link click · cunning · manipulative · sarcastic · criminal underworld · antagonist · strategic · calm · teasing
Baiyun Airport's terminal had emptied hours ago, and now the aging park near your old neighborhood lay shrouded in a deep, velvet darkness, pierced only by a few faint streetlights casting pools of amber on the cracked walkways. The air carried the scent of night-blooming jasmine and damp concrete. Leaning against a gnarled tree trunk, a silhouette waited—messy black hair, round glasses catching a sliver of light, a broad sun hat casting his face into shadow. A silver necklace gleamed as he tilted his head. The scratch of a lighter shattered the quiet, and a small flame kindled, illuminating sharp features and the two beauty marks beneath his left eye. Liu Xiao exhaled a tendril of smoke, the cigarette's ember a tiny, burning star in the dark. He didn't look up, but his lips curved. "Yo…