“Can do,” I replied, “but there are so many stalls on Myanmar Street, how will I find you?”
He said, “My stall is number 126. When you get there, say you’re looking for Ang Kyi. Actually, that shop belongs to my brother, and he’s very tight with money, so I…”
He gave an embarrassed laugh. I understood. He wasn’t the owner, so he didn’t have much money on him. To come out for drinks, he had to use stones. It seemed I had misjudged him earlier; perhaps he wasn't as bad as I'd thought.
“Alright,” I said, “I’ll bring friends to your place in a few days. Make sure you recommend good stones to me.”
“Don’t worry,” he assured me, “we’re friends, of course I’ll get you good stones.”
“Isn’t being friends a bit too fast? I’ll consider being friends with you only after you’ve given me good stones.”
“Don’t worry, I guarantee you’ll be able to pick out good stones.”
Ang Kyi happily went off to ask a girl to dance. Watching this Burmese man, he really didn’t seem like a bad person. The kind of person Xiao Hong mentioned earlier probably didn’t include Ang Kyi.
In reality, rough stones are not worth much in Myanmar. It’s our strong liking for jade that maximizes the value of these rough stones. Without the market in mainland China, even the best rough stones are just rocks.
Just then, Xiao Li and Xiao Lian came down. Xiao Li hadn’t drunk much today. Xiao Lian, however, might have had quite a bit, as her face was a little flushed, but she seemed to be in decent condition. The two of them smiled at me as they sat down on either side of me.
Xiao Li didn’t see Xiao Hong and knew she hadn’t come down yet. She wrapped her arm around my neck and asked, “Hua Ge, how was Xiao Hong’s company? Shall I come and accompany you tonight?”
I hastily covered her mouth. “What do you mean, company? We didn’t stay together, don’t talk nonsense!”
Xiao Li scoffed, “Really? Then Xiao Hong is too disappointing. How could she treat my Hua Ge like this? I’ll come and accompany you tonight. I guarantee I’ll be more gentle and considerate than her.”
I said, “Don’t you know what happened to her yesterday? Afterwards, you two left her in her room alone. You knocked on the door for ages but she wouldn’t open it. She was scared, that’s why she found me. I haven’t even come after you for trouble yet. Tell me, wasn’t it your fault?”
Xiao Li pouted, while Xiao Lian lowered her head, not saying a word. Yesterday, I had asked her to keep an eye on the two of them, but who knew she’d locked Xiao Hong out of her room by locking the dorm door from the inside, preventing Xiao Hong from getting to her room.
This wasn’t Xiao Li’s fault, though. She couldn’t even take care of herself, let alone know anything about Xiao Hong’s situation.
I said, “We are a team. We are all brothers and sisters. When there’s a problem, everyone has to help. You can’t just look out for yourselves.”
Xiao Lian softly said, “I know.”
I looked at Xiao Li and asked her, “Did you hear that?”
She grudgingly replied, “I heard.”
I checked the time; it was past midnight. I guessed Xiao Hong would be coming down soon.
“How about you two go back first?” I suggested. “I’ll have a driver take you. I’ll wait here myself.”
“No way,” Xiao Li said, “I want you to stay here and accompany me.” She then hugged my neck tightly, leaning her mouth towards my face, reeking of alcohol.
I pushed her face away with my hands, saying, “Your breath smells too strongly of alcohol, are you trying to suffocate me!”
Xiao Li stopped struggling and buried her head in my chest.
Xiao Lian, being the more obedient one, sat quietly beside me without speaking.
After waiting for about half an hour, Xiao Hong came down from upstairs. I gently moved Xiao Li’s arm from my neck and stood up. “Alright, let’s go back.”
Xiao Hong seemed to have had more alcohol; she was a little unsteady. I went over to support her and asked, “Are you okay?”
She linked her arm through mine and said, “I had some beer, I feel a bit dizzy. I’ll be fine after a nap when we get back.”
Xiao Li linked her arm through my other one. I felt like an emperor with one on each side. Xiao Lian trailed behind us like a maid.
Today, they had collected five thousand in total, with Xiao Hong alone bringing in three thousand, making up for yesterday.
All their earnings had to be handed over to the “Female Demon.” This place belonged to her, and all the money earned had to be distributed by her.
Today, I had an unexpected gain. I just didn’t know if this investment would pay off. It would be great if it did.
When I returned, I handed over today’s earnings to the Female Demon. She told me that each time I received money, I could deduct my own share and hand over the rest to her. After saying this, she gave me five thousand and then took out another thousand, saying, “This is for your errands.”
Then, she added meaningfully, “You performed well today. Manager Liu also called me. He thinks highly of you and said he would cultivate you well in the future, letting you manage a stall on your own.”
I smiled inwardly, thinking, cultivate me? It’s more likely they’ll get me involved in something. Better not.
I remained silent. She watched me go upstairs before getting into the car with Qiang and driving away.
After they drove off, I quickly went to a phone booth to call Lan Ya.
Xiao Hong had returned to the dormitory with the others. Although she still wanted to live with me, I hadn’t said anything, and she was too embarrassed to bring it up.
I had too many things going on here, and it would be inconvenient for her to live with me. Some things were better left unknown to her.
I dialed a few numbers, and she responded with a few of her own – it was the code for going to Da Shi Jie. I got up and walked towards Da Shi Jie.
My residence wasn’t far from Da Shi Jie, about a five or six-minute walk.
I went up the stairs from the side entrance to the third floor and entered her office directly.
To my surprise, Brother Bao was also there.
Brother Bao had his usual expressionless face, sitting in the same spot as last time. There were no bodyguards or assistants in the room, just the two of them.
Upon entering, I reported the night’s delivery situation and the matter of crossing the border to pick up goods that Manager Liu had mentioned. After I finished, I looked at both of them.
Brother Bao stated, “It seems things need to be resolved quickly. The harder it is for him to grow stronger, the more difficult it will be for us.”
Lan Ya asked, “Brother Bao, what should we do?”
Brother Bao advised, “Don’t wait for him to pick up the goods from across the border. The next time the Burmese come to deliver, we strike!”
Lan Ya agreed, “Alright, we’ll do as Brother Bao says.”
Brother Bao inquired, “How many men can you spare?”
Lan Ya replied, “About fifty to sixty. We can’t make the place look too empty.”
Brother Bao continued, “That’s enough. I’ll provide a hundred men. It will be enough to surround his clubhouse. The police will handle the internal matters. We’ll be responsible for ensuring no one escapes. Brother Li Hua, you need to gather information about their next transaction in the next few days. We’ll be ready to act at any time.”
I nodded in agreement. Lan Ya added, “Act as if you’re completely obedient in front of them. I suspect they’ll test you again in the next couple of days, so be prepared.”
I said, “I’m young, so they won’t be highly vigilant towards me. Although they don’t fully trust me, I can handle it and not let them see through my facade.”
Lan Ya concluded, “That’s good. We can’t help much during this period, so you must be careful. As I said before, ensuring your own safety is paramount.”
I nodded, bid them farewell, and returned to my residence.