Chapter 30: A despicable thief
"I am sorry."
Li Jun never expected to hear those words from Yu Wen. They had fought countless times and clearly hated each other with a passion. Thus, he never thought he would hear this man apologise to him. What was he apologising for? Tasing him, raiding his club, or fighting with him? No, he was apologising for what happened that night. He was apologising for sleeping with him.
He pulled his blankets and sneered. The man was long gone, yet he was still thinking about him. Since he couldn’t take back what happened and they had come to a conclusion, this matter should be put to rest. At least that’s what Li Jun was thinking.
So what if they slept together once? It was an accident. A lot of people had one-night stands and the next day it was like it never happened. He told himself that, but Yu Wen didn’t think so. He had offered his token in case Li Jun ever needed anything, but he didn’t feel like it was enough. He tried to move on from this, but he found himself doing the most absurd thing he could possibly do.
His office door slid open and Alex brought in a young man with a long scar on his face. "This is him, he used to work at Club Nova," said Alex, feeling exhausted. He had to find a disgruntled ex-employee who used to work at the Club. Someone who was willing to talk about the goings-on of the club.
Most of the people who left the club had great lives courtesy of Li Jun, so they would never betray him. He had not only paid them well at the club but when they wanted to move on, he would help them find a better job. They only had positive things to say about him and would defend him on Starnet.
This man, however, was the only one who didn’t have a positive outcome. That’s because he had been stealing Li Jun’s things and selling them on Starnet. When Li Jun found out, he didn’t throw him in jail.
He was merciful enough to let him off with a warning but he didn’t seem to appreciate it. He would still go on Starnet cursing Li Jun out but his curses were drowned in the sea of scoldings the imperial prince received on a daily basis.
Finding him was hard but bringing him here was even harder. This was why Alex was exhausted. Yu Wen looked at Alex and Alex didn’t need him to speak to know his meaning. He bowed slightly and walked out. The man looked around at the bland-looking office, his hands itching already.
He was looking for something to steal. When he saw a miniature version of the general’s mech, Fenris, he smirked. That was the only thing in this office that seemed worth stealing.
He smiled at the general and asked, "You kidnapped me here just so I can watch you work? Is that a kink of yours, general?" As he said that, he reached for the figurine and he was about to touch it when Yu Wen aimed a plasma gun at his face. His expression was calm but his aura was dark and ominous.
Yu Wen said, "Let’s get things clear. I think you are a fucking despicable menace to society and if I end your life right now, no one would even care enough to ask about you. The only reason you are in my presence is because of the person you stole from, even when he gave you a second chance. You will be compensated for your time as long as the information you provide is worth the money."
For whatever reason, he had suddenly developed an interest in knowing more about him. He thought he was just curious but the more he dug up, the more he wanted to know. He thought Li Jun drank all night and slept all day but there was more to him.
For instance, the most famous foundation that provided disaster relief, managed several orphanages throughout Aurelia and ran food and medicine drives in all cities belonged to him. It wasn’t registered in his name, nor was he associated with it in the records.
It was done so cleanly like he didn’t want anyone to know, but all Yu Wen had to do was follow his maternal family’s trail and there it was. He and his mother had made countless donations to that foundation and had no idea that it belonged to Li Jun.
He also found that most of the employees of Club Nova were at-risk youth who served their time. After being released, they had nowhere to go and would most likely fall into the same pattern. But the prince gave them a second chance. Li Jun, despite his horrible reputation, seemed benevolent. It was mind-blowing.
The man when he heard about the compensation, grinned like a fool. Rubbing his fingers together as he could almost feel the wealth in his pocket, he said, "I will tell you anything. Even the colour of his underwear... shit!"
The reason he was swearing was because Yu Wen had suddenly gone mad. He got up at the speed of lightening and with a bang, he struck his face hard. The man fell to the ground with blood dripping down his nose. Trembling in shock, he spat out a tooth. He was about to say he had rights but he swallowed his words when he saw those eyes that resembled those of a beast staring at him, the gaze sharp and piercing.
His breath caught in his lungs and he didn’t dare move. One of the things he had stolen from Li Jun was his underwear and socks. Even though they hated him on Starnet, there were a lot of people willing to pay top dollar for them, especially when it was dirty. Li Jun had let him off but he just didn’t think the person who hated Yu Wen the most would be the one to beat him for his misdeeds.
Yu Wen said, "Tell me something about him that I don’t know," his expression hostile. It was as though if he lied, he would be killed on the spot and his body never to be found.
