New York, Manhattan.A forty-story luxury condominium tower rose into the sky.
Aoi Nanako and her team moved into the entire eighteenth floor—her father had bought the whole level outright. She wasn't the only one living there either; more than twenty members of her support crew occupied the place as well.
Among them were bodyguards, maids, drivers, translators, personal assistants… the whole setup.
Cao Yang also counted as one of the bodyguards—though he was more of a freelance one. Thanks to Xiaofei, he got to stay in this lavish building too.
Everything inside was top-of-the-line. Whatever you could think of, the place had it.
While everyone else was busy getting familiar with their surroundings, the first thing Cao Yang did was pull the translator out for a trip.
The translator was Japanese but fluent in both English and Chinese, so communication wasn't an issue.
There were two juniors from the Han family living in New York. Using the address Wang Nanjiang provided, Cao Yang found their residence—but no one was currently staying there. They had gone back to China.
He wasn't planning to touch them. He was just marking the location in advance, preparing for the future.
"Cao-yang oniichan."Nanako tugged at his sleeve, wanting him to accompany her to register for school.
She used to call him "Cao-yang-kun," but after getting closer, she switched to "oniichan." Who knew what she'd call him next.
Cao Yang didn't refuse and went with her to Columbia University.
After completing the registration paperwork, the two wandered leisurely through the campus of this world-famous university.
Nanako was cheerful and full of expectations for the future. She chattered nonstop, switching between Chinese, Japanese, and English because her Chinese wasn't great. Half the time, Cao Yang could only understand the general idea of what she was saying.
Watching her innocent, carefree smile, Cao Yang sighed inwardly. He didn't know how long she could stay this happy. Once Aoi Ichiro passed away, he feared he'd never see this bright, carefree Nanako again.
"Cao-yang oniichan, since you'll be living in the US now, shouldn't you start learning English?" Nanako asked seriously.
Cao Yang nodded. "I'll learn it."
"How about I find a tutor for you?"
"No need." He refused bluntly.
He was gifted and a fast learner, but he couldn't stand traditional study. Having someone force him to memorize vocabulary would be torture.
Real learning came from interacting with people. He was confident he'd pick it up just by living here.
Just like Japanese—he used to only know "dame dame" and "yamete yamete," but after living there for a month he had already learned quite a bit.
But before learning English, something else had been weighing heavily on his mind.
Now that he was in America, he couldn't help thinking about Sister-in-law. He originally wanted to look for her, but now he hesitated.
He wasn't even sure she was really in the US. After Chen Ling's incident, he suspected Sister-in-law might not have told him the truth either—she even lied about her flight time when she left.
And even if she was in the US… would she want to see him?
Maybe she had already begun a new life. Maybe his appearance would only disturb her peace.
Tang Shaojie didn't want to see him. Hu Qing probably didn't want to see him either.
What if he did find her, only to be met with the same attitude?
Hurting each other again… might be worse than not searching at all. Better to keep a beautiful memory than tear it apart.
With this tangled mood, he struggled for days—wanting to search one moment, stopping himself the next. He couldn't even sleep properly.
"Bro."Xiaofei pushed open the door and walked in.
"Where are you going?" Cao Yang asked, noticing the backpack—like he was ready to disappear for a while.
"Bro, I'm here to say goodbye. I wanna go take a look around."
He had been staying home the past few days—not because he didn't want to go out, but because he was helping Cao Yang look after Cao Yinuo.
"No. Who's going to help me watch the kid if you leave?" Cao Yang refused instantly.
Xiaofei was speechless. The main reason he wanted to leave was precisely because he didn't want to babysit. He was the heir of the God of Gambling—how did he end up as a nanny?
"Bro, I really don't know how to take care of kids…"
"Where are you planning to go?" Cao Yang asked, knowing exactly why Xiaofei wanted to run—he himself didn't really want to take care of kids either.
"I'm thinking of going to Las Vegas."
"You better not gamble. Don't steal either. If you get into trouble here, I won't be able to bail you out."
"I know."
"You have enough money?"
"Yep."
"Fine. Call me if anything happens. If you're tired, come back anytime."
"Okay!" Xiaofei felt like he'd been pardoned by the heavens. But just as he reached the elevator, Cao Yang called after him.
"Xiaofei, wait."
"Bro…?"
"Help me watch the kid for a few more days. I need to go handle something. Once I'm back, you can leave."
"…Fine." Xiaofei's face instantly drooped.
Nanako's team included maids. She didn't need them, so they all ended up taking care of Yinuo.
Even without Xiaofei, nothing major would happen. But Cao Yang wasn't at ease. None of Yinuo's caretakers were people he truly trusted, which kept him constantly on edge.
He decided he would look for Sister-in-law. If he couldn't find her, fine. If she treated him like Tang Shaojie did, also fine. At least he wouldn't live with regret.
Most importantly—he finally had a lead. Running into Tang Shaojie was luck, but finding Sister-in-law required clues. Searching blindly in America was no different from looking for a needle in the ocean.
Cao Yang headed alone to Chinatown in New York. Stepping into the district felt like stepping back into China—the surroundings, the people, the languages speaking Cantonese and Fujianese all gave him a sense of familiar belonging.
Before leaving, Sister-in-law told him she would be under Situ Meixin's protection in the US. That meant Situ Meixin should know her whereabouts.
As long as he found Situ Meixin, he would find Sister-in-law. If even Situ didn't know… then there was no point searching anymore.
Cao Yang sat down in a Chinese restaurant, eating while observing the customers. Nearly everyone spoke either Cantonese or Fujianese.
Suddenly, two men caught his attention—their arms covered in dragons and tigers. One look and you could tell they were from the underworld. Snippets of their conversation confirmed it—lots of talk about fights and hits.
"Imperial peaks stand tall, ancient rivers flow for eternity!"
Cao Yang suddenly shouted the coded phrase.
Everyone in the restaurant turned in surprise.
Ignoring their confusion, Cao Yang locked eyes with the two tattooed men.
"Facing the sea, three rivers flow for ten thousand years."
At last, the two responded.
Cao Yang's eyes lit up. He stood, moved to their table, and clasped his fists. "Brothers."
The two returned the gesture. "Brothers."
"May I ask which mountain you climbed and which temple you worship?"
"We climb Baiyun Mountain and worship at the Temple of Lord Guan."
"So you're brothers from Guangdong. May I know which branch of the Triads you're from? He Lian Sheng, Yee Hop Tong, or 14K?"
"We're from the Yee Hop Tong's mainland division."
"Oh."The connection was distant, but still a connection.
"I just arrived in this foreign land and wish to look for an old acquaintance. I hope the two of you can help point me in the right direction."
"Oh? Who are you looking for?"
"I want to meet Miss Situ Meixin."
The two men froze—then burst into laughter.
"Brother, you think too highly of us. We may be Hongmen members, but seeing Miss Situ isn't that easy. Besides, she's not in New York. You'll have to go to San Francisco."
Cao Yang cupped his fists again. "May I know where I can find Miss Situ in San Francisco?"
The two exchanged a suspicious glance.
Situ Meixin's position in the Chee Kung Tong in San Francisco was common knowledge. How could this kid not know?
Seeing their doubt, Cao Yang hurried to explain:
"I just came from China. I don't know much about these things."
"Didn't you say Miss Situ is your acquaintance? Don't you have her phone number or address?"
"To be honest, we only met once in Hong Kong. We're not close. But my elder sister knows her well. I came this time to ask Miss Situ about my sister's whereabouts."