Chapter 1 The Hospital Visit

Inside the hospital room, Da Xiong instinctively stood up straight, looking towards the entrance at the sound of shouting.

After a short while, the half-open door was pushed open roughly, and a tall man of about fifty-six or fifty-seven years old strode in. He was dressed plainly, even a bit dirty and unkempt. The hair at his temples was already past his ears, obviously untended for a long time, and stuck to his head in greasy clumps.

The tall, strong middle-aged man was unremarkable, with a flushed face, a bulbous nose, and a physical disability. He had no left hand; his wrist had a noticeable severed scar covered in red, fleshy bumps.

Su Tianyu sized up this uniquely styled middle-aged man and tentatively asked, "You are...?"

"I'm his dad!" the tall, middle-aged man, reeking of alcohol, pointed at Da Xiong.

"Oh, it's Uncle!" Su Tianyu immediately adjusted himself on the bed, sitting up a little. "Please, have a seat. Da Xiong, get Uncle a chair."

Da Xiong immediately pulled up a chair and placed it next to his father, but remained silent.

The tall, middle-aged man spat a mouthful of phlegm into the trash can, then took out a cigarette pack, crossed his legs, and asked Da Xiong, "How's the recovery going? Feeling any better?"

"I... I'm all better now. Can... can work!" Da Xiong seemed nervous in front of his father, and his stutter was more pronounced.

Wu's father had a loud voice. He glared at his son and berated him, "You damn dog just don't have any brains! So many workers in the factory, and none of them did anything, but you just had to be nosy! Don't you ever think? Those knives and guns have no eyes. If someone leaves you crippled, what are you going to do? You already have a bad brain and a stutter, so you're practically half a cripple already. If your body gives out too… how are you going to live?"

Wu Shixiong lowered his head, not daring to respond.

"If you're injured, just rest up properly. The Su family is a big company; they won't abandon you. Get your injury healed up and then go back to work," Wu's father added.

Su Tianyu had been with Da Xiong for a week, but this was the first time he'd seen any of Da Xiong's family come to visit him. But then again, he thought, perhaps they were busy, or perhaps they had come when Da Xiong was first hospitalized.

"Go, go call Su Tiannan over. Isn't he hospitalized too?" Wu's father ordered.

"Oh, Uncle, my elder brother isn't here. Someone took him out to handle some business," Su Tianyu replied for Da Xiong. "But my second brother is here."

"Calling him is fine too," Wu's father replied.

"I... I'll go call him," Da Xiong replied, turning to leave. But at the door, he couldn't help but ask, "Dad... Dad, Mom didn't come?"

"Your second brother's child is sick. I just had her go back," Wu's father said casually.

Da Xiong didn't say anything else and walked out of the ward.

About five minutes later, Su Tianbei, his arm in a cast, limped in. "Oh, Uncle Wu is here."

"Yeah, how are you doing?" Wu's father asked, squinting at him.

"I'm getting better, hehe!" Su Tianbei took out a cigarette pack. "Here, have one!"

Wu's father was pleased with Su Tianbei's courtesy. He reached out and took the cigarette, relighting it, and waved to Da Xiong, instructing, "You go take a stroll for a while."

Da Xiong obediently left the ward. Wu's father turned to look at Su Tianbei. "I don't have much to say. I came today, first, to see my child, and second, to ask you... how are you going to handle my Da Xiong's matter?"

"The company will take care of it, Uncle!" Su Tianbei replied.

"How will they take care of it?" Wu's father pressed.

"The company will cover all expenses during the injury period, and he'll receive wages according to work-related injury standards while he's recovering and not working," Su Tianbei replied with a smile. "Besides that, I'll give him an additional five thousand yuan myself."

Truthfully, the money Su Tianbei offered wasn't little. Five thousand yuan was almost half a year's salary and bonuses for a laborer like Da Xiong.

Wu's father paused for a moment and replied, "Isn't five thousand a bit little?"

"Uncle, the company isn't doing so well right now...!" Su Tianbei wanted to explain a bit.

"Whether you're doing well or not has nothing to do with me, right?" Wu's father said bluntly. "The Su family's garbage plant had a brawl, and none of the seven or eight workers you hired dared to do anything, but my son did! That's a fact, right? I was there when your family's company first started, and I always had a good relationship with your dad. Later, my health wasn't good, so I sent my son in, but you didn't take good care of him. He got cut three or four times; he'll have those scars on his body for the rest of his life. What do you say?"

Su Tianbei nodded slowly. "Uncle, then how much money do you think is appropriate for compensation?"

"Add a bit more."

"Then eight thousand!" Su Tianbei said, looking at him. "This money exceeds the work-related injury standard, but I'll pay it out of my own pocket. Is that okay?"

Wu's father considered it. "Okay, eight thousand it is. When the money comes, you can directly transfer it to Da Xiong's elder brother's salary card."

Su Tianbei didn't ask any more questions. "Okay!"

"Then that's settled." Wu's father stood up and threw the cigarette butt on the ground. "I'm leaving first."

"I'll see you out, Uncle!"

"No need, no need to see me out!" Wu's father strode towards the door.

Su Tianyu frowned, watching his back, and didn't ask any more questions.

In the hallway, Wu's father glanced at Da Xiong sitting on the bench and said in a low voice, "Don't be so damn stupid. You're hospitalized with work-related injuries, so just rest here properly. When you feel like nothing's wrong anymore, then you can leave the hospital."

"Ah!" Da Xiong nodded.

"...Damn it, just looking at your idiotic face pisses me off. What kind of brain do you have? Why did you go and fight with those people?" Wu's father roared, infuriated. "Might as well let them chop you to death, then I'd be at peace!"

After scolding him, Wu's father turned and left.

Wu Shixiong watched his back, his eyes dim. After a while, he grinned and walked into the ward. "Little Yu Brother, Little Bei Brother... Want... want some late-night snacks? I'll go buy some."

"Hehe, no thanks," Su Tianbei waved his hand.

Su Tianyu looked at this big, simple fellow and felt a pang of sympathy for him. "Don't bother, come, sit down and rest for a bit. Let's chat for a while."

Wu Shixiong was honest and simple, but he never wanted to mention anything about his family, and he always had a smile on his face, as if he had no burdens in life at all.

The days of recovery were uneventful and peaceful. In the blink of an eye, more than twenty days passed, and all the injured were discharged from the hospital.

Bai Hongbo stood in the hospital room with great swagger, waving his hand and shouting, "Tonight, we're going to the inner harbor, on a yacht!! I've arranged everything!!"

"You guys go, I'll pass." Whether it was his actual age or his mental age, Kong Zhengui seemed to be from a different generation than the others.

"Damn, don't be so unsociable. We can be considered to have fought side by side!" Bai Hongbo enthusiastically arranged. "Let's go together. Tonight, I'll treat you to some *pin ge panzi*."

Su Tianyu was speechless. "...Forget it, my tongue is too short!"

"That thing can be trained, Little Su!" Bai Hongbo was probably going crazy from being cooped up. He grabbed Su Tianyu and said, "Come with me tonight, I must solve your short-tongue problem."

...

In cell 403 of the Police Department's criminal detention center, the gaunt old man who had once beaten up the man in the floral shirt sat on the bunk, stroking his bald head and muttering, "That Gou-Liuzi is something else, no worse than his old man!"

"Su Zhengcai, stand up, pack your things!" someone suddenly shouted from outside the door.