Wolf’s Repayment by Lan Lin
Translation of 狼的报恩 by 蓝淋
Yang Xiuyuan always harped on that he was (Lu Fei’s) savior[1].
There is no denying the fact that a year ago, Yang Xiuyuan had picked up Lu Fei, who was at his last breath, from an abandoned warehouse, had bandaged him into a mummy and had nursed him for two months before he could walk again unassisted. But if it were up to Lu Fei, he would rather valiantly hang on in the gang scene.
That would have been better than being treated as a Filipina maid.
"Feifei[2], I'm back." The elegant male voice, that had many falling over or fainting in courtrooms, rang out from the foyer. However, when Lu Fei heard the same voice, he felt like kicking Yang Xiuyuan.
Yang Xiuyuan walked steadily into the living at a steady pace with feet clad in white, cotton soaks. Even in this hot weather, his made-to-measure beige trousers and pure-white handmade silk shirt remained relatively sweat free[3]. All in all, his clean body and elegant demeanor did not sit well with how terribly annoying he was…
Yang Xiuyuan had turned Lu Fei from a relatively famous gang leader, who was known as Cang Lang in those days, into an apron-wearing cook!
"Yes," Lu Fei replied patiently.
“Have you fed Bibi (a parrot as eloquent as him)? Did you water the flowers? What about the water in the fish tank?”
At such times, Lu Fei would remind himself that the person in front of him is his savior, his benefactor, the one who saved his life. He has been in the gang for so long that he has to adhere to righteousness in everything[4]. Even on the streets, kindness had to be repaid.
It was only through these thoughts that he could control his urge to overturn the bowl of soup on Yang Xiuyuan’s head.
“Yang Xiuyuan, I have something to tell you,” saw Lu Fei, who was doing the dishes after they had dinner. Meanwhile, the lawyer was watching international news while savoring fruits that Lu Fei had diced for him. He seemed to be in a good mood. Lu Fei’s intuition told him that it was the best time to open up. Also, today marks the 365th day of Lu Fei providing free service to Yang Xiuyuan. With that all the favors should be repaid.
He couldn’t possibly continue being that brilliant lawyer’s cook for the rest of his life, could he?
“Huh?” Yang Xiuyuan put a small piece of dragon fruit in his and licked his fingers before turning his glance towards him.
It took Lu Fei, whose was dumbstruck by such provocative action and those teasing eyes, a lot of effort to convince himself that it was a man! No matter how alluring his face was, that was a man. What was a man’s beauty to him anyway?!
“I plan to work. My friend has helped me find a job in a company. It is nothing bad, so…”
That was half the truth. He had in fact ran into one of his brothers from his gangster days while out buying groceries at discounted rate in a supermarket like a housewife. The other party was surprised and rushed over to express his astonishment over finding him alive. When he enquired as to where he was staying nowadays, Lu Fei could only push his cart loaded with Kleenex and detergents with a flushed face and had replied perfunctorily that he had retired and was residing in a friend’s house.
The so-called new job was nothing but a re-entry into gangland. Unlike Yang Xiuyuan, he did not have degrees and diplomas that would allow him to charge by the hour for basically talking to people.
“Oh? You want to resume your old career?”
With his lie exposed at once, Lu Fei’s wheat-colored face turned red as he replied, “No. It’s just to help some friends…”
He should have long gotten used to hearing Lu Fei cuss out when outside others’ earshot, but Lu Fei was still unable to process the queer combination of such a delicate and noble face and four-letter word[5].
“Help? Do you think you have lived too long?! Don’t you know that all that you did in the past were against the law? If you were not lucky, you would have died. Do you think there are people like me who would go around saving your skin? Think! Use your brain!”
“Then, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to clean your room and do housework all day long? I'm a man. I want to go outside. Yes, what should I not do?” He stuttered slightly when he was agitated, which made him lose colossally in front of silver-tongued Yang Xiuyuan.
Then the lawyer started speaking at a speed close to the speed of light. Lu Fei could see the two thin lips moving vigorously and felt his ears buzz. In the end, he managed to catch a bunch of keywords in the concluding remark – “To put it short, if you want to go, then wait for the next life!”
Pretty, no, talk, reason!
These four words jumped into Lu Fei's head in capital letter. The resentment that was boiling over in the past one year surged. He could not stand it anymore and raised his fist.
And stopped when it was centimeters away from Yang Xiuyuan's nose.
Could he really punch? What if the bridge of the nose breaks? Such a straight and pretty nose! It would be such a shame if he broke it with his own hand. The last time when Yang Xiuyuan got injured, a plethora of women fussed over a half a centimeter long scratch all day long. This time, if his nose is to collapse, won’t those women file a joint petition…
While Lu Fei was hesitating, he heard Yang Xiuyuan speak with a sneer, “What? Do you want to harm your savior?”
The word ‘saviour’ has the same effect on Lu Fei as the mantra trapping Sun Wukong[6].
Every time Lu Fei tried to put up a resistance, Yang Xiuyuan would use that word to suppress him, hard-pressed to move.
Lu Fei could only swallow frustration and grief as he retracted his trembling fist.
“What? Do you think I’m unreasonable? I saved your life. How do you plan on repaying the life debt that you owe me? Do you consider freeloading in my house as an expression of gratitude? Not to mention this year’s rent and food…”
Yang Xiu Yuan is to Lu Fei what Buddha is to Sun Wukong. The former could single-handedly strangle the other to death.
“Hey, are you going to bed? You haven't drawn the bath for me.”
“Huh…” Lu Fei clenched and unclenched his fist while drawing deep breaths, trying to keep himself from committing some utterly ungrateful action that would only lead to further humiliation.
“Actually, you don't have to feel so discouraged. It's not difficult to go out and work. It just so happens that there is a position with a decent income open. It is suitable for you, but I don't know if you want it or not.”
"What?" Lu Fei turned around at the speed of sound, his big chestnut eyes sparkling.
"Position is for a twenty-four hours bodyguard. Monthly full-time salary of this amount would be credited to your account every month." Yang Xiuyuan stretched out his fingers to indicate the amount.
“Wow... Really?” Such a good thing. It was truly a pie in the sky.
“Of couse, I’ll do it. Who is the employer?”
Yang Xiuyuan turned his outstretched palm towards himself and said, “Me.”
“…” Lu Fei's flushed red for the third time that day. “You’re playing with me!”
“What?” Yang Xiuyuan asked in surprise. “With my reputation for making enemies, isn't it natural for me to want to hire a bodyguard?"
“But the salary...” Lu Fei asked hesitantly, “Can you afford to pay such a high salary?”
Yang Xiuyuan said with a sneer, “Even if you are not literate, you would learn from the newsmongers how much top-ranking lawyers make in a year in China!”
“Hmm,” Lu Fei asked hesitantly, “will you really give me that salary?”
Yang Xiuyuan grinned as he replied, “Feifei, don't talk as if I’m usually mean to you.”
It was rare that Yang Xiuyuan was not too mean to Lu Fei.
The money that comes from being a bodyguard was just too easy to come by. All he has to do was follow Yang Xiuyuan out every day, go into the office, sit down to sip tea and read the newspaper, and accompany him while visiting clients or all the way to court, then go with him to treats and meals, and finally follow him home.
Was it fair to get paid so high for that?
Lu Fei felt as though he was waiting in the wings for the sky to fall.
After following Yang Xiuyuan around for a few days, Lu Fei found that the lawyer had indeed risen to a level when he would require full-time protection. By that logic, his sole bodyguard should be busy as well. On the contrary, Lu Fei felt that he idling as though on vacation which he felt was more tiring than his household chores.
“Attorney Yang, it’s all thanks to you that we won this lawsuit.” Director of a whatchamacallit group had treated them to dinner for a week now and was even bringing flowers.
"As it should be." Yang Xiuyuan have a polite smile.
Although Lu Fei, being the bodyguard and cook, who should ideally be happy that he did not have to cook dinner, couldn’t help feeling unhappy for some reason.
"Yang Xiuyuan, let me tell you," Halfway to the washroom, he couldn't help rubbing against the man who washed his hands gracefully. “Let’s not go out to dinner with this man again!”
“Do you not like it? If so, you don't have to come with me next time. I’ll have dinner with him alone.”
“Why not? Is it that you don’t want me to be alone with other men?” Yang Xiuyuan smiled at the mirror.
Was it such a strange thing to say? He was only about his personal safety!
“I am your 24-hour bodyguard. Since I get paid, I have to ensure your safety. So of course, I can't leave.” That’s why he had followed his even to the washroom.
“Really?” Yang Xiuyang seemed apathetic as he wiped his hands dry with the towel in the finely-woven bamboo basket.
“There is no danger in this place. You are worrying too much.”
“How can there be no danger!” Lu Fei blushed with conscientious excitement and lowered his voice to continue, “It's very unsafe for you to be around that person. I've already seen that…”
“That is… don’t you know that in this world there are people who are… who are…” His face turned purple before he chocked out the word “homosexual!”
Yang Xiuyuan's calm and composed disposition, so much so that he did not even blink, surprised Lu Fei.
“What? A man like you can easily become a homosexual’s plaything!”
Even a man like Lu Fei, who has seen big scenes and is basically fearless, has some scruples about such thing. How can Yang Xiuyuan, who is so beautiful and weak, not be afraid at all?
"So, you mean you think I’m attractive to men?" Yang Xiuyuan laughed as he asked.
The nerve! What is there to be happy about it?
Lu Fei was a Cassandra like figure as his warning went unheeded. After the dinner, the director not only insisted on taking them home, but also pulled Yang Xiuyuan towards himself to plant a light kiss on the cheek.
Although it was only for a second, Lu Fei moved at supersonic speed and landed a punch on the director’s face
“What the hell do you want to do to him?!”
The director remained well-mannered, not swearing, rather gently touching when he got hit while giving Lu Fei a once-over. Neither was Lu Feis complexion fair not his face delicate, thus he was not his type.
“What does this have to do with you? And what is your relationship with him?”
Lu Fei was silent for three second before answering, “I, I am his bodyguard!”
“Bodyguard? You are just a bodyguard[7]. Do you have the right to mess with your employer's personal relationship?”
The circuit (of his brain) was blocked for all of three minutes and Lu Fei stood there speechless. Tongue-tied, he turned to Yang Xiuyuan for help.
Yang Xiuyuan, who was watching the scene unfold with a smile, replied, “Well, this, indeed, is not something that bodyguards would care about.”
Lu Fei's face turned red again.
Due to that one remark of his, Lu Fei did not give face to Yang Xiuyuan for three days.
Humph! You dared to say I’m meddlesome. I'll quit my job when I get a new one!
“Feifei, you don't seem very satisfied with this job.”
The power of habit was just too strong. Now, he doesn’t find being addressed as Feifei all that nauseating.
“Is the salary not high enough?”
When the matter of his salary was brought up, Lu Fei was full of resentment. On the day his salary was to be paid, Yang Xiuyuan came to settle old scores, listing two months’ worth of medical expenses and food and rent for the past one year. God knew how he was capable of keeping tab of everything so clearly. After accounting for all things, Lu Fei not only did not receive even a dime as salary, but also ended up with an assload of debt out of thin air.
Beep... it will take ten years to repay the debt...
“Or is it that you are treated poorly?”
Lu Fei didn't reply. He just looked out of the window, at the flying birds, with eyes that yearned for freedom...
Damn! A man who was impassioned and larger-than-life, who was addressed by the glorious title, ‘Grey Wolf’ has come to being ordered around like a puppy by a frail scholar.
If his former brothers were to see him running after the garbage truck with two bags of garbage in the morning and squeezing into bus, carrying loofah and cabbage at night, he would just drop dead.
Can this sort of self-effacing behavior be considered beholden?
"Actually, it is not impossible for you to get better treatment and higher income. But for that you will have to take up another job where you would have greater responsibilities.”
I'm already your bodyguard when outside and your nanny when inside. I've already been your manservant for a whole year. I've honed all possible skill that can be of use to you in order to repay your kindness. What more do you want?
“I have a proposal. Would you like to give it a try?”
"No! " Lu Fei held his head high and stood his ground.
Most likely, there was nothing good to suggest. Just look at his toothy grin.
Before going to bed, Lu Fei had to run a bath for Yang Xiuyuan, fetch him everything from pajamas to underwear, set the room's air conditioning to a suitable temperature, draw the curtains tight, and set the alarm clock...
Lu Fei endured all aggression and depression and called Yang Xiuyuan, who was sitting on the sofa, absent-mindedly flipping through a magazine.
"Feifei, you've been ignoring me for a few days now. You're really upset, aren’t you?"
If you were me, would you be happy?
"If you hate being here so much, why don't you leave?"
"Huh?" Being asked out of the blue, Lu Fei stood dumbfounded for a while and then mumbled out, "Because you won’t let me go."
"I haven’t tied you up or held you captive. You can leave whenever you want."
The reflection of Yang Xiu Yuan's silver-rimmed eyes wavered, and he became confused. Moments ago, Lu Fei was longing for freedom. But when the matter of leaving was raised, he unexpectedly felt a pang.
"I still owe you money." Woah, why did he bring that up? He was digging his own grave.
“Oh, the rent and all that… I was just kidding. The room was empty anyway. Never mind that. You don’t have to pay me back.
What’s with this sudden generosity? Really suspicious! But, why was Yang Xiuyuan suddenly trying to make him to leave?
“But... I want to… I want to repay your kindness. Wasn’t it you who incited me to repay you."
"Actually, you've done more than enough for me over the year. I didn't put much effort into saving your life."
“You say you didn’t put much effort into saving my life. But the fact that you saved my life remains. As you yourself said, ‘a favor of a drop of water should be repaid with a gushing spring’. So, I can only repay you with my life.”
Yang Xiuyuan’s eyebrows shot up, "So you would repay with your body?"
Wasn’t it a life for a life? Where did body come from?
After a while, the eyebrows came down. "Well… The offer sounds good.”
"Feifei, are you sure you don't want to go? Are you gonna stay and repay?"
Although being a bodyguard and nanny for a lifetime is pretty woeful, it was better than having to part with Yang Xiuyuan.
“You want to repay the life debt, but I don't need a bodyguard anymore.”
"Huh?" Lu Fei’s face fell. Was there no other way he could repay his debt save for doing housework?
“As I told you, there is another occupation for you. That way too, you can repay the life-debt. Would you like give it a try?”
“What about a salary of …?[8]”
“You'll get free of food and accommodation as well as complete right to dictate all the details of my life."
What a load of shit! Can you even call it a right? Isn’t that just getting Lu Fei to do all kinds of odd jobs for him?
“What? Won’t you like to do that? You can decide whom I should date and whether someone can kiss me or not.”
Ah, this… Doesn’t sound too bad. I don't know why, but somehow, I kind of want to manage that.
Alas, Lu Fei is probably the most ill-treated worker under the sky. Even his salary was ...
"As for the content of the new occupation, I suggest we try it now."
"Work? Now?" While being pulled onto the sofa and made to sit next to him, Lu Fei wondered, "What the hell does it involve?"
"This…" Yang Xiuyuan’s handsome smile is got wider, then…
Lu Fei’s eyes were like copper bells as we he was held down on the sofa and his lips were blocked by lips.
After seven or eight minutes, he began to struggle to breath. While panting heavily, he began to struggle—because Yang was unfastening his drawstring.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
Woohoo, Lu Fei’s voice was so feeble that it had none of the machismo of the great Grey Wolf. Instead, he sounded more like a chihuahua.
Even with a man of excellent build like Lu Fei putting up a resistant, Yang Xiuyuan seemed completely unaffected. Even his posture when pinning down Lu Fei looked relaxed.
Lu Fei understood why Yang Xiuyuan didn't need a bodyguard. Most bodyguards would not even be half as good as he was.
The dog that will bite really won't bark.
“Coping a feel? What? I’m a man!”
“Feifei… ah Feifei…” Yang Xiuyuan continued after nipping Lu Fei’s ear, “Don’t you know, in this world, there are homosexuals?”
Oh... So, he is... Well, that's not the point…
“Didn’t you say that I can start the work?!” Lu Fei was persistently defending his last interest, “Then, what are you fondling me for?”
Actually, Lu Fei couldn’t deny how good he felt at being touched.
"This is your new job!" Yang Xiuyuan was beaming.
"..." Lu Fei’s eyes widened and he quivered sorrowfully, "... is the object of leaking yù?"
"Ha ha," Yang Xiuyuan’s laughter was equal parts charming and wicked. Lu Fei's heart thumbed as he pressed their lips together again.
"To be my lover, you idiot."
Moments before he was completely consumed, Grey Wolf finally remembered that the ultimate way to repay kindness was not ‘with body’ but with one’s life.
However, estimating based on the incredible strength latent in Yang Xiuyuan’s lean body, by the time this night comes to an end, Lu Fei might not have much life to repay with...
[1] 救命恩人 – lit. life-saving benefactor
[2] Informal and relatively intimate way of referring to Lu Fei.
[3] Handmade clothing is high-end, valued for engaging craftsmanship more than bulk produced fast fashion. This along with the fact that Yang Xiuyuan can stay sweat-free in hot weather marks the class difference between them.
In many of Lan Lin’s novels involve class struggle between CP.
[4] Gangs adhere to moral codes that emphasized on core values such as righteousness in all action.
[5] The original phrase literally translates into ‘Three Character Classic’ - 三字经 aka San Zi Jing refers to one of the Chinese classics written during Song dynasty. Here the phrase is used to refer to the profanity that Yang Xiuyuan was spouting.
[6] Sūn Wùkōng aka Monkey King is the main character in the 16th-century Chinese novel Journey to the West. In chapter 7 of the novel, his antics in heaven gets him trapped under Five Elements Mountain. Before he could throw it off, Tathāgata Buddha seals him there with the mantra Om Mani Padme Hum for 500-600 years (sources: 1 2 3 4).
[7] Originally in English.
[8] There is some amount conveyed, but the author chose to not tell us.
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