13. …The End - Part two

The cars had long since disappeared into the distance, leaving an entirely devastated Wang Yi Bo among the bare, dilapidated ruins of the old, abandoned factories. The approaching night descended steadily over the landscape, shrouding everything in the eerie shadows of darkness. The air became noticeably cooler, and the previously warm winds blew stronger. But Wang Yi Bo couldn't move. Everything in him refused to leave the place where he had last seen Xiao Zhan.

He was still kneeling on the dirty ground, his already weakened voice beginning to fail after he had screamed out his anger, sadness and despair. Slowly, the severity of what had just happened began to sink in, and every thought of the consequences made his heart break little by little. Added to this was the physical exhaustion that made his whole body tremble the longer he stayed on the spot. Despite the increasing cold, thick beads of sweat formed on his face, slowly dripping down and mixing with the tears running down his flushed cheeks.

He shook his head violently, as if to drive out the cruel images from his mind... This couldn't be right. This had to be a fever dream. He had just imagined it, right? A bad nightmare, nothing more.

But the reality was, unfortunately different.

His fists slammed on the ground repeatedly, ignoring the pain and injuries. However, at some point, he forced himself to calm down. The cold had weakened him, and the last few hours of fear were trying to take their toll on him. His trembling hands clenched around the dirt as he took several deep breaths to steady himself. He needed a few tries to regain control of his body, but he made it.

Wang Yi Bo raised his head and stared darkly into the starry sky. He had to do something. Xiao Zhan had always moved heaven and earth to get him out of trouble, and here he was, sitting in the dirt, being useless. He had to pull himself together and think. ‘Come on, Wang Yi Bo! A life without your Xiao Zhan? Your super shameless descendant from hell? Never! Get your ass up from the ground and get your man! Nothing is lost yet!’

Determined, and with what remained of his energy reserves, he pushed himself up. He swayed dangerously but managed to stumble over to Xiao Zhan's car.

Since he was all too aware of his current condition, his first thought was to call Xu Kai and ask him for help. He would know what was the best to do. But upon reaching the vehicle, his enthusiasm, which had just flared up, was immediately put to the test. As it turned out, he couldn't find a phone, much to his dismay. His own was taken from him and was lying, most likely broken in a corner of his office at the police station. He slammed his hand on the steering wheel in frustration and swore loudly. He didn't even know where he was, and the darkness around him didn't make it any easier.

Sighing exaggeratedly, Wang Yi Bo climbed out of the car again and looked around intently, searching for something that could help him find his way back. He nervously gnawed on his lips, as he couldn't waste too much time. Xiao Zhan's life depended on him!

And for once, the gods seemed to be on his side. To his great relief, he noticed the glow of countless lights in the sky in the distance. A stark contrast to the black star-studded firmament. That would work as a guide.

Although he wasn't a bad driver and had a good sense of direction, it still took him over an hour to find his way back to the outskirts of Beijing. Exhaustion crept into his bones, and he barely could keep his eyes open now that the adrenaline that had pumped him up before had completely worn off.

He finally stopped his car in a small alley and leaned tired against the seat. It was getting late, and he really needed to call someone. His eyes wandered over his surroundings, and across the street, the bright neon lights of a supermarket caught his attention. To his great luck, it was still open.

The owner was a nice elderly woman who kindly allowed him to use her phone despite him looking like someone who had been wrestling in a mud puddle and couldn't even identify himself as the police officer he was. Her eyes were full of silent understanding as she looked into his careworn face. She didn't ask any questions, and Wang Yi Bo was grateful for that.

Xu Kai answered right after the first ring, and after hearing his brother-in-law's weak, hoarse voice, he shouted into his phone at a deafeningly loud and angry level. “Wang Yi Bo! Where the heck are you??? Xiao Zhan also disappeared! Your office is trashed! What the hell happened??? We are dying here!!!! You asshole!"

Wang Yi Bo's carefully maintained self-control instantly vanished into thin air. He clutched the device and cried offendedly without answering Xu Kai's questions. “Why are you shouting at me, you bastard?! I'm innocent! They took me! And I was rudely pushed out of a car! Tied up! Can you imagine that?? My new shirt is ruined too! And suddenly, Xiao Zhan was there! Why did the fool do that? Now they've taken him away. I’m here in the middle of nowhere!!!”

For a moment, there was nothing but silence on the other end of the line. "...Who kidnapped you?" Xu Kai asked hesitantly, trying to follow the flow of speech and filter out useful information. But he actually knew the answer. He just prayed he was wrong.

“Some gangster-type men came into the office… I was half asleep. They overwhelmed me… I couldn't do anything. I think they drugged me with something. When I came back to my senses, we were out of the city, and Xiao Zhan came by car. They took him away. He exchanged himself for me! This idiot!” Wang Yi Bo roughly ruffled his hair while upsetly narrating the events. He suddenly felt even more tired and needed to lean against a wall for support.

He heard Xu Kai cursing loudly and then a loud crashing sound on his side. “Did… did he say anything to you? I mean, before they took him away?” Xu Kai wanted to know. His voice strained with rage and barely suppressed panic.

Wang Yi Bo frowned, trying to remember everything that happened in their brief moment of reunion. “I don't know. Everything happened so quickly. I didn’t really realize what was going on until it was too late.”

“Please think about this carefully. Was there anything strange?” Xu Kai urged him to think.

But Wang Yi Bo was too tense to concentrate. All he wanted was to find Xiao Zhan as quickly as possible. “He's always saying strange things! Be a bit more specific!”

“You tell me! What kind of police officer are you anyway?!” Xu Kai snapped angrily.

“What's this supposed to mean?” Wang Yi Bo snapped back.

"Okay, fine… I'm sorry… Let's try this way, is there anything that didn't make sense to you?" Xu Kai sighed and tried to adopt a gentler tone. The situation was anything but easy for him, too. After all, three people were now missing, two of whom were dear to him.

“Hmm... Just... He said something shameless again. So typical of him. About having sex in the backseat and missing it. His mouth is way too unfiltered in the most inappropriate situations... How can he even say that at a moment like this? That stupid idiot! Besides, we never have sex in the backseat, only in the front…. OH!" When the realization finally hit him, Wang Yi Bo suddenly felt as if he was being reborn. He rushed back to the car with renewed energy. Once there, he climbed into the back seat and searched in every possible place which came to his mind. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets, as a huge wave of relief washed over him when his fingers discovered a small electronic device under the seat cushion. Xu Kai, on the other end, shook his head and cringed. ‘That was strangely verbose.’

“I didn't need it that detailed, you know…” The Agent coughed, trying not to imagine certain mental images that most likely would haunt him in his sleep.

“There's a tracker under the seat!” Wang Yi Bo shouted excitedly and simply ignored his wincing brother-in-law, even though his outburst caused Xu Kai's ears to ring painfully. But he was way too happy about his discovery. Hope flooded his body. He sent a silent prayer to heaven and sank into the seat. “What do we do now?” He asked, his heart pounding hard against his chest.

“You sound exhausted. Stay where you are. I'll pick you up. I have your location.” Xu Kai decided briefly, already putting on his jacket.

“But we have to find Xiao Zhan as quickly as possible!” Wang Yi Bo complained, the impatience clearly audible in his voice.

"I know! But what do you think you can do alone? Without weapons or backup? These bastards are no joke!" The agent reprimanded him sternly.

Wang Yi Bo sighed in annoyance, but at the same time, he knew Xu Kai was right. “I'll stay in the supermarket. Please hurry up. I… I am…” He couldn't bring himself to continue talking but Xu Kai still knew what he meant. “I know. We will find him. He doesn't die that easily. Rest a bit. I will be there soon.” He said and ended the call. There were a few things to prepare before he could leave.

Reira, who quietly sat beside him the entire time, looked at Xu Kai with genuine concern. She gently took his hand into hers, stopping him from moving. “Just tell me what I can do. I have your back.”

Xu Kai smiled softly and squeezed her hand. “I really appreciate it. I assume you found the bastard?”

She nodded. “I did. We are observing his every move. He's still in Beijing, so I guess Xiao Zhan is not in immediate danger in the meantime.”

“We can't be entirely sure. However, as long as we have Jin Zixun, we can find Xiao Zhan and Chief Jiang. The Syndicate is out for revenge, so we better find my brother before they meet. I hope the tracker can give us a time advantage.” Ice-cold chills ran through Xu Kai's body at the mere thought of Jin Zixun, the new head of the Golden Peony Syndicate and, in a twisted way, Xiao Zhan's old acquaintance. In his whole life, he never met a person as despicable and inhuman as him. His discomfort must have been visible on his face, because Reira walked up to him and pulled him into a comforting embrace. “Don't think about what ifs. We will get them out.”

Xu Kai's head dropped onto her shoulder as he tried to compose himself. “I really hope so.”

“You should go now. I will let you know when he changes his location.” Reira grimaced in disgust. “He's currently drinking and whoring around in a nightclub. Kinda busy…”

“A pig remains a pig, after all.”

Xu Kai arrived at their meeting point two hours later, as promised. Upon leaving his car, his heart sank as he saw Wang Yi Bo, distressed and completely exhausted, rushing towards him. The long wait and uncertainty seemed to have worn him down, and his pale complexion spoke volumes about his state. He unceremoniously opened his arms to hug him tightly, for which Wang Yi Bo was very grateful. He immediately leaned into the strong body and closed his eyes.

“How could he do that?” Wang Yi Bo sobbed, his voice muffled against Xu Kai's jacket.

The older man sighed and looked thoughtfully down at the exhausted bundle of nerves. He unconsciously hugged him even tighter, as he also needed comfort. It was strangely calming. Even though they always argued and teased each other, Wang Yi Bo had a very special place in his heart, and it pained him to see the younger one like this.

“You know how he is. It has always been like that. I don't know if he told you, but he did it for me in the past, too.” Xu Kai remarked softly, patting Wang Yi Bo's disheveled hair. The action caused his opponent to lift his head in surprise. “What happened?”

Xu Kai gently removed himself from the embrace and pulled Wang Yi Bo towards his car. “Get in. We will talk while driving.”

Wang Yi Bo had no objection and simply slid into the passenger seat. He still held the tracking device in his hand but didn't know how to use it, so Xu Kai motioned to pass it to him. He was amazed at how quickly and skillfully the agent handled it. They both stared intently at the small screen and waited tensely. When a small red beeping dot finally appeared on the display a few moments later, Wang Yi Bo's heart skipped a joyful beat. It felt like this was the proof of Xiao Zhan's life. The mere thought gave him new energy, and he couldn't help but sigh loudly and enthusiastically. Even Xu Kai closed his eyes for a moment, the relief clearly visible on his face.

To avoid wasting any more time, Xu Kai immediately started the engine and steered his car in the direction the device pointed them. At the same time, he sent Xiao Zhan's location to his father and Reira for direly needed back up.

The further they moved away from the city, the darker it became. In the increasing darkness, everything just flew past them. Wang Yi Bo had trouble seeing anything. It was depressingly quiet in the car for a long while, only their steady breathing could be heard. At some point, Xu Kai broke the silence and began to speak hesitantly. “Do you remember Xiao Zhan telling you about his undercover work with the Golden Peony Syndicate?”

Wang Yi Bo frowned but nodded. As if he could ever forget about this. “Yes. It's a terrible nightmare.”

“Did he tell you how bad it ended?”

"No. I think he wanted to, but it was too much for him at that time. Afterwards, there just wasn't a good time to bring it up, you know? Can you tell me what went wrong then?"

"I can. Xiao Zhan would deny it, but it was my fault. We were both young and inexperienced, and I made a big mistake. They caught me when I tried to break into one of their hideouts. To save me, Xiao Zhan had to expose his cover. I was beaten to the point where I was more unconscious than awake, so I only have fragments of memories of our escape. But, you can twist and turn it. I ruined two years of hard work.” Xu Kai paused and stared at the road, seemingly deep in thought.

Wang Yi Bo said nothing, but listened with growing concern. However, he didn’t blame Xu Kai. Patiently, he waited for him to continue.

“I don't know the details, but my father later told me that Xiao Zhan killed 57 gang members to save me and get us out of the underground. Even though they were scum, he spent at least two years with them. For him, it wasn't just unknown faces. When I imagine what my brother had to do to survive…”

Xu Kai stopped again and collected himself. Wang Yi Bo noticed the tightened grip of his fingers around the steering wheel, and he realised how difficult it was for him to talk about this.

“You don't have to force yourself…” he began but got interrupted.

“No, it's okay. The next day, the syndicate virtually disappeared from the scene. Xiao Zhan was never the same after that, and it took years before he became somewhat normal again. He just worked like a machine. He lived in the moment, without obligations, without seriousness. Without a plan for the future. It was hard, very hard and painful to see him like that.” Xu Kai looked over at Wang Yi Bo, a strange glint reflecting in his eyes. “And then he met you. You brought old Xiao Zhan back to the surface. This is something no one has been able to do before. You have no idea how grateful Dad and I are.”

Wang Yi Bo was silent for a while after hearing this part of Xiao Zhan's past. To be honest, he had a hard time digesting it. But only in terms of how painful it must have been for his Xiao Zhan. The same applied to Xu Kai. Many things, such as his often controversial behavior or cheerful attitude, now made much more sense to him than before.

“It wasn't your fault. Xiao Zhan doesn't blame you. Don't be too hard on yourself. I'm sure you would have done the same for him.”

“Of course, but this wouldn't have happened if I had been more careful.”

“You were too young back then. I'm sure you only had the best intentions. And as outstanding as Xiao Zhan and you are, you're still human.”

“You think we are outstanding? Damn, I have to tell Xiao Zhan!” Xu Kai exclaimed teasingly with a cheeky grin to lighten the gloomy mood a little.

Wang Yi Bo rolled his eyes in slight frustration and threw his head against the headrest. It was now very obvious that Xu Kai had enjoyed the same questionable upbringing as his idiot husband. “Why do you two always only hear the unimportant, insignificant things in the things I'm saying?”

“Dunno, maybe we are too awesome?”

“You're just as stupid as your brother. Seriously…” Wang Yi Bo shook his head and looked out the window. The first gray streaks of light on the horizon already announced the beginning of the new day. He was amazed that he seemed to have completely lost track of time. The surroundings were also unknown to him, as far as he could perceive them. He frowned. “Where exactly are we going?”

Xu Kai smiled meaningfully. “Getting your beloved husband back and kicking some asses.”