21 Two Kids and a Dog (1/2)
Half an hour later in a downtown alley, a child covered in dirt was hiding behind the trash can, panting. The sound of shouting with the threat to kill was farther and farther away.
”Whew! Scared me!” He wiped cold sweat off his forehead. ”How did these fools get so smart? They even caught me switching the cards...Good thing I ran fast and got out early, otherwise I'd have died in that awful place. For only a few hundred bucks, was it really worth it?”
Muttering to himself, he took out a bunch of silver coins from his pocket. He counted them one by one, wiped the sweat off with his sleeves, and grinned. ”More than three hundred pounds, ha ha ha! Made it! My first pot of money, how should I spend it?”
”How about you pay your medical bills with it?” someone next to him said with a low voice, whispering in his ear. ”Or exchange them for your life?”
”AHHHH!!!”
The child was so scared he fell on the ground. He rolled over and saw a young man sitting on top of the trash can. In the dim light, he recognized him as the fool he ripped off earlier. Right away he managed a smile.
”Oh, you're my older cousin?”
”Yes, little cousin.” Ye Qingxuan sneered at him, throwing the bag of waste the kid gave him earlier on the ground. ”Little cousin, you ran pretty fast, I almost couldn't catch you. Here's your stuff.”
”Sure, sure.”
The kid smiled and walked backwards, then suddenly turned and ran.
”Ten, nine, eight...”
Ye Qingxuan watched while he whispered the countdown, motionless, as the kid ran towards the end of the alley. When he got to three, the trembling kid walked backwards from the alley, his face terrified.
At the end of the alley, a mud stained dog grinned, two rows of bad teeth exposed, a dead rat tail still left on one of its teeth. Old Phil was blocking the exit. No one could leave!
”Little cousin, what's the rush?”
Ye Qingxuan pulled out a rope from his suitcase and pushed down on the kid's shoulder, ”Let's talk.”
”I was wrong, big brother. Please, let me go...”
Five minutes later, the kid was tied up. He curled up in the corner of the alley and blinked his big watery eyes, as if he was going to cry. He seemed so pitiful.
Ye Qingxuan just quietly watched him cry until he stopped.
”Done crying?” Ye Qingxuan smiled and asked. ”Are you hungry? I can make you a bowl of noodles.”
The kid looked like he ate a fly. ”Hey! Don't you have any compassion?”
”No cousin, I do not have compassion. What you did today just wasn't right.” He reached out and pinched the kid's face, ”Since you call me cousin, let this cousin teach you how to do the right things.”
He started cracking his knuckles and sneered.
”Hey, what are you doing?” The kid was scared. Curled up, he raised his voice and shouted, ”I'm warning you! I'm really powerful. Watch, I'll get someone to teach you a lesson!”
”Ha ha,” Ye Qingxuan laughed. ”Old Phil.”
Old Phil came over, grinning as well.
There was no telling what the big dog had eaten earlier, its mouth was so stinky. Its tongue was still licking the blood on its teeth, chewing half of rat tail.
”Well, okay, you got me! You got me!” The kid's face turned pale. He pointed to the silver coins with his chin. ”Here! Rules of the brotherhood, you see it, you get half.”
Ye Qingxuan did not take it, and just looked at him.
The kid's face turned sour. ”Hey, we are all from the streets, be appreciative. Fifty-fifty is a good offer! Never mind, forty-sixty!...Still no? Do you want thirty-seventy?”
”Sorry, I don't want things that were stolen or cheated.”
”What do you want?” The expression of the kid suddenly became angry. ”I can't give you all of it!”
Ye Qingxuan sighed. ”Apologize to me.”
”What?”
Ye Qingxuan looked at him with no expression and repeated himself. ”Apologize to me.”
”I will not!” The kid turned his head to the side.
”Apologize,” Ye Qingxuan repeated it again.
”Do not even think that I'd ever say-” The kid stopped halfway, unable to go on with Ye Qingxuan glaring at him.
Ye Qingxuan did not say anything. He silently watched him, without a word. For some reason, the kid felt guilty under that gaze. After a long time, his head turned a little bit, and he bowed his head.
”...S-sorry,” he mumbled.
Ye Qingxuan sighed and reached out to loosen his rope. Watching him curled up in the corner he suddenly felt sorry for him. ”Well, I was going to give you a beating, but never mind now since you apologized.”
”What else do you want?” The kid stared at him. ”Pervert.”
”I know it's very tough to be hungry. Stealing and cheating aren't that big of a deal.” Ye Qingxuan reached out and patted on the kid's hat. ”But once you're used to stealing, one day you'll realize that some things cannot be stolen or cheated. Don't do it again,” he murmured.