Chapter 59: You Want to Be My Backer?

The old man laughed heartily, raising his glass. "Come on, bottoms up." Then he squinted and downed the entire glass in one gulp; there was nothing that felt better than this. With each glass, his mind grew hazy, and at last, he fell asleep sprawled across the table.

About half an hour later.

Fang Yi, battered and wounded, emerged from the apartment. Perhaps he had grown attached to the old man after spending so many days together, for he had not walked far before he turned back. He frowned as he looked at the old man snoring loudly. "Is the old man drunk?"

Chai Jin smiled. "For every sip I took, he drank a whole glass. How could he not be drunk?"

Fang Yi frowned in silence.

A breeze carrying warmth and the scent of flowers swept through the corridor, enveloping them in the fresh air emitted by tender buds nearby. Even on this splendid early spring night, Fang Yi’s desolation could not be concealed.

He still had many untreated wounds on his face, which stung sharply in the warm wind. He gently touched a cut with his finger, wincing. Then he took a deep breath. "When the old man wakes up, please help me thank him for his care these days."

"He's a good man. If I ever have the chance to return to Zhonghai, I'll definitely visit him again."

Chai Jin raised his glass with a faint smile and took a sip, his tone light. "All right."

"Thank you," Fang Yi said, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder, preparing to leave.

But after setting down his glass, Chai Jin asked, "Where are you planning to go?"

Fang Yi said nothing; it was clear he was like a startled bird, trusting no one.

Chai Jin sighed. "Today I saw someone chasing you, trying to kill you. Do you really intend to spend your whole life on the run?"

"What else can I do?" Fang Yi turned back.

Chai Jin lit a cigarette.

"We could make a deal."

Fang Yi looked at him oddly.

Chai Jin had been watching Fang Yi for some time, and Fang Yi had been watching Chai Jin as well. He found Chai Jin mysterious, with powerful connections—why else could he be so adept in the black market exchange, even drinking tea with the boss?

After some thought, he spoke. "What kind of deal?"

Chai Jin tossed the cigarette box on the table to him. "I’ll help you solve all your current problems, and you come with me."

"I know you have ability, but you lack someone at your side."

Fang Yi smiled. "You want to be my backer?"

"Do you know who my last backer was?"

He found it somewhat amusing. After all, Chai Jin looked only eighteen or nineteen. "I'm at least five or six years older than you. You want me as your subordinate—how could I feel good about that?"

He was curious about Chai Jin’s identity, but suspected he was a second-generation rich kid, relying on his family background to make his way in the world.

Chai Jin seemed to have anticipated this reaction.

He said, "Whether or not this counts as an opportunity, given your current situation, you don’t have much choice. What if I can resolve the trouble hanging over you?"

Though Chai Jin's words made him uncomfortable, he had touched on Fang Yi’s sore spot—he truly had no alternatives.

So Fang Yi took his backpack off his shoulder, sat across from Chai Jin, and set it down. "I’m willing to listen."

Chai Jin picked up a paper cup from nearby, placed it in front of him, and poured him a drink.

"First, tell me where the pressure on you is coming from."

Perhaps the day’s pursuit had left him too frustrated to hesitate; Fang Yi downed the drink in one gulp.

Feeling calmer, he said, "I’m from the north. At eighteen, I followed someone from our village to Zhonghai..."

And so, Fang Yi recounted his story bit by bit.

It was richer than Chai Jin had imagined.

He was now twenty-five, with seven siblings at home, but their family’s farmland was too small to support so many people. So in 1984, Fang Yi and another from his village went to work in Shenzhen.

He was lucky, for during his time as a laborer he came into contact with stocks. When the Shenzhen Stock Exchange was founded in 1990, he joined in the craze.

He started from the black market, climbing step by step, but always working for others. Eventually, he met a man from Hong Kong, who taught him much about the ways of Hong Kong stocks.

Bold by nature, Fang Yi believed he could replicate these methods. He began persuading some bosses to entrust their money to him for trading. Profits would be shared; losses would be borne together.

Relying on his unique insight and the sustained bull market, Fang Yi reached the pinnacle.

He thought he could always remain on top.

But in the end, the Hong Kong partner betrayed him, draining all the company’s funds.

Thus, his backers abandoned him. When the financiers saw he had lost his support, they didn’t let him off. So began years of life on the run.

Chai Jin listened quietly throughout.

When Fang Yi finished, he asked, "How much did those financiers invest in you?"

Fang Yi picked up his glass and knocked it back. "Six million, thirteen bosses, one of whom is a big figure in the Shenzhen underworld."

"The man you saw chasing me today was sent by that boss."

"So, are you scared off by my troubles? Do you still dare to claim you can protect me?"

Chai Jin shook his head with a smile. "Once, fifty yuan nearly drove my family to ruin. Your six million is truly daunting."

"For most people, there’s no hope of turning things around."

Fang Yi gave a bitter laugh. "No hope of turning things around—you’re right. I originally wanted to use subscription certificates to recover, but now it seems impossible."

"How so? I saw you collected quite a few recently."

"I did collect many, but today those men stole more than half."

"Oh? How many?"

"Nearly a hundred! Those bastards—a hundred subscription certificates would be enough to pay them back, but they won’t let up. Clearly, they won’t rest until I’m dead."

"They’re just afraid I’ll expose their business!"

Fang Yi began cursing furiously.

Chai Jin frowned. "You have dirt on them?"

Fang Yi laughed. "Do you think someone with no background would willingly become cannon fodder for others? If I didn’t have something on them, I’d have died in Shenzhen long ago."

"That place is nothing but scorched earth now—the other side of its prosperity is utter chaos!"

Chai Jin fell silent.

Any city in its early days is bound to be beset by administrative chaos, especially a place like Shenzhen, full of possibilities and suddenly flooded with outsiders.

Short-term disorder is normal.

But soon enough, it will settle into order.

After a while, Chai Jin took a deep breath, picked up the mobile phone beside him, and said, "Let me help you deal with that boss’s knife-wielding men first."

He dialed the guesthouse. A few minutes later, Liu Qingwen answered.

Chai Jin said directly, "Go find Master Zhang and help me take care of something."