Chapter Four: Wounds

Chen Junhua rubbed his aching hand and barked, “Fourth, you can let go now, or you'll really strangle this guy to death.”

The middle-aged man released his grip, and Kang Ning collapsed like a shriveled sack beneath the seat. Fourth wiped his bloodied nose with the sleeve of his black shirt, muttering gruffly, “Damn it, it’s been years since someone busted my nose. We better watch out—this kid knows how to fight.”

The eldest son in the front passenger seat finally relaxed, turned, and pointed at Kang Ning sprawled at Chen Junhua’s feet, bursting into laughter. “And what of these half-trained fighters? Didn’t you and Fourth just flatten him? Ha! Slow down, this road’s a no-man’s land by day, jammed with street vendors. At night, not even a shadow crosses it. Little Six, pull over by the roadside—right there, by that big banyan tree with no streetlight.”

Once the car settled beneath the dense shade, Chen Junhua and his three companions jumped out. Fourth spat bloody phlegm twice, grabbed Kang Ning’s ankle and hauled him out, tossing him onto the rubbish-strewn ground. A dull thud resounded as Kang Ning’s head struck hard, bouncing twice before coming to rest.

Blood welled swiftly from Kang Ning’s scalp, spreading over his face as he lay sideways. The violent blow cleared his airway, making it easier to breathe, but the agony in his ribs and head left him dizzy and weak. He could only curl up, clutching his throat and coughing in pain.

Fourth stepped forward, aiming a brutal kick at Kang Ning’s head. Kang Ning convulsed from his coughing, his head shifting just enough to avoid the worst of the blow, yet the force was still enough to knock him out cold.

Unsatisfied, Fourth continued to savagely kick Kang Ning’s waist and back, each strike landing with a solid, muffled thud—like beating a bundle of quilts with a heavy stick. Only when Kang Ning stopped resisting entirely did Fourth heed the eldest son’s laughter and halt.

The eldest son strode over, crouching by the curled form of Kang Ning. From his pocket, he drew a gilded French Dupont lighter and knelt slowly. With a crisp “click,” a bright flame illuminated Kang Ning’s bloodied, dirt-stained face.

Seeing such a terrifying visage in the firelight startled the eldest son into jumping back. He steadied himself after a moment, then laughed uproariously. He kicked Kang Ning twice more, but, finding no reaction, squatted again, flicked his lighter, and began to singe Kang Ning’s eyebrows and hairline.

A sharp, acrid smell filled the air as hair sizzled. The searing pain roused Kang Ning; his left eye was blinded by blood and dust, so he forced open his swelling right eye. He fought through the agony in his brows and hairline, willing himself to focus, to gather his scattered senses.

Hearing Kang Ning’s intermittent, agonized moans, the eldest son laughed, “You don’t look so handsome now, do you? Tsk tsk, hard to imagine what that slut saw in you. Think you can compete with me, Lan Tao? You’ll have to wait for your next life!”

“I… know you. You’re Mayor Lan’s… son, aren’t you? What did I ever… do to offend you?” Kang Ning blinked through his confusion, his voice barely audible.

“Want to know? In your next life, maybe. Ha!” Lan Tao replied, flicking his lighter once more and pressing the flame to Kang Ning’s prominent nose. As consciousness returned, Kang Ning writhed desperately, trying to avoid the flame. Lan Tao grew increasingly gleeful, laughing as he pressed the lighter to Kang Ning’s nostrils. In a panic, Kang Ning summoned his last strength to blow out the flame. Lan Tao was surprised, then laughed again, relighting the flame and burning Kang Ning’s face without tiring.

To Lan Tao, Kang Ning was nothing more than a dying stray, something to be toyed with.

After blowing out the flame five times, Kang Ning was exhausted, powerless. Just as he used up the last reserves of his strength, stubbornly struggling, a warm current surged within him. His dizzy, clouded mind cleared slowly; feeling returned to his seemingly limp legs and the right arm trapped beneath him. A warmth, unlike anything he’d ever felt, filled his chest and abdomen, then spread to his head and limbs.

Perhaps the lighter had grown hot from prolonged use, so Lan Tao closed it with a flourish, spinning it between his fingers before letting it nestle in his palm.

Lan Tao wiped the sneer from his face and glared at Kang Ning, now battered and unconscious again, bloodied and swollen. He took a deep breath and spat on Kang Ning’s face with a sharp “ptui!” Rising, he turned to Fourth, Chen Junhua, and Little Six, gritting his teeth, “Break both his legs! Turn him into a vegetable if you want, just don’t kill him.”

Little Six, eager to show off in front of his superiors, was first to step forward. He grabbed Kang Ning’s head and tried to drag him up, but Kang Ning’s seventy kilograms proved a challenge for the small, skinny Little Six. Watching Little Six struggle, Chen Junhua cursed, “Damn it, have you let women drain your strength? Go grab some bricks and prop his heels up. Then get a big stone and smash his shin. Simple! Are you brainless?”

Little Six grinned sheepishly and hurried off. Soon he returned, lugging six or seven red bricks from a butcher’s rickety stall. He grabbed Kang Ning’s legs and flipped him onto his back. Seeing Kang Ning limp and pliant, he relaxed, lifting each foot in turn to wedge bricks beneath the heels.

Lan Tao, Chen Junhua, and Fourth stood by, smiling. Suddenly, Fourth noticed Kang Ning was struggling to open his eyes and, wary, stepped forward, planting a foot on Kang Ning’s chest and fixing him with a deadly stare. He growled at Little Six, “Hurry up! Stop dawdling—the sun’ll be up soon. You want to wait for the vegetable vendors to show up first?”

Little Six rushed off to find a large stone. Lan Tao and Chen Junhua laughed at his furtive, hunched searching. When Lan Tao finished laughing, he didn’t spare Chen Junhua’s feelings, sneering, “They say the kind of leader you are determines the kind of men you command. You have at least fifty men, yet never pick a decent lieutenant. This fool looks like a descendant of the Liangshan bandit Shi Qian…”