Chapter 73
Chapter 73
Episode 73: Shanghai Yaguza (2)
"What the! Why did the lights go out!"
"Stop that bastard first!"
"Where is he!"
Yaguza's office, located deep within the Shanghai electronics market, had no windows.
With the door Shinwoo had entered through now closed, the sudden darkness made it impossible to see even an inch ahead.
The noisy voices of the men echoed.
'2 o'clock, 4 o'clock, 5 o'clock directions.'
But Shinwoo was able to pinpoint their locations using his last memory and the sounds.
Swish― Thwack― Thwack, thwack―
Groans erupted from Weisuan's men at the sounds of impact echoing in the darkness.
"Kuh-erk!"
"Keok―!"
"Kuh-euup!"
Then, some of the men turned on their phone flashlights and shone them around.
"Where is he!"
"Find him quickly and kill him!"
Whoosh― Whoosh―
Front, back, left, right. They searched continuously with the flashlights, but Shinwoo's figure was nowhere to be seen.
"Could he have escaped in the meantime?"
There were three men left. They checked all around with their flashlights before finally looking at each other.
At the same time, one man dropped his phone with the flashlight on, clutching his own neck, unable to even breathe.
"What's wrong with you?"
"He's behind that bastard!"
The wire reflecting the flashlight gleamed next to the man's neck.
Shinwoo, who was holding it, confirmed that the man had lost consciousness before throwing the dice.
Swoosh― Whack!
"Aaaagh!"
The man opposite him dropped his phone as he was hit in the shoulder by the dice flying like a slingshot.
"What did that bastard throw?"
The man who tried to move at the same time lost his balance and fell, feeling something wrapping around both ankles.
There was no time to think about what it was. Shinwoo's foot, which had already approached, kicked his chin, knocking down the last remaining subordinate with one blow.
"……."
The flashlight shining from the phone on the floor revealed Shinwoo and the situation inside the office.
The subordinates were all knocked out or unable to move.
Weisuan, who was watching Shinwoo standing among those subordinates, remained still, aiming his gun from the desk.
"Your skills are quite impressive. But you don't think you can dodge this too, do you?"
"Can you even hit me?"
"Do you think this is the first time I've ever shot someone?"
"If that were the case, you should have shot me from the start."
Shwuk― Taang!
The gunshot came from Shinwoo's hand. At the same time, the gun Weisuan was holding was hit by the bullet and fell from his hand to the floor.
He had taken the pistol that the first of Weisuan's subordinates had been carrying.
"……."
"Why are you so surprised? Is this your first time in this kind of situation?"
Weisuan saw his hand, which had just dropped the pistol, trembling. In a situation where they were facing each other, Shinwoo had accurately aimed and hit only Weisuan's pistol.
"Your skills are quite impressive… Who the hell are you?"
"You heard it on the phone earlier."
"LOX? I've never heard of such a name."
Weisuan, who was called Yaguza and had seen many pros who were said to be flying high in the Chinese underworld, was taken aback. But Shinwoo's skills, which he had just witnessed, were on par with or perhaps even better than them.
"You'll hear about it from now on."
“…So, what do you want from me?”
“I told you before I came in. I said I came to make a deal.”
“A deal with me? After making this mess? Aren’t you guys getting up soon?!”
The subordinates who had been defeated by Shinwoo finally came to their senses one by one and helped each other up. At the same time, they glared at Shinwoo, who had defeated them, with resentful eyes.
“…Sorry.”
“Aish, those bastards! I can’t just throw them into the sea off Shanghai.”
Weisuan's gaze returned to Shinwoo, who was standing in front of him again.
“You know I’m a valuable person, right?”
“Do you think I would have come without knowing that?”
Perhaps because of the overly confident answer, Weisuan sighed and said again.
“Okay, what kind of deal do you want to make with me?”
“I want you to find someone for me. In return, I will provide information that is worth it.”
“…A person? Do you think this is some back alley private investigation agency?”
Weisuan frowned.
Even though a tense atmosphere flowed for a moment, Shinwoo remained calm.
“Isn’t it a private investigation agency? One that brings back anything that’s worth something… Or is it not?”
Suddenly, a smile appeared on Weisuan’s face.
“Heh. You know that well. But the down payment won’t be small… Do you have the ability to pay with money or information?”
“I have enough, so don’t worry.”
“Let’s hear it first and then decide.”
Shinwoo felt that the deal had begun and said.
“The name of the person I want you to find is Wen Wei. Nationality is Chinese. Age should be twenty-four this year. Height is a little over 180cm. He has a handsome face.”
“Don’t you have a picture?”
“No. Lastly…….”
Shinwoo, who was slurring his words, raised his left arm and showed his wrist.
A black eye shape, with a thin hexagonal black star engraved inside. Below it was written.
【The ordeal is not over】
“He will have the exact same tattoo on his left wrist as I do.”
“You know each other well enough to know that, but you don’t have a picture?”
It was a somewhat ironic request.
“There’s a reason why I don’t have one. How long will it take to find him?”
“That depends on the down payment.”
Weisuan rubbed his thumb and index finger together with a sly expression.
“You’re currently doing business with the Seven Circle Society, right?”
At that moment, Weisuan’s grinning face hardened. This was because only he and a few of his subordinates on a business trip were aware of the internal business.
“Who the hell are you? Are you perhaps a member of the Seven Circle Society?”
The Seven Circle Society was created by an alliance of seven violent organizations that were active in the Chinese underworld. As each organization had a large influence, the Seven Circle Society absorbed all the small organizations as soon as it was created.
At the same time, it completely swallowed the dark side of China.
Weisuan was able to gradually grow his small business by making a deal with the Seven Circle Society.
However, he couldn't help but become sensitive when Shinwoo mentioned that business.
Of course, Shinwoo had fully expected such a reaction.
“I’m not a member of the Seven Circle Society. However, I know a little about them.”
“You’d better watch your mouth from now on. The moment you slip up even a little, I’ll die, and you’ll die too.”
Shinwoo only found Weisuan's murderous look amusing.
“I just want to tell you to be careful.”
“What… What does that mean?”
“It means that the Seven Circle Society isn’t stupid, so why would they keep doing business while paying a high price?”
Weisuan started as a drifter in the back alleys and created an information network that moved with manpower throughout major cities in China. As a result, he grew into a private investigation agency used not only by the underworld but also by politicians, businessmen, and high-ranking government officials.
However, since the foundation was in the shadows, he had no choice but to be mindful of the Seven Circle Society, an alliance of violent organizations, so he formed a cooperative relationship.
At the same time, Weisuan began a business of providing information on personnel needed by the Seven Circle Society.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Who else would they do business with if not me?”
“Before that, why don’t you send out the useless guys? It’s a bit of a sensitive topic.”
After pondering for a moment, Weisuan gestured to the subordinates standing behind Shinwoo to leave.
As soon as the office door was completely closed, Shinwoo immediately opened his mouth.
“It’s nice now that it’s quiet.”
“Now tell me. What’s the problem?”
“The deals you’ve been making so far. Do you think only you can do them? You have your right and left arms.”
They were Weisuan's closest aides and the two people he thought of as his own younger brothers. They were colleagues who had formed a relationship with Weisuan in the back alleys and had been with him ever since.
He could never imagine that they would betray him.
“Didn’t I clearly warn you to watch your mouth?”
“I think you should be careful of getting backstabbed. And now, what can you do to me?”
Shinwoo was still holding a pistol in his hand. Just looking at his shooting skills from earlier, it would be difficult to gain a chance of winning even if the subordinates who had gone outside attacked again.
“Keuhm…….”
“It won’t be right away. They’ll need to prepare to stab you in the back too. So, either stay still and get hit and fall out, or check it out even once.”
“Do you know what I’m thinking right now?”
“You’re probably thinking I’m trying to drive a wedge between you. And you probably want to tear me apart and kill me.”
“You know me well.”
“Then go ahead and try.”
“…….”
Weisuan couldn’t do anything.
At this, Shinwoo stared at him intently before picking up the pistol. He began to pull back the slide and disassembled the firing pin assembly and magazine in an instant.
Then, he picked up a pen on the desk and wrote a number on a memo.
“Check it out and decide whether to accept my request or not. Contact me at this number. Oh, and even if you find out Wen Wei’s location, don’t approach him separately, just let me know. He may look gentle on the outside, but he’s a crazy bastard.”
After saying that, Shinwoo left the office.
Weisuan’s subordinates, who were outside, flinched when they encountered Shinwoo and immediately rushed inside.
“Boss! Are you okay?”
“Do I look okay to you right now?”
“…….”
Everyone was unable to answer.
At that sight, Weisuan sighed.
“Where are Liwen and Huwan going around right now?”
“Liwen is in Beijing, and Huwan should be leaving Qujing for Guangzhou around now.”
Weisuan’s head became complicated. However, Shinwoo, who introduced himself as LOX, knew the organization’s internal situation too well.
There were too many things that bothered him to just brush it off.
“Call Meian.”
“Yes? Meian?”
Meian was Yaguza Weisuan's adopted daughter, and she was called Yaksa within the organization and was in charge of managing the entertainment districts in the surrounding area.
“Do I have to say it twice?”
“Ah, no. I’ll call her right away.”
Not long after, Meian, who had received the call, arrived at the office.
She frowned at the messy interior.
“Dad, what’s going on here? The guys outside don’t look good either. Were you attacked or something?”
At that question, Weisuan sent all the other subordinates out and had a private conversation with Meian.
“If it was an attack, would I be okay?”
“Dad might have caught them and messed them up. So, who did you get beaten up by?”
He might have been less upset if it had been a group of guys.
“It wasn’t a group of guys, it was just a bit of a conflict with a customer.”
“Tch! What customer… Did you already bury them?”
She often sneered, but now he felt a twisting sensation inside.
“That’s enough. I think you need to check on the kids.”
“What kids?”
“Who else would it be? Our kids. Liwen and Huwan.”
“Uncle Liwen and Uncle Huwan? What happened?”
After pondering for a moment, Weisuan explained what had happened earlier.
At the same time, Meian was completely dumbfounded.
“That’s a real crazy bastard. He turned this place into a mess all by himself? And that guy told you to suspect my uncles?”
“That’s right. I want you to check it out. There are some things that bother me, so I can’t just brush it off.”
Liwen and Huwan were like relatives to Meian. However, the trust between her adoptive father Weisuan and her family was more important than their existence.
“Okay. What if I find a problem while investigating? Do I cut them off right away?”
“If that’s really the case, finish it without leaving any loose ends.”
Weisuan didn’t hesitate either. Seeing that, Meian gave a thumbs up.
“Trust me!”