Chapter Seventy-Four: Loving Someone

It was as if overnight, the entire underworld of Lin City had been unified by a powerful organization known as Yumen.

Yet, after ascending to dominance, Yumen did not behave as many had anticipated. There were no bloody displays of power, no expansion of black market dealings. On the contrary, Yumen strove to shed the trappings of traditional gangs, steering clear of vice, gambling, and drugs, and instead threw themselves into legitimate, lawful business ventures.

And why not? Yumen held the exclusive rights to sell Xishuang and Longevity Pills, two wildly popular items in the market for which demand constantly outstripped supply. Their daily profits far exceeded anything the gray market could provide; why would they soil their hands? As for their many members, some continued to manage bars and nightclubs, while more were reassigned as security staff, earning at least twice the salary of an average white-collar worker.

Yumen’s headquarters was located in the renowned Shanhe Residence No. 1.

But few knew that Yumen’s true master had already moved out of Shanhe Residence No. 1. First, the place was crowded and too conspicuous; second, lives had been lost there—several, in fact, by Jiang An’s own hand. So the day after, he relocated to a refined and tranquil courtyard beside West Lake, which he named “Xiaoyao Pavilion.” It had once belonged to the Gu family, but now it was home to Jiang An and his family.

Little Xixi was instantly enamored with the place. Without a care in the world, she dragged her father to the lake to row a boat. She nestled in Jiang An’s arms, with Tiger the cat cradled in her own, drifting across the water, overjoyed.

The revenge long expected from Yuan Kai, the Party Secretary of Lin City whom Jiang An had gravely offended, never came. With his power, it should have been child’s play to make life difficult for Green Sea and Xi Zi. But as Fan Jun said, Yuan Kai was a man of dark temperament and seasoned cunning, too proud for petty tricks; when he struck, it was always at the jugular, leaving his enemies ruined beyond recovery.

“Achoo!”

Like a kitten, Xixi sneezed softly, rubbed her nose with her little hand, and excitedly urged Jiang An to row the boat farther.

“Sweetheart, let’s go back now, or you’ll catch a cold,” Jiang An said with a smile.

Squirming in his arms, Xixi pouted, “No, Xixi still wants to play! Daddy, can we go to that little island up ahead?”

“But your mother must be missing you. Don’t you want to go back and see her?” he coaxed.

“How do you know Mom is missing me?” the little one asked, tilting her delicate face up.

Jiang An tapped her nose and smiled, “Because when someone misses another person, that someone will sneeze. You just sneezed, didn’t you? That means Mama is thinking of you.”

…

“Yanyan, I’ve noticed you’ve changed!”

In a cozy, warmly decorated girls’ dormitory at East University, a lovely girl applied a face mask and then patted the shoulder of the girl beside her—a stunning beauty, lost in a daydream with her chin resting on her palm.

“Yes, I was just thinking the same!” Another girl poked her head down from the upper bunk.

Tong Yi, still lost in thought, didn’t even lift her eyelids. She grunted indifferently, “Oh?”

“What do you mean ‘oh’? You hardly eat now, you’re not afraid of the cold anymore, and you’ve become so pensive and sentimental. If I weren't your best friend and confidante who knows your every little habit, I’d think you’d been replaced by an imposter!”

“Xiao Tong, what’s really going on with you?” The two girls refused to drop the subject. Tong Yi, exasperated by their pestering, replied, “Thank you for your concern, sisters, but I’m just in a bad mood. My period started, is that so strange?”

“Pfft! Like I wouldn’t know when that happens? Out with it—be honest!”

“Heh, you must be in love!”

The two girls pressed on relentlessly. At that moment, the door swung open and in walked a chic short-haired beauty, who entered with a laugh, “Who’s in love?”

From the upper bunk, a girl grinned, “Ah, here she is—our dorm’s only relationship expert! Zhen Yan, please diagnose our dear Tong Yi and see if she’s fallen in love.”

“Yes, exactly!”

“Very well, the wise old sage will oblige!” Zhen Yan stroked her imaginary beard with a flourish, pulled up a chair beside Tong Yi, and forcibly turned her face toward her. “Look into my eyes and answer: are you in love?”

Am I in love?

Tong Yi froze, her face cupped in Zhen Yan’s hands, but before she could answer, Zhen Yan laughed, “No need to say a word! When your eyes dart down to the right, it means you’re pondering deeply—the answer is obvious. Congratulations, Tong Yi, you’re in love! But I’m dying to know, who could possibly have captured the heart of our campus belle?”

“I’d like to know too!” the other two girls chimed in, faces alight with curiosity.

Seeing Tong Yi remain silent, Zhen Yan burst out laughing, “It’s true—falling in love makes you lose all sense! Xiao Tong, what’s there to fear in liking someone? Be bold and chase after him! Remember, you were the one who encouraged me to pursue my boyfriend, and now you’re the one in doubt. We’re your best friends, can’t you tell us?”

Tong Yi looked up into three pairs of caring, earnest eyes. At length, she said softly, “Yes, I’ve fallen for someone.”

The three girls beamed. Zhen Yan cleared her throat with theatrical gravity, “Excellent. Now, we must clarify: do you truly like him, or is it just a fleeting crush? And if you do, how much do you like him?”

“I don’t know,” Tong Yi wilted again.

“Hmm, do you think about him?”

“I do!” Suddenly, Tong Yi’s eyes sparkled, clear and bright, as she opened her heart. “I think of him in class, I think of him during breaks, I dream of him at night. I just want to see him more, to know everything about him—what he likes to eat, what he likes to wear, where he likes to go, what his hobbies are…”

The three girls were stunned. As Tong Yi poured out her feelings, her earnestness and yearning were so radiant that even girls couldn’t help but sigh at her beauty.

“Then it’s unmistakable—you are in love,” Zhen Yan declared solemnly.

Tong Yi fell silent, a shadow passing over her face. “But…I don’t think he likes me.”

“How is that possible?”

“There’s a man out there blind enough not to like you?” the other two girls exclaimed, unable to believe it. Zhen Yan hushed them. “Love and being loved are both experiences we must undergo. Anything is possible. I know how it feels to like someone—you lower yourself in your own eyes, humble as dust, and yet, from the dust, the flower of joy still blooms.”

“Humble as dust, yet from the dust, the flower of joy still blooms…” Tong Yi repeated softly, her heart catching at the phrase.

The other two girls stared at Zhen Yan, dumbfounded, which made her a bit self-conscious. “Haha, just showing off a little. Not my own words—I read it in a poetry collection.”

“Pfft!” The girl with the face mask reached over and tugged at Zhen Yan’s shirt, then tried to slide her hand into her pants, startling Zhen Yan, who quickly pushed her away. “What on earth are you doing?”

“Oh, nothing, just checking where you keep all this pretentiousness.”

The dorm erupted in laughter.

“You’re terrible!”

The girls dissolved into giggles.

“All right, enough horsing around, let’s get back to business!” Zhen Yan raised her voice, growing serious. “We still haven’t solved Xiao Tong’s problem!”

“Yes, yes, let’s continue.”

“Xiao Tong, what I mean is, just be brave and go after the one you like! If it doesn’t work out, you can always drop him—you can play with his feelings as payback for not chasing you first!”

“Isn’t that a bit much? Maybe he just doesn’t like me,” Tong Yi said timidly.

“Come on, that attitude won’t do!” Zhen Yan propped a mirror in front of Tong Yi and said sternly, “Take a good look at yourself. Your face—perfect! Brows straight, dark, and delicate. Those enchanting eyes—always sparkling. Nose—small and elegant. Lips—naturally rosy. Skin—so fair and tender it’s almost inhuman; women would kill for it. What more do you want?”

As Zhen Yan enumerated her features, the other two girls joined in, playfully poking and prodding.

“And look at that chest—I can’t even hold it with one hand, it’s so soft!”

“And that slender waist—just right for an embrace.”

“And those legs—longer than a model’s!”

“And such a lovely personality!”

“With all these advantages, it’s his ancestors’ good fortune if you like him! If you so much as crook your little finger, he’ll be on his knees, singing your praises!” Zhen Yan concluded.

Surrounded by this chorus, Tong Yi couldn’t help but regain her confidence. “Really? Am I truly that charming?”

“Oh, sister! Don’t be so cruel to us. Just look—” Zhen Yan gestured to the rows of flowers and chocolates, and the box of letters piled in the corner. “All from boys. If you say you have no charm, what does that make us?”

That’s right—I’m Tong Yi, adored wherever I go!

“Alright! I’ve made up my mind!” Tong Yi suddenly stood, radiant and resolute. “I will pursue him!”

Applause erupted as the other three girls cheered with unrestrained excitement, as if they themselves were about to fall in love.

“But…I still have no idea what to do,” she deflated again, her earlier bravado vanishing.

(To be continued)