Chapter 105: Returning Home

The two of them dragged their suitcases downstairs to check out, and once that was done, they hailed a taxi and headed for the airport.

The taxi sped through the streets, the two of them each typing away furiously on their phones. Neither of them noticed that the police car at the hotel entrance had been sitting there quietly the whole time.

Inside the police car, the middle-aged man untied Brother Hu and the others with a look of disgust. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you've gotten yourself into?"

Brother Hu hastily pulled out his phone and gestured to the man. "You've worked hard, you've worked hard..."

The man pulled out his own phone and put his payment QR code right in front of him. Brother Hu scanned it and was about to transfer the money, but hesitated for a moment over the number keypad.

He typed in 1000, and Xiao Qian immediately elbowed him. "Bro, you typed it wrong!"

At a time like this, and still being stingy!

Was he really not afraid of losing his life over a few bucks?

Brother Hu looked up, and sure enough, the officer's face had turned black as thunder.

He quickly nodded and bowed. "Mistyped, mistyped, so sorry..."

He hesitated for a moment in his heart, gritted his teeth, and figured he'd transfer 5000 instead—pay some money to buy himself some peace.

Usually, they paid protection money of about 1,000 RMB a month, which came out to about 6,000 Thai baht.

He typed in 5000, and Xiao Qian quickly shot a glance at the middle-aged man's face—it still didn't look good.

He knew it then: this was serious, and that amount wasn't going to cut it.

But Brother Hu was a stubborn cheapskate by nature. There was no way he'd voluntarily pay more on his own.

Xiao Qian's eyes flickered for a moment, and he quickly reached over, added an extra zero after the 5000, and hit transfer.

Before Brother Hu even realized what was happening, the facial recognition had already gone through!

"Hey? No no, that's wrong, that's wrong..."

Brother Hu tried to get the money back, but the middle-aged man accepted the payment and walked away in under a second, the police car vanishing from their sight immediately.

"Don't leave! Give me back the extra 45,000!"

He couldn't catch up to the car, and Brother Hu was fuming inside. He was this close to kicking Xiao Qian to death on the spot!

He glared at Xiao Qian furiously. "You damn kid! What the hell were you thinking sending that money? You just transferred half a dragon-skin leather away!"

Xiao Qian rolled his eyes at him in disgust. "Didn't you see how black his face was? Forget dragon-skin leather! If you hadn't paid him, you'd be lucky to keep any skin at all!"

He wasn't some local criminal boss—just a small-time crew that paid monthly tribute and pulled off minor kidnappings.

Did Brother Hu really think the Sava police didn't dare touch him?

Brother Hu understood that logic well enough; otherwise he would've kicked Xiao Qian ages ago.

But understanding something and accepting it were two different things. His heart was bleeding.

He'd barely muttered Brother Bao's name when his phone screen lit up instantly. His heart skipped a beat, but he obediently answered.

The voice on the other end was blazing with fury. "So you finally picked up, huh? Why didn't you just die in that hotel?"

Brother Hu was stunned. "Huh? Brother Bao, you knew I got arrested?"

Chen Jiarong sneered. "If I hadn't known, you think you'd be out by now?"

"What? Brother Bao, you pulled strings to get me out?"

Brother Hu got so excited he kept slapping Xiao Qian. "I told you we didn't need to give him 50,000! Brother Bao got us set free! You reckless little piece of trash!"

"Cut the nonsense!"

Chen Jiarong was fed up hearing his drivel. "If you can't handle the job, let Xiao Qian do it! If you're that keen on retiring, then what are you still doing in Sava?"

Brother Hu's momentum deflated instantly. "Brother Bao..."

All these years, if it weren't for Brother Bao keeping his business alive, he never would've made this much money or gotten this far in Sava.

Chen Jiarong couldn't be bothered to waste more words on him. "Tell Xiao Qian to bring a few guys back to China. I've got something for them to do."

Brother Hu hesitated. "The plane tickets back to China aren't cheap..."

Chen Jiarong gritted his teeth. "I'll pay!"

If his own men weren't being watched so closely, would he even lower himself to ask this useless crew?

What a bunch of good-for-nothings!

"Alright!"

Brother Hu agreed immediately. As long as he didn't have to pay, everything else was no big deal!

He turned and told Xiao Qian, "Brother Bao wants you to bring some guys back to China. He's got something for you to do."

Sang Biao's eyes lit up instantly. He'd recently been in a long-distance online romance with a sweet girl back in China, so this could be the perfect chance—

The next second, Brother Hu's phone pinged. He opened it and read: "Don't bring any idiots with you."

The "idiot" specifically referred to Sang Biao.

On the flight back, in first class, Qi Jin let out a contented sigh. "At least we could use points to upgrade to first class on the way back. Otherwise we'd have been totally ripped off."

Qi Yuan had his eyes closed, lost in thought, ignoring him.

In economy class, Xiao Qian, along with Xiao Zuo, Xiao You, and Sang Biao, were sitting not too far from them.

Sang Biao was sprawled contentedly in his cramped seat. "Xiao Qian, you're so good to me~ When I get back, I'll have my girl set you up with someone. You more of a sweet girl or a hot older woman type?"

Xiao Qian shot him a look. The only reason he brought him along was because Sang Biao had practically begged on his knees.

"Keep a low profile when you're back in China. Don't let Brother Bao find out you came too."

Sang Biao nodded frantically. "I know, I know. I'll just focus on my love life and stay out of your way."

After the plane landed, first class was the first to disembark. The two brothers grabbed their suitcases and walked straight out.

Outside the airport, while waiting for a taxi, Qi Jin caught a glimpse of a few vaguely familiar figures heading toward them, joking and shoving each other.

He was about to take a closer look when a e-hailing beep suddenly blared, and the taxi driver leaned out to urge them. "Passengers, let's go. Can't stay here long."

He pulled his gaze away, grabbed his suitcase, and got in.

The car slowly pulled away, and at that same moment, Xiao Qian and his crew reached the cab stand, still pushing each other around.

Sang Biao held up his phone. "My girl booked us a ride-hailing car. It's on its way."

Xiao Qian grimaced. "Why are you letting a woman spend money on you?"

He was from the north, with traditional values—having a woman pay for things in a relationship just wasn't right. Real men paid for their women!

Sang Biao pouted. "I'd love to pay for her. But do I even have the money?"

Good point. Xiao Qian had no comeback to that.

Neither did he, honestly.

Boys of eighteen or nineteen were exactly at that age where money slipped through their fingers—if they had a hundred, they'd spend a hundred twenty.

And Brother Hu was such a miser, he gave them peanuts for wages. Barely enough to cover their own expenses, let alone spoil a girl.

Xiao Qian couldn't help sighing for that sweet girl back home. "When did you even start this online thing? How come I never heard about it?"

Sang Biao grinned slyly. "Just a few days ago. She's crazy about me—calls me 'brother' day in and day out. How could I not come see her?"

Xiao Qian looked at Sang Biao. He was about as average-looking as a guy could get, with that very typical small-town northern kid vibe—not ugly, but definitely not handsome.

What did that girl see in him?

He had to ask, "You sure you're not getting catfished again? You forgot what happened with that three-hundred-pound chick last time?"

Sang Biao pulled out his phone. "You think I could forget that? This time I made sure we swapped real pics before we kept talking!"

He held the phone up to Xiao Qian's eyes. A pair of big, sparkly eyes under a head of bubblegum-pink hair popped up on the screen.

Xiao Qian stared at the screen in shock. "You're using fake photos for your online romance?"

Back in the hotel suite, Qi Meili was posing in front of the mirror like crazy. "Huanhuan, get ready! I'm taking you to see some hot foreign guys! Blonde, blue-eyed, eight-pack abs—absolutely gorgeous!"