Tonglong gently touched the side of his powder-burned face and glared at ShaoShu. He sat back with the jade crane and reached for the cord that he'd been wearing around his own neck. When his fingers came up empty, he leaped to his feet, shouting, “My necklace! My key! It's gone!” He slammed his fist on the desk and scowled at ShaoShu and Lei.
Lei lowered his eyes. “With the utmost respect, sir, I do not know why you are glaring at me. I am not the thief in this room. I don't even know what key you're talking about.”
ShaoShu opened his mouth to object but quickly closed it again when he saw Lei discreetly form a pretend pistol behind his back and shoot him.
“Do you have something to say for yourself, Shao Shu?” Tonglong snapped.
“I was just going to ask if you wanted me to go look for it on the deck, sir,” ShaoShu said. “Maybe the flames that burned your collar also burned the cord that held the key.”
Tonglong paused, considering something. “That is a good idea, ShaoShu. Lei, spread the word among the men that I have lost a key. Offer a reward, then make preparations to set sail. The fight club championship is in two and a half days, and it will take us two full days to get there with the damage we have sustained. You don't want to miss your big chance to win it all, do you?”
“No, sir!” Lei said. “I'll get right to it.” He bowed and hurried out of the room.
Tonglong stared hard at ShaoShu, and ShaoShu did his best to hold Tonglong's gaze. Never back down from a bully, he thought.
Tonglong pursed his lips. “I believe you, ShaoShu. If I ever question your loyalty, I will not tie you up in the hold. I will kill you. You know that, don't you?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Good.” Tonglong rubbed the side of his powder-burned face again and glanced at the spot where Lei had stood.
“When we arrive in Shanghai, I may have another job for you.”
CHAPTER 21
Two days later, ShaoShu stepped onto the docks of Shanghai's wharf with mixed emotions. He was happy that he was in Tonglong's good graces and glad that he'd been able to steer clear of Lei since the attack, but he was sad that he had been separated from his friends once again. Perhaps he would make a new friend today in Golden Dragon. Tonglong wanted him to run an errand at the Shanghai Fight Club, and he hoped to be able to sneak away for a few moments and find Hok's older temple brother.
ShaoShu walked calmly away from the ship, and once he was out of sight of the deck, he raced through Shanghai's crowded streets at a dead run, following the directions Tonglong had given him. He arrived at the fight club far sooner than anyone would have anticipated, and he planned to make the most of the extra time. His errand shouldn't take long at all—just to pick up some event posters—so every moment counted.
For years, ShaoShu had wanted to see inside a fight club, and after showing the guards at the front door a letter from Tonglong, he nearly squealed with delight when he stepped inside this one. It far exceeded his expectations.
The gigantic windowless space was perfectly round, with a floor that sloped steadily downward toward the circular pit arena at the room's very center. The fights wouldn't begin until that night, but already the club was alive with activity. Workers brushed final coats of fresh whitewash on the brilliant stone walls, and an army of carpenters swarmed the tiered seating levels, polishing the hundreds of tables and thousands of chairs until the shiny black lacquer was mirror smooth. Ornate tapestries hung from the ceiling rafters, and lanterns made of gold flickered from every direction on the walls. Of all the fight clubs in China, he had heard that Shanghai's was the most grand, and he believed it.
ShaoShu couldn't resist puffing out his chest and walking down one of the sloped aisles like an important person, traveling all the way to the edge of the pit arena. He leaned over the elaborate railing and peered down, and his already wide eyes nearly popped out of his head. It was far bigger and deeper than he'd imagined. The widest part of the circular pit was roughly fifty paces across, and the brick walls lining it stood higher than four men standing atop each other. The floor was made of compacted dirt, and there was a single large wooden door that Tonglong had told him led to a series of tunnels beneath the fight club. That door was the only way into or out of the pit, and those tunnels were his current destination.
ShaoShu looked around, trying to figure out how to access the tunnels without jumping down into the pit, when the pit entry door swung open and someone entered the pit arena. It was Golden Dragon. ShaoShu recognized him from the posters plastered up and down Shanghai's streets. He had short black hair and a kind face, and he looked much younger in person than he did in the posters. His body, however, looked like it belonged on someone else entirely. He was shirtless, and taut muscles rippled across his shoulders and chest. He was wearing standard-issue silk army pants like Tonglong's soldiers, but his thick thighs and calves threatened to burst the seams with every step he took.