For the following weekends, Zhai Yao would continue accompanying Xiao Lajiao to Yang Ning’s dance lessons.
Although Yang Ning seemed rowdy at times, she was reliable when it came to getting things done, and her communication with Xiao Lajiao grew smoother with each passing encounter.
On the way home, Xiao Lajiao walked in tandem with Zhai Yao, gesturing to him throughout the journey: —Aunt is amazing; she knows all kinds of dances.
Zhai Yao stopped her: —Aunt? What Aunt?
Xiao Lajiao: —Yang Ning-jie, she asked me to call her aunt.
Zhai Yao: “……”
Xiao Lajiao’s expression today was remarkably exuberant: —The place we dance at belongs to Aunt’s family. Aunt’s mother used to teach dance lessons there, but she had to stop dancing because she became wheelchair-bound due to a leg injury. Aunt said that when she earns enough money, she’ll renovate the dance studio and open a dance class.
Zhai Yao thought the dance studio definitely needed a makeover. It was even more worn out than his family’s skating rink, and even if they started classes, they probably wouldn’t attract many students.
Xiao Lajiao shook Zhai Yao’s hand again: —Is Shen Heng-gege very busy? Why doesn’t he come anymore?
Zhai Yao wrinkled his brows: —Why would you want him to come? He doesn’t even know how to dance.
Xiao Lajiao stopped and pouted, looking dissatisfied.
Zhai Yao: —What?
Xiao Lajiao gestured earnestly: —He’s a good person; don’t scare him away.
“?” What kind of bewitching soup was he slipping to his niece? ‘Don’t scare him away’?
Arriving at Dragonfly Alley, Zhai Yao saw the lights were on at home from a distance, and an instant chill settled over his expression.
Xiao Lajiao glanced at the window and then at Zhai Yao, wanting to hurry back to find Zhai Bing, but was also afraid that Zhai Yao might run into Liang Hao and get into another fight.
Amidst this impossible dilemma, the front door swung open.
—Out stepped Zhai Bing, holding a cigarette and carrying a rubbish bag. A newly permed cascade of purple waves adorned her head.
Upon catching sight of Zhai Yao and Xiao Lajiao, she froze for a split second. Xiao Lajiao released Zhai Yao’s hand and sprinted towards her. Zhai Bing dropped the rubbish bag, extended her arms, and welcomed Xiao Lajiao in an embrace.
Zhai Yao took a couple of steps forward, took the cigarette from Zhai Bing’s mouth, and extinguished it. “Don’t always smoke in front of Xiao Lajiao.”
Zhai Bing responded with an “Oh,” sniffed, initially intending to crack a grin at Zhai Yao. However, her mouth twitched, then downturned again, and her eyes began to redden.
Finally seeing her immediate family, Zhai Bing, full of grievances, could no longer contain her emotions.
“That bastard, Liang Hao…” Zhai Bing covered her mouth, trembling all over. After a momentary pause, she managed to compose herself and said, “When I went to Guangdong with him this time, I wanted to try venturing into the clothing business, opening an online shop… He also promised me that he would lead a peaceful life and stop getting involved with those questionable endeavours… But that son of a b*tch secretly went to gamble while I was busy, and he f*cking lost all the money I brought for inventory!”
“Where’s he?”
“I don’t know; he vanished without a trace after being chased by debt collectors. All the money is kept with him, and I almost didn’t make it back!” Zhai Bing spoke, her sorrow deepening. She buried her head on Zhai Yao’s shoulder, tears streaming down as she sobbed. “Why is my life so full of misfortunes…”
Zhai Yao offered no response, letting Zhai Bing lean on him, crying until half of his clothes were soaked with her tears.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
He genuinely didn’t know what to do with his sister. When their parents were still alive, they had treated her as their most precious, unwilling to let her suffer any grievances. In the end, they raised a naive and sweet daughter with a romanticized view of love. Then, they tossed her to Zhai Yao with no more concern given after closing their eyes for eternity.
Every day, Zhai Yao played the role of a vigilant watchdog, guarding against his sister being deceived. The result? Zhai Bing rebelled and ran away from home.
When she returned, she unreasonably informed Zhai Yao that he was going to be an uncle.
“Zhai Bing,” Zhai Yao called out. “Still not getting a divorce?”
“Getting!” Zhai Bing pushed herself up. “If I don’t get a divorce, then I’m lower than animals!”
Zhai Yao closed his eyes, hoping she would follow through this time.
Yet, who knew what could lie ahead?
…
*
Zhai Yao bought a hotpot mix from a nearby small shop, threw an assortment of random vegetables from the fridge into the pot, and separately prepared a bowl of noodles for Xiao Lajiao.
When Zhao Yao went to call Zhai Bing for dinner, he found her in the room, coaxing Xiao Lajiao into slumber. She was holding a palm-leaf fan, wearing a floral sleeveless top, and her freshly washed hair was still wet, dripping water droplets on the summer sleeping mat.
♫ “The stars in the sky don’t talk; the baby on the ground thinks of mother. The eyes in the sky are blinking and blinking; mother’s heart is like a dull-ice flower…”
Zhai Bing’s melodic voice filled the air; she harboured dreams of becoming a singer. However, she was cheated out of more than 2000 yuan by a fraudulent talent scout, leading her to bury the aspiration deep within, never to be brought up again.
“When you were a child, I used to coax you to sleep by singing too,” Zhai Bing shared while fanning and gently patting Xiao Lajiao. “Unfortunately, she can’t hear it.”
Zhai Yao turned around. “Go eat.”
He picked up the key from the side and prepared to leave.
Zhai Bing chased after him. “Where are you going?”
Zhai Yao, without lifting his gaze, replied, “Skating rink.”
…
*
The skating rink expanse echoed with emptiness. Xie Ziming sat in front of the computer, fully immersed in a game of Spider Solitaire. When Zhai Yao arrived, Xie Ziming greeted him with a wave, “You’re quite bold, leaving me here every day to watch the shop. Aren’t you worried I’ll help myself to some valuables?”
“Take whatever looks valuable to you—if you manage to find any,” Zhai Yao responded, lighting a cigarette. He then turned off the speakers and called out to the only non-mainstream couple who were still busy with selfies, “We’re closing. Come over to get your deposit back.”
Xie Ziming also shut down the computer. “Hey, had dinner yet? I made plans with Le-zi for a barbecue; it’s not far from here.”
Zhai Yao momentarily couldn’t recall who Le-zi was, but at this moment, the thought of returning home didn’t appeal to him. A smouldering fire lodged in his chest, neither rising nor falling, creating a stifling sense of vexation.
Seeing that Zhai Yao didn’t refuse, Xie Ziming quickly pulled down the roller shutter gate. With his arm draped around Zhai Yao’s shoulder, they headed towards the barbecue stand.
On the way, his eyes would sometimes linger on Zhai Yao. This brother of his always wore a face like Yama, the King of Hell, and he had long grown accustomed to it. However, this time, it felt especially eerie, akin to the atmosphere of the underworld.
When they reached the barbecue stand, the table was already laden with food and alcohol.
Only after having seen Shen Heng seated on a small stool did Zhai Yao vaguely remember who Le-zi was.
“Oh, wow, Boss Shen is here too?!” Xie Ziming exclaimed with astonishment, settling next to Luo Le. He patted the space between him and Shen Heng. “Quick, Zhai Yao, you two desk mates, sit together!”
Zhai Yao: “……”
Seeing Zhai Yao still standing rooted to the spot, Shen Heng cast a fleeting glance before moving back a bit, as though avoiding a Plague God.
Zhai Yao sat down on a small stool with a poker face, and Luo Le pried open a bottle of alcohol for him.
“It’s quite a coincidence, huh; I thought Xie-zi would come alone,” Luo Le said.
Xie Ziming had always been curious about Shen Heng. Their previous encounter had been brief, with few words exchanged, so he took the initiative to strike up a conversation this time.
“Well, Boss, you get along well with my bro, Yao, at school, right?”
Zhai Yao: “……” ‘Get along well’? Are you being silly right now?
Shen Heng fell into a momentary silence, as if genuinely contemplating. After a brief pause, he said, “Not too bad.”
Zhai Yao laughed in exasperation. Fricking ‘not too bad’?
Xie Ziming probably wasn’t satisfied with this response either. He also wanted to take this opportunity to showcase his brother’s magnanimity, so he said with a serious tone acting as if it was a matter of great importance, “Oh? My bro, Zhai Yao, often speaks highly of you in front of me.”
“???” Zhai Yao was dumbfounded, quickly searching for something to stuff directly into Xie Ziming’s mouth. Yet, his quest yielded nothing but an unexpected reaction from a certain someone—Shen Heng. A subtle relaxation appeared at the tip of Shen Heng’s eyebrows, and with his eyes raised, he asked, “What did he say?”
Xie Ziming cleared his throat, preparing to make up a tale of sorts. Before he could spin his yarn, Zhai Yao beat him to it and pre-empted, “Xie Ziming, lighter!”
Caught off guard, Xie Ziming’s mind blanked out for a split second before snapping back to reality, lowering his head to search for his lighter.
Shen Heng didn’t ask further; however, as he downed his drink with a tilted head, the corners of his lips seemed to lift subtly.
Zhai Yao happened to catch the sight of it, feeling as though he had been mocked, but he had no evidence to prove it.
Luo Le handed his lighter to Zhai Yao. “Shen Heng originally didn’t plan to join us. Gramps Shen just got discharged today after being hospitalized for quite some time. Because of that, he’s been busy cleaning the house and handling paperwork all day to the point where he hasn’t even had time to eat. So, I forcibly dragged him here.”
Zhai Yao’s hand, in the act of lighting a cigarette, halted. He had promised to fetch Shen Ziyao on the day he was discharged from the hospital. But then he thought again, it was Shen Heng who didn’t notify him, so the fault lay not with him.
Afterwards, the feast ensued with the clinking of glasses and the sizzling of meat on the grill. When the alcohol on the table was finished, Luo Le spirited Xie Ziming away to a nearby convenience shop to buy more, claiming it was cheaper there.
Only Shen Heng and Zhai Yao remained at the table.
Neither spoke a word, making one feel awkward just by looking at them.
Zhai Yao decided to turn on his phone and play a game. Consequently, a nearby fake base station just happened to send him a message—Microloans & secured loans. Macau Royal Casino, xxxxx…
In an instant, Zhai Yao was reminded of that idiot Liang Hao again, causing him to lose his initial interest in games. Swinging the alcohol bottle in one hand, he poured the last bit into his mouth.
Did those two fricking go on a journey to the West to fetch sacred scriptures? Why aren’t they back yet?!
“When Shen Ziyao was discharged, he asked why you didn’t come.” The person beside finally remembered he had a mouth to speak with.
“I didn’t know he was discharged; no one informed me,” Zhai Yao replied coldly.
“Would you have come if you were informed?”
“No, I’m occupied.”
Shen Heng let out a “Mm” before following up with a “I told him the same.”
“.”
Choked into silence, Zhai Yao felt as if he had walked into an enemy’s ambush by echoing Shen Heng’s manner of speech, with each step being a new scheme of the trap.
When Xie Ziming and Luo Le returned with the alcohol, they saw the two in front of the table—one with an indifferent expression looking to the left, and the other with a dark cloud hovering over his head looking to the right, like two incarnations of Black and White Impermanence.
Xie Ziming nudged Luo Le. “Say, those two are pretty interesting, huh? They were able to team up against Chen Biao and even paint a drawing on his body together. Logically speaking, their relationship should be good. So now, why does it seem like they have a feud the moment they met?”
Luo Le was equally puzzled. “I don’t get it either, or is it that all you male high school students behave like this?”
Luo Le was older than Shen Heng and the others; he stepped into the society right after graduating junior high school.
Xie Ziming pointed at his own nose. “Look at me, I’m also a true and proper high school student. Do I behave like that?”
Luo Le nodded towards Xie Ziming’s pink-dyed hair tips and copied the director’s line, “Why don’t you go back and check yourself in the mirror? See which part of you still looks like a student?”
After the alcohol was served, Luo Le went to order some skewers again.
Perhaps influenced by that trashy text message, Zhai Yao drank even more vigorously in the second half, eventually knocking Xie Ziming out.
Luo Le clinked glasses with Zhai Yao. “Impressive, brother. You sure can handle your alcohol.”
Zhai Yao didn’t say anything, drained another bottle of alcohol, and kicked Xie Ziming who was sprawled on the table with his foot. “Can you still walk?”
“Hic… I can walk!” Xie Ziming swayed and wobbled as he stood up with a silly grin on his face. “I can even run! I’ll run a straight line for you guys!”
With that declaration, he dashed forward but stumbled right in front of the trio after a few steps.
Luo Le laughed until tears rolled out, saying to Zhai Yao, “What do you say? Should we take him home or book a nearby room?”
“Take him to the skating rink; if he goes home like this, his dad will break his legs.” Zhai Yao suggested, as he and Luo Le each supported Xie Ziming on one side.
Luo Le: “Shen Heng, you better head home too; Gramps is at home.”
Shen Heng nodded and turned to settle the bill.
“That someone.” Zhai Yao suddenly called out without looking back, “Give me your home address.”
Shen Heng stood still, a glint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Zhai Yao: “Tell Gramps I’ll visit him tomorrow.”
…
The bro in law is a total trash I want him to disappear 😡😡 I wonder how old they are..probably 17-18? Until now I really like it ❤️
Black & white impermanence…. Rofl 🤣🤣