Chapter 49

Honglu Slope Street bustled with people, and the sounds of merriment filled the air. Jiang Ji was still singing at this moment, so Qin Qingzhuo instructed the driver to find a quiet spot near the street to park.

He asked the driver to go back first, cracked the car window slightly, and took a brief rest while waiting for Jiang Ji.

The nap was light, like sleeping yet not sleeping. When he opened his eyes, the surroundings had already quieted down completely.

All the bars along the street had closed, and the road was silent. Stray cats confidently strolled across the alleys. Compared to the previously bustling bar street, it seemed like two entirely different worlds.

Qin Qingzhuo got out of the car, wrapped himself in his coat, and headed towards Honglu Slope Street.

The intoxication hadn’t completely faded; his head still felt dizzy. As he turned into Honglu Slope Street, he saw two figures not far ahead walking under the streetlight, casting long shadows.

The night was cool, and Jiang Ji was dressed in a black hoodie and black pants. In his left hand, he held a large plastic bag, and in his right hand, he carried a bag of mineral water.

Walking beside him, Jiang Bei, with freshly-cut mushroom hair, was slightly shorter, only reaching Jiang Ji’s waist. She was fiddling with something, her head lowered.

Perhaps due to the effects of alcohol, Qin Qingzhuo suddenly wanted to give Jiang Ji a surprise… or perhaps a shock.

He lightened his footsteps and caught up with the two in front.

When he was close to Jiang Ji from behind, he reached out. Just as he was about to pat Jiang Ji on the shoulder, Jiang Ji suddenly let go of what he was holding. With a dull thud as the plastic bag and mineral water hit the ground, Qin Qingzhuo found himself pressed against the wall, Jiang Ji gripping his arm.

By the time his back touched the wall, Qin Qingzhuo was about half sober. Jiang Ji’s reaction was a bit beyond his expectations, and… the strength in his grip was indeed astonishing.

A sharp pain shot through his wrist, almost giving the illusion of being snapped. Qin Qingzhuo took a shallow breath.

Once he could see Qin Qingzhuo’s face clearly, Jiang Ji relaxed his grip. “Does it hurt?”

“…It’s okay.” Qin Qingzhuo said. In fact, he felt it was almost as painful as the last time when Uncle Sui hit him with a stick. But he didn’t want to admit it; it was his own fault, and getting too drunk did tend to lower one’s IQ.

Jiang Ji carefully examined his wrist, and the area that had been pinched was slightly red. He frowned. “Don’t approach me from behind like that in the future. It’s too dangerous.”

Qin Qingzhuo forced a smile and nodded. “Didn’t expect you to react so strongly.”

As he said this, he realized that Jiang Ji’s strong reaction might be because those debt collectors often surrounded him unexpectedly. Thinking about it, he felt a bit distressed for Jiang Ji.

“Sui Shu… and those other guys,” Qin Qingzhuo asked, “Have they come to look for you recently?”

“No.” Jiang Ji finished inspecting his wrist but didn’t let go. He rolled up Qin Qingzhuo’s sleeve along his arm, examining carefully. The swelling from the previous iron rod strike had subsided, but the bruising hadn’t completely faded yet.

He looked up at Qin Qingzhuo. “Does it still hurt?”

“It stopped hurting a while ago.” Qin Qingzhuo smiled. He noticed that Jiang Ji had just cut his hair, probably went with Jiang Bei. It wasn’t very obvious since it was short, but it made him look refreshed.

The injuries on his face had healed too. At this moment, he looked nothing like a delinquent youth; he resembled a diligent student who would attract attention in a high school campus.

“Let’s go then,” Jiang Bei spoke up beside them, “I’ll head back first if you’re not leaving.”

Qin Qingzhuo snapped out of his thoughts, realizing that Jiang Ji was still holding his wrist. He discreetly pulled away. “…Let’s go.”

Without saying anything more, Jiang Ji picked up the things from the ground and walked towards the bar with Qin Qingzhuo and Jiang Bei.

“Did you guys go to the supermarket?” Qin Qingzhuo asked.

“Yeah.” Jiang Ji climbed a few steps, bending down to place the plastic bag and mineral water on the ground. Then he took out a key from his pocket and pressed the switch. The rolling shutter door began to rise slowly.

Qin Qingzhuo glanced at the open plastic bag. Aside from toiletries like shower gel and shampoo, there were also several literacy books, the kind with hardcovers and pictures, obviously for children to learn from.

This brother seems quite responsible. Qin Qingzhuo thought.

He looked at Jiang Bei, who was still looking down, pouring water into a small toy in her hand from the bottle of mineral water. Some water spilled out, splashing onto the ground.

“What’s that?” Qin Qingzhuo crouched down in front of her, curious.

Jiang Bei held up the porcelain toy, shaped like a little bird, filled with water. She put the bird’s beak in her mouth, puffed out her cheeks, and blew, producing a series of crisp bird calls—it was a porcelain whistle.

“Did your brother buy this for you?” Qin Qingzhuo asked again.

Jiang Bei looked at him with her big round eyes and nodded.

The rolling shutter door opened, and Jiang Ji bent down to pick up the things. As he was about to push the door aside, Qin Qingzhuo stood up and pushed the door open for him, letting Jiang Ji and Jiang Bei enter first.

The bags and mineral water seemed quite heavy, as evident from the prominent veins on Jiang Ji’s exposed forearm.

Qin Qingzhuo reached out to help him carry them, but Jiang Ji refused, “No need, just close the door.”

As they entered, Jiang Ji placed the items on the ground, turned on the lights at the bar, and then lowered the rolling shutter door from outside, “Upstairs or downstairs?”

“Just downstairs.” Qin Qingzhuo found a seat by the bar. Truth be told, he didn’t feel like climbing stairs much because of his dizziness.

Jiang Bei held her little bird whistle, clambered up the stairs, then halfway up, turned back and extended a hand to Jiang Ji.

Jiang Ji took out his phone from his pocket and placed it in her outstretched palm, “Bring it to me in half an hour.”

“Got it!” Jiang Bei scampered off again.

Jiang Ji walked over to Qin Qingzhuo with two bottles of mineral water and sat down next to him.

Despite sitting on a bar stool, the boy’s legs seemed long, with his calves extending quite a bit.

He unscrewed the bottle cap but didn’t hand the water to Qin Qingzhuo. Instead, he just watched him, or rather, observed him.

Jiang Ji had a somewhat thin double eyelid, slightly deep eye sockets, and a superior line from the brow bone to the bridge of the nose, giving him a sharp and angular appearance.

This kid is quite good-looking. Qin Qingzhuo thought.

But Jiang Ji’s continuous staring made him feel a bit uncomfortable, “What’s up?”

“Have you been drinking?” Jiang Ji asked.

“Yeah, it’s a dinner for adults, so there’s always some drinking involved,” Qin Qingzhuo pinched his forehead, “Is it that obvious?”

Jiang Ji didn’t answer his question, only saying, “I’m an adult too.”

“Oh, right,” Qin Qingzhuo chuckled, “I always feel like you’re much younger than me. Forgot you’re an adult too.”

Qin Qingzhuo shifted his gaze away from Jiang Ji’s intense stare and looked at the karaoke machine, “Let’s play some music, can we?”

“Sure,” Jiang Ji stood up, “What do you want to hear?”

“Anything, play whatever you like,” Qin Qingzhuo said.

Jiang Ji walked over to the sound system, connected his own playlist to the bar’s computer—it was a playlist of slow songs.

The sound quality of the bar’s speakers was good. The piano melody flowed through the first-floor space. Qin Qingzhuo recognized the piano piece as “Your Eyes”. Quite fitting, he thought.

Then, Jiang Ji opened the door of the freezer and took out a glass pitcher. Inside was half-filled with water, with green leaves floating on top.

He lifted the glass pitcher and poured half a glass of water, added a few ice cubes, then walked over and handed it to Qin Qingzhuo, “Here.”

“Is this tea?” Qin Qingzhuo had waited quite a while in the car, and he was indeed a bit thirsty. He took it and took a few sips.

The next moment, the ice-cold water, almost freezing, made him frown.

“What’s this?” Qin Qingzhuo choked a bit, wiped the water stains from his lips with his hand, and asked, frowning.

“Peppermint water.” Perhaps because Qin Qingzhuo’s expression was too difficult to describe in words, Jiang Ji couldn’t help but chuckle, “Too strong for you?”

“How much peppermint did you put in…” Qin Qingzhuo looked at the glass.

“Quite a lot. Can’t handle it?” Jiang Ji handed over the bottle of mineral water he had just opened, “Then just drink mineral water.”

“It’s actually quite sobering. It feels like my mind is clear now,” Qin Qingzhuo took the mineral water and drank a few sips, suppressing the strong, almost bitter, coolness. “Especially that first sip, it felt like it opened the floodgates to enlightenment… Why are you laughing?”

He noticed that Jiang Ji had been laughing since he took the first sip of peppermint water.

It was a restrained kind of laugh, but it seemed like it couldn’t be held back, almost shamelessly open.

Qin Qingzhuo noticed that Jiang Ji had a very shallow dimple on his lip when he smiled, which made him look quite formidable when he wasn’t smiling. When he did smile, he exuded a strong youthful vibe, and it was infectious. Qin Qingzhuo himself felt considerably better.

“What’s so funny?” Qin Qingzhuo laughed too, “Jiang Ji, is this the first time I’ve seen you laugh in all the time we’ve known each other?”

He looked at Jiang Ji, “You look like a responsible adult when you’re not smiling, but when you do, you’re just a kid.”

“Is that so?” Jiang Ji laughed for a while and then glanced at him, “Then I won’t laugh anymore.”

“Don’t, I was wrong,” Qin Qingzhuo said, “You look good when you smile, especially, it adds a mature touch.”

Jiang Ji chuckled again.

“Why so much peppermint?” Qin Qingzhuo held the bottle of mineral water, “Don’t you find it overpowering?”

“You don’t let me smoke, so I have to find something to wake me up,” Jiang Ji said, taking the glass of peppermint water that Qin Qingzhuo had just sipped from and took a sip himself.

Qin Qingzhuo was at a loss for words; the reason behind this peppermint water turned out to be himself.

But… drinking such strong peppermint water to stay awake, was it because singing all night was too exhausting?

Qin Qingzhuo remembered his concerts from a few years ago, each lasting about three hours. After singing for a whole night, his vocal cords would feel noticeably tired and strained.

And Jiang Ji sang almost every night at such a high intensity… Even the most gifted vocal cords couldn’t withstand such abuse.

Shi Yao had said a lot of nonsense tonight, but one thing he didn’t get wrong was that, considering Jiang Ji’s current situation, signing a contract couldn’t be considered a bad thing no matter how you looked at it.

“Shi Yao said you guys don’t want to sign because the contract is too long,” Qin Qingzhuo looked at him, “Is that the reason?”

“Sort of,” Jiang Ji took another sip of peppermint water, “Peng Keshi hasn’t graduated yet, and she may not want to play in the band full-time in the future. Zhong Yang feels like it’s a form of selling oneself, and he’s worried about losing his freedom after signing.”

“What about you?”

“I don’t even know what I’ll be doing in two years,” Jiang Ji laughed at himself, “Let alone twenty.”

“Have you thought about your future plans?” Qin Qingzhuo finished speaking, seeing Jiang Ji silent, he added, “Don’t say you haven’t. With your personality, you must have thought about it, even if it’s just a passing thought. Tell me.”

Jiang Ji slowly rotated the glass in his hand, “Maybe I’ll become a wandering singer.”

“A wandering singer?” Qin Qingzhuo was somewhat surprised, “Why?”

“I want to try living a life not dictated by money.”

His tone was casual, but Qin Qingzhuo found it quite uncomfortable to listen to.

This young man had been working for money all his life; the idea of living a life of carefree freedom might have always been a luxury.

Even though the money he gave him was enough to pay off his debts… did he still refuse to accept it?

As he thought this, Jiang Ji pulled out a bank card from his pocket and pushed it in front of Qin Qingzhuo, “I haven’t touched the money in this card, and I don’t intend to. Take it back, I’ve changed the password, it’s the time of the first episode recording.”

He had called Chen Jia yesterday, and when she asked him what he wanted to do, he anticipated that she might tell Qin Qingzhuo about it.

Today, Chen Jia still hadn’t responded, and she even had dinner with Qin Qingzhuo in the evening. Jiang Ji basically confirmed that she wouldn’t give Qin Qingzhuo his bank card number.

The bank card was pushed in front of Qin Qingzhuo, who didn’t take it. He lowered his eyes and thought for a few seconds, then looked at Jiang Ji, “Jiang Ji, being a wandering singer does sound cool and seemingly free, but you need to think it over. Wandering singers also need to eat, they just change the location of where they sing from bars to the streets. If you’ve thought about living a life not dictated by money, there’s only one path to take, which is to make a lot of money, so much that you can spend it however you want without ever running out. It’s very materialistic, but that’s the reality.”

“And besides, being a wandering singer isn’t suitable for you,” Qin Qingzhuo continued, “In my opinion, you long for a stable life.”

A stable life… Jiang Ji almost forgot what a stable life looked like.

But the sense of stability when he was near Qin Qingzhuo did make him feel grounded and relaxed. Maybe Qin Qingzhuo was right, he thought.

Qin Qingzhuo’s fingers touched the bank card, “Why won’t you accept this money? As long as you use it to pay off your debts, with your current fame and ability, living a life not dictated by money is a piece of cake.”

After a moment of silence, Jiang Ji placed the glass on the bar counter and said in a low voice, “I don’t want to owe you.”

“I know, you don’t want to owe anyone,” Qin Qingzhuo said, “Technically, Suo Shu’s debt shouldn’t fall on you. The reason you insist on paying it off is because you feel guilty towards Suo Shu’s family, and only by doing so can you feel a little better.”

Jiang Ji remained silent.

After a pause, Qin Qingzhuo continued, “Actually, in my opinion, I owe you too. You pulled me out of a deceptive relationship and helped me cut my losses in time, which I don’t know how to repay. You also helped me deal with Ji Chi, which made me feel relieved and even gratified, not to mention you also helped me confront the people who talked behind my back about causing the city’s collapse…”

Seeing Jiang Ji look at him, Qin Qingzhuo smiled, “Curious how I knew? I don’t interact much with the people who caused the city’s collapse, they used to greet me politely when they saw me, but just before the competition, they suddenly couldn’t even look me in the eye. So, considering the fight between you and them, it’s probably related to me, I took a wild guess, and judging from your reaction, I guessed right.”

“You see, you’ve helped me so many times, I don’t know how to repay these favors. So Jiang Ji…” He leaned forward slightly, looking into Jiang Ji’s eyes, “If you must owe someone, then owe me.”

It was that kind of almost bewitching gaze and tone, being stared at like this made it hard to refuse.

Jiang Ji was speechless.

“If you really feel uncomfortable, just treat it as if I lent it to you, and you can pay me back slowly in the future.” Qin Qingzhuo rubbed his temples with his hand, “Alright, it’s settled, I’ve said so much while drunk and dizzy, you really don’t make it easy for me to relax…”

Without giving Jiang Ji a chance to refuse, Qin Qingzhuo quickly changed the subject, “As for the signing, I can help you negotiate with Shi Yao to shorten the contract term, but…”

But it was probably just the difference between twenty years and fifteen years, which seemed meaningless.

Qin Qingzhuo looked at Jiang Ji, “Do you have any thoughts?”

“I’m not interested in signing.” Jiang Ji finally spoke up, truthfully, “I don’t want to sign.”

“You’re not interested in signing anywhere?” Qin Qingzhuo was somewhat surprised, “Even if the signing terms are very favorable?”

“Yeah.”

“Even if it’s a company specifically for music?”

“Yeah.”

“Then… even if I want to sign you, you’re not interested?”

The question came out without much thought, there was no consideration whatsoever, still feeling dizzy, Qin Qingzhuo hadn’t even thought it through.

So when Jiang Ji said, “Then I’ll sign,” Qin Qingzhuo was taken aback for a moment.

Regaining his senses, he chuckled and said, “You agreed so readily without even discussing the terms. What if the conditions I propose are the same as Shi Yao, and want to sign you for twenty years?”

“I’ll still sign,” Jiang Ji looked at him, saying it quite seriously.