Chapter 2 The Lone City (2)

Chapter 2: The Lonely City (Part Two)

Lin Yanqing pushed the shopping cart forward. The jostling crowd knocked over a pile of goods, scattering potato chips across the floor. The surge of frenzied shoppers pressed forward, several people stepping on and bursting the chip bags. They seemed not to notice, continuing to scramble for the merchandise.

Lin Yanqing sighed, bent down, and picked up the potato chips scattered on the floor one by one, placing them back on the shelf.

"What on earth are they grabbing?" Xia Li was dying of curiosity, wanting to squeeze in for a look. Seeing him about to stray too far, Lin Yanqing straightened up in a panic, reaching out to grab his arm. But in a moment of carelessness, he lost his grip on the shopping cart, which went careening straight ahead and bumped into the waist of a man in front.

The man was burly and reeked of alcohol, already caught up in the anxious rush to snatch up goods. Suddenly bumped from behind, he turned around with a ferocious glare, his bloodshot eyes fixed on Lin Yanqing. He raised a fist and cursed, "Are you in such a fucking hurry to be reborn?!"

Lin Yanqing frowned, not wanting to argue with him. At that moment, a fight broke out further ahead by the shelves. Tensions flared instantly, and everyone's emotions seemed to peak simultaneously.

Hearing the commotion, Xia Li retreated to Lin Yanqing's side. Just as he saw the burly man raising his fist, he blurted out without thinking, "You big dummy, what do you think you're doing! I'm telling you, if you dare lay a hand on him, I'll call the police!"

"Call the police! Fine, I'll give you something to call the police about! Call the police, huh!" The burly man was furious. He wedged his fingers into the gaps of the shopping cart's railing and overturned it with a heave. The cart crashed to the ground with a clatter, toilet paper and dried goods spilling everywhere.

With the cart no longer between them, the burly man took three steps forward, directly grabbing Lin Yanqing by the collar and throwing a punch.

Lin Yanqing thought, 'This is ridiculous.' His mind remained calm, thinking about how to deal with this pointless trouble. Unfortunately, the man in front of him seemed to have gone mad, solely focused on venting his frustration.

Seeing the fist coming towards his face, Lin Yanqing closed his eyes tightly and tried to dodge.

At the critical moment, he heard the burly man let out a shrill cry of pain and then release his grip on his collar.

"Ow ow ow ow ow—" The burly man grimaced, howling in pain.

A bead of sweat dripped from Lin Yanqing's forehead. His eyelashes trembling, he slowly opened his eyes to see the burly man's wrist being seized by someone. The next second, the newcomer kicked the burly man in the ankle. Crying out in pain, the man lost his balance and fell to the ground.

"If you want to go to the police station, I can accompany you." The man sneered. With one hand, he righted the fallen shopping cart, put the scattered goods back in, then returned the cart to Lin Yanqing. He smiled and said, "It's okay now, you can go."

Lin Yanqing stared at him blankly. In the sweltering summer heat, the man wore camouflage pants and a sleeveless black tank top, revealing well-defined shoulder muscles. He was tall and sturdy, with sharp, distinct facial features, thick eyebrows, and an aura of rugged masculinity. Yet, the slight smirk at the corner of his mouth added a touch of roguishness.

Lin Yanqing averted his gaze, muttered a thank you, and quickly pushed the shopping cart away, leaving the messy scene for others to handle, including the drunkard still lying on the ground.

Xia Li panted, still rattled, clutching the fabric of Lin Yanqing's shirt at the waist like he did when he was a child, almost worrying a hole in the white cotton.

He was the one who had lashed out earlier, yet now he was the one scared. Lin Yanqing wanted to tell him to stop clawing at his clothes, but seeing his pitiful expression, he couldn't help but laugh. "What are you afraid of? I'm not even scared."

Xia Li pouted, not knowing what to say. After about ten minutes, seeing that the burly man hadn't followed them, he finally relaxed.

The two walked to the prepared food section. Lin Yanqing said happily, "No one's grabbing the discounted dishes today. Salmon is 60% off, let's get a pack."

Snapping back to reality, Xia Li grabbed a few transparent plastic bags, putting the salmon and side dishes inside. Anxiously, he said, "Bro, let's hurry and check out. I'm really scared."

Lin Yanqing agreed and quickly headed for the checkout.

The cashier asked, "Do you need bags?"

Xia Li shook his head hurriedly, pulling two shopping bags from his backpack. He opened them and walked to the bagging area, waiting for the cashier to place the scanned items inside.

"Three hundred forty-seven yuan," the cashier said listlessly.

Lin Yanqing scanned the code to pay. Xia Li muttered beside him, "We haven't even bought much, and hundreds are gone again."

Recently, prices had been soaring while unemployment rates were high. Every industry was struggling. The "Yali Very Sweet" channel seemed to have high subscription numbers, but the platform took a significant cut, so the actual income wasn't as optimistic as it appeared.

Lin Yanqing took the shopping bags from Xia Li. The toilet paper that didn't fit, he carried in his hands. They left the supermarket together. Passing the glass doors, Lin Yanqing's eyes inadvertently swept over an advertisement poster. It depicted a nutritional drink bottle with the words, "Aimeile New Product Launch: Healthy Beverage, Companion for Your Life."

At the top of the poster, bold red characters read, "Customer Appreciation, 95% Off Sale." Lin Yanqing gasped, finally understanding what those people had been scrambling for. Aimeile specialized in health drinks, which were always expensive. With this discount, they were selling for less than 3 yuan.

Xia Li urged him repeatedly, "Bro, let's go quickly. Don't let that bastard catch up with us."

Lin Yanqing nodded and started walking.

They took the subway one stop, then walked home after exiting the station. Passing by a lottery shop, Xia Li bought a ticket, tucking it into his pocket with a smile. Two yuan couldn't buy a loss, two yuan couldn't buy a scam, two yuan could buy a dream.

"What if I win?" Xia Li said happily. "What if I don't? Then it's just doing a good deed. You have to have some dreams in life."

"What if you don't win? Then you're just helping someone else realize their dream," Lin Yanqing teased.

Xia Li laughed heartily, leaning bonelessly against his brother. "If only we could get rich. Then you could quit that crappy job and not work so hard. After I graduate, I'll support you."

"Things are pretty good now. We should be content." Lin Yanqing pressed the button for their floor. Chatting and laughing with Xia Li, they walked in. Just as the doors were closing, a hand reached in. The sensors triggered, and the doors reopened, allowing a tall man to step inside.

Lin Yanqing was momentarily stunned, recognizing him as the man who had helped him in the supermarket.

"Jiang Songnian." The man glanced at Lin Yanqing, then turned his back, standing at the front of the elevator. He held a supermarket shopping bag and didn't press any floor button.

Lin Yanqing was inherently cautious. He observed Jiang Songnian's back without initiating conversation. He noticed several scars on Jiang Songnian's back, hidden beneath the tank top, faintly visible with the movement of his shoulders.

Remembering his agile moves earlier, Lin Yanqing maintained a degree of wariness.

"Big brother, what happened to that guy earlier? Did he call the police?" Xia Li asked, pressing.

Jiang Songnian didn't turn around, answering succinctly, "Too busy grabbing bargains."

The elevator reached the 19th floor. The doors opened, and Jiang Songnian stepped out first.

Lin Yanqing furrowed his brows, hesitantly exiting the elevator. He saw Jiang Songnian open the door to the neighboring apartment, his figure disappearing swiftly as the door closed behind him.

"How coincidental, he's actually our neighbor. When did that apartment sell?" Xia Li said.

The building had two elevators and two apartments per floor. The neighbor had mentioned selling last month, and now this Jiang Songnian had moved in. However, neither Lin Yanqing nor Xia Li had heard any moving activity or seen him coming or going.

Until yesterday, Lin Yanqing had thought the neighboring apartment was vacant.

Xia Li had already opened their door and gone inside, changing into slippers and stuffing his sneakers into the shoe rack. He urged, "Bro, aren't you coming? What are you looking at?"

Lin Yanqing stared fixedly at that door for a long moment. Finally, he withdrew his gaze and entered his own home.

In the other apartment, Jiang Songnian peered through the peephole, his gaze fixed on Lin Yanqing's figure until it disappeared. Only then did he slowly look away and lock the door.

After changing his shoes, Lin Yanqing was still pondering the matter of Jiang Songnian. When things are too coincidental, there's bound to be something unusual.

Xia Li was putting the groceries in the fridge when he suddenly exclaimed, "Bro! Why did we buy a health drink?!" He held a small red bottle, about 100ml, labeled as a vitamin functional beverage to eliminate fatigue and restore vitality.

Lin Yanqing quickly walked over, rummaging through the shopping bag for the receipt. The original price was 48 yuan per bottle, discounted to 2.4 yuan. He recalled that Jiang Songnian must have mistakenly put it in while helping him pick things up.

"Lucky us," Xia Li said gleefully. "We got it without even having to fight for it."

"Instead of drinking this kind of health supplement, it's better to get proper sleep, stay up less late, and play fewer games." Lin Yanqing shook his shirt collar. It was only May, but the indoor temperature had already exceeded 25 degrees Celsius. The room was stuffy and hot. He told Xia Li to put the drink away and went to turn on the fan in the living room.

It was a second-hand two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment. The original decoration and furnishings were simple. Because they needed to film videos, parts of the interior had been renovated: the walls repainted, a new set of kitchen appliances installed, and the living room furniture and small decorations replaced, making the overall space feel cozy.

After the fan was turned on, the room gradually cooled down. Xia Li brought out the salmon and sushi bought from the supermarket, opened two cans of iced beer, turned on the TV, and sat on the sofa eating dinner while watching.

Lin Yanqing's job at the research institute involved a lot of overtime. Usually, he wouldn't have dinner until eight or nine p.m. Today was Saturday, so he got off work a bit earlier than usual.

After eating a few pieces of sushi, Xia Li brought over his laptop, working on editing videos during the gaps. In truth, he wasn't very good at cooking or housework. Lin Yanqing had taught him everything step by step, and through some clever editing tricks, he appeared as an incredibly capable homemaker in front of the camera.

Xia Li really looked up to his brother, feeling Lin Yanqing could do anything. He was lean and good-looking, patient, and a modern-day Zhuge Liang who could strategize everything—except sometimes he was too kind-hearted, often getting himself into a mess.

Xia Li sat on the carpet, nudging his brother's knee with his fluffy head. Lin Yanqing took a sip of beer, reached out to rub his ear, his gaze still fixed on the TV screen where an advertisement for Aimeile's products was playing.

"Lately, there have been more ready-made meals and canned foods in the supermarket. Have you noticed the vegetables aren’t very fresh? The fruit looks wilted too," Lin Yanqing said.

"Jiabiada is a large chain supermarket; they're not about quality. Do you want some fruit? I'll hit up the fruit store tomorrow."

Lin Yanqing shook his head and popped a sushi roll into his mouth.

His phone vibrated a few times. Lin Yanqing quickly picked it up—it was a text from Uncle Niangao, asking if he was off work and what he was having for dinner.

Lin Yanqing smiled faintly, set the beer can down, took a photo of the sushi, curled up on the sofa, and replied.

Xia Li blinked. "Uncle Niangao again?"

Lin Yanqing hummed in agreement, his smile fading as he slowly put down his phone.

"Does he still send you money for living expenses?" Xia Li asked.

"Well... but I told him to stop once I got a job," Lin Yanqing replied uncomfortably, taking a sip of beer. "He sends me red envelopes during holidays."

Messages kept popping up on the screen. Lin Yanqing rubbed the edge of the screen with his thumb, pretending not to care as he turned the phone face down, then casually took another bite of sushi.

Xia Li stared intently at his brother’s well-defined profile. Lin Yanqing’s thick eyelashes gradually lowered, hiding the sadness in his eyes.

"When do you plan to pay him back?" Xia Li asked.

Lin Yanqing’s throat moved slightly, his brows furrowing and then relaxing. He turned to look at Xia Li, giving a faint smile. "I don’t plan to pay him back."

"Brother... aren’t you being too trusting?" Xia Li said worriedly. "He claims to be a friend of your uncle, but we don’t know his name, age, or what he looks like. He’s been supporting you for ten years—why is he so good to you? Could he have ulterior motives?"

"I chat with him often. He’s very witty and easygoing. Besides, he never asks about my dad. My dad was involved in several national confidential projects. Uncle Niangao is his friend, so maybe he needs to keep his identity confidential too. Don’t overthink it," Lin Yanqing explained, his words tumbling out.

"But you're a grown man in your twenties now, and he still sends you money every month. Isn’t that strange?" Xia Li hesitated. "It’s almost like..."

"Like what?"

Xia Li pursed his lips and changed his words. "Like you’re old friends."

Lin Yanqing tightened his grip on the beer can, nodding absently. "Yeah, maybe so."