Chương 88: _【+】(88)

_【+】(88)

Boom! Skidding to a halt in the distance, the car under Li Xin's control officially declared itself scrapped. Li Xin let out a long breath, leaned back against the seat, and said, "The rest is up to you guys."

Hong Ying didn't even need Li Xin's instruction; he began using his portable high-tech equipment to make contact. Feeling Qi Mo rubbing her hair, Li Xin turned her head to glance at the unconscious Qu Wei. If Huang Ying hadn't been holding him from behind, he would have been thrown who-knows-where during that dive. As it was, the man had almost no signs of life left.

Li Xin knew they could wait, but Qu Wei couldn't. He needed medical attention as soon as possible. She didn't panic; with Hong Ying and the others handling things, there would be no problem. She looked up at the starry sky. It was pitch black. The desert at night was as cool as water. She hadn't felt it in the heat of the moment, but now, covered in sweat and hit by the drastic temperature change, Li Xin suddenly felt a bone-chilling cold. She immediately climbed over from the front and squeezed in next to Qi Mo. Qi Mo extended a large hand and pulled Li Xin into his embrace. It was indeed cold here after nightfall.

Silence, stillness. But Li Xin understood this was the calm before the storm. After today's encounter, the Qi family and Lan Bang were probably about to officially go to war.

Thieving Passion, Main Text, Chapter 89: The Origin of the Taboo

Chapter Word Count: 8554 Update Time: 08-12-05 14:22

A plane, arriving at the first possible moment, quickly carried everyone away from the land of Egypt, flying straight to the United States.

At the Qi family's main residence, a few days later, Li Xin strolled to the most remote villa. She saw that Qu Wei was already up and stretching in the garden, slowly extending his arms. The sunlight shone on him, and Li Xin couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. Cleaned up and well-groomed, this Qu Wei actually looked quite presentable. He had a slightly boyish face, and dressed in casual wear, he didn't look like a man in his forties or fifties at all. He was the very picture of a sunny gentleman.

"Hey, little Li Xin, morning." Qu Wei, in the middle of his light exercise, saw Li Xin approaching and greeted her with a broad smile.

Li Xin immediately rolled her eyes. She had told this Qu Wei countless times to just call her by her name. Why did he always have to add "little" in front of it? It sounded awkward. But that friendly smile was truly hard to shatter. She snorted coldly and said, "You're not dead yet, huh?"

Qu Wei smiled as he beckoned Li Xin to come in and sit. "What can I do if the King of Hell won't take me?" He paused, then looked at Li Xin with a gentle, smiling face and said, "Be good, call me Uncle."

Li Xin immediately stopped in her tracks, suspecting that coming to see this person today might have been a mistake. Qu Wei, as if he had anticipated Li Xin's reaction, affectionately patted her shoulder, grabbed her hand, and forcefully pulled her inside, acting every bit the elder towards a junior.

"I didn't expect little Li Xin to actually come see her uncle. Uncle is very happy." Pulling Li Xin, he limped into the villa and sat down, looking at her with a face full of smiles.

Seeing Qu Wei speak so naturally, Li Xin frowned. "That was an expedient measure, you know? Don't go around calling yourself 'Uncle.' You're taking advantage of me."

Qu Wei blinked at Li Xin. "What do you mean? I'm not Chinese."

Li Xin was speechless. What was the point of using a Chinese idiom on a seasoned Englishman? It would be a joke if he understood. She took a deep breath. "I have no intention of acknowledging you as my uncle. I only said that because the situation was urgent. I'm not interested in having a relative pop out of nowhere." She had been an orphan for so many years, long accustomed to having nothing, and had never yearned for family. So, hearing Qu Wei call himself "Uncle" over and over was truly awkward.

Hearing this, Qu Wei's face fell. He looked at Li Xin with a mournful expression. "There's a Chinese saying: 'A gentleman's word is his bond.'"

Li Xin was instantly furious. She glared at Qu Wei. Just a moment ago he claimed not to understand, and now he was throwing such a classic line back at her. Faced with Qu Wei's deliberately pitiful act, Li Xin couldn't be bothered to say anything more to him. She had come to visit him out of kindness, seeing that no one else was, and he was playing games with her. She wouldn't play along.

Seeing Li Xin stand up to leave, Qu Wei quickly grabbed her hand. He smiled and said seriously, "Just talk with me for a while. This Qi family, trained by little Mo, is full of cold faces. Being here alone is really suffocating."

Li Xin raised an eyebrow at Qu Wei. Qu Wei smiled and pointed to the seat. "Come, sit down. I'm really bored."

Seeing the genuinely bored and weary expression on Qu Wei's face—bored, that was a good word for it. The Qi family residence was indeed boring, at least by her old standards. But it was boring now too, she just didn't have the time to experience it. She glanced at Qu Wei's clumsy hands and feet, frowned slightly, and turned back to sit down.

"Are your wounds healed?" Sitting down and meeting Qu Wei's friendly smile, Li Xin finally asked the main reason for her visit.

Qu Wei smiled and nodded. "They're a bit better, but the injury is old. This arm might not be as flexible as it used to be."

The bullet had been embedded in his arm for too long. After three days, the wound had developed severe necrosis. If it weren't for a high-level talent like Li Hu and the Qi family's advanced equipment, Qu Wei's arm might have been crippled.

As for his leg, it was just dislocated, not broken, which was why Qu Wei could walk after only a few days, though his steps and strength were still hard to control, making him clumsy.

Li Xin nodded. "Exercise more. There shouldn't be any major problems in the future. That's what Li Hu said."

Qu Wei smiled. "No need to comfort me. I don't mind this little injury. It's not like I make a living with my hands. By the way, you're here, so little Mo, he...?" He didn't finish, but Li Xin understood his meaning.

Seeing the faint look of anticipation in Qu Wei's eyes, Li Xin reached up and rubbed her nose. "After we got back, the Boss went to Italy. He should be discussing something with Jiao Wen right now. I think it's about the Lan Bang problem, so he's not at the Qi family residence at the moment."

A flicker of disappointment crossed Qu Wei's eyes, but it vanished in an instant. He smiled at Li Xin. "Then why didn't you go? Aren't you little Mo's subordinate?" As he spoke, he glanced at the ring on Li Xin's hand.

Li Xin raised an eyebrow. "You're injured, and so am I. My stomach still hurts when I walk. What would I go for? I need to rest." The struggle that day had caused the skin on her abdomen to bleed quite a bit, and it stung fiercely. Seeing this, Qi Mo had uncharacteristically left her behind to recuperate as well.

Hearing this, Qu Wei said with a hint of concern, "Where were you injured? How is it now? A young body needs to be well taken care of. Especially for a girl, you must be careful." Since waking up from his coma, he had been at the Qi family residence. His quarters had been empty except for Li Hu and a servant. He had heard a little from Li Hu about how they had escaped that day and couldn't help but admire the Li Xin before him.

Li Xin shook her head slightly. "It's nothing." It was rare to receive such concern without any ulterior motives. Li Xin couldn't help but show a smile.

Seeing that Li Xin indeed looked fine, Qu Wei nodded. "It's good that you're okay. But you must be careful when you're with little Mo. His family background and status make his surroundings unsafe, quite dangerous in fact. So you must learn to protect yourself."

Qu Wei's words struck a chord with Li Xin. Being with Qi Mo was truly dangerous, so dangerous. She had already lost eight or nine of her ten lives. This time, Qi Mo had gone to Italy as soon as he returned. It was obvious he was going to see Jiao Wen, the head of the Mafia. Why the rush? One, he probably didn't want to be in the same place as Qu Wei, though that was unlikely since Qi Mo wasn't a petty person. The most likely reason was to discuss how to deal with Lan Bang. The storm was about to brew again, and her life would once again be on the line.

Seeing Li Xin nod repeatedly with a look of deep empathy, Qu Wei raised an eyebrow, propped his chin on his hand, and looked at her with eyes full of curiosity. "Li Xin, I'm very curious. Little Mo has always detested women. How did you become the exception? Tell me, I'm really a bit curious."

Li Xin immediately shot Qu Wei a glare and said sullenly, "I'd also like to know how I became the exception. And I'm also very curious why the Boss hates women."

Li Xin wasn't curious about other things. How Qi Mo, as an illegitimate son, came to sit on the throne of the Qi family, what he went through in the middle—she wasn't curious. To reach that point could only mean Qi Mo was capable. The formation of a triad boss was bound to have a legendary and terrifying past; that was common sense. But such a peculiar trait, she had always been very curious about, especially when she was entangled by this trait.

Seeing Li Xin looking at him curiously, Qu Wei's perpetually smiling face cooled slightly. A flash of heartache crossed his features. Seeing this, Li Xin raised an eyebrow. "If it's inconvenient, just pretend I didn't ask." She was curious, but she would never pick at someone's scars.

Qu Wei shook his head. "It's not inconvenient. Since you want to know, I'll tell you."

After a moment of silence, Qu Wei let out a long sigh. "In the underworld, the lines between the white path and the black path are drawn very strictly. Although their powers and actions might sometimes mix, the true great families of the two paths will absolutely not intermarry. There are iron-clad rules and a common understanding on this matter.

"The Qi family is a major arms dealer in the underworld, a recognized top power. Although our Qu family can't be considered a top family on the white path, we are of British nobility, with a hereditary title, so we are also a great family.

"How my sister got involved with little Mo's father, that's too long ago to talk about. My sister couldn't enter the Qi family's doors even after giving birth to little Mo. And little Mo's father, under the iron fist of the Qi family head at the time, married a woman from another prominent underworld family."

A heartless man, a family feud. Such a cliché plot, yet it repeated endlessly. There were always people who couldn't help but jump in. The word 'love' truly harmed people. Hearing this, Li Xin couldn't help but shake her head slightly. When it came to others, she saw things more clearly than anyone.

Seeing Li Xin shake her head, Qu Wei, for some reason, also shook his head. He remembered how so many people in the family had tried to persuade and stop her, but his sister had charged out without looking back. That resolute expression, that unwavering persistence, left no room for anyone to retreat, nor did it leave her any room for regret. In the end, she was left all alone.

Pausing for a moment, Qu Wei continued, "My sister was a stubborn person. From then on, she neither sought out the Qi family nor returned to the Qu family, living alone with little Mo. However, with the pressure from both families and the troublemaking from those who thought my sister had disgraced the Qu family, by the time little Mo was three, my sister fell ill and never recovered.

"Besides me, my sister had no other relatives or friends willing to be close to her. No one came to take care of her, and even less so for little Mo. I was too far away, I couldn't fly over every day to care for her. My family, seeing my close contact with my sister, cut off my allowance, so I didn't have the money either. And I didn't trust strangers to care for her. After begging her for two days, my sister finally returned to the Qu family with me. But I never expected that I had pushed my sister into a pit of fire." Qu Wei paused slightly here.

Li Xin listened without a word. She had never heard that the black and white paths had such rules. Weren't there plenty of intermarriages? But she didn't know that the pure black and white paths had always been hostile to each other, each with their own pride. It was a matter of bloodline and heritage. Only the great families built on seniority and history would strictly abide by their respective rules. And unfortunately, the Qi family was a century-old powerhouse, while the Qu family was related to royalty. Neither could tolerate the other.

After a slight pause, Qu Wei continued, "I won't go into the details. You can imagine the life and treatment a person who has disgraced their entire family receives upon returning home. Harshness, provocation, troublemaking—everything was done by those who were called family. I never knew that so-called family could be like that, wishing they could strangle this person to death because she had shamed them all.

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