8. The Exchange

Xu Bao was beyond frightened when he saw what he had stumbled on. Dead bodies were scattered on the road.

His immediate reaction was to run as fast as his feet could carry him, far away from this scene.

"Help me. Help me.", A faint voice said.

He jumped in fright when he felt a cold thing touched his foot. He turned and saw that it was the hand of one of the dead bodies that had touched his feet. It was the body of a child, about four years old.

"Help. Me. Please."

The faint voice said again but weirdly, it did not come from the small body that had touched him earlier. It came from the body of an adult.

Xu Bao bent down to check the pulse of the smaller body. He found out that the boy was still alive.

He did the same to the one who was faintly calling out for help and saw, that he too was alive.

He soon realised that all the four bodies scattered on the road were all still alive.

He knew they needed help and that he should help them but how was he supposed to do that?

His frail body would not be able to carry four human bodies. He has nothing with him to help carry them with. And there is quite a distance between where they were and the nearest village.

After thinking for about five minutes, he decided that since their meeting ground was not that far from here, he would go there quickly and come back. But first he needs to get them off the road first.

He first puts the adult hem in in a sitting position with his back leaning against a mahogany tree in a cleared area not too far from the road.

He puts the two children by the sides of the adult hem and lastly he put the head of the unresponsive may on the legs the hem and runs off.

******************************************************

"You're late!", the lead for tonight's operation, Li Yunfeng stated. Their main boss, a may named Li Zicheng himself did not join them in this operation.

"Yes. I'm really sorry, I..."

"Do you take this for a joke? Huh?", the leader cuts him off.

"I am gravely sorry but I have come to tell you that I cannot go with you tonight please. I'd like to sit this one out due to an emergency. I have to..."

"What?", one of the gang members said as he yanked Xu Bao by the hair. "You decided to come at your own time and to tell us this nonsense? How dare you?!".

Xu Bao tried to hold unto the hand that was pulling his hair to reduce the impact but even his neck too was hurting making him start to whimper.

Seeing the may like this made Yunfeng uncomfortable. He removed his subordinate's hand from Xu Bao's hair. "How can you even work with us if you're this weak?"

"It's because the boss dotes on him. There's no way someone like him would have qualified to join us." Another member stated.

"I see.", the leader said, taking in Xu Bao's features.

It was their first time meeting because he had been away and only came today after being informed of tonight's operation and it's details.

He didn't know the person his brother had told him to take along on their operation tonight was such a beauty.

With an alluring ocean blue eyes, long black curly hair that was neatly tied into a pony tail, and his skin was with no blemishes. 'That's rare for someone in a gang.', he thought.

He stopped ogling the may that was before him and said, "Well, the operation has been called off

so you can go back.", he turned to the others and repeated the same thing, bringing their meeting to an end.

He thought the beauty would immediately leeave since he said he had an emergency but all the others have left and he was still there.

"Why are you still here? Anyway, I'm about to lock the place up. Thought you said you had an emergency?"

"Erm, please since you are no longer going for the operation, can I please ask you for a favour?"

Yunfeng raised his eyebrows in question.

"I need a wagon that can carry four injured people home for a physician to attend to them please."

"And what makes you think that I would help you?"

"...???"

"If you want my help, you need to give me something in exchange. What are you willing to offer me in return for the favour?"

"I can wash your clothes for a week?"

"Don't want that."

"I could cook and wash for you for a week?"

"That too will be nice if only they were added to what I actually want."

"What do you want? I don't really have anything else to give. "

"No, you're exactly what I want.", the leader said while walking around the may, openly checking him out.

"What do you mean?", Xu Bao asked in apprehension. Time is not on his side. Lives are at stake!

Circling his arms around his slim waste, Yunfeng pulled him to him. Staring into his ocean blue eyes.

Xu Bao could feel his breath on his face. He wanted to pull away from the embrace but Yunfeng held him in place.

"I believe you get what I am trying to say?", he asked in a seductive voice with his nose lightly brushing against Xu Bao's ears.

"Or shall I demonstrate?", he added teasingly.

Fearing he had wasted enough time already, Xu Bao asked, "How long?".

"A month for each person".

"What?!", for just a ride home?"

"Your call." Yunfeng shrugged his shoulders.

"Fine but with other conditions."

"State them."

"That you'll cover their medical costs and that of one more person."

"Fine. The duration will now be five months then."

"One more thing, no one should ever find out about this."

"That's fine by me. Now take me to where they are now. I'm sure we shouldn't waste anymore time." Yunfeng said and headed for the door with Xu Bao following.