---

---

I got goosebumps from his actions.

I punched him in the stomach. “Are you a pervert?!”

As I pulled my hand back, Fang Heng grabbed my wrist, holding it tightly. His messy black hair covered his eyes, and he said in a low voice, “Yan Ze, keep it up. You’re smart, don’t waste your life here.”

---

8

Three thousand five hundred yuan is a huge sum of money for me. It’s enough to take He Li to the hospital.

I had saved up one thousand six hundred yuan before, but Yan He came back once and took it all. Now, with the money Fang Heng gave me, He Li can finally see a doctor.

I don’t have the money to treat her, but at least I can get her checked out. I want to know how long she has left.

Besides the money, Fang Heng proved something else to me—I can still do it, I’m not completely worthless.

Once I’ve taken He Li to the doctor, I’ll pick up my studies again. While there’s still hope, I’ll work harder.

Maybe things will get better in the future. Maybe I can get into college. Maybe I can get He Li out of this place.

As I walked up to my house, I saw Liu She. Beside him stood a woman with bloodshot eyes.

Liu She smiled and handed her a wad of cash. He Li sat against the door, watching coldly. Her clothes and hair were a mess, and there were two clear slap marks on her face.

My heart tightened, and I rushed over.

Liu She glanced at me and said to the woman, “Take the money and leave. Look at her family situation—whether you beat her to death or not, you won’t get any more money.”

The woman wiped her eyes, spat at He Li, and cursed, “You whore,” before leaving with the money.

I helped He Li up and asked her, “What happened?”

She tucked her messy hair behind her ear and said, “She claimed her husband got sick, and I gave it to him.” Then she pushed me away and turned to go back inside.

I stood in the doorway, my hands and feet cold, and yelled out of frustration, “You’re sick and still harming others! Aren’t you afraid they’ll beat you to death?!”

He Li replied, “Don’t worry, I won’t live much longer.”

A lump formed in my throat, leaving me stuck between anger and helplessness.

Liu She lit a cigarette and placed it in my mouth. “She didn’t know. When she slept with that man, she didn’t know she was sick.”

I took a deep drag from the cigarette and asked, “How much did you give her?”

“Five thousand. It was the living allowance my dad just gave me,” Liu She said as he took the cigarette back and added, “Yan Ze, how do you plan to pay me back?”

I clenched the three thousand five hundred yuan in my pocket, gripping it tightly before finally taking it out and handing it over. “It’s not enough, but I’ll pay the rest as soon as I can.”

Liu She took the money, counted it, and asked, “Where did you get this?”

“None of your business,” I replied.

“Fang Heng gave it to you,” Liu She said confidently. “I saw it that day—Fang Heng kissed you.”

He laughed mockingly. “Yan Ze, you’re such a lowlife. Whoever feeds you becomes your master. First, it was Fang Nian, now it’s Fang Heng.”

He slapped my face with the money. “Did you sleep with Fang Heng? How many times does three thousand five hundred yuan buy you?”

I laughed out of sheer anger and punched Liu She to the ground. Before he could get up, I kicked him in the stomach and grabbed his head, slamming it against the floor until he was dazed. I picked up the scattered money, rolled it up, and shoved it in his mouth.

“Liu She, we’re both garbage, but Fang Heng and Fang Nian aren’t. Why is it that whenever you mention someone’s name, it feels like it’s been dragged through a sewer?”

I patted his face and said, “Find some time to clean up.”

As I turned to leave, I heard Liu She laughing. “Yan Ze, are you trying to climb out of the trash can without me? Don’t forget, it was you who knelt before me, begging to hang out with me. Now you’ve found a new backer, and you want to kick me aside? Keep dreaming.”

When I was in my second year of junior high, Yan He got hooked on gambling. In the third year, he forced He Li to sell herself.

It didn’t take long for the rumors to spread, and soon everyone knew. I became the son of a prostitute.

Back then, I didn’t know how to fight, so I was always on the receiving end of bullying. Crawling like a dog, barking like one, getting beaten, splashed with cold water, locked in the bathroom—I could endure all of that.

But I couldn’t stand them calling He Li a prostitute. She wasn’t one—she was my mother. A weak woman who would secretly cry when she saw I was hurt.

Her tears didn’t do much, but I still didn’t want to get hurt anymore. It made her sad.

So, I went and knelt before the person who bullied me the most—Liu She. I told him I wanted to follow him.

He agreed and casually pointed at a student, telling me to collect protection money.

I went and got thirty-seven yuan.

Liu She didn’t care for such a small amount and told me to keep it.

At first, I thought about secretly returning the money, but then Yan He took all of the money at home and ran off.

I used that thirty-seven yuan to buy food for He Li and me for two days.

That day, my conscience disappeared.

I’ve been rotten ever since.

So, what’s the point in trying harder? A person like me doesn’t deserve a future.

---

9

I still had to pay back Liu She’s money. I went back to doing odd jobs and returned to school the next afternoon to catch up on sleep.

It happened to be during gym class, so no one was in the classroom. Just as I laid my head down, someone kicked my chair.

I fell to the ground, rubbing my head as I looked up.

Fang Heng squatted in front of me. “Where were you this morning?”

Leaning against the wall, I coldly replied, “None of your business. People might think you’re my dad.”

“I do like playing the dad role.” Fang Heng pinched my face. “How about you call me dad?”

Annoying. I threw a punch at him, but he caught it.

Holding my fist, Fang Heng looked down at me and asked, “What’s going on?”

I pulled my hand free. “It has nothing to do with you.”

“Nothing to do with me?” Fang Heng let out a small laugh, but his eyes were cold. “Yan Ze, did you think I gave you thousands of yuan just for fun?”

I gave up resisting. “What do you want, then?”

“Give it back.” Fang Heng said, word by word, “I want the old Yan Ze back.”

I froze.

The noise outside the classroom grew louder. Gym class was almost over, and people were heading back, chatting along the way.

“How did Yan Ze score so well this time?”

“He must have cheated.”

“Fang Heng has been hanging around with him a lot lately. Maybe he forced Fang Heng to give him the answers?”

The voices got closer, but I just leaned against the wall, staring blankly. Fang Heng remained crouched in silence, his head bowed.