Chapter 346 - Qing Zihao

Finding out that the person that you love was an assassin/spy, was one of the biggest mind f.u.c.ks that had ever happened to Qing Zihao. 

It was nothing that should have shocked him to his core. All his life he had been living with violence, betrayals, and double-crossings. His father raised him to be cruel, to be unforgiving, and to make no hesitation when the situation calls for it.

But on the night that his then girlfriend, Hao Suyin, admitted the truth about her identity, it was like all his years listening and learning from his father went out of the window. His mind went blank and all he could see were the tears streaming down her cheeks and her red puffy nose.

**

Qing Zihao and Hao Suyin met on a diner that was open twenty-four hours everyday. Enigma, the mafia that his grandfather and father struggled to build, was still on its early days of success.

The times had not been that kind during his time. It was easy to bully people into giving them money so they would get "protection" from the gang. Violence, killings, and thieving ran rampant on the dark poor streets.

It had been a long night for Qing Zihao as his father just instructed him to execute one of the loan sharks that was working for them. That certain loan shark had been taking a cut from the interest and the money was falling in his own pocket. Rumor had it that he was preparing to start his own loan sharking business.

But that was not possible. It was only the Qings that owned that town. Nothing ever happened there that they did not know about.

Qing Zihao never took pleasure into killing a person who he did not have a personal grudge with. It just made him a killer. It was just money. Why did people have to die because of it? He tried raising that concern to his father and grandfather and they only replied with, "You don't know what we have to do just to get that money he was keeping to himself."

"You okay, boss?" asked one guy who sat in front of him on a booth. They didn't plan on going to this pizza place tonight. Qing Zihao wanted to go home but after a high on killing someone, his men were hungry so he had to take them to some midnight dinner.

"Yeah," he answered, he just turned twenty-two last month and was just half-way through learning about the technical and financial aspect of the business. 

Qing Zihao knew that there was someone approaching them before he could even hear the footsteps. He smelled her first. It was a weak smell of some cheap cologne that made the person wearing it smelled like flowers that you bring to funerals.

"What can I get you?" asked the apron-wearing lady in a broken sentence.

Because of that, Qing Zihao raised his eyes and found a face that he hadn't seen in this place before. He ignored the woman and made eye contact with the cashier who looked shaken. "Where's our usual waiter?"

"He's out sick for tonight. She's a new one," she nodded to the girl.

Qing Zihao sighed and turned back to the girl. In the poor lighting, he saw that the woman's eyes were blue. Like bottle glass blue. His eyebrows furrowed. He had met a lot of foreigners but surely not on these streets. They were usually clad in smart suits and beautiful gowns. Not a faded waitress uniform and a dirty apron. 

"Don't you speak the language here?" he asked the rhetorical question in another language. "It's a bad move to move countries where you can barely communicate."

"I do just fine," the woman forced a smile to her lips and asked her previous question back in the language. "What can I get you?"

His men ordered about three flavors of pizza and were happily sipping on their sodas, talking about new women working in the clubs and how big their tits were.

Out of his boredom listening, he lit a cigarette, already envisioning his soft bed. At this age, Qing Zihao was still someone who felt things when he kills a person. These feelings would be gone once he reached thirty. It took about a hundred dead bodies before it left him.

The pizza arrived and they had to use an extension table to place all of the food. There was already the complimentary bucket of chicken and the tall pitcher of soda.

"Sir, no smoking," said the waitress again in her broken speech. It was evident in her voice that it was something that she had only been taught to repeat and memorize, not really making sense with the the syllables. 

"Go away," he replied to her. 

But instead of leaving, the woman plucked the cigarette from his fingers and dumped it on his half-finished soda. She then took this glass and smiled at him innocently.

She was about to walk away when he stood up, towering over her. "Do you know who I am?!"

The woman only blinked at him and looked around. There were about five other people in the diner but no one stood up to help her. She took note of how they seemed to cower and avoided their gaze from the situation.

Qing Zihao saw the realization dawn in her eyes. That, 'ah, this was someone not to be mess around with in this place. I should just get back to my business.' He was already beginning to smile, ready to tell the woman to f.u.c.k off but then she spoke in the language that only the two of them could understand.

"There's a man here who doesn't know his name. Please come forward if you know who he is." Then she turned back to Qing Zihao with an indifferent look in her face. "That's what I would've said if I know how to say it in your language. But sadly, I don't. As a courtesy to the other customers please don't smoke in here. We have a couple of tables outside. I could transfer you there if you're so desparate for your nicotine." Her smile got bigger. "Please enjoy your food." Then she left.

Qing Zihao was left standing there, dazed at what just happened.

"What did he say, boss?" asked one of his men through a mouthful of pepperoni and bread. "Did she say her death wish? Should I go in the kitchen and slice her throat?"

"No."

"Oh, you want to do it yourself?"

There was something inside his chest that wanted to do just that. But he paid no mind to it. "She's new. She doesn't know what she's saying."

He convinced himself that it was just because he didn't want to add another person on his 'killed list' tonight.

But when he was lying in bed, he found that the feeling in his chest was excitement. The speech that she made kept replaying in his mind.

He found himself smiling.

He had to know her name.

That was why he went back there the following night.