The moment the old man appeared, the bald thug's face turned even uglier. He forced a dry laugh and took two steps back.
"Brother Dong, this is just a small matter. There's really no need to trouble Mr. Lin over it, right?"
The old man looked at him impassively and gave a quiet sigh.
"Go back the way you came. If you do that now, I can pretend this never happened."
"Of course. Of course."
Still smiling obsequiously, the bald man turned and ran, and the other group fled with him. Bai Xiao did not stop them. He already had the bags, so as far as he was concerned, this matter no longer had anything to do with him.
Just as he was about to leave as well, the old man called out to him.
"Young man, wait a moment."
Bai Xiao turned around. The other party had fed him earlier, so he did not mind hearing what he had to say.
"Something you need?"
The old man smiled faintly.
"...Nothing much. Why don't you first take a look at what's inside those bags?"
Bai Xiao opened them, only to find that there was no money and no contraband inside—just two thin sheets of paper.
"Secret Liu-Style Brine Recipe. Wang Family's Signature Char Siu Sauce Recipe... What the hell is this?!"
He truly had not expected that after all that effort, this was what he had gotten. No, seriously—why did a couple of recipes require such a dramatic setup? Black suits, sunglasses, the whole thing. Were those people insane?
The old man laughed. Even the young man beside him could not help smiling.
"One look and it's obvious you're not from Lungmen. One side is called the Char Siu Gang, the other the Brine Gang. Together they control one of Lungmen's snack streets. They want to join forces and expand their turf. To them, these two secret recipes are basically hostages."
Bai Xiao no longer knew what expression he was supposed to make. He had thought it was some secret gangland transaction. Who would have guessed it was just a bunch of street vendors losing their minds?
"So you came here to stop them?"
"That's right." Leaning on his cane, the old man nodded. "If they team up, the other vendors won't be able to stay in business."
Fair enough.
That actually made sense.
"Ahem. Since these are secret recipes, they should be worth something, right?" Bai Xiao rubbed his hands together and flashed a shrewd little smile. "How about you buy these two recipes from me? Just a tiny bit of money will do."
No matter what, he needed to find a way to get some cash first. Otherwise, there was no way he could survive in this unfamiliar city. He could not exactly keep showing up for free scale meatballs every day.
"I'm not interested in the recipes."
Bai Xiao's expression fell instantly.
"But I am interested in you. Your skills are quite impressive. Would you be willing to work for me?"
It was a good thing the old man had said his skills were impressive. If he had said his figure was impressive, Bai Xiao would already have been sprinting for the nearest exit.
Thankfully, this was Lungmen, not Shangshu.
"Work for you?" Bai Xiao raised a brow at him. "What's in it for me?"
The old man smiled.
"I can't promise you riches. But at the very least, you'll have food to eat, and while we're at it..." His gaze swept Bai Xiao up and down. "...we can also get you into some proper clothes."
"Then I'm in."
It really was that simple.
Bai Xiao had no idea what the old man's true intentions were, but the fact that a single sentence from him had been enough to scare those people off proved that he was no ordinary person.
Following him might not guarantee a bright future, but it was still better than his current situation.
What, was he supposed to sleep on the street?
The old man seemed a little surprised by how decisively Bai Xiao agreed, and a trace of approval appeared in his eyes.
"Then let's head back first. We'll get you changed before anything else."
Bai Xiao followed him without hesitation. The two sheets of paper might not be worth much, but he still tucked them into the small pocket of his pajama top.
At least he had probably found himself a place to stay.
As for the mission, that could wait.
...
Lungmen, Dong's Fresh Market.
Before he knew it, Bai Xiao had already been here for three days.
He had learned that the old man's surname was Dong, and everyone called him Uncle Dong. The young man who had given him the scale meatballs was named Jaye. The two of them ran a fresh food shop together.
"Bai Xiao, three jin of shell shrimp and two jin of scaled fish—deliver them to the Lee Detective Agency. Make sure you hand them to Mr. Hung. They've already paid."
"Okay~"
Jaye had already packed up the shell shrimp and fish. Bai Xiao mounted the little electric scooter and headed for his destination.
Lungmen was beautiful at dusk.
Orange-red clouds stretched across the horizon, and the cool evening breeze brushed through his hair. It was rush hour now, and the sidewalks were crowded with people coming and going. Bai Xiao wove through them on his scooter, surrounded by the thick pulse of city life.
Forget the mission for a moment—he truly did not want to go back.
That lavish villa was a prison.
Life here was not luxurious, but it gave him something far more precious:
Freedom.
Once he finished this delivery, he was going to treat Jaye and Uncle Dong to some late-night street food. To be honest, he had been craving it badly.
Really, the food in Victoria was awful.
"Lee Detective Agency... should be somewhere inside this alley."
With a neat flick of the tail, Bai Xiao turned into the lane and, sure enough, spotted the Lee sign at the entrance. Following the directions, he made his way up to the second floor.
Knock, knock, knock—
"Who is it?"
The door was opened by a fluffy beast-girl.
Bai Xiao was not a furry enthusiast, but the moment he saw her, his eyes still lit up.
So cute.
He wanted to pet her.
But he absolutely was not a furry enthusiast.
"Hello, what can I do for you?" the girl asked.
"I'm from Dong's Fresh Market." Bai Xiao smiled and lifted the bag in his hand. "Mr. Hung ordered shell shrimp and fish. I'm here to deliver them."
"Oh, I see." The girl nodded, then turned and called into the room, "Hung! Your order's here!"
"Just a second!" came the reply from inside.
"Sorry, he's cooking, so he might be busy for the moment." The girl blinked. "But how come Jaye didn't make the delivery? I haven't seen you before."
Bai Xiao smiled.
"The shop's really busy right now. Uncle Dong can't handle it all by himself, so Jaye stayed behind to help."
"Ohhh, I see. Then... hello, my name is Waai Fu."
"I'm Bai Xiao."
Bai Xiao had a very favorable impression of this little tiger girl. He was even a bit tempted to ask for her contact information, but being that forward the first time they met would be a little strange. He decided it would be better to wait.
After all, she worked at a detective agency.
He might need to ask her to investigate something related to the mission sooner or later.
No rush.
That said, he still definitely was not a furry enthusiast.
Just then Hung came out as well, and Bai Xiao realized that everyone in the office was beastfolk. Anyone with that particular hobby would have been in absolute heaven here.
"Thanks for bringing this over."
"It was nothing." Bai Xiao waved a hand. "Do you want to check it?"
Fresh produce was not the same dead as it was alive, after all.
But Hung waved him off.
"No need, no need. I trust Uncle Dong."
"Alright then, I'll be on my way."
As Bai Xiao turned to leave, Waai Fu immediately called after him:
"Hey, Bai Xiao! If you ever have a commission, remember to come here. Knock three times—that's our signal for clients!"
"Got it!"
With the last delivery done, it would be about time to pack up once he got back.
Street food tonight!
Bai Xiao returned to Dong's Fresh Market in excellent spirits.
But after parking the scooter at the entrance, the smile gradually vanished from his face.
Something was wrong.
The stall outside had not been packed away, yet the shop's rolling shutter was down. And besides, this was peak evening business hours—there should have been plenty of customers. There was no way they would close the shop at a time like this.
Bai Xiao knew immediately.
Something had happened inside.
Even so, he did not panic. Instead, he pulled a steel pipe from beneath the stall. After a few days of rest, he could now fully use Glory Yet Unshone, though only for a single strike. Even so, it counted as a trump card. Ordinary people would not be able to take even one hit.
The best choice right now would have been to leave immediately.
But Jaye and Uncle Dong had treated him well.
He could not run away at a time like this.
The front entrance was sealed, so Bai Xiao circled around to the back door and quietly slipped inside.
Unexpectedly, there were no signs of a struggle in the shop.
Uncle Dong and Jaye were both there.
The only difference was that there was now a woman sitting across from them.
The instant Bai Xiao got a clear look at her face, he unconsciously held his breath.
He had seen this person before.
The woman seated there was none other than his mission target—
Senior Inspector of the Lungmen Guard Department.
Ch'en.
-------
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