Chapter 119: Courtesy Requires Reciprocity

Page (1/3)

Although Saiyijade was recovering at home, his father, Daliushi, had been “dragged into the matter” as well and no longer ventured beyond the inner or outer gates. Of course, this was actually a form of protection afforded him for special reasons.

When Daliushi first learned that Saiyijade had joined a gang, he had even dragged an old wooden stick from a corner of the house. It had been Saiyijade’s “good companion” since childhood, and the two had shared countless intimate encounters. Yet Daliushi, who had always threatened to break both his son’s legs, had ultimately never managed to bring the stick down, despite raising it several times.

Recently, however, Daliushi had been positively radiant. Not only did he no longer have to worry about making a living, but he was living in extraordinary comfort. At some point, even the two battered wooden gates of his courtyard had been replaced with thick, pitch-black solid-wood doors, while the walls on either side had been raised by nearly half a meter.

Lately, Daliushi often chuckled as he complained to his old friends that the doorway he had spent two hundred cash on probably would not survive the winter. Because of Saiyijade’s identity, Daliushi had suddenly gained considerable standing in the eyes of outsiders, and visitors seeking his help arrived one after another every day. As a result, Saiyijade had scarcely come down from the second floor of his own home for nearly half a month.

The sudden arrival of Ding Li and Liu Sheng delighted Daliushi beyond measure. He had been “discussing the Way” with several old friends beneath the banana tree in a corner of the courtyard, but hurriedly dismissed them with a few words. Just as he was preparing to entertain Ding Li, however, Ding Li smilingly ushered Liu Sheng into the house. After respectfully saluting Daliushi, he quickly departed—not through the main gate, but by nimbly using the towering banana tree to spring effortlessly onto the wall, nearly four and a half meters high. In the blink of an eye, he had vanished from Daliushi’s sight.

Saiyijade’s home lay three alleys away from the nearest main street. At a fork in the second alley, two Chinese men in short shirts leaned against the wall in the shade, sheltering from the scorching sun overhead. Of the two, the round-faced man wore three words plainly across his face: utterly impatient.

His companion, by contrast, looked exceptionally sturdy. His voice, however, was crisp and bright. Though his expression was not quite as impatient as the other man’s, his eyes were equally full of complaint. He nudged the round-faced man, whose head drooped while his gaze remained fixed on the tips of his shoes, and reminded him, “I’m telling you, show a little spirit, will you? It’s barely past noon. If you keep this up, can you really hold out until dark? I told you last night not to go carousing! What are we supposed to do if something goes wrong?”

“Stop nagging. How many things could go wrong? That boy is still recovering at home. What could possibly happen? Leave me alone. I’m tired—so tired!”

The round-faced man finally lifted his vacant gaze from the ground, but he remained utterly listless. He weakly raised an arm, intending to push his companion away, for that shrill, lively voice was torture to his exhausted nerves. Yet his careless shove missed the other man entirely, causing him to stagger and nearly fall.

“Hey! Why are you running?”

The irritated round-faced man began to complain in a shrill voice, but before he could finish, he froze. He had only just regained his balance and had not yet straightened up when his entire body stiffened where he stood. His terrified gaze locked onto his companion, whose legs were trembling uncontrollably—or, more precisely, onto the short dagger gleaming coldly against the side of the man’s neck.

“Stay still and answer me. How many more of your people are nearby?”

Ding Li had an arm locked tightly around his hostage’s neck. He raised his chin toward the stunned round-faced man and asked directly. Then he shifted the dagger slightly, sending its icy gleam into the other man’s eyes, and urged him in a freezing tone, “If you answer quickly, you might keep your life!”

“Nine… nine…”

The round-faced man reacted almost instinctively. He had not even thought of resisting before stammering out his answer. Then he gestured with his eyes and continued trembling, “Including the two of us, there are… there are nine in all. Three streets east, two streets west, and to the north there’s an alley entrance leading to the Northern Ward. That’s… that’s all I know…”

“Thanks.”

Ding Li answered crisply. His wrist suddenly twisted, and the dagger’s pommel struck the hostage hard in the temple. Before the unconscious body could fall, Ding Li sprang forward two steps and drove an elbow into the round-faced man’s neck. The man let out only a muffled groan before collapsing to one side, his face still frozen in the same expression of terror.

Page (1/3)

Page (2/3)

Without the slightest pause, Ding Li sprinted away. He flickered in and out of sight through several alleys where pedestrians were scarce, and a little over fifteen minutes later, he reappeared outside the newly replaced black gate of Saiyijade’s home.

“Brother Li, where did you go? Why did you leave again as soon as you arrived?”

The moment he entered the courtyard, Saiyijade and Liu Sheng hurried over to him, both looking anxious. Ding Li merely glanced toward the banana tree in the courtyard. When he spoke, his expression had already turned solemn.

“Saiyi, your house is being watched. I went to take a look just now. They’re people from the Cao clan.”

“Of course it’s being watched!”

Saiyijade shrugged slightly and let out a helpless, bitter laugh. “If you were in my place, Brother Li, you’d certainly send people to watch it too! At first I thought I’d have the brothers deal with them, but there’s one group after another. It’s too much trouble! Besides, I haven’t had anything to do lately, so eventually I couldn’t be bothered with it. Let them watch!”

“Mm. You’re right.”

Ding Li nodded and took Liu Sheng by the hand as he led her toward the house. As they walked, he instructed Saiyijade in a low voice, “Clean them out over the next few days. We have work to do—and major work at that. More than one task.”

“What? More than one major task?”

Saiyijade, following behind them, was taken aback. But he immediately grew excited, swinging his arms and stretching every muscle in his body as he drawled, “That’s good! Brother Li, you’d better not be stringing me along! I’ve been cooped up so long I’m going mad!”

As he spoke, Saiyijade suddenly hurried forward and caught up with Ding Li. He glanced around mysteriously, rolling his eyes from side to side, then leaned in and whispered with a grin, “You have no idea how badly my father, Daliushi, has been tormenting me lately! He even brought in two maids from some island in the east to wait on me. They practically follow me into the privy!”

“The east? An island?”

Ding Li was startled as well. He knew that there were some islands in the South Sea beyond the waters near Guangzhou Prefecture, but he could not think of any to the east. He even turned his head, hoping to get the answer from Liu Sheng, only to find her beautiful eyes blinking in equal confusion.

“Ah, forget it!” Saiyijade waved his hand helplessly at the subject, but continued explaining to Ding Li and Liu Sheng. “It’s somewhere in the Eastern Sea, near Silla, I think. East… east what was it? Why have I forgotten again?”

At last, Saiyijade tapped his head in frustration, only to hear Ding Li take over.

“Eastern Ying, near Silla. You mean Eastern Ying, don’t you?”

“Yes, yes, Eastern Ying!”

Saiyijade nodded repeatedly, then shook his head and complained miserably, “Brother Li, Sister-in-law, take a look at me. I’m a grown man of imposing stature, aren’t I? I’m not saying those two Eastern Ying girls aren’t capable in their work, but they’re simply too short! Truly, far too short!”

As he spoke, Saiyijade exaggeratedly measured the height with his hands, finally holding one flat palm against his chest. He shook his head again and again with a sigh.

“I wonder why. Did they not have enough to eat while growing up? How did they end up this small?”

“It wasn’t that they didn’t have enough to eat. They had nothing to eat! They’re surrounded by sea, and apart from fish, there’s nothing! No rice!”

As a soldier, Ding Li naturally had little fondness for Eastern Ying. Though his words were plainly disparaging, he had only been teasing carelessly. He patted Saiyijade several times as the latter continued bowing his head and sighing, then walked straight into the house.

Page (2/3)

Page (3/3)

Lunch had nearly been prepared, but when Ding Li arrived, Daliushi had the newly hired cook add several of his best dishes. He also brought out two small casks of homemade grape wine from the cellar in a corner of the courtyard. In the sweltering midday heat, the meal became all the more cool and refreshing.

They had eaten only half the meal when Daliushi excused himself by saying that he was getting old and needed an afternoon nap, then left early. Saiyijade was overjoyed. The moment his father disappeared through the doorway, he sprang from his stool and dashed away. A short while later, he returned to the table carrying the two small casks of grape wine he had just fetched from the cellar.

“Be careful. Once we leave, your backside may suffer again!”

Ding Li pointed at Saiyijade and warned him with a laugh. He nevertheless quickly snatched one of the casks from the other man’s arms. Saiyijade merely curled his lip in unconcern, though he instinctively glanced around before grinning broadly.

“Don’t worry, Brother Li! My father doesn’t care about this anymore. He only banned alcohol because I’m still recovering. But since you’re here, shouldn’t I indulge a little?”

This homemade grape wine, especially when freshly brought up from the cellar, had a flavor all its own. Each swallow slid coolly down the throat and into the belly, deliciously refreshing. Even Liu Sheng, who normally did not drink, was persuaded by Saiyijade to take quite a few sips from the exquisite luminous cup before her.

After eating his fill, Saiyijade was slightly drunk but still unsatisfied. He wanted to fetch another cask from the cellar, but Ding Li stopped him in time, saying they could drink themselves senseless after the current matters had been dealt with. Ding Li then went beneath the banana tree in the courtyard and sat around the stone table, while Liu Sheng personally brewed tea nearby to help the two men sober up.

The shade beneath the banana tree was not enough to conceal the surrounding heat. After the large amount of wine they had just consumed, even Ding Li felt faintly tipsy. He turned his head slightly and gazed gently at Liu Sheng, who was wholly absorbed in brewing tea. His fingers tapped the surface of the stone table without rhythm as he spoke calmly.

“Saiyi, four days from now, a shipment belonging to the Cao clan will dock at Fuxu Port to unload, after which it will be transported to Guangzhou Prefecture. Uncle Xiang wants us to disrupt the shipment. There’s another matter as well. You know Jin Sanpang, right? Find two sharp brothers to follow him over the next few days, but make absolutely certain there’s no confrontation. He’s half one of our own now.”

“Disrupt it? How? Do you want us to rob the Cao clan’s shipment? That’s the sort of thing bandits and brigands do!”

Saiyijade looked utterly perplexed. He truly could not understand how Uncle Xiang had arrived at such a decision. Then he nodded and continued, “Keeping an eye on Jin Sanpang will be easy. I can arrange it in a moment. Whatever he does tonight, you’ll know all about it by tomorrow morning, Brother Li.”

“Mm. Tell the brothers to be careful and not let themselves be discovered. It would look bad.”

Ding Li glanced at Saiyijade and nodded in warning. Then he slowly shook his head, his brow faintly furrowed, and sighed.

“The shipment is being escorted by Cao Si and Cao Chen. Uncle Xiang and the others must be very interested in it. But you were wrong just now. We’re not robbing it. We only need to damage it a little.”

As he spoke, Ding Li’s gaze toward Liu Sheng suddenly grew complicated. He slowly looked away and studied Saiyijade, whose expression had abruptly darkened. With a meaningful smile, he added, “Besides, courtesy demands reciprocity. Cao Si and Cao Chen have sent us gifts before. How could we fail to return the favor?”

Page (3/3)