Lawless Gangster

Chapter 78

Xiao Li was still sitting in the passenger seat with his eyes hung low while biting his teeth. Li Shi Qing suddenly realized that since Xiao Li sat down in the car, he has never turned to look at him. Just as he was about to say something, Xiao Li finally opened his mouth to speak.

"Qing Ye, you always said you've met me once when I was fifteen years old. But, I actually met you before that." Xiao Li's voice was low but the difference was that it seemed as though he was very reluctant to speak. Li Shi Qing has never seen him speak like this before. "When I was around ten years old, my family was practically unable to make a living. At that time, you had pulled my mother and let her follow you as a procurer. Every day, my mother was always very excited and spoke of your affairs. Qing Ye, I know now that you never liked her but at that time I was still young and did not understood anything. I always thought," he paused, "I always thought one day you would become my father."

Li Shi Qing froze as confusion and speechlessness overtook him.

"Chen Wu was the one that told me the truth about her accident," Xiao Li said but he still did not look at Li Shi Qing. The lights in the car were not turned on—instead—a ray of light from outside shone in, illuminating the side of his face a shade of gold. It made it look as though he was no longer himself but rather he was speaking for someone else. "She didn't say anything aside from telling me to take good care of Xiao Yang and not to let him enter the underworld. Later on, I finally understood why she had only mentioned Xiao Yang and not me. Why did she firmly held my hands and cried like that..."

Li Shi Qing frowned. As he listened to Xiao Li muttered, a thin slender figure seemed to slowly emerge from his dusty memories. It was not a delightful or rewarding memory, so Li Shi Qing had long noticed his own himself obliviousness to that woman's face. Instead, all he could recall was an unnaturally flattering smile, a nervous laughter, and a panic-stricken look in her eyes as she fell.

He stared at the side of Xiao Li's face and tried to find some lost memories from his facial features, but the image of that woman remained vague. With a sigh, he said, "So as it turned out, you really liked me when you were little. But when I told you I wanted to support you for your entire life, why did you—"

"I feel very disgusted." Xiao Li abruptly said. Then as if he could not stand to give Li Shi Qing a single glance, he completely turned away to look outside the window. "Qing Ye, in the end, you gave justice to my weak mother, cultivate me, promote me and gave me a means to provide for my brother......I'm willing to pay you back with my life but as for anything else, even after so many year, there was never a day that I did not think it was disgusting."

This remark is extremely straightforward therefore even though Li Shi Qing had mentally prepared himself; his expression was still rather unsightly.

Xiao Li has said everything very clearly. Over the years, he has never betrayed Li Shi Qing, repaid him with gratitude, stayed loyal to the gang, cared for his mother's words and had even carried a bit of childhood adoration. Perhaps, these emotions were not enough to completely guarantee Xiao Li's loyalty to him, but enough for him to not rely on any other influences to overthrown him.

However—that still does not explain why he had suddenly changed.

"Even if you're......you're disgusted, it wouldn't have come to this?" Li Shi Qing questioned closely, "Didn't you promise to accompany me in order to save Xiao Yang? Later, I wanted you to withdraw from the gang to accompany me yet you still did not resist. If it went on like that, you would have sooner or later been mine......Chen Wu said that he took the initiative to convince you until you suddenly agreed. In the end, why?"

Xiao Li looked as though he thought the biggest secret has already been said and everything else doesn't matter anymore. He bluntly answered, "Lin Zi[1] is dead."

Li Shi Qing was instantly shock, having not expected to hear such an irrelevant answer.

"That day he was severely beaten by Liu Zi Cheng," Xiao Li said as a complicated expression well in his eyes, "I was injured and forgot to clear things for him. He just lie like that at the warehouse, slowly bleeding to death."

Li Shi Qing frowned, "I didn't pay attention."

"He didn't know anything at all. Not even what we had prepared...Hong Tou[2] and Lin Zi are the two that has stayed with me the longest. In the end, I've let them both down." Xiao Li sighed, "Qing Ye, when you were not willing to save Han Jia, I was bitterly disappointed. I never thought that I'd also become such a person."

Li Shi Qing looked at him with a little bit of shock. There were several emotions flashing pass his eyes and ultimately, he actually felt a hint of excitement as the corner of his lips slightly rose, "You don't want to be such a person or a part of the underworld so you chose that bastard?" His tone increased, "What's the difference between me and him? Xiao Li, you've already left the gang. I've also become like this now so I don't have to return. I still have a lot of money, we can—"

Xiao Li finally turned around to look at him. As their line of sight met, Xiao Li's eyes were clear and full of confident. "Qing Ye, you've said the opposite. It's because of Qi Xiu Yuan that I don't want to do these kinds of things anymore or become someone like you."

Some people plunder because of love while others fall because of love. And for some people when they fall in love with another person, they want to make themselves better, to be more authentic, and more deserving of that love. Xiao Li is that type of man.

Li Shi Qing was ultimately defeated by those words. Even though the look of excitement still hung on his face, the expression in his eyes has—however—been ruined by disappointment.

When Xiao Li sensed something, he quickly turned his head toward the direction of the police car only to see Qi Xiu Yuan had somehow gotten out of the car, with one hand on the door while looking over with concern.

"I'm leaving," Xiao Li said concisely as he opened the door without a hint of hesitation.

Li Shi Qing thought of many words to stop him: You will eventually be abandoned with nothing left. You will be killed for leaving the gang. You should not put too much trust in Sun Ze Yu. You can only succeed if you're with me......but those words remained at the tip of his tongue. In the end, unable to say any of it, he could only sadly and weakly swallow it back down his throat.

All he could do was watched as Xiao Li closed the car door with a gesture that looked as though he was determined to leave the past behind.

Then underneath the moonlight and the light breeze that gently passed by, he crossed the road, crossed the dim light of the night, crossed the shadows and bloodstains on the ground, and headed for the man who was waiting for him with a smile.

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That ending statement though T.T Yes, yes, Xiao Li go be happy with Qi Xiu Yuan! Sae supports you wholeheartedly. ♡'･ᴗ･'♡

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Translator's Note:

[1] Lin Zi – Xiao Li's close subordinate who he would at time tease. He was badly beaten in chapter 62 by Liu Zi Cheng on Li Shi Qing's command after having been forced to say that Xiao Li was the one that ordered Da Gui's death (Lu Wu's subordinate).

[2] Hong Tou — he died when Xiao Li was ambushed at the Arc de Triomphe in chapters 14/15 and his death was mentioned in chapter 16