Chapter 37 The technique was quite skillful.

“Boss Li,” Lu Che said carefully, “Fatty Cong is just a minor character. The person the Dong Sheng Society really wants to win over is probably someone else. I found out that Jin Ya Chang has also been in contact with… one of Ma Wang’s accountants recently.”

Fang Che's heart skipped a beat!

As expected, it brought up the King of Horses!

Li Hanzhou's eyes turned icy: "Evidence?"

“There is no direct evidence yet,” Lu Che shook his head. “But the accountant has suddenly become very wealthy recently. His son went to a private school, and his wife bought new jewelry. The money is of dubious origin.”

"Continue the investigation," Li Hanzhou said. "If you need anything, find Ah Gui."

"Understood." Lu Che bowed, then glanced at Fang Che. "Brother Fang, take good care of your injuries."

After he left, Fang Che immediately looked at Li Hanzhou: "Brother Li! Lu Che, he..."

“I know,” Li Hanzhou interrupted him. “He’s offering his allegiance and testing my limits. Fatty Cong is the bait, but Ma Wang is the fish he wants to catch.”

"Then we..."

“Let’s play along.” Li Hanzhou got up and walked to the window. “Lu Che wants to use me to clean house, and I’m happy to see that happen. As for whether he’s a cop or a criminal…” He turned around, his gaze deepening, “Once he catches the horse king by the tail, his own tail will be exposed.”

Fang Che understood.

Brother Li is treating Lu Che as a pawn as well. In this game, Ma Wang, Jiang Tianqi, and Lu Che are all people he wants to move.

As expected, it's hard to guess what the big shots are thinking.

"Just focus on recovering." Li Hanzhou walked back to the bedside and tucked the blanket around him. "We'll talk about Portland Street when you're better."

“Brother Li,” Fang Che suddenly remembered, “my ‘Chefeng Express’…has it been running smoothly these past few days?”

"No." Li Hanzhou's lips curled up slightly. "Xi Rong did a good job. The children discovered two unfamiliar faces from the Dong Sheng Society scouting Portland Street yesterday, reported it to them, and A Biao brought some men to 'invite' them for tea."

Fang Che breathed a sigh of relief, and felt a little smug. See, his team was quite useful.

“Oh, right,” Li Hanzhou took something out of his pocket and placed it next to his pillow, “This is for you.”

Fang Che looked down and saw a brand new pager, with a black casing and a compact size.

"this……?"

"It's easy to contact you." Li Hanzhou said casually, "Only I, Agui, and Uncle Chen know this number. Call me if it's urgent."

Fang Che picked up the pager, a strange feeling welling up inside him.

Is this... a dedicated line provided by a big shot?

He stroked the cool fuselage and grinned, "Thanks, Brother Li! I promise I'll be there whenever you call!"

Li Hanzhou looked at his silly grin and a faint smile flickered in his eyes.

"Take a rest."

He turned and closed the door.

Fang Che lay down, holding the pager, and the pain in his left shoulder seemed to lessen.

He recalled his days before he traveled back in time: working 996, squeezing onto the subway, eating takeout, and his biggest dream was to save money to buy a house.

Now he lies in a Hong Kong triad stronghold, with a knife scar on his shoulder, a pager given to him by a gang leader, and brothers he can entrust his life to.

This life is truly exciting.

He closed his eyes, his mind racing with plans for after he recovered: how to divide the tricycles, how to adjust the garbage collection routes, and how to use the children's intelligence network to keep a close eye on Ma Wang and Jiang Tianqi...

Also, I need to find an opportunity to test Lu Che. While I can't directly expose him, I can create some "surprise" for him and see his reaction...

As he pondered this, the effects of the medicine kicked in, and he fell asleep again.

Fang Che was awakened by the smell on his own body.

On the afternoon of the third day, he simply couldn't stay in bed any longer.

The wound on my left shoulder has scabbed over, and it's incredibly itchy, even more so than the pain.

Even worse, he felt an indescribable "aged smell" emanating from his body, mixed together and rushing straight to the top of his head.

"Tiezi..." he called weakly to Cheng Tieniu at the door, "Am I spoiled?"

Cheng Tieniu scratched his head, leaned closer to smell it, and honestly took a half step back: "Che, it is a bit... intoxicating."

Fang Che stared at the ceiling in despair.

Wang Tiezhu, in his previous life in Northeast China, was a tough guy at the bathhouse, offering a full range of services including scrubbing, massage, and cupping. He felt uncomfortable if he didn't get a thorough bath every week.

Although her body weakened after transmigrating, her cute and clean habits remained unchanged.

I haven't had a proper shower in three days! Just wiping myself with a wet towel doesn't help at all!

"I need to take a shower!" he announced, trying to sit up. "If I don't shower now, I'll grow mushrooms!"

"No!" Xi Rong came in carrying freshly brewed medicine, her face immediately hardening. "Uncle Chen said the wound must not get wet! What if it gets infected?"

"I'll be careful! I'll wash with one hand! I... I'll wrap my shoulder with plastic wrap!" Fang Che started talking nonsense.

"What is plastic wrap?" Cheng Tieniu and Xi Rong asked in unison.

Fang Che choked. Yes, this is Hong Kong in the early 1990s.

"I don't care! I want to wash!" he protested, reaching for his crutch by the bed with his uninjured right hand. "If you won't help me, I'll get the water myself!"

"Brother Che, don't move!" Xi Rong cried out anxiously.

Just then, the door was pushed open.

Li Hanzhou walked in, holding documents in his hand, as if he had just finished working.

As soon as he entered, he smelled the strong "sick smell" in the air, and his brows furrowed almost imperceptibly.

"What's all the noise about?"

"Brother Li!" Fang Che exclaimed as if seeing a savior. "I want to take a shower! They won't let me!"

Li Hanzhou's gaze swept over his flushed cheeks, then landed on his haphazardly bandaged left shoulder, his tone leaving no room for argument: "The wound must not get wet."

"I know! I can figure something out!" Fang Che looked at him pitifully. "Brother Li, smell this, I really can't take it anymore... If this continues, before the wound gets infected, I'll faint from the stench. This won't help my recovery!"

He exaggerated, even sniffing deliberately and making a face as if he was disgusted by his own stench.

Li Hanzhou looked at him in silence.

The boy had been bedridden for several days, his hair disheveled and sticking up. Although his complexion was better than it had been two days earlier, it still showed signs of blood loss.

Those usually bright eyes were now filled with longing and grievance, like a puppy that had been locked up for too long and wanted to run free but was tied up.

The flavor is indeed a bit strong.

Li Hanzhou remembered what Uncle Chen had said: keeping clean is important, and you have to avoid the wound.

He sighed almost inaudibly.

"Wait."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Fang Che was taken aback, and exchanged bewildered glances with Cheng Tieniu and Xi Rong.

"Brother Li... agreed?" Fang Che wasn't sure.

“It seems so…” Xi Rong blinked.

Not long after, Li Hanzhou returned carrying a huge brass basin, which was mostly filled with steaming hot water.

Ah Gui followed behind, carrying two kettles and a cloth bag.

"Get out, everyone," Li Hanzhou said to Cheng Tieniu and Xi Rong.

The two quickly left, and Xi Rong closed the door behind them.

Only Li Hanzhou, Fang Che, and A Gui, who looked like he was wondering "why am I here," remained in the room.

Li Hanzhou placed the basin on the stool beside the bed, tested the water temperature, and took out a new towel, a bar of Lux soap, a small bottle of iodine, and a roll of clean gauze from the cloth bag.

"No showering, just wipe down," he said succinctly, picking up a towel and soaking it in hot water.

Fang Che then realized... Brother Li was going to personally give him a bath?

"Wait!" His face flushed instantly, and he waved his hands repeatedly. "Brother Li! This won't do! I can do it myself!"

"How can you wipe your back with only one hand?" Li Hanzhou wrung out the towel, looked up at him, and said calmly, "Should we let A-Gui do it?"

Ah Gui, standing by the door, froze, his face filled with resistance.

Fang Che imagined Ah Gui frowning, using those hands that were used to snapping necks to wipe his back... and couldn't help but shudder.

It seems... Brother Li is a little better?

No! The point isn't who wiped it, it's that this is something my brother shouldn't have had to do in the first place!

"Brother Li, you really don't need to—"

"Don't move." Li Hanzhou approached with a hot towel, his tone brooking no argument. "If the wound gets infected, it'll be even more troublesome."

He sat down on the edge of the bed, his gaze falling on the white vest Fang Che was wearing, which had been worn for a few days and was already a bit wrinkled.

"Take off your clothes."

Fang Che: "..."

He felt his face burning.

In my 28 years of life, this is the first time I've ever been so embarrassed.

Under Li Hanzhou's calm yet piercing gaze, he could only clumsily use his uninjured right hand to pull at the hem of his vest, trying to take it off over his head.

But the wound on his left shoulder made movement awkward; it hurt whenever he pulled, and he couldn't help but hiss.

A hand with distinct knuckles reached out and pressed down on his flailing right hand.

"Don't move."

Li Hanzhou's voice was close to my ear.

Then, Fang Che felt cool fingertips touch his waist, helping him hold the edge of the vest, while his other hand gently supported the back of his neck, assisting him to slowly pull the vest off his head.

The process was quick and steady, barely aggravating the wound.

Fang Che froze.

My upper body was exposed to the air, and the slight coolness sent shivers down my spine.

What made him even more helpless was that Li Hanzhou was looking at him.

This body is indeed slender with a fair complexion, and appears thin due to injuries and illness.

Her ribs were faintly visible on her chest, and her waist was so thin that it seemed one hand could encircle it.

The bandage wrapped around his left shoulder was a stark reminder of the danger that had just occurred.

Fang Che felt embarrassed.

This is a far cry from the muscular physique he had in his previous life.

Too weak, too embarrassing.

He instinctively tried to curl up, but Li Hanzhou pressed him down.

"Don't move."

Apply a hot towel and gently but firmly wipe, starting from the neck.

The water temperature was just right, the towel was soft, and it carried the faint scent of Lux soap.

Fang Che's tense body gradually relaxed.

It doesn't seem so awkward after all? Brother Li's technique is quite skilled, like a proficient caregiver.

He secretly glanced at Li Hanzhou.

Li Hanzhou lowered his head slightly, his expression focused.

The profile was clearly visible in the window light, and her long eyelashes cast a light shadow under her eyes.

He moved steadily, avoiding the wounds, carefully wiping every part from the neck to the collarbone, then to the chest and arms, then washing the towel, changing the water, and continuing.

The room was quiet, with only the sound of towels being rinsed and occasionally wrung out.

Ah Gui had already turned his back and stood straight facing the wall, pretending to be a decoration.

Fang Che's initial embarrassment was gradually replaced by a feeling of unfamiliarity.

Li Hanzhou's fingers occasionally touched his skin through the towel; his fingertips were slightly cool, but his strength was steady.

The feeling of being meticulously cared for brought tears to his eyes.

In his past life, he was the pillar of his family. His parents died early, and he learned to take care of himself and others at a young age.

No one had ever taken care of him like this before.

“Brother Li,” he said in a low voice, “you…have you taken care of wounded soldiers before? Your technique is quite skilled.”