TATSD Chapter 110

Sun E still had some doubts in her mind, fearing that Sun Hong might have made a mistake in the location. But as soon as she saw Ji Wei’s face, her expression immediately brightened, and she walked up to him with a smile. “Benefactor, it’s you! Last time you left too quickly, and I never had a chance to thank you properly!”

“You’re too kind, Miss,” Ji Wei said gently, offering her a smile. His gaze then shifted to the man standing silently behind her. A long-forgotten memory suddenly surged in his mind, causing his brow to furrow deeply.

“Sun Hong, I didn’t expect to run into you here. What a coincidence,” Ji Wei said.

“I never thought the person my sister spoke of would be you. It is quite a coincidence,” Sun Hong observed Ji Wei’s reaction, sizing him up for a moment before stepping forward. He patted him on the back and added, “You’ve made something of yourself. In just this short time, you’ve opened a shop right here in my territory, and I didn’t even know about it.”

Upon seeing Ji Wei, Sun Hong didn’t have any doubts. Though he knew Ji Wei had once declared his intent to leave the Qinglong Gang, Ji Wei had also visited his family home before. What were the odds that such a man would do him such a huge favor? From what Sun Hong knew, Ji Wei wasn’t the type of person to be so benevolent.

Otherwise, he wouldn’t be involved in the protection racket.

While Sun Hong thought this in his mind, his face showed no hint of it. No matter Ji Wei’s intentions, he had saved his mother’s life, and Sun Hong was naturally grateful for that.

“I don’t have such great abilities, I just helped out a little,” Ji Wei said with a gesture inviting them both into the shop. “Since you’re here, why not come in and have a look? If you see anything you like, I’ll give you some on the house.”

“No need for that. We came today specifically to thank you. Some of my men made a mess last time, and I had to deal with it. If it weren’t for you, I really wouldn’t know what to do,” Sun Hong said, not willing to enter. He stood outside the shop. “I know you wouldn’t want to take any money from me, so I won’t offer it.”

Hearing this, Sun E became a little anxious. She turned her back to Ji Wei and gave her brother a pleading glance, but Sun Hong didn’t follow her lead and continued, “Your shop just opened here. If you ever need anything, just come to me.”

In other towns, people wouldn’t dare to speak so boldly, but in Daxi Town, Sun Hong’s word was law. With a single command from him, even the local ruffians would keep their distance from Ji Wei in the future.

Compared to the few silver coins as payment, this was clearly much more valuable, and it surprised Ji Wei.

“In that case, thank you very much, Boss Sun. I never expected I’d still need your protection,” Ji Wei said, cupping his fists in gratitude.

“Don’t be so formal. Even if you’re no longer with the gang, I still consider you a brother. If everyone were as easy to deal with as you, Liu Qing wouldn’t have—” Sun Hong suddenly stopped mid-sentence, clearly reminded of the past grievances between Ji Wei and Liu Qing.

If it hadn’t been for Ji Wei, Liu Qing wouldn’t have ended up like this.

Sun Hong sighed, a little wistful.

Ji Wei merely smiled and didn’t take it to heart.

“I heard you’ve got yourself a wife. Is she here? I’d like to take a look,” Sun Hong teased.

“A wife?” Ji Wei couldn’t help but touch his nose, glancing back at Liu Yimian, who was chatting happily with Lu Yushu nearby.

Following his gaze, Sun Hong quickly fixed his eyes on Liu Yimian. With his arm slung over Ji Wei’s shoulder, he grinned. “Not bad. That lad looks well-behaved, a good match for your fiery temper.”

Ji Wei nodded in agreement. Sun Hong, having finally caught up with him, insisted on dragging him out for drinks. Sun E tried to dissuade him but ended up following, urging him to drink less.

Ji Wei hadn’t planned on bringing Liu Yimian along, but as soon as Sun Hong invited him, Liu Yimian eagerly agreed, even saying that if Ji Wei got drunk, he would take him home.

The original Ji Wei wasn’t a bad person, but he was someone who valued loyalty. He wasn’t good at flattery like Liu Qing, so he didn’t leave much of an impression on Sun Hong.

Still, both men were from the same circle, and Ji Wei had saved his mother’s life. Sitting at the same table and sharing a drink was a simple bonding moment.

Unexpectedly, their conversation flowed so smoothly that Sun Hong, feeling particularly close to Ji Wei, even suggested they swear brotherhood. Ji Wei, however, reminded him that the bond of brotherhood was in the heart, and whether they swore an oath was unimportant, which stopped Sun Hong from insisting further.

Upon hearing that Liu Yimian’s birthday was in a few days, Sun Hong slapped the table in excitement, declaring that he would book a whole floor at Fuxing Tower to celebrate the occasion.

“I think that’s unnecessary,” Ji Wei said, shaking his head.

“No way! I’ll have it my way! You two must come that day. If anyone doesn’t show up, I’ll have them tied up and brought in!” Sun Hong, a little tipsy, raised his voice loudly. Ji Wei could only helplessly agree.

Liu Yimian, however, was thrilled. Since his mother’s passing, he hadn’t celebrated his birthday, let alone have so many people remember it and want to help him celebrate. Besides Ji Wei and Sun Hong, others from the academy, like Wen Xuan and Lin Tai, also knew his birthday was coming up. If Ji Wei hadn’t shown up, they would have planned something special for him.

After agreeing to the plan, Sun Hong insisted on paying the bill and drunkenly left. He was known for his good tolerance for alcohol, but he couldn’t keep up with Ji Wei, who hardly treated alcohol as a real drink.

The two had consumed two large jars of wine, and while Sun Hong had passed out, Ji Wei was still standing, not only upright but also fully aware, though his face was flushed and his mood more spirited.

Liu Yimian, who had planned on helping Ji Wei home, was now caught off guard.

A couple of days later, Ji Wei went out to collect the fireworks and candles he had ordered, telling Liu Yimian not to follow and to focus on his studies instead.

Liu Yimian guessed that Ji Wei’s errand was related to his upcoming birthday, feeling both happy and excited, and didn’t insist on joining him. He just urged Ji Wei to hurry up.

About half an hour after Ji Wei left, someone came to knock on the door. It was a student who lived upstairs. The two were only acquaintances. The student told Liu Yimian that someone was waiting for him by the bamboo grove and that he should hurry over.

“Who is it?” Liu Yimian asked.

“I didn’t ask, but it’s not far from the bamboo grove. You should go take a look. The person has been waiting for a while,” the student said, then left after delivering the message.

Liu Yimian assumed it was Ji Wei returning to bring him along and quickly packed up his things, not bothering to tidy up his desk, and hurried out the door.

When he arrived at the bamboo forest, he walked back and forth twice but saw no sign of anyone. As he stood puzzled by the corner of the wall in the bamboo grove, wondering if he was being tricked, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his neck. He collapsed into the arms of someone standing behind him.

“Quick, let’s go!” The person gestured, then lifted Liú Yìmián onto his back.

The two of them wore plain cloth clothes, with their hair neatly combed. If it weren’t for the intensity in their eyes, they would have looked like any other scholar on the street.

“Where are you two headed?” someone casually asked, seeing them with Liú Yìmián on the back.

“He’s sick. We’re taking him to the doctor,” the pair said, a cover story they had planned.

“That can’t be delayed. I won’t keep you.”

Along the way, they used this excuse to bypass anyone they met. They left the academy without a hitch.

To avoid running into Jì Wéi, they took a secluded path in the opposite direction.

After collecting the items he had ordered and sending them to the shop, Jì Wéi quickly returned to the academy. However, after waiting for a while, he still didn’t see Liú Yìmián.

He then went to Lín Tài’s room. Lín Tài and Wén Xuān didn’t know where Liú Yìmián had gone either. Luckily, there were still many people in the yard, and after asking everyone, someone had seen what had happened earlier.

The three of them approached the scholar who had first delivered the message. The scholar was confused and said, “I was stopped by those two when I came back. They said they were looking for Liú Yìmián urgently but didn’t know where he lived, so they asked me to pass a message. Since I was passing by, I agreed, but after that, I didn’t know anything more.”

Jì Wéi grabbed him by the collar, took a deep breath, and then released him when he saw the scholar’s pale face. He apologized and asked, “Do you remember what those two looked like?”

Because he knew he had made a mistake, the scholar cooperated fully. Although he had only seen them for a brief moment, one of them had a striking appearance.

“Yes! The man in the blue clothes was a bit taller, about a palm taller than me, with a black mole on his cheek, right here,” he pointed to the middle of his left cheek and stared at Jì Wéi.

“Thanks.”

Hearing this, the scholar immediately relaxed and waved his hand, “No problem. It was my duty. If you need anything else, just let me know.”

But Jì Wéi didn’t respond to him. He turned and ran, with Lín Tài and Wén Xuān quickly following, afraid they might lose the lead.

They ran out of the academy and down a narrow alley, where Jì Wéi stopped in front of a house and knocked hard on the door. After a while, a cold, indifferent voice called out from inside.

When Sūn Ēr saw it was Jì Wéi, her annoyance disappeared, replaced by joy. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to find Sūn Lǎodà. Is he home?”

“Quite the coincidence, he just returned, and hasn’t even sat down yet.”

Seeing Jì Wéi’s urgency, Sūn Ēr didn’t ask more questions but quickly stepped aside to let him in. The two men following Jì Wéi were also allowed in.

“Sister-in-law has been kidnapped? This is outrageous! Someone dares to kidnap my people right on my turf!” Sūn Hóng was unusually angry. This incident was like a slap in his face.

“Don’t worry, I will find out who did this! I’ll make them pay dearly!”

Hearing this, Sūn Hóng could no longer sit still. He gathered Jì Wéi and the others and told his trusted subordinates to go out and investigate the two kidnappers’ physical features.

“Are you sure he was kidnapped? Could it be someone he knows?” Sūn Hóng had been angry before, but now that he had given all his orders, he thought about it and asked this question.

“It’s impossible,” Jì Wéi shook his head with a grim expression. “He only has a few friends here, and they’re all classmates. There’s no reason anyone else would know those two. Besides, if he was leaving, he would have left a message so I wouldn’t worry.”

To wait for news, the group sat in the lobby of the Fúxīng Building, near the door. About two hours after Liú Yìmián disappeared, Jì Bǎoshān hurriedly arrived, holding a note. He was out of breath and couldn’t speak coherently, just threw the paper in his hand toward them.

Jì Wéi caught it and unfolded the note.

After a moment, he seemed to be brewing a storm. His fingers cracked from the tension, and he almost crumpled the paper in his fist.

Lín Tài and Wén Xuān, both anxious, grabbed the note from his hands and saw it for themselves. They were equally furious.

Liú Yìmián had been kidnapped, and the kidnappers forced him to write a letter demanding ten taels of silver for his release. It was clear they were after money!

“We can’t give in!” Lín Tài said angrily.

Sūn Hóng looked at Jì Wéi, waiting for him to speak. “If you don’t have the money right now, I can help you out—”

“No, we will pay!” Jì Wéi finally loosened his clenched fist, his expression cooling down.

Liú Yìmián had a soft exterior but was tough inside. If he didn’t want to, no one could force him to write this letter.

Since the note was in Jì Wéi’s hands, it meant Liú Yìmián was still in good condition, and there was no need for him to worry.

The note didn’t mention where to deliver the money, which meant there would likely be another note coming.

Jì Wéi just had to wait.