Passion Raga Novel (Completed) - Chapter 68

The first thing that caught his eye was Ling Xinlu. He didn’t wear the same smile he had in the office, but a placid expression, as if nothing special was happening. A few steps in front of him, a black jacket was visible.

And further ahead, held by the black jacket, who was roughly clutching his hair, was a man. His mouth was covered with packing tape, and his arms, tied behind his back, were also tightly bound with tape. This man seemed to be today’s victim.

“He siphoned off the drugs. Looks like he’s been doing it for six months. Got caught selling a large amount he swiped recently.”

Munching on a cereal bar, the gatekeeper peered into the hole, tutting, “Foolish fellow.” He explained that the drugs the man had siphoned off happened to be caught in a public security search, leading to a major crackdown and strengthening of enforcement. They wouldn’t be able to do business for a while. “Business is dead, and that guy’s life is over.”

The gatekeeper shrugged and walked a few steps to a chair, sitting down. Thinking Yuri would take over his role, he soon lost interest in this side, pulling out his phone from his pocket and starting to fiddle with it.

Yuri silently looked into the room. More precisely, he looked at Ling Xinlu. As he would only watch what unfolded there without directly laying a hand on the victim, Ling Xinlu directed an indifferent gaze towards them.

It was like the eyes of a dead fish. Eyes that showed no interest in what was before them. That was extremely unfamiliar. Ling Xinlu had never looked at Yuri with such eyes.

Thinking about it, for some time now, their gazes had barely met, just fleeting glances. Even if their eyes did meet, it didn’t last long.

However, Ling Xinlu would sometimes unconsciously gaze at Yuri. It was impossible to know what he was thinking as he looked at Yuri, lost in thought. Was he considering renewing the contract, or something else? Or was he thinking of something entirely different?

Sometimes, Ling Xinlu would look at Yuri, gritting his teeth as if anxious, and when Yuri met his gaze, he would quietly turn away. As if he didn’t even want to make eye contact.

It was the same this morning. They were eating in silence, with only a word or two exchanged, when the phone rang. It was James.

“It’s about time for your contract renewal, isn’t it? What are you going to do this year? Stay there, or come back? If you’re coming back, I need to prepare your spot in advance.”

To be precise, as James candidly admitted, “I need to distribute the workload Kyle accumulated.” Listening to James’s words, Yuri glanced at Ling Xinlu.

From the moment Yuri answered the phone with “James?”, Ling Xinlu had been staring at him. When their eyes met, he slightly frowned. He seemed puzzled that Yuri was looking at him while on the phone.

“Well, I’m not sure yet. Things are still vague here too. I’ll contact you once I decide.”

“When’s the expiry, and it’s still vague? Alright then. Come back as soon as possible. China is too far.”

James grumbled, “Can’t even ask for small favors sometimes,” and after a brief inquiry about well-being, quickly hung up. Yuri also put down the receiver and returned to the dining table.

Ling Xinlu said nothing. He probably guessed why James had called just from Yuri’s words.

Yuri had given Ling Xinlu the power to decide whether or not to renew the contract. If he didn’t make a decision, Yuri couldn’t make future plans. But he had no intention of rushing him. Even if Ling Xinlu delayed his answer until the contract expiration date, it was fine as long as he gave his answer after thinking it over to his satisfaction.

Whether to renew the contract or let it end as is…

Yuri looked at Ling Xinlu, who stood expressionless, and swallowed a silent sigh.

Meanwhile, “the work” was beginning inside the room. As the gatekeeper had also mentioned, today’s “work” likely wouldn’t end lightly.

Just siphoning off drugs was a major problem. Especially since the third uncle always advocated making an example out of people; he never let such matters slide easily.

Moreover, since the man was the reason they had to lie low for a while, it seemed impossible for things to end well.

“So, what were you going to do with that money? Was those few pennies, which couldn’t even save your own life, so tempting? You foolish friend…”

The black jacket’s laughing and tutting sound was heard. Simultaneously, a grating “thud” and muffled groans that couldn’t escape the taped mouth spilled out. The man, sprawled on the floor, was pulled up by the shaggy-haired man standing next to him, gripping his nape.

“You earned a few pennies, but do you know how much we lost? Even if we sold your body in pieces, it wouldn’t cover 1/100 of that money. What are we going to do about this, huh?”

Rough voices and sounds of blows continuously poured out. In one corner of the room, the uncle sat in a chair, merely watching them. It seemed he left everything except the final decision to them.

Ling Xinlu watched them silently. Even at the sight of what was happening right before him, which most people would find hard to watch with open eyes, he showed no particular emotion.

No, it seemed his thoughts weren’t even there.

It wasn’t long before the shaggy-haired man spoke to Ling Xinlu.

“Youngest master, are you alright? You look a bit pale.” The shaggy-haired man, rather than showing concern, smirked as he looked at Ling Xinlu, feeling a sense of superiority.

“The young master will get used to this too,” the black jacket responded, seemingly feeling similarly to the shaggy-haired man.

Until then, Ling Xinlu seemed lost in thought, merely giving them his gaze. Only when he heard them call his name did a faint light appear in his dead-fish-like eyes.

“You don’t look well at all. Are you alright? Did we show you something too gruesome?”

“Ah, I haven’t been able to rest much lately, I guess. I’m fine, this isn’t that gruesome.” Ling Xinlu shook his head lightly and said, “Go on,” gesturing with his hand. Seeing Ling Xinlu, the two men exchanged a glance.

They seemed displeased. They didn’t like that this cowardly rookie, who couldn’t even properly watch them harm someone and stood pale and speechless, calmly muttered “this isn’t that much” as if giving orders from above them.

The shaggy-haired man subtly looked at the third uncle. The uncle, who was sitting with his arms crossed and merely observing, showed no particular reaction. It seemed he intended to just watch, without interfering or stopping anything they did. It was an unspoken permission.

The black jacket, who had been squatting, gripping the bound man’s head, stood up. And with a slight smile, he said to Ling Xinlu,

“How about it, youngest master? Would you like to give him a little ‘treatment’ yourself? Well, usually the young master doesn’t need to get his hands dirty, but you’ll probably see worse things than this often in the future, and it might be good to try it once.”

“…Me?”

Ling Xinlu looked down at the man sprawled on the floor. The man, already battered and bruised, covered in blood and moaning, was a sight that made one frown just by looking at him, so drenched in blood he was.

Ling Xinlu stared at the man indifferently, then shifted his gaze to the shaggy-haired man.

Following him, who was grinning, he saw the black jacket looking with a similar expression. Finally, the uncle, sitting a little distance away.

The uncle frowned, looking at Ling Xinlu with a hint of suspicion, but then he seemed to want to say something and closed his mouth again. And as if to see what would happen, he didn’t interfere.

“Alright then. I suppose I will.” Ling Xinlu’s gaze dropped back to the man on the floor.

And he walked over and stood beside him. Ling Xinlu crouched down, looking down at the man who was struggling to open his swollen eyes and staring at him with a terrified face. He slowly scanned him, then reached out and untied the man’s wrists, which had been tightly bound with packing tape behind his back.

Rip, rip. As the tape tore off, the man’s swollen eyes widened, looking at Ling Xinlu. His twitching body, his bound hands, were now free. The man flinched, looking at Ling Xinlu with frightened eyes, yet also with a hint of gratitude.

The shaggy-haired man, watching from behind Ling Xinlu, raised an eyebrow and tutted.

“Youngest master, you shouldn’t untie him, that guy? He might look pitiful to you, but that guy is going to be made an example of today—”

But before he could finish his sentence.

Ling Xinlu stood up and picked up a hammer, as thick as an arm, leaning against the wall next to him. He gripped the handle, shook it once or twice as if gauging its weight, then brought it down on the man’s head.

There was no scream.

Blood gushed from the shattered head, instantly staining the floor. The man, sprawled over it, only twitched, his fingers convulsing slightly.

“You can’t move, but you’re still conscious, aren’t you? Good, stay that way. Tying up arms and such just makes it harder to properly deal with.”

Ling Xinlu muttered indifferently, looking at the man. The hammer, carelessly tossed aside, rolled with a heavy thump on the stone floor. Instantly, the room fell silent.

No one moved, not even a stir, except for Ling Xinlu.

“You’re a bit unlucky. I’m not in a good mood right now. My head’s complicated with this and that. Why did you have to steal someone else’s stuff to end up like this?”

Ling Xinlu tutted and lightly kicked the man, flipping him over. The man, eyes rolled back, was still conscious and convulsing even as he was on the verge of losing consciousness. And onto the man’s knees, relentless kicks rained down. The sound of knees shattering erupted along with gurgling groans.

“I also had something stolen from me once, and it felt truly disgusting. I just thought I had to kill the guy who stole my stuff.”

A look of displeasure surfaced on his fair, handsome face. His brows furrowed, and his mouth contorted. Simultaneously, the man’s other knee shattered.

Ling Xinlu stood silent for a moment, his heel pressing on the man’s now immobilized knees. He stood there, lost in thought, then mumbled as if to himself,

“But now that I think about it, maybe that was better.” Followed by sounds of stomping on the torso. The sound of flesh being crushed. The sound of bones dislocating.

“Now, all I can think about is what if something gets taken. It’s just terrifying—”

I’m scared, he seemed to whisper.

However, that low whisper was drowned out by the sound of the man’s ribs breaking.

It was a hellish scene.

Even Yuri, who was accustomed to such infernal scenes of people dying from past experiences, felt a chill in his heart.

Only Ling Xinlu moved inside. The man, already sprawled beneath his feet, was limp and motionless. Perhaps he was dead.

Behind him, the two men stood still, their faces blank as they watched him.

Yet, Ling Xinlu continued to stomp on the man expressionlessly. The first to move, besides Ling Xinlu, was the third uncle, who had been watching until then.

“Are you trying to kill him?!”

He frowned menacingly and sharply shouted at Ling Xinlu. Ling Xinlu then stopped his movements. He slowly turned to look at the uncle.

“Didn’t you mean for me to kill him when you left him to me?”

Ling Xinlu tilted his head, looking troubled, and said. The uncle, who had been staring at him with wide eyes, tutted.

“This fellow, when you get your hands dirty, you need to keep a cool head. It means you shouldn’t lose your reason with a cold mind!”

“My reason is perfectly intact, Uncle.”