Reservoir Dogs chapter 70
Drunkard
The hotel restaurant was always the busiest in the evening.
Xiao Zhou, agile and quick, darted between the private rooms and the kitchen without spilling anything. His diligence made him a valued employee, able to do the work of two people.
A waiter’s job didn’t require much disclosure, so his criminal record and Omega status were kept hidden.
Here, he was just a Beta. He bought skin-colored suppression patches that were hard to notice unless inspected closely, and the high-collared uniform helped conceal them.
Alphas, superior in all aspects, and Omegas, considered precious, did not appear in the greasy, dirty kitchen. Even a modified, abnormal Omega like him could attract unnecessary trouble.
Being among Betas, without the interference of pheromones, made Xiao Zhou feel more at ease. But among many bachelors, conversations often veered towards Omegas and explicit content, which he found uncomfortable. He mostly stayed silent, somewhat out of place, always alone.
Sometimes he had to serve in private rooms, where he was easily affected by the unintentional release of Alpha pheromones. In such moments, he felt the profound impact of being an Omega, akin to being attacked by Alpha pheromones in the ring, unable to resist despite his strong fists and willpower. The high concentration of Alpha pheromones was the root cause of everything.
He had to flee the Alpha-filled rooms, concocting lies to cover his physical reactions, promising favors to switch shifts, allowing him to retreat to the back kitchen and avoid the front desk crowd.
But to reintegrate into society, these were hurdles he had to overcome.
“Xiao Zhou, take these bottles of wine to private room number three.”
Xiao Zhou acknowledged, wiped his hands with a cloth, and took the wine from the supervisor, heading upstairs.
He encountered a group of people coming down, the leaders already drunk and staggering. Xiao Zhou, holding the wine, stepped aside, waiting by the handrail for them to pass.
One drunkard couldn’t hold back and vomited on the stairs. The others scattered, bumping into Xiao Zhou and his wine.
Bottles fell, two broke, one white and one red.
The drunkard who bumped into him didn’t react much, stumbled a bit, held onto the handrail, and tried to walk away, but couldn’t. Looking down, he saw a hand holding his arm, then looked up to see a young waiter saying, “Sir, you broke my wine.”
“What wine? Get out of the way, I need to go.” The drunkard, reeking of alcohol, tried to shake off Xiao Zhou but couldn’t. He angrily shouted, “What are you doing? Trying to scam me?”
Xiao Zhou held his arm, repeating, “You broke my wine, a Sea Blue and a Jägermeister, a total of two thousand.”
“What are you talking about? You broke it yourself, blaming me? A big restaurant like this, and you’re trying to extort people!” The drunkard seemed to sober up instantly, shouting and drawing a crowd, with Xiao Zhou and the drunkard in the center.
The drunkard struggled, but Xiao Zhou’s strength was overwhelming. Frustrated, he retaliated, “What? Can’t scam me so you want to fight? Where’s your manager? Is this how your hotel staff behaves?”
Xiao Zhou frowned, “I didn’t fight you. You broke the bottles, you have to pay.”
The drunkard’s eyes flared, “Pay? You ran into me. You little bastard, scamming me?”
The situation clearly indicated that it was about to get messy. A colleague of Xiao Zhou’s quietly approached and whispered, “Let it go. You can’t reason with a drunk. If the supervisor comes, you won’t get your money back, and you might even have your wages docked.”
Xiao Zhou furrowed his brows. “But it’s his fault.”
“Don’t be so stubborn. Just cover it yourself and take it as a silent loss.”
Xiao Zhou’s lips tightened, not arguing but not giving up either. He still held the drunkard’s hand firmly.
The two of them remained in this stalemate until the supervisor arrived. After understanding the situation, the supervisor was uncertain and could only try to calm things down, asking them to discuss it in the office.
The drunkard wasn’t pleased and started shouting loudly, attracting more and more people. Suddenly, someone in the crowd exclaimed, “I know this guy!” A red-faced, burly man squeezed through the crowd, hiccuping as he approached the drunkard. He patted the drunkard’s shoulder and said, “Come on, brother, stop causing trouble. You can’t afford to mess with him. This guy has been in prison, he’s dangerous. He even killed someone and gouged out a person’s eye with a spoon handle in prison. If you offend him now, who knows what he’ll do to you later.”
Upon hearing this, everyone’s expressions changed, and Xiao Zhou froze.
The drunkard, not completely out of his senses, stared wide-eyed at Xiao Zhou. “What kind of shady place is this, hiring a murderer as a waiter?”
Xiao Zhou, as if electrocuted, let go of his hand and stepped back, his foot landing in the spilled alcohol on the floor.
Numerous frightened and shocked eyes turned to him, even the supervisor who knew his background looked stunned.
Whispers spread through the crowd like buzzing bees, creating a noisy turmoil.
Xiao Zhou’s face turned pale. His lips moved but no words came out.
The drunkard, finally released, instinctively tried to leave but bumped into someone just as he squeezed out of the crowd. Strictly speaking, he didn’t actually bump into them. He was stopped by a bodyguard before he could, who then kicked him to the ground for good measure.
The man protected by the two bodyguards was dressed in a luxurious suit, exuding an air of authority and elegance—it was Jiang Wenxing. Having just finished a dinner meeting and coming down the elevator, he had been drawn by the commotion in the lobby. Although he wasn’t hit, he disdainfully brushed off his sleeve as if it were dirty.
The kicked drunkard wanted to protest, but seeing the imposing figure before him, his courage dwindled, and he could only mutter, “Ouch, my back is broken, I need compensation…”
Jiang Wenxing, hearing this, scoffed and ignored him. As he looked around, he noticed everyone had turned their attention to him. Just as he was about to leave, he saw a familiar face in the center of the dispersing crowd.
Jiang Wenxing stopped in his tracks.
Xiao Zhou also saw him, his expression changing slightly.
The drunkard got up from the ground, and Xiao Zhou, having composed himself, quickly stepped forward, addressing only the drunkard, “The issue with the broken bottles isn’t over.”
The drunkard, his face red with anger, was infuriated by the series of events that night. “Why do you say it was me? I won’t compensate. I’ll speak to your supervisor. How dare they let a murderer serve me? I haven’t even asked for emotional damages yet!”
The sensitive words cut like a knife. Xiao Zhou’s face turned pale, not because he was particularly sensitive about the matter, but because he was uncomfortable with the fearful and suspicious gazes directed at him, as if he were a virus to be avoided. He also knew his job was probably lost.
“How much compensation?” a voice came from behind.
Xiao Zhou turned and saw Jiang Wenxing asking.
The supervisor hurried over, “Just two thousand yuan. Forget it, it’s not worth causing such a fuss.”
Jiang Wenxing expressionlessly took out a card. “I’ll pay.”
The supervisor recognized this young master but was hesitant, unsure if he should accept it.
Xiao Zhou frowned and looked at Jiang Wenxing. “That’s not the issue.”
Jiang Wenxing said, “Isn’t it about the money? It’s just two thousand yuan, why make such a fuss?”
Xiao Zhou hesitated, wanting to explain something but gave up after a while. He turned to the supervisor, “I was at fault too. I should take responsibility. I’ll pay.”
The supervisor was furious. “You should have admitted it earlier. Why cause all this trouble?” He glanced at the chaotic scene, lowered his voice, and said to Xiao Zhou, “Come with me.”