In recent days, the weather had been erratic. Although the "Grain in Ear" solar term had passed and the season of high temperatures had begun, the sweltering heat remained stifling, making it hard to breathe.
A heavy downpour finally arrived, but before anyone could even look relieved, the rain stopped.
Standing at the entrance of the wet market, Zong Yan tucked the umbrella she had just pulled out back into her bag and shifted a grocery sack from her left hand to her right.
After staying in the hospital for a day, she had wanted to be discharged. It was Xiao Qing who had held her back, saying the doctor’s examination found she had slight gastric bleeding and needed to stay for two days of observation.
But Zong Yan didn't want to spend that money.
She had picked up her medication and bought some essential groceries at the market, planning to cook something simple for herself at home.
The rain had soaked the earth, and dust floated low in the air; breathing it in brought a foul, metallic scent of rust.
After walking only a few paces, the sky darkened again.
A faint sense of unease stirred in Zong Yan’s heart, so she quickened her step. Just as she entered the unfinished building complex, a series of loud *clangs* and *thuds*—the sound of heavy objects striking the ground and cars—erupted behind her.
She looked back. Hail was falling from the sky!
Ice pellets the size of half a fist plummeted at a terrifying speed. Without protection, being injured by them was a very real possibility.
Zong Yan frowned and looked no further. Returning to her home, she stuffed the vegetables and meat into the refrigerator.
She wouldn't be going out again today.
She would just review her lessons by the light of her small desk lamp.
She let out a sigh.
However, just as she was settling into her studies, her phone received a notification.
—Zong Yan’s financial aid was to be canceled.
It was a summer afternoon, yet because of the abnormal weather, the sunlight could not pierce the gloom. The entire sky was dark and heavy, as if it might plunge into night at any second.
Zong Yan’s mood was equally bleak.
The notification included a photo. In it, she was dressed provocatively in a place like a bar, her posture appearing intimate and ambiguous with a member of the opposite sex.
By any standard, it did not look like the behavior of a student in financial need.
Furthermore, not long ago, Zong Yan had been noted by her professors for skipping class. Once this photo surfaced, her character was effectively condemned.
Unless Zong Yan could provide evidence to explain what was happening in the photo and turn the situation around, her spot for the grant would likely be revoked.
"Evidence?"
Evidence again.
Zong Yan’s fingers nearly dug into her palms.
What was she supposed to say? That because her scholarship was gone, she went to work at a bar, where she ran into Si Jiang, was forced to drink by him, didn't know the man in the photo, had simply bumped into him by accident, and ended up in the hospital afterward?
Zong Yan might not have been well-versed in the ways of the world.
But she wasn't stupid.
She didn't even need to think to know how the traditional leaders at the school would twist the meaning of those words.
Not to mention, the other protagonist in this mess was Si Jiang.
Si Jiang. Heh.
Even if the school arranged for Si Jiang to be present to corroborate her story, she was certain the man would not tell the truth.
…Wait.
Zong Yan looked up abruptly, nearly startling the counselor who was looking at her with a frown.
Who else could have taken that photo?
Only someone in that private booth.
Who in that booth hated her? Who had a grudge against her? And who knew she received financial aid?
Only one person.
Si Jiang.
The name Si Jiang lingered between her teeth. Zong Yan bit down hard, as if she wanted to draw blood from the very name.
Where was the culprit?
A wordless fury filled Zong Yan’s heart.
With a grim face, she walked through the campus. Passersby who saw her expression instinctively steered clear of her.
If she found Si Jiang…
Heh.
Zong Yan looked at her palms. They were covered in thick calluses that were rare for someone her age. On her fingers and palms, scars of various sizes were like the sediment of years, recording every unforgettable moment.
She clenched her fists.
She just wanted to live a plain, ordinary life, following the rules, finishing these few years, and paying off all her debts.
Was it really that hard?
Why did they have to provoke her?
There were only two years left.
Gloomy, terrifying thoughts swarmed like locusts, eroding Zong Yan’s already fractured sanity.
People who do bad things should have to pay a price, shouldn't they?
Like when she was a child, when she resisted her biological father’s attempt to kill that puppy. She had been thrown to the ground and kicked until she was semi-conscious, then stuffed into a cage. She could only grip the rusted bars, her fingers bleeding as she watched a life turn into a pile of reeking, mangled meat.
So, her biological father died later, too.
Like when her biological mother’s illness wasn't so advanced, she would still show a flicker of warmth. After her father died, she had held Zong Yan and said that only the two of them were left to depend on each other.
But whenever Zong Yan was being beaten, she had only ever watched from a distance.
Yet, because of those words, a twisted sprout had grown in Zong Yan’s withered heart.
Depending on each other?
Because they only had each other left, because they could only rely on one another, because if they lost each other, they couldn't survive.
Was that why they could have such a close relationship?
Like the puppy that followed closely behind her—it was because she was the only one in the whole family who could give it hope for survival.
But then, her mother found a stepfather.
Later, it was just her and her stepfather—two people who didn't know each other well and hated each other, entangled like a greedy vine and a withered trunk.
Each wanting to suck the life out of the other, yet unable to separate.
Her mother was a possession her father could treat however he pleased.
Her stepfather was a toy her mother played with in the palm of her hand.
She was the low-quality inheritance her stepfather had detained.
Then, when she was unhappy, she should also have a toy to vent on, shouldn't she?
*Zong Yan, calm down,* she told herself.
*Zong Yan, where would that person be right now? You can guess it,* another voice said to her.
Yes, where else could someone like Si Jiang be?
Zong Yan remembered what happened that night.
Si Jiang had been personally received by the management. If he were just a wealthy young master, the management might not have placed such importance on him.
Furthermore, after her incident, neither the manager nor the owner had made a statement, aside from Xiao Qing. This indicated that Si Jiang’s status or influence was more special than she had imagined.
That night was likely Si Jiang’s first time at the bar, as Xiao Qing didn't recognize him.
However, the vodka served had already been mixed with his specific drink of choice.
Zong Yan took out her phone and sent a WeChat message to Xiao Qing: "Was the alcohol sent to Booth 1 that night ordered by the guest on the spot?"
Xiao Qing replied after a moment: "Why are you asking? I don't think so. It was prepared in advance."
Zong Yan blinked.
It seemed Si Jiang might have a connection with the bar owner, or perhaps he was even one of the owners himself.
And the bar was currently celebrating its anniversary, with themed events running for seven consecutive days.
As an owner or shareholder with close ties to the bar—or even just a friend of the owner—he would likely show up to support the business and boost sales.
Today was the fourth day of the event.
Zong Yan’s finger moved: "I can come in for a shift today."
"You're better already?!"
"It won't affect my work."
"Impressive. But forget it. I heard the managers talking; Booth 1 is booked again tonight. It’s probably the same guest. You’d better not come and invite trouble."
"Okay, thanks."
Zong Yan tucked her phone back into her pocket, satisfied.
When the clock struck six, Zong Yan did a final check of her outfit in the mirror.
A cheap, short wig, a large mask, and a baseball cap pulled down to her brow.
Her loose clothing made it impossible to tell if her figure was male or female.
She was ready to go.
Stepping out of the unfinished building complex, she had to walk through a park to reach the street where the bar was located.
Because the weather was so stiflingly hot, there were very few people in the park. The cicadas were chirping several times louder than usual, as if signaling the approach of some danger.
Flocks of birds hurriedly flew away from the trees toward the distance.
Zong Yan walked past the abandoned fountain in the park. She glanced at it casually and saw ripples on the water's surface.
She continued walking, unconcerned.
After two steps, she suddenly felt something was wrong.
She backed up and looked at the fountain again.
At this moment, there was no wind and no rain. The greenery was a certain distance from this open space, so no leaves had fallen.
Then why was the water moving?
For some reason, Zong Yan’s heart rate suddenly spiked. An overwhelming sense of dread forced her to take a few steps back, away from the eerie sight.
Immediately after, from deep within the earth, a distant and massive rumbling sound seemed to rise. Zong Yan instinctively retreated to the center of the park's plaza.
Suddenly, everything went silent.
Then, the heavens collapsed and the earth split. The ground wailed, and the entire world began to shake.
The earthquake had arrived without warning.
In an instant, the world was reduced to ruins, destroyed as easily as dry rot.
Screams and wails erupted everywhere.
Only a single black figure moved silently toward a two-story building that had half-collapsed.
Many people were trapped here.
She watched quietly for a moment, looking out of place amidst the panicked crowd running to and fro.
As if suddenly thinking of something, she circled to the back of the building. There were significantly fewer people here.
This area contained the back entrances for various shops.
Zong Yan slipped through a relatively intact back door and immediately found a familiar figure lying on the ground, pinned under a cabinet, her life or death unknown.
She rushed over, used her strength to move the cabinet, and saw that it was indeed Xiao Qing.
Zong Yan dragged the unconscious Xiao Qing out and placed her in an open space on the street.
After a moment's thought, she slipped back inside.
Most of the walls inside had collapsed. Some people had regained consciousness and were screaming frantically for help, while others lay weakly on the ground, moaning.
Zong Yan scanned the area, her gaze suddenly stopping on a corner.
It was a dress she recognized well.
The owner of the dress had her lower body buried under a concrete slab. Her exquisite makeup had been replaced by dust and blood. She cried out, "Help! I'm trapped! Is anyone there? Please help me!"
She looked around helplessly, her eyes soon locking onto Zong Yan, the only person standing nearby.
"Save me! I beg you, save me!"
Zong Yan looked at her coldly.
Just as her former roommate’s face began to show a glimmer of hope, Zong Yan gently shook her head.
She turned and left.
It seemed she didn't need to punish anyone herself.
A natural disaster had struck suddenly; whether it was vice or virtue, a heavenly punishment had been meted out equally.
Zong Yan carried Xiao Qing on her back to a patch of open ground that seemed safe.
There would be aftershocks after an earthquake.
She should leave this place soon as well.
However, just as she rounded a corner, a pair of hands suddenly reached out from the ruins and grabbed her shoe.
Zong Yan looked down.
"Help... help... me. My leg... it's crushed."
"Please, help me. I'll give you anything."
Perhaps having been rejected before, the person's voice had lost its usual arrogance, leaving only a humble plea.
Zong Yan took off her mask and crouched down.
Under the other person's astonished gaze, she revealed an unpracticed and exceptionally eerie smile.
"I’ve got you."
***
| Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation |
| :--- | :--- | :--- |
| 芒种 | Grain in Ear | One of the 24 solar terms in the traditional Chinese calendar. |
| 助学金 | Financial aid / Grant | Specifically refers to a need-based subsidy for students. |
| 烂尾楼 | Unfinished building complex | Refers to real estate projects that are abandoned before completion. |
| 120 | 120 | The emergency medical telephone number in China. |
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
Taming the Fierce Hound | Chapter 8 | I’ve Got You | Novela.app | Novela.app
