ECG -Chapter 17 Brother, I Miss You!

The big pancake-faced man stood in front of Zhou Dongbing, saying something to him. This guy would pat Zhou Dongbing on the shoulder one moment, then grin and lightly punch him twice in the chest the next.

Zhou Dongbing kept a smile on his face and didn’t say a word.

Afterward, the two of them walked side by side to the front of the stage.

Lin Hao’s singing continued, and the bar became quieter and quieter. All the guys with shaved heads turned their heads to look at Lin Hao on the stage.

This song had no instrumental interlude. As Lin Hao sang, he secretly complained to himself: Did I fall into a thieves’ den tonight? Why are there so many people from the underworld here?

His hoarse, weathered voice told the story of deep brotherhood. It seemed to possess an endless magic, causing everyone in the bar to become immersed in the song.

Zhou Dongbing’s eyes were filled with tears. He had already put his arm around the big pancake-faced man’s shoulder. Looking again at the big pancake-faced man, his nose was running like a long stream, and tears were pouring down his face.

“Brother, I miss you!

Are you doing alright over there?”

The song was filled with sadness.

“Wait for me to come home—”

The music stopped. Lin Hao pressed his lips close to the microphone.

“Brother, wait for you to come home!”

That deep, hoarse voice disappeared, and the bar fell completely silent.

Zhou Dongbing’s vision blurred with tears.

The big pancake-faced man forcefully sniffed, and the foot-long stream of snot miraculously disappeared back inside.

Some customers were already crying their eyes out. A bald man had actually collapsed on the table sobbing. Another burly man with the character “忍” (endure) tattooed on his right arm was crying while pounding his fist against the table.

“Waiter!” the big pancake-faced man shouted loudly. “Bring out 100 flower baskets!”

That roar immediately earned a wave of cheers from the bar.

After saying that, he pulled out the black wallet tucked under his arm and took out a thick stack of money.

The young waiter hurried away. He glanced at Zhou Dongbing and thought to himself: There are only 20 flower baskets, and they’re supposed to be reused. Where am I supposed to find 100 of them?

After taking the money, seeing that Zhou Dongbing wasn’t looking at him, he could only quietly ask:

“Boss Cao, the place is small. How about I bring them up in groups of 20?”

“No problem!” The big pancake-faced man waved his hand, then wiped away his tears.

Lin Hao’s heart lit up.

Ten thousand yuan!

Sure enough, you couldn’t judge a person by appearance. This guy just had a big face and a lot of money. Looks like he picked the right song.

Zhou Dongbing turned around and left. However, his back seemed not as straight as before, and his footsteps had become much heavier.

The big pancake-faced man immediately chased after him.

“Hey, Dongbing, wait for me.”

The helpless waiter began piling flower baskets onto the stage.

Lin Hao thought to himself: What song should I sing next?

Then he thought again. There weren’t many women here tonight. Looks like this place was booked by a bunch of society guys. In that case, he might as well sing something more masculine.

That previous song had already made these men wearing big gold chains and small gold watches cry their eyes out, so he didn’t say anything emotional this time.

A fierce and powerful rhythm began to play. Lin Hao’s voice became clear and passionate:

“Facing countless waves with pride,

My hot blood shines like the red sun…”

After only singing a few lines, the band members came back in. One after another, they walked to the right side of the stage and listened to him sing.

The big pancake-faced man followed behind Zhou Dongbing and walked out of the bar. The two stood at the entrance.

After hearing Lin Hao’s previous song, Zhou Dongbing thought of his former brothers, and thought of Ma Liu and Ribenzi, who still didn’t dare to return to Chunhe even now. His heart felt heavy, so he wanted to come outside for some fresh air.

“Dongbing, about what happened the night before last… it was my fault. Don’t take it to heart!” The pancake-faced man pulled out a pack of Soft Zhonghua cigarettes and hurriedly lit one for Zhou Dongbing.

Zhou Dongbing took a deep drag and asked softly, “Old Cao, you’re almost forty, right?”

The pancake-faced man chuckled. “Not quite, not quite yet.”

“The biggest bathhouse, nightclub, and karaoke hall in Chunhe all belong to you, Cao Yitui. Back when you were locked up, did you ever think you’d have this day?”

“Stop joking!” Cao Yitui gave an awkward laugh. “Back then, all I hoped for was to get out early. How could I have imagined any of this?”

Zhou Dongbing smoked silently for a long while. There was nothing else he could do but remain quiet.

After finishing the cigarette, Zhou Dongbing tossed the butt onto the ground and ground it out with the tip of his shoe.

Then he sighed. “Cherish it.”

The smile on Cao Yitui’s face stiffened slightly. He wanted to say something, but he didn’t know what would be appropriate.

Zhou Dongbing chuckled, put an arm around his shoulder, and said, “Come on, let’s go listen to some songs!”

Cao Yitui quickly answered, “Sure! Sure!”

“Be a real man,

with hot blood and a warm heart,

shining brighter than the sun—”

Inside the bar, Lin Hao repeatedly sang those final lines, while everyone stood up and joined in the grand chorus.

Looking at the members of the band, even Qian Yu unconsciously grabbed Fatty Wang’s chubby little hand and started singing along.

The young waiter had already removed the flower baskets from the stage four times. This time was the last time he carried them up, and he was so tired that he could barely lift his arms.

Lin Hao bowed and stepped off the stage. The other band members gave him a thumbs-up. Qian Yu felt a little embarrassed, but he still raised his hand. Lin Hao smiled and nodded at him.

Lin Hao believed that the incident at the music shop last time would teach him a lesson. Besides, he was only doing solo guitar performances and had no connection with the band. Since they would inevitably see each other again, there was no need to treat each other like enemies. As long as they could get along, that was enough.

The bar erupted into enthusiastic and lasting applause. All those guys wearing huge gold chains had flushed little faces, feeling as if they had become great generals fighting on a battlefield full of passion and blood.

Upstairs in the office, Lin Hao sat on the sofa while Chu Yu smiled and placed a stack of money on the tea table.

“This is 5,200 yuan. The 200 yuan is your wages, and the other 5,000 yuan is from the flower baskets. We’ll split that 50-50.”

Lin Hao nodded. He looked at the money, reached out, picked up the top two bills, and smiled.

“Sis Chu, this 200 yuan is what I deserve. As for the remaining 5,000, forget it.”

Chu Yu was stunned. “Why?”

Lin Hao shook his head.

“That big brother probably used this opportunity to apologize to Brother Zhou. I can’t take this money.”

Chu Yu was shocked. She never expected that this young man, who wasn’t even twenty years old, could actually see through the hidden intentions behind this.

This person was not simple!

Just as she was about to persuade him, Zhou Dongbing pushed open the door and entered.

So she repeated Lin Hao’s words to him.

Zhou Dongbing looked deeply at Lin Hao, walked up in front of him, and said:

“Take it. Don’t worry about anything else. The money I, Zhou Dongbing, give away has never been taken back.”

Lin Hao looked up at him and said seriously:

“I, Lin Hao, only earn the money I deserve.”

Zhou Dongbing burst out laughing. He pointed at the money on the table.

“Isn’t this exactly that? If you didn’t sing well, would anyone give you flower baskets? Didn’t you see how that little waiter almost exhausted himself because of this money? Hahaha!”

Lin Hao and Chu Yu both laughed along with him.

Lin Hao didn’t act overly polite. He knew that people like Zhou Dongbing looked down on men who were too fussy and hesitant, so he directly grabbed the money and stuffed it into his pocket. Then he stood up and said:

“Then I’ll head back.”

As he was leaving, Zhou Dongbing asked:

“What was the name of your first song today?”

“‘Brother, I Miss You.’”

His body paused for a moment, and he said:

“Nice song.”

Lin Hao nodded and left.