The sponge cushions on the sofa, which had been neatly arranged the night before, were now out of place. Yu Mo used one hand to straighten them; she wouldn't be able to put the sofa cover back on until her arm recovered.
She felt Qi Lian standing at the bathroom door, his gaze lingering on her for a long time. She looked up, and the sight sent a jolt through her heart, making her forget what she was doing.
Qi Lian stood in the doorway, his tall frame nearly reaching the top of the frame. He stared at her without moving, his eyes filled with a look she had never seen before—one that made her feel a flicker of fear.
"Yu Mo," Qi Lian called out. His voice was eerily calm, like the surface of the sea before a storm.
"What is this?" He held up a blue bottle.
Yu Mo squinted. The bottle didn't look familiar at first; she couldn't quite place it.
Before she could speak, Qi Lian slammed the blue canister onto the floor with a sharp *crack*. The calm on his face shattered instantly. He strode toward her, grabbing the hem of his T-shirt as he walked and whipping it off with a single motion, flinging it aside.
His lean, muscular body glistened under the summer sunlight.
He moved too fast, like a roaring beast charging forward, leaving her no room to defend herself. Yu Mo only had time to take two steps back before Qi Lian was upon her.
"Didn't you want to sleep with me? I never said I was unwilling. I'll let you sleep with me right now."
He lunged forward, cinching his arms around her slender waist and hoisting her up. Before Yu Mo could react, she was held aloft in the air, half a head taller than him. She looked down into his crazed eyes.
"But I don't want to anymore," she said.
"No, you should try it," he said, his voice frantic.
Yu Mo didn't move, nor did she answer.
Qi Lian buried his head against her chest. "I'll let you sleep with me. I've changed my mind. I don't give a damn if I'm just your toy, but you can't go looking for other men."
His scorching breath sent a wave of heat through her chest.
"Qi Lian, I'm not interested in you anymore."
Qi Lian didn't know how he managed to walk out of that door. He even forgot to put his shirt back on, stumbling down the stairs so despondently he nearly fell.
Pain was like a snake slithering through his limbs, threatening to burst through his flesh and tear him apart.
He staggered toward the railing by the river. Following the fence for a short distance, he found a gap where the bars had been bent, hunched over to squeeze through, and dove into the Lotus River without hesitation.
The river water pressed in from all sides, squeezing his eardrums and his chest. The lukewarm water soothed his agony. This was his familiar Lotus River—the only thing that stayed in place, the only part of his warm childhood that hadn't abandoned him.
He held his breath and stretched his limbs, staying in the embrace of the darkness until his lungs burned.
The surface of the river returned to a placid stillness. His shirt had long since drifted away to parts unknown. In the wild grass by the bank, summer insects chirped with long, drawn-out cries.
After a while, his head broke the surface. He gasped for air and began to stroke his arms, swimming continuously until he was utterly exhausted.
That evening, as the elderly neighbors lingering downstairs were reluctantly preparing to head home, they saw a young man walking back from the fence. Everyone fell silent.
The man was shirtless, water dripping steadily from his hair and body. His mid-length trousers clung tightly to him, revealing a lean waist and a sharp Apollo's belt. His expression was grim, and he remained oblivious to the stares of those around him.
Auntie Hua, who was cooling off by the flower bed while waving an old cattail fan she’d owned for over a decade, watched him. As she looked, she was reminded of a girlhood dream from decades ago—a dream inhabited by an eternally young boy, her first love.
***
It was already midnight when Jiang Yuan called. Qi Lian was lying in bed, his entire body aching and his head heavy with a low-grade fever.
Jiang Yuan had just finished a drinking session and was sounding a bit thick-tongued. He launched into a tirade immediately: "I never fucking dreamed that one day you, Qi Lian, would raise a hand against your own brothers and beat someone black and blue. Ten or twenty years ago, you were the one protecting them from bullies, and now you're the one hitting them? Fuck, are you still one of us or not?"
Qi Lian felt like his head was splitting open. Every one of Jiang Yuan's words felt like a chisel carving into his heart.
"Jiang Yuan, come over and give me a beating. I won't fight back. If you can beat some sense into me, I'll thank you for it."
Jiang Yuan’s fury suddenly extinguished. "Goddammit... what is wrong with all of you? Is that woman some kind of fox spirit reincarnated? Old Qi, don't think I'm always taking Jiang Qingfeng's side. I just thought you were a sensible man, that talking to you would be more useful than talking to him. But you went too far this time. Is it really worth it?"
"Jiang Yuan, have you ever liked a woman? The kind of liking that tears your heart out, the kind that's completely beyond your control?"
A sudden pang of pain hit Jiang Yuan’s rough heart. He thought of the girl who lived across the street when he was a boy, the one who always wore her hair in a high ponytail.
Every day, he would steal glances at her as she hung laundry in the yard or washed her hair in the sun. That black, waist-length hair had smelled of beer shampoo. He would watch her ride her bicycle to and from work.
They would exchange a few words over the courtyard wall every day. If his parents weren't home and she had finished cooking, she would gently call him over to eat. Unfortunately, she couldn't wait for him to grow up and got married instead.
Since then, her name had become a fixture in his dreams and a recurring reason for his wife to pick fights with him.
Had he ever liked a woman with his whole heart and soul? He didn't even have the right to answer that.
Feeling a sudden sense of dullness, he cleared his alcohol-soaked throat. "Just think about it. Don't throw a brother away. Since you've put it that way, I don't have much else to say about the other stuff."
***
For the next two days, neither Qi Shuai nor Jiang Yuan could get a hold of Qi Lian. His phone went unanswered. After discussing it, Qi Shuai headed over to Qi Lian’s place after work.
Song Wei opened the door for him. Qi Shuai hammered on Qi Lian’s bedroom door with a thunderous noise. After a moment, a man’s raspy voice from inside asked who it was.
Qi Shuai breathed a sigh of relief and said crossly, "It's me, Brother."
Qi Lian opened the door. Qi Shuai pushed his way in, intending to snap at him, but the words died in his throat.
He looked Qi Lian up and down, his handsome brows knitting together. "Brother, what happened to you?"
In just two days, Qi Lian’s face had become gaunt, and the stubble on his jaw looked like freshly cut wheat stalks. Standing there in his tall frame, he looked like a mere shadow of himself.
Qi Lian glanced at him, his gaze listless, before turning back to lie on the bed. "A cold."
"Cold, my ass. None of us have ever caught a cold that looks like this. Is it really worth it? Is it?" Qi Shuai asked repeatedly, frustrated by his brother's lack of resolve.
"If you have nothing else to say, shut up. Since you're here, do me a favor. In a bit, go to the gate, pick up a delivery, and take it across the street."
"Have you eaten anything yourself?" Qi Shuai asked, his tone unfriendly.
Before Qi Lian could answer, he added indignantly, "Fuck, why should I be her errand boy? You're in this state and you're still worried about delivering food across the street? Is she the Queen Mother of the West or something? I'm going to go knock on her door and ask how that 'fairy' can even stomach her food."
Hearing this, Qi Lian frowned and pointed a warning finger at Qi Shuai.
"Qi Shuai, if you dare knock on that door, I'll break your legs. This is my business; don't make it worse. Can't I do something that makes me happy?"
Qi Shuai stared at him with his large, double-lidded eyes for a moment before saying in defeat, "Fine, fine. She’s a goddess. If you want to worship her, go ahead."
Qi Lian took a steadying breath. The high fever had left him weak, and even speaking a few sentences made him short of breath.
He asked Qi Shuai, "What was the urgent thing you came for?"
Qi Shuai ran a hand through his hair. "Nothing major. Even if the sky falls, you need to get better first."
Qi Lian lifted his eyelids and looked at him coldly. "Speak."
"A few months ago, didn't I help Liang Hui renovate a small apartment? That grandson still hasn't paid me the final balance. Now he won't even pick up my calls, and I'm waiting on that money to pay my mortgage."
"You still haven't gotten the final payment? What have you been doing all this time? Is this your first day on the job?"
Qi Shuai said resentfully, "The guy was all 'brother' this and 'brother' that at first, so I felt awkward pushing him. Besides, I saw that he paid for his later projects on time, so I figured it wouldn't be an issue. Every time I asked, he’d say 'ten days' or 'half a month,' and I thought I could wait. Who knew he’d pull this on me?"
Qi Lian felt a tightness in his chest from the agitation. He thumped his chest twice. "Qi Shuai, your brain is made of mush. Do you think he paid for those later projects because he wanted to? I forced him to; he had no choice. But look at you, acting like a big shot, playing 'brothers' with everyone."
"I misjudged him. Just help me think of something, Brother." Seeing Qi Lian lying there looking so sickly, he couldn't help but add another jab. "Everyone has their moments of being muddle-headed. Even someone as smart as you is spinning in circles this time."
"Keep talking," Qi Lian said, narrowing his eyes coldly.
"I'm done, I'm done. I'm only saying this among us brothers; I won't let you lose face in front of others. Next time I see that goddess of yours, I'll just call her 'Sister-in-law.' I don't believe she can escape your clutches."
Qi Lian closed his eyes wearily. "Don't talk nonsense when you see her, Qi Shuai. She’s not like us. Whether she stays with me or not, I don't want her to find it impossible to live here in Lianhua."
As long as she stayed, he could still see her—there was something to hold onto. If she moved away, where would he even begin to look for her?
He opened his eyes alertly and warned Qi Shuai again, "Do you understand what I'm saying? No matter what she wants, I want her to be well here in Lianhua. I'm not so petty that I'd make things hard for her, and neither should you. Treat her exactly how you treat me. Do you hear me, Qi Shuai?"
Qi Shuai lowered his eyelids, looking like he didn't want to deal with him.
"I've got a handle on the money situation. Let me think. Go get the delivery and take it across the street. Don't say a word, and don't knock."
"What about you? You're not eating?" Qi Shuai asked crossly.
"No appetite. I was going to get up and get it myself, but now I just want to sleep."
He turned over, curling his body and leaving Qi Shuai with only the view of his broad, thin shoulders.
Qi Shuai was fuming. He wanted to slam the door on his way out, but in the end, he closed it gently.
***
It was after five in the afternoon, and the sun was still high in the sky, its rays making skin sizzle.
The London planes lining both sides of Songlin Road blocked out the sky, acting like an umbrella for the narrow street. Cars making U-turns and reckless electric scooters were jammed together, their horns blaring incessantly.
A white van was parked across from the "It Was You" Flower Shop. Qi Lian, Jiang Yuan, and a few others had been waiting in the vehicle for two or three hours.
"Fuck, I don't have time to keep waiting. It's not worth wasting business hours for a prick like this. I say we should have just charged in from the start," Jiang the Fourth said irritably, shaking his large head.
Qi Lian squinted through the window at the flower shop and shook his head. "Wait a bit longer. We're not the mob."
As he spoke, two people walked out of the shop. A tall, thin man had his arm around a young woman with long hair; they were flirting and teasing each other as they walked.
Before the others could react, Qi Shuai was the first to open the car door and head toward them.
They exchanged a few words on the sidewalk, and Liang Hui looked up toward the van.
Qi Lian rolled down his window, rested his arm on the frame, and gave Liang Hui a nod, looking for all the world like an old acquaintance bumping into someone on the street.
Liang Hui let go of the young woman and walked aggressively toward the van. He leaned down close to Qi Lian’s face and said through gritted teeth, "Qi Lian, do you even know who I am? You're trying this with me? I was running these streets before you even grew hair."
There was a gap in his right eyebrow where a scar sat on the brow bone; the scar danced up and down as he spoke.
Qi Lian curled his lips into a faint smile. "Manager Liang, what a coincidence to run into you here. Since we're here, why don't you settle my brother's account? It wouldn't be good to scare your girlfriend."
Liang Hui glared at Qi Lian. His eyes, bloodshot from drink and debauchery, were as cold and venomous as a snake's.
In the back seat, Jiang Yuan and Jiang the Fourth rolled down their windows simultaneously, staring at Liang Hui in silence.
During the standoff, Qi Lian lost his patience. He tapped his fingers against the window frame and said unhurriedly, "Your girlfriend is twenty-two. You've been helping her run this 'It Was You' Flower Shop for over a year. I assume your wife doesn't know? Manager Liang, we're just contractors living in Lianhua. You have a massive estate; why quibble with us over a few tens of thousands?"
The expression on Liang Hui’s face shifted several times. Gritting his teeth, he pulled out his phone and transferred the money to Qi Shuai on the spot.
He threatened with a distorted face, "Don't let me see you again. Don't ever fall into my hands."
Struggling to maintain a facade of normalcy, he grabbed his girlfriend and fled the scene.
Jiang the Fourth cursed, "What a coward. Wasted my business hours. Qi Shuai, hurry up and drive. Let's go, let's go."
Qi Shuai was beaming. As he gripped the steering wheel, he said, "Dinner's on me tonight, guys."
Jiang the Fourth replied, "Dinner my ass. I don't have time for your food. I need to get back to the shop."
Qi Lian covered his mouth and coughed twice. "Qi Shuai, don't get cocky. You can barely pay your mortgage."
Jiang Yuan leaned forward to talk to Qi Lian, gripping the back of his seat. "Look at you, all sickly. If we actually had to fight, you wouldn't even be able to run away. Yet you still act like the big boss."
Qi Lian stared out the window, saying nonchalantly, "People like him won't actually fight us. Among honest, law-abiding people, he's considered a 'tough guy,' and that's enough to bully them. But he's far from being a real gangster. One scare and he folds. Besides, don't I have you guys? Why would I do the work myself?"
Jiang the Fourth slapped Jiang Yuan’s arm with a palm the size of a cattail fan. "Is this your first day knowing him? He's been this deviously lazy since he was a kid. If he can avoid lifting a finger, he won't."
Jiang Yuan thought about it and realized it was true. Every time they charged into the fray, it was always the rest of them who threw the first punch.
***
By the time they reached the Lianhua area, dusk had fallen and the neon lights were flickering on.
The entrance to Lianhua was a chaotic mess. Factory shuttle buses, commuting electric bikes, and even dump trucks were all jostling for the right of way. Their white van crawled through the traffic at a snail's pace.
One second he was fuming, and the next, Jiang the Fourth let out a loud whistle from the back. He said to the others, "Look, look! There's a real beauty walking behind us. Holy shit, look at her."
Qi Shuai glanced in the rearview mirror, turned the steering wheel, and said coldly, "I suggest you watch your mouth. That's someone's heart and soul."
Jiang the Fourth looked at each of their faces in turn before settling on Qi Lian. "Is he talking about you? You like that type? I thought you were some kind of monk."
Yu Mo was wearing a simple white top and a white pencil skirt that accentuated her curves. Her long hair draped over her shoulders. She looked distracted, possessing a sort of careless languor. With the neon lights flashing behind her, she looked like a self-contained painting amidst the noisy street.
Qi Shuai pulled the van over to the curb, nearly squeezing a parked tricycle. The middle-aged man with a protruding belly on the trike cursed as he moved his vehicle back.
Yu Mo looked up and saw them. She walked gracefully to the side of the van, leaning down slightly to look at Qi Lian, whose arm was resting on the window. She gave a soft greeting.
Qi Lian looked much thinner than he had a few days ago, and his complexion was poor. She wanted to ask if he was feeling better, but the words wouldn't come. Qi Lian looked cold, appearing as though he didn't particularly want to talk to her. The other men in the van were staring at her intently, making her feel extremely awkward.
A few days ago, when Qi Shuai had delivered her food, he told her Qi Lian was sick.
She had sent Qi Lian a text: *How are you?*
Qi Lian had asked in return: *Who told you?*
Yu Mo had felt a bit hurt.
Then Qi Lian had sent another: *Don't worry about it. You're not properly dressed; don't go running around.*
They hadn't spoken since.
Qi Lian glanced at her arm and asked, "Better?"
Yu Mo nodded. "Better."
An electric bike speeding down the sidewalk nearly clipped her. Yu Mo stepped aside and took the opportunity to say, "Well, I'll let you get back to it. I'm heading off."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 梁回 | Liang Hui | A debtor who owes Qi Shuai money |
| 松林路 | Songlin Road | A street name |
| 原来是你鲜花店 | It Was You Flower Shop | The name of a flower shop |
| 江老四 | Jiang the Fourth | One of Qi Lian's friends |
| 宋威 | Song Wei | A person at Qi Lian's house |
| 人鱼线 | Apollo's belt | V-shaped muscle definition on the lower abdomen |
| 祖宗 | Goddess / Ancestor | Slang for someone who must be pampered or worshipped |
