“Well…… I guess it would be nice?”
Kang Siwon replied half-heartedly. Honestly, he didn’t think such an opportunity would come to him. In Kang Siwon’s view, he was a guy who had absolutely no connection with money. Even if an opportunity to make a lot of money did come, it wouldn’t be in a legal form.
“So would you be okay with it if we scouted you?”
“By ‘we’…… you mean the Baeksa Faction?”
“Are you thick? Who’s going to talk about it out loud?”
Ju Xiang kicked Kang Siwon’s leg hard from under the table. Even though he was the one who brought up the Baeksa Faction first.
Just then, the food they’d ordered arrived. Kang Siwon took a big bite of the toast sprinkled with sugar to soothe his boiling insides.
“So. Are you saying you’d be okay with it or not?”
“Of course I’d refuse.”
“Why?”
“……”
“Are you ignoring me right now?”
“I was thinking about how to package my answer nicely. But I don’t think I can package it.”
“Then just say it as is.”
“I don’t want to become a thug.”
How many people would voluntarily want to get involved with gangsters? Although he was in a position of participating in shady business, Kang Siwon was the same. No matter how much money they offered, he had not the slightest desire to officially join the Baeksa Faction.
“You mean you’d refuse even if we scouted you?”
“Yes.”
“Huh.”
He’d prepared himself for a punch and answered honestly, but unexpectedly, Ju Xiang just clicked his tongue. Unlike him, he had a calm expression, seeming to be thinking about something. Regardless, Kang Siwon ate his meal resolutely.
He didn’t even know exactly what the Baeksa Faction was doing with the information extracted from Sovereign Casino, so he declined to get more involved. Even though he thought it was twisted, this was his own moral compass.
* * *
After that, Kang Siwon holed up in the hotel solving puzzle magazines. Since the purpose of coming to Hong Kong was only to extend his stay period, there was nothing else to do until returning to Macau tomorrow. However, he’d been staring at the puzzle for 4 or 5 hours and was getting bored, so he was momentarily turning his gaze to the window when—
“Ah yes, hyung-nim. Yes. Have you been well?”
Ju Xiang answered a phone call. The other party must be quite high-ranking, as his tone of voice changed.
“Of course. I’m in Hong Kong right now. Ah, yes…… I’m sorry. Could you wait just a moment?”
He glanced sideways at Kang Siwon. It was a signal to leave. There wasn’t really anywhere to hide in this narrow hotel room, so he headed to the bathroom.
Click. As he closed the door, Ju Xiang continued the call.
“I’ll make direct contact myself. Don’t worry. No matter how rat-like that bastard is, after chasing him all the way there, does he have the means to run? He’s been kicked out of Macau anyway, so he’ll have nowhere to go.”
Perhaps worried that Kang Siwon might hear, Ju Xiang kept his voice as low as possible. Still, a few words could be heard intermittently. Things like junket, broker, rebate.
“……”
Kang Siwon frowned slightly. He thought Ju Xiang—or more precisely, the Baeksa Faction—was doing shady business again.
A junket was, in short, an intermediary company. They took full responsibility for helping VIP players from the moment they entered the casino until they left. Transportation to and from the casino, hotels to stay in during their visit, food and entertainment—everything. Through the junket’s services, customers could simply enjoy gambling without having to worry about troublesome matters.
Looking at it this way, it might seem like a legitimate service business. However, dirty byproducts inevitably came along with such large sums of money being exchanged. Junket companies sometimes committed illegal acts under the guise of “hospitality” and were entangled with violent organizations.
It would have been better for his mental health not to know about such things. Kang Siwon clicked his tongue, thinking that he’d learned all sorts of things because he worked at the casino.
But even if he turned a blind eye to this reality, it would only be evasion. Kang Siwon thought he should at least be aware of what kind of work he was involved in. That was the conclusion he’d reached after experiencing the Zhang Weiren incident.
“No. That’s my specialty, you know. Yes. Then I’ll confirm and contact you right away. Please go ahead, hyung-nim.”
The obsequious voice cut off. Following that, rustling sounds could be heard.
It seemed the call had ended—should he go out? Just as Kang Siwon was hesitating, a phone rang again. But this time it wasn’t Ju Xiang’s.
“Ah.”
He let out an exclamation and left the bathroom. However, Ju Xiang was faster at picking up the phone from the bedside. It was Kang Siwon’s.
“Who is it?”
Ju Xiang, who had answered the phone in his place, asked gruffly. Not addressing the other party, but glaring fiercely at Kang Siwon as if interrogating him. Pierced by that gaze, Kang Siwon swallowed briefly.
The only people who knew that phone number were Manager Park, Ju Xiang, and Ray Jun.
If it were Manager Park, Ju Xiang wouldn’t show such a reaction, so the only one left was Ray Jun. He’d rather hoped it was a spam call, but Kang Siwon’s expectation was immediately shattered.
“Xie Wei? He’s in the bathroom right now?”
Kang Siwon screamed inwardly. It was a problem that Ju Xiang had caught him using his work phone for personal purposes, and it was a problem that Ray Jun had caught him lying about going to Hong Kong alone, but that statement just now was the biggest problem.
“Please hand it over.”
Kang Siwon approached Ju Xiang and held out his hand. He frowned, then changed the call setting to speaker mode and tossed the phone over as if throwing it.
“Hello. Ray Jun?”
―Are you with Ju sunbae?
The voice coming from the phone speaker sounded unfamiliar. It was Ray Jun’s characteristic gentle tone that was fundamentally tinged with playfulness, but why? Kang Siwon swallowed dry saliva and answered.
“Yeah.”
―You said you were going to Hong Kong alone.
“……”
―I guess there’s a reason you couldn’t tell me?
Ray Jun asked subtly. It was a nuance as if he was misunderstanding his relationship with Ju Xiang. Goosebumps instantly spread all over his body, and Kang Siwon immediately denied it.
“We just ran into each other by chance!”
―Hmm…… You ran into each other by chance, not even drinking tea together, but going into the bathroom?
“……”
Ju Xiang’s gaze stabbed sharply. It was a look as if he were watching the world’s biggest idiot. In fact, even Kang Siwon thought he seemed quite idiotic.
―It’s okay. Everyone has at least one thing they want to hide.
He was grateful for the understanding, but the misunderstanding didn’t seem to be cleared up at all. Kang Siwon changed the subject with an awkward feeling.
“So…… why did you call?”
―Just because. We’re not the kind of relationship where something has to happen for me to call, are we?
Ju Xiang’s gaze became even more piercing. It seemed he was misunderstanding in his own way too. Kang Siwon wished the floor would just cave in.
―Actually, I called because I was curious about something. I was wondering if we could see each other if the timing worked out.
“Is that so……”
―Unless you’re too busy being with Ju sunbae.
“I told you it’s not like that.”
―Then can you come out now?
“……”
―See?
Ray Jun giggled. It seemed he’d been testing him, and Kang Siwon had fallen for it beautifully. But he didn’t have any other excuses to offer either.
―Can’t be helped. I guess I’ll have to see your face in Macau.
“……Yeah.”
―Have a good holiday, Xie Wei.
“You too. I’m hanging up now.”
If they talked any longer, the misunderstanding seemed like it would spread like wildfire. As he dropped the hand holding the phone, Ju Xiang sneered.
“You do all kinds of things, really all kinds of things. If that bastard runs his mouth, will there be a nice rumor spreading around Sovereign that you and I went on a date to Hong Kong?”
“……I’m sorry. I’ll make sure to keep Ray Jun’s mouth shut later myself.”
In truth, if Ju Xiang hadn’t made that bathroom comment, Ray Jun wouldn’t have misunderstood, but Kang Siwon apologized obediently.
Ju Xiang, who had been glaring at Kang Siwon as if he didn’t trust him, bluntly spat out.
“Be careful.”
“……Yes.”
Kang Siwon answered for now, even though he didn’t know what to be careful about. Given Ju Xiang’s personality, he thought there’d be a round of scolding, but it seemed to pass over quite quietly, which was unexpected.
“Not being involved with anyone looks suspicious too, so you need to have appropriate relationships. But there’s no need to get too close. You’re someone who’ll leave someday anyway.”
“That’s right.”
Kang Siwon was seized by a strange feeling. From the day he set foot in Sovereign Casino, he’d lived gritting his teeth, saying he would definitely escape this place after 3 years. But when those words actually came out of someone else’s mouth, it felt fresh. Perhaps he himself, deep down, thought he wouldn’t be able to escape from the Baeksa Faction.
Without even having time to think more deeply about it, Ju Xiang asked.
“Can you stay alone without causing trouble?”
“Am I a baby?”
When he asked back in disbelief, Ju Xiang glared.
“Fuck, I’m asking if you can stay still without doing stupid shit. You should get it immediately, you bastard who can’t understand words……”
“Of course I can stay still.”
“Then stay quietly holed up in the hotel. I have to go take care of some business for a bit. Don’t think about meeting your equally dimwitted roommate. If you do anything stupid, know that you’ll be going back to Macau on crutches.”
“When are you coming back?”
“Tomorrow.”
It meant he’d be away for more than half a day. Looking at the phone conversation earlier and the circumstances, something important had clearly come up suddenly. He thought this was the golden opportunity to dig into the Baeksa Faction’s affairs.
“Then, what about meals?”
“What?”
“Food. If I only stay in the room, how do I eat?”
Kang Siwon spoke with a deliberately clueless face. He didn’t know if this was the right thing to do, but he didn’t have the luxury to think carefully.
“Ha…… Do you want to complain about food in this situation?”
“What situation is this?”
When he deliberately acted clueless, Ju Xiang sighed as if frustrated.
“Order room service. Happy?”
“Room service is just expensive and doesn’t taste good…… Can’t I go to a restaurant? Since I’m in Hong Kong, I want to eat dim sum. I won’t go far.”
“Fine, fine. Geez, a bastard whose only high-class thing is his tongue.”
Perhaps because he knew Kang Siwon’s main job was cooking, he didn’t seem to suspect deeply. Or maybe he was in such a rush that every second counted. Ju Xiang quickly finished preparing to go out, then warned once more.
“I warned you that you’ll die if you do stupid shit.”
“Yes.”
Kang Siwon answered obediently. However, that docile expression changed completely as soon as Ju Xiang left the room.
