After saying that, she wanted to close the door and turn to leave, but hesitated for a moment and said to Song Tianyao, "Sir, the girl you mentioned has been taken away by her master and will not be returning."
"Did you go to another teahouse to perform?" Song Tianyao asked casually.
"I don't know either." Seeing that Song Tianyao's face didn't seem to show the disappointment and longing she had hoped for, the woman said those four words with slight disappointment, then closed the door to the private room for Song Tianyao from the outside and quickly left.
Song Tianyao didn't even glance at her, let alone analyze the truth or falsehood of her four words. He closed his eyes and softly hummed two lines of the pipa-playing girl's lyrics. "The singer doesn't ask about the truth or falsehood of things, but only about a true feeling... It's said that life is good when it ends, but who knows that it's hard to have two such moments? From now on, how many more good times will we have? I will remember you forever."
After some time, Wu Jinliang's voice came from up the stairs. "Secretary Song, I've found the person for you!"
It was already past noon. At the Mei Qing Guildhall in Sai Ying Pun, Hong Kong Island, Chen Tai sat helplessly in the main seat of a private banquet room. On his left and right sat two young women, no more than seventeen or eighteen years old, who were serving him drinks. The two women had their arms around Chen Tai's arms, smiling sweetly. The one on the left held Chen Tai's Chen Tai food. They were more skilled at eating and drinking than Chen Tai himself could at eating and drinking with his hands.
"Brother Tai is sharing all the benefits with us brothers today, he's so generous! Brothers, let's all raise a glass to Brother Tai!" A man sitting opposite Chen Tai, with his shirt sleeves rolled up high, revealing the tattoos on his arms and chest, said excitedly as he raised his glass.
On this large stage, besides Taihe and the two women, there were more than twenty Fuyixing men, all of whom were his henchmen who had gone to the New Territories with Gao Lao Cheng and Chen Tai today to commit murder and robbery. Except for Gao Lao Cheng, who was not present because he was in charge of dealing with the smuggled oil, the others, even those who were injured, were all present with their wounds bandaged.
Chen Tai stiffly picked up the wine glass handed to him by the woman beside him, unsure of what to say to the people in front of him. He could only grin and down the glass of liquor in one gulp.
The others cheered and joined Chen Tai in downing their drinks.
After downing a glass of baijiu, Chen Tai's face flushed slightly.
"Brother Tai, your kung fu is really impressive! And you're so young! I bet you'll make a name for yourself as Red Pole in your early twenties! But while you're good at fighting, you're not so good at drinking. You should drink slowly and not choke." One of Fuyixing's underlings said after Chen Tai sat down.
Another member shouted, "I think Brother Tai will definitely be Double Red Pole in the future, just like Brother Shing! You loser, you dare challenge Brother Tai to a drinking contest? Brother Tai, why don't you have a three-drink contest with him? I'll definitely support you, and if you can't drink it, I'll drink it for you!"
A group of people enthusiastically urged Chen Tai to drink, and Chen Tai couldn't refuse. Before the banquet was even halfway over, four jars of two-jin (1 kg) Double-Steamed Wine had been emptied. Chen Tai's face was flushed from the alcohol, and he glared at the people at the table who were already tipsy but still trying to curry favor with him. His left hand was on his mistress's shoulder, and his right hand swayed as he raised his wine cup. Gone was his earlier helplessness; his honest face now held a hint of fierceness. His words were already somewhat slurred, but he still shouted, "Come on, who said I can't hold my liquor! Let's have a few more drinks!"
Everyone at the table conceded defeat one after another, while Chen Tai grinned and laughed loudly, acting arrogantly and unrestrainedly.
At this moment, Gao Lao Cheng walked in from outside the private room, holding a stack of envelopes. He pushed aside the young woman who was serving drinks to Chen Tai's left, pulled up a chair and sat down next to Chen Tai, handing him the top envelope. "The goods have been loaded onto the ship and set sail. This is your share, A-Tai."
Chen Tai, his eyes wide, tore open the envelope. Inside was a thin wad of HK$100 bills, totaling about a thousand dollars. This made Chen Tai's drunkenness lessen somewhat. He held the wad of bills, somewhat dazed, and after a few seconds, he looked at Gao Lao Cheng was picking up his chopsticks to eat. "Wait... didn't you say that I was to split it equally with these brothers? How come I have so much?"
"This is the amount after splitting it equally. Including the truck and the goods, it totaled 31,000 yuan. The twenty-odd brothers, including you and me, will each split 1,300 yuan." Gao Lao Cheng said, putting a brightly colored steamed bun into his mouth.
"Thirteen hundred dollars? That much?" Chen Tai's hand trembled slightly as he held the money. He had never seen so much money before, whether in the countryside on the mainland or after coming to Kowloon.
With a cigarette in one hand and chopsticks in the other, Gao Lao Cheng casually said, "Money earned by risking your life is naturally more, but this kind of thing isn't something we do often. In this business, harmony is paramount. I'm just showing you that there are many ways to make big money in the underworld, besides bullying laborers at the docks. Like today's double-cross, it's not something we do casually. We're dealing with the He-prefix gangs's goods, but we won't touch the Chiu Chow Gang's' goods, because Fuyixing is part of the Chiu Chow Gang. Tonight, we'll go to the Central Pier, and I'll teach you how to do legitimate business at the docks, besides double-crossing, and get the workers to work."
"This meal is on me." Chen Tai, no longer listening to what Gao Lao Cheng was saying afterward, suddenly exclaimed excitedly while holding the stack of banknotes in his hand.
The other brothers at the table had already started counting their portions, not bothering to flatter Chen Tai. Only Gao Lao Cheng patted Chen Tai on the shoulder. "This meal is on me. The club is run by my brother, so I don't have to pay for my meals here. Keep this money for yourself; besides, it's not even enough for this meal. These two pretty girls next to you will be working with you later. If you like them, just give them two hundred dollars."
Chen Tai glanced at the two pretty young women, then pointed uncertainly at himself. "Me? Take them out for a night? What do you mean by 'taking them out for a night'? Two hundred yuan?"
"Alright, you can just go out with the two of them later. You'll understand naturally later. It doesn't matter if you don't like them or not. Take the money home to your parents." Gao Lao Cheng chuckled, amused by Chen Tai's drunken antics, and said.
Chen Tai nodded vigorously. "My mom will be so happy that I made so much money."