Chapter 137: Beating someone up at a funeral
Xu Si took out a check, her voice clear and calm. "Actually, I quite admire your persistence—pretending to be stupid and ugly, using my photos to extort me, all without even knowing who I am."
The man’s eyes lit up at the sight of the check. He finally dropped the act, licking his back teeth and biting an unlit cigarette. "You look familiar... Let me see, let me see... I remember now! You’re Miss Xu, right?"
Xu Si looked at him expressionlessly, her smile fading, her eyes calm yet shadowed. "Enough with the act. I don’t have time to waste with you. Destroy those photos right here, and we can negotiate the price."
"Wait a second, that’s reasonable," the man smoothed out his crumpled collar, a sly, roguish grin on his face. "How did Miss Xu know it was me? I should learn from this, hide better next time. Tell me how, and I’ll give you the photos. How about that?"
"Sure," Xu Si sized him up, a faint smile on her lips. Suppressing the urge to curse, she said,
"The Underground City is so vast, it would normally take some effort to find you. But today is the funeral, and with so many people around, I decided to try my luck. It seems some people on Hong Kong Island knew in advance that I was coming. I’ve seen the photos you took; every angle is surreptitious. So, I guessed your height, found the best spot for taking such photos, and kept an eye on it to see if you’d show up. And you did.
"Besides, I’m not that famous. Anyone who recognizes me is likely from Hong Kong Island. Coincidentally, given your Hong Kong Island face and your skulking behavior, it wasn’t hard to identify you."
The photographer’s face darkened. "Wow, President Xu, quite the accurate guess. Are you playing me like a dog? Was it that mirror that gave me away? Damn, I thought you just used it to admire yourself."
The overhead light refracted through the stained glass, casting dazzling splashes of color.
Xu Si tapped her fingers on the stair railing, placing the check face down on it. Her voice was indifferent. "So, who are you? How do you know me? Did you use to live on Hong Kong Island?"