HR Chapter 43
by VolareWhat kind of person is most pathetic? The kind who places their love on someone without a heart is most pathetic.
A person without a heart, where would emotions come from?
If the heart isn’t here, how can one speak of love?
Sadly, this woman doesn’t understand. She simultaneously covets vanity and holds genuine affection, making her nothing more than a clown in Lu Jianwei’s eyes.
“Don’t call me Madam Lu!” The woman shrieked, covering her ears and desperately shrinking into the corner. She had done many wrong things, but she never regretted them. The most outrageous mistake was presuming to become Madam Lu, only to be trampled into the mud, unable to lift her head.
“Madam Lu, I’m inquiring about someone,” Lu Qinyuan said, his voice gentle and polite. He smiled slightly, his demeanor humble, yet his posture arrogant.
The woman had calmed down from her initial shock, anger, and resentment upon seeing Lu Qinyuan. She rested her forehead against the wall, relaxing her shoulders to regain the ease she felt while sunbathing, her eyelids half-open, seemingly asleep but not quite. Her hair, unwashed for a long time, had become knotted. As she tilted her head, strands of it fell down, partially obscuring her face, but one could still vaguely discern a hint of her former charm.
Lu Qinyuan crouched down in front of the woman and used a finger to gently pull aside her hair. He examined her closely for a moment, then withdrew his hand, remaining crouched. In one hand, he held a laughing Totoro doll, his eyes seemingly filled with countless emotions, fixated on the woman’s face. The woman felt a creeping dread under his gaze, slowly raising her eyelids and glancing over. Lu Qinyuan smiled, “If Youyou had resembled his father, perhaps I wouldn’t be so resentful towards him. But sadly, he looks like you.”
The woman was slightly dazed, her lips moving slightly as she murmured, “Youyou?”
“I remember Lu Qingshuang’s nickname was Youyou. You always called him that when he was little,” Lu Qinyuan asked, “Am I mistaken?”
The woman shook her head and softly asked, “Youyou, is he doing well?”
“I’m helping him get off drugs. Lu Jianwei got him addicted,” Lu Qinyuan said in a tone as casual as if he had just drunk a cup of tea with honey. The woman’s eyes widened in disbelief as she asked shrilly, “What did you say!”
“Not only is he addicted, but Lu Jianwei also slept with him,” Lu Qinyuan added casually. “Youyou isn’t Lu Jianwei’s son. Lu Jianwei knew that even earlier than you. Fortunately, Youyou looks like you; otherwise, Lu Jianwei wouldn’t have let him live this long.”
“Youyou, Youyou…” The woman covered her face and began to cry softly.
The woman knew perfectly well that her son, no matter whose appearance he took on, was a sin, and the source of that sin was entirely her.
“But Madam Lu, you don’t need to worry,” Lu Qinyuan comforted her, “Youyou might be sad at first, but he probably isn’t anymore.”
The woman looked up, her tear-streaked face grimy, and questioned, “What do you mean!”
Lu Qinyuan stood up, hugging the Totoro doll, his gaze drifting far away. “The thing about emotions is that they’re uncontrollable.”
A woman who had spent half her life immersed in the world of pleasure and romance would certainly understand the meaning of those words. She covered her face again, unable to suppress her sobs. “Youyou ah, wuwuwu…”
“Madam Lu, have you seen a beautiful young boy?” Lu Qinyuan described with patience, “As beautiful as a doll.”
The woman was still immersed in her grief, unable to extricate herself. Lu Qinyuan repeated, asking, “Ms. Nie Zhiping, have you seen him?”
It took the woman a long time to react. She asked, “What did you call me?”
Lu Qinyuan, for some reason, suddenly didn’t hate this woman as much. His tone became calmer than ever. “Nie Zhiping, your name.”
“Oh,” Nie Zhiping responded absently, tears tracing clean streaks down her cheeks. She pointed in a direction and sat down against the wall, muttering softly, “Nie Zhiping, I am Nie Zhiping, I am Nie Zhiping ah…”
Lu Qinyuan stood for a moment, Min Chu’s smiling face flashing through his mind. The resentment he had harbored for many years suddenly dissipated. He suggested in a light tone, “Youyou misses you very much. While you can still walk, it would be good to go see him.”
Nie Zhiping suddenly burst into tears, the people from the Black Rose being drawn out by her crying. Seeing that it was the cared-for beggar woman crying so miserably, their hearts ached. They stood at a distance, watching but not daring to approach.
Lu Qinyuan walked in the direction Nie Zhiping had pointed, and even after walking far, he could still vaguely hear Nie Zhiping’s heartbreaking sobs. He smiled slightly, a self-deprecating smile that also held a trace of pity.
The further he went, the quieter the street became. Not a single person was in sight. A song was playing in one of the shops, the singer’s voice conveying deep emotions through the speakers: “Turning around to leave, unable to say goodbye. Seabirds and fish falling in love is just an accident. Our love, differences have always existed…”
The red-light district was divided into three streets and five avenues. The three streets ran east-west, and the five avenues ran north-south. The three streets were straight, and the five avenues were flat. From above, it looked as regular as a chessboard. Therefore, the red-light district had another name, “Pairing Den”. However, most people didn’t understand the meaning of “Pairing,” and it wasn’t as clear and easy to remember as the words “red light.” They had heard of it but didn’t quite remember it. Often, when someone asked about the Pairing Den, it took them a long time to realize that the red-light district was the Pairing Den, and the Pairing Den referred to the red-light district.
Lu Qinyuan was walking on the third avenue of the north-south avenues, which was also the main avenue of the red-light district. The Difang Nightclub was located on this main avenue, just past a crossroads.
As he passed by, Lu Qinyuan paused briefly. The current Difang was like the boudoir of a noble lady in ancient times, its doors and windows tightly closed, seemingly a respectable household. Only those who had been inside could appreciate the frenzy beneath the calm, and he, Lu Qinyuan, was the beneficiary standing at the top of this food chain.
Although it was cruel, if he wasn’t cruel, others would inevitably participate in the division of the spoils. Rather than benefiting others, it was better to benefit himself.
Min Chu had said long ago that fattening oneself was better than fattening others, as long as there was moderation.
But that moderation had long been lost with Min Chu’s departure. Lu Qinyuan had never cared or asked. The one he cared about was Min Chu, and the one he abandoned was also Min Chu. If she wanted to pass the mess to him, he wouldn’t take it.
The doorman saw Lu Qinyuan standing in front of the door and not leaving, instinctively reaching for the baton at his waist. Lu Qinyuan slowly withdrew his gaze, turned around, and continued walking along the road.
At the end, he reached the third street of the red-light district. On the south side of the road, there was a very inconspicuous small door. A wooden sign was leaning crookedly on the ground, with the two large characters “Pick It Up, Bar” sprayed in red paint. Under the red characters, a simple wine glass and a wine bottle were outlined in black ink.
Originally, it should have been written as “Pick It Up,” but the radical on the left side of the character “Pick” had been worn away. A young man dressed as a waiter was carrying a bucket of red paint, holding a brush in one hand to touch up the sign. Seeing Lu Qinyuan standing to the side watching, he nodded towards the door, “Su Nan is inside.”
Lu Qinyuan nodded slightly and asked, “Have you noticed any particularly new faces these past few days?”
Qu Yuyin picked up the brush to touch up the paint on the wooden sign, saying, “There are new faces every day in the Pairing Den, and many are special. What kind of special are you talking about?” After adding a few strokes, Qu Yuyin stood back to look at it, dissatisfied. He rolled up his sleeves and simply painted the entire wooden sign red, covering up the previous patterns as well. He clapped his hands, very satisfied with his masterpiece.
Lu Qinyuan said, “Like a doll, have you seen one?”
After painting, they had to wait for it to dry. Qu Yuyin had nothing to do, so he spoke seriously with Lu Qinyuan. He thought carefully about the people he had seen these days. In his memory, there was indeed such a person, with short hair that reached his ears, big eyes, and a Doll House mark on the corner of his left eye, supporting a bright red spider lily, very eye-catching. He was Su Nan’s guest. Qu Yuyin said, “There is one particularly special one, it should be the one you’re looking for. You can go in and have a drink first, and I’ll have someone bring him to you.”
Lu Qinyuan said, “No need to bring him over, just tell me where he is.”
Qu Yuyin said, “Understood,” and sent someone to run errands.
The small door was not only inconspicuous but also particularly dilapidated. When the door was pushed open, it made a heavy creaking sound, like an old man crushed by the years, unable to breathe. The rough and jarring sound caused the guests in the bar to look over, but after just one glance, they continued drinking or chatting.
The door was small, and the space inside was also small, with only about twenty seats. But there weren’t many customers, sitting in twos and threes. A soft song was playing on the speakers, accompanied by the customers’ quiet conversations, giving a sense of tranquility.
The bartender sat idly in front of the bar, propping his chin up with his hand. Seeing a guest come in, he nonchalantly switched hands and continued to space out.
Lu Qinyuan stood in front of the bar and knocked twice on the surface. “I’m looking for your boss.”
The bartender propped his chin up and turned his head, his eyes following his movement towards Lu Qinyuan. He said in a lazy voice, “Boss, is the boss of Red-Light Pick It Up, Bar so easy to see?”
Lu Qinyuan looked at the bartender’s face, which was very similar to Qu Yuyin’s, and said helplessly, “Then I’ll have to trouble Yuyin.”
Qu Raoliang slammed the table and stood up: “How dare you!”
Qu Yuyin and Qu Raoliang were twin brothers. The two were simply carved from the same mold, with identical features. At birth, a moment of distraction made it unclear who was the older brother and who was the younger brother. The Qu family parents, looking at the two identical wrinkled little faces, also couldn’t tell who was older. Because their last name was Qu, they simply took Yuyin and Raoliang from the phrase “lingering sound” as their names, writing them separately on slips of paper. The parents each drew lots for their sons, whoever drew Yuyin would be the older brother, and whoever drew Raoliang would be the younger brother.
When the two grew up, their features were still very similar, but their temperaments had changed. Qu Yuyin’s eyes were clean, and he didn’t want to lie against his conscience when facing him. Qu Raoliang’s eyes were also clean, so clean that you couldn’t play tricks in front of him. It was very likely that you would be sold out and still think you had tricked Qu Raoliang.
Qu Raoliang had worried about his brother since he was a child, afraid that his brother would be bullied. At a young age, he asked to learn martial arts, accompanying his brother to practice martial arts for self-defense. Over the years, he had achieved some success. Under the introduction of a friend, he became Su Nan’s bodyguard. Unexpectedly, after guarding for more than twenty years, he lost his mind and body. Qu Raoliang gritted his teeth, wishing he could cut Su Nan into eight pieces and throw him into the sea to feed the turtles. Even more hateful was that Qu Yuyin was willing, they were in love, a straightforward and willing relationship. Qu Raoliang was so annoyed that he wanted to be the corpse that lingered, cut off his breath in three seconds, and be done with it.
Therefore, Qu Raoliang looked down on Su Nan and his relatives, which included Lu Qinyuan.
Author’s Note:
The lyrics in the text are from Jay Chou’s “Coral Sea”. The artistic conception of the lyrics is good, so I quoted it out of context in the text.