends on whether Boss Tian’s stakes are tempting enough.” Xiao Cheng left the door open, watching Tian with amusement. As their eyes met, sparks flew—only they knew how much probing had passed between them.
“Xiao Jingquan’s scheme will come to nothing. I won’t cooperate with him. And as long as you’re in Jiangming Province, I’ll guarantee your safety.”
Xiao Cheng sneered. That guarantee was essentially useless. Even if they did cooperate, Tian Chengfu’s involvement would complicate things—but if he thought he could gamble with Xiao Cheng’s life, he had another thing coming.
Tian Chengfu knew this too. He raised his hand, and one of the men behind him immediately pulled a thumb ring from his pocket and placed it on the table. Its blood-red veins and texture made it clear at a glance that it was no ordinary piece.
“You have Xiao Zhen in your hands?” Xiao Cheng picked up the ring from the table, raising an eyebrow in mild surprise. To kill him and to show Tian Chengfu his sincerity, Xiao Jingquan had actually been willing to send his precious son as a bargaining chip. But he probably never imagined Tian Chengfu would pull this move.
Still…
Xiao Cheng looked at Tian Chengfu’s smug expression, and the smile in his eyes deepened. People always liked to think they had the upper hand.
“Fine. No more beating around the bush—how much do you need to move?”
Seeing they were finally getting down to business, Tian Chengfu set down his teacup and held up a number with one hand.
“Boss Tian wants to move that much—are you planning to set up shop in my territory and compete with me?” Xiao Cheng pulled out a cigarette pack, twirling one between his thumb and forefinger, his tone a half-joking, half-serious probe.
“Mr. Xiao, you jest. That’s not much at all. Don’t worry—I have no interest in the north. I have my own uses for it.” With all cards on the table now, Tian Chengfu stopped holding back. “I need this shipment moved before the end of the month.”
“Haha.” Xiao Cheng bent the cigarette in his fingers, tossed it to the ground, and crushed it underfoot, his laughter deep and low. “In such a hurry? But I have my rules. The deposit is half the total price—it must be in my hands before the middle of the month. Not a penny less, or the deal’s off.”
“Of course.” Tian Chengfu nodded, draping his arm over the back of his chair, raising an eyebrow: “But I’ve caught Xiao Jingquan’s most precious treasure for you, Mr. Xiao. Wouldn’t it be a bit unreasonable if you didn’t offer some compensation?”
Money wasn’t the issue—during wartime, money was the most worthless thing of all.
Keeping your life in your own hands—that was what truly mattered.
“Boss Tian, I’ve already taken on a job this risky, and you still want extra compensation? Don’t you think that’s pushing it a bit?”
The moment the words left his mouth, the row of men behind Tian Chengfu raised their weapons, waiting only for his order to turn Xiao Cheng and Zhou Jin into sieves.
“Haha, the younger generation is truly formidable.” Tian Chengfu clapped, the sound easing the tension in the room. Xiao Cheng’s difficult nature actually put him at ease—if the young man had agreed to everything, that would have been far more suspicious.
After all, this man who’d made a name for himself in the underworld since his teens was no pushover.
“Heh.” Xiao Cheng stood up, brushing off non-existent dust from his clothes. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going.”
“Pleasure doing business.” Tian Chengfu made no move to see him out.
“Pleasure doing business.”
The moment he turned, Xiao Cheng’s smile turned cold, a sinister shadow crossing his brow. The darkness in his eyes sent a chill down anyone’s spine.
The two left the gambling den and returned to the car. Xiao Cheng pulled out a cigarette, and Zhou Jin cupped his hands to shield the flame. The match flickered, illuminating his hard, cold profile.
Through the wispy smoke, his voice was icy, his tone vicious: “Deliver this to Xiao Jingquan.”
Zhou Jin carefully tucked the thumb ring Xiao Cheng handed him into his pocket, then asked in confusion: “But didn’t you agree to cooperate with Tian Chengfu?”
He always asked what was on his mind—since they’d settled on the price and quantity, they were in the same boat. So why would he now leak news of Xiao Zhen’s capture to Xiao Jingquan? Wouldn’t that be stabbing Tian in the back?
If Tian Chengfu found out, blood would surely be spilled.
The ember glowed between his fingers. Xiao Cheng took a drag of his cigarette, his voice dripping with mockery, his words chilling: “Dog eat dog is more entertaining, don’t you think?”
“Nowadays, anyone thinks they can climb on top of me and make threats—without even weighing their own worth.”
When Xiao Zhen was in trouble, that old bastard Xiao Jingquan would put on quite a show when he lost his mind.
As for Tian Chengfu—someone who couldn’t see the bigger picture could flap all he wanted, but he’d never fly beyond his own little patch of land.
“I understand.” Zhou Jin nodded, opened the car door to usher Xiao Cheng in, then walked around the hood and got into the driver’s seat.
—
“Aiyun, remember to come back for dinner tonight.”
“Alright, I will.”
After saying goodbye to Zhang Wenyue, Lin Aiyun opened the gate and walked along the main road. The house across the street had been cleaned out, but since the owner—still away in another province—had no intention of returning, it remained vacant and neglected.
Because the incident had been so disgraceful and the trial results hadn’t come out yet, relatives were too ashamed to be associated with them. Su Xiaomei’s family hadn’t even had a single visitor.
Lin Aiyun withdrew her gaze and continued walking, her expression unchanged. She had long since locked that chapter of her life away, unwilling to revisit it.
By the time she reached the Liu household, the sun was climbing higher and starting to get hot.
“Auntie Hui, I just finished it yesterday and brought it specially for you to see.” Lin Aiyun drank half a glass of water before pulling out the carefully stored embroidery from her bag.
Xiao Cheng had been gone for four days. With nothing else to do, she’d holed up at the Dings’ and finished this long-delayed piece. Remembering that Liu Hui had mentioned several times that she wanted to see it, she’d brought it along today—and to visit.
Liu Hui slowly unfolded the embroidery in her hands. As more of it was revealed, the light in her eyes grew brighter, eventually turning into a gasp of admiration. Could this really have been completed by a girl under twenty?
The pale purple wutong flowers were vivid and lifelike, graceful butterflies dancing among them. Every blade of grass, every leaf was captured in thread, condensing the spirit of the plants into a faint fragrance. The threads crossed in a rare double-sided embroidery style in places, pouring all the embroiderer’s emotions into the work.
Whether it was the intricate, exquisite pattern, or the skillful technique and attention to detail—without decades of practice, such perfection would be impossible.
But Lin Aiyun had no reason to lie about this. Liu Hui could only attribute it to natural talent.
Fingers like spring breezes, skill born of serendipity.
“Aiyun, your embroidery is truly excellent.” Liu Hui ran her fingertip over the surface of the piece, then suddenly looked up, changing the subject with a solemn tone: “I don’t know if this counts as good news, but the final choice is yours to make.”
Lin Aiyun was taken aback, then said gently: “Auntie Hui, just say what’s on your mind. There’s no need to be so formal between us.”
“My father is a well-known traditional Chinese medicine doctor in Shanghai. Many people have come to him since we returned to our hometown—including some wealthy and powerful figures. Some of their wives like to collect embroidery pieces. I think this piece of yours could sell for a good price to them. If you’re willing, I can help you sell it. You’ve always wanted to make money, haven’t you? This is a good opportunity.”
“With money in hand, whether you stay in the city or go back to the countryside, you can live freely. Don’t you want to return to your parents?”
Liu Hui couldn’t say what she really meant outright, so she put it more delicately. Over the days they’d spent together, she’d come to see this polite, sensible girl as a friend across generations, and she truly wanted her to live well.
But getting entangled with someone like Xiao Cheng would only disrupt the peaceful life she had.
So before anything developed, making a clean break and leaving was the safest course of action.
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