Put My Socks On

The sea tossed before him, ceaselessly in motion.

Xia Lei and Qin Xiang sat on a reef, a pile of empty beer cans at their feet.

“Tell me, did you really want to kill He Lao-Qi tonight?” Qin Xiang threw away the empty beer can in his hand and asked while looking at Xia Lei.

Xia Lei was silent for a bit before answering, “Before you arrived, I was intent on entering his home and finishing him off.”

“And then?” Qin Xiang prompted.

“Then?” Xia Lei paused for a bit, then shook his head, “I didn’t think so far ahead. Ma Xiao-An died saving me. Am I still a man if I don’t seek revenge for him?”

“You didn’t think much, I’d say. If you’d really gone into He Lao-Qi’s home and killed him you’d be finished too. Gu Ke-Wen would have lost just a dog but destroyed a foe like you. With the Gu clan’s power, there is no place on Earth you can escape to if you kill He Lao-Qi. You’ll be sentenced to death if you’re caught. What will your sister do if you die? What about those people who depend on you for their livelihood? Have you thought about...