“Boss, are we going to help her escape?” Cao Six asked Ke Yixiong timidly.
They’d helped murderers escape before, but this woman was fleeing from justice for hiring thugs to prevent her cousin from taking college entrance exams. And that cousin wasn’t just anyone – it was Xia Xiaolan, whom Ke Yixiong had once liked.
Xia Ziyu had been hiding in Guangzhou for over ten days. Several times, Cao Six thought their boss would turn her in, but surprisingly, Xia Ziyu had managed to stay safely hidden until now.
Cao Six felt that since the boss hadn’t forgotten Xia Xiaolan, this was a perfect opportunity!
“Maybe we shouldn’t take her money for this?”
Cao Six suggested tentatively. Ke Yixiong gave him a cold look: “If a woman desperately seeks our help, do you think I could take both her money and her person? No matter how important Xia Xiaolan is, can she compare to the brothers who’ve stood by me for years? Since Boss Du has asked us to help her escape, we must ensure this woman’s safe passage.”
Cao Six had nothing more to say.
This was why Ke Yixiong was the leader and he was just a subordinate.
Because Ke Yixiong kept a clear head and always prioritized his brothers’ interests, despite his young age, he commanded respect from all sorts of people.
“Boss, you’re going through such trouble!”
“What trouble? Du Zhaohui better keep his word. We’re doing him this favor, he owes us an opportunity. If he dares play us, Hong Kong’s Du family or not, on the mainland even a dragon must learn to lie low. The scrutiny in Guangzhou should have eased by now, but the longer we wait, the riskier it gets. Let’s get this woman out quickly.”
Since Du Zhaohui asked him to handle this, it proved Du Zhaohui couldn’t manage such matters himself.
Of course, one reason was that Du Zhaohui was a high-profile figure and surely under surveillance. Another was that Du Zhaohui himself wasn’t willing to risk anything for Xia Ziyu, so he passed the task to Ke Yixiong.
If caught, it would be Ke Yixiong’s problem, not tracing back to Du Zhaohui!
Ke Yixiong sneered. Du Zhaohui was calculating indeed, but since the Du family in Hong Kong was already involved in criminal activities, Ke Yixiong knew what kind of person Du Zhaohui was.
Harboring Xia Ziyu had already been a huge risk; helping her escape was a separate matter.
One was a favor Du Zhaohui owed, the other required Xia Ziyu’s payment.
Unexpectedly, Xia Ziyu had considerable wealth, though her money would be useless in Hong Kong – she needed Ke Yixiong to exchange it for Hong Kong dollars. Xia Ziyu produced 120,000 yuan, and Ke Yixiong exchanged it for 20,000 Hong Kong dollars.
When he handed over the money, she dared not voice her anger despite feeling it.
“The rest is for the risk we’re taking. Miss Xia surely understands?”
Ke Yixiong’s scrutinizing gaze made Xia Ziyu uncomfortable. Better to lose money than risk worse – she still needed Ke Yixiong’s protection until she reached Hong Kong, so she could only swallow her pride.
She misunderstood Ke Yixiong’s intentions. He was quite discriminating – Xia Ziyu’s beauty required careful grooming, and while on the run, she couldn’t be so conspicuous. Even with makeup, she was only moderately attractive, now reduced by half. Ke Yixiong was looking for any resemblance to Xia Xiaolan in her face – strangely, among the three Xia sisters, Xia Ziyu and Xia Xiaolan looked nothing alike.
Ke Yixiong tossed the money to Xia Ziyu:
“You’ll leave tonight. A word of warning – keep your money safe. If someone on the boat steals it, we’re not responsible.”
Xia Ziyu harbored hatred – they took so much of her money yet wouldn’t protect what remained?
Even smuggling by boat to Hong Kong would only cost two or three thousand yuan for a comfortable journey! Ke Yixiong had taken far more than ten times that amount. The money she’d worked so hard to get from Xia Dajun and Du Zhaohui had ended up benefiting this Guangzhou gang leader!
Being at others’ mercy, she had no choice but to submit. Though seething inside, Xia Ziyu softened her voice:
“Thank you, I’ll be careful.”
Xia Ziyu made some promises about future repayment, but Ke Yixiong couldn’t be bothered to listen.
What could you expect from a woman who abandoned even her parents? No wonder she got mixed up with Du Zhaohui – birds of a feather.
At nine that night, Ke Yixiong’s men took Xia Ziyu out. Head wrapped in a scarf, she rode on a motorcycle, bouncing along until they reached the seaside.
Seeing the small fishing boat, her face changed.
Such a tiny vessel – if they encountered rough seas, there’d be no escape.
It was already early May when typhoons might appear. Though the probability was low, it wasn’t zero!
“Get on board, stop dawdling.”
Xia Ziyu was pushed onto the boat.
She had no choice. Contacting Ke Yixiong had been on Du Zhaohui’s advice, and now without support, she could only endure these indignities. The fishing boat reeked of fish, and Xia Ziyu became severely seasick shortly after boarding. Being from South Henan province, though Dahe Village had a river, river, and sea turbulence were incomparable.
Xia Ziyu vomited until she was disoriented. She complained about the boat’s smell, while the crew complained about her vomit, dragging her to the edge to throw up into the sea.
Xia Ziyu vomited until she was weak all over, without an ounce of strength left.
She felt hands searching her body, thinking the crew had ill intentions. Instead, those hands were searching for and stealing the money she had hidden in different places!
As the sea tossed them about and the small fishing boat rocked back and forth, Xia Ziyu felt death might be preferable.
…
While Xia Ziyu suffered humiliation at sea.
Xia Xiaolan took Liu Fen to stay at the White Cloud Hotel in Guangzhou.
The first time she brought Liu Fen to Guangzhou, she had promised to bring her here, but back then, mother and daughter could only afford small guesthouses.
Now it was different – when Xia Xiaolan wanted to stay at this hotel, even Liu Fen didn’t call it wasteful.
Liu Fen was puzzled about something else:
“Xiaolan, are we buying a car? I can’t drive, and it’s quite expensive.”
It was indeed expensive.
Even with connections to buy a seized smuggled car from customs that would suit Liu Fen, it would still cost tens of thousands. With that money, they could buy another courtyard house in Beijing.
Economically, it didn’t make sense.
But as always, Xia Xiaolan had previously thought it wasteful because she and her family didn’t need a car.
Now they needed one, and money spent on the family was never wasteful:
“Mom, you couldn’t ride a bicycle before, but now you can, right? Driving isn’t much harder. When we get back to Beijing, I’ll find a skilled instructor to teach you. If you can learn business, you can learn to drive… Trust me, making money is already one of the hardest things in this world!”
Liu Fen felt embarrassed by the praise.
But thinking about it, she didn’t dwell on it too much.
The Xia family might be in disarray now, but Liu Fen hadn’t changed her desire to be a successful woman. She didn’t want success for the Xia family’s sake, but because that’s how she wanted to live! Might as well buy it – the tens of thousands spent on the car could be earned back through the clothing stores.
The bed at the White Cloud Hotel was truly soft.
In this place that could accommodate foreign guests, Liu Fen now lying in luxury felt like she was dreaming. When Xia Xiaolan had said they could stay here before, she’d achieved it in just over a year…