The flat-headed, pockmarked face was taken down in one move, suffering a devastating blow to his self-esteem. He had intended to throw a few harsh words at Xie Ci, but before he could even open his mouth, he was dragged away by the yellow-haired guy.

The yellow-haired guy was clearly at a loss, not daring to confront Xie Ci, and instead shouted at Chen Zhanpeng, “Tomorrow afternoon at the old place! If you don’t pay back the money, I won’t be polite!”

After saying that, the yellow-haired guy instinctively glanced at Xie Ci’s back and gritted his teeth, adding, “You come alone!”

Chen Zhanpeng had a stern face. Once he heard the roar of the motorcycle engine fading away, he angrily chased after Xie Ci and grabbed his shoulder. “Xie Ci! It’s one thing if you don’t help me pay back the money, but why are you encouraging them to beat me?!”

“Aren’t you supposed to fight back?”

Xie Ci shrugged off the hand on his shoulder. He didn’t use much strength, but it was firm and left no room for argument. “Chen Zhanpeng, I have my limits too.”

Chen Zhanpeng was infuriated by his words. “Don’t give me that! You eat at my house and stay at my house; what’s wrong with helping out a little?”

“Is that so?”

Chen Zhanpeng stared at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t owe your family anything.”

Xie Ci didn’t want to look at that face any longer. He pushed him away and walked toward the alley.

In his past life, he had already achieved financial freedom during college, while his cousin Chen Zhanpeng barely managed to get into a vocational school. He spent three years messing around in school, and after graduation, he couldn’t find a job, spending his days gaming at home, getting fat under the care of his aunt.

When his company went public, his cousin was still living off his parents, just like his uncle, who loved to speculate in stocks. Chen Zhanpeng was not only bad at it but also had a huge gambling addiction, losing all his family’s savings and racking up a mountain of debt. He often came to Xie Ci’s company to cause trouble and demand money.

He had no good feelings toward this family of three. Back in college, he had thought about getting revenge for the painful experiences of his youth, but as his career grew, those thoughts faded away.

When you climb high enough, looking back at those people and events doesn’t seem like much anymore.

Dealing with them was easier than squashing an ant, but it wasn’t necessary. With his cousin’s character, he wouldn’t even need to lift a finger; they would end up ruining themselves.

His aunt was the youngest daughter favored by his grandmother. For his grandmother’s sake, he had given them a sum of money, which was enough to cover all the expenses of living in their house for ten years.

During those years, he was busy expanding into foreign markets, constantly shuttling between several countries, and working late into the night became the norm. He didn’t have time to pay attention to his aunt’s family. Later, he only heard from his secretary that his cousin Chen Zhanpeng had been implicated in fraud, apparently using his name to engage in illegal fundraising, scamming the pension money of lonely elderly people, which led to one of them dying of a heart attack right at their doorstep, causing quite a stir in Lan Hai City.

His aunt and uncle would hang around his company every day, hoping to ask him for help.

He didn’t have the time or desire to see them, and he wasn’t even interested in following up on the matter.

It wasn’t until three years ago, when he ran into his father’s former assistant at an art exhibition in Country D with Gu Yufeng, that he learned his aunt’s family was living in a property owned by his father.

Years ago, his father had asked his aunt to help take care of him, and in return, he had given them the apartment in the city to live in. At that time, his uncle had just started working and didn’t yet qualify to buy a house in Lan Hai City.

But for some unknown reason, it wasn’t until he was eight years old that his aunt proposed to take him back home.

He later speculated that it might have been because he was too young to take care of himself, making it troublesome to look after him.

So, between him and his aunt’s family, there was never any so-called kindness; if you really wanted to count it, it was just a transaction.

Outside the alley, a row of mobile stalls occupied the motor vehicle lane, making the already narrow old street even narrower. On either side, besides a stationery store, there were KTVs and internet cafes, which were the favorite hangouts for students from nearby schools.

By three in the afternoon, quite a few students had gathered here.

Returning here after so many years made Xie Ci feel a bit nostalgic.

Watching the students either lining up at the stalls or squatting in small groups by the roadside, eating and laughing, he suddenly understood the sense of incongruity he felt.

He had returned to seventeen, but it was impossible to go back to being seventeen.

A police car turned the corner on his right, and Xie Ci didn’t linger, walking toward the left side of the street.

If he remembered correctly, this was the direction to the First High School.

“Excuse me, how do I get to Xingfu West Road?”

The voice sounded somewhat familiar. Xie Ci casually glanced over, and his steps came to a sudden halt.

Across the street, a tall boy in a white shirt was chatting with a male student from the sports school.

The boy was about the same height as him, with fair skin, fluffy and smooth hair, and delicate features that were rare among boys. The buttons of his shirt were not done up properly, and as the wind blew, the collar revealed a hint of collarbone. The sleeves were casually rolled up, exposing a long forearm and a sports watch on his wrist.

The afternoon sun shone down, and the boy’s hair and pupils glimmered with a flaxen hue, like a pure white sprite that had accidentally wandered into the human world.

In this dirty and chaotic old street, he looked even more out of place than Xie Ci.

Xie Ci sized up the boy, who seemed slightly thinner than he remembered, unable to believe he would run into Gu Yufeng from his youth here.

In his mind, the image of a thirty-something Gu Yufeng overlapped with the boy in front of him, and in that moment, the sense of temporal dislocation became tangible.

The boy was holding a black backpack in his right hand, and the time on his watch was around twelve-thirty, which was the time in Country D.

Could it be that he had just returned to the country?

Gu Yufeng’s grandfather was from Country D, so he had a quarter of mixed blood.

Xie Ci had lived for thirty-five years and seen all kinds of people, but he had never seen a man more beautiful than Gu Yufeng, someone who could blur the lines of gender while still making it clear that he was a man.

He and Gu Yufeng had been married, but it only lasted five years.

Gu Yufeng grew up in Country D, and in his past life, their first meeting was at a wealthy businessman’s party in Country D.

The market in Country D was monopolized by major conglomerates, and he had faced several setbacks, always unable to find a breakthrough. Attending that party was just a gamble.

While resting on the terrace, he happened to overhear a table of foreigners discussing Gu Yufeng. After all, with looks like his, it was hard not to attract attention wherever he went.

Gu Yufeng’s father was the president of Gu Group, and his grandfather was a tycoon in Country D. However, in recent years, they had been besieged by other capital and were in a precarious situation, at risk of being swallowed up, seemingly also seeking a breakthrough, while Gu Yufeng was gay.

With such conditions, it was too perfect.

A voice in his head screamed wildly—this was it, the key to unlocking the market in Country D.

He began to investigate Gu Yufeng’s personality, preferences, and habits, formulating a detailed plan to pursue him, even though he didn’t particularly like men.

From deliberately getting close to spending time together, the process went even smoother than he had anticipated. If there was any surprise, it was that Gu Yufeng was even more interesting than he had imagined.

Neither of them were the type to get caught up in romance; on the contrary, they were rational, shrewd, ambitious, and eager to chase power and wealth, enjoying the feeling of standing atop the mountain and controlling the fates of others in their hands.

The new house he had prepared for their marriage felt more like a nest for two ambitious people. Occasionally, on free weekends, they would prepare candlelight dinners, deciding the fates of others while laughing, and would also roll around together on drunken nights.

People in their circle gossiped about him, cursing him, envying him, saying he was crazy for marrying a man for profit.

But at that time, he didn’t see any problem with it.

He had seen dirtier means than a marriage of convenience; what did this count for?

He and Gu Yufeng each had their own careers, often not returning home for ten days or half a month, but they had a tacit understanding and never inquired about each other’s whereabouts.

At that time, he vaguely sensed that something was wrong between them.

Gu Yufeng was coming home less and less frequently, and even when he was home, he would stay in the study to work. Even sharing a bed no longer required any demands from him.

But he was too busy with work to care; perhaps he firmly believed that whether or not to maintain this marriage didn’t matter.

The purpose of the marriage had already been achieved. Apart from not being in love, he and Gu Yufeng were very in sync in other aspects. Even if they divorced, their relationship wouldn’t change significantly; if there was any difference, it was probably just that they wouldn’t share a bed anymore.

That night, Xie Ci was in a meeting when he suddenly received a call from Gu Yufeng’s assistant.

“Mr. Xie, can you come over for a moment? Mr. Gu drank too much tonight and isn’t in good shape!”

From the assistant’s tone, Xie Ci sensed something was off. He left a group of subordinates behind and personally drove to the bar.

When he saw Gu Yufeng, the latter was slumped on the sofa in the private room, nearly unconscious.

“Xie Ci?” Gu Yufeng struggled to keep his eyes open, hazily watching him approach.

“It’s me.” Xie Ci picked him up by the waist.

Once Gu Yufeng recognized him, he instinctively clung to Xie Ci’s shoulder.

Overworked, sleep-deprived, and drunk, Gu Yufeng developed a high fever before even getting home.

Xie Ci contacted his private doctor and, after getting home, immediately took measures to cool Gu Yufeng down.

“You’ve been a bit impatient with your work lately; don’t push yourself too hard.”

Xie Ci handed a glass of ice water to Gu Yufeng, who was leaning against the sofa. “Isn’t the merger case with Rongyu Group moving ahead too quickly? I had someone check on Desen; that old man has a few lives on his hands. You need to be extra careful when dealing with him.”

Gu Yufeng just looked at him, not saying a word.

Xie Ci sighed. “Forget it, let’s not talk about work. Drink some water and rest; the doctor will be here soon.”

Gu Yufeng didn’t take the glass, sitting up to look at Xie Ci. “Are you concerned about me?”

Xie Ci was puzzled. “Can’t I be concerned?”

Gu Yufeng stared at Xie Ci for a moment.

Just when Xie Ci thought Gu Yufeng was feeling unwell, the latter suddenly ripped off the cooling patch from his forehead, grabbed his tie, and kissed him forcefully.

They rolled onto the carpet, clothes scattered all over the place.

The drunk man climbed on top of him, wildly losing control, as if he wanted to take away both of their rationalities.

In the pitch-black night, the room temperature soared.

The feverish body was astonishingly hot.

The hands pressed against his chest brushed over his collarbone, and the long fingers suddenly gripped his neck, the nails digging deep into his flesh. Xie Ci had no doubt that Gu Yufeng could kill him.

Gu Yufeng chuckled softly, his eyes, which had been filled with confusion just a moment ago, now icy cold, as if some repressed, fervent, and obsessive emotions were about to burst forth.

“Xie Ci, I’ve been by your side for so many years; have you ever seen me for even a moment?”

Xie Ci frowned, sensing that Gu Yufeng’s state tonight was off. “Let go, you’re drunk.”

“Your world only has room for yourself.”

Gu Yufeng sighed, his voice low, as he pulled up his disheveled shirt and stood up, the open collar sliding down his arms. As he moved, sweat trickled down the lines of his muscles across his chest, looking down at Xie Ci with a terrifying calmness. “Let’s end it here.”

Xie Ci had imagined that the day they ended things would be a peaceful parting, sitting down to calmly analyze the pros and cons of divorce, adjusting their future cooperation, smiling as they clinked glasses, wishing each other “happy divorce,” rather than parting in such a cruel manner, as if tearing flesh from bone.

“Xingfu West Road is quite long; where are you headed?” The male student from the sports school spoke up.

The voice that broke into Xie Ci’s thoughts made him snap back to reality.

Gu Yufeng replied, “The bus stop for Route 625.”

The sports school boy said, “Just go straight along this road, pass two traffic lights, turn right, and walk another three to five hundred meters, and you’ll get there.”

Gu Yufeng said, “I’m not familiar with this place, and my phone is dead. Could you please help me get there?”

Xie Ci listened to a couple of sentences and thought it shouldn’t be a problem. He casually withdrew his gaze and continued walking.

Some mistakes are only worth making once.

Gu Yufeng said, “Don’t worry, I’ll pay you for your help. Is this enough?”

The boy exclaimed, “Holy crap! Are you giving me this whole stack?!”

Xie Ci’s eyelids twitched. He turned around just in time to see Gu Yufeng pull out a stack of unwrapped hundred-yuan bills from his backpack and hand them to the two male students from the sports school.

There were many students on this street, and there were also many delinquents.

Waving around that much cash made it easy to attract attention, and with Gu Yufeng’s stylish outfit and clear eyes, he looked like a naive young master, the kind that was easy to deceive.

Sure enough, four or five shady-looking boys immediately surrounded him, eager to offer to show Gu Yufeng the way.

If he really followed these delinquents, he’d end up losing his pants.

Xie Ci held back his frustration, thinking that even if he was young, he was still Gu Yufeng and shouldn’t be so easily fooled, right?

Gu Yufeng said, “Great, thank you.”

Xie Ci: “…”

One of the boys said, “If we take you to the bus stop, do we get to keep all this money?”

Gu Yufeng nodded. “If it’s not enough for you, I have more in my bag.”

Xie Ci: “…………”

The boys were ecstatic, draping their arms around Gu Yufeng’s shoulders and leading him toward the alley.

But they hadn’t taken two steps when someone grabbed the collar of one of the boys from behind.

The boy angrily shouted at the person behind him, “What are you doing?! Let go!”

Gu Yufeng turned around in confusion to look.

Xie Ci, with a blank expression, glanced at the group of punks, his gaze landing on Gu Yufeng. “I happen to be going to the bus stop too; I’ll take you there.”