THUMB UNDER TEETH

Stars are beautiful at night, but your eyes are brighter than them even at day-time.

-From Me. To You.

Ringg! Ringg! The ringing persisted.

Lianhua got to his feet and looked up at the wall clock behind Hei Bao. It was after nine o'clock in the evening.

"Ah! I didn't notice the time! I'm sorry for keeping you, Mr Bao," Lianhua said, sounding worried or anxious.

"No, it's fine; you don't have to apologize every time you make such a minor mistake; I didn't notice it either," Hei Bao reassured.

Lianhua smiled.

"But you haven't eaten anything... I'm feeling guilty now," Lianhua pointed out.

"It doesn't matter... I'm not really hungry," Hei Bao says.

"However..." Lianhua.

"I told you it's nothing," Hei Bao said, smiling slightly.

Ringg! Ringg! The ringing started up again.

"It sounds important, Mr Bao; let me take you outside," Lianhua said.

Hei Bao nodded. They walked towards the door and picked up his shoes, before leaving Lianhua's bedroom completely. Hei Bao picked up the phone that wouldn't stop ringing and turned it off, before putting it in his pocket.

Hei Bao carried the tuxedo, hanging on his arm, and they continued to walk outside the condo. Lianhua started to walk to the elevator door as well.

"You don't have to send me outside," Hei Bao said.

"But–," Lianhua was interrupted.

"You can go to your room now; I can handle myself," Hei Bao said as he stepped into the elevator.

"Then, Mr.Bao, be careful on your way home," Lianhua said, smiling.

"I will," Hei Bao replied, smiling.

The door was then completely shut.

Hei Bao's smile faded. He put on his important mask and fished his phone from his pocket, then dialed the number that had been calling him nonstop earlier.

"Meet me at my office," Hei Bao said coldly, cutting the call without waiting for the other person to speak.

When Hei Bao arrived at the building, the man standing outside the door dashed to Hei Bao's car and opened the door. When Hei Bao and Lianhua met for the second time, with Secretary Wen, he was the driver.

When he saw Hei Bao's serious face and knitted brows, he got goosebumps and lowered his head in respect, his feet almost giving way from the frightening aura. Employees who noticed Hei Bao's intimidating aura, like him, lowered their heads, but other employees who did not notice Hei Bao's intimidating aura continued to chit chat.

Hei Bao was going to ignore it, but their voices were getting louder and louder, irritating Hei Bao's ears. Hei Bao decided to approach the group of girls. The other employees were tapping away at their keyboards, and the other employees were interviewing their customers.

They became nervous as soon as they saw where their Boss was walking and kept looking worriedly at the five girls who were busy chit-chatting. As Hei Bao got closer to the crowd, he could hear their conversation that had nothing to do with their work. Hei Bao furrowed his brows even further.

"You know what? He was such a really handsome person, but his attitude and everything was a no-no to me," Jing Li, the girl who stood behind Hei Bao, said, shaking her head from left to right.

"You're right, he can fool others with his handsome face, but not me, not us," Ai Guan, the girl next to Jing Li, agreed with a nod.

"Agreed. He didn't even give Team Leader Hong a second chance and eventually fired him right there," another girl said, her name tag reads Li Qin.

"What happened?" Da Xia, the girl, inquired.

"Come closer.." Fang Su motioned for them to do so, and they did.

"Y–you guys... St–stop it," Fang Su exclaimed, but the others ignored her.

She nudged Da Xia to get her to stop, but she didn't seem to notice.

"He–" Da Xia began, but was interrupted by Fang Su.

"Y–you guys… Really… St–stop it," Fang Su said again, this time a little louder.

"If you don't want to know, then leave," Da Xia yelled.

Fang Su didn't move, instead biting her lower lip. It was too late when they finally noticed Fang Su's silence. When they looked at Fang Su, they noticed she was looking somewhere behind them rather than at them. She appeared nervous and was sweating profusely. They straightened their backs and turned slowly around.

Hei Bao's cold eyes stare them down one by one. They lowered their heads, as if their knees were about to give way. Suddenly, the entire environment was deafening silence. They could tell that people were watching them.

"Mr. Bao... We–" Li Qin began, her head still hung low.

"I'd really appreciate it if you disappeared from my sight right away," Hei Bao said coldly, cutting off his employee.

"M–Mr. Bao... We– We didn't mean to—" Da Xia began, her eyes a little moist from the tears that were welling up.

"I did not allow you to speak," Hei Bao interrupted.

They fell silent when Hei Bao cut her off as well, and Da Xia bit her lip in embarrassment and annoyance until it almost bled.

"I didn't hire you to work here just to slack off and talk during work hours," he stated coldly.

"You're not focused on work, but you're always active and up to date on gossip," he added.

"Does gossiping around help you?" Hei Bao inquired, making them feel even more embarrassed.

Hei Bao's voice was becoming increasingly audible, drawing everyone's attention to them.

"Get the fuck out of my sight!" Hei Bao half-yelled, sending the girls shivering and fleeing for their lives.

Hei Bao turned around and continued walking towards his private elevator as if nothing had happened.

When he arrived at the top floor, where his office was located, he proceeded to the hallway and entered the entrance to his home-like office.

As he closed the door behind him, he noticed Gou Feng, Shen Jiu, and Huan Zhen standing directly behind the sofa, as well as Cheung Qi, who was the only person sitting on it. He ignored them and proceeded to his office, closing the door behind him.

Noticing their Boss's mood, they said nothing and simply followed Hei Bao into his office. Cheung was the first to walk through the glass door, followed by Huan Zhen, Shen Jiu, and Gou Feng. Hei Bao's chair was facing the large glass window that showed the beautiful night sky as they entered.

It is indeed lovely, but not tonight. Nobody dared to say anything or move an inch. They waited for Hei Bao to speak up first because, judging by their Lord's gloomy expression, their night would be gloomy as well.

Cheung Qi made the decision to sit on the sofa, and he did so. Leaving the three in the corner to stand still. Secretary Wen was not present because it was past his working hours and he had to have gone home.

Silent ring, water drips from the sink in the office bathroom, making a flop and lop sound, drawing attention to the tense atmosphere of silence that pervades the space.

Finally, they heard the chair creak softly. And Hei Bao spoke up without turning around in his chair.

"Life is such a shitty little thing," Hei Bao said, his voice deep and frightening.

They remained silent.

"They don't go the way you want them to," he added.

Cheung Qi closed his eyes tightly and then reopened them.

"All right, enough of that; why did you call us here?" Cheung Qi inquired.

Hei Bao swiveled his chair around and finally looked them in the eyes. His eyes were cold, and he had a solemn expression on his face.

"He knows," Hei Bao began.

"...What? Who knows what?" Cheung Qi puzzledly asked.

Gou Feng and his two cousins were also stunned and perplexed. They wanted to open their mouths and ask the same question as Cheung Qi, but they lacked the guts that Cheung Qi possessed. They simply stood there and listened intently. Their eyes were straight as they stared at nothing, barely blinking. They stood straight with their hands behind their backs.

He paused before saying,

"Lianhua..."

"He's aware of the vampires," Hei Bao added.

The sentence made Gou Feng, Shen Jiu, and Huan Zhen's ears perk up. They didn't move an inch, but they paid close attention to their Lord and listened intently.

"He knows about... vampires?" Cheung Qi inquired once more.

"Wait. Wait. Wait," Cheung Qi said, waving his hands and closing his eyes tightly before opening them again after a few seconds. He then stood up and made his way over to Hei Bao's desk.

"How did you know this? I mean, how did you know that? Urgh! I can't explain it! How can you say that?" Cheung Qi wondered, struggling to find the right words. His hands were resting on his hips.

"You don't need to know that," Hei Bao said, looking Cheung Qi in the eyes.

"...At the very least, tell me how you know he knows about vampires," Cheung Qi inquired once more.

"I heard it," Hei Bao replied quickly.

Cheung Qi simply remained silent in annoyance. He wants to ask more questions, but he can't stop himself from gritting his teeth. He eventually calmed down.

"Permission to speak, My Lord," said Gou Feng from behind Cheung Qi.

Hei Bao and Cheung Qi both look at him.

"Go ahead," Hei Bao said.

"If he knows about vampires, he can't possibly know about us, right?" Gou Feng wondered.

Cheung Qi nodded, as if he agreed with what Gou Feng said. Then take another look at Hei Bao.

"He's right; if he knows about vampires, he knows about other beings as well," Cheung Qi said.

"Hm," hummed Hei Bao.

Hei Bao returned his gaze to Gou Feng.

To be continued.