Moth Chasing the Sun 14

Tan Yiyuan pretended to casually survey the dance floor, using the corner of his eye to scan the surroundings.

A desperado with blood on his hands—even if he had retired and gone straight—still carried a different air about him compared to others.

He had been in the underworld and knew what such people were like.

Tan Yiyuan quickly locked onto a burly man.

The man had a crew cut, wore a stained white tank top under a loose black jacket, and his work pants' pockets bulged with something unknown. A lump swelled at his side, likely a holster.

He first glanced around the corner, found no seats, then came to the bar, sitting right next to Tan Yiyuan, bumping his arm.

"Haha, sorry, didn't mean to bump you. You alright?" The man's rugged face broke into a smile.

"No problem, it's nothing. Don't worry about it," Tan Yiyuan said with a smile too.

"Hey, Xiao Zhen, give me an Explosive Berry, on the rocks." He called out to the bartender.

A bartender with purple highlights walked over. "I've told you a thousand times, Jeffer! My name is Jeffer, not Xiao Zhen. Feng Tao, are you doing this on purpose?"

"My tongue can't get around it, so just bear with me." Feng Tao rubbed his head and laughed.

"How's it going lately, business good? Haven't seen you in a while." The bartender mixed the drink, speaking with familiarity.

"Not bad, just getting by. Took a job a while back, shipped something really far—went overseas." Feng Tao pulled out a cigarette, lit it, and took a satisfying drag. "Can't drink while hauling, afraid it'll cause trouble. I've been dying for one."

"Nice, you're shipping overseas now—big business." The bartender gave him a sly look. "Just an Explosive Berry? Nothing else? Fire Cobra, Thunder Rattler, something like that?"

At that, she couldn't help muttering under her breath, "Our boss came up with those damn names. He's a kid at heart who plays too many games, but every time I introduce the menu to newcomers, I wish the ground would swallow me."

Those around laughed teasingly.

Someone chimed in, "Right? How about you buy us all a round then?"

"Get lost!" Feng Tao cursed with a laugh. "If you want a drink, buy it yourself."

They didn't take offense; they all seemed familiar with him.

The Explosive Berry, with its reddish-purple liquid, was set down. Feng Tao grabbed it and took a big gulp, hissing, "Now that's the stuff! Kicks hard!"

"Hey buddy, you look new around here?" He flicked his ash and nudged Tan Yiyuan with his arm.

The bartender snorted a laugh. "Him? He's been making a name for himself lately. Keeps causing trouble at the Night City, and every time he gets off scot-free—hasn't even been hit once."

Underground bars had fast gossip, so it wasn't surprising they knew.

Tan Yiyuan gave a wry smile. "It's not that exaggerated."

Feng Tao's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh? Did someone cheat you at the casino?"

"No, it's..." The perfunctory words were on his lips, but Tan Yiyuan stopped. To win over Feng Tao, he had to reveal his real situation, mainly to show his strength and determination.

Besides, he had made quite a stir recently; anyone with a mind could dig it up, and it wasn't a secret. Even if they saw Yan Xianchuan's identity, it didn't matter.

She was a Yan family member, born with a get-out-of-jail-free card. Whatever she did was nothing unusual, and no one else could gossip about it.

What Tan Yiyuan didn't know was that the relevant security footage had long been tampered with by Hei Ge. After Lu Mingqiu married her, she had Hei Ge look into Yan Xianchuan, and he covered the tracks.

All surveillance related to Yan Xianchuan had been blurred, so no one could make out who she was.

Later, the Yan family did another cleanup, making it truly impossible for even immortals to investigate. People with sense would see such footage and not pry further.

Even if Yan Xianchuan had mentioned old acquaintances, no one would know they had met through this.

He sighed and said, "I wiped out the Black Tiger Gang with the help of a benefactor. The Black Claw Gang killed my wife and daughter to save face. Boss Qian kept letting me go because he wanted to take me in as a subordinate, but he also said it was the last time."

Thinking of his wife and daughter, who died tragically, Tan Yiyuan's eyes reddened again. "Luckily, I met a kind soul who took pity on me and gave me a hot meal. Otherwise, I might still be under the overpass looking for cardboard boxes."

Feng Tao's expression turned grim as he said quietly, "In our line, you don't harm family. Qian Hu is becoming more and more of an animal."

To put it bluntly, even gangs needed a good reputation, right? When the Python Gang was around, they never bullied women like that. Under Qian Hu's rule, the gang had expanded, sure, but it was a den of filth with all sorts, and they didn't honor any code.

In the underworld, the law doesn't reach, so they relied on a code. He now did as he pleased, breaking rules and ruining the reputation the Python Gang had built.

Tan Yiyuan sighed again. "Alone, I might never avenge them in this lifetime, but if I just live on in shame..."

He shook his head and said no more, but everyone understood his unspoken meaning.

This man would not live on alone; he was determined to fight to the death.

Feng Tao sighed too and clinked his glass. "Come on, brother, let's drink."

The two—one seeking connection, the other easygoing—soon hit it off, arms around shoulders, like brothers who shared everything.

Feng Tao patted his shoulder. "You've got no place to stay tonight. Sleeping outside won't do. How about crashing at my place? It's just me, and I've got a spare room that's empty anyway."

Tan Yiyuan was deeply moved. "You... Brother Feng, I don't know what to say."

Feng Tao waved it off. "Ah, we're brothers, no need to be formal. Cheers!"

They went a few more rounds, both getting dizzy, and stumbled out together, supporting each other.

Feng Tao slurred, "My, my place, it's right, right next to here. Let's go! Follow me!"

Tan Yiyuan had a better tolerance, draping Feng Tao's arm over his shoulder and staggering after him.

The man was broad and muscular, built like an ox, while Tan Yiyuan, after wandering for so long, had become as thin as a pole, struggling to support him.

After working up a sweat, the cold wind hit, sending a chill through him and sobering him up most of the way.

He began to weigh the possibility of recruiting Feng Tao.

From what he'd said, he seemed very dissatisfied with Qian Hu and supported the old boss's way of doing things. He must have been capable to have walked away from the Black Tiger Gang intact.

Moreover, this man was fairly honorable, easygoing, well-connected. Even if he was putting on an act, if he could do it so convincingly, why not treat it as real?

It was worth a try.

Drunk Feng Tao led him, stumbling through a few streets, to his place. He opened the door and flopped onto the sofa.

Tan Yiyuan adjusted him so he wouldn't fall off, then thought better and went to the kitchen for a glass of ice water. Just as he came back, the man suddenly grabbed his wrist.

He froze, looked up to meet his eyes—and saw not a trace of intoxication in them.

"You're not drunk."

Feng Tao sat up straight on the sofa, took the glass from his hand, and downed the ice water in one gulp.

"Of course I'm not. A few glasses like that won't get me drunk."

He swirled the glass. "I know you want revenge on Qian Hu."

Tan Yiyuan's face turned guarded. "Don't you?"

Feng Tao set the glass on the coffee table, the glass bottom tapping with a clear sound. "Of course I do. That's why I brought you here."

"Qian Hu, that backstabbing bastard. Every day he lives, my anger doesn't ease."

"That shameless traitor doesn't deserve to walk this earth."

Then he revealed a sinister smile completely at odds with his easygoing demeanor. "The Black Tiger Gang is powerful. Taking it down with one or two people is harder than dreaming of flying. To kill Qian Hu, you need a force greater than his."

"I have a chance." Feng Tao stared intently into the other's eyes. "A once-in-a-lifetime chance to leverage power."

Tan Yiyuan's eyebrow twitched. "What do you mean?"

"I know you might not trust me yet," Feng Tao said. "And you don't know me well. I lost my father young; my mother was in the skin trade, but she still worked hard to put me through school."

"Ha, you'd never guess I've had an education, right?"

"It was when I was eleven that I met the boss." His gaze grew distant, lost in memory. "Some classmate found out about my mother and spent every day cursing me, ostracizing me, throwing stones at me. Then they lured me into an alley to beat me up, but I fought back and bloodied every one of them, even cracked a head open."

"The boss saw that, took me under his wing, made me his adopted son. He said I had a ruthless streak and loyalty."

"Few in the gang know this, because back then I was hot-headed and thought that if I didn't make my own name, I'd shame my adoptive father. So I studied by day and fought by night. This position as deputy leader, I earned it myself, one fight at a time."

Feng Tao rubbed his crew cut and chuckled. "Don't judge by my looks; I'm only twenty-five this year."

"My mother was sickly and passed early. My adoptive father was my only family. My hatred for Qian Hu is no less than yours."

"Saying it out loud like this doesn't seem convincing. Wait a moment."

He stood up and went to the bedroom, returning with a photo album, his face full of melancholy and nostalgia.

"My adoptive father only had one daughter, Xiao Shu, no sons. He treated me like his own flesh and blood."

Feng Tao handed the album over. "Every birthday, we'd take a photo together. Look through it, and you'll see I'm telling the truth."

Tan Yiyuan took the album and opened the first page. There was no photo, just a note written in pen: *May my good son be happy every day*—Lu Feng.

He flipped further, finding the warm pictures of a family of three, and the growth of a youth. Later, the family of three became four with the addition of a baby, who grew into a little girl. Then the woman disappeared, leaving three again.

The album was not filled; time stopped three years ago, and nothing followed.

After seeing this, Tan Yiyuan believed eighty percent of what he'd said.

He had nothing—just his life. What else could anyone scheme for? And in this day and age, life was the cheapest thing.

To deceive him, someone would have to fabricate this album and spin such stories—too elaborate a ploy.

But one crucial question remained: "Your position isn't ordinary. Why did Qian Hu spare your life?"

Feng Tao laughed as if he'd heard a joke, laughing continuously until tears came.

"Qian Hu? He's a petty man. He thinks I liked my adoptive father's daughter, liked Xiao Shu. And knowing my background, he deliberately kept me alive so I'd watch Xiao Shu fall in love with him, marry him, and die because of him."

"He thought I'd be the next boss, but I never wanted to be. When my adoptive father passed, I planned to leave the gang and guard his grave."

His laughter came in broken bursts, gleeful. "He thinks everyone is like him—a slave to power. Even when I said what I wanted, he never believed me, treating me as a thorn in his side."

"But a victory without someone to boast to, without a loser to contrast—how boring would that be?"

"So I live, and I live well, or else how would he satisfy his vanity?"

Tan Yiyuan remained silent, watching this burly, rugged man casually wipe the tears from his laughter, and clearly seeing the deep hatred and mockery in his eyes.

"What was that opportunity you mentioned?"

Feng Tao said solemnly, "I do transport now, and the goods are all sorts, so I meet people from all walks of life."

"That last overseas job, I was shipping blue ice. From the contact, I got a tip: the Bolov family is recruiting." His eyes lit with a flame-like gleam. "Recruiting killers. It's supposed to be secret, but the contact is close to me, and knowing I want to do something big, he deliberately leaked it."

"They say the little man has no vision, but I beg to differ."

"The Bolov family—what do they matter? Have you seen the news? The old patriarch is dead, and the new patriarch is from the military."

"He's suddenly hiring, and looking for people who can kill. Isn't that an opportunity?"

Tan Yiyuan's face showed obvious hesitation and deliberation.

Feng Tao wasn't offended. He continued, "I've thought it through; I'm not just baiting you. I'll go myself, and not just me—a few brothers I know who also hate Qian Hu to the bone. We'll all go, so we can watch each other's backs."

"Whatever we do, whoever we kill, if we survive, we've borrowed the Bolov family's power. Once we earn their trust, we'll smear the Black Tiger Gang and lure them into wiping out that beast Qian Hu. If it succeeds, great—we'll have our revenge. If not, my life's already worthless; I'm bound to die someday."

"Your story—they told me, and tonight, I came specifically to find you."

His expression was sincere. "I know you're a real man, so I want to invite you to join us."

Tan Yiyuan hadn't spoken, clearly hesitant.

Feng Tao didn't rush. Everything he'd said was true, and he recited a string of numbers and letters. "That's my contact number. If you really have nowhere to stay, you can sleep here. If you're not sure, I won't stop you from leaving."

"Departure is set for the afternoon after tomorrow. If you decide, contact me. I'm being sincere."

Tan Yiyuan opened his mouth. "I... I do need to think it over."

"Understandable," Feng Tao said.

"I also have a place to sleep tonight," Tan Yiyuan said.

"Hope you don't leak this." The other said.

"I won't," Tan Yiyuan shook his head. "I'm not that kind of person."

He left, stepping onto the night streets, where gusts of wind carried all sorts of complex, foul odors.

To be honest, his heart stirred, but he didn't know what the Bolov family wanted specifically, or what would happen once he went. The future was entirely unknown. Was betting on an uncertain hope really going to succeed?

Yet Tan Yiyuan knew deep down that with just himself and a few others, eliminating the Black Tiger Gang was no different from talking nonsense in a dream. Many held grudges against them, but how many dared to risk their lives for revenge?

Walking on a road with no end in sight, he fell into a long daze.

****

After the funeral ended, Lu Mingqiu feigned weakness and returned to the mansion to rest properly, only emerging from her bedroom at lunchtime.

In the afternoon, she went to the rear quarters to see her mother.

Since the former patriarch's paranoia had worsened, he had moved his mistresses into the main house, keeping them under his watch.

But these mistresses had no right to enter the main building. After the last wife died, the patriarch did not remarry, so only his offspring lived in the main building.

With the former patriarch dead, the rear quarters were shrouded in gloom. The new patriarch, Azbeto, would surely not take them in; he had no interest in a stepmother. All that awaited them was a notice to move out, arriving at an unknown time.

And without the Bolov family's funds, these people, accustomed to luxury and with no idea how to support themselves—could they live out their days on severance pay alone?

Lu Mingqiu asked a servant to lead the way. When she entered the room, her mother was weeping.

Her grief was so evident; her eyes swollen from crying, her voice hoarse. When she saw someone at the door, she rubbed her eyes for a while before recognizing who it was.

"Inola, you... your father..." She covered her face and broke into sobs again.

After the servant withdrew, Lu Mingqiu closed the door. Her mother's appearance hadn't changed; well-preserved, she could pass for a woman in her twenties. She was like a lily flower frozen in time.

"I came back for the funeral," Lu Mingqiu said.

"He's gone. What am I supposed to do?" Her mother said, her eyes blurred with tears. "Alone, how will I survive?"

But what she said wasn't about livelihood—it was purely emotional.

Lu Mingqiu said nothing, and sure enough, her mother continued sobbing, "He was my sky, my everything. With him gone, my heart and soul have scattered."

"How could it be so sudden? Just two days ago, I saw him, strong and handsome. I really can't accept it."

She collapsed onto the coffee table, crying her heart out.

Lu Mingqiu suddenly felt a pang of sorrow. Here stood the daughter she had carried for ten months, and yet, despite such a great change, her mother had never once asked about her well-being in all the time since her marriage.

Even now, with Lu Mingqiu standing right before her, she hadn't said "How are you?"—her heart was only with the husband who never loved her.

Though she had long known her mother's true nature, at this moment she couldn't help thinking of the housekeeper's caring face, and looking at this sobbing woman felt absurd.

"Once you leave here in a few days, go back to your old place. I'll send you money every month; don't worry about life," Lu Mingqiu said.

Her mother, eyes brimming with tears, said, "Can't I stay here? I want to be closer to him."

Lu Mingqiu shook her head. "Azbeto is patriarch now; he has no reason to keep supporting you. New people will come."

"Then let me beg him, okay?" Her mother looked unwilling to accept it. "I don't want anything else, and I'm not after the money. I just... I really can't let go of him."

"Don't delude yourself, and don't go." Lu Mingqiu frowned. "Azbeto doesn't like being disturbed. If you act on your own, don't expect to stay—you might not even keep your life. He'll kill you."

Her mother startled. "What? Would he really? But I, I was your father's woman!"

"He will."

Her mother still couldn't quite believe it, but under her daughter's gaze, she gave a small, aggrieved "Mm-hmm," saying, "I won't go."

Startled into silence, she stopped crying, but her mouth didn't stop. She began recounting her love story with the former patriarch. As she talked, perhaps tiring, she fell asleep on the sofa.

Lu Mingqiu sat quietly for a little longer, her expression calm, unknown thoughts running through her mind.

Then she rose gently and left the room. She called a servant over and said, "Instruct the bodyguards not to let anyone from here approach the main building. Understood?"

The servant nodded quickly.

Only then did she leave.