Fragrance Ninety-Three: Qiao Qi

After hearing what the old man had said, Chen Liang felt a sour heaviness in his heart as well. This was not an era of rule of law like the one that would come later, and even in that later age, not every place under the sun was bright. Let alone now, when those who fed on the misfortune of others were everywhere.

One could hardly blame the man. In times like these, for ordinary folk like him, just staying alive was no easy thing; timidness and caution were simply the norm.

“Comrade security man, I truly did not mean to have your niece taken. I was only afraid of revenge, I—”

Before he could finish, Chen Liang cut him off. “Old Chen, don’t worry. I really do not blame you. Since it has already happened, what matters now is doing everything we can to make amends.”

He paused, then said, “Tell me, what did that man and woman look like?”

Chen Liang handed him a cigarette and lit it for him. “Take your time and think. What did they look like? Any distinctive features?”

Old Chen frowned hard, searching his memory. Then he shook his head. “I’m sorry, comrade security man. It was too dark that night, and it all happened too fast. I really can’t remember.”

Still unwilling to give up, Chen Liang asked again, “Then can you remember what they were wearing?”

“The clothes? It was dark, so I couldn’t make out the color, but they were ragged and shabby. You could tell at a glance they weren’t city people.”

Not city people? That was the only clue Chen Liang had managed to catch hold of. After thanking Old Chen again, he rode away with a heavy heart.

On the way, Chen Liang invited Xing Ke to come sit at his home for a while. Unable to refuse the warm invitation, Xing Ke went back with him.

As soon as they entered the courtyard, Chen Liang saw his master and his senior uncle pacing anxiously in circles. After calling out to them, he hurriedly asked Chen’s mother and Little Yu to brew some tea.

Senior Uncle grabbed Xing Ke’s hand at once. “Old Xing, I really must thank you for this. Ah, this has truly troubled you.”

“Old Lu, what the hell are you saying? Chen Liang is one of our security bureau men. How could I refuse?” Xing Ke said.

“Come in and sit for a bit, have some tea,” Senior Uncle urged warmly.

“Forget it, Old Lu, now you’re the one being polite with me. No need. I won’t disturb you. A child’s been lost, and the Chen family must be in a panic. I won’t go over there and add to the chaos. Ah!”

With a sigh, Xing Ke turned to Senior Uncle. “Old Lu, since you’re here, I’ll leave the team to you. There’s a mountain of work waiting for me back at the factory. I’ll be off now.”

He shook Senior Uncle’s hand once more, then left the other four behind and rode back to the factory.

Seeing this, Chen Liang quickly fetched two cartons of Hongta Mountain cigarettes and handed them over. “Xing Ke, thank you for your help. Once this is over, you must give me a chance to treat you to a proper drink.”

After a round of refusals, and seeing that Chen Liang was as stubborn as iron and determined to give them, Xing Ke finally accepted the cigarettes. He patted Chen Liang’s shoulder and left.

Meanwhile, the eldest sister-in-law, who had heard the commotion, broke free from her friend Liu Siyuan and ran out of the room. When she saw that Chen Liang had not brought Chen Hong back with him, her eyes reddened again. Tears streamed down her face in silence.

The eldest brother hurried over to comfort her, and together with Little Yu and Liu Siyuan, led her back inside.

Chen Liang saw it all, but did not intervene. Instead, he stepped up to his master and told him everything he had learned.

“Master, what do you think should be done about this?” Tong the Elder was a seasoned old hand after all; he knew far more about such matters than Chen Liang did.

After a moment of thought, Master called Chen Liang over to his side. “In a little while, take people to Qiao Laoqi’s place. In this city, he’s the only one who can touch all sorts of people from every walk of life. I don’t care what method you use—coercion, inducement, whatever it takes—you must get it out of him. Do you understand? Tonight, we must bring little Chen Hong back!”

Though Master Tong the Elder did not know of the later rule that every hour mattered, his years of experience in the underworld told him the same thing: once tonight passed, the chances of getting Chen Hong back would be virtually zero.

“Understood, Master. Don’t worry. Tonight, I will bring Chen Hong back. If I don’t, then I’ll tear those bastards apart even if I have to go to the ends of the earth.”

In Chen Liang’s dark eyes flashed a glint of murderous intent, too faint to be easily noticed. The shadow within him was already straining to break free.

When Chen Liang had gone undercover in his previous life, he had developed a split self-awareness. He divided himself into two parts: one was the present-day Chen Liang, carefree, outrageous, and harmless to all; the other was the ruthless Chen Liang of his undercover days, cold-blooded and ruthless, his hands stained with blood.

He could switch between the two personalities seamlessly. But after coming to the Chen family, he had intentionally, or perhaps unconsciously, begun to suppress the dark side, no longer daring to let it out for air so easily.

Since it was all the same person, the dark Chen Liang did not care either. After all, his sight, touch, and emotions were all synchronized. He was not eager to come out and show off, anyway—he was, after all, a cool and stylish man.

But now that the bright Chen Liang’s killing intent had surged, Little Black could no longer sit still, shouting madly in Chen Liang’s mind to let him out.

It is not your turn yet. Stop yapping and get the hell out of the way.

Little White delivered a flying kick, booting Little Black straight out of Chen Liang’s mind.

“I’m going right now, Master.”

After getting Qiao Laoqi’s address clear, Chen Liang mounted his bicycle and led the security men straight out.

Before long, they reached Qiao Laoqi’s home. Like his master’s place, it was also a private little courtyard. Just after Chen Liang and the others parked their bikes, they heard bursts of noisy commotion coming from inside.

“Two crabs, crawling and crawling.”

“Brothers in good cheer, five for the crown, six all smooth!”

“Three stars shining, four blessings bringing wealth, seven perfect pairs!”

“Eight horses running, nine linked rings, all arrived!”

Voices poured from the yard; the sounds of dice games and drinking carried on one after another, lively beyond measure.

Bang, bang, bang—an intense hammering on the door rang out at once, drawing a chorus of dissatisfied complaints.

“Who the hell is it? Rushing off to be reborn, or rushing back to send off your own damn parents?”

They had been drinking merrily, only for someone to ruin the mood.

Just as the people in the yard were grumbling, the door was kicked down by Chen Liang in one blow.

With a cold, murderous face and a five-six automatic rifle slung over his back, Chen Liang strode in with the security bureau men behind him.

Looking at Qiao Laoqi, who sat at the head of the main table, he let out a smile that was all teeth and no warmth. “Seventh Master Qiao, you’re in quite the mood tonight!”

Ordinarily, the sight of the gun on Chen Liang would have been enough to make most men’s legs go weak. But this Qiao Qi was clearly no ordinary fellow. He actually smiled and cupped his hands toward Chen Liang. “Which bureau branch are you from, my friend? You look unfamiliar.”