Days of Being Wild, the year-end blockbuster that would later sweep numerous awards and establish its director’s reputation, performed so poorly at the box office that it was hurriedly withdrawn after only twelve days. He Chu San and Xia Liu Yi happened to catch it on its third-to-last day, earning the privilege of sitting in a nearly empty cinema and cultivating their minds and souls with a dose of melancholy artistic sentiment.
University Student He was not yet sufficiently cultured for such artistry. Starting from the line, “The sixteenth. April 16, 1960, one minute before three in the afternoon,” he began dozing off. Just as his head was bobbing drowsily, an unfamiliar scream suddenly exploded beside his ear—
“Yow!”
The dozen or so people in the cinema all turned to look. He Chu San’s eyes flew open as he raised his head, only to see Xia Liu Yi’s tiger paw clamped around someone’s wrist.
The man’s wrist had nearly been twisted out of shape. He sucked in hissing breaths. “Brother—hey, Brother! That really hurts!”
“What happened?” He Chu San asked anxiously.
“I… Hiss, that hurts! I only wanted to remind you not to smoke. My wife is pregnant, and the smell is choking her!” The man seated behind them spoke through sharp breaths.
Xia Liu Yi snorted coldly and released him. “If you’ve got something to say, say it! Why were you touching me?”
“I only wanted to tap your shoulder…” The man cradled his wrist, looking deeply aggrieved. He still wanted to argue, but his pregnant wife pulled him back.
Everyone nearby could tell that Xia Liu Yi was not someone to provoke and timidly withdrew their gazes. Seeing how awkward the atmosphere had become, He Chu San worried that Xia Liu Yi might leave unhappily as he had the previous time. He was about to say something to ease the tension, but before even the first syllable of “Brother” left his mouth, Xia Liu Yi abruptly stood and walked away!
He Chu San hurriedly scrambled up and chased after him, preparing to intercept him near the exit—only for Xia Liu Yi to turn a corner, walk several rows toward the front, select a random seat among the empty chairs, and drop back down.
“…”
Hugging his backpack, He Chu San shuffled over and sat beside him. Hesitantly, he called, “Brother Liu Yi?”
Xia Liu Yi impatiently lit another cigarette and propped his long legs on the seats in front. “Cut the crap. Go back to sleep!”
He Chu San gave a muffled laugh. Now, however, he could no longer fall asleep. Imitating Xia Liu Yi, he leaned lazily against the backrest and patiently watched the screen for a while before secretly turning to look at Xia Liu Yi’s face.
Xia Liu Yi’s brows were knitted as he stared intently at the moving figures onscreen. Only occasionally did he bring the cigarette to his lips, draw a slow breath, and leisurely exhale it again. His expression remained indifferent.
Pretending to be overcome by sleep, He Chu San gradually slid lower in his seat. Little by little, ever so gently… he rested his head against Xia Liu Yi’s shoulder.
Xia Liu Yi showed no reaction whatsoever and continued staring steadily at the screen.
He Chu San quietly exhaled. His tense mind and body finally relaxed, and the corner of his mouth lifted as he closed his eyes.
“I heard that there is a kind of bird in this world that has no feet. It can only keep flying and flying. When it grows tired, it sleeps in the wind. It lands only once in its entire life—and that is when it dies,” the free-spirited wanderer onscreen said.
Xia Liu Yi appeared to smoke without much interest. The cinema was silent except for the protagonist’s low, hoarse monologue. Yet once He Chu San’s slow, even breathing began beside him, Xia Liu Yi suddenly turned and glanced at him.
Holding the cigarette between two fingers, he rubbed his temple irritably as he thought.
“In truth, it never went anywhere. That bird was already dead from the very beginning.”
…
After the film ended, Xia Liu Yi kicked He Chu San awake from his soft little snores. The two walked out one behind the other with the sparse crowd.
The late-night car park was almost completely empty, with only three or four vehicles scattered around. He Chu San yawned as he watched Xia Liu Yi take out his keys. Xia Liu Yi’s hand searched through his trouser pocket, moving around and around, while the little bum He Chu San’s gaze remained fixed on his pert, rounded backside as it shifted back and forth, back and forth…
“Ah—!”
A woman’s scream suddenly rang out from the depths of the car park!
The scream lasted only an instant before becoming muffled sounds of struggle. He Chu San immediately started running in that direction, but Xia Liu Yi grabbed him.
Xia Liu Yi glared at him, pulled him behind the car, and walked over alone.
A young thug had a heavily pregnant woman pinned to the ground with one hand over her mouth while using the other to tear away her jewelry. She whimpered and struggled to no effect. Her husband had been stabbed and lay weakly collapsed nearby, while another thug searched him for his wallet.
Seeing more and more blood flowing from her husband, the pregnant woman bit down fiercely on the thug’s hand. When his grip loosened, she opened her mouth and began screaming again. “Help! Somebody help! Honey! Honey… Mmph!”
The thug straightened and kicked her viciously in the waist. She immediately clutched her stomach and screamed, reduced to choking sobs and coughs.
The pregnant woman’s husband—the same man who had earlier asked Xia Liu Yi not to smoke—saw his wife being kicked and used his last strength to clutch the other thug’s leg. “H-Honey… run…”
While the couple faced a tragic separation on one side, the thug on the other grew thoroughly enraged. After tugging twice without freeing his leg, he simply raised his knife to stab the man again!
Before the blade could descend, someone firmly seized the web of his hand. Xia Liu Yi’s cool voice sounded behind him. “Taking the money is enough.”
The thug struggled, but his wrist remained tightly restrained and the knife did not move even slightly. He could only widen his eyes and curse. “Fuck! Who the hell are you?!”
“Who’s your boss?” Xia Liu Yi asked instead.
“My boss’s name will scare you to death! Brother Xiao Ma of Xiao Qi Hall! Let go of me while you still know what’s good for you!”
“Xiao Ma wouldn’t accept a useless bastard with no rules like you,” Xia Liu Yi said, tightening his grip.
The thug screamed in pain and swung his other fist at Xia Liu Yi. Instead, Xia Liu Yi raised his knee and kicked him in the stomach. The thug immediately dropped to his knees with a muffled grunt—his wrist still held high in Xia Liu Yi’s grasp.
His companion charged over at that moment, brandishing a small knife. Xia Liu Yi released the first thug, spun around, and kicked the knife from the second man’s hand. Continuing the motion, he swept his long leg across and struck the man’s head. The companion went flying and crashed heavily against the nearest sedan!
Xia Liu Yi pursued him to deliver another kick when He Chu San’s voice suddenly rang out. “Watch out, Brother Liu Yi!”
Xia Liu Yi swiftly ducked. The foot he had raised thrust backward with tremendous force. The thug sneaking up behind him was kicked directly in the crotch. Without managing even a sound, he collapsed facedown like a frog.
One thug sprawled across the hood of a car while the other lay on the ground, both frantically struggling. Xia Liu Yi seized their hair with one hand, stacked one above the other, and pressed a knife beside their necks. His voice remained cool and indifferent. “Which hall do you actually belong to?”
“W-We don’t belong to any hall! W-We were just p-p-passing through… B-B-Boss, spare us…” Realizing who Xia Liu Yi was, the two young men trembled violently. One of them hurriedly begged with a miserable expression.
The corner of Xia Liu Yi’s mouth lifted faintly. Everyone in the underworld knew that this area belonged to Xiao Qi Hall and was under Boss Xia’s protection. They just happened to pass through for no reason? He abruptly drew the knife in one swift motion. Half a bloody ear dropped to the ground!
“Yowwwww—!”
“If you can’t understand what people say, there’s no point keeping it,” Xia Liu Yi said with a cold laugh.
“I’ll talk! I’ll talk! I’ll talk!” the other thug cried loudly. “I…”
His voice abruptly stopped. Following his gaze, Xia Liu Yi saw a switchblade held across He Chu San’s throat as someone shoved him closer.
The third thug was tall and muscular, his face twisted viciously. In comparison, He Chu San looked like a skinny, scruffy rabbit trapped firmly inside his arms. He said miserably, “Brother Liu Yi, I’m sorry.”
He Chu San had angered Xia Liu Yi far more than once, twice, three, four, or five times. Xia Liu Yi considered himself magnanimous enough to sail a boat through his belly, yet even he could not tolerate this. He slowly straightened, his brows drawing together unconsciously.
“You fucking useless brat,” he said irritably. “Did I tell you to come out? Solve the trouble you caused yourself.”
He Chu San struggled once but failed to break free. With a worried expression, he said, “I can’t solve it.”
“Then die if you can’t solve it!” As Xia Liu Yi cursed, he suddenly stamped hard on the foot of the thug beneath him. The man howled in pain.
Understanding immediately, He Chu San rose onto his toes, tilted his head back, and opened his pure, innocent eyes as widely as possible to negotiate with the third thug. “Brother, let me explain. I barely know him. My dad owes him a hundred thousand dollars, and he kidnapped me to collect the debt. Look at his expression—even if you kill me, he won’t blink…”
The third thug developed a headache from his rambling and shouted impatiently, “Shut the fuck up!”
The moment his arm loosened, He Chu San copied Xia Liu Yi and stomped viciously on his foot. While the thug hopped in pain, He Chu San grabbed his arm, bent sharply at the waist, and attempted a not particularly successful shoulder throw. They both crashed to the ground!
The two rolled into a tangled heap. The third thug had injured his backside during the fall but still managed to pin He Chu San down and tried to stab him. Trapped beneath him in a miserable state, He Chu San shifted his arm and thrust up his palm, narrowly deflecting several strikes aimed at his chest. He could not, however, prevent the blade from slicing across the arm he used to block. A trail of blood droplets immediately sprayed outward.
He Chu San could not suppress a pained groan. Just as the third thug prepared to strike again, the knife suddenly stopped!
Xia Liu Yi had lunged forward and caught the bare blade with his left hand. Blood instantly poured down over the handle. Under the third thug’s shocked stare, Xia Liu Yi’s face darkened as he moved the blade away from above He Chu San inch by inch, finally wrenching it slowly from the man’s hand.
The blood-covered knife dropped to the ground with a clatter. Half sprawled across the earth, the third thug foolishly held up the hand that had wielded it. He stared at Xia Liu Yi as though looking at an evil spirit, so terrified that he forgot to resist at all.
Beneath the dim streetlights, Xia Liu Yi’s gaze was dark and vicious, his expression ferocious as he released an enraged laugh. His blood-soaked fist tightened with an audible creak before driving down in a brutal punch!
A heavy bang echoed clearly through the empty car park!
Half the third thug’s head sank into the dirt, and he made no further sound…
After seeing him punch their companion into an uncertain state between life and death, the other two thugs scrambled upright while screaming shrilly and fled in abject terror. The pregnant woman and her husband were also frightened senseless and clung to each other, trembling.
The faint hum of a patrolling police vehicle sounded in the distance. With an icy expression, Xia Liu Yi lifted He Chu San’s arm and examined it. After confirming that it was only a shallow cut, he grabbed He Chu San by the collar, hauled him upright, casually brushed off the dirt, and shoved him toward the car. “Go!”
Obediently, He Chu San ran toward the nearby Mercedes. After several steps, he realized Xia Liu Yi had not followed. Turning back, he saw Xia Liu Yi return to the pregnant woman.
Xia Liu Yi bent down, picked up her husband’s wallet, and removed the identification card inside.
Glancing down at the name on the card, Xia Liu Yi said coldly, “Du Mei Yi, is it? You don’t know who rescued you, and you didn’t see my face clearly. Remember that?”
The pregnant woman nodded repeatedly, her face pale as she held her husband tightly.
Xia Liu Yi tossed the identification card back to her, turned, and quickly returned to the car.
The Mercedes passed the police vehicle as though nothing had happened, turned through several narrow alleys, and returned to the main road.
“Brother Liu Yi, your hand!” Seeing blood dripping heavily onto the steering wheel, He Chu San spoke with a pale face.
“What are you making such a racket for?” Xia Liu Yi frowned. “There’s a first-aid kit in the compartment.”
He Chu San found the kit. “Find somewhere to stop, Brother Liu Yi. Let me stop the bleeding first.”
“Later! We haven’t reached the place yet,” Xia Liu Yi said impatiently. “Deal with your own arm first!”
The cut on He Chu San’s arm looked long, but it was nothing serious and required only disinfection with alcohol. Even after He Chu San repeatedly urged him, Xia Liu Yi drove through several more streets before finally pulling over.
He Chu San hurriedly tried to stop the bleeding and bandage the torn flesh of Xia Liu Yi’s palm. Seeing the cold sweat forming on the tip of his nose, Xia Liu Yi found it amusing. “Were you scared?”
“Yes.” He Chu San frowned and nodded. “If this isn’t treated properly, the tendons in your hand could be damaged. We should go to the hospital afterward.”
“Fuck!” Xia Liu Yi used his right hand to lightly smack the back of his head. “I was asking whether you were scared when that man attacked you with a knife!”
He Chu San did not answer this time. He merely lowered his head and meticulously cleaned the wound, carefully applied medicine, and wound gauze around it. Only then did he admit quietly, “I was.”
Xia Liu Yi laughed scornfully and was about to tease him when he heard the next softly spoken sentence.
“I was afraid you would get hurt saving me.”
The smile on Xia Liu Yi’s face froze.
After a pause, he casually smacked He Chu San’s forehead again. “What kind of nonsense is that? Is your Brother Liu Yi made of paper?”
He Chu San lowered his head and silently stared at the thick gauze around Xia Liu Yi’s wound.
Xia Liu Yi was certainly not made of paper, yet he had already been injured three times while saving him. His right hand retained barely enough strength to hold chopsticks, and during the fight just now, he had clearly almost never raised it.
He Chu San suddenly could no longer suppress the heat gathering in his eyes. As though his head bore the weight of a thousand catties, he slowly lowered it and tremblingly pressed Xia Liu Yi’s bleeding, injured hand against his cheek.
He Chu San’s warm breath immediately scorched the sensitive, wounded palm. Xia Liu Yi’s entire body went rigid. With his cheek resting against Xia Liu Yi’s palm, He Chu San spoke hoarsely, his voice trembling faintly. “I mean it, Brother Liu Yi. If something like this happens again, don’t worry about me. I’m the one who’s useless. Seeing you hurt feels worse than being injured myself…”
Xia Liu Yi’s hand trembled uncontrollably. His throat abruptly felt unbearably dry. He opened his mouth blankly twice before seemingly returning to his senses and wrenching his palm away from He Chu San’s face. In utter disarray, he shouted, “Shut up!”
“…”
He Chu San obeyed, biting his lip tightly and saying nothing. Xia Liu Yi covered his left palm—which had just been “violated”—with his right hand. For a moment, he had no idea what to do and could only stiffly turn his head toward the window.
Both fell silent. The atmosphere inside the car was as awkward as a dry branch on the verge of snapping and catching fire. As Xia Liu Yi stared outside, even the roots of his ears began to burn, and the heat inside his chest grew increasingly unbearable. What the fuck was this little bastard trying to say, delivering one sentence after another and pressing his face against Xia Liu Yi’s palm while revealing his feelings? Did he think Xia Liu Yi was too stupid to understand?
Xia Liu Yi refused to admit the rage and frenzy he had felt upon seeing He Chu San injured. No—that was wrong. Even admitting it would mean nothing. He Chu San was the underling personally chosen by Boss Xia. Losing control like that had merely been an act of defending his own territory and his people. He also refused to admit that he held any unusual feelings toward He Chu San. It was simply an elder brother’s concern for a younger brother, nothing more. He merely found He Chu San slightly different and rather interesting. He Chu San’s feelings, however, had clearly gone down the wrong path. Every increasingly presumptuous sentence overflowed with ambiguity. Xia Liu Yi could not allow him to continue unchecked!
After thinking with his head burning for a while, he closed his eyes, drew a deep breath, and said, “Go buy me a bowl of beef offal.”
He Chu San, who had been staring blankly downward, raised his head. “Hmm?”
“Beef offal!”
“Where would we find beef offal this late?” He Chu San asked in confusion. Raising his head, he happened to see a late-night snack shop across the street, with a group of young men and women sitting at the stall outside.
Why else did he think Boss Xia had insisted on driving several additional streets before stopping here?
He obediently turned to get out, but Xia Liu Yi called him back and threw an old black leather wallet onto him. “Take my wallet. Buy a can of cola too.”
“I…” He Chu San was about to say that he had money, but then recalled the previous incident when Boss Xia had angrily overturned the clay-pot chicken. There was truly no reason to argue with this wealthy tyrant over money.
Still distracted, he took Xia Liu Yi’s wallet and got out of the car. Following the instructions, he bought a large bowl of beef offal and a can of cola from the snack shop. While waiting for the food, he secretly glanced back at the car across the street. Xia Liu Yi leaned against the driver’s seat with his head tilted back, smoking without looking at him.
He Chu San sighed inwardly, regretting his earlier loss of composure.
Yes, he had feelings for Xia Liu Yi, feelings whose beginning he could not name and which had only grown deeper. He had already recognized them that night outside the villa when he involuntarily embraced Xia Liu Yi. Falling for a man—and an underworld boss at that—had not shocked him very much. Long before, while listening to Xia Liu Yi speak of his past with Azure Dragon, He Chu San had realized that he felt no resistance toward love between two men.
Yet he did not want to confess to Xia Liu Yi at this point. He was merely an impoverished, useless student. What could he offer when promising an underworld boss a future? What right did he have to fantasize about Xia Liu Yi washing his hands of the underworld and living with him? The road ahead was long, and he knew he was not yet qualified to begin. He simply could not control his desire to grow closer to Xia Liu Yi, to take care of his chaotic life, and to never again see him covered in blood or weakened by injury. He could not conceal his feelings, and Xia Liu Yi was so sharp and vigilant that he could see through him effortlessly, leaving him nowhere to hide.
What should he do now?
He lowered his head and pondered. After the proprietress reminded him to pay, he opened the wallet and immediately saw a photograph inside. It showed Xia Liu Yi and Xia Xiao Man smiling at the camera, leaning intimately against each other with a blue sea and sky behind them.
He glanced at it, took out the money, and closed the wallet. After a moment, however, he could not resist opening it again.
A tiny corner of another photograph protruded beneath the first. He gently pried it upward with his fingernail and carefully pulled it out.
It was an individual photograph of Azure Dragon hidden underneath. The image had yellowed with age. The man had his head turned as he smoked a cigar, half his face concealed in shadow, as though the photograph had been taken secretly.
He Chu San’s fingertips trembled, and he nearly dropped it. He swiftly steadied himself and gripped the photograph firmly.
Inside the car across the street, Xia Liu Yi smoked expressionlessly while watching him from the corner of his eye. He saw the brat remove the hidden photograph, stare at it blankly for a while, then quietly return it to its place.
Xia Liu Yi slowly exhaled a stream of smoke and raised his gauze-wrapped hand to cover his forehead.
This fucking little bastard was unbearably troublesome! He ought to recognize the difficulty and retreat. Now that he had seen the photograph, he should go home, wash up, and sleep!
After a long while, He Chu San returned to the car carrying a steaming bowl of beef offal. Xia Liu Yi reclined lazily and indifferently in the seat with a cigarette between his lips. Hearing He Chu San enter, he extended his right hand for the bowl.
“I’ll hold it for you,” He Chu San said.
Xia Liu Yi glanced up at him. He Chu San’s expression appeared calm and innocent, without the slightest flaw.
Xia Liu Yi cursed inwardly. He had even shown the brat a photograph of his love rival. Surely he should give up now!
For some inexplicable reason, anger rose inside him. He insisted on snatching the bowl, but it was too hot and his right hand was weak, so it nearly spilled across his trousers. Fortunately, He Chu San reacted quickly and caught it again.
“I’ll hold it, Brother Liu Yi,” He Chu San repeated softly.
Xia Liu Yi frowned without speaking and used a skewer to eat a piece of beef offal from the bowl in his hands.
He Chu San silently held it while Xia Liu Yi finished every bite, then passed him the cola.
Only after eating and drinking his fill in silence did Xia Liu Yi feel the tiniest bit more comfortable. He had just leaned back and prepared to light another cigarette when He Chu San suddenly raised a hand and gently wiped the corner of his mouth.
Xia Liu Yi looked at him warily.
“There was some sauce here,” He Chu San said.
“…”
A rather old-fashioned line… old-fashioned enough to get him killed! This fucking little bastard would not give up until he saw his coffin! That was Xia Liu Yi’s inward judgment of his words and actions.
Gritting his teeth without speaking, he pretended not to care and turned away. He shifted gears and abruptly slammed down on the accelerator.
The seat belt caught He Chu San as his head pitched forward. He calmly straightened and looked ahead. Sensing Xia Liu Yi’s suppressed anger and frustration, he could not stop the corner of his mouth from lifting secretly.
While Xia Liu Yi turned his head to watch the road, He Chu San lowered his gaze and brought the fingertip stained with beef-offal sauce and cola to his lips, lightly touching it with his pursed mouth.
He gently licked the corner of his lips and tasted a salty, bittersweet sweetness.
Xia Liu Yi had not driven him away. Even after discovering He Chu San’s feelings, even while finding him unbearably irritating, he had still not driven him away. This underworld boss had indulged him again and again. On a rare free holiday, Xia Liu Yi had chosen only his company, personally taught him billiards, eaten the meal he cooked, accepted his invitation to see a film together, protected him despite the danger, and tolerated his increasingly presumptuous closeness… He Chu San knew that he was different.
Even though he could not yet compare with that yellowed profile—not even remotely—he knew that he too was special. Someday…
Before he could finish savoring that salty, bitter sweetness, the car jolted and stopped beside the road again.
He Chu San stared at the enormous sign ahead reading Taan Heung Pavilion. His expression abruptly froze, and the blood that had been boiling wildly in his chest only moments before suddenly turned cold.
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