During this period, Zhao Zhu had been gathering specific information about when Yu Xin would return to Wuxian County and what her itinerary would be.
According to what she had learned, Yu Xin would arrive in Wuxian County in about three days. She would first return to her alma mater, No. 2 High School, for an inspection, then attend a small symposium organized by the county that afternoon. That night, she might stay at the only three-star hotel in the county seat.
That might be her only chance.
Of course, Zhao Zhu now knew from the information she had gathered that Yu Xin and Liu Yutong were both studying at Mingzhu City University of Finance and Economics. She might find an opportunity there as well.
But she couldn’t wait that long.
The more Zhao Zhu learned during this time, the more intense the hatred in her heart became.
She simply couldn’t accept that in just over three years, the outside world had changed so much—that those two bitches had become so powerful and dazzling.
Today, Zhao Zhu came to Fish Joy House in Wuxian County. When she saw the restaurant that had once belonged to her family, she found that its sign had been replaced and the interior completely renovated. It looked much more upscale than before.
She stood outside for quite a while. After some thought, she put on a hat and walked in, intending to see whether the food still tasted the same.
Of course, she also wanted to scout the place out in advance. What if Yu Xin came here to eat? Wouldn’t that give her a chance to slip some rat poison or something into her food?
While Zhao Zhu was waiting in a corner of the dining hall for her food to arrive, a black BMW 5 Series pulled up outside the restaurant.
Zhao Zhu was slightly surprised when she saw the car.
In a small county like Wuxian in 2010, BMWs were still relatively rare luxury cars, especially a brand-new 5 Series. It must have cost at least several hundred thousand yuan.
The car door opened, and a man stepped out of the driver’s seat.
The man looked to be under thirty. He wore an exaggerated floral shirt, had his hair slicked back, and sported a small beer belly. A gold watch gleamed on his wrist. His outfit and bearing made him look exactly like the nouveau riche bosses often seen on television.
But for some reason, the more Zhao Zhu looked at him, the more familiar he seemed.
Soon, the image of a young hoodlum with dyed yellow hair appeared in her mind and gradually merged with the man standing before her.
It was Liu Hao!
He was the underworld big brother she had acknowledged back when she was in high school, her sworn brother.
Back then, the reason she had dared to act so arrogantly at school was largely because she had Liu Hao, a street tough, backing her. Whenever something happened, all she had to do was invoke Liu Hao’s name, and very few students at school dared to provoke her.
She still remembered that she had once led Liu Hao and several of his lackeys to ambush Liu Yutong.
Instead, Liu Yutong’s people had beaten them badly. Liu Hao had even been taken away and detained for quite some time.
After that, Zhao Zhu had never seen Liu Hao again. Later, when Liu Yutong sent her to prison, she completely lost touch with the outside world.
She never expected to run into him here.
But the change in him was simply too drastic.
The Yellow Hair Man was gone, replaced by a man driving a BMW, and his belly had grown several sizes larger.
Naturally, he was also much richer than before.
After getting out of the car, Liu Hao walked straight into the restaurant. He asked about the private rooms, then went directly upstairs.
Zhao Zhu hesitated for a moment before following him.
……
When Liu Hao pushed open the door to the private room, three or four people were already seated inside. They were all old brothers who had once followed him around Wuxian County. Naturally, they were also among the few who had not switched sides and joined the Dragon Society back then. By now, every one of them regretted that decision bitterly.
Regret was one thing, but life still had to go on. Most of them had since married and settled down. Some had opened car washes, while others had gone into transportation. They weren’t doing particularly well, but at least they had left behind the aimless life of blindly drifting around.
One could only mix with the underworld while young. As they grew older, they ultimately had to face reality.
“Brother Hao is here!”
“Brother Hao, sit here! Sit here!”
Liu Hao swaggered over to the seat of honor and plopped himself down, then slapped his BMW’s key fob onto the table. He put on an impressive show of authority.
The old brothers immediately began showering him with praise, flattering him until he was practically floating.
He was just about to start bragging about how profitable the new karaoke club he had opened in Danan City was when the door to the private room was suddenly pushed open from outside.
“Brother Hao.”
Liu Hao looked up and saw a woman wearing a baseball cap standing in the doorway.
The woman was thin and gaunt, with a sallow complexion. She looked somewhat familiar, but for a moment he couldn’t remember who she was.
The other old brothers glanced at one another. None of them recognized her either.
“It’s me, Zhao Zhu.” The woman pushed her cap upward, revealing her entire face.
Liu Hao froze. Then he shot to his feet, his eyes widening.
“Zhao… Zhao Zhu?!”
Of course he remembered Zhao Zhu.
Back then, in Wuxian County, he had led his men to ambush Liu Yutong, only to have one of her subordinates, a man named Yun Cheng, turn the tables and pin them to the ground.
Afterward, Liu Hao had been detained for quite some time. Once he was released, he had slunk off to Mingzhu City, then moved on to Danan City. In the end, he had accidentally helped Liu Yutong out of a difficult situation, which more or less settled the grudge between them. Later, because of Liu Yutong’s intervention, he had become one of the more prominent bosses in Danan City.
Of course, he no longer lived the life of a street tough. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to—it was that he didn’t dare.
Wherever the Dragon Society operated, every so-called underworld boss who caused trouble met a bad end, without exception.
Back then, he had relied on Liu Yutong’s name to build up enough capital. He had opened several entertainment venues, and his life was now fairly comfortable. He had even managed to cultivate himself a beer belly.
Compared with how much he had changed, Zhao Zhu was obviously in far worse shape. She had been sent behind bars and spent several years there.
“Aren’t you… still in prison?” Liu Hao asked instinctively.
The moment the words left his mouth, he realized how inappropriate they sounded and hurriedly corrected himself.
“No, that’s not what I meant. I mean, you’re out?”
“Yeah. I was released early.” Zhao Zhu nodded. “I behaved well, so my sentence was reduced.”
