Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Those few words of introduction stunned Wu Xiaojiu. He stroked the leather seats in the taxi and couldn’t help but speak.

“The Wu Family might be well-off, and my parents have spent nearly ten million on me, but I’m still just a good-for-nothing loser who can’t be helped. Bo Suihan, on the other hand, is truly capable-he climbed his way up to become the king of the business world on his own.”

“You said it. Bo Suihan is ruthless and decisive; everyone under him admires him. Even some dying old families are now clinging to him for survival.”

Wang Xiao lit a cigarette and gazed out the window.

In just a few short months, Bo Suihan transformed from a fresh-faced high school student into a cold-faced demon.

During the assassination attempt back then, although the opponent’s master didn’t take Wang Xiao’s life, he crippled the hand that had held the knife.

Wang Xiao’s right hand trembled uncontrollably as he held the cigarette, while the radio continued to drone on about Bo Suihan’s greatness.

“Sometimes fate is truly unfair. It was clearly his family’s death that dragged mine down, yet he gets nine masters and the Dragon King Token, while I can only be a drowning dog that everyone beats.”

Hearing the complaint, Wu Xiaojiu turned his head slightly.

The buildings outside were exquisite, dazzling high-rises and entertainment venues full of debauchery. Amidst the neon-lit haze, Wang Xiao dangled a cigarette from his lips.

“Forget it, no more complaints. He’s just lucky, but Wu Xiaojiu, are you sure about going back? I heard Bo Suihan already has a fiancée.”

Upon hearing this, Wu Xiaojiu thought of the nine Marriage Contracts and laughed out loud.

“He doesn’t just have one fiancée. I reckon every notable family across the land has a fiancée for him.”

“That’s not what I meant. Bo Suihan is about to get married.”

That single sentence hit like a bolt from the blue.

Whether Wu Xiaojiu wanted this trip or not, his purpose had always been the same: to pursue Long Aotian.

But if the person he had to pursue was about to get married, wouldn’t that make Wu Xiaojiu the one throwing himself into being the other man?

“What did you say?”

“To the Feng Family’s daughter, CEO Feng Jiutian. Now the Su Family and Feng Family are both close allies of the Bo Family. Maybe to strengthen their ties, today is roughly the day Bo Suihan meets that young lady.”

Feng Jiutian.

The name wasn’t entirely unfamiliar.

He had heard it before. Thinking of that decisive woman, Wu Xiaojiu frowned in disbelief.

“She’d be willing?”

“Why wouldn’t Bo Suihan be willing? Feng Jiutian is close to his age and beautiful…”

“No, I’m asking if Feng Jiutian would be willing. She looked down on Bo Suihan before.”

The question hung in the air unanswered.

Because the car had almost arrived.

“The road ahead is completely blocked. Looks like someone’s booked the entire Baijinghui today. My car doesn’t have an invitation, so you’ll have to walk if you want to go.”

“Then let’s skip this bar club. Driver, please just drop us off at the nearest bar.”

For a moment, Wu Xiaojiu was at a loss. Affection Points had to be earned, and the Romance Target strategy still had to continue. But since Bo Suihan now had Jing Province firmly in his grip, this engagement must be something he wanted too.

There was no way Wu Xiaojiu was going to rush in and become the other man. He decided to take the long view.

Slowly, then.

Wang Xiao pressed his cigarette butt against the taxi’s body. Hearing that the driver was changing routes, he secretly laughed.

How could any major club survive next to Baijinghui?

In the end, the driver could only drop the two of them off at a sketchy little no-name bar.

As luck would have it, Wang Xiao did not have much money on him, and aside from the clothes Wu Xiaojiu was wearing, which were worth a bit, his pockets were completely empty.
The former detective and the young master hooked arms as they walked into an unlicensed dive bar brimming with shady characters, its floor slick with grease.
Amid drinks priced at 12 and 8 yuan, they chose a 2.5-yuan bottle of Brave the World beer.
They then poured the entire lifetime’s worth of beer into two bottles.
“Tonight we won’t go home till we’re wasted.”
Wang Xiao forced a smile and clinked glasses with him.
“No way, too much has changed, hasn’t it? Is Bo Suihan making such a big scene?”
Wu Xiaojiu couldn’t drown his sorrows; he was frantic, feeling his Affection Points ticking down, having originally wanted to go grind some back.
Taking hits and insults, anything to ease Bo Suihan’s heart, but the key was the guy was getting engaged.
For Wu Xiaojiu to show up again at a time like this…
It’s just too awkward.
Miserable, torn.
That’s how Wu Xiaojiu felt inside.
Wang Xiao ignored him, downed a glass of Brave the World, and didn’t feel any better.
Because they’d arrived early, the sky hadn’t been dark long, and the bar crowd was still sparse.
Wang Xiao went scavenging leftover drinks from vacated booths.
At first Wu Xiaojiu tried to warn him about the filth, but eventually Wang Xiao got drunk, and there was no stopping him.
Later he too went rummaging for others’ leftovers, and the two of them outdid each other in merriment.
But in the end, they realized there was no going back.
Wang Xiao had now become the early version of Bo Suihan: homeless, living under a bridge.
Wu Xiaojiu, a genuine article stamped a substitute, was penniless and, even if he had the courage to return to the Wu Family, no vehicle would deign to carry him.
Their sole shared asset was a plastic bottle of Brave the World.
The bar lay in disarray, Wu Xiaojiu and Wang Xiao sitting amid a heap of broken bottles.
Drunk and dazed, facing each other in silence.
“I’ve got no money, not a cent. Go on, feel my pockets if you don’t believe me.”
Wu Xiaojiu pouted and actually reached out to pat Wang Xiao’s jacket pocket.
Empty.
Nothing there.
“Then why go to the airport with no money? Were you here to pick me up? Wang Xiao, you made a fortune as a detective, so how’d you get this broke?”
Wang Xiao only smiled at him, saying nothing.
Seeing him smile made Wu Xiaojiu want to laugh, and the two drunkards sat on the grimy floor, cackling nonstop.
Just as they thought they’d end up on the streets,
in the darkness, a man wreathed in cold air pushed open the bar door.
The owner, already vexed by the two broke drunkards, was in no mood to serve new guests and had been about to announce closing time.
But seeing that face, the words caught in his throat.
“No need. I’ll have a look.”
The man stood tall in a black suit, perfectly concealed in the shadows. He raised a hand to halt the owner.
Folding his arms, he leaned against the bar counter, quietly observing the duo on the floor.
“President Bo, Miss Feng has run off again – her 99th escape. Should we lock down the whole city to find her?”
The man said nothing. His face, chiseled by months of various affairs, looked even more sculpted, with a high nose bridge and deep eye sockets. He seemed unchanged, and yet everything had changed.
“Ignore it. If the Feng Family asks, just tell them the truth. And take down those posters on the boulevard – I’ve found the person.”
With that, the man straightened up and strolled leisurely behind the two drunk fools.
He casually grabbed one by the collar.
His icy face bloomed into a dangerous smile.
“Wu Xiaojiu, long time no see. Enjoy yourself abroad?”