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墨書 Inktalez
Those who come out of prison often seek a sauna to cleanse themselves of the dust of confinement. I dismissed the members of White Tiger Hall, leaving only a few to accompany me and Liuzi to the largest and most luxurious sauna in the Kyoto South District.
I had visited this sauna once before. As soon as I stepped inside, the Hall Manager approached me, eager to arrange everything. He recognized me and knew who I was.
"My friend has just been released; let’s order some pomelo leaves," I casually remarked to the manager.
"Ah, yes, yes! Brother Dong, please wait a moment, right away!" The Hall Manager smiled ingratiatingly as he led Liuzi and the others to the lounge before making arrangements for us.
Why did I choose this sauna? Because they had private VIP pools, each one an independent room that only accommodated one group of guests. This meant a pleasant environment without outsiders—much quieter.
"Brother Dong, you’ve really done well for yourself out there! I can’t believe what happened in those three months I was gone. How did you go from being a mere waiter at Tian Ye Group to becoming the boss of the Southern District?" Liuzi exclaimed in astonishment as he sat beside me, now addressing me as Brother Dong. I smiled; we were brothers after all. I didn’t mind what he called me—it was all good.
Indeed, some things had happened, but it was better not to mention them. Just call me Xiang Dong; no need for such formality among brothers.
I chuckled and said, "If we’re going to talk about it, it all starts with Linna. I don’t want anyone to know about that; it’s not good for anyone."
"Well, rules are rules! If I’m hanging out with a hall master, I have to call you Brother Dong!" Liuzi insisted. I could only smile helplessly.
"Let’s talk about you instead. How are those little brothers I sent your way? Did they help you out? Did you get any revenge on those who bullied you before?"
"Of course! You have no idea, Brother Dong! When I first got in there, they bullied me so much that I couldn’t even eat! They made me work all day and wouldn’t let me sleep at night!" Liuzi gritted his teeth.
I frowned at this revelation. While it made sense that they would make him work—who wouldn’t be lazy?—not letting him sleep was another matter entirely.
I asked him about it, and Liuzi explained that since there wasn’t much to do in prison, the other inmates took pleasure in bullying him for entertainment.
"So did you make them lose sleep too?" I inquired.
Liuzi laughed and replied, "Of course! And I made sure those little brothers took good care of him while in prison. But once they’re out? I swear I’ll make them pay!"
He clenched his teeth again. Understanding that Liuzi had endured three months of bullying and harbored deep resentment towards those who mistreated him, I patted his shoulder without saying a word.
The VIP room was ready, and Liuzi and I took a dip with a few of our brothers. The service was quite good; they even prepared a special pool filled with pomelo leaves for Liuzi.
While enjoying the sauna, we chatted happily, often reminiscing about some embarrassing moments from our past that made us laugh heartily.
I distinctly remember one time when Liuzi and I went bathing after having a few drinks. We had just finished singing and each had only fifty yuan left—enough for one ticket costing thirty yuan.
I suggested we save our money and just go home to sleep. But Liuzi insisted that soaking in a bath would help us sleep better. So off we went to find a bathhouse.
While I was taking a shower, a scrub master approached me and said, "Brother, how about a scrub?" I chuckled; supporting him wasn’t a problem, and we all have our struggles. However, I was a bit short on cash, so I asked how much it would cost. He told me twenty. I realized that the entrance fee was thirty, and with the scrub, it would be fifty. Luckily, I had exactly fifty on me, so I agreed to his offer.
I stepped into the scrubbing area, and at that moment, my friend Liuzi noticed me entering. He thought to himself that if I could afford fifty, then he could too. So, he followed me in.
The scrub master was quite generous; he must have had a customer who left half a bag of bath salt behind because he offered me some for free and gave me a few light taps on my back.
That was great. Liuzi and I weren’t too close together, and since the scrub master didn’t speak too loudly about the free treatment, he didn’t hear what was going on. At that moment, Liuzi's scrub master asked him if he wanted some bath salt too since his friend had gotten some. Liuzi thought, "Hey! If he got it for fifty, why can’t I?"
So now it was settled. I finished my treatment in about two minutes while Liuzi enjoyed his for over twenty minutes! After finishing with Liuzi, the scrub master informed him that the total cost was one hundred eighty-eight!
What the heck! Money wasn’t the issue! The problem was that I didn’t have it! We were both men here; after getting our treatments done, how could we ask for anything else? In the end, I paid the bill myself and borrowed two hundred from someone to cover Liuzi’s expenses when we returned to the bathing area! That guy had soaked for over two hours! He looked like a boiled lobster!
Haha! Just think about it; how could we have been so foolish back then? It was ridiculous!
Whenever this incident came up, Liuzi couldn’t help but burst into laughter. I was surprised because he used to forbid me from mentioning it to anyone; he found it too embarrassing, especially with his new little brother around.
"Weren't you against bringing this up?" I asked Liuzi. He laughed heartily and replied, "That was in the past. This is all behind us now; it will never come back. What’s so bad about sharing a laugh over it?"
Liuzi said this with such ease that I rolled my eyes. Some people are terrified of others mentioning their poverty when they’re struggling but once they find some wealth, they often bring up their past hardships. As Liuzi said, that’s all in the past and will never return; he’s not the same person anymore.
This just proved that Liuzi still had a bit of vanity in him, but who doesn’t have some vanity or aspirations in life?
After finishing our sauna session, I took Liuzi back to the Security Company headquarters. Regarding the situation at White Tiger Hall, I assigned someone specifically to inform Liuzi about what needed to be done and which venues required attention.
Liuzi knew Wan Fei but since Wan Fei wasn’t in Kyoto South District at that moment—he happened to be dealing with a customer in East District who had some trouble—he took care of it for us. Our Security Company wasn’t just sitting idle; we genuinely helped out when needed.
I hadn’t introduced Zheng Yu to Liuzi yet. Ever since our last plan began, Zheng Yu had been working closely with me under Chen Yanjing’s identity. Chen often called him for confidential discussions. Currently, Chen wanted Zheng Yu to investigate how many copies of a certain video were made and who held them. Zheng Yu had been dragging his feet on this matter and was called away by Chen again.
In my opinion, we could have confronted Chen about this long ago since Zheng Yu found himself in a difficult position being caught in between. However, Zheng Yu rejected my good intentions; according to him, maintaining this relationship with Chen meant that if Chen ever made any moves against me, we would be able to respond quickly. It might be tiring but there were no downsides to it.
From this point, it is clear that Zheng Yu is genuinely putting in a lot of effort to help me, and I am very grateful. After going through so much, even though Zheng Yu's identity is not what it seems, I have given him enough trust. He knows all the ins and outs of the matters I handle.
The dust has settled, and you know where the company is. Hurry back home to see your grandmother; she has been worried sick while you’ve been away. If you have any questions, just ask Xiao Hu. He’s an old hand at White Tiger Hall and knows how to handle things well.
I told Liu Zi that I brought him to the company so he could familiarize himself with it for future visits. Xiao Hu is the assistant I arranged for Liu Zi to help him manage things.
“Okay, then I’ll head out now!” Liu Zi replied, shaking his Mercedes-Benz car keys with immense joy as he left my office with Xiao Hu.
About two hours later, Liu Zi called me.
“Hey, Dong Ge, I heard there’s a beautiful woman who often comes to take care of my grandmother? Who is she? My grandmother really likes her and keeps asking me to bring her back!”
When Liu Zi mentioned this, I was taken aback! A beautiful woman? Frequently visiting Liu Zi's grandmother? That must be Linna!
Thinking about it, it really could be her; Liu Zi’s grandmother has always treated Linna like a granddaughter-in-law!
“Ahem! It’s nothing much; she’s just my girlfriend who often visits,” I coughed lightly and said. I could share the money with Liu Zi; that was fair! But my girlfriend? No way! That would be crossing a line!
Linna is mine! I immediately told Liu Zi that she was my girlfriend! It was like marking my territory, similar to how a dog would urinate to claim its space.
“Huh? Sister-in-law? Oh, I thought it was someone else! Dong Ge, with how well you’re doing now, how could you still be single? You can’t fool your mom this time by renting a girlfriend!”
Liu Zi joked with me. I laughed it off and didn’t say much. Then he mentioned wanting to meet Dong Sao in person to thank her for taking care of his grandmother while he was away.
But I refused.
Although Liu Zi's request was reasonable, Linna is the little princess of Tian Ye Group, and since Liu Zi will be working there in the future, it’s better if fewer people know about this. If someone recognizes Linna and discovers our relationship, it could spell trouble!
Moreover, knowing about this situation wouldn’t be good for Liu Zi either. It’s much safer for him to remain unaware than to be in the loop.
“Dong Ge, what’s wrong with you? Are you afraid I’ll steal her away? It’s been months since we last met; are you getting stingy?” Liu Zi laughed.
Hearing this made me helplessly smile. “It’s not about being stingy; there are many things involved here. It’s better if you don’t meet my girlfriend.”
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