The year-end film Days of Being Wild, which would later sweep multiple awards and cement the director’s fame, performed poorly at the box office and was pulled after just twelve days. He Chusan and Xia Liuyi happened to catch it on the third-to-last day of its run, sitting in a sparsely populated cinema, cultivating their minds and bodies—so to speak—and experiencing a bout of melancholic, artsy sentiment.
The college student hadn’t quite reached that level of artistic appreciation. From the moment the line “April 16th, Number 16… before one minute to three o’clock in the afternoon on April 16th, 1960” began, he was already nodding off. Just as he drifted in and out of sleep, a sudden, unfamiliar scream exploded by his ear—
“YAAH—!”
The dozen or so people in the theater all turned to look. He Chusan snapped his eyes open and lifted his head, only to see Xia Liuyi gripping someone’s wrist at the pulse point like an iron claw.
The man, his wrist nearly twisted out of shape, hissed in pain. “Bro—brother! Hey, brother! That hurts!”
“What’s wrong?” He Chusan asked urgently.
“I—ah, it hurts—I just wanted to remind you not to smoke. My wife is pregnant—the smell bothers her! Ah!” the man behind them said through clenched teeth.
Xia Liuyi snorted and flung his hand aside. “Then fucking say it! What’re you grabbing me for?!”
“I was just trying to tap your shoulder…” The man clutched his wrist, aggrieved, still wanting to argue, but his pregnant wife pulled him back.
Everyone around them could tell Xia Liuyi was not someone to mess with, and quickly withdrew their gazes. Seeing the awkward atmosphere, He Chusan worried Xia Liuyi might storm off like last time. He tried to say something to smooth things over—but before he could even finish the word “Brother—,” Xia Liuyi shot to his feet and walked out!
He Chusan scrambled up to chase him, intending to stop him at the exit—but Xia Liuyi suddenly turned, walked down a few rows, picked a random empty seat, and plopped himself back down.
“… ”
He Chusan hugged his schoolbag and shuffled over to sit beside him, hesitantly calling, “Brother Liuyi?”
Xia Liuyi, annoyed, lit another cigarette and stretched his long legs onto the seat in front. “Cut the crap. Go to sleep!”
He Chusan chuckled softly. Now that he’d been startled awake, he couldn’t sleep anymore. Imitating Xia Liuyi, he leaned lazily against the backrest, watched the screen for a while, then quietly turned his head to look at Xia Liuyi’s face.
Xia Liuyi frowned slightly, eyes fixed intently on the flickering figures on screen. Occasionally, he brought the cigarette to his lips, took a slow drag, and exhaled at an unhurried pace. His expression was indifferent.
Feigning drowsiness, He Chusan slowly slid down in his seat, inch by inch, gently… resting his head on Xia Liuyi’s shoulder.
Xia Liuyi didn’t react at all, continuing to stare steadily at the screen.
He Chusan quietly let out a breath, finally relaxing his tense body, the corners of his lips lifting as he closed his eyes.
“I once heard there’s a kind of bird in this world with no legs. It can only keep flying and flying. When it gets tired, it sleeps in the wind. This kind of bird can only land once in its life—and that is when it dies,” the free-spirited drifter on the screen said.
Xia Liuyi seemed absent-minded as he exhaled smoke. The theater was silent except for the protagonist’s low, husky monologue. But when He Chusan’s breathing grew even and steady, Xia Liuyi suddenly turned his head and glanced at him.
Holding the cigarette between two fingers, he thought for a moment, then rubbed his temple irritably.
“In fact, it never went anywhere. From the very beginning, that bird was already dead.”
…
After the movie ended, Xia Liuyi kicked He Chusan—who had been softly snoring awake. The two followed the sparse crowd out, one in front of the other.
The late-night parking lot was nearly empty, with only three or four cars scattered about. He Chusan yawned as he watched Xia Liuyi fish for his keys. Xia Liuyi’s hand kept rummaging in his pocket, back and forth—while He Chusan’s gaze drifted, fixating on that round, lifted backside swaying back and forth…
“Ahh—!”
A woman’s scream suddenly rang out from deep within the parking lot!
It lasted only an instant before turning into muffled struggling. He Chusan immediately started running toward the sound—but Xia Liuyi grabbed him.
Xia Liuyi shot him a glare and pulled him behind a car. Then he walked over alone.
A thug had a heavily pregnant woman pinned to the ground, one hand covering her mouth while the other tore at the jewelry on her body. She struggled helplessly, sobbing. Her husband lay nearby, stabbed and limp, another thug rifling through his pockets for his wallet.
Seeing the blood pouring from her husband, the pregnant woman bit the thug’s hand hard. As he loosened his grip, she cried out desperately, “Help! Help! Husband—husband—mmph!”
The thug stood and viciously kicked her in the waist. She immediately clutched her belly and screamed, reduced to choking sobs.
Her husband—the very same man who had earlier asked Xia Liuyi not to smoke—clung weakly to the other thug’s leg. “Wife… run…”
As they faced life and death, the thug grew irritated, unable to shake him off. With a curse, he raised his knife to stab down again—
Before the blade fell, his wrist was seized firmly.
Xia Liuyi’s cold voice sounded behind him. “Just take the money and go.”
The thug struggled, but his wrist was locked tight, the knife unmoving. He glared and cursed, “Fuck! Who the hell are you?!”
“Who’s your boss?” Xia Liuyi asked instead.
“My boss would scare you to death! Boss Xiao Ma of Xiaoqi Hall! If you know what’s good for you, let me go!”
“Xiao Ma wouldn’t take in trash with no sense of rules like you,” Xia Liuyi said—and tightened his grip.
The thug screamed in pain, swinging his other fist—but Xia Liuyi drove a knee into his stomach, sending him dropping to his knees with a grunt, his wrist still held high.
The second thug rushed in with a knife. Xia Liuyi released the first, spun, and kicked the weapon from the second man’s hand. His long leg followed through in a sweeping arc—crack!—striking the man’s head and sending him flying into a nearby car with a heavy thud!
Xia Liuyi moved in to finish him with another kick when he suddenly heard—
“Watch out! Brother Liuyi!”
He ducked instantly, then lashed backward with a powerful kick. The third thug, who had tried to ambush him from behind, took the blow square in the groin—collapsing like a frog without even managing a scream.
One thug sprawled over a car hood, another on the ground, both scrambling. Xia Liuyi grabbed their hair with one hand, stacking them together, pressing a knife to their necks. His tone remained calm. “Which hall do you belong to?”
“N-none! We’re not with anyone—we were just passing by! B-boss, spare us!” one stammered, trembling, having already recognized who he was.
Xia Liuyi curled his lips faintly. Everyone in the underworld knew this area belonged to Xiaoqi Hall, under Boss Xia’s protection—just passing by? Without warning, he yanked the knife—slash! Half a bloody ear dropped to the ground.
“Aaaahhh—!”
“If you can’t understand words, then I’ll just cut it off,” Xia Liuyi sneered.
“I’ll talk! I’ll talk!” the other thug wailed. “I—”
His voice cut off. Xia Liuyi followed his gaze—
He Chusan stood there, a switchblade pressed across his throat, being shoved forward.
The third thug was large and vicious-looking. In comparison, He Chusan looked like a scrawny rabbit, trapped in his grasp. With a miserable expression, he said, “Brother Liuyi… sorry.”
Xia Liuyi had been exasperated by him more times than he could count, and though he prided himself on having the patience of a saint, even he couldn’t take this one calmly. Slowly, he straightened up, a frown forming.
“You useless piece of shit,” he snapped irritably. “Did I tell you to come out? Clean up your own mess.”
He Chusan struggled but couldn’t break free, his face full of distress. “I can’t.”
“Then go die!” Xia Liuyi cursed—while suddenly stomping hard on the thug beneath his foot, eliciting a howl.
He Chusan caught the hint. Rising onto his toes, he widened his eyes as innocently as possible and spoke to the thug holding him, “Big brother, let’s talk. I’m not close with him. My dad owes him a hundred thousand—he grabbed me to collect the debt. Look at him—if you kill me, he won’t even blink…”
The thug’s head throbbed from the chatter. “Shut the fuck up!”
In that instant, his grip loosened. He Chusan immediately stomped on his foot just like Xia Liuyi had done! As the man recoiled in pain, He Chusan grabbed his arm, bent low, and attempted a not-so-successful shoulder throw—sending both of them crashing to the ground!
They rolled together in a tangled heap. The thug landed hard on his backside, then struggled to pin He Chusan and stab him. Pinned beneath him, He Chusan desperately blocked with his arms, barely deflecting several strikes aimed at his chest—but his forearms were slashed, beads of blood spraying out instantly!
He couldn’t help but grunt in pain. The thug raised the knife to strike again—
—but suddenly, the blade stopped dead.
Xia Liuyi lunged forward, catching the blade barehanded with his left hand. Blood immediately poured down along the knife’s edge, streaming from his palm! Under Thug No. 3’s horrified stare, Xia Liuyi’s face darkened as he slowly, inch by inch, forced the knife away from above He Chusan—until at last he wrenched it out of the thug’s hand.
The blood-soaked dagger clattered to the ground. Half sprawled on the floor, the thug held his striking hand frozen in midair, staring up at Xia Liuyi as if he’d seen a ghost, too terrified to even think of resisting.
Under the dim streetlights, Xia Liuyi’s eyes were vicious, his expression feral. He let out a cold, furious laugh, clenched his blood-slick fist with a crack—
—and drove a brutal punch straight down!
A loud bang! echoed sharply through the empty parking lot.
Half the thug’s head slammed into the ground. He went completely still.
The other two thugs saw their companion smashed senseless in a single blow. Screaming miserably, they scrambled to their feet and fled in utter panic, pissing themselves as they ran. The pregnant woman and her husband were also terrified stiff, clinging to each other and trembling.
The distant hum of a patrol car could be heard approaching. Xia Liuyi’s expression remained cold as he grabbed He Chusan’s arm and checked it—just a shallow cut. He seized his collar, hauled him upright, brushed the dirt off him, and shoved him toward the back. “Move!”
He Chusan obediently ran toward the Mercedes parked not far away. After a few steps, he realized Xia Liuyi hadn’t followed. Turning back, he saw Xia Liuyi walking over to the pregnant woman.
Xia Liuyi bent down, picked up the husband’s wallet from the ground, and pulled out his ID.
He glanced at the name on it and said coldly, “Du Meiyi, right? You don’t know who saved you. You didn’t see my face clearly. Got it?”
The woman nodded frantically, pale-faced, clutching her husband tightly.
Xia Liuyi tossed the ID back to her and strode quickly back to the car.
The Mercedes drove past the patrol car as if nothing had happened, weaving through a few side streets before merging back onto the main road.
“Brother Liuyi—your hand!” Seeing blood dripping from the steering wheel, He Chusan went pale.
“What’re you yelling for?” Xia Liuyi frowned. “There’s a first-aid kit in the cabinet.”
He Chusan pulled it out. “Find somewhere to stop first—let me stop the bleeding.”
“Later! Not there yet,” Xia Liuyi said impatiently. “Take care of yourself first!”
The cut on He Chusan’s arm looked bad but was actually minor—some disinfectant was enough. Under He Chusan’s urging, Xia Liuyi drove several more streets before finally pulling over.
He Chusan hurriedly tended to Xia Liuyi’s torn palm, stopping the bleeding and bandaging it. Seeing the cold sweat forming on his nose, Xia Liuyi found it amusing. “Scared?”
“Yes,” He Chusan nodded, frowning. “If this isn’t handled properly, it could damage the tendons. We should go to the hospital later.”
“Fuck!” Xia Liuyi lightly smacked his head with his right hand. “I meant—were you scared just now, with someone trying to stab you?!”
This time, He Chusan didn’t answer immediately. He carefully cleaned the wound, applied medicine, wrapped it properly—only then did he lower his voice and admit, “I was.”
Xia Liuyi snorted, about to tease him, when He Chusan added quietly, “I was scared you’d get hurt saving me.”
The smile on Xia Liuyi’s face froze.
After a pause, he forced a casual tone and smacked his forehead again. “What bullshit are you spouting? You think your Brother Liuyi is made of paper?”
He Chusan lowered his head, staring silently at the thick bandage around Xia Liuyi’s hand.
Xia Liuyi wasn’t made of paper—but he had been injured three times because of him. His right hand barely had the strength to hold chopsticks, and during the fight just now, it had hardly been raised at all.
Suddenly, He Chusan could no longer suppress the heat in his eyes. As if his head weighed a thousand pounds, he slowly lowered it, trembling as he pressed Xia Liuyi’s bleeding hand against his cheek.
The injured, sensitive palm was instantly warmed by his breath. Xia Liuyi froze completely.
With his face pressed against his palm, He Chusan spoke hoarsely, voice trembling slightly, “I mean it, Brother Liuyi. If something like this happens again, don’t worry about me. I’m useless. If you get hurt because of me… it hurts more than if I were the one injured.”
Xia Liuyi’s hand trembled uncontrollably. His throat suddenly felt unbearably dry. He opened his mouth twice before finally snapping back to himself, yanking his hand away from He Chusan’s face and barking awkwardly, “Shut up!”
“…”
He Chusan fell silent, biting his lip. Xia Liuyi, clutching his “violated” left palm with his right hand, didn’t know what to do. He could only stiffly turn his head to look out the window.
Silence settled in the car, thick and awkward, like dry wood ready to snap and catch fire. As Xia Liuyi stared outside, even his ears began to burn, his chest growing increasingly restless and heated.
What the hell is this brat doing—one line after another, practically confessing while clutching my hand? Does he think I don’t understand?
He refused to admit that the rage and frenzy he’d felt earlier when he saw He Chusan hurt meant anything. Even if it did—it was nothing. He was Boss Xia; that was his lackey, and everything he did was just defending his own territory and people.
He also refused to admit there was anything special about his feelings toward He Chusan. It was nothing more than a boss taking care of his subordinate. At most, the kid was a little interesting, a little different.
As for He Chusan’s feelings—clearly going the wrong way. Step by step, pushing boundaries, growing more and more ambiguous. This couldn’t be allowed to continue.
After stewing in this heated confusion, Xia Liuyi shut his eyes, took a deep breath, and said, “Go buy me a bowl of beef offal.”
He Chusan, who had been staring down blankly, looked up. “Huh?”
“Beef offal!”
“At this hour? Where would we even find that?” He Chusan asked, puzzled—then looked up and spotted a late-night food stall across the street, crowded with young people having supper.
—Why else would Boss Xia insist on driving several more streets just to stop here?
He obediently turned to get out of the car, but Xia Liuyi stopped him, tossing a worn black wallet at him. “Take my wallet. Get a Coke too.”
“I—” He Chusan started to say I have money, but then remembered Boss Xia flipping out over a hotpot incident before… yeah, not worth arguing with a rich guy over money.
Feeling unsettled, he took the wallet and got out, buying a large bowl of beef offal and a can of Coke. While waiting, he couldn’t help glancing back at the car across the street. Xia Liuyi leaned back in the driver’s seat, head tilted as he smoked, not even looking at him.
He Chusan sighed inwardly, regretting his loss of composure.
Yes—he had feelings for Xia Liuyi. He didn’t know when it started, but it had grown deep. That night outside the villa, when he had impulsively hugged him, he had already realized it.
Liking a man—and a triad boss at that—hadn’t shaken him much. When Xia Liuyi had told him about his past with Qinglong, he had already realized he held no resistance toward such feelings.
But he had no intention of confessing now. He was poor, useless, just a student—what could he possibly offer a man like Xia Liuyi? What right did he have to imagine Xia Liuyi leaving the underworld for him?
The road ahead was long. He wasn’t qualified to begin yet.
He only couldn’t help wanting to be closer. To take care of Xia Liuyi’s chaotic life. To avoid seeing him covered in blood, weak and hurt.
But he couldn’t hide his feelings—and Xia Liuyi was far too perceptive. There was nowhere left to retreat.
What should he do now?
Lowering his head, lost in thought, he was reminded by the shop owner. Opening the wallet to pay, he caught sight of a photograph inside.
It was Xia Liuyi and Xia Xiaoman, smiling at the camera, leaning close together against a backdrop of blue sea and sky.
He glanced at it, took out the money, and closed the wallet.
After a moment, he couldn’t resist opening it again.
He noticed a corner of another photo beneath it. Carefully, he nudged it out with his fingernail and pulled it free.
—it was a hidden photo of Qinglong alone. The image was yellowed; the man turned slightly to the side, smoking a cigar, half his face in shadow—like a candid shot.
He Chusan’s fingers trembled, almost dropping it, before he steadied himself and held it tightly.
Across the street, Xia Liuyi watched him from the corner of his eye while smoking. He saw the kid pull out the hidden photo, stare at it for a while… then quietly slide it back.
Xia Liuyi exhaled slowly, lifting his bandaged hand to cover his forehead.
This damn brat is so fucking annoying… Take the hint and back off. After seeing that photo, go home and sleep!
After a long while, He Chusan returned with the steaming bowl of beef offal. Xia Liuyi lounged lazily in the seat, cigarette in his mouth. Hearing him, he reached out to take it.
“I’ll hold it for you,” He Chusan said.
Xia Liuyi glanced at him. His expression was calm, simple—without a trace of anything.
Fuck. Xia Liuyi cursed inwardly. I even showed you a love rival’s photo—shouldn’t you have given up by now?!
Irritation rose for no reason. He insisted on grabbing the bowl, but it was too hot—and his right hand too weak. It nearly spilled onto his pants before He Chusan quickly caught it.
“I’ll hold it, Brother Liuyi,” He Chusan said softly again.
Xia Liuyi frowned but said nothing, eating bite by bite from the bowl in his hands.
He Chusan quietly watched him finish, then handed over the Coke.
Only after eating his fill did Xia Liuyi feel slightly better. Just as he leaned back to light another cigarette, He Chusan suddenly reached out and gently wiped the corner of his mouth.
Xia Liuyi looked up sharply.
“There’s some sauce here,” He Chusan said.
“… ”
That line was cliché—so cliché it was asking for death.
This damn brat won’t stop until he hits a wall. That was Xia Liuyi’s conclusion.
Grinding his teeth, he said nothing, turned away as if unconcerned, slammed the gear into place—and floored the accelerator!
He Chusan was jerked forward by the seatbelt, then calmly straightened and looked ahead. Sensing Xia Liuyi’s frustration, he couldn’t help the faintest curl of a smile.
While Xia Liuyi looked at the road, He Chusan lowered his head and brought his fingers—still stained with sauce and cola—to his lips, brushing them lightly.
He licked gently, tasting a salty, bitter sweetness.
Xia Liuyi hadn’t driven him away.
Even after realizing his feelings—even while annoyed—he still hadn’t driven him away.
This triad boss had indulged him again and again. On rare days off, he chose to spend time with him, taught him billiards hand-in-hand, ate his cooking, accepted his invitation to watch a movie, protected him without regard for danger, tolerated his growing closeness…
He knew—he was different.
Even if he couldn’t compare to that faded photograph yet… he was still special. One day—
Before he could finish savoring that bittersweet feeling, the car jerked and came to a stop.
He Chusan looked up at the large sign ahead—
“Tanxiang Pavilion”.
His expression froze instantly. The blood that had been surging through his chest turned cold in an instant.
Futile Devices Scans 
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