Yu Bin shifted. He was more focused. Muscles coiled ready to spring.

Wen Chao had stopped dead in front of Huang Feng.

The man was hard to miss in his loud red shirt and pants. He appeared to be screaming into his phone. Huang Feng was the only customer looking at Wen Chao's tirade.

He whispered softly, "Just go back to eating. Relax your shoulders."

Huang Feng lifted the wonton and put it in his mouth. He chewed slowly, deliberately, so he wouldn't choke and draw attention.

Wen Chao was yelling at someone. "I DON'T CARE IF HE'S SLEEPING! Drag his ass out of bed and GET IT!!!" He hung up. Clearly still fuming.

"Dumb shit!" he growled.

He looked at Huang Feng who was eating the last of his wontons. Then he slapped the table. Huang Feng jumped.

"Hey! Do I know you?"

A squint upwards from Huang Feng. "You ever in the army?"

Wen Chao laughed. "Fuck no! That's for losers!"

"That's where I been for ten years." He pulled out his bottle. Looking around to see if anyone else was watching, he took a long swallow before tucking it back in his military jacket.  "I don't know you. Why would you know me?"

Wen Chao grabbed Huang feng's chin for a closer look.

Yu Bin stood in his doorway. Chen Li was gone. He was a cop worried about his partner.

Huang Feng ripped his face out of Wen Chao's grip.

"Don't touch me!" he hissed. "I don't like men. I don't care what those fuckers said*!"

He stood and brushed past  Wen Chao, stomping angrily out of Blue Delights.

Wen Chao, startled by the man's reaction, suddenly laughed. "Another fag tossed out. Drunk and crazy as shit."

He laughed all the way back to his car.

Lan Wangji leaned against the alley wall slowing his heartbeat. Had Wen Chao realized he was a cop?

"Clear" he whispered. "Any sign he made me?"

"Can't tell. He's leaving and he's laughing." was the whispered reply.

Chen Li adjusted his clothing and sat back down as if preparing to sleep.

Huang Feng took a deep breath and shakily let it out. The adrenaline was coursing through him.

Nie Huaisang's voice sounded in their ears. "Very quick thinking, Huang Feng. Bring it in, boys. See you at the extraction points. I'll have dinner for you, Chen Li."

The voice disappeared. There were two affirmative grunts.
------

The Spider leaned back in his chair as he watched the traffic cams. If he was correct, Wen Chao was going home to his gaudy apartment. Even if he wasn't,  it had been too close a call for two noobies.

He made two quick phone calls, his eyes never leaving his monitors. Wen Chao was home. He knew it would take some time for the two men to reach their destinations. Wafting his fan, he ran over the events of the night. If properly played, the incident with Wen Chao could be to their advantage. He stored the idea for later consideration.

He saved the night's video stream and audio communications and then backed it up on a new thumb drive. A quick label with the date and he slipped it into his pocket.

He patted the pocket. "For the collection."  He was whistling as he left the office.

The front desk officer was picking up the phone as Nie Huaisang walked up to his counter. The man's eyes widened slightly at The Spider's arrival.

"Just picking up my deliveries!" Nie Huaisang said cheerfully.

The phone was haltingly put back into its cradle. "I-I was just calling you, sir."

"I thought I'd save you the trouble. Thank you." The Spider took the two bags and left the station with a grin.

The front desk officer looked around wondering where the camera was.
-----

It took Yu Bin almost an hour to reach his extraction point. He was tired and still worried about his partner.

He whispered, "Check. On point."

"Check." Was the quick response. A sigh of relief.

Chen Li settled into the shadows of a building and waited.
-----

Lan Wangji had four more blocks and he was effectively out of the red light district. Another block and he would be at his extraction point.

He leaned against a sign post trying to sink back into Huang Feng's persona. The adrenaline had dumped into his system with the speed of lightning stripping away Huang Feng and leaving a scared Lan Wangji.

'Does he know who I am? Is this already over? How will I be able to find Yiling if it is?"  He shook his head, leaning over with his hands on his knees. A drunk trying to regain his equilibrium to an observer.

"Pull yourself together, Lan Zhan!"  he told himself sternly. Huang Feng stood up and continued his way down the sidewalk.
-----

Nie Huaisang pulled up in a scratched and dented POS* SUV. Lan Wangji carefully observed his surroundings one last time and got into the back seat. He laid his head back and sighed. Glancing sideways, he saw Yu Bin in the same position.

"Are you okay, Yu Bin?"

"I'm fine. Are you?" The beat cop knew what the adrenaline drop felt like and it wasn't fun.

"Yes." Lan Wangji's eyes closed. He felt limp, used up, exhausted.

He opened his eyes at a sudden realization. "You are very quiet, Inspector."

Nie Huaisang smiled and passed one of the two bags into the back seat. "Here. You deserve it."

Inside the bag was two cups. A jasmine green tea and a decaf Americano.

Nie Huaisang drove to an auto repair shop and parked the gray SUV in its spot.

Looking at the two tired men, he announced, "We've arrived. Time to change cars, gentlemen."

Both of them got out of the SUV and followed Nie Huaisang to a ramshackle shed. Inside was a 2020 Lexus GS F in Nebula Gray with matte finish. The car screamed money. Without any upgrades, it was 554,000¥*. Yu Bin was willing to bet his next ten hours of sleep, Nie Huaisang had every upgrade available.

Lan Wangji cocked an eyebrow. The Spider had good taste.

"Back seat gentlemen. I have properly prepared it for you." The inspector slid into the driver's seat.

Opening the back doors, they discovered what Nie Huaisang meant. Covering the whole backseat was a waterproof dog blanket.

Yu Bin didn't even pause before crawling in. Lan Wangji glanced at the inspector via his side view mirror.

"It works for dogs and very dirty cops. Get in." He snickered.

By the time they arrived, both of the back seat's occupants were half asleep.

Lan Wangji punched in the code and the gate opened. In no time, they were standing waiting as he unlocked the front door. Yu Bin headed directly to the kitchen and washed his hands thoroughly. Lan Wangji joined him.

Nie Huaisang opened the second bag and pulled out two Styrofoam take away containers. He laid a set of chopsticks on top of one and put it next to Yu Bin's coffee on the table.

Pulling his fan out and playing with the tassel, he waited for the two men in the kitchen. When they emerged, he smiled.

"You did very well tonight, gentlemen. You gave good advice to your partner, " a nod to Yu Bin. "And thought fast on your feet." a nod to Lan Wangji. "I suggest you sit and eat, Yu Bin. Lan Wangji, you already ate so go shower. You will feel 100% better."

"Mn." and Lan Wangji disappeared into his room.

Yu Bin sat down and opened the container. He looked back up at Nie Huaisang in surprise.

"The Blue Delights' wontons are not a thing to be missed." he grinned as he happily popped the first one into his mouth.

Yu Bin grinned back and began to chow down.

~♡~♡~♡~

China does not allow open homosexuality in its military.  Despite my research, I couldn't find many current details so, for the sake of the story, Huang Feng's comments about not liking men etc should carry the implication he was caught and discharged from the military. Wen Chao's comments affirm that he has understood the implication.

POS is American slang for a Piece Of Shit. The term is usually applied to cars.

¥ is the symbol for yuan. The car's price, without upgrades, is $87,000.

HUGS!!!
❤🍫🫖❤