Reservoir Dogs chapter 26
Utilization
The sun set and rose again. When Xiao Zhou woke up, Jiang Chengyuan was sitting on a chair by the bed, a laptop on his lap, bathed in faint morning light, surrounded by tiny floating dust particles. The ends of his lowered eyelashes were pale gold, and metal-framed glasses sat on his straight nose, broad shoulders adding a touch of scholarly elegance.
Seeing Xiao Zhou awake, Jiang Chengyuan looked up, took off his glasses, and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Hungry?”
Xiao Zhou propped himself up in bed. His stomach had mostly digested the food but he wasn’t particularly hungry.
“There’s porridge in the kitchen. If you want to eat, help yourself. The fridge is full; use anything in the kitchen as you like. If anything’s missing, let me know,” Jiang Chengyuan leaned forward, his hand landing on Xiao Zhou’s face, long fingers brushing over his brow, down his nose, finally pinching his chin. “Don’t starve yourself to the point of fainting again.”
The gesture had a teasing air. The touch of his fingers was light, ticklish.
There was still a scab on the wound from Xiao Zhou’s earlier bite, starkly visible against the jade-like finger.
Xiao Zhou’s jaw tightened, then he turned his head slightly to avoid the touch.
This time waking up, he felt much better, with no dizziness, and his memory was clear, making him feel uneasy.
Perhaps it was because he hadn’t yet adapted to his identity as an omega. He still retained a trace of shame and the thin pride of once being an alpha, a habitual way of behaving and thinking, making it hard to accept his body’s transformation so openly.
Accepting that as an omega, he had slept with an alpha, been thoroughly conquered and possessed, including how his body’s instincts had overtaken his mind, how he had actively entangled, insatiable.
The memory was carved clear, making him feel disgusted. When he sat up, the pain in his butt reminded him sharply of what had happened.
He felt a bit dazed, unable to blame anyone for this. Sex was an animal instinct, desire causing civilization to regress. Any omega in heat could make an alpha lose rationality.
Perhaps the longer the suppression, the more extreme it becomes. Jiang Chengyuan’s sensitivity period had been suppressed and ignored for so long that he developed a near sadistic quirk, pathologically using pain to awaken perception and stimulate senses. But he remained somewhat restrained, without too perverse tastes.
Jiang Chengyuan’s appearance was clearly elegant and refined, his nose well-shaped, giving an impression of righteousness, fitting to be a flag bearer or standing under spotlights. When not smiling or speaking, just looking at you, he appeared distant and aloof, with a sharp jawline and brows like blades, one could imagine him speaking with great authority in court.
Who would have thought that such a person would be this way in bed?
Xiao Zhou lowered his head, his eyes somewhat cold.
His body ached, but it was bearable; he had endured worse. It was humiliating to lose control, but he had seen someone nearly drown in an overflowing bedpan before. Adjusting to Omega’s scheduled heat cycles was indeed difficult, but if that was all, it was manageable. He was prepared for such things.
Slowly, Xiao Zhou thought to himself that he had already passed the hardest part. He had lost face and pride, but there was nothing left to lose.
With all vulnerabilities exposed, fear no longer held power over him; he was invincible.
He owed his present luck to the change in pheromones after the surgery.
With a bitter smile, Xiao Zhou pondered this. Just then, Jiang Chengyuan closed his laptop and stood up, “Since you’re awake, I have some things to attend to. I’ll take my leave.”
Xiao Zhou raised his eyes.
From the bedside table, Jiang Chengyuan pushed a gold card over with a mild tone, “There’s 200,000 in here, spend as you wish.” With that said, he turned and left.
Xiao Zhou lay in bed for a while before getting up. The room was tidied inside and out, clean and neat. Congee was simmering in the kitchen, its rice fragrance enticing. The fridge was packed with fresh fruits, milk, various seafood steaks in the freezer, and even ice cream at the bottom, chocolate and strawberry flavors, some of which he had never seen before.
He slowly drank the congee, which had been simmered for hours with pork ribs, red rice, and oats. It was fragrant, but he didn’t think Jiang Chengyuan had made it. He saw a fallen apron and gloves in the kitchen, guessing that he had hired someone to clean the house.
Things that could be solved with money didn’t need wasted effort; Jiang Chengyuan wouldn’t want to waste himself on such trivial matters.
It was very utilitarian logic.
After finishing the congee, Xiao Zhou cleaned the bowl and pot, conscientiously put on the ankle tracking bracelet, and then sent a message to Jiang Chengyuan saying he wanted to go home.
Jiang Chengyuan replied promptly, agreeing.
With the message sent, Jiang Chengyuan put away his phone.
“Are you feeling better?” Sitting on the leather sofa, the person holding the teapot poured tea into a cup for his guest.
Jiang Chengyuan held the cup with both hands and thanked him. “Thank you for your concern, I’m fine.”
“I saw his circle of friends posted a photo, and it seems that he rented a yacht to go fishing at sea a few days ago. He caught a 100-pound giant grouper, almost as tall as a person. He’s in his seventies and it’s not easy to be so healthy.”
Jiang Chengyuan smiled, “That’s just one of his hobbies. He mentioned you a while ago, asking why you haven’t come to visit. Seems a bit upset.”
The person opposite laughed heartily, “I’ve been too busy lately. I’ll definitely visit in a few days. I, as your old subordinate, should learn more about health preservation from the leader and enjoy a few more years of retirement life.”
The two chatted leisurely, avoiding the main topic for a while. But Xu Jian knew the purpose of Jiang Chengyuan’s visit this time, circling around without getting to the point. Jiang Chengyuan didn’t rush him either, accompanying him in chatting about personal relationships, tea culture, and art of calligraphy and painting.
Knowing his preferences, Jiang Chengyuan specially brought a framed calligraphy and painting.
After Xu Jian finished looking at the painting, he closed it and said, “Jiang, this case involving Xu Juan has a significant social impact. The arrest warrant has been issued, but the decision to prosecute hasn’t been made yet. You should prepare just in case, don’t panic.”
Jiang Chengyuan remained composed, “Is there new evidence? I’ve discussed this area a few times before and from what I’ve seen so far, there’s no basis for prosecution.”
Xu Jian pondered for a moment, “I haven’t looked into the case specifically. It’s mainly concern about public opinion. The case is under your jurisdiction. If you have any issues, let me know. You know Xiao Yu as well; you’ve worked with him before.”
Jiang Chengyuan nodded in agreement.
Xu Jian escorted him to the door and handed him two bottles of wine, “Take these to the old man for me. If you can’t see him, consider it a token of my goodwill.”
Jiang Chengyuan took the wine downstairs and found a secluded corner. He glanced down at what he held and then tossed the wine and box into the trash.
Xiao Zhou called home but no one answered, so he went straight up.
As he climbed the stairs, he saw a rental notice posted on the white wall downstairs, and the room number left behind was surprisingly the one where Xu Cuiping had lived.
Xiao Zhou was shocked and hurried up to the third floor. Only the outer green iron gate was locked, while the inner door was open with a slight push.
Glancing inside, he found the place had already been emptied, with only some scattered furniture left behind.
Xiao Zhou was stunned, worried that something might have happened to Xu Cuiping, or maybe those loan sharks had come looking for her?
Just then, a neighbor came downstairs. Xiao Zhou pointed to the room and asked when they had moved out.
“Are you looking for them too?” The woman’s face showed disgust. “They left a couple of days ago, cleared out overnight, and it was like this the next morning. There have been people coming around looking for them, banging and yelling. They seemed to be debt collectors, and it was a mess. I don’t know what these people did before to get into such trouble.”
Xiao Zhou couldn’t believe Xu Cuiping had really moved out.
Why did she move? Where did she go? Why was it so sudden?
He was filled with worry and uncertainty as he stood outside his own door.
A few days ago? What happened back then?
In chronological order, Xiao Zhou suddenly remembered his conversation with Xu Cuiping that day, involuntarily taking a sharp breath.
He suddenly understood why Jiang Chengyuan wanted him to tell Xu Cuiping about those things, because Jiang Chengyuan was using him.
Through him, making Xu Cuiping scared, unable to persist anymore, only able to compromise, accept the money from Zhou Jun, and then leave the city.
His neutral identity, compared to Jiang Chengyuan or Zhou Jun, might be more persuasive, and Xu Cuiping would listen more.
With the victim gone, media coverage would also calm down a bit. In ten days or half a month, the public opinion storm would pass. People forget quickly, and soon there would be new hot topics. As long as there’s no reporting or trouble, no one would care how Zhou Jun is dealt with.
His fingers trembled.
Invisibly, he had helped Jiang Chengyuan.