TSIBAMS Chapter 103
by VolareWhen the results of the art college entrance exam came out, Ye Xing was in class.
He wasn’t surprised to see the scores and rankings sent by Teacher Xia. The only bit of excitement he felt quickly faded away because there was no one around to share it with.
It wasn’t until after class that he sent a message to Fang Rong to share the good news.
Then, Teacher Xia called: “Xiao Xing! I knew you would definitely rank in the province! Now I can finally relax!”
Ye Xing had imagined countless times the scene of him checking his scores and sharing his joy with Qi Guang – this was the first achievement he had worked hard for in order to be closer to his future.
But now, all that remained was an empty joy.
He sniffled and chatted with Teacher Xia for a while. Besides the expected expressions of gratitude, he finally agreed to participate in the art academy’s school exam.
It was strange that even though it was a good choice for himself, it felt like a compromise, even a kind of betrayal for some reason.
Finally, on the fifteenth day of leaving Chen Town, he mustered the courage to open Qi Guang’s chat box for the first time.
Although he had made a mess of their breakup, he always thought Qi Guang was just acting impulsively, and that he would soon send a message asking how he was doing. But half a month had passed with no contact, and the other party hadn’t made the slightest move.
This wasn’t Qi Guang’s style.
He was seriously breaking up with him.
It wasn’t as if he hadn’t tried to get information from others. Ye Xing had already learned from Zhou Tian that the situation wasn’t entirely as he knew it, and he had contacted Brother Xu a few times. Although when he contacted Brother Xu, both of them were so down that they couldn’t communicate properly, he even felt that Brother Xu could jump on a plane to come and cry with him.
But to be honest, he himself was shocked for a long time by the fact that Bai Shu had been detained.
Besides that, he hadn’t dared to ask Qi Guang about what happened on New Year’s Eve.
He had imagined countless scenarios. The worst case was that Qi Guang had already blocked him, the second worst was that Qi Guang wouldn’t reply to his messages, or would reply after a few days just out of courtesy.
Getting a reply right away was almost a luxury.
But he knew very well that once he sent a message, every minute, every second, every day and every night he spent waiting for the reply would be torture.
Thinking of this, he closed the chat box again.
The day before the final exam, the entire grade was immersed in an eerie silence. Qi Guang felt suffocated and secretly slipped out of the school.
“What? You’re not fighting for first place in the grade anymore? Giving it away?”
Brother Xu’s house looked like it hadn’t been lived in for decades. The curtains were tightly closed, making the light dim. Random objects were scattered everywhere, clothes and pants that shouldn’t be in the living room were recklessly taking over the dining table, the chicken soup stain on the floor had become an unknown black solid circle, and beer bottles were rolling around, making it difficult to walk.
He cleared the obstacles while letting Qi Guang in.
Qi Guang, who had always been a neat freak, was now indifferent to this terrible living environment: “Fight for what? I’ve been in school for the past half month like I’m in jail. I can’t study.”
Brother Xu paused his movements.
Qi Guang cursed himself inwardly and asked, “How’s Brother Bai doing?”
Brother Xu swept the clutter off the sofa and let him sit down, then casually turned on the floor lamp beside him. Although it wasn’t very bright, at least visibility wasn’t as bad as before.
“Only lawyers are allowed to visit during the detention period. The lawyer said that Bai Shu’s condition isn’t too negative, which is good news in bad news,” Brother Xu lit a cigarette, “As for me… I’ve been running to the hospital every day. I’ve paid all the medical expenses that needed to be paid. I’ve also been sending him fruits and meals. He should be discharged in a few days. If you’re free, you can come and watch how someone who was as thin as a monkey before going to the hospital has been fattened up by me in half a month.”
He couldn’t help but chuckle after saying this.
Even though he knew that this was sarcasm and not a joke, Qi Guang was still a bit surprised.
Brother Xu’s condition was obviously not as impulsive and violent as before. He probably had been running around for the past half month without any results, and now he could only accept his fate while passively resisting.
“So you haven’t reached an agreement?” Qi Guang asked, “There’s only half a month left. If they don’t drop the charges, he might be arrested.”
Brother Xu was very clear that after being arrested, the other party would appeal, which would mean a year and a half of imprisonment, and there would be no chance for a reversal.
He let the smoke fill his mouth for a moment before slowly exhaling. The white smoke outlined tangled lines under the floor lamp above his head, rising and then dissipating.
“I’m planning to sell 1984 first. Once I get the money, I’ll throw it in their faces. I believe the impact of cash is more tempting than verbal negotiations. If that doesn’t work, I’ll sell the KTV as well.”
Qi Guang looked straight at him.
Brother Xu seemed much older these days. The stubble on his face was no longer just a faint hint, and his eyes had lost their usual shine. His brows, because of constant frowning, had formed a clear “川” character.
He was momentarily speechless: “Brother Xu…”
“I’ve already found a buyer, and I’ll go talk to them in a few days,” Brother Xu said.
“I used to think that Bai Shu was just making a one-sided effort, and that you were too heartless towards him. Today I realize how narrow-minded I was,” Qi Guang said with some emotion.
Brother Xu fiddled with some things on the messy coffee table, found an ashtray, and pressed the cigarette butt into it.
“I owe him.”
“What do you mean?”
“There were so many people at the bar that day,” Brother Xu looked at him, “Aren’t you curious?”
Qi Guang frowned.
“I saw the photos Xiaoyun sent me that day. You had your old buddies with you. It was actually quite surprising.”
“Because, this was wrong from the start,” Brother Xu sighed.
These words were unclear, and Qi Guang was confused. He was just about to ask, when his phone vibrated twice.
The sun icon on the chat box seemed like a lifetime ago. Qi Guang’s feelings were a mixture of excitement and nervousness. He read it several times before he finally processed the nine short words in his mind.
-The results of the art college entrance exam are out.
Followed by a screenshot of the score report.
It wasn’t that he hadn’t imagined the possibility of trying to contact him, or looked for an opportunity to ask about the other’s new life. But every time he thought of Fang Rong’s phone call, he felt it was a sin to have such expectations.
These days, his mind was constantly on the verge of “crime”, and he was even afraid of the phone vibrating.
——Afraid it was his message, and even more afraid it wasn’t his message.
When this moment finally came, he felt a sense of relief instead.
He tapped on the screen and typed two words.
-Congratulations.
After sending it, he felt it was inappropriate. Even if they were no longer in a close relationship, he didn’t want the other person to feel any sense of alienation in his words. Qi Guang thought for a few seconds and typed another line.
-Congratulations on your good results, and congratulations on proving yourself with your hard work.
After clicking send, he raised his head and saw Brother Xu lighting another cigarette, looking preoccupied.
His thoughts were immediately pulled back, and he asked, “Brother Xu, what exactly happened on New Year’s Eve when I wasn’t there?”
“I had been contacting my old buddies for several days, until that day, we smashed Liao Le’s sign.” Brother Xu leaned back on the sofa, finding a relatively comfortable position for his limbs, as if preparing to pour out a lot of bitterness. “They were provoking us with dirty tricks. I don’t mind meeting them head-on. I wasn’t afraid of them at all. The only reason I’ve been holding back for so long was to protect my store and avoid trouble. The reason I decided to bring people to smash the sign was to tell them that from now on, let’s not interfere with each other. If anyone makes me uncomfortable, I’ll never let them get away with it. If worst comes to worst, I’ll quit being the boss and fight them. If I can’t even protect my people, then what kind of boss am I!”
This was the first time Brother Xu had clearly expressed the phrase “if I can’t even protect my people” with such clarity.
Qi Guang looked at him, as if he had returned to the time when he used to follow Brother Xu through the streets when they were little, when the latter would proudly tell everyone, “I’ve got this person.”
But times had changed, and the object of protection had changed.
And the emotions involved seemed different as well.
From Bai Shu’s last words to him and Brother Xu’s state of being half-alive these days, he had basically confirmed one thing – something he had been pursuing like a TV series fan who was determined to see his favorite ending.
But now, whether to verify it or not didn’t seem to matter much, only leaving more regrets.
At this moment, the phone vibrated like a warning bell, and he realized he had been holding his breath for a while.
-Thank you.
The two words were clearly displayed in the chat box. There were no extra interjections, and the sentence ended with a proper, no-nonsense period.
He held the phone for a long time, unsure how to react, so he locked the screen.
Brother Xu glanced at him, didn’t ask anything, and continued to talk to himself: “So what happened that night, I was the reason Bai Shu suffered.”
“You’re sick,” Qi Guang retorted bluntly.
“Yeah! I’m sick!” Brother Xu suddenly roared, then said with a wry smile, “I’ve been seriously sick for so many years.”
It was just as he had thought. Qi Guang looked at him steadily, understanding without needing words.
“When did it start?”
“I don’t know the exact time it started,” Brother Xu rested his head on the edge of the sofa, staring intently at the ceiling, “Last time, we had a long cold war because he reported to the police without permission. Actually, I was really miserable. I’m sorry, when you asked me, I didn’t tell you the truth.”
Qi Guang was stunned.
“I’m actually not willing to admit it. I’ve always liked girls since I was a kid. When I was little, I had a crush on my music teacher. After I dropped out of school, I thought the girl in the hair salon near my house was cute. I insisted on getting my hair cut at her place for three years. If she hadn’t moved to the city with her mother, she might be your boss’s wife now,” Brother Xu said.
“It seems I missed a lot of your old stories during these years I was away.”
“Who knew I’d be… I’d be bent by a kid,” Brother Xu said with a hint of reluctance.
Qi Guang patted him on the shoulder: “He had it rough too, following you for so long! The War of Resistance Against Japan lasted eight years and even they won! You’ve never had a girlfriend, so he never even had a chance to give up on you!”
Brother Xu frowned and glanced at him.
Is it my fault?
Qi Guang didn’t comment on his expression, and asked, enjoying the show, “So, how did you feel when you saw Li Ke and Bai Shu together?”
“If killing wasn’t illegal, he would have died a thousand times over.”