Mountain Master
Mountain Master
Luo Wanting, dressed in a crisp black suit with a black shirt, propped with a crimson tie, stepped to her side, locking arms with her, and he kept quiet.
Shi Ailin managed to do what she could with her appearance by tousling her curls with some mousse, applying some lipgloss, and using a sample-sized tube of mascara from her essential pack.
They wordlessly walked inside the almost deserted restaurant, and Shi Ailin noticed that some guests were eating alone by a few tables as if they were keeping a distance from each other. She suddenly felt overdressed, but none of the customers snapped their heads towards their direction, as if they didn't mind or didn't care at all.
Luo Wanting guided her to the bar, and there was a bartender who wiped down some glasses dry with a rag.
"What will it be?" The man said to them, his eyes not meeting theirs.
Shi Ailin took a closer look at him and noticed the bartender was avoiding their gaze. She also glanced at the customers again, and they weren't stealing glances, as if they were instructed not to.
"I would like the Mountain Dragon," Luo Wanting spoke smoothly. He said 'Mountain Dragon' in English, and Shi Ailin wasn't able to grasp what it meant.
Shi Ailin watched as the man responded, "It's not on the menu."
Luo Wanting narrowed his eyes. But he then said again, his voice hard, "I would like the Mountain Dragon from the secret menu."
The bartender put away some of the glasses he washed, and they clinked against the rack. "It's one hell of a costly drink," he replied harshly. "Are you sure about that?"
"I'm willing to pay the price," Luo Wanting gritted out impatiently.
The man tossed his head slightly towards a direction without their eyes meeting. Most likely, he depended on his peripheral vision. "I will show you the bottle," he said, walking away. Shi Ailin tried not to display her blatant confusion.
What did Luo Wanting want to do with an alcoholic drink?
The man guided them towards the back of the bar and restaurant. He took out a golden, amber-filled bottle, and at the same time, Luo Wanting pulled out a thick wad of cash, quickly making the exchange.
The man then glanced at a door that looked like the kitchen, but judging by their expressions; it wasn't just that.
Luo Wanting gave a curt nod, but the man must have noticed the slight movement, as he darted away. Luo Wanting held the bottle with one hand while the other wrapped around her arm, guiding her inside.
They both sauntered into the kitchen, walking past a large stove, a double-door fridge, and a long stainless steel table. Shi Ailin noticed that nothing was cooking, and she realized that the customers, who had food, were pretending to eat while avoiding their gazes.
There was a door next to a large freezer, and Luo Wanting pushed it open. The lighting dimmed into red neon-lighting, replacing white.
Shi Ailin felt like she could hardly see as they stepped down the stairs, walking down a makeshift tunnel, and the door shut behind them, startling her.
"We're going underground," Luo Wanting finally said, low, and they were alone again. "In the late 18th century, when the black societies were established, many of our ancestors would meet Underground to do some illicit exchanges, to gamble, drink, and whore. It resembles a far more wicked version of a Speakeasy; similar to what American's used during the prohibition. But in this part of the country, these societies are different than back at home. Here, it's far more disorderly, dangerous, and reckless."
"How dangerous?" She asked.
"Very," he explained. "There are loosely organized factions here called the Dark Forces. There isn't one big boss; there are many who claim themselves to be the Mountain Master, also known as the Head Dragon. The first Mountain Master was a wealthy tradesman, and his family came from aristocracy. He had seven children, and when they were each old enough, he scattered them across the country, planting these secret clubs and underground networks. Eventually, they began to fight over who would be their father's successor. And due to many disagreements, it turned out into a full-blown tournament until one of them was left. The sole survivor became the Mountain Master, but instead of staying, he decided to leave this province and start anew somewhere else. Rumours say his descendants are still alive."
Shi Ailin gasped. "Wouldn't that be the Long family?" Her voice echoed and bounced from the walls. She recalled their symbol: the Azure Dragon.
"Lower your voice," he suggested gently. "We don't know if there are listening ears."
Shi Ailin looked around. "There are no windows. No one should be able to hear us," she said. Only endless halls, she thought.
"Be cautious," he told her. "We don't know if there aren't any prying ears. Our voices could echo and fall toward the wrong people. But to answer your previous question, yes, it would be the Long family."
"I don't understand," she whispered.
Luo Wanting cleared his throat. "Well, when the true Mountain Master left, many youth and street gangs, here, began to take matters into their own hand, trying to establish what their predecessor left behind. They managed to get far, but then individuals also began self-proclaiming themselves as the Ultimate Sovereign, and it sparked territorial wars, just like what happened to the Long family. After a lot more bloodshed, they realized the mistakes they were making due to this endless pattern. So, they decided to create the Dark Forces, separate organizations, but dangerous nonetheless because to them, there are no rules and no morals, and everything to them is a sick game."
Some part of Luo Wanting looked rattled, nearly scared. It made her tremble. "How come we have the role of an Emperor/Empress?" Shi Ailin asked.
They took a sharp turn. The tunnel was a labyrinth of halls, and she realized the path they were going was dim, but the darker halls meant the wrong direction, so they avoided them. She also figured out that if this base was infiltrated, they could confuse people by turning off the lights, and the underground club wouldn't be able to be found right away, or guests had time to escape.
"We're organized," he said. "After the Mountain Master came to Shanghai, he didn't want to relive what his family had gone through, so he made himself Emperor. He found that battles between organizations to be pointless because it was wiping them from existence and eliminating their cause. He had a few pupils that followed his lead by example, and then he gave them factions to organize separately, but they still listened to him, collectively."
"But, down the line, shouldn't Mr. Long be the Emperor?" She questioned. Shi Ailin recalled meeting him at Shi Yen's announcement party. He was there when he backed them up to threaten Li Biyu.
"Well, there was one generation where one of the daughters succeeded as Empress. She then married into the Shi family, and while she and her husband ruled all organizations, her brother ran the Dragon organization. So, technically, your family is distantly related to the Longs."
Shi Ailin gaped. There was so much she didn't know, and to think one of her ancestor's had shaped to what now was still relevant. She always wondered why her father. Why did he have to carry such a burden? She thought of Shi Yen. Why her, too? But, some part of her understood now. Without a leader, there would be chaos, and the Dark Forces seem to embrace chaos.
She thought about it. "Why weren't the customers at the restaurant allowed to look at us?"
He tightened his grip on her. "They are told not to because this club is a secret. If it gets infiltrated by the police, they will raise the alarm, giving guests time to escape. If they are caught and questioned, there are no lies they can tell because there is no information to give."
Shi Ailin approached him closer. "All right, then."
"If you want, we can turn back now."
"No way," Shi Ailin said determinedly. This is the world of her family and her friends, and she was tired of being the only one out of the loop.