Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Li Du walked out of the police station after pushing open the door.
Brother Wolf sighed, “Boss, we have dealt with the police many times, maybe too many.”
Li Du sighed as well. “What does this mean?”
“It means we are troublemakers,” said Yang Dong who came to pick them up and now stood next to them, grinning.
Li Qi glared at him once and said, “Don’t talk nonsense.”
Li Du waved his hand and said, “It’s okay. We are not at work. We are all friends in our leisure time. Just joke with me as you wish.”
Li Qi always felt this was not appropriate to do so, so he changed the topic. “Boss, according to our Chinese customs, I will arrange a banquet for you to sweep away the bad luck. These fraudsters are so arrogant. The security in Seattle is getting worse day by day!”
“It is the same all over America.” Yang Dong said angrily. “It is better when one is staying in a hotel. Before, when we lived in a slum, I would be afraid when night fell. I was scared when I used to hear the sound of gunshots.”
Li Qi led the way and the two cars drove off one after the other.
They happened to be in the harbor area, in which the Chinese restaurant was also located, and the cars didn’t take long to reach there. They took a few turns in the streets and finally stopped.
The size of the restaurant was small. It was located between two factory buildings. The place was teeming with people and was considered a strategic location.
It was already time for dinner when they reached the place. When Li Du and the others went in, they found that there were not many customers. Fast food was the main fare in the restaurant, but there was no line at the counter. Only a few tough black guys were sitting around a table and eating in silence.
Li Du was puzzled and asked, “Old Li, the food here isn’t something, is it?”
Li Qi showed a confident attitude as if all things were under his control. He calmly said, “Trust me, boss.”
He said no more, then went in and shouted something.
A wizened old man with gray hair popped his head out of the kitchen and smiled. “Li Qi, is that you? The same old three dishes?”
Li Qi said in a similar accent as the old man, “No, Uncle Hua. I brought my boss here. Please prepare a few nice dishes, as nice as you can. My boss treats me very well.”
The wizened old man said in a sonorous voice, “Don’t worry!”
Soon, there was the sound of a roaring fire and the clatter of the spatula and the wok from inside. A Chinese girl with a pretty face wiped the table swiftly and said, “Brother Qi, come and have a seat here.”
When Li Du and his men sat down, the small restaurant felt a little crowded.
Yang Dong chuckled and said, “It is the boss’s first time in such a cheap restaurant, is it?”
Li Du smiled and said. “What do you think I am? The second generation of a rich family, born with a silver spoon in my mouth? I have probably eaten in small restaurants and at roadside stands more than you did.”
Yang Dong’s family was better off than Li Du’s. Yang Dong went abroad to study and directly applied for a green card, while Li Du came to the United States by taking the study visa.
Li Qi said, “Boss, you have to try the dishes later, Uncle Hua’s Cantonese cuisine is absolutely unique!”
Uncle Hua, the cook, was still busy, and the waitress brought out a few plates of cold dishes. There was honey sauce barbecued meat, oyster sauce corn diced chicken, steamed white duck, pickled chicken feet, and in addition to those there was a bottle of liquor.
Li Qi poured the wine for Li Du and motioned as he said, “Boss, taste this. Uncle Hua distilled it himself. Nice pure grain liquor is rarely available in America.”
After a sip, Li Du could definitely appreciate the strength of the beverage and only thought that it wasn’t spicy enough. He tasted a faint aroma and sweetness that suggested it was a type of rice wine.
While they were drinking the liquor, hot dishes began to appear on the table. There was prawn Chee Cheong Fun, fried beef, boiled shrimp and so on, served one after the other.
Li Du did not act too polite. He picked up the chopsticks, and as he chewed, he could not help nodding, “Hmm, it is very good, it is really delicious!”
Li Qi dipped a shrimp in the sauce and laughed. “Well, isn’t that tasty? Uncle Hua is something special. His ancestors used to work in the royal kitchens before. He used to cook in the central government when he was in China.”
Hearing this, Li Du was surprised and asked, “Since he is so good, why didn’t he stay in the old country? He must have been a top chef back home, right?”
The restaurant was tiny, and Uncle Hua in the kitchen overheard every word of their conversation.
The old man pulled back the curtain at the door, popped his head out and smiled. “Boss, don’t listen to Li Qi. How would I be so great? I am a big pot cook. I did cook for the central government in China, but only a few big pot dishes. Haha, it’s nothing to mention…”
Li Du’s heart was moved by the man’s humility, and he asked, “Does the boss cook good big pot dishes?”
Li Qi nodded, gave a thumbs-up and said, “I have never seen anyone cook better than him.”
When they were talking, someone pushed the wooden door open with a bang, and a few rowdy young men came in cursing and shouting.
“F**K, get out, get out!”
“Hey, is the money ready? I had given you the last warning on Monday!”
“If you don’t have the money today, I swear you are dead… F**k!”
When the young men peered into the restaurant, their mouths suddenly closed, and their eyes opened wide while surprised expressions appeared on their faces.
Li Du looked at these young people and laughed. It was too much of a coincidence. He actually met some acquaintance here; weren’t these the same young men that Brother Wolf had beaten up at noon?
The youngsters were the thugs that the old cheaters hired to frighten Li Du and his men before. The result was Brother Wolf beat them up fiercely, and now they had black eyes, swollen lips, and limps.
However, they had nothing to do with the fraud itself, so the police did not bother to seek them out for trouble, and Li Du was too lazy to prosecute them. The two old swindlers were locked up at the police station while their hirelings were free.
The two sides now bumped into each other. Brother Wolf stood up again, and then slowly clenched his fist.
The young menʼs faces were suddenly as pale as chalk and they turned to leave.
Li Du tapped the table once and said, “Hello, gentlemen, what are you doing here?”
The young men were silent and wanted to leave the restaurant quietly.
Brother Wolf lunged up to block them and said, “Didnʼt you hear? Our boss asked you something.”
The young man who looked like the leader turned around cautiously and said, “Excuse me, sir. What can I do for you?”
Li Du asked, “What did you say just now? You were here to ask for money, right? What are you asking the money for?”
The owner of the restaurant came out, wiping his hands and standing at the kitchen door.
The young man gulped and said. “Itʼs none of your business, sir…”
Li Du raised his eyebrows, and Brother Wolf slapped the youngster back-handed.
The young men were immediately angry, but they were conscious of danger as they recalled Brother Wolfʼs formidable fighting skills. They could only suppress their anger and stood in the doorway in embarrassment.
Li Du could guess what was going on. These bullies must have targeted Uncle Hua, an old Chinese man. They might have become used to come to his restaurant to eat and drink and blackmailed him for money.
Unless one had local connections, they could not do much against such bullying and intimidation, because the local police could not be bothered to hand this kind of thing. They would not be able to do it even if they wanted to.
Bullies were like a perennial pest. If the victims called the police to deal with them, they would be arrested for a few days, and then the police would release them. When they were released, they would deal with the owners in a worse way.
Whets more, sometimes the police could not even catch them. They would come to the door for money and destroy the shop or restaurant when the owners tried to defy them. Then they would quickly disappear, and when the police came to catch them, there would be nobody in sight.
