Pei Cangyu was called to the teacher's office during the long break.
The teacher was coughing fitfully today, seemingly down with a cold. He stared at the slip of paper in his hand without looking up at Pei Cangyu, merely gesturing toward a chair. "Sit."
Pei Cangyu sat down.
Only then did the teacher turn to look at him. Frowning at the boy’s haggard complexion, he spoke with a severity Pei Cangyu had never heard from him before. "I always believed you came to school because you actually wanted to learn."
Pei Cangyu lowered his head.
"How long has this been going on?"
Pei Cangyu licked his lips, unable to find his voice.
The teacher let out a heavy sigh, crumpling the slip in his hand slightly. "The school is organizing physical exams next month. Those results will be entered into your permanent record."
Pei Cangyu nodded.
"Can you quit?" the teacher asked, staring him down.
"Actually, last time was an accident..." Even though he knew it was futile, Pei Cangyu still tried to explain.
The teacher set the paper down and pushed up his glasses. "I know. Those two police officers called me. They said you might have been caught up in something, that it wasn't necessarily voluntary."
Pei Cangyu hung his head very low.
He knew where this was going. His path to the police academy was likely blocked for good.
Pei Cangyu looked up.
The teacher watched him. "I’m just giving you a warning. You understand, don't you?"
Pei Cangyu nodded again.
The teacher sighed once more and turned back to grading papers. "Go on then. Take care of yourself. I don't have much energy to spare on you."
Pei Cangyu stood up. This was the best news he had heard all day, and it brought an involuntary sense of relief. He thanked the teacher and returned to the classroom.
Now that his mind had relaxed for a moment, the pain from his various injuries began to register, especially the wound on his abdomen. Pei Cangyu reached under his shirt and felt the coarse texture of gauze. This sensation...
He lifted his shirt to check. Sure enough, the bandages were new. This meant that after Bai Shi brought him back to his room last night, he had changed his dressings.
He checked his arms; those bandages were new as well. Only the scrapes on his feet from that morning were throbbing with a rhythmic ache.
*Forget it,* Pei Cangyu thought, slumped over his desk. He would head to the infirmary after class.
The duty doctor gave him some ointment and bandages before heading off to a PE class to give a lecture on first aid. Pei Cangyu kicked off his shoes and sat cross-legged on the infirmary bed, applying the medicine to the sole of his foot himself. After one swipe, the cotton swab turned black with dirt.
*How annoying. Should I have washed my feet first?*
Pei Cangyu hobbled over to fetch some hot water, then sat back down with the bucket. He dipped his foot in...
"Damn it, that hurts! It's too hot!"
He yanked his foot out instantly, splashing water everywhere, and clutched his foot as he rolled back onto the bed.
Who was he cursing?
Bai Shi, probably.
He was mid-way through a passionate internal tirade against Bai Shi when he started looking around for a towel.
"What are you doing?" a voice asked from the doorway.
It was Fei Zuohua.
Pei Cangyu gave him a brief glance before continuing his search. "Looking for a towel."
Fei Zuohua turned and went into the adjacent supply room. He returned a moment later with a towel and held it out. Just as Pei Cangyu reached for it, Fei Zuohua pulled it back, looking down at the injuries on his feet. "You can't soak these directly. Just dampen the towel and wipe them down before bandaging them."
"Then you have to actually give me the towel," Pei Cangyu snapped, only realizing after the words left his mouth that his tone was poor.
Fei Zuohua didn't seem to mind. He took the bucket from the floor, replaced the water with a fresh batch, and knelt down. He rinsed the towel, wrung it out, and handed it to Pei Cangyu.
Pei Cangyu took it and began wiping his feet.
Fei Zuohua watched him.
"Is there something you need?" Pei Cangyu asked.
Fei Zuohua pulled up a chair. "You seem to have a lot of injuries."
Pei Cangyu ignored him. To be honest, he was still feeling a bit angry. It was hard to say exactly who he was angry at, but he felt a certain resentment toward these two policemen. He felt they should have performed better—that would have been the "normal" outcome.
"I'm sorry," Fei Zuohua apologized, watching him.
Pei Cangyu's indignation vanished instantly at those words. His face flushed slightly because he realized, upon reflection, that it wasn't really the police's fault. They had come when asked, they had searched when asked; the fact that they found nothing wasn't their fault. Moreover, they had even vouched for him...
The more Pei Cangyu thought about it, the more he felt the police had done a good job. Secretly blaming them felt rude and embarrassing.
"It's not... it wasn't your fault."
Fei Zuohua looked at him. "That's why I want to help you move. My place is at—"
"Move? Move what?" Pei Cangyu blinked, then realized. "Move out of Bai Shi's house?"
"Yes."
Pei Cangyu looked at Fei Zuohua's face, and a thought suddenly struck him. "Fei Zuohua, do you believe me?"
Fei Zuohua's eyes blinked slowly. He opened his mouth to speak, but in the end, he only managed a small, strained smile.
"No wonder the other officer didn't come..." Pei Cangyu's voice dropped. "You don't actually believe what I said, do you?"
"There are things you don't know." Fei Zuohua looked exhausted. "My mentor has a bit of an obsession with Bai Shi. Even without evidence, he... how should I put this? It might have influenced you. That's our fault. In reality, we no longer have the authority to investigate this case. If you stay at the Bai residence, what exactly do you plan to do?"
Pei Cangyu was speechless. *How are these two policemen not even on the same side?*
Fei Zuohua continued, "Are you free at noon? I'll go with you—"
"No need," Pei Cangyu rejected him. "You don't need to worry about me anymore."
"Pei—"
"Thanks, though. For vouching for me." Pei Cangyu looked up at him.
"That wasn't me." Fei Zuohua's expression stiffened. "My mentor vouched for you. He has more seniority."
"Oh."
Fei Zuohua leaned forward with concern. "But Pei Cangyu, don't get involved so easily. This isn't something you should be meddling in. Don't force yourself; you have no obligation to do this. You're too weak, and you don't understand anything. Bai Shi is far more capable than you. I hope you'll think this over carefully."
Pei Cangyu looked at Fei Zuohua and realized the man was looking at him like he was a three-year-old trying to cross the street alone. It left him with a complicated feeling—he didn't know whether to be happy that someone cared, or resentful at being looked down upon.
Pei Cangyu swallowed hard. "If it were you, in this situation, what would you do?"
Fei Zuohua was honest. "I would probably continue. But you're different..."
"What?"
"You don't know how to do anything."
As soon as the words were out, both of them froze.
Fei Zuohua tried to backtrack hurriedly. "No, I mean, you haven't had professional training, and you—"
Pei Cangyu lowered his head and nodded. "I understand."
Fei Zuohua wanted to say more, but given his personality, he felt there was nothing left to say. He only hoped Pei Cangyu understood his good intentions.
He tried one last time. "So, at noon?"
"No need, thanks."
Fei Zuohua watched him for a while, then slowly stood up. He reached out and patted Pei Cangyu's shoulder, feeling the bone beneath the skin. He gave it a squeeze, suddenly remembering the elementary school kid who loved watermelon-flavored ice cream, and the middle school boy who was fierce but popular. A sudden protective instinct surged within him.
But that squeezing motion happened to make Pei Cangyu's bruised shoulder twitch with pain. To Pei Cangyu, the gesture felt more like the deliberate, condescending pressure of an old acquaintance who had entered adulthood. It made him feel humiliated.
The two fell into silence.
For a long time, Pei Cangyu didn't look up. Fei Zuohua clenched his fist, stared at the crown of Pei Cangyu's head for a moment, and finally left.
Pei Cangyu sat in silence for a while before calling Tu Ziyun.
Tu Ziyun met him quickly. He no longer wore his usual composed expression. Seeing Pei Cangyu walk in, he stubbed out his cigarette and beckoned him over.
Pei Cangyu sat down. Tu Ziyun, lacking his usual leisure, pushed a cup of tea toward him. "You don't look well."
Pei Cangyu didn't respond. He knew his face must look terrible.
"Fei Zuohua came to see me. He wants me to move out."
Tu Ziyun sipped his tea. "What did you say?"
Pei Cangyu hesitated. "Do you believe me?"
"Of course I believe you. In fact, it's you who has started to believe me."
Pei Cangyu's body tensed. He gripped the teacup, his knuckles turning white.
"Bai Shi is a very dangerous man." Tu Ziyun pulled out another cigarette. "I can guarantee that much. If I can get information from Ding Chuan, we'll have the upper hand in this confrontation."
Pei Cangyu remained silent.
"In your opinion, do you feel you're in danger?" Tu Ziyun fixed his gaze on him.
Pei Cangyu paused. He subconsciously reached out to touch the bandages on his abdomen. It was a feeling hard to put into words, but he had a strong intuition. "I think... probably not."
Tu Ziyun wasn't surprised. "I thought as much. At the very least, your life isn't in immediate peril."
Pei Cangyu hadn't touched his tea. He looked up at Tu Ziyun. "Give me a cigarette."
Tu Ziyun paused, then handed over the pack. He let Pei Cangyu take one and pulled out a lighter to light it for him. Pei Cangyu glanced at the lighter. "You got a new one."
Tu Ziyun gave an awkward smile.
"Do you think I should go back?" Pei Cangyu held the cigarette between his fingers, pressing his hand against his face.
"I don't know how close you two were in middle school, but if you ask me, you seem to have a blind confidence when it comes to him—a belief that he won't actually do anything to you." Tu Ziyun flicked his ash. "But people change, and what you see isn't always the truth. Being too confident isn't necessarily a good thing."
"Didn't you just say—"
"I said he won't kill you. That doesn't mean he won't hurt you. You have no immediate family left, and you might not have realized it, but for the past month, your range of activity has been extremely limited. Therefore, if you were to die or disappear, we would have ample grounds to investigate Bai Shi." Tu Ziyun spread his hands. "That is the 'safety' I'm referring to."
Pei Cangyu's face went pale.
Tu Ziyun told him, "I've laid all my cards on the table."
Pei Cangyu swallowed dryly.
"I will absolutely not force you to go back, and I completely understand if you want to back out. This has nothing to do with you. If Bai Shi is truly as you say, then he is extremely dangerous and capable of anything." Tu Ziyun looked at him with a heavy gaze. "So, the decision is yours."
Pei Cangyu was stunned, looking back at Tu Ziyun.
He watched the man. The former "smiling fox" had wiped away his mask-like grin. His gaze was steady, his expression solemn. It made Pei Cangyu suddenly realize that this was a trustworthy, reliable policeman—someone who had fought many battles yet still held onto his sense of right and wrong. He looked at Pei Cangyu with eyes full of expectation and trust.
Pei Cangyu was suddenly deeply moved. It felt as if he were an heir being handed the Imperial Seal, entrusted with a mission in a time of crisis. Being the recipient of such pure, unreserved trust made a sudden warmth surge through his body.
"What... what can I do?" Pei Cangyu asked.
"If you're going to do this, I will give you a secure communication number. From here on out, you'll need to follow my instructions."
Pei Cangyu stared at him for a long time, then finally nodded.
By the time school ended that evening, the stirrings in Pei Cangyu's heart had not faded. Being entrusted with hope had kept his spirits up all afternoon, despite his severe lack of sleep.
When he walked out, he didn't see Bai Shi's car. He didn't move, just stood there until the crowds thinned and the lights in the school building began to wink out one by one.
He stood alone at the gate.
Someone tapped him on the shoulder.
*Is he here?*
Pei Cangyu spun around, only to see a woman.
She was wearing a red dress and was a head taller than him. Her face was strangely familiar, though he couldn't place it. She was beautiful, the dress clinging to her body to trace dangerous curves. She held her head slightly high, looking down at Pei Cangyu. Though there wasn't a trace of a smile in her eyes, the corners of her mouth were slightly curved. Her voice was gentle and her tone level, yet there was a strange sharpness hidden beneath it. It was just like...
Right. Just like Bai Shi.
Utterly... fake.
The woman asked him, "Waiting for someone?"
Pei Cangyu looked past her and saw a black car in the distance. It had a high chassis, not the kind of car Bai Shi usually favored.
"Are you looking for me?" Pei Cangyu asked instead.
"My surname is Shang." The woman rested her hand lightly on his shoulder. "You are..."
"Pei Cangyu."
Suddenly, someone called his name. The male voice was very familiar. Pei Cangyu realized instantly—this was the man who had been talking to Bai Shi outside his bedroom door that night.
He turned and saw a tall man, perhaps even slightly taller than Bai Shi, walking toward them. However, the man was looking at the woman.
The woman named Shang looked at him, smiled, and turned back to Pei Cangyu. "Well then, until we meet again." She held out her hand, her four fingers fluttering like a blooming flower in a playful farewell. She gave the man one last look, then turned and walked away.
Pei Cangyu turned to the stranger. It seemed this was Bai Shi's man.
"Let's go." The man pointed to the car behind him. Pei Cangyu didn't ask any questions and got in.
As expected, they drove straight back to the Bai residence.
The man let him out and departed immediately. Inside the house, only the first floor was dimly lit. Bai Shi was there, staring blankly into the fireplace.
Pei Cangyu entered and looked at Bai Shi's back. The firelight cast a blurred, brilliant orange-red frame around his silhouette.
"Why aren't you sleeping?" Pei Cangyu asked. He saw Bai Shi give a slight start before turning around, his face shrouded in shadow.
"Were you waiting for me at the school gate?" Bai Shi's tone was flat, much like usual.
Pei Cangyu didn't deny it.
"Why did you come back?"
Pei Cangyu didn't answer. Bai Shi walked over, stopping very close, and looked down into Pei Cangyu's eyes. Pei Cangyu turned his head away.
"Was it you?" Pei Cangyu asked. "Gao Tang and the others. Did you kill them?"
Bai Shi stared at him, unmoving for a long moment. In the silence, only the occasional crackle of the firewood could be heard.
Pei Cangyu's heart was racing. Forcing those words out had exhausted nearly all of his courage. He listened to the silence stretch on; every second felt like a form of torture. Bai Shi didn't speak, and Pei Cangyu didn't dare look up.
After an unknown amount of time, Bai Shi placed a hand on his shoulder. He slid it toward his neck, his palm coming to rest against Pei Cangyu's exposed throat. He let out a sigh. "How do you dare to be so willful?"
Pei Cangyu pursed his lips, his heart beating even faster.
"Is it because of Tu Ziyun?"
Pei Cangyu was startled and looked up sharply. How could Bai Shi know he had met Tu Ziyun? Was he being bugged again...
"Don't look at me like that. It was just a guess." Bai Shi smiled. "A man like that would never let an opportunity like this pass him by."
Pei Cangyu tried to step back, but Bai Shi grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him forward. "What did he use to entice you? The title of a hero?"
Pei Cangyu broke free and stood tall, glaring at him. "Do you think I'm afraid of you? I'm not afraid of you at all."
A flash of excitement sparked in Bai Shi's eyes. He stepped closer. "Or is it just because you wanted to come back..."
Bai Shi lowered his head, leaning against Pei Cangyu's shoulder with a soft laugh. Pei Cangyu felt a prickle of irritation on his shoulder.
"After all, you like me so much."
Pei Cangyu froze.
"Are you disappointed in your old middle school classmate now?" Bai Shi kissed him on the cheek.
***
