Chapter 6: Friends or Phantoms?
In a hole-in-the-wall joint near the Nanzhu Bus Station, Ah Cai was perched on a stool, happily adding extra eggs and sausages to his bowl of seafood noodles. His phone buzzed. He picked up, his voice dripping with unearned confidence.
"What? You haven't handled an E300 yet? As long as it's zero-down, I'll take it today! Don't worry about the cash; I've got several big projects in the works. Millions on the table, we're just finalizing the details..."
Before he could finish, a dark shadow flipped his table. Hot soup splashed everywhere. Haining's eyes were bloodshot as he lunged forward, grabbing Ah Cai by the throat.
"Projects?! Bullsh*t! Ah Cai, you're sitting here eating extra eggs with my blood and sweat?! Move! We're going to that Prado right now. You're giving me a full refund!"
"Easy, Haining! Why are you shouting?" Ah Cai wiped the broth from his face, a flicker of cunning crossing his eyes. "Fine, fine. I'll go with you. But if you want a refund, we have to inspect the condition of the vehicle first, right?"
Half an hour later, by the old residential buildings on Waisha Island.
Haining slammed the Prado into park in the middle of the road—the same car he had just stripped of its GPS trackers. "Don't play games with me! Refund. 130,000 in cash. Not a cent less!"
Ah Cai didn't break a sweat. He pulled out a roll of stickers and began obsessively placing them on the roof and windows like some deranged ritual. He shook his head as he worked. "Haining, man... you've been rough on this rig. Look at this paint—how many scratches is that? And the headlights are fogged up already. How am I supposed to take this back?"
"Don't give me that crap!" Haining stomped his foot. "I bought it for 130k, you pay me back 130k!"
"130k? Go check the market prices. A 2016 original-paint Prado with a warranty from Old Wild Motors fetches a premium." Ah Cai squatted by the tires like a professional inspector. "Look at this. The treads are bald. You've been driving the hell out of this for a month, haven't you? Don't even get me started on the interior. Move aside, let me verify the cabin."
Haining felt something was wrong, but in his desperation to get his money, he stepped back and let Ah Cai in.
As soon as Ah Cai entered the cabin, his movements became shifty. He pulled out his phone and started snapping photos of the carpet, the headliner, and the seats.
"Ah Cai, what the hell are you doing?"
"Documenting evidence!" Ah Cai pointed at some faint scuff marks near the ceiling light with a wicked grin. "Haining, look at this. Footprints on the headliner? You've been having some real 'wild' parties in here, haven't you? I'm taking photos of all of this. Maybe I should send them to your wife? You want a full refund? I'm being generous by not charging you a 'depreciation fee' yet."
"You..." Haining was speechless with rage.
Ah Cai walked to the back of the car and touched the worn steel tow hook. "Look, the paint is rubbed raw. Let me do the math for you, Haining. There are about thirty scratches on this body. At 2,000 yuan per repair, that's 60,000. 130,000 minus 60,000 leaves us with 70,000. Fair, right?"
"70,000?! You're playing with me!"
"Hold on, I'm not done." Ah Cai lit a cigarette and exhaled a slow, deliberate smoke ring. "When you bought it, that was one title transfer—a 15,000-yuan loss in value. Now you want to transfer it back to me? That's a second transfer—another 30,000 loss. We're down to 40,000. And you've been driving it every day for a month. At a rental rate of 2,000 a day, that's another 60,000. 40,000 minus 60,000... Haining, math says you actually owe me 20,000 yuan."
Ah Cai gave him a shameless, oily grin. "But hey, because we're 'brothers,' I'll waive that 20k. You keep the car, and we're even. Square deal?"
"Ah Cai! You absolute piece of trash!" Haining finally snapped. "The loan company is at my door every day! How am I supposed to drive this?!"
"Then just pay the monthly installments. 6,616 for five years and the car is yours. Isn't that a bargain?" Ah Cai sneered. "If you're unhappy, go talk to Ah Hai at Old Wild Motors. He's the one who set up the loan. He's the one who buried the 'landmine.' Go harass him, leave me out of it."
"I'm going to kill you, Ah Cai! I swear I'll kill you!" Haining lunged with his fist.
Ah Cai dodged nimbly, slipped into a passing taxi, and stuck his head out the window as it pulled away. "So, is that a 'no' on the refund? Guess I'm leaving then, buddy!"
"ROT IN HELL!"
Haining's roar echoed across Waisha Island. The Prado sat still in the sea breeze, looking like a great black hole waiting to swallow him whole.