Chapter 15: A Dead Silence

“With this, the public will get to know you more—there are gains, but also losses.”

Chen Hao didn’t elaborate further, but both Ruonan and Jiewen understood clearly.

Becoming the spokespersons for the convenience store meant making their relationship with Chen Hao public. It would bring them increased attention and support, but could also attract jealousy and hostility.

When they first chose to follow Chen Hao, they had already anticipated this.

Every choice comes with pros and cons—the key is to weigh which side matters more.

For now, the benefits clearly outweighed the risks, especially since Chen Hao had just offered them the chance to lead the store’s advertising campaign.

Seeing it was getting late—and both girls’ arms were sore from giving massages—Chen Hao waved his hand to dismiss them and said:

“That’s it for today. Go home and get some rest. Tomorrow, come see me at Jiashang Talent Resources.”

“Before you go, make sure to grab some wine from Ah Liang at the bar.”

This time, Jiewen didn’t protest. She apologized to Ruonan and then left Chen Hao’s office.

Ruonan, however, felt a tinge of disappointment—nothing had happened to move their relationship beyond friendship. Even though Chen Hao had promised he wouldn’t do anything against her will, she didn’t even get the chance to express how she felt.

Still, Ruonan reassured herself silently: Opportunities will come. Let’s just take it one step at a time.

The two of them exited the office together and found Ah Liang, the bartender. He began chatting with them about Chen Hao.

As a loyal employee of the new boss, Ah Liang saw it as his duty to know what his boss liked—especially matters involving the convenience store. He also revealed that all members of Hung Hing would enjoy a 50% discount.

Ruonan and Jiewen were stunned. Such generosity was rare—it seemed Chen Hao was truly someone who didn’t mind spending big.

Ruonan, holding onto Jiewen with concern, said:

“The boss is being too extravagant. Tomorrow we should try to talk some sense into him!”

Jiewen nodded in agreement.

Ah Liang then respectfully handed them two bottles of Lafite red wine, specially packed by Brother Hao, and affectionately addressed them both as sister-in-law.

Jiewen blushed slightly at the title but didn’t object. She simply accepted the wine. Ruonan, on the other hand, smiled and praised Ah Liang’s good instincts.

“You’re a sharp one, really.”

She laughed as Ah Liang bowed and replied, “Take care, both of you, sister-in-laws.”

The other young men echoed the title.

Surrounded by calls of sister-in-law, the two women felt like they were floating on air, their steps light and full of joy—like fairies dancing through the sky.

As he watched them walk away with the Lafite wine, Ah Liang smiled with satisfaction.

To help spread the word about Chen Hao’s convenience store and to strengthen the image of the two women, he had deliberately leaked the news that they were Chen Hao’s women. In the brotherhood, calling them sister-in-law was only natural.

Letting the boss’s women help manage the spending—wasn’t that the perfect plan? None of them wanted to see the boss’s money go to waste.

As they left the bar, Jiewen whispered:

“Do you think this is okay? What if the boss gets angry?”

Ruonan rolled her eyes. “When they were calling us sister-in-law back then, why didn’t you stop them?”

How could Jiewen not have wanted to stop it? Of course Ruonan knew what she was thinking—neither of them needed to say it out loud.

Ruonan gave Jiewen’s perky butt a light pat, causing Jiewen to yelp in surprise.

“Ah! What are you doing? Don’t joke around like that here!”

Ruonan smiled mischievously, thinking to herself that her sister’s figure really wasn’t bad—almost on par with her own.

Then she laughed and said:

“Alright, I know you’re into the boss too. Stop pretending already.”

“No matter how we compete, we’re still sisters. Better to keep things in the family than let someone else take the prize.”

“Let’s just focus on what to do tomorrow—how to get the boss to really notice us!”

Hearing this, the smile on Jiewen’s face instantly faded, clouded by worry.

---

Late at night, in the quiet of his home, Chen Hao returned. As soon as he entered, a familiar system prompt rang in his ears:

[Ding. Today’s income: HKD 1,374,500, including a tenfold bonus on the base amount of HKD 137,450. The funds have been automatically deposited into your bank account.]

[Assets: increased from HKD 2.929 million to HKD 16.674 million.]

Chen Hao froze in place.

He had expected a decent income today—but nothing this shocking.

After thinking it through, though, the amount did make sense: every restock at the convenience store cost around HKD 100,000, and since the Hung Hing members were selling items at 50% off, that translated to about HKD 50,000 in actual turnover per restock.

After four large-scale restocks, the resulting returns weren’t surprising at all.

Under normal circumstances, a convenience store with HKD 5,000 in daily turnover would already be considered excellent.

But today’s booming sales were driven by the storewide half-price promotion—and ironically, by the troublemakers Siu-Kwan and Bobby, whose interference actually helped Chen Hao earn even more.

Chen Hao couldn’t help but wonder—how would those two react if they one day realized that not only had they failed to bankrupt him, but had actually helped him get richer?

He could already picture their furious faces.

---

Western District.

Early morning. Bucky was still asleep when he was suddenly awakened by frantic knocking and crying at his door.

Half-asleep, he opened the door and was shocked to see his former lover Cuilian, tears streaming down her face.

“Brother Bucky, you… you have to help my brother!” she sobbed.

“He was beaten badly. He’s in the hospital now, in critical condition.”

“If anything happens to him, I don’t want to live either…”

She was choking with emotion, barely able to form her sentences as she thought about her brother Fei Biu’s crippled limbs.

Bucky let out a sigh, overcome by helplessness.

He knew Fei Biu all too well. That guy had relied on his sister’s relationship with Bucky to throw Bucky’s name around in the Western District, behaving recklessly and dragging Hung Hing’s reputation through the mud.

While some had held back from punishing him out of respect for Bucky, they all knew he had nearly gotten himself killed more than once.

Fei Biu wasn’t entirely stupid either. He knew his name carried no weight outside the Western District, so he only dared to run wild on his own turf.

Whoever had taken him down this time might have done society a favor.

Still, Fei Biu was Cuilian’s blood brother.

Back in the day, Cuilian had been Bucky’s one true love—the woman who turned him into a man.

But fate played its cruel hand. Her father disapproved of Bucky’s poverty and married her off to a wealthy old man.

After that man died, she and Bucky got back together—but the relationship didn’t last long.

The aging, less attractive Cuilian no longer held the same allure. Their reunion was more about nostalgia than passion. Yet she clung to him like a shadow, making him feel trapped.

Irritated, Bucky waved his hand dismissively.

“Alright, go back for now. Let me find out exactly what happened.”

Cuilian, unwilling to back down, pleaded: “Brother Bucky, he’s my brother!”

“I know you’ve never liked him, but for the sake of what we had… can’t you help him, just this once? Get justice for him?”

Bucky’s expression turned stormy. He roared:

“If Fei Biu weren’t your brother, I would’ve taught him a lesson long ago!”

“He struts around using my name to bully others—I nearly became a laughingstock because of him!”

Seeing Bucky fly into a rage, Cuilian didn’t dare speak another word. She turned and left silently.

In her heart, she knew—Bucky had long lost interest in a woman like her who had aged and faded.

She had once married a stubborn old man. After he died, his children tried to kick her out with nothing.

Fortunately, by then, Bucky had already become a top boss in Hung Hing. With his influence, she was able to secure part of the inheritance.

From that moment on, Cuilian understood: as a powerless woman, the only way to survive in the underworld of Hong Kong was to cling tightly to Bucky.

Even though he now treated her colder and colder, she still refused to give up her connection with him.

After sending Cuilian away, Bucky returned to his turf, agitated. As soon as he entered, he saw Brother Qiang busy at work.

He waved him over.

“Ah Qiang, come here.”

Brother Qiang responded with a smile and walked over to Bucky.

“Ah Qiang, help me look into what happened to Fei Biu last night.”

Bucky got straight to the point.

But Brother Qiang didn’t move immediately. He hesitated, looking conflicted.

Seeing this, Bucky frowned and asked, “Why aren’t you moving?”

After a moment of hesitation, Brother Qiang said, “Boss Bucky, I already know what happened.”

Bucky’s eyes lit up. He pressed eagerly: “Tell me—who took him down and did everyone a favor?”