Chapter 63

Chapter 63

The moment he fell into the pool, the pale pink water eagerly rushed into his mouth and nose, surging toward his lungs, compressing the air in his lungs. His respiratory tract and internal organs felt as if they were being slashed by blades.

His body couldn’t find any center of gravity; beneath his feet was nothing but soft, insubstantial emptiness. When a person loses their center of gravity, the brain sends a self-rescue signal to the body, and Shen Gali instinctively began thrashing his arms and legs.

But the more he struggled, the stronger the resistance of the water became, like several brute-force hands yanking at his limbs, dragging him down toward the bottom.

His consciousness began to blur. Shen Gali knew he couldn’t fight the water’s resistance. After a couple of half-hearted struggles, his fingers gradually relaxed, and his heavy body sank slowly like a stone dropped into the water.

He thought: Now that I have 200 million, it should be enough to renew my lease on that swanky underground villa. From now on, no one will disturb my rest, and I won’t have to listen to those eulogies dripping with mourning. If the cemetery developer is thoughtful, maybe they’ll even plant a field of lisianthus before my grave. One day, when Mom eventually passes on, she can follow the lisianthus to find me again.

But after three years apart, I finally got to see Mom again. I wanted to spend more time with her, talk about the regrets of the past. If I leave just like that, who will take my place and reminisce with her about old times?

And Nan Liujing—without me, who would know how much he once loved the redwood trees in the garden? Would anyone plant a whole garden of redwoods for him in my place?

In the past, Shen Gali, who had no attachment to the world, might have simply died and been done with it. But now, at this very moment, he realized there were still so many unfinished things. With his departure, they would become bubbles that would never become reality, regrets that would last forever.

Maybe I should give it one more try.

The water kept invading, blurring his mind and stupefying his thoughts. He couldn’t send signals to his body anymore. He only managed to twitch his fingers slightly before losing all strength to think.

His body just kept sinking, sinking—

Just one second before he completely lost consciousness, Shen Gali suddenly saw a dark silhouette on the water’s surface, broken by the ripples into a shimmering blur.

Then, the calm surface exploded as something heavy crashed into it. In his blurred vision, a pale figure materialized, its face indistinguishable.

Immediately, his hands were grabbed. A force more terrifying than the water itself seemed to pull him upward.

Shen Gali: Who is it? Is it Uncle Li?

Before he could figure out the answer, the last shred of consciousness slipped away, and he slowly closed his eyes.

...

Nan Liujing had just gone to make a cup of coffee. When he returned, he could no longer see that person from the window.

At first, he thought Shen Gali had run off somewhere else. But before the coffee even touched his lips, he sensed something was wrong.

With Shen Gali’s turtle-like pace, could he have disappeared into thin air?

Nan Liujing pondered, his gaze falling on the pool.

The seemingly still water had circles of ripples expanding that hadn’t yet dissipated.

Shen Gali had fallen in!

Not only that, he hadn’t struggled at all!

Nan Liujing had known for a long time that Shen Gali had no attachment to the world, but how could he still not care about the people around him at a time like this?

Forgetting the wheelchair he had faked for over twenty years, using his tall frame and long legs, he sprinted to the pool in a few strides. Without a moment’s hesitation, he jumped in.

By the time he dragged Shen Gali ashore, the latter was barely breathing, completely unconscious.

At that moment, Nan Liujing—who would only smile disdainfully even if the sky fell—once again experienced intense fear. It was the same kind of fear he had felt when he had personally removed his mother’s oxygen mask: a despairing, world-shattering terror.

It was different from the time Shen Gali had disappeared. This time, he truly saw with his own eyes that this person was about to disappear from his world.

He felt totally worthless. The most important things always slipped through his fingers, and he could only watch them leave.

He carefully cleaned the debris from Shen Gali’s mouth and nose, tilted his chin back and gave him mouth-to-mouth, and gently pressed on his upper abdomen to expel the dirty water. His movements were still calm and methodical.

He always seemed able to stay absolutely calm—if not for the fact that when Shen Gali finally spat out some water, he heard him mutter, still half-conscious:

"Shen Gali, don’t you dare die. If you die, I’ll kill you."

Shen Gali: ???

Did he even hear what he just said?

The big hand continued to gently press on his upper abdomen. His body swayed like a withered leaf in the autumn wind, which was dry and cold, making him shiver with each gust.

Finally, Shen Gali slowly opened his eyes.

As consciousness gradually returned, he saw the face of the person in front of him.

What a terrifying face—like a wild beast gone mad, eyes bloodshot, the redness blurred by the watery light accumulating at the corners. Pale lips trembled, then clenched tightly, his jawbone protruding sharply.

Seeing him awake, Nan Liujing took a slow, deep breath, with a barely noticeable tremor.

Then, as if all his strength had been drained, he collapsed heavily.

"Why would you do this?" Nan Liujing’s voice was icy cold, as if he were barely restraining his anger. "You fell into the water and didn’t even try to struggle? Am I really so unimportant to you?"

Shen Gali gazed at him quietly. Water droplets from his wet hair rolled down his cheeks.

He wanted to tell Nan Liujing: I thought no one in the world cared about me, and I had no attachments, so it wouldn’t matter if I died. But then I thought of you and Mom, and I tried to struggle. But I had no strength, so I could only let the water take me. I really did try.

But having just returned from the brink of death, his mind wasn’t fully clear yet, and he hadn’t regained his strength. The complex sounds were too hard to articulate, and all that came out was a weak sentence:

"No one in the world cares about me..."

Nan Liujing fucking lost it. He would rather Shen Gali had said he was too stupid or clumsy to struggle, or even to just stay silent, rather than hear him say that no one cared about him and so he had no attachment to the world.

If he didn’t care, why would he have shed over twenty years of disguise and laid all his secrets out for him?

Nan Liujing slid one arm under Shen Gali’s neck and the other under his knees, lifted him up with a bit of force, and carried him bridal style.

Shen Gali was stunned: "Your legs..."

What kind of medical miracle was this?

Nan Liujing ignored the question: "You said no one cares about you. Later, make a list. I have ways to make everyone who doesn’t care about you worship you like a god. But for now, you’d better figure out how to comfort me and cool my anger."

His voice was freezing, refreezing the melting Antarctic glaciers into an indestructible ice sheet.

Without giving him a chance to speak, Nan Liujing carried Shen Gali into the house with long strides.

What normally took Shen Gali over ten minutes to walk took Nan Liujing just a few minutes. Though he walked fast, his arms were steady and strong, and Shen Gali didn’t feel any jostling.

When Shen Gali was thrown onto the bed with force, he got a clear view of Nan Liujing’s entire body from the front.

It was the first time he had seen it, so he found it novel. He stared unblinkingly at his sturdy, powerful legs—legs that were a medical miracle, paralyzed for over twenty years but fully recovered in an instant.

It turned out that Nan Liujing not only had comic-book-wide shoulders like a double-door refrigerator but also equally comic-book-perfect legs: straight, strong, muscles clearly defined and bulging, perfectly fitting his elastic-free suit pants.

This scene was so bizarre. Shen Gali had been used to him living in a wheelchair, but today, he was announcing to the world with reality:

This daddy’s legs are way longer than yours.

But what Shen Gali should really be focusing on isn’t the legs—it’s the terrifying strength that makes the entire bed sink in around him as Nan Liujing looms over him.

His presence is overwhelming. Even before he gets close, Shen Gali feels an intense pressure, suffocating and immobilizing.

The soaked shirt clings to his skin, outlining each sculpted muscle contour, radiating a damp, steamy aura.

When two sources of moisture intertwine, extremes meet—it backfires, making the temperature skyrocket, heat rolling over his skin, burning enough to make one want to scream.

Shen Gali stares at the pitch-black eyes so close to his. They’re as cold and dark as a deep pool, yet deep within that abyss, a wild, earth-shattering fire rages.

Even if Shen Gali were slower on the uptake, he’d realize now—Nan Liujing is, at this moment, *furious beyond measure*.

Like a venomous snake, viciously spitting poison.

For the first time, Shen Gali experiences true, bone-deep fear. Yet it’s as if his brain were hijacked, unable to look away.

But in Nan Liujing’s eyes, his refusal to look away is seen as a challenge.

*Alright, man. I gave you a chance and you blew it. Don’t blame me for being ruthless.*

Nan Liujing suddenly leans down, gripping Shen Gali’s chin tightly to tilt his face up, and then sinks his teeth into his lower lip.

Their tongues meet, exchanging saliva. The thin, damp shirt is ripped open without any gentleness. A scorching fingertip traces across icy skin, after a brief gasp, then covered again by hot lips—nibbling and slow devouring.

His groin grows hot and swollen, quickly covered by a fiery hand that raises the temperature to its peak.

Shen Gali is certain now: *I’m definitely getting my ass reamed today.*

Should he run?

No point. I couldn’t even escape a current, let alone Nan Liujing, who’s a match for Death himself.

Since I can’t escape, I’ll just take it lying down.

Clothes scatter all over the floor. A stark-white, completely naked fish curls up in the corner of the bed—weak, pitiful, and helpless.jpg.

Nan Liujing locked his legs around Shen Gali, drew himself up, and looked down at him. His features cold as frost, and he asked in a low, dangerous voice: “Want to run? I’ll give you one chance to decide.”

With the last shred of his sanity, he asked Shen Gali, because he can’t read Shen Gali’s mind. He wants Shen Gali to make the choice of his own free will—not for some ridiculous reason like being lazy and weak, which would only make him regret this someday.

But Shen Gali didn’t want to run—maybe it wasn’t just from laziness and exhaustion.

He’s cold. The deep autumn pond water has invaded him. All living things are born with an instinct to seek warmth and avoid harm—he’s no exception. He hopes someone can warm away the chill and ease his suffering.

Shen Gali slowly raises his eyes. One hand lightly grabs Nan Liujing’s powerful forearm, fingers lightly traced the blue veins standing out on its surface.

From the corners of his eyes shot fiery threads, as if they have legs, racing through the air to Nan Liujing’s gaze.

He says nothing, yet through the wordless tenderness in his eyes seems to convey the exact answer.

Nan Liujing chuckled, tugged off his pants and tossed them to the floor.

Shen Gali gives a casual glance—and is dumbstruck.

He suddenly sits up, clutching the sheets and scrambling downward. Urgent. *Very* urgent.

“No, no—I feel like this size is gonna hurt me. I might end up paralyzed from the waist down.”

Nan Liujing pulls him back, looked down at him and said, each word deliberate: “Too. Late.”

Shen Gali: T_T

…

“No… impossible. I can’t do it.”

“Trust me. Relax.”

“No, no, no…”

“Don’t be afraid. A little bit is in. Try it—see, I wasn’t lying.”

After crying and whining for ages—

“I’m tearing! I think it’s bleeding!”

“…It’s not blood.”

Shen Gali propped himself up on his elbows, eyes brimming with tears: “Then what is it?”

Nan Liujing scratches his cheek, looked away guiltily: “It’s not blood, anyway.”

Only today did Shen Gali realize that Nan Liujing, that devil, not only wasn’t crippled—he could win first place in an obstacle course.

After sitting in a wheelchair for over twenty years, he’d trained that thing to be *strong and terrifying*!

You can fill in the rest yourself.

The pale gray sky pressed down heavily. Inside, the room lost the golden dusk of sunset. Night falls, leaving only the stark white fish lying on the bed, breathing heavily without pause.

The water glass knocked off the desk shatters on the floor. The rumpled sheets on the bed twisted and tangled.

The big white fish can’t bring its two tail fins together. The slightest movement sent a strange, foreign sensation through him.

*It’s still flowing. Still flowing.*

The culprit sits beside the big white fish, fingers brushing the fine sweat on his neck: “Let me help you bathe.”

Shen Gali fluttered his eyes shut: “Don’t want to.”

“If we don’t clean up, you’ll get a fever.” He ignores Shen Gali’s protests, forcibly picks him up, and carries him to the bathroom.

Shen Gali soaks in the warm, soothing water, and only then do the muscle aches ease slightly.

But he hadn’t expected that certain person would use cleaning as an excuse to come in *again and again*!

Shen Gali is terrified, tears streaming: “Why is it still leaking? Am I going to have to live with a plug from now on?”

Nan Liujing chuckled: “Of course not.”

With that, he pulls the person in his arms closer: “From now on, cross the road only when the light is green. Don’t get close to other people’s fights. Stay away from deep mountains and water edges. If I’m by your side, it’s fine. But when I’m not around, you need to be even more careful.”

Shen Gali says weakly: “I wanted to measure the garden area, then buy redwood seeds… that’s why I accidentally fell into the pond.”

“Why?” Nan Liujing doesn’t understand.

“Because you said seeing redwoods reminds you of your mother.”

Nan Liujing was slightly startled, a faint smile spreading across his lips.

"It's okay. More than the redwood trees, I prefer the sky mirror you created for me."

Shen Gali leaned weakly against the edge of the bathtub, murmuring, "What exactly do you like? I can't figure it out."

"You."

Nan Liujing lifted a leg and gently nudged Shen Gali's legs. "It's you I like, you I care about, you I give my all to hold onto. You always say that even if you disappeared, no one would notice. It's like my metaphor: when the moon disappears, at first no one notices, but the day they realize it is the day the reckoning begins."

Nan Liujing took his hand in the water and whispered softly in his ear, "So don't disappear. I'd be lost, I'd be in agony, and in the end, I'd become like you, losing all will to live."

This sudden confession caught Shen Gali completely off guard. He instinctively looked back and met Nan Liujing's tender, smiling eyes. In his dark, glistening pupils, he only saw his own foolish, stunned expression.

Something's off.

Shen Gali finally snapped out of the romantic haze. "Isn't it said online that anyone who's seen you says you're old and ugly? Am I just out of touch with modern aesthetic trends?"

Nan Liujing raised his eyes, thinking for a moment, then said. "Oh, that. Last year's council meeting happened to fall on my mother's death anniversary. I wasn't in the mood to attend, so Uncle Li went in my place. The 'old and ugly' part probably refers to him."

Thousands of miles away, Uncle Li thought, *Strange, why do I suddenly feel like crying?*

"What about your legs? Aren't you supposed to have a leg condition? How can you run faster than me?"

"Ah... it's just a sprained ankle."

"A sprained ankle... and you needed to sit in a wheelchair for over twenty years?"

It was the first time Shen Gali had met someone lazier than him, or rather, someone whose mind he couldn't fathom.

Nan Liujing lowered his head with a soft laugh. "I guess my existence was a burden and a threat to Yu Huaisu. She ordered the servants to saw off the stairs, not to make a fool of me, but because only if I was disabled would I no longer pose a threat to her. I was very young back then and didn't know how to protect myself. Since no one in the family was on my side except Uncle Li, I decided to go along with her wishes, biding my time and waiting for the right moment to reclaim what was mine."

A chill ran down Shen Gali's spine.

To disguise himself and lower others' guard, he had endured with such forbearance sitting in a wheelchair for over twenty years, letting people call him a cripple all that time. Such resilience would even make Han Xin acknowledge his skill.

How did he manage to fool even Uncle Li?

This man was utterly terrifying.

At that moment, Shen Gali finally recalled the various oddities he had seen in Nan Liujing before.

Back when he was in the school hospital, he woke up to find Nan Liujing dozing by his bed. He poked his knee to wake him, but then thought, maybe he couldn't feel it because of his leg condition. Yet, strangely, he woke up anyway;

Later, when he hid in Nan Liujing's wardrobe, he saw him turning over in his sleep with practiced ease. At the time, he found it odd but didn't think deeper;

And when he fell down the stairs, the doctor said he needed to temporarily use a wheelchair due to a minor leg fracture. The word 'temporarily' had struck him as odd. Now he realized it was just a twist of fate that inadvertently hid the fact that his legs were perfectly fine.

The secret Nan Liujing had gone to great lengths to conceal was finally exposed on the day Shen Gali fell into the water.

Because in his heart, Shen Gali was more important than the secret he had kept for over twenty years.

Behind him, Nan Liujing drew his arms around him, his hand covering the scar on Shen Gali's chest, his voice soft and gentle. "I've told you all my secrets now. You're the only person in the world who can share my feelings. So don't disappear, okay?"

*Disappear.*

That word was strange, yet painfully real. It abruptly reminded Shen Gali that he was someone who had transmigrated from the real world into a story.

He had indeed hated this world at first. It was full of annoying people and self-important people. Every day was miserable. He hated the sun here, hated being the center of attention just because he had the same name as the original character.

But then, this world gave him his mother, who had died three years ago, and Nan Liujing, who regarded him as his one and only.

As the plot progressed, the original novel was gradually coming to an end. When the story reached its final sentence, what would happen to him?

Would he be forcibly taken out of this world, just as he had entered it, back to a hospital room filled with medical equipment, listening to his cousin who worked as a nurse endlessly reading CEO romance novels? Everything going back to square one. No mother. No Nan Liujing.

The tighter Nan Liujing hugged him from behind, the more his heart ached.

Some things couldn't be held onto no matter how hard you tried.

If someone asked him if he liked Nan Liujing.

He didn't know. All he knew was that when faced with a life-or-death decision, the image of Nan Liujing's face appearing in his mind had stirred a trace of regret.

In Nan Liujing's eyes, he was like the moon, while Nan Liujing was the dazzling sun. As long as the sun shone, he could reflect its light, giving all living things on earth room to thrive.

It turned out the moon also had to depend on the sun to survive.

"Why aren't you talking? Afraid that knowing too many of my secrets will get you abandoned by me?" Nan Liujing shook his hand, asking with a smile.

Shen Gali looked away. "Let me tell you a story."

"That's rare, you telling a story?"

Shen Gali glanced at him, his fingers tracing the water stains on the edge of the bathtub:

"Once upon a time, there was an old woman. She had two sons. The elder son made a living by selling umbrellas, and the younger son by selling fans. On rainy days, she worried that her younger son's fans wouldn't sell, and on hot days, she worried that her elder son's umbrellas wouldn't sell. So she was always worried and unhappy. What does this story teach us?"

Nan Liujing had no idea what he was getting at, but he still thought seriously and replied:

"It teaches us to think divergently and in reverse. The old woman could think: on rainy days, her elder son's umbrellas would sell well; on hot days, her younger son's fans would sell well. Pessimism and optimism are just a matter of mindset."

Shen Gali: "This story teaches us that even an old woman can give birth to two sons. This world isn't short of men. If you dump me, someone else will take me."

Nan Liujing: …

Makes sense. Can't argue with that.

*

When Uncle Li walked in and saw Nan Liujing standing in the living room making coffee, he froze for a few seconds, quickly stepped back outside to check the house number.

No mistake. So who's that standing there...?

"Young Master!" Uncle Li burst into tears. His face was a mess, like a mudslide.

So Nan Liujing watched helplessly as Uncle Li slid over on his knees, hugging his legs while crying and shouting, "Young Master, what's wrong with you! Don't worry, I, Li Dahai, will spend every last cent we have to cure you!"

Nan Liujing: ?

"You don't have to comfort me. I know you standing up is just the final flicker of life before death. My poor young master, after spending half his life in a wheelchair, now he's come down with this incurable disease. Oh, young master!"

Nan Liujing nudged him away with his foot. "What are you talking about? Have you gone senile?"

Uncle Li: "Isn't that how it always goes on TV? A man with a leg condition suddenly stands up one day, goes to the hospital, and finds out he has an incurable disease. Standing up is just the last flicker of life before death."

Nan Liujing took a sip of coffee. "Read more books, read more news, watch fewer cheesy soap operas."

Uncle Li circled around Nan Liujing's legs, inspecting them. "Young Master, have you been cured? Or did some magical healer appear and fix you overnight? Should I make the healer a silk banner?"

Nan Liujing thought of Shen Gali, who had let himself sink to the bottom of the water without resistance. He narrowed his eyes. "Out of anger. Even a cripple can be pissed into standing up."

Uncle Li: ?

To Uncle Li, the young master had been paralyzed in a wheelchair for over twenty years. The hardships and difficulties were hard for outsiders to understand, but how could he, an old man, not comprehend? Today, the young master was blessed by heaven, allowing him to stand again and live a normal life. Uncle Li laughed and cried with joy, his eyes brimming with tears as he busied himself with dinner.

He was so happy that he even forgot to call Nan Feng to report the good news.

He believed that the young master was not only favored by heaven but also had Shen Gali as a little lucky star to ward off disasters and calamities. Ever since he arrived, this family had been getting better and better.

But the little lucky star had been pushed too hard yesterday, and now even the slightest movement caused pain all over. Even though nothing was actually leaking, it still felt like it was, leaving him only able to lie in bed and gasp for breath.

Nan Liujing was worried about him and didn’t go to the company today, bringing his work home to be by his side.

Uncle Li called from downstairs for them to come eat, but Nan Liujing told him to bring the food up to the room.

He propped a pillow behind Shen Gali’s lower back and fed him spoonful by spoonful. But Shen Gali was indeed a big problem when it came to eating—more picky than a child, often taking two bites and saying he had no appetite and didn’t want to eat anymore.

Uncle Li watched nearby, grinning from ear to ear: “It's true – men who take good care of their wives get heaven's favor. Learn from that.”

Nan Liujing shot him a quick glance, then said to Shen Gali, “If you don’t want to eat this, write me a menu, and I’ll cook it for you.”

Shen Gali was weak all over and pushed his hand away: “No need, I don’t want to eat.”

Uncle Li, still unaware of what had happened, asked with an innocent expression: “Is it Young Master Lanqing's business that's got Mr. Shen losing sleep and appetite? But this kind of thing can’t be blamed on others. Everyone has to pay the price for their mistakes.”

At these words, the room went dead silent.

Shen Gali looked up with a gloomy expression, showing concern for someone else for the first time: “What happened to Shen Lanqing?”

Uncle Li looked at Nan Liujing in surprise, noticing the chill in his eyes, and suddenly didn’t know if he should speak directly.

So Mr. Shen didn’t know?

“What happened to Shen Lanqing?” Shen Gali pressed in a low voice again.

Uncle Li knew that since he had started this, there was no turning back. He cursed his own loose tongue, and with no way out, he had to tell the truth:

“That stripping case that had everyone so scared before... Young Master Lanqing went to the police and turned himself in. The police have now filed a case for investigation. If it is confirmed that he was indeed the perpetrator, Young Master Lanqing may face prison time...”

Shen Gali stared blankly at the floor, his mind elsewhere.

In truth, he had long known who the real culprit was. Last time, when he came back from his mother’s house, he took a shortcut and ran into Shen Lanqing there. Shen Lanqing made an excuse, saying he was going back to school to pick up documents and happened to have dinner with classmates near the school until very late. When he saw Shen Gali, he caught up to walk with him.

There were no restaurants near the school. Even if there were, they wouldn’t be open until one or two in the morning.

And coincidentally, all the victims were those who had sent him private messages with ghost pictures and cursed him.

Perhaps from the moment he secretly looked at his own Weibo private messages and made the painful decision, he had transformed from a child who loved to act spoiled and clingy into someone silent and withdrawn.

Seeing that Shen Gali didn’t speak, Uncle Li tried to comfort him: “Mr. Shen, don’t worry too much. Online opinion is mostly on his side now. Everyone supports Young Master Lanqing, believing that the others were in the wrong first. The court might show leniency.”

In reality, the law doesn't bend. There’s not so much leniency to go around.

And now, online, people were arguing fiercely over this. Many thought Shen Lanqing was indeed guilty, but not deserving of punishment.

“The cyberbullying started first, didn't it? Look at the state of things – cyberbullying laws are a joke, doxxing happens at will, and anonymity just makes trolls bolder, silencing those who are already afraid to speak. I’m on Shen Lanqing’s side this time.”

“How many tragedies have come from cyberbullying? But these assholes just count on the fact that the law can't get everyone, so they keep doing whatever they want. Make an example of one, and they'll learn to shut their mouths.”

“The lengthy legal process has driven many to seek revenge in their own way. If someone hurts me, why can’t I fight back?”

“Sigh... I feel sorry for this young man. He’s so young, and this will be a blemish on his record [sad emoji]”

“Crime is crime. Enough with the bullshit. Shen Gali's a total curse. If people curse you, just take it. Why drag others into it? Why don’t you just die?”

“You up there, post your home address. I’ll come curse you to your face. If you can’t take it, you’re a total wimp.”

“I was scared shitless of that stripping case, but now I say: good for him for stripping those bastards. Sure, Shen Lanqing was wrong, but his mistake was not finishing those trolls off.”

“He just couldn't take seeing his brother get bullied online day after day. He crossed the line, yeah, but he was just hitting back at the trolls – what'd he do that was so wrong?”

Everyone felt bad for Shen Lanqing. A blogger even started a petition, and tons of netizens signed with their real names, hoping the court would show leniency.

But would it really work?

Shen Gali silently scrolled through the comments, the other two barely daring to breathe beside him.

Nan Liujing sure disliked Shen Lanqing, thinking the kid had brought this on himself by acting impulsively, when there were clearly smarter ways to handle it.

But he knew he had no right to say that, because he didn't know Shen Gali had been getting ghost pictures and hate messages for months. Perhaps when Shen Gali most needed comfort, he was instead ordering him around to do this and that.

In that sense, he was the one who really lost.

Shen Gali slowly got out of bed. His loose trousers revealed a thin, pale ankle.

“I want to go see him,” Shen Gali said softly.

Nan Liujing knew he meant Shen Lanqing's place. Although Shen Lanqing was still under investigation, it wasn't clear if he'd get another chance to see him.

Nan Liujing decided not to go with him. He turned to Uncle Li and said, “Take him there.”

“And you, young master?”

“I've still got work to do.” He wasn’t going because if he were there, the two of them might not be able to speak freely.

As they left, Uncle Li looked back at Nan Liujing.

He sat straight at his desk, his back a little hunched with loneliness.

But Uncle Li believed he was Nan Liujing, and he would surely find a perfect solution.

*

In the deep autumn of November, everything was desolate. Withered yellow leaves covered the road, crunching under the tires like the sound of tearing tendons.

Shen Gali leaned against the window, watching the receding street scene, his nose pricking a little.

He'd always thought of that kid as just a little pest, but hearing that he might go to prison, he felt an urge to go see him.

Maybe because he felt it was his fault, and also because he felt a tinge of regret at the thought of never seeing that kid act all spoiled again.

The car gradually entered the familiar lane. Uncle Li, who was driving, suddenly sat up straight and leaned forward, his eyes widening:

“Mr. Shen... it looks like... there are a few police cars parked in front of the house.”

Shen Gali’s eyes snapped open. In that instant, he heard the wail of police sirens, sobbing incessantly, like a piercing cry.