The deceased was named Bai Yinhua, the elder brother of Bai Shi. The man who had dealt the blow was Lu Mingyue, one of Bai Shi’s subordinates.
It was Sunday, and although Bai Shi was busy, he had specifically carved out time at eight in the evening to witness his brother’s death with his own eyes.
According to their plan, Bai Yinhua wasn't supposed to die in a dark alley. He was meant to die at the Bai family’s private pier, sealed inside an oil drum, encased in concrete, and sunk forever into the depths of the sea—all for Bai Shi’s personal satisfaction.
The problem arose when Bai Yinhua woke up in the trunk while Lu Mingyue was driving him to the pier. Not only did he wake up, but he managed to pry open the trunk lid and roll out of the moving vehicle.
Lu Mingyue, who was driving at the time, had 6ix9ine blasting at deafening volumes. He was busy bobbing his head and rapping along to the profanities in the lyrics. It wasn't until he had driven another kilometer and the music paused between tracks that he noticed the trunk was wide open.
He pulled over on a secluded path overgrown with wild grass and lit a cigarette.
The road was so remote that there wasn't a single light to be seen other than his own headlamps.
Lu Mingyue scratched his head and sighed, muttering to himself, "What a pain... The boss is killing his last brother today and even came out specifically to watch. If I screw this up, he’s going to dock my pay again." He turned the steering wheel and drove the car into the thick, towering grass.
He looked up at the moon, squinting through the smoke of the cigarette dangling from his lips. "Ah... so annoying... Why do these troublesome things always happen to me?"
The moon was obscured by clouds.
Lu Mingyue turned off the music and stepped out of the car. He opened the back door, pulled out a shotgun, and racked the slide with a sharp *clack-clack*. He took the cigarette out of his mouth, flicked the ash, blew a smoke ring, and then bit back down on the filter. Frowning, he began to search along the roadside with visible reluctance.
"Man... when can I finally retire?"
He muttered to himself as he bent low, scanning the ground.
"Ah, found you."
In a patch of flattened grass, Lu Mingyue spotted a trail left by frantic, stumbling footsteps. He took the cigarette out of his mouth and crushed it in his palm; the embers scorched his skin, drawing a sharp hiss of pain.
Bai Yinhua was stumbling forward, desperate to escape this backroad and the desolate wilderness. Ahead, where the lights were, lay the border of the city districts...
*Faster...!*
Seeing the lights draw closer, a spark of hope finally ignited within him. He quickened his pace.
Then, a heavy boot slammed into his face.
The force of the kick sent Bai Yinhua flying. He bounced off the ground and rolled several meters.
He lifted his head, trying to discern the silhouette before him in the gloom.
A young man approached, his face a mask of boredom. He carried a shotgun over his shoulder and walked with a slow, leisurely gait. He was completely unguarded, certain that the man before him had no strength left to fight back.
Bai Yinhua shuddered. Only a few hours ago, this man had been dressed as a waiter, fawning over him while he drank. In the blink of an eye, he had become an assassin. Bai Yinhua swung a desperate fist, only for his arm to be pinned to the ground by a boot. The man ground his heavy sole down, snapping the bones in Bai Yinhua’s hand.
Bai Yinhua screamed at him, trying to muster some semblance of authority. "Who sent you! Tell me! What is he giving you? I’ll double it! I’ll triple it!"
The man let out a short laugh and brought the gun level.
His phone rang.
The man pulled out his phone, his face clouding with misery as he stared at the screen. He sighed and answered.
Bai Yinhua watched as the man’s tone shifted to one of profound respect.
"Ah... it's me..."
"...Something came up..."
"I'm sorry, how about..."
"...Right..."
"I understand."
He hung up, flipped his hand to knock Bai Yinhua unconscious with the butt of the gun, hoisted him over his shoulder, and began walking toward the lights.
Following the instructions from the call, Lu Mingyue stuck to the shadows and arrived at a dim alleyway. Several men were already waiting for him, arms crossed. They turned to look at him. "You're too slow."
Lu Mingyue unceremoniously dumped the body on the ground. He licked his lips and whispered, "Is the boss... here?"
A hand landed on his shoulder from behind. A voice answered, "I am."
Lu Mingyue jumped, sidestepping quickly. "About today..."
Bai Shi nodded. "Don't bother. You're wasting my time."
Lu Mingyue shut his mouth.
Bai Shi kicked the prone Bai Yinhua—specifically, he kicked his head against the wall, jarring him awake.
Bai Yinhua struggled to open his eyes. He wiped the blood from his vision and looked around. He found himself in a pitch-black space, and crouching before him was...
"Bai Shi?!"
Bai Shi looked at him calmly.
It had been a long time since Bai Yinhua had seen his younger brother. Bai Shi had grown tall. He wore a crisp shirt and held an off-white overcoat in his hands. The faint lines of muscle were visible on his arms. His face was as impassive as ever, framed by silver-rimmed glasses. Crouching there, staring at him, he looked like an elegant leopard.
Bai Yinhua looked at the men standing behind Bai Shi. He blinked slowly as the realization dawned on him. "You? You're the one who killed them... our brothers..."
Bai Shi looked at him as if he were an idiot, offering no reply.
After a long silence, Bai Shi shrugged and turned to his companions, a hint of disappointment in his expression. "I thought I’d be happy. It turns out it’s just... this."
He stood up and glanced at Lu Mingyue. "Do it."
Lu Mingyue drew a short knife from his jacket and kicked Bai Yinhua. "Get up."
Bai Yinhua didn't move.
Lu Mingyue slapped him across the head, sending him crashing into the wall again. Blood began to seep from his scalp. Lu Mingyue pressed the knife against his forehead, his voice flat. "Get up, now. I want to clock out."
Bai Yinhua used the wall for support and slowly stood up. He stared at Bai Shi, his mind racing for a way to survive. "You wouldn't dare fire a gun here, would you? No matter how remote this is, it's still the city. Someone could pass by at any moment..."
His eyes darted around. "Isn't that right? You've already eliminated everyone else in the Bai family. You've naturally taken over all the businesses, legal and illegal... There's really no need for this. You know me; I have no interest in these things. I'm not like Bai Jiang or Bai Hai. I never liked fighting for power... My share, I can legally transfer it all to you... There's no need to go this far..."
He raised his hands to show he was no threat.
"You've worked hard all these years. I know you've always held a grudge against us," Bai Yinhua forced a smile. "But no matter what, we are still brothers..."
There was no response.
Bai Yinhua swallowed hard, nervously searching his brother's face for a reaction, but he found only stillness.
Bai Yinhua tried to smile again. "Why does it have to be here? Are you in such a hurry to kill me? Don't you think this place is inappropriate? Why don't we..."
Bai Shi suddenly smiled—a thin, placid smile that carried the patronizing encouragement of a superior watching an inferior. "Look at that. Look at the way this moron tries to use his brain."
Bai Yinhua froze. He shifted his gaze, caught a glimpse of light at the end of the alley, and shifted his feet.
Faster than him, Lu Mingyue grabbed his jaw, shoved the gun barrel into his mouth, and shattered his kneecap with a single kick. Bai Yinhua screamed, but the sound was muffled by the steel in his mouth, reduced to a pathetic whimpering.
Lu Mingyue turned to explain to Bai Shi, "Looked like he was going to run."
Bai Shi nodded indifferently.
Lu Mingyue pulled out the knife again, gave it a flourish, and plunged it into Bai Yinhua’s abdomen. As he went to withdraw the blade, Bai Yinhua, driven by a sudden burst of desperation, gripped Lu Mingyue’s hand with all his might.
Blood sprayed everywhere. Lu Mingyue punched Bai Yinhua, left the knife embedded in him, and stepped back.
He looked at Bai Yinhua with total apathy. "It's useless. You can keep the knife. It was yours to begin with, anyway."
Bai Yinhua leaned against the wall, shuffling sideways step by step.
Bai Shi watched his struggle with a touch of mock sentiment. "Why bother?"
Bai Yinhua pressed his hands against his stomach, trying to keep the knife in place to stem the bleeding. His vision was blurring, but he kept shuffling sideways. It was the only thing he could do—move toward the light.
Bai Shi grew bored. He stepped forward, took his brother’s hand, and gave the knife handle a full, brutal twist. Bai Yinhua went into immediate convulsions.
A tall man standing at the back took a step forward. "Boss, it's better if you don't touch him yourself."
Bai Shi ignored him.
He kept his hand on the hilt and said calmly, "You want to run? I'll help you."
He crudely yanked the knife handle, dragging the man toward the light. In his agony, Bai Yinhua couldn't keep his grip steady; the blade sliced a long gash across his abdomen. He could almost feel his intestines spilling out. He frantically grabbed the knife again, forced to follow the direction Bai Shi was pulling just to minimize the excruciating pain.
Lu Mingyue clicked his tongue in the background. *The boss is at it again.* He turned to the tall man. "Wouldn't a gun be better?"
The tall man shook his head. "It's better not to cross him."
They were close to the exit now. Bai Shi spun him around, forcing him to look at the dim light just a dozen paces away. Standing behind him, Bai Shi placed a hand on his shoulder and whispered, "Do you see the light?"
Bai Yinhua clutched the knife in his gut, shaking violently from blood loss. His vision was a haze, but he could still catch the glow. He nodded stiffly.
Bai Shi whispered again, "Go on. Walk toward it. Once you reach the light, you'll be saved. I won't follow you."
Bai Yinhua swallowed a mouthful of blood. Like a man who had lost his soul, he began to move. He walked like the living dead toward that faint glimmer. Blood soaked his trousers and dripped onto the pavement, leaving a trail of wet footprints. The knife he was desperately holding could no longer stop the surging tide of blood. He was like a piece of rotting meat attempting an escape.
Then, with a dull thud, he collided with someone.
A voice rang out: "Damn, you scared the hell out of me."
Bai Shi tensed. The men behind him tensed as well.
Bai Shi gripped the knife in his pocket. The men behind him reached for their own blades and guns.
Bai Shi made a gesture, stopping the men from moving forward.
From his position, he could clearly see that Bai Yinhua had run into someone. However, because the other men were behind a corner, they couldn't see the newcomer. This meant that the only person the newcomer could see was him. Bai Shi didn't move. He could see the person's face clearly. The light level here was almost the same as at the exit, which meant the person could see his face too. He had Bai Yinhua’s blood on him; Bai Yinhua had his fingerprints on him. If this person testified, things would become very complicated. Blood had splattered onto his glasses. He looked down, let the glasses slide down his nose, and quietly took them off, folding them into his pocket.
The person didn't seem to meet his eyes. He actually reached out to touch Bai Yinhua.
The person was very close to Bai Yinhua, seemingly unaware of what was happening.
The person touched the knife.
Bai Shi began to calculate.
Bai Yinhua collapsed onto the ground.
The obstacle between Bai Shi and the stranger was finally gone. Bai Shi looked at the person again. The face looked familiar—if it weren't for the black hair.
Bai Shi took a few steps forward. The dazed person suddenly snapped his head up, looking in the direction of the footsteps.
Bai Shi froze. Those eyes...
Pei Cangyu?
Pei Cangyu’s eyes were fixed on his face, trembling with a hollow, vacant stare.
Bai Shi suddenly realized something: Pei Cangyu hadn't noticed him at all until he started walking forward. Only now was his silhouette reflected in Pei Cangyu’s eyes. It had nothing to do with the positioning or the lighting he had analyzed; it was simply because Pei Cangyu was too panicked to notice him. He could have slipped away entirely.
Bai Shi cursed inwardly.
He thought for a moment, then spoke. "You..."
Pei Cangyu’s trembling lips finally forced out words: "It's me... do you remember me?"
In an instant, Bai Shi understood exactly what Pei Cangyu was thinking.
He almost laughed, but he suppressed it.
He stared intensely at Pei Cangyu and said, "You killed someone."
Pei Cangyu blurted out a curse. "I fucking—"
***
