Blinded chapter 13
Xie Li woke up very early the next day.
It had rained all night, and the raindrops on the window made a noisy sound. Now, as Xie Li opened the window, he felt the cold wind with a scent of mud and sea, hitting his face. The ground was still wet. Across the street, a couple had set up a stall selling breakfast. The pregnant wife was tidying up the tables and chairs after the customers left.
Xie Li went downstairs, checked out, and carried his travel bag across the street to the breakfast stall for a bowl of noodles. After that, he walked in the direction of the Lixin Pier along the main street of Wangfu Town.
Knowing that it was still early, Xie Li walked slowly. However, he still arrived at Lixin Pier more than half an hour earlier than the release time yesterday. In front of him, separated by an iron gate, was the management office of the Fish Island Prison at the pier. Beyond the iron gate, there was only a deserted area with a provincial road.
Xie Li squatted on a smooth large stone, looking towards the sea through the iron gate. He couldn’t see the trace of the prison guard boat from the outside.
He waited for more than ten minutes. A taxi stopped by the roadside, and an elderly couple got out. The two supported each other as they walked to the side of the iron gate, looking inside, talking to each other in hushed voices.
After a few more minutes, two black sedans stopped in front of the prison management office’s iron gate. After the cars stopped, no one got out for a long time. From Xie Li’s perspective, he could only see the reflection on the car window, unable to see the people inside clearly. However, he knew that these two cars were here to pick up Chang Xiaojia.
The elderly couple waiting at the iron gate suddenly became excited.
Xie Li stood up to take a look and saw the trace of a police boat on the sea.
At this moment, the rear car door opened. Three men in black suits got out. One of them looked thin, resembling Chang Xiaojia in some aspects. They walked to the side of the iron gate.
The process of the police boat approaching the shore seemed unusually slow. Xie Li put his hands in his coat pockets and slowly approached the iron gate. The three men in black suits turned their heads to look at him simultaneously, and the thin young man looked at him for a long time before turning his head back.
Suddenly, Xie Li remembered that when Yu Zhengkun first came to Chongfeng City to meet him, he was not very satisfied. At that time, Yu Zhengkun said that he was too eye-catching, easily attracting excessive attention wherever he went. When undercover in the enemy’s camp, it was natural to be as inconspicuous as possible.
At that time, Xie Li said to Yu Zhengkun, “It depends on whether the chief wants an inconspicuous little thug who can blend into Hongfang or someone who can truly get in touch with the inside of Hongfang.”
After some hesitation, Yu Zhengkun was persuaded by Xie Li. That’s why Xie Li was now standing here waiting for Chang Xiaojia to be released.
The police boat finally reached the shore, blocked by the buildings of the prison management office, so Xie Li couldn’t see the process of them getting off the boat from the outside. After waiting for more than ten minutes, Xie Li finally saw three people in casual clothes walking out with the prison guards.
Chang Xiaojia walked to the back. Three men in black suits walked up to him, addressing him respectfully and indifferently, “Second Young Master.”
Xie Li stood aside and watched without going over.
Chang Xiaojia nodded to them.
The thin young man said to Chang Xiaojia, “Second Young Master, the Eldest Young Master has come to pick you up.”
Hearing this, Xie Li’s heart stirred slightly. He turned to look at the black sedan parked in front. At this moment, a man in a black suit got out of the front passenger seat. He opened the rear door, first, a pair of legs in a suit and trousers extended from inside, and then a tall man got out of the car. He was wearing a well-fitted dark gray suit, his thick black hair carefully combed up to reveal a full forehead. His appearance was handsome, resembling Chang Xiaojia, but his eyes were slightly narrow, unlike Chang Xiaojia’s round black eyes, making his overall temperament more rugged.
Chang Xin, Xie Li thought of a name.
Chang Xin left his suit jacket open, revealing the black suit vest and white shirt underneath. He saw Chang Xiaojia and showed a smile, opening his arms, saying, “Xiaojia, come.”
Chang Xiaojia looked at him, expressionless but still walked over. He stood in front of Chang Xin, letting Chang Xin hug him, and received a kiss on his forehead.
Chang Xin said, “Our Xiaojia is out of prison.” He seemed very happy.
Chang Xiaojia remained silent.
Chang Xin let go of the arms holding him, changed to holding his hands, lowered his head to examine him, and said, “Our Xiaojia has lost weight. Shall we go back and have some delicious food?”
Chang Xiaojia looked at him and replied, “Okay.”
Chang Xin smiled and took his hand, leading him into the car. Before bending down to enter the car, Chang Xin suddenly stopped. He looked at Xie Li and asked Chang Xiaojia, “Is he your friend?”
Xie Li stood in place, looking at Chang Xiaojia.
Without hesitation, Chang Xiaojia coldly replied, “No, I don’t know him.”
Chang Xin smiled and touched his face, “Alright, let’s go.”
Xie Li watched as Chang Xiaojia and Chang Xin got into the back seat of the sedan together. The other young men in black suits also returned to their respective cars. The two cars left in tandem, and as the wheels passed a puddle on the roadside, splashing water, two droplets landed on Xie Li’s shoes.
Now that Chang Xiaojia had left, Xie Li had no reason to stay in Wangfu. He walked back to the town from Lixin Pier. When he borrowed a landline from a grocery store to inform Yu Zhengkun of the current situation, he also took an hour-long bus ride back to the Harbor city center.
Xie Li had only been to Harbor City when he was very young. As a port city, Harbor City was much more prosperous than Chongfeng City, where he was born and raised. The environment was also more complex. There were numerous criminal cases every year, consuming a lot of police resources. Traditional factions had persisted and continued to survive in this highly modernized city.
It was said that Hongfang, and Juyi, were both branches of the Hongmen, originating from “Han Liu.” The initial claim was to resist the Qing Dynasty and restore the Ming Dynasty. However, now, whether it was Hongfang or Juyi, they had long forgotten their original intentions and oaths. The only remaining purposes for both joining the factions and the factions themselves were money and power.
After getting off the bus, Xie Li meaninglessly wandered around the bustling Harbor city center. Yu Zhengkun gave him a few addresses, all belonging to Hongfang’s bars and industries. One of the bars was where Chang Xiaojia took away the female police officer. Yu Zhengkun suggested that Xie Li find a way to get himself inside.
However, Xie Li felt that it was not necessary for the time being; it would make his intentions too obvious. Finally, he found a quiet alley and stayed in a cheap small hotel. He first booked a room and then left the hotel.
Xie Li listened to the noisy sounds of the cars passing by on the street even though he was in a quiet alley. After a busy day, when he returned to the hotel and lay down, it was already evening.
Lying on the bed, Xie Li lit a cigarette. Before going to sleep, he walked through the corridor in front of the room to the bathroom. He noticed two small cards that had been pushed through the door gap, lying on the floor. He picked them up, and they were all business cards for prostitutes. He casually threw them into the trash can.
The curtains in the room had no blackout layer. Even with the lights off, the room was not pitch black. Although it was in a backstreet alley, being in the city center, Xie Li could still clearly hear the sounds of cars on the street.
Xie Li turned over in bed, feeling a bit spaced out. The bed underneath him wasn’t very comfortable, but he gradually fell asleep.
He slept for who knows how long before being awakened by a knocking sound at the door. He reached out from under the blanket, ran his hand through his hair, and, with a furrowed brow, opened the table lamp. He picked up his phone to check the time; it was around two in the morning.
Getting up from the bed, he put on long pants over his underwear, leaving the zipper only half done, and didn’t bother with buttons or a belt. Wearing slippers, he walked to the door and asked in a low voice, “Who is it?”
An unfamiliar voice from outside asked, “Is it Mr. Xie Li?”
Xie Li raised his hand to secure the chain lock on the door, then opened it slightly, looking outside.
In the dim light of the corridor stood a slim figure. With the faint light, Xie Li recognized him as the young man in a black suit who had gone to Lixin Pier to pick up Chang Xiaojia earlier in the morning.
The young man was still wearing a black suit, but this time without a tie. A few buttons of his shirt were undone, and his hair wasn’t particularly neat. He looked at Xie Li and said, “Is it Mr. Xie?”
Xie Li responded with an indifferent expression, “Who are you?” as if he had never seen him before.
The young man spoke in a stiff tone without much fluctuation in his attitude, “Mr. Chang would like to invite you over.”
Xie Li frowned, “Where to?”
The young man said, “To his place.”
Xie Li gave a cold smile and said, “I’m not going.” After that, he directly raised his hand to close the door.
He stood behind the door for a moment, then walked toward the window of the room. From there, he could see the alley outside the hotel’s main entrance. Several cars were parked in the alley, and they had been there since the evening. No other cars were visible.
Returning to the bedside, Xie Li sat down. He didn’t continue lying down to sleep, and he didn’t even take off his pants. He just lit a cigarette for himself and sat on the bed smoking, feeling somewhat restless.
He felt like he was starting to develop a bit of a smoking habit.
After a while, voices could be heard from the corridor. It sounded like a man and a woman entering the adjacent room. The sound insulation of the small hotel rooms was not very good, and he could intermittently hear the voices of two people talking in the room next door.
After Xie Li finished smoking a cigarette, he took a deep breath, opened the window for ventilation, and was about to take off his pants to lie down when he heard the knocking sound again.
Xie Li’s heart rate quickened. He pulled back the halfway-removed pants, leaving the zipper undone this time. Standing by the bed, he silently waited for over ten seconds, then walked to the front of the door, opening it slightly once again.
Chang Xiaojia stood in the corridor, wearing a white shirt and well-ironed suit pants. He looked calmly at the chain blocking the door gap and said coldly, “Open the door.”