It was still Su Mei’s Audi A4.
And I was still sitting in the passenger seat.
On the way, neither of us spoke.
When we passed a 24-hour supermarket, Su Mei stopped the car.
She told me to wait for her and then went into the supermarket alone.
I rolled down the window and lit a cigarette.
Watching Su Mei’s graceful yet somewhat lonely figure.
For some reason, I felt a pang of pity in my heart.
I knew it was wrong of me.
Master Liu once said.
A top swindler should have a heart as steady as a rock.
He can be grateful, he can be compassionate, and he can like women.
But, he should not develop feelings.
He should treat women like clothes, easily discarded.
Otherwise, women will become his weakness.
I always thought I could do it.
But now, I found that I might not be able to.
By the time I finished my cigarette, Su Mei had returned.
She handed me a bag.
Inside were toiletries and a set of men’s pajamas.
It seemed that she had prepared these especially for me.
Su Mei’s home was a small three-bedroom apartment.
It was warm, elegant, and tasteful.
The faint fragrance in the room was the scent I liked, the scent of Su Mei.
“Just make yourself at home…”
This was the first thing Su Mei said to me after we came out of the bath.
I could feel that she was awkward and nervous.
Even a bit at a loss.
From what I could tell.
Su Mei managed a bathhouse and now also a casino.
She must have dealt with many men.
How could a woman from such an environment be nervous about a one-night stand?
But Su Mei was indeed nervous.
After a while, Su Mei brought out a fruit plate.
She also brought a bottle of red wine and two wine glasses.
“Let’s have a drink…”
Wine is a great relaxant.
It’s also an aphrodisiac.
Perhaps Su Mei wanted to use alcohol to relax herself.
“Do you have any liquor?”
I asked.
I don’t like red wine.
It’s too soft and not strong enough.
I like liquor, just like women.
The best women can be soft like water, but also wild like the wind.
“Yes, which kind do you want?”
Su Mei asked me.
“Shao Dao Zi from outside the pass, Bamboo Leaf Green from Sichuan, Maotai from Qianzhong, Fenjiu from Sanjin. Any of these will do…”
Su Mei opened a bottle of Maotai.
She poured it into the wine glass in front of me.
The strong liquor went down my throat.
A burning sensation spread throughout my body, making me feel relaxed.
I hadn’t had a drink since I left Master Liu.
Su Mei swirled her glass of red wine, her gaze still lost.
We both sat there in silence, drinking our wine, neither of us speaking.
After a while, Su Mei finally spoke.
“This time you helped me catch the swindler, your condition was me. I want to know, if I ask for your help again next time, what will your condition be?”
I picked up a peanut and put it in my mouth.
At the same time, I said slowly:
“Still you!”
“Heh!”
Su Mei laughed coldly.
She took a big gulp of red wine and said with a hint of resentment:
“Still me? You can fool a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl with that, but not me. How many men cherish the women they’ve had?”
I didn’t want to discuss this topic with her.
Love affairs between men and women were completely foreign to me.
Sister Mei had already drunk half a bottle of red wine.
Her fair and smooth face was slightly flushed.
Her eyes were a bit hazy.
Looking at me, she said self-mockingly:
“This world is really unpredictable. I never thought that the first man to come to my house would be you, and the first man to get into my bed would also be you!”
I knew.
Su Mei was not willing to give herself to me.
But there was no choice, I won.
She was mine.
I took a sip of my drink and said lightly:
“Actually, you didn’t have to use yourself as a bargaining chip to negotiate with me. After all, the casino is not yours!”
We were both sitting on the floor.
Hearing what I said, Su Mei leaned back on the sofa.
She sighed deeply and said:
“I had no choice, I owe Xiaoxian. What she owes, she has to pay back. She treats me like a sister, her place is no different from mine…”
I could feel it.
Su Mei had a very good relationship with the beautiful boss.
It had already gone beyond the normal relationship between a boss and an employee.
Perhaps because of the alcohol, Su Mei started to talk more.
“Ah! Xiaoxian is also having a hard time. The young lady of the Zou family is caught in a whirlpool of internal and external troubles. If I don’t help her, maybe no one will…”
I didn’t ask or say anything, just quietly listened.
Taking a sip of Maotai from time to time.
Su Mei’s mood seemed a bit agitated.
She suddenly looked at me and asked:
“Do you know who I hate the most?”
I shook my head.
“The person I hate the most is Xiaoxian’s second brother, Zou Tiancheng. He’s the Second Boss who called today and forced me to let Tang San go!”
As expected, I guessed right.
Zou Xiaoxian and the Second Boss were indeed close relatives.
I didn’t know much about the Zou family.
I only heard Chen Xiaoxue mention it a few times.
I knew that the Zou family had a lot of influence in Harbin North.
They might not be able to cover the sky with one hand, but they could definitely call the wind and summon the rain.
But from what Su Mei said, it seemed that there were many conflicts within the Zou family.
The Zou family had nothing to do with me.
What I cared more about was why Su Mei hated Zou Tiancheng so much.
“Zou Tiancheng is a scumbag. He’s despicable, shameless, and low. He once used the most vicious methods against me. If it weren’t for Xiaoxian arriving in time, I would have been ruined by him…”
I could guess what Su Mei meant by “ruined”.
I didn’t ask further, but Su Mei continued to speak:
“Do you know what he did to me? He drugged me, and with his gang of scoundrels, they wanted to…”
“Stop talking!”
I cut her off before she could finish.
I didn’t want to hear anymore.
For some reason, anger was welling up inside me.
Towards Su Mei, I felt a pang of heartache, not just sympathy.
I drained the glass of wine in one gulp.
Looking at Su Mei, I asked calmly:
“Do you want to stop being bullied?”
Su Mei gave a wretched smile.
“Isn’t that obvious? Not only do I not want to be bullied, I want revenge. I think about it day and night. But what can I do? I’m powerless. When he arrogantly calls me a whore, I don’t even have the courage to talk back! How can I talk about revenge in this state?”
I lit a cigarette.
Then, slowly, I reached out my hand.
I held Su Mei’s hand that was on the tea table.
Su Mei’s palm was not big, but her fingers were very slender.
Looking at her, I said calmly:
“Be my woman, I’ll protect you. I promise, no one will bully you again!”
Su Mei let me hold her hand.
Her peach blossom eyes, slightly drunk, were fixed on me.
Suddenly, Su Mei laughed.
It was both self-mocking and seemed to be mocking me.
“Protect me? With what? Because you’re The Swindler? Because you know some Swindler techniques? Master Liu, my Master Chu Liu, let me give you a piece of sincere advice. Either, you become a mole, specifically catching swindlers. You’ll have a decent income, and the gambling den can ensure your safety. Or, quit the Blue Path early. Although I’m not a member of The Swindler Sect, I know that it’s even more brutal. Because The Swindler can’t make mistakes, once they do, it’s game over. But who can guarantee that they will never make a mistake in their life? Can you?”
Su Mei’s words made sense.
There’s always someone better, there’s always something higher.
Who dares to say they will never make a mistake?
But I slowly nodded.
“I can! And you, you have to be my woman. Not just tonight, but also in the future!”
Su Mei sneered.
She pulled her hand away.
Slowly, she stood up.
Her tolerance for alcohol seemed average.
When she first stood up, she swayed a bit.
“My Master Chu Liu, just because I call you Master Liu doesn’t mean you’re not a little brother. You still don’t understand how treacherous the world is, how unpredictable people can be. You want me, I’ll give myself to you tonight. But after tonight…”
Su Mei’s face turned cold, looking at me, she slowly said:
“You will still be you, and I will still be me!”