May 20, 2014, 8:53 PM.
Yokohama's nights always carried a hint of the sinister.
Deep within a certain entertainment district, moonlight, fragmented into fine silver threads by bamboo blinds, sprinkled onto the white sand garden in front of the Hidden Moon Pavilion.
Two men in black stand-collar Zhongshan suits stood like statues beside the door, the scabbards of their short swords at their waists gleaming coldly in the shadows.
The night wind swept past the bronze wind chimes on the eaves, emitting a soft 'ding' sound, like an ominous premonition.
The moment the cypress lattice door was pushed open, a strong scent of sake wafted out.
Inside the hall, twenty Triads members sat neatly in two rows, like twenty unsheathed blades; these were all core members of the Triads, both Japanese and European.
Their identical suits and dark red ties exuded a murderous aura under the dim paper lanterns.
In the center, a geisha with thickly powdered white face bowed her head, plucking a shamisen; the melancholic "Sakura Sakura" flowed through the room, yet no one appreciated it.
Although the Seoul operation failed, it did not stop their high-ranking members from drinking and gathering here.
Takahashi Ryosuke sat before the main rosewood low table, the cigar between his fingers unlit.
"Zhang Jie, that bastard..."
He cursed angrily.
The celadon wine cup on the low table was lightly pushed by his fingertip, and the wine sloshed over the rim, spreading a dark red stain on the tabletop, like dried blood.
Sakuragi Shinsuke clenched his fists, his knuckles making a soft 'crack' sound.
"All our brothers in Incheon were lost in Seoul," he said, suppressing his anger. "The Choi Conglomerate's people used better equipment than us; this is not the kind of setup an ordinary conglomerate should have."
In the corner, Inoue Takehiko abruptly loosened his tie.
"Damn it! What was in that box, anyway?" His voice was squeezed out through gritted teeth. "So many of our Triads brothers died, how are we supposed to explain this to them!"
Bang!
Takahashi suddenly erupted, flipping over the entire low table.
Amidst the crisp sound of shattering porcelain, the geishas' shamisen music abruptly stopped.
"Hmph, what do you know? That was Cui Wenhan's bribery list for the Blue House!"
His roar made the paper lanterns sway. "And the video of his daughter 'handling' witnesses in America! And the video of him abusing others!"
In the dead silence, Sakuragi Shinsuke said nothing; this decision had been made by Takahashi Ryosuke himself, and he certainly wouldn't take the blame for it.
Takahashi slowly straightened up and drew a short sword from his waist.
The blade flashed under the light, then with a 'thud,' it was driven into the tatami mat.
"Then let Seoul burn." His voice suddenly became terrifyingly calm. "Contact 'Mad Dog of Myeongdong'; I want Cui Wenhan to watch his empire with his own eyes..."
The hilt of the sword was still trembling slightly, and his madness continued.
...collapse into ash."
Outside the paper door, a crow let out a piercing cry.
A string on the shamisen suddenly snapped with a 'zheng,' like a premonition of fate.
Just then, Sakuragi Shinsuke received a phone call, and his expression changed dramatically.
"Ryosuke, this is bad!"
He spoke directly to Takahashi Ryosuke, who was still fuming.
"What is it? New information again?" Takahashi Ryosuke dismissed it, his gaze already wandering over the performing geishas.
"Cui Wenhan's scandal has already erupted in Seoul, exposed by multiple media outlets!"
Sakuragi Shinsuke truthfully told Takahashi Ryosuke the news he knew. Takahashi Ryosuke froze upon hearing this, clearly somewhat flustered by the news.
They took his USB drive with the scandals, but instead of extorting him, they exposed it? What did that mean?
"That's not the most important thing; there's another piece of news that is extremely unfavorable to us," Sakuragi Shinsuke said calmly.
"Hmm? More bad news?" Takahashi Ryosuke hadn't reacted; the evidence of Cui Wenhan's scandal had already been exposed, wasn't that the most unfavorable thing?
Sakuragi Shinsuke looked at Takahashi Ryosuke and slowly said, "Cui Wenhan is dead, killed by our assassin's Pistol."
"Nani (°ロ°)!"
Takahashi Ryosuke's voice rose several octaves; he stared at Sakuragi Shinsuke in disbelief, saying, "Say that again, that bastard Cui Wenhan is dead, and killed by our assassin's Pistol?"
At this moment, he finally realized what Sakuragi Shinsuke meant by "unfavorable to us."
He wasn't some idiot; as the supreme leader of the Triads, his mind was extremely sharp.
Sometimes, his decisions might seem absurd, but in reality, he had his own reasoning, but this time, the turn of events shattered his plans.
Cui Wenhan's death wasn't a big deal; if he died, he died. Someone would naturally take over his conglomerate, and they could then legitimately establish themselves in Seoul.
The problem, however, was that he died by the Pistol of his own organization's assassin, which was not a good thing at all.
"Who did it!!!"
Takahashi Ryosuke suddenly turned and looked at everyone present; after being stared at by him, everyone broke out in a cold sweat and dared not speak.
"You gave the order," Sakuragi Shinsuke said.
The atmosphere in the entire private room became incredibly heavy.
Takahashi Ryosuke was also quickly thinking if there was another way. If Cui Wenhan were merely the head of a conglomerate, it wouldn't be much, but he was also a councilman; he was a politician.
This was the most crucial issue; his assassin killing a politician would absolutely lead to international disputes.
"This time, we're really in trouble."
While the people inside were still deliberating on how to handle the situation, a figure had already arrived outside the door.
A disheveled man in extremely simple clothes stumbled along like a drunkard, a strong smell of alcohol emanating from him.
The two doormen looked at him with disdain.
"Where did this beggar come from? Get lost!"
Although the Triads' methods were usually domineering, in daily life, they didn't show it so obviously, because they also needed to obey the law.
Normally, they would expel or drive people away, at most a few punches and kicks, but they wouldn't deliberately cause deaths, unless it was a special operation, which was another matter.
However, this stumbling man seemed not to heed their words and continued to walk towards them. Just as they decided to kick this guy away, an accident happened.
A dagger, like lightning, shot out from under the man's armpit, aiming straight for the throat of the doorman on the left, then sharply sliced across the throat of the doorman on the right.
Immediately, he switched from a forehand to a backhand grip, delivering several rapid stabs to the heart, kidney, chest, and temple.
Before they even fell, they had already suffered over a dozen stab wounds, dead beyond any doubt.
He reached out, grabbed both men's clothes, then forcefully pushed them back, propping them against the door.
At least, they couldn't be exposed so quickly.
Then, the man pushed the door open and walked in.
Inside, the singing and dancing continued, completely oblivious to the tragedy that had occurred outside the door.
The two bodies were still twitching slightly, but life had already departed. Blood slowly seeped down their clothes onto the steps, then flowed downwards, a faint smell of blood dispersing with the wind.
The night remained intense, and the wind chimes continued to 'ding-ding' in the wind, as if an alarm, or perhaps a form of mockery.
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