Chapter 43: The Return

Deep in the night, Wu Haihui was thinking about picking up one last fare before heading home to his wife, who had already warmed the bed. The thought of such intimate scenes made him chuckle to himself.

"Bang, bang, bang."

A sudden knocking on the car window snapped him out of his reverie. He shuddered, noticing two disheveled men standing outside the passenger door.

Hoping to keep things civil and earn his fare, he warily rolled the window down a third of the way and asked in a thick Beijing accent, "Looking for a ride, fellas?"

One of the men, who despite his ragged clothes carried an air of profound grace, rolled his eyes. It was obvious—why else would they be knocking on a taxi window? Were they just bored?

Seeing that the young man’s arrogance was clearly ingrained in his bones, Wu asked again, "Where to?"

The young man stated a destination with haughty indifference. Ignoring whether the driver agreed or not, he walked to the back door, yanked it open, and slid inside.

Wu Haihui was stunned. The back door had been locked—how had he opened it from the outside?

"Don’t dawdle. It’s just a beat-up car, you think I can't afford the fare?" The young man glanced at the door, seemingly aware of what had happened, and shouted dismissively. He then crossed his legs, tilted his head, and called out, "Brother Chen, don't just stand there. Get in. I’ll show you the ropes of this imperial city."

Chen Hongxu shook his head helplessly, leaned down, and sat inside. "Call that girl, Xue Xi, as soon as we arrive," he said seriously.

"Got it," the man nicknamed 'Fan the Fool' replied with a grin. He didn't ask the driver for a phone; although he knew Xue Xi's number by heart, he knew better than to overstep his bounds as a brother.

"Let’s go," Fan the Fool said, nudging the driver's seat with his toe.

Wu Haihui recovered, inwardly shocked not only by the stranger's incredible physical strength but also by the destination he had named. That location was reserved for high-ranking officials and the elite.

Wu looked at Fan the Fool with a newfound sense of caution. He knew that while a cabbie could have a gossiping tongue, he should never have a gossiping heart. He started the car, his mind racing with worries that these two might refuse to pay once they reached their destination. Given their appearance, they didn't look like they had a penny to their names, and the idea of them calling someone else to pay the fare was a joke—surely they wouldn't want anyone they knew to see them like this?

Lost in these chaotic thoughts, he had driven less than ten meters, not even reaching thirty kilometers per hour, when the door was yanked open again—forced wide open, naturally. This passenger was even stranger: a beautiful woman dragging a half-grown child.

Chen Hongxu glanced at the woman who had sat beside him and was calmly pressing something sharp against his waist. He rolled his eyes. He and Fan the Fool had killed countless people of this caliber on their long, arduous journey back.

Fan the Fool, however, underwent a sudden change in demeanor. He stared at the child by the woman's knee and remarked with a clicking of his tongue, "Kid Wang, did the Old Man send you to welcome us back?"

"Welcome my foot. Do you have any idea how much trouble you've caused?" the child said with a bitter expression. "I am here to pick you up, yes, but forget about a welcome. And your friend here has to go to the bureau, too. Out of so many people, only the two of you returned; there are many waiting for an explanation."

Hearing this, Fan the Fool hesitated for a moment, shook his head at Chen Hongxu, and patted the driver's shoulder. "Pull over here, master. It's dark and full of ghosts, go home and get some rest."

Wu Haihui no longer cared about the fare. What kind of people had he picked up? Never mind the way they peeled open car doors like they were toys; he had never seen anyone jump into a moving car while carrying a child. He pulled over to the side of the road, let the three of them and the child out, and then drove off as fast as he could, not daring to linger for even a second.

Fan the Fool stared at the license plate, wondering if it was real, and muttered to himself, "Finally ran into one. I should bring some gifts and pay a visit another day."

A cold glint flashed in the eyes of the woman and the child, but they hid it well when they heard his words.

Fan the Fool signaled for Chen Hongxu to let him handle it. He said, "You people are truly everywhere, aren't you? We just got back and you already have the news?"

"You arrived from the sea with such grand momentum; if the organization hadn't deliberately suppressed it, it would have been another headache," the woman smiled and explained. "The Old Man wants you to go home. Someone will come to record your statement later. As for your friend, he must come with us—for a statement, of course."

"The Old Man's orders?" Fan the Fool asked after a moment of thought.

"Yes," the woman and the child replied in unison.

Fan the Fool turned to Chen Hongxu. "Why don't you catch a ride with them and get some rest? It’ll be fine."

Chen Hongxu nodded. He had never wanted to get involved in the affairs of the upper echelons, and since Fan the Fool had spoken, he would give him this face. Suddenly, he thought of something, frowned, and asked, "How is Dog Bear doing?"

The woman and the child’s eyes twitched slightly. They smiled and said, "He's doing very well. He’s a big name on the Black List now, and the state is investing heavily in him."

Fan the Fool’s eyes narrowed as he turned to look at Chen Hongxu.

Chen Hongxu bent over, laughing until tears streamed down his face. He said with a strange tone, "That guy is truly disloyal. He left us to face life and death while he went off to enjoy a life of luxury. What a pity he didn't come with us back then. He deserves to die."

"Dog Bear is indeed a piece of work," the woman and the child echoed, completely failing to notice the murderous intent in Chen Hongxu's words.

"He does deserve to die!" Fan the Fool sneered. A long staff manifested in his hand; he moved slowly, showing no intention of launching a sneak attack.

Even if the woman and the child were fools, they realized the atmosphere had shifted. Though they didn't know where things had gone wrong, they were decisive. The woman pulled back the slide of her gun, disengaged the safety, and squeezed the trigger in one fluid motion—the entire sequence taking less than a second.

"Bang!" "Thud, thud."

A single gunshot followed by the sound of two bodies hitting the ground. Fan the Fool’s expression was grim as he slowly retracted his staff. He crouched down, touched a mixture of white brain matter and blood on the ground, and wiped it across his face. "Counting the time before we left, it's been over a year. We spent half a year in Kyushu and another half-year traversing three small worlds. I fear something has gone wrong."

Chen Hongxu used his fingertips to hold a bullet suspended in mid-air. "Find a place to call Xue Xi. I'm afraid something happened to her. I know you know."

Fan the Fool shuddered. His expression unreadable, he nodded.

It had been over a year since the two of them had stepped through the Heavenly Gate. After Chen Hongxu learned those strange runes, the staircase formed of clouds and the gate itself had faded into nothingness. If Su Daji and the others hadn't been decisive, they likely wouldn't have made it through either.

As for those who received the news later, they arrived to find nothing but an empty lot. Naturally, someone had to bear the brunt of the fury. After Dog Bear was tricked into telling the truth, he clearly became the sacrificial lamb. How could that woman and child have known? Dog Bear had once said he actually wanted to retire and have a fat son.

Fan the Fool had been lying in ambush on the road for a long time. After finally waiting for a passerby, he tried to wheedle information out of him for a while until, losing patience, he knocked the overly cautious man out with a single punch. He skillfully fished out a phone and dialed. No answer. He dialed another number—still nothing.

Frustrated and irritable, he punched the ground, scaring the pleading passerby into silence. After all, the floor wasn't made of foam; being able to punch a hole in it wasn't something an ordinary thug could do. When it came to choosing between money and life, the man was very sensible.

"Call Li Tao. He’s the best at shifting with the wind. Even if something happened, it wouldn't implicate him," Chen Hongxu said, consulting the Spirit Soldier who had loved hanging out with Li Tao, before giving Fan the Fool a number.

Fan the Fool dialed. He had only just stated his name when the person on the other end began babbling incessantly.

Chen Hongxu felt a surge of agitation. Suddenly, his left eyelid twitched, and he watched as Fan the Fool stood up and smashed the phone to pieces. The words that followed hit Chen Hongxu like a thunderbolt, causing a metallic taste of blood to rise in his throat.

With eyes burning red and teeth clenched, Fan the Fool growled, "Xue Baishu is dead, Xue Xi has become a vegetable, and the Xue family is in total ruins."