Keep up with My Thinking

"When Young Master Ying asks, never mind me-even my boss has to show him respect. But Young Master Ying, since when have you been so interested in gang affairs? Wo On Sing..."

Sha Wei was still probing.

"Brother Sha Wei, honestly, I really just happened to pass by this time. Besides, if I wanted to join a gang, I'd join yours. Why would I join losers like Wo On Sing?"

"That's right, Brother Sha Wei. Young Master Ying really was just passing by. It was my fault. I asked him to come help make up the numbers and earn a red envelope."

Hua Shanrong hurried to explain.

"And who might you be, friend?"

"Reporting to Brother Sha Wei, I'm Deng Rong, a blue lantern under Fat Bear, nicknamed Hua Shanrong. Just a nobody. I'll leave Wo On Sing right away..."

Sha Wei laughed.

"No need, brother. We only have a minor disagreement with Wo On Sing. If you're unhappy there, you can switch sides like Fire Dragon. All Hongmen under heaven are one family. We're all our own people."

By the rules, a gang's core members held various titles, such as Double-Blossom Red Pole, white paper fan, and straw sandal.

Full members were called forty-niners, while blue lanterns were the gang's outermost members, effectively trainees who were basically outside the core.

"Thank you for being generous enough to overlook a nobody's offense, Brother Sha Wei."

Sha Wei continued, "Relax. Since you're Young Master Ying's friend, you're our friend too. Young Master Ying really is a young hero. I was rash just now. Please forgive me."

"You're too kind, Brother Sha Wei."

"Young Master Ying, Lord Hung has plenty of other things for me to do, and the cops will be coming to clean up soon. I'll be off first."

"If I have some free time and want to treat you to tea, where should I find you, Brother Sha Wei?"

Sha Wei paused at this, unsure just what Chen Ying was up to.

But remembering how much attention his boss Su Xiong paid to this kid, Sha Wei could only laugh.

"Easy enough, Young Master Ying. Our company's offices are in Tianxin Mansion. Drop by whenever you feel like it. Never mind me-even Brother Xiong would welcome you with open arms."

"You're really too kind, Brother Sha Wei."

After the two sides exchanged some laughter and pleasantries, Sha Wei finally cupped his hands and left.

"Brother Ying, how do you know Sha Wei? That bastard's called Ghost-Cleaver. They say one slash from him could cut even a ghost in half. What was that kung fu just now? Spirit possession? You actually blocked his blade?"

Naturally, Chen Ying wasn't going to tell Hua Shanrong much.

"What blade? He recognized me just now and didn't actually hit me. You saw wrong."

"No way. I saw it with my own eyes..."

"Seeing isn't always believing, and hearsay isn't always false. As for why I know him, his boss is related to my family. We're cousins."

"You have a cousin like that?"

"Distant cousins. That's how it is with relatives-he was just showing me some respect. But Brother Hua Shan, what are your plans after this?"

"Plans? Go home and eat. My boss went down this time, I didn't get a single red envelope, and then I ran into all those ghosts. I'll bathe with pomelo leaves to wash off the bad luck, then go pray."

Hua Shanrong spread his hands. "I don't know what I'll do after that. Maybe set up a stall selling plastic flowers. I get it now-the underworld's going to be different from now on. Everyone says even a powerful outsider like Su Xiong can't overpower the local gangs. What powerful outsider? He's a bloody steamroller. Anyone who won't submit gets flattened."

"Su Xiong's an outsider?"

"Isn't he your relative?"

"It's precisely because we're relatives that I don't know his background."

Chen Ying smiled.

"Perfect. Let's walk together, and you can tell me where this Su Xiong came from."

"I know about that. Su Xiong and his junior fellow disciple came over from the mainland five years ago, just the two of them. At first, nobody thought they were anyone important. They started out doing some small business, but later..."

According to Hua Shanrong, Su Xiong had only been in Hong Kong and Kowloon for five years, but because of his formidable kung fu and ruthless methods, he had quickly risen to Double-Blossom Red Pole after joining a gang—the position of top enforcer.

Most of the time, the fighting among Hong Kong and Kowloon's underworld factions was just for show, so a gang's prestige largely rested on its top enforcer. Su Xiong possessed formidable body-hardening kung fu and was reportedly skilled in the Maoshan Altar Arts as well, so naturally he rose extremely quickly.

But he was treacherous by nature. Over a minor matter, he killed the boss who had brought him into the gang, reorganized the whole outfit, and established himself as its sole power.

His reputation was thoroughly ruined throughout Hong Kong and Kowloon's underworld, but he dared to fight and take risks. Despite his rotten reputation, he raked in more and more money, and his gang's standing rose rather than fell.

"After Su Xiong spent all those years in the business, didn't the other gangs join forces against him?"

"Of course they did. The major gangs joined forces to wipe him out ages ago, but the more they tried, the stronger he got. Still, no need to worry. I heard he's been acting too arrogantly, and the cops don't like him. His old backer's about to retire too, and several other Inspectors are getting ready to move against him."

Hua Shanrong suddenly thought of something and looked at Chen Ying.

"But Brother Ying, have you ever thought about joining a gang?"

"Me?"

"Yeah. Su Xiong's your relative, and you've got great kung fu and brains. You'd rise through the ranks in no time."

"Sure. And then?"

"What do you mean, then?"

"I'm asking you what I'd do after rising through the ranks in a gang."

"With piles of money and a crowd of women, of course you'd live it up and wallow in luxury."

"Does Hong Kong and Kowloon have a law saying only gangsters can have piles of money, a crowd of women, and a life of pleasure?"

"Of course not."

"There are plenty of paths to the same goal in life, whether that goal is noble or vulgar."

Chen Ying thought of his previous life. He had worked himself to death every day, yet still had little money left at the end of the month. He only ever told his parents the good news, never the bad, but the worry on their faces never lessened.

Busy all day, unhappy all day.

He didn't know how much compensation there would be for the hundred-ton overloaded truck that had sent him flying, but what his parents needed wasn't money. It was the son they worried so much about.

Alone in a strange land, a stranger himself, all he thought of and longed for was home.

"Brother Ying, I don't understand what you're saying."

"Brother Rong, do you want to avenge your boss?"

"Yes."

Hua Shanrong kicked a can by the roadside, sending it flying and startling passersby into turning to look.

"My boss treated me well. He knew I had lots of brothers and sisters, so he always put a little extra in my red envelope. Whenever he went out eating meat and drinking, he always invited me. He knew I was a coward, so whenever we gathered for a show of force, he always told me to stand at the back. Sometimes he'd even come over for my parents' birthdays..."

His voice caught slightly, and Hua Shanrong tilted his head up to look at the streetlights.

"If I could, of course I'd avenge my boss. First I'd kill that traitorous bastard Fire Dragon, then..."

"There are different paths in life. What do you think your chances are of making a name for yourself as a gangster, then leading your brothers to hack Su Xiong and Sha Wei to death?"

"Impossible. I'm a coward, and I'm useless." Hua Shanrong sighed. "Anyone else might rise to the top, but not me."

"So if you're determined to avenge your boss, you need to study hard."

"Study?"

"Yeah. Study hard, pass the exams, and become a cop."

"A cop? I could never become an Inspector."

"Who said you had to become an Inspector? Even a uniformed patrolman carries a service revolver in his pocket. If you run into Su Xiong on the street, just check his ID, then empty all six rounds into him."

Chen Ying looked at the utterly bewildered Hua Shanrong.

"His spirit-possession training lets him withstand blades, but can he withstand bullets?"

"Well..."

"A young patrolman gets nervous and shoots a gang boss dead. At most, it's an offense committed in the line of duty, and you might even get a reduced sentence. Worst case, you spend a few years in prison. Su Xiong's offended so many people that gangs like Wo On Sing would definitely protect you inside. Once you're out, you can go right back to being a gangster."

Chen Ying rubbed his chin. "The only problem with this plan is, what if Su Xiong can withstand bullets?"

"Right... right..."

Hua Shanrong felt he couldn't keep up with Brother Ying's thinking at all anymore.

"Then become a minibus driver and run the bastard over. If that's still not reliable enough, become a truck driver."

Chen Ying looked at Hua Shanrong and said solemnly, "There was once a martial arts master who advocated incorporating everything into martial arts. Dump-truck iaido is a form of self-defense too."