9 Chapter 8 - The Boat to Hong Kong

Heaven, in its motion, gives the idea of strength. The superior man, in accordance with this, nerves himself to ceaseless activity.

---Book of Changes

"If we want to achieve great things, building up Guangxi and restoring China, first we need money... to get money we must rectify our finances... to rectify finances we must first get hold of opium... Opium makes up almost half our revenue, once it is controlled the rest will follow."

--- Li Zongren, Guangxi warlord

////////

Kajio watched as the two shamans silently drank their tea. They were much more polite than he'd expected, and they hadn't made any high-handed reassurances after discussing the details of the shrine.

Kajio had been keeping his ears open since they arrived a week ago, ready to pull everyone out and run if things went haywire. And it wasn't really an overreaction.

There were well over fifty thousand shamans in Canton, more than the rest of the country put together. And that meant that if a fight broke out, a fight broke out.

For all the city had survived during sixty years of civil unrest, all it would take was one ignorant asshole to slap the wrong person in the face, and everyone would be plunged into a warzone with 17 million residents in it.

Everyone was careful as a result, Hengshan and the Shaman Council dancing around each other in circles, neither capable of making the first move. It meant that Canton wouldn't expand its influence anytime soon, but it also meant that Canton was safe, and everyone worked to keep it that way.

And then the Flying Dragons openly slapped Jia Xu and Taeyun in the face as soon as they arrived. People had waited on bated breath after the wards dropped, trying to figure out if they should run or tactfully look away as the Flying Shamans died a humiliating death.

But nothing happened, other than the pathetic challenge the White Clouds offered three days ago. And then they had been kicked out, so there was that.

His childhood friend Selva had seen the fight go down, and his descriptions hadn't been promising either. Selva described the girl as instinctively irreverent, with either had no sense of self-preservation or no need for it. How she had survived till her teens was either a miracle or the efforts of her companion, and Kajio's guess was both.

Kajio studied the companion in question. Spade would be handsome if he didn't constantly have a look on his face that hinted he was going to murder someone. Between the robes, the glower, and the sword, the man could really afford to ease up a little. Like right now, for instance.

Joyce seemed to pick up Kajio's silent prayer and glanced at Spade. He made no response. Joyce promptly kicked him in the leg. Spade shot back a glare before turning and giving Kajio a polite smile.

"In light of the shrine's importance, we will do our utmost to ensure it returns to normal," Spade said, "We may require your further assistance as we proceed if you would be so willing."

"Of course," Kajio said, "It would be my pleasure to do so, please do not hesitate to ask for anything."

"We're very grateful for your help," Spade stood up abruptly to leave and sharply gestured for Joyce to do the same. "Thanks for letting us impose for so long. I'll let you know if we need anything else."

The two bowed shallowly, Joyce a beat slower than Spade. Kajio returned the gesture, walking them down the harbor. Spade remained completely silent, rendering the whole process needlessly awkward.

Kajio turned towards Joyce, who seemed equally peeved at the awkwardness, "So how do you like Canton so far?" She blinked at him blankly and then snapped a toothy grin.

"It's nice, really hot though. I feel like I'm swimming in hot soup 24/7. How you guys manage to look good in this humidity is just straight-up impressive." Joyce raised her hands to the sky as if offering a prayer. Spade rolled his eyes.

"You'll get used to it soon enough," he said.

Kajio smiled back. "It'll take a while, that's for sure. My mother hasn't gotten used to Canton's summers and she's been here for decades."

Joyce nodded slowly. "Um," she began. Spade shot her a glare and she switched to giving a thumbs-up. Kajio bit back a smile of amusement.

"In case you were wondering, my mother is from the North, her parents went there from Hokkaido. That's why she can't get used to the heat," he said. Joyce nodded sheepishly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude," she said. Kajio shook his head.

"It's common practice for immigrants to identify their origins in their self-introductions, I was rude to have excluded it," he said. He carefully watched her reaction. Kajio had excluded his bloodline because Spade had deliberately foregone it in their formalities, something that would have been a faux pas if the person speaking couldn't stab you with a pointy sword. Whatever reason it was for, neither of them had so much as blinked when Kajio responded in turn.

"It's only rude because people are xenophobic," Joyce said with a grimace. Kajio blinked. Wasn't expecting that of all responses. She ignored Spade's warning glare.

"My parents have been at both ends of that line before, and I think it's bullshit to only apply it to immigrants. Plus, the country's all splintered up right now, how do I know where anyone's from? You're from Hunan? Boom, you've crossed a border, you're a foreigner now!" She made finger-guns into the distance. Kajio stared at her in surprise.

Spade shook his head at her and jumped into formal-mode in an attempt to stop the conversation from continuing. "I apologize for our lack of manners," he said, "and for her...her...existence. Please don't mind her."

"Do you really think that?" Kajio ignored him, still looking at Joyce. She nodded.

"Yeah, I know the country's a mess and there are foreign military and guns everywhere, but honestly? People are letting the worst of their prejudices come out, and they're finding ways to normalize it. When people conflate their fear of death with their prejudices, they can let themselves get away with murder. If we're not careful, it'll actually get institutionalized. You know how many shitty laws come into place because people wanted to make their shittiness legal and then they go ahead and vote some idio-"

"Joyce," Spade said in a low voice. She stopped short and sighed, shaking her head.

"I'm sorry," she offered, "I tend to put my foot in my mouth a lot."

Kajio shook his head, reassuring her with a smile. His heartbeat sounded loudly in his ears as a sudden rush of adrenaline flowed through his veins. Kajio knew this feeling, a burst of excitement and fear that nearly choked him with its sudden intensity before melting into a muted throb.

He'd had it fifteen years ago when his father ran out to greet Jia Xu as she arrived on the docks of the harbor, and he'd had it ten years ago when his mother said that Taeyun had come to Canton.

'This girl will become important. Very important.' Something clicked in his brain and he smiled slowly.

"That's fine," Kajio said, honestly meaning every word, "I hope you'll make it here."

At her look of confusion, he smiled again, wide and genuine. The things bothering him about the Flying Dragons could wait, he decided. He would have plenty of time to figure things out.

///////

It wasn't Selva's original plan to head to the harbor this early, but he hadn't felt like putting off the boat ride till the rush hour. If he was lucky enough, this time of the day there would even be open seats where he could keep watching the soapy revenge drama he was on.

He desperately wanted to see what happened after the female lead found out her husband had slept with her mother. Hopefully, there would be a lot of slapping and then a lot of kissing.

A familiar figure caught his attention. "Kajio!" Selva waved towards Kajio with a smile that the handsome man readily returned.

"Selva!" Kajio called out, approaching him with unrestrained enthusiasm. Selva's smile froze on his face as he caught sight of Joyce and Spade trailing behind his friend.

'Oh shit.' He certainly hadn't expected to run into the people he was investigating right when he was heading off to investigate them. It was a worse coincidence than soapy dramas would use as a cheap plot device.

"Heading off then?" Kajio said, handsome face shadowed by the ship, "get me some pineapple buns on your way back. Oh, and some cream puffs, I want the type with Ovaltine filling."

Selva bit back his shock and desperately tried to act normal. He briefly forgot how to pronounce his own name. He caught himself before he could say something stupid and shot a reply back at Kajio.

"You only want the food, you don't care about me," Selva said, pretending to wipe away a tear. "I'm taking a gig there okay? I definitely won't remember. Just text it to me before I come back, I'll let you know when I'm done."

Kajio laughed softly. The shamans behind him smiled and nodded at Selva politely. They didn't seem to recognize him, and if they did, they certainly didn't seem about to say so.

"Alright, I'll get a move on," Selva said, waving as he headed into the ship. As soon as he was out of sight, he hurriedly sent Kajio a text message.

'Dude, what are they doing here? You know those are the guys I'm investigating, right?'

Selva let out an irritated huff and plopped into a seat. He leaned into the hard plastic and drank in the sound of the waves splashing against the side of the boat. After coming to the conclusion it was his own fault for calling Kajio over, Selva decided not to think about the problem anymore.

Whether or not those two recognized him didn't matter anyway, Jia Xu never expected his investigation to be fully secret. If they tried to stop him, it proved they were hiding something in Hong Kong. If they didn't, Selva was free to uncover whatever the hell they were doing one hour away from Canton, only one day before they surfaced in Siberia. His phone chimed with an incoming text.

'They're here for the shrine, I'll be keeping an eye on them.'

Of the younger generation of immigrants, Kajio had emerged as a leader more because of his caution and instincts than anything else. If Kajio had his eye on the Flying Dragons, they were under better watch than if both the Shaman Council and Hengshan Association were on the job. Selva nodded in relief.

His phone rang again.

'Whatever you find, tell me before you tell anyone else. This is very important.'

Selva's eye twitched. He furiously typed into his phone.

'???? What do you mean???'

A bubble popped up to tell him Kajio was texting.

'Trust me on this, I have a feeling they'll be important. We have to be careful about what we do regarding them.'

A sinking feeling dragged his heart into his stomach. Kajio tended to be painfully accurate in his predictions, for better or for worse. If he thought that the Flying Dragons would become important, Selva had no doubt that they would.

It was technically against Shaman Council policy, but he'd have to risk it. Selva winced, typing a resigned reply.

'Alright, I'll let you know.'

/////////

Spade watched as Joyce refilled her rice a third time. Food wasn't expensive here, but if they hadn't just gotten paid Spade would have started worrying about Joyce's ability to eat straight through their funds. As things were, he already had enough to fret about.

"Still worrying about Selva?" Joyce asked, digging into her food without a morsel of worry.

"As I should," Spade snapped back. "Does it make sense that the White Cloud Association's driver finds a job in Hong Kong the same day his bosses are kicked out? He's definitely going on someone's orders, mostly likely Jia Xu's."

"I know that," Joyce said patiently. "You've said it twice already."

"The problem is that Jia Xu is probably digging up what happened on Hong Kong," Spade grit out. Joyce looked back calmly.

"We been knew that when we were there. Come on, we prepped already. If he's not good enough he won't find much, and if he's good he'll find what we left for this. It's really not that bad." Joyce finished up by shooting him an encouraging smile.

"You're forgetting where no plan of ours gets past phase 2."

"That plan only had one phase that involves us, I'm sure it doesn't count," Joyce said. Spade set down his chopsticks with a clank.

"If he finds something off and keeps digging, we're screwed. We're beyond screwed. If it were someone who answered to a warlord we'd have a better chance of surviving but if it's Jia Xu we'd have better chances if we were surrounded by plague-spirits with chainsaws!" Spade glared at a spot over Joyce's head.

It was a plan he had eagerly agreed to, but at the time he hadn't known about Joyce's propensity for setting the most simple, straightforward plans into a frenzied race towards the most chaotic outcome. Unleashing an army of ducks would have had better results than sticking to an orderly plan when she was around.

"I think he answers to Kajio, actually." Joyce chewed on a noodle thoughtfully. "He's not a shaman, and there aren't that many minorities in the Shaman Council. Between his job and his friend, I think he'd take to Kajio more."

"That's a bold assumption," Spade said, pointing his chopsticks at her accusingly. "You can't rely on that for your decisions just because you've assumed correctly once or twice in the past. Not to mention that Kajio knowing wouldn't be better!"

"Yeah, but, doesn't Kajio have a cool vibe?" Joyce said.

Spade paused mid-bite to glower at her. If she showed him the picture of his reddening neck one more time...

"And not to tease you, I'm saving that for later," Joyce hurriedly amended. "I mean, I think we could be allies, and I think he wants that too. Just an assumption, like you said, and worth absolutely nothing, but I feel like he'd keep it secret if he found out I was a spirit-sent, that's the type of person he seems to me."

Spade held back a sigh. Joyce was far from being a careful person, but she had enough self-preservation to avoid saying things that could be used against her.

Whatever that little episode with Kajio had been, it had been out of character, even if Joyce tried to explain it as a "gut-feeling I should pop that one out, you know?" Spade shook his head silently. He could only hope she was right, or the consequences would be hell.

"We'll see," he said, "If worse comes to worst, we'll just fight our way out."

"The way we came in," Joyce agreed, finishing her last bite with gusto. Spade sighed, getting up to start washing the dishes as Joyce cleared the table, humming something under her breath.

"Either way, we're taking the job," he said, mostly to himself. The rhythmic washing motions were almost therapeutic. Joyce dropped a forgotten dish into his freshly soaped bowl.

"I just washed that!" he snapped. She drew back hurriedly.

"Sorry! I didn't look!" Joyce meekly went back to wiping the table and Spade continued washing the bowls, hoping the soapy water would provide a remedy for his headaches. Taking the job would hopefully lead to more jobs until people got used to them and left them alone.

That was, if Selva didn't end up digging too deep in Hong Kong. Spade didn't think their cover had been all that convincin—Joyce poured half a cup of coffee she'd probably forgotten since morning into the sink, splashing onto the bowl he was rinsing.

"Joyce!"

"Shit, I'm sorry! Did I splash it on?"

"That was the second time in five minutes!"