Reservoir Dogs chapter 11
Lean Bones
When Jiang Chengyuan said this, Lin Shen, usually calm and composed, found it hard to maintain his usual demeanor. No matter how he looked at Xiao Zhou, he couldn’t see any charm that would overshadow others. His thin, hard bones, poverty, and fierce eyes, with a white scar under his brow that looked like a thug from the underworld.
He hesitated for a moment before saying, “In the past, when others offered you someone, you refused. I thought you had high standards, but now it seems you’re just picky and haven’t figured out your taste.”
Jiang Chengyuan was always straightforward. Bringing Xiao Zhou here, he didn’t fear gossip or criticism. Perhaps he was even using him as a shield to ward off trouble. “Don’t you like him? I think he’s quite good in bed.”
Lin Shen was shocked by his vulgarity and directness. Normally eloquent and sharp in court, he was caught off guard now. After a pause, he asked, “Is your condition any better?”
He knew something about Jiang Chengyuan’s glandular issues. He had seen him suffer firsthand, the clash of two alphas like a confrontation, Jiang Chengyuan’s pheromones being too dominant and authoritative, almost pushing him into his sensitive period. A man who was usually well-groomed had degenerated into a beast fighting for alpha dominance.
Once, Lin Shen accompanied Jiang Chengyuan to a social event shortly after their law firm was established, aiming to attract big clients. After dinner, they relaxed at a club. The owner wanted to keep them overnight and had arranged omegas to serve them. It wasn’t out of goodwill but rather a strategy to establish relationships through questionable means, ensuring future interactions without inhibition, as if holding leverage over each other, understanding their true natures.
Jiang Chengyuan consistently refused, offending the boss who, when Jiang Chengyuan went to the restroom, had one of his omegas drip blood into their wine.
Lin Shen watched without intervening. He had just met Jiang Chengyuan and they were only cooperating for work, doing everything for the good of the law firm.
When Jiang Chengyuan returned and was persuaded to drink, he unwittingly consumed wine tainted with omega blood. Fifteen minutes later, the scent of pheromones in the room began to change, and Jiang Chengyuan’s demeanor and gaze altered.
With a soft noise, the chopsticks in his hand slipped and fell to the ground.
The boss was satisfied with his intentions, leaving an omega behind and asking Lin Shen and others to leave, allowing them to enjoy the evening.
The next level was a bathing area. After chatting for a while, Lin Shen, feeling uneasy, returned under the pretext of something and pushed open the door. He was immediately assaulted by an overpowering scent of alpha pheromones. He felt dizzy and could barely stand.
With his hand on the door frame, veins bulging, blood reacted to the invasion of unfamiliar alpha pheromones, boiling in his veins like a frenzy.
Struggling to regain his composure, he saw a terrifying scene before him. The room was dark, the curtains torn, illuminated only by cold moonlight filtering through large glass windows, casting an eerie atmosphere over the European-style decor, all bathed in a deathly stillness, with mercury-like liquid pooling on the floor.
Jiang Chengyuan was covered in blood, clutching the neck of his subordinate tightly, muscles taut. The omega beneath him was nearly choked to death. Dishes and cups were shattered, lights smashed, as if a fierce battle had taken place.
Sensing Lin Shen pushing the door, Jiang Chengyuan turned to look at him.
His eyes were bloodshot, even the whites tinged with crimson.
Lin Shen struggled to describe Jiang Chengyuan’s gaze at that moment—ferocious, as if he wanted to devour someone, yet crazed with sorrow. From deeper within flowed a deathly silence, abruptly shocking Lin Shen, making it difficult to discern the person he was seeing.
The situation, however, left him little time for shock, as the person in Jiang Chengyuan’s grasp was truly on the verge of death, eyes bulging, face blue-purple, tongue stiff. Lin Shen shouted, “Stop, he’s dying!”
As if awakened, Jiang Chengyuan turned to look at the person beneath him, then hastily released his grip and stepped back.
Lin Shen rushed in to check on the omega’s condition. After a moment of gasping for air, he began to calm down, though he was terrified and struggled frantically, mentally disoriented. He had wounds, but not severe, likely less so than those on Jiang Chengyuan’s body.
Lin Shen breathed a sigh of relief, relieved he hadn’t committed a crime. Turning back, he found Jiang Chengyuan had collapsed unconscious on the ground.
Jiang Chengyuan was taken to the hospital afterward. They never discussed the incident, but Jiang Chengyuan surely had a story. Their relationship didn’t warrant such discussion.
He only knew Jiang Chengyuan’s glands had been injured, affecting his pheromone secretion, unable to tolerate stimulation, always relying on medication to suppress them.
So it’s no wonder he lived an ascetic life, like a monk in a monastery.
Yet now he had chosen an omega for himself, leaving Lin Shen bewildered.
Jiang Chengyuan listened to Lin Shen’s question but simply shook his head, avoiding the topic.
He walked over to Xiao Zhou. Xiao Zhou remained relatively calm, showing no discomfort towards Jiang Chengyuan’s approach.
Xiao Zhou’s expression was too composed. Except for occasional moments of distraction or when pressured to anger, most of the time, he wore a mask of clay, expressionless. Compared to his usual restraint, even when embarrassed, it added a bit of humanity, making him somewhat endearing.
He asked softly, his tone unexpectedly gentle, “Is everything done?”
Xiao Zhou lowered his head. “Yes, I’m just waiting here.”
As soon as he said this, Sun Xu came over with a stack of newspapers, seeing a group of people gathered around his seat, thinking something had happened. “What’s going on?”
Jiang Chengyuan stood up straight, turning his gaze towards him. “Where did you go?”
Sun Xu glanced at Lin Shen, then turned to hand the documents to Jiang Chengyuan and showed him his phone. “It’s blown up in the news. I don’t know who started it, but the media is all over it now.”
Jiang Chengyuan scanned through it. Suddenly, Zhou Jun’s case had spread, becoming a hot topic of public concern. The headlines were all about reporters interviewing Xu Cuiping, sensationalizing accusations directly implicating Zhou Jun in the murder of his wife and child, pushing them down the stairs and covering it up as suicide. In some videos, Xu Cuiping’s tearful accusations were highly compelling, moving the journalists to choked-up emotions. Some reporters even besieged the police responsible for the investigation, with the microphone surrounding the embarrassed and awkward expression of the police officers, until a deputy director responsible for criminal cases vaguely deflected by saying the investigation was still ongoing.
Finally, a young lawyer came forward, admitting he had been commissioned by Xu Cuiping and would be involved in the entire process of the case until the truth was uncovered and the culprit was brought to justice.
The video was emotional, draped in the grand illusion of justice and righteousness, barely touching on the details of the case, delving deeply into backgrounds and personal relationships, displaying a high level of manipulation and eye-catching sensationalism.
There was a great deal of sympathy and indignation online, strong support for Xu Cuiping and her lawyer, and an overwhelming condemnation of Zhou Jun. Many self-media outlets had jumped on board, forming a grand and tragic funeral procession.
Sun Xu was somewhat annoyed. “Playing with public opinion like this. When we were doing this, this lawyer wasn’t even grown up.”
Jiang Chengyun finished reading and handed the phone back to Sun Xu. “Did Zhou Jun come looking for you?”
“Yeah, he’s pretty desperate.”
“I suggested he settle with money before. Did he refuse to pay?”
“He took some money over, but they threw him out,” Sun Xu said.
Jiang Chengyun said, “The amount must have been too small.”
“Not necessarily,” Sun Xu hesitated. “What if she really came to seek justice for her sister? Even if Zhou Jun is willing to compromise, she might not stop.”
Jiang Chengyun paused. They were in a public area discussing details of their client, not ideal. “Come inside with me.”
The two went in. Lin Shen left, and Xiao Zhou sat back down.
The case file was still on the table. He had acted despicably just now and quickly skimmed through it. There were indeed some doubts inside. He hadn’t been involved much, so he couldn’t figure out which side was right.
After a while, Sun Xu came out. His face wasn’t as heavy as before, much more relaxed. Seeing Xiao Zhou, he said, “Let’s go. I’ll take you to buy a phone. Big Boss said you need to go home and get your driver’s license?”
Xiao Zhou nodded.
The two got in the car. Sun Xu chatted aimlessly throughout the journey, mentioning that the position of the driver belonged to a confidant and wouldn’t be given to outsiders, as they might hear and see many secrets and were close to the leaders. As they chatted along the way, they became familiar with each other, able to get things done together.
He mentioned the former driver, Old Zhang, who resigned. Jiang Chengyuan gave him a check before his son’s wedding as a gift, expressing his gratitude for his loyalty. That amount meant he wouldn’t have to worry about anything for the rest of his life.
Now that Xiao Zhou was taking over, it showed Jiang Chengyuan trusted him a lot, and his future looked promising. Sun Xu asked about his education.
Xiao Zhou had been staring out the window, but he turned to answer. Although he had attended university for two years, he had been expelled and only had a high school education.
Sun Xu said, “High school’s alright, at least you’ve got some education. But nowadays, many jobs require a bachelor’s degree. You should consider taking adult education exams, get your certificate, and let Big Boss help smooth things over. Then you can go anywhere.”
“Just work hard these next two years, find yourself a stable job. You could also come to the law firm, but non-litigation is where the money’s at. My classmates who went to Red Circle Law Firm, every one of them’s living in luxury with sports cars. Litigation lawyers have no future, especially criminal defense, it’s damn exhausting and thankless. Like that public interest case I took on earlier, sexual harassment. Finally managed to settle it out of court, but the parties involved weren’t even happy. They don’t think about what they’ll gain from going to court…”
As he spoke, the topic veered off, and Xiao Zhou looked out the window again, a faint smile appearing on his lips, rare.
Since his release, he hadn’t encountered many good things, but chatting with Sun Xu now made him feel the true essence of life: tiredness, annoyance, triviality, a bellyful of complaints, yet also filled with optimism, tirelessly pursuing what he loved, striving forward, much like the days he had once dreamed of.
They first went to the phone store, where he was dazzled by the array of smartphones. Sun Xu saw his indecision and directly picked out the most expensive one for him.
“Anyway, it’s almost the same. The expensive ones are always more durable in the end.” Without waiting for him to say anything, he proceeded to help him set up his phone number, and when he saw his identification, he seemed surprised, “You’re an omega? The boss hired an omega?”
Staring blankly at Xiao Zhou for a long time made Xiao Zhou feel uneasy.
Later, when he took him home to get his driver’s license, he became quiet and reserved, hardly saying a word.
When Xiao Zhou went upstairs to get the driver’s license, only Xiao Ping was at home. Impatiently opening the door, the sound of electronic games could be heard from inside. He tossed the driver’s license to him and hurried into the inner room, where the voice of the mic soon rang out.
After Xiao Zhou got his driver’s license, he didn’t rush downstairs but looked around the house. In total, it was no more than 50 square meters, with two bedrooms plus kitchen and bathroom. The master bedroom was given to Xiao Ping, and logically, the second bedroom should have been for his parents.
But he quickly realized something was wrong. In the second bedroom, there were only his mother’s things, no sign of his father’s presence, and no trace of them living together. There were also no hanging photos of Liu Xia’s most cherished wedding photos.
Leaning against the wall, he suddenly realized, his body trembling slightly, fingertips icy cold.
If his father really worked the night shift last night, there was no reason he wouldn’t be here during the day, and Liu Xia didn’t mention a word. The amount of money for his surgery was huge, and that letter was also vague; their family had indeed undergone a major change.
He wrote the new number on paper and placed it on the dining table in the living room. As he wrote, his hands couldn’t stop shaking.
At this moment, he suddenly heard a bang. He turned around and saw the little girl that Xu Cuiping brought yesterday standing at the door, a leather ball rolling slowly to his feet.
Xiao Zhou picked it up and walked over, and the little girl seemed a little scared but didn’t dodge.
He squatted down and handed the ball to the little girl. “Why are you alone here, Xiao Yun?”
The little girl took the ball and whispered, “Scared.”
Xiao Zhou was startled. Downstairs suddenly came deafening knocking and shouting. “Where is he? He’s hiding again, so he doesn’t have to pay back the money!”
Xiao Yun was frightened by the shouting, trembling more visibly. In the end, she hugged Xiao Zhou’s thigh tightly.
Xiao Zhou felt sorry. “Don’t be afraid, it’s okay.” He squatted down, stroked Xiao Yun’s hair, and picked her up, closing the door.
After a moment’s thought, he went to knock on the master bedroom door. There was only the sound of electronic games inside.
Xiao Zhou simply pushed the door open and entered. Xiao Ping was playing games with his back to him, the room filled with the smell of food packaging and bottles, as well as a strong smell of smoke.
Xiao Zhou’s heart sank. It was hard to imagine how Xiao Ping could let himself live in his current state, avoiding the garbage, placing Xiao Yun on the bed, and said to him, “Xiao Ping, it seems that someone downstairs is coming to collect a debt. Let Xiao Yun stay here for a while.”
It took three repetitions to get a response.
Xiao Ping took off his headset, turned his head to look, then waved his hand impatiently, “Okay, let her stay here.”
Xiao Zhou squatted down. “Xiao Yun, be good. Ge has something to do and has to leave first. You can tell Ping ge if you’re hungry, and he’ll take you to eat.”
The little girl nodded obediently, still tightly holding her pink leather ball.
Xiao Zhou stood up and looked at Xiao Ping. “I’ll leave now. There’s someone waiting for me downstairs.”
Xiao Ping did not respond.
On the way back with Sun Xu sending him, Xiao Zhou suddenly said, “Can you drop me off at the hospital?”
“The hospital?” Sun Xu thought he misheard.
“A small hospital. I’ll go back on my own later.” He gave him an address.