Chapter Seventy-Seven: The Eldest Brother Arrives

Lin Shengnan was instantly mortified. She had always known her figure was rather unique—petite and far from plump, yet blessed with an imposing pair of curves that, back in school, had often made her the subject of other girls’ ridicule.

But as she grew older, the mocking ceased; in its place came envy and jealousy. She hadn’t expected Liu Jingye to tease her about it—this was flirting, pure and simple.

Determined not to be outdone, Lin Shengnan shot him a bold look, her eyes darting to his crotch. “I wonder if your target is big enough? Want me to give it a kick and see?”

Liu Jingye grinned. “Mine’s certainly big enough, but I’m good at hiding it. At a critical moment, I can tuck it away just like a tail!”

“Pervert!” Lin Shengnan spat, then turned on her heel and stalked off.

Liu Jingye had already decided to join them in staking out new turf, so he followed in her wake. Suddenly, Lin Shengnan spun around. “You can come with me, but let me make it clear—I’m in charge. Once we get there, everything goes by my word.”

“I never intended to seize power,” Liu Jingye said, spreading his hands. “But when you bring over your dowry, we’ll share the riches together.”

Without a word, Lin Shengnan pulled a toy gun from her pocket and pulled the trigger at him with force.

Of course, a toy gun was just a toy. Even a real gun, in Lin Shengnan’s hands, would still be a toy to him.

With her head down, Lin Shengnan strode ahead, her thoughts a tangled mess she couldn’t control. Her mind swirled with images of the man behind her who kept teasing her.

“From the first time we met, when I tricked him into buying me a meal, to the wedding where I helped him out of trouble, and then when he saved me in the parking lot… At first, he seemed mature, reserved, and inscrutable.

But as we spent more time together—like when he broke in through the window and caught me changing, or when he amused himself in the bathroom with my underwear—my impression of him took a complete one-eighty.

Later, we worked together that rainy night, setting up Huang Weiwei. In the pouring rain, he held his jacket over me, so natural and unassuming, as if he simply didn’t want me to get wet, as if he wanted to protect me.

And now, this man walked just behind me. The road ahead was full of danger and bloodshed—maybe even death. But with him by my side, I felt as if I’d returned to that rainy night, nestled in his embrace, basking in warmth and safety.

With him there, it seemed nothing could frighten me.”

Liu Jingye had no clue what was going on in her mind. He simply watched her figure with interest as she walked, admiring her graceful curves, thinking to himself, “Comparisons really are odious. All women, yet the difference is so vast.”

“It’s been quite a busy day,” Liu Jingye mused as he walked. “I just helped Yuan Xiaoying crack a homicide case—she’s off to claim credit now, all excited. If we can even dig up evidence of the Japanese plot, that’ll be a huge achievement. Promotion and fortune are just around the corner.

“And now I’m off to help the Boss Lady seize some territory. If she manages to unite the city’s underworld one day, becoming another Emperor’s Court…

“With Yuan Xiaoying high up in the police bureau and Lin Shengnan ruling the underworld, things could get interesting.”

Lost in his daydream of uniting the world, Liu Jingye suddenly found his vision go dark as he walked straight into Lin Shengnan, nearly knocking the girl to the ground.

Lin Shengnan spun around, irritation etched on her face. “What are you daydreaming about, walking like that?”

“I was just thinking—it’d be nice to hit two birds with one stone,” Liu Jingye blurted absentmindedly.

“What did you say?” Lin Shengnan asked in surprise.

Liu Jingye snapped back to reality. “Nothing. I was just thinking about tonight’s turf war. If the other side has firearms, your two toy guns won’t help much.”

“No worries.” Lin Shengnan brushed it off with a wave, exuding confidence. “I know those people. One group’s from out of town, about twenty of them. They’re like us, making a living selling pirated CDs. The other group are small-time thugs on the fringe of the Emperor’s Court—they’re just hired muscle. They probably don’t have guns, and even if they did, I doubt they’d dare use them.”

“If you had a gun, would you dare use it?” Liu Jingye suddenly asked.

Lin Shengnan was stunned for a moment, then gritted her teeth. “If it was worth it, I would.”

“A true hero’s spirit—a natural for the underworld,” Liu Jingye praised. “Glad I picked the right boss. Boss Lady, you’ll need to shelter me with your broad embrace from now on!”

Lin Shengnan narrowed her eyes at him, threatening, “Say another word and I’ll smother you to death with my bra.”

“Better to be smothered than anything,” Liu Jingye quipped shamelessly.

Lin Shengnan launched a kick straight for his vital parts. Liu Jingye took off running.

They were supposed to be heading into a bloody street fight for turf, but it had turned into a flirtatious chase. The aura Lin Shengnan had worked so hard to muster evaporated, leaving her like a girl in the throes of first love, playing and bickering with her boyfriend.

Soon, Liu Jingye and Lin Shengnan arrived at their residence—a rare cluster of single-story houses in the city. Though each had its own door and yard, the buildings were ancient and dilapidated, at least sixty or seventy years old, liable to collapse with a strong wind.

There were three rooms: the men lived in the one on the left, Lin Shengnan took the right, and the main hall was cluttered with takeout boxes and beer bottles—a mess, and plainly a hard life.

Struggling to make it out here was no easier than fighting on a battlefield, and they faced all kinds of pressure.

Liu Jingye glanced around and suddenly asked, “How do you all manage the bathroom? Ever have any run-ins?”

Lin Shengnan’s face turned stern. “Can’t you just keep your mouth shut for a moment? Didn’t you see the wooden sign outside?”

Curious, Liu Jingye went over to look. The sign had “Men” on one side and “Women” on the other. When Lin Shengnan used the bathroom, she’d flip the sign over.

Shaking his head, Liu Jingye said, “But what if there’s a strong wind one day—”

“Say that again and I’ll kill you!” Lin Shengnan shouted, her face red with anger.

Liu Jingye quickly ducked inside. To his surprise, Shi Tou, Hu Ming, and the others were all there, sprawled out across the kang, sleeping every which way—a surprisingly harmonious sight.

“I told them to rest up and save their strength for the battle tonight,” Lin Shengnan whispered at the door.

“Oh, then I’ll catch some sleep too,” Liu Jingye said, about to kick off his shoes and climb onto the kang. He hadn’t slept a wink the previous night, thanks to Chen Yuxin’s nonstop sleep-talking, and was genuinely exhausted.

But as he stepped forward, Lin Shengnan stopped him. “Look—there’s no room left.”

“Then I’ll sleep in your room,” Liu Jingye said, turning at once. Lin Shengnan was stunned; she’d meant to bring it up herself later, but clearly, this guy didn’t see her as an outsider at all.

“Why do you always get under my skin…” she muttered, blushing. Then she suddenly remembered something, and hurried after him—but it was too late.

Inside her room, she’d hung a few pieces of lingerie to dry. Living with a group of men, it would be awkward to hang them outside, so she dried them in her own room.

At that moment, Liu Jingye stood at her door, chest out, eyes fixed intently on the array of bras and panties overhead. He murmured, “Feels like I’m standing at the entrance to the UN headquarters, with all the national flags fluttering in the wind. Hey, doesn’t this one look like the Japanese flag?”

He pointed at a pair of white panties with a deep red patch in the center—the implication clear to anyone.

“Go to hell!” Lin Shengnan screamed, kicking him hard in the rear as she rushed in to gather up her undergarments.

Rubbing his backside, Liu Jingye muttered, “It’s really unhygienic to mix clean and dirty laundry together.”

“Mind your own business!” Lin Shengnan snapped, stuffing everything into her bedside drawer.

Liu Jingye was still reflecting, muttering to himself, “It’s odd—so many bras, but they’re uncomfortable to wear. Yet those tiny panties look so much comfier.”

Lin Shengnan abruptly stood up, eyes blazing, her face so red it looked ready to drip blood. With a shout, she threw herself at him, tackling him onto the bed in a flurry of blows.

Liu Jingye wasn’t usually the type to tease women, but every time he saw Lin Shengnan’s stern, seemingly tough face, he couldn’t help but want to provoke her, to see her blush and shy away.

He knew how hard it was for a woman to survive in the underworld, how she had to be tough and imposing. Yet he still liked seeing Lin Shengnan’s shy side—the charm of a woman lay in her bashfulness and tears.

Lin Shengnan felt as if he was driving her mad. Ever since she’d thrown herself into this life, she’d constantly tried to forget her femininity—her very name, Shengnan, meant “to outdo men”—and she’d told herself, time and again, that she had to outshine any man and carve her own path.

Her brothers and everyone else in the underworld never saw her as a woman—they treated her as one of the guys.

But ever since this man showed up, she’d blushed more times than in her whole life. And in her heart, a strange feeling had begun to grow—an urge to rely on a man, to be protected. The tough persona she’d built up over the years was shattered in an instant.

As she wrestled him in frustration, the door suddenly opened. Shi Tou walked in, rubbing his eyes. “Boss, what’s with all the noise… Oh! Big Brother, you’re here!”

His shout brought a commotion from the next room. Er Niu’s voice sounded: “Big Brother’s here? Where?”

Shi Tou, ecstatic, pointed to Liu Jingye pinned under Lin Shengnan. “Come quick! Big Brother’s on the Boss Lady’s bed!”

Lin Shengnan’s face turned scarlet, as if she’d been struck by lightning. She buried her face in her hands and collapsed onto the bed, pulling the covers over herself, mortified.

Liu Jingye was equally embarrassed and hurriedly got to his feet. At that moment, the others dashed in. Hu Ming, in particular, was elated—he knew how dangerous tonight was going to be, and with Liu Jingye joining them, their chances of victory soared.

“Big Brother, what brings you here?” Shi Tou greeted him warmly. “Did you hear we’re fighting for turf tonight and come to help us out?”

Liu Jingye sat at the edge of the bed, scratching his head with a grin. “That’s right. I’m here to do my share.”

“That’s great! With you here, Big Brother, you could wipe the floor with them all by yourself.” Shi Tou said excitedly, then glanced at the shivering lump under the covers. “Boss Lady, what’s wrong? I just saw you on top of Big Brother, you two…”