In Hong Kong, “Shen” is more than just a surname.
In the 1940s, the Shens were merely “Tanka” boat people scraping by in the Shau Kei Wan typhoon shelter. Starting with a few broken sampans, they built a business on the edge of a knife smuggling gold, penicillin, and anything else of value in a war-torn world.
Eighty years later, that family, once covered in the stench of fish, had long since washed the mud from their boots. They wore Savile Row suits, lived in Mid-Levels mansions, and had become a behemoth controlling over half of Hong Kong’s shipping arteries. The Shen Group owned seven container terminals in Kwai Tsing and held a death grip on three golden trade routes to Southeast Asia, Europe, and North America.
There was a common saying on the streets: “Wherever the waters of Victoria Harbour flow, the Shen family’s ships follow. If Master Shen so much as coughs, half the port’s laborers go hungry.”
However, from yesterday through this morning, the Kwai Chung Pier had been locked in a state of feverish anxiety.
“Move those cranes faster! Bastards, did you not eat? Where’s the backup generator? Get it up here! If the temperature control on this batch hits red, you couldn’t pay for the damages if I buried you all at sea!” The foreman’s roar, laced with crude Cantonese profanity, echoed across the noisy unloading zone.
Yet, as the man with the umbrella approached, the shouting ceased. The foreman wiped his oil-stained hands hurriedly on his coveralls and jogged over.
“Master Shen,” the foreman’s voice trembled. “It’s not that the brothers aren’t working hard, but the gates are strange today. Usually, a cigarette gets you through; today, even red envelopes are being tossed back. They say it’s a direct order from the top.”
Shen Yanzhou nodded. Just as he was about to probe further, Shen Xizhi walked over. He wiped the rainwater from his face, his tone agitated. “Brother, I just checked the dispatch room. Inspector Liang the one on duty was replaced at the last minute. The new guy is insisting on a ‘Level One Inspection.’ We have hundreds of tons of bluefin tuna and premium wagyu. The moment those containers hit hot air, the quality drops a grade that’s a difference of millions in price.”
“How long until the gates close?” Shen Yanzhou’s voice was soft.
The foreman quickly held up two rough fingers, gesturing urgently. “Two days! Master Shen, only two days! The Datuk in the South Seas is having his birthday soon, and this cargo is the main course. If it doesn’t get on the ship in two days, the contract penalties will leave us in our underwear, and the new routes Shen-Kee just opened in the South Seas will be severed”
He couldn’t continue. He let out a heavy sigh and squatted down, frustratedly scratching at his thinning hair. “This isn’t an inspection; it’s a death sentence.”
Shen Yanzhou pulled a silver cigarette case from his pocket and held a cigarette out to the foreman.
“Take it,” he said in a low voice. “The brothers haven’t slept well these past few days. It’s been hard on you.”
The foreman looked at the premium cigarette. He rubbed his grease-stained hands on his trousers repeatedly before he dared to reach out with a trembling hand. Having spent half his life at the docks, he wouldn’t blink even with a machete at his neck, yet he suddenly felt his throat go dry.
“Master Shen, this… this is just our job.”
“The tall guys hold up the sky when it falls. Don’t panic yet.” A very faint smile touched the corner of Shen Yanzhou’s lips. “Have the brothers connect the backup cooling pipes. I don’t care how much fuel it burns; the temperature must stay constant at minus twenty degrees. The rest of you, rotate to the old lady’s tea stall for a meal put it on my tab. Tell them that as long as the goods are still here, I’ll handle the rest of the trouble.”
The laborers nearby, previously slumped in dejection, suddenly felt a spark ignite in their eyes. In a place like Kwai Chung Pier, where people were often treated as disposable, other bosses only cared about the red ink on the spreadsheets. Only Master Shen cared if they were hungry or tired. These men who lived by the blade didn’t understand much, but they lived by one rule:
For Master Shen, even if they had to swim to the South Seas tonight with ten tons of cargo on their shoulders, they wouldn’t let him take a loss.
Someone in the crowd let out a low roar: “Stop standing around! Connect the cooling pipes! For Master Shen, we’ll guard this cargo even if it costs us our lives!”
Shen Yanzhou looked at them and smiled. He turned around, glancing at the drenched Shen Xizhi. He took out a handkerchief and gently brushed it across Xizhi’s temple, wiping away the rain that was about to drip into his eyes.
“Brother?” Xizhi’s face, previously pale with anxiety, turned visibly red.
“You’re a grown man, yet you’re still so reckless.”
“Ready the car. We’re going to the Inspection Bureau. We need to meet this ‘Inspector Liang’ who swapped shifts so conveniently.”
The Inspection Bureau
Inside the Customs Inspection Building, the air conditioning was cranked up high, a different world from the humid, salty stench of the docks. Shen Yanzhou and Shen Xizhi sat in the reception room for forty minutes. The tea before them had long since gone cold.
“Mr. Shen, I am terribly sorry.” A young Beta secretary walked over in high heels, wearing a professional, fake smile. “Chief Liang has been in an emergency video conference. Tight security from above lately, you understand. This way, please.”
They followed her expressionlessly to the office at the end of the hall. As the door opened, a slightly chubby middle-aged man with a receding hairline put down his files. Seeing Shen Yanzhou, he took off his glasses and offered a smirk that didn’t reach his eyes.
“Ah, Eldest Master Shen, Third Master. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”
“Chief Liang, let’s not beat around the bush.” Xizhi, who had been fuming while waiting outside, stepped forward and slammed a file onto the desk. “The perishables you’ve detained from Shen Shipping have exceeded the legal inspection time limit. If you have no substantive evidence, I have the right to represent my client in filing for an immediate administrative review and suing you for abuse of power.”
Inspector Liang wasn’t intimidated by the legal jargon; he didn’t even lift an eyelid. “Lawyer Shen, no need for such a temper from one so young.”
Liang put his glasses back on, his gaze passing over Xizhi to the silver-haired man behind him. Even though he had seen countless people, he still found himself momentarily dazed by Shen Yanzhou’s aggressive beauty every time they met.
“Master Shen, I’d love to let you through,” he said, spreading his hands helplessly. “But this time is different. A red-headed document came from the top ‘Operation Thunder.’ Tight security. I’m just a low-level cog following orders. In this seat, I’m walking on thin ice.”
“Tight security?” Xizhi sneered. “It seems it’s only tight for our family. How come the Huo family’s ships are using the green channel? Our goods have been X-rayed five times; what else do you want to verify? Do you need to snap off the head of every shrimp to look inside?”
“If the procedure requires it, that is not impossible.” Inspector Liang shrugged, playing the part of a man who didn’t care. “Furthermore, we received a real-name report from a member of the public claiming that Master Shen’s containers are carrying contraband. Since there’s a report, we must investigate to the end. That is the rule.”
“Who is the informant? Where is the chain of evidence?”
“Based on the principle of informant protection, I cannot disclose that.” Liang picked up his teacup and blew on the steam. “Lawyer Shen, until the procedure is finished, my hands are tied. You should go back and wait for news. Once there’s a result, I’ll notify you both immediately.”
Xizhi’s face turned white with rage. He wanted to argue further, but a slender, pale hand rested gently on his shoulder.
“Xizhi, step aside.”
Xizhi looked at Yanzhou and obediently retreated. Shen Yanzhou stepped forward, looking down at Inspector Liang.
“Chief Liang, over the years, the ‘tokens of appreciation’ the Shen family has sent to your home would be enough to buy a luxury flat in Happy Valley. Do we really need to play this ‘strictly business’ drama between us?”
Liang’s expression shifted, his eyes flickering as he avoided Shen Yanzhou’s piercing gaze. “Master Shen, business is business.”
“Five million.” Shen Yanzhou cut him off directly. “I don’t care who told you to hold the cargo. Five million. I want your signature within half an hour.”
Greed wrestled frantically in Liang’s murky eyes. He couldn’t help but steal another glance at this man of combined beauty and wealth. Five million in the past, he would have accepted it with a smile and personally escorted Shen Yanzhou out, especially since the cargo was indeed clean.
But, he thought of the phone call from last night. Fear crushed his greed.
“Master Shen.” Liang set down his tea, his voice turning raspy and losing its bureaucratic tone. “This really isn’t about money. Even if you gave me fifty million, I can’t sign that paper.”
Shen Yanzhou keenly captured the terror in his eyes. “So, you’re afraid you won’t live to spend it.”
He leaned down slightly, hands propped on the desk, staring directly into Liang’s eyes. “Tell me, who is it? Just give me a name. The five million is still yours, and the Shen family can guarantee your family’s safe passage out of Hong Kong.”
“Master Shen, don’t ask. Please, don’t ask.” Liang slumped back into his chair, looking miserable. “When the gods fight, the mortals suffer. I really don’t dare say it. I can’t afford to offend them. If I talk, I’ll be feeding the fish in the typhoon shelter tomorrow.”
Since money couldn’t pry his mouth open and threats didn’t work, it meant the force threatening Liang was even more terrifying than the Shens.
“Fine.” Shen Yanzhou straightened up and didn’t press further. He knew there was no point. The other side was determined to ruin him, and Liang was just a puppet pushed to the front.
He turned to leave, but paused at the door, glancing back at Liang one last time.
“Chief Liang, it’s true that mortals suffer when gods fight.”
“But if you pick the wrong side, that ‘suffering’ might arrive sooner than you think.”
With that, he and Xizhi walked out. It wasn’t until that beautiful silhouette vanished that Liang realized his shirt was soaked with sweat. He let out a long breath and wiped his brow with a handkerchief, muttering to himself:
“Master Shen, you’re such a beautiful person. Why did you have to provoke those mad dogs?”
The Return
When they exited the building, the rain hadn’t stopped; it was drenching all of Hong Kong. The black Bentley sped along the main road back to Central. The pressure inside the car was suffocatingly low.
“Brother, I’ll have the legal department draft a lawsuit immediately,” Xizhi broke the silence.
“A lawsuit is too slow.” Shen Yanzhou leaned against the back seat, eyes closed. “By the time we get a court date and finish the administrative review, the opportunity will be gone. That bluefin tuna wouldn’t even be fit for canning.”
“Then what do we do?”
“I’ll go beg people; you go investigate.” Shen Yanzhou opened his eyes. “That old fox Liang is usually obsessed with money, yet today he didn’t dare take five million. Go find out who he’s seen and where he’s been. I don’t believe for a second that he’s clean.”
“Understood. I’ll contact the private investigators and informants now.” Xizhi nodded.
Back at the headquarters in Central, Shen Yanzhou spent the next several hours combing through every contact in his phone. However, the elders and high-ranking officials who usually bowed to him were now either playing dumb or “earnestly” advising him to pray for himself.
It continued until 1:00 AM.
Xizhi hung up a call with a private investigator and looked dejectedly at Shen Yanzhou. “Brother, they’re investigating, but it won’t be fast. Liang’s movements have been very secretive. The investigator says it’ll take at least two days to piece the clues together.”
Two days… by then, it would be too late.
“Xizhi, notify Ah Biao in Security immediately.” Shen Yanzhou’s eyes turned ruthless. “Since Chief Liang won’t take the carrot, give him the stick. Tell Ah Biao to take a few brothers with clean records and give Inspector Liang a ‘taste’ of our hospitality. Whatever it takes, I want to know exactly who ‘the people above’ are before dawn.”
“Right, Brother. I’ll notify him.” Xizhi nodded. Looking at his brother’s pale face, he felt a pang of sorrow. From noon until now, Shen Yanzhou hadn’t had a drop of water. Working ten hours straight would wear down a man of iron, let alone his brother’s delicate constitution.
“Brother, the convenience store downstairs is still open. I’ll go buy some hot sandwiches to tie us over? You should sleep in the office lounge tonight to save time. We have to watch the legal department first thing tomorrow.”
Staying at the office was indeed the most rational choice. He was about to agree, but the image of the man he just bought flashed through his mind the way he had looked at Yanzhou with those dark, dog-like eyes before he left this morning, saying in clumsy yet stubborn Cantonese:
“Come back early. I’ll be waiting for you… to come home.”
Since his parents passed away… no one had said that to him.
Thinking of this, Shen Yanzhou stood up and draped his suit jacket over his arm. “I’m going back after all.”
“Huh?” Xizhi was stunned. The rain hadn’t stopped; the drive to Mid-Levels would take at least half an hour.
“I just got a dog at home. I need to go back and see if he’s bitten through anything,” Shen Yanzhou replied flatly.
Xizhi’s eyes widened. “A dog? Brother, don’t you hate shedding creatures? When I wanted a Golden Retriever, you said it was too much trouble. Why suddenly…”
Shen Yanzhou put on his coat and straightened his collar, the memory of the man holding his ankle surfacing.
“I just felt like raising one.”
And besides, that dog was a bit stupid. If he didn’t go back tonight, the man might actually wait forever.
When he reached the villa, it was past 2:00 AM. The wind in Mid-Levels was strong, carrying the salty moisture from the sea, instantly chilling Shen Yanzhou through his thin suit.
He walked up the steps. Just as he was reaching for his keys, he saw a figure sitting on the dark stone stairs.
The dog he had bought for thirty million was wearing only a thin shirt, guarding the door. The rain had long since soaked his clothes; his black hair hung limply over his forehead, dripping water.
Hearing footsteps, the man looked up sharply. Rainwater slid down his sharp jawline. From the prolonged cold, his lips were purple and his body was shivering yet when he saw Shen Yanzhou, those pitch-black eyes burned like fire.
“Thirty Million,” Shen Yanzhou opened his umbrella and spoke coldly. “Why didn’t you go inside?”
The man looked up at him, and his lips slowly pulled into a slightly dim-witted smile.
“Waiting inside… there’s a door between us.”
“Being here, I can see you… a little sooner.”