Ethan returned to Room 602 and cleaned the blood from his body.
A knock sounded at the door.
Ethan opened it to find Hong Zhi standing outside, holding a first aid kit.
"Manager Chen, I…"
Ethan glanced at the kit in her hand. "That's thoughtful of you. My back's a bit hurt, hard to reach. Could you help me bandage it?"
He turned around. Hong Zhi saw the nasty gash and fumbled to open the kit. She sprayed some antiseptic spray on Ethan's wound and began wrapping it with gauze.
Ethan held his arms up, watching as Hong Zhi wound the bandage around his torso.
"Hong Zhi."
"Yes?"
"Do you think there's any genuine feeling in this place?" Ethan asked, seemingly to her, but also to himself. He turned his head to look out the window.
"Are you talking about Manager Serena?" Hong Zhi kept her head down. "After everyone heard what happened, they were shocked. Some felt it was a real pity. Manager Serena was a good person. But if you mean did people truly care... not many did. They just feel things are different with the new manager, harder to get used to."
"I'm twenty-six now. I started in this line of work around eighteen or nineteen. Didn't listen to my family, followed a boyfriend, was dead set on making big money. Over the years, I've met a lot of people. At the time, I thought they were my closest friends. I don't talk to any of them now."
"Really, what is 'genuine feeling'?"
"It's like two people in love. When they're head over heels, they'd genuinely die for each other, no hesitation. But after time passes, the novelty wears off, even a few words become annoying, let alone making sacrifices for them."
"There are two kinds of people in the world. One kind says, 'My leg is broken, and you're talking about love?'"
"The other kind says, 'So you only broke both your legs, but I lost my love!'"
Hong Zhi tied off the gauze and looked up. "What do you think, Manager Chen?"
"That's true," Ethan nodded. "There's unrequited feelings, and there's mutual affection. Both can be genuine."
"So this is 'mutual affection' now?" A woman's voice came from the doorway.
Mulan pushed the door open, her eyes on Ethan and Hong Zhi standing so close.
"Am I interrupting?"
"Ms. Mu!" Hong Zhi hurriedly explained. "It's not what you think! I was just…"
The rumor in the casino was that Ethan and Mulan were an item. Hong Zhi had naturally heard it.
Ethan smiled at Mulan. "If we were worried about being interrupted, we would have locked the door."
"Then, Manager Chen, Ms. Mu, I'll let you talk. I need to get back to work." Hong Zhi hastily packed the first aid kit and hurried out, closing the door behind her.
Hearing the soft click of the door, Mulan smiled. "Quite considerate. But it seems I was unnecessary." She, too, was holding a first aid kit, having clearly heard about the incident in the casino.
"Not unnecessary," Ethan said, starting to unwrap the gauze. "We can just bandage it again."
"Stop that." Mulan walked over, swatted his hand away, and retied the loose end of the gauze into a neat bow. "It's already done."
Ethan chuckled, went to the side, and pulled on a jacket.
"Manager Chen! Uncle Kun wants to see you!"
Ethan shrugged at Mulan. "Looks like we'll have to continue our chat later."
"No problem, handle your business. Fang Si and the others are here. I'll have a drink with them first."
They left the room. Ethan returned to the casino floor. The moment he stepped past the screen, he felt a gaze lock onto him. He glanced over and saw Victor Mu.
Ethan gave a lopsided grin, waved to Mulan, and headed upstairs.
It was the same office where the fight had occurred. When Ethan entered, he saw Tyler He standing to the side, head bowed, his nose wrapped in gauze. The office was still a mess from the scuffle. Uncle Kun sat in the office chair.
It had been ten days since Ethan last saw him. He noticed Uncle Kun had aged noticeably; Serena's death had hit him hard.
Seeing Ethan, Uncle Kun forced a smile. "I heard you two had a disagreement?"
"Nothing major," Ethan shook his head. "Just a difference in management philosophy."
"Dad! It was more than a difference in philosophy!" Tyler immediately interjected. "I found out Ethan deliberately distributed casino profits to the staff! And he took a tip for himself! According to house rules, fifty percent of tips are supposed to be handed over, but Ethan didn't submit anything!"
"Oh?" Uncle Kun looked at Ethan. "Is this true?"
Ethan shook his head. "No. Probably just rumors."
"Ethan, stop hiding the truth!" Tyler pointed an accusing finger. "What rumors? You were acting recklessly! Dad, in my opinion, we can't let Ethan manage this place anymore!"
Ethan just smiled, saying nothing.
Uncle Kun reached out and tapped his fingers lightly on the desk. "Ethan, you've been here longer. From now on, put in more effort to assist Tianlu."
He used the word "assist."
A triumphant look spread across Tyler's face as he stared arrogantly at Ethan.
"Of course," Ethan nodded, showing no trace of dissatisfaction.
Uncle Kun then turned his gaze to Tyler. "As for you, tell the men you brought to stay out of the casino. Handle casino business within the casino. And no more yelling in here. It's undignified!"
With that, Uncle Kun stood up. As he passed Ethan, he patted him on the shoulder, sighed heavily, and strode out of the room.
Once Uncle Kun was gone, Tyler looked at Ethan with a sneer. "From now on, know your place in this casino. Understand? Like I said, you just work for my father! Know who's primary and who's secondary!"
Ethan shrugged indifferently, turned, and walked out.
Tyler's voice rang out from inside the office. "Someone clean this office up! And remember, this is an office! Don't let just any stray cat or dog wander in! After a while, some people start thinking they own the place!"
Ethan shook his head slightly. He knew Tyler's words were meant for him, but he didn't care.
He had just reached the bottom of the stairs when Fang Si called out to him, pulling him into a VIP lounge.
"My dear Ethan, you're finally here! These past few days, our Lanlan kept running over here, afraid she'd miss you. If you hadn't shown up soon, she was ready to tear this place apart."
"My fault, Sis Fang. I'll punish myself with three drinks." Ethan poured a full glass of red wine and downed it in one go.
As he reached for a second, Fang Si stopped him.
"Alright, that's enough. If you drink any more like that, our Lanlan will worry. You're injured today, so we won't torment you. Next time, you can make it up with a few extra glasses."
She shoved Ethan down onto the seat next to Mulan.
Mulan held a glass of wine and clinked it gently against his. "I really was afraid you wouldn't come back."
Ethan looked puzzled. "Why?"
"Because that day, I saw you…"
"Not that," Ethan interrupted her. "I'm asking, why me? Why did you suddenly choose me?"
Mulan's eyes flickered with something unreadable. She looked down, silent.
Contrary to his usual self, Ethan proactively reached out and took Mulan's hand.
Mulan's head jerked up. She saw Ethan looking at her with utter seriousness.
"Mulan, we're in this world of power and money. At the very least, if we're going to die, shouldn't we die knowing why?"