Dragon Clan: Avoid the College Entrance Examination to Slay the Dragon

Chapter 52: Wind in the Building (Part 2)
The night sky of Chicago was washed bright by the rain, and the neon lights were broken into colorful blocks in the puddles.

Caesar led Gu Yi to turn left, and the two walked into a narrow alley filled with the aroma of peppercorns.

"The food in the hotel restaurant is terrible," Caesar said disdainfully, "I'll take you to eat something really good."

Gu Yi scanned the densely packed traditional Chinese signs on both sides: Sichuan Fragrance Pavilion, Chaoshan Clay Pot Porridge, Northeast Dumpling King…

"What to eat?"

“Chinese food.”

"I came from China, and now I want to eat Chinese food on the other side of the ocean?" Gu Yi held his forehead with his hand. The surroundings were full of Chinese characters, which made him feel like he was back in China for a moment.

"What else?" Caesar suddenly stopped and turned around, his eyes full of amusement. "Do you want to eat American white food? As an Italian, I used to think German food was bad enough until I came to America."

Gu Yi was stumped by the question and had to change the subject. "There are many types of Chinese cuisine. What do you want to eat? Cantonese cuisine? I see many foreigners like Cantonese cuisine."

"I do like Cantonese food, but this is mainly why I came here today."

They stopped beneath a faded lantern. A plaque inscribed with three gilded characters read "Yanjing Building." The aroma of roasted fruit wood drifted from the carved sandalwood porch.

Gu Yi looked at the red roast duck hanging in the glass window: "So you want to eat roast duck."

“Of course, this is my favorite Chinese food.”

"You like roast duck so much?" Gu Yi was stunned.

"Of course, one of your greatest inventions, Chinese." Caesar pushed open the carved wooden door, and the brass bell woke the dozing waiter. "After trying it in Rome last time, I've been planning to go to BJ's one day to eat the real thing."

"Then remember to call me on the day you go, I will go with you." Gu Yi chuckled.

The sandalwood door creaked softly behind them, the sound of rain reduced to a hazy background noise. They walked to their window seats. Caesar tapped the oily wood tabletop with his fingertips. The waiter trotted over, ballpoint pen in hand.

"Two gentlemen want to order?" The waiter's hand holding the ballpoint pen stopped on the note paper.

"A serving of premium roast duck." Caesar's fingernails scratched across the sealed menu. "Scallion-fried sea cucumber, nine-turn large intestine, and braised prawns."

The waiter's ballpoint pen hovered above the order book: "Sir, your Chinese is very good."

"Thank you. Please go ahead."

Caesar put the menu upright back on the wooden stand, and the brass bell jingled as new customers came in. Three white men in gray hoodies crowded on the porch, shaking out umbrellas, and the wind brought in ripples of tablecloths.

Gu Yi looked at the distorted neon reflection on the glass: "It seems you are lucky."

"With money? I do have money." Caesar pulled out a black card from the inner pocket of his windbreaker, and the metal border flashed a cold light under the chandelier.

"Bringing wealth means attracting fortune." Gu Yi looked at the second group of backpackers who came in. "Since we sat down, this shop has been constantly filled with customers."

"Then why didn't you bring the money?"

"I have a friend. We are always unlucky when we are together. I am definitely not a lucky person." Gu Yi crossed his legs and looked at the door.

"Do you two often encounter bad luck?"

“Yes, there are always many situations.”

"Then I'm curious about what kind of person your friend is." Caesar shook his head. As he spoke, eight more burly men entered, their jackets zipped up to their chins. The last two men, as they closed the door, deliberately hung a "CLOSED" sign, their leather gloves pausing for three seconds on the doorknob.

"It seems I did bring a bit too much money." Caesar glanced around. The two tables of people who had been dining there noticed something was wrong and hurried away, putting down their chopsticks.

Gu Yi stared at the bulging lower backs of the guests at the latest table: "Now it seems that I might be the unlucky one. I wrongly blamed him."

All the newcomers silently flipped through the menus, the pages rustling. When a waiter in a dark blue uniform came over with a roast duck cart, the wheels got stuck in the cracks between the tiles. A cold sweat suddenly broke out on the back of his neck, and he realized that all the guests' eyes were fixed on him.

Gu Yi suddenly waved to the waiter who was standing there frozen: "Brother, we don't want the roast duck anymore. Take everyone and retreat through the back alley."

The clerk nodded tremblingly, but turned around and bumped into two burly men in windbreakers who looked like two walls of flesh.

"Let them go, or I will chop you all to death now." Gu Yi warned coldly.

One of the first gray-clad men who came in suddenly coughed: "Let them go." The sound was like sandpaper rubbing against iron.

The moment the strong man who was blocking the way turned sideways, the waiters in the hall all ran to the kitchen. As the chaotic footsteps gradually faded away,
Gu Yi glanced at the phone screen: "My phone has no signal." Caesar raised an eyebrow and checked his own phone. The signal bar was glaringly off. "Mine doesn't work either."

At this moment, the white man who had initially coughed stood up. He was a short, thin man, like a vulture, with a hooked nose visible beneath the hood of his gray hoodie. He strolled over to the table for two, resting his dry, branch-like fingers on the back of the chair. "Can we sit down and talk?"

"No."

"sit down."

Gu Yi and Caesar spoke at the same time, both feeling a little embarrassed.

Caesar elegantly spread out his palms to signal his companions to make a decision. A subtle friction sound of the leather of the Desert Eagle holster could be heard under his black windbreaker.

Gu Yi spun the chopsticks between his fingers, leaving a shadow: "I hate eating with strangers, you should stand."

"That's so rude." The man continued to pull the chair and was about to sit down.

A sudden sound of breaking wind arose. Silver chopsticks, a cold gleam, brushed past the man's ear, half-buried in the brick wall behind him, causing the wall to fall away. The man, maintaining a flattering smile, took a half step back, revealing the faint presence of a snake tattoo on his sleeve.

The man kept backing away and raised his hands: "I just want to have a civilized conversation with you two." The snake tattoo on his cuff glowed green under the chandelier, like a real venomous snake crawling under his skin.

Gu Yi picked up another pair of chopsticks and said, "You can talk while standing."

"Of course, but there are some secret matters..." The man leaned in, and the smell of cheap cologne mixed with sweat hit him. "We need to move to a more secluded place. Can you two please move?"

Caesar chuckled: "What if we refuse?"

The neon light distorted into a bloody red on the glass window, and the man's pupils suddenly contracted: "Then we can only use some tough measures."

The sound of piercing air ripped through the last part of the song. Two bamboo chopsticks, like intersecting silver lightning bolts, pierced the man's throat. The last one, striking with pinpoint precision, split the end of the first one, pinning the man to the wall with a drop of blood. As the body slid down, the rubbing of the golden dragon on the plaque was splattered with scarlet.

"Do it!"

The dull thud of bodies falling to the ground was like a starting gun, and the sound of twelve Glock 17s being loaded at the same time was like the prelude to a metal storm.

Caesar pulled out the Desert Eagle and spun around to kick over the table.

Suddenly, gunfire broke out.

(End of this chapter)