Chapter 13: The Fire

Gu Mingchen wore plastic gloves, carefully wiping the sink with a cloth. Occasionally, he would glance up and see his current appearance in the mirror, then unconsciously avert his gaze.

The last time they met, he seemed to have looked at his own eyes a few more times.

Gu Mingchen quickly raised his eyes, observing those deep blue eyes in the mirror, staring for a while, and couldn’t help but let the corners of his lips lift.

“Boom boom.”

The sound of balloons popping came from outside, but Gu Mingchen didn’t pay it any mind. Those balloons were custom-colored for the private room and generally wouldn’t be reused. They needed to be popped for easier cleaning.

After cleaning the sink, the sound of balloons popping continued, unexpectedly loud. Gu Mingchen closed his eyes, faintly smelling a burnt odor.

Taking off his gloves, Gu Mingchen walked towards the bathroom door. The moment his fingers touched the doorknob, he noticed an unusual temperature.

Smoke seeped in through the door cracks. Gu Mingchen was momentarily stunned but quickly reacted. Instead of rashly opening the door, he soaked all available cloths in the bathroom with water, stuffed them into the door cracks, and splashed water from the bucket onto the door to cool it down.

The bathroom had only a narrow window, but the club had fixed the window’s opening angle. Jumping out of the window was always a last resort. The fire outside was clearly getting fiercer, and thick smoke kept seeping into the cramped space. Gu Mingchen used a wet cloth to cover his mouth and nose, splashing the remaining water on the door, which almost instantly evaporated.

Thick smoke continued to pour in, and the fire alarm line was constantly busy. Gu Mingchen could barely see the situation in front of him. His eyes were irritated to the point of tears, and every breath was filled with the acrid smell of smoke, making him want to cough out his entire lungs.

Another bucket of water was poured onto the door, and steam mixed with smoke spread. The oxygen in the small space became increasingly scarce. Gu Mingchen leaned against the wall, his body sliding down, fingers groping to grasp the soft velvet bag in his arms, holding it tightly with the last bit of strength.

The world slowly quieted down.

The fire at the club was visible from several kilometers away due to the thick smoke. Continuous fire alarm calls were made to the fire department, and fire trucks arrived on the scene within five minutes. The evacuated guests were still in shock, and the manager, along with the employees who survived the disaster, stared blankly as water jets were directed into the burning club.

“Has everyone been evacuated?” The captain frowned at the fire situation in front of him, asking the manager.

“Everyone’s been evacuated.” The manager tried to remain calm. “Our club has conducted fire drills. We sounded the alarm immediately and evacuated all guests and employees.”

“Any idea what caused the fire?”

The manager hesitated, turning to look at the employees. Someone was trembling so much that they could barely stand without support.

“It was… someone used a laser pointer…” A waiter stepped forward, voice trembling.

“Pointed it at the balloons, and the balloons exploded.”

“Who did it?” The manager, hearing the reason, glared at everyone in front of him, unable to hide his anger.

“Who pointed a laser pointer at the hydrogen balloons? Are you stupid? This club, the two bosses invested over ten million just in renovations. Do you know what this is? Arson! You can’t afford to pay for this; you’ll have to go to jail, for ten years, maybe until you die!”

The manager was so furious he was incoherent. The two waiters supporting each other exchanged a glance, seeing deep fear in each other’s eyes.

They had only accidentally pointed the laser pointer at the floating balloons.

They didn’t do it on purpose.

“Who did it, speak up!” The manager gritted his teeth, almost unable to imagine the expressions of the two bosses when they heard the news.

The waiter who had just spoken instinctively looked at his two colleagues, who were trembling uncontrollably. Suddenly, as if realizing something, they turned to look at the crowd of employees.

They didn’t see that tall figure.

“It was… it was that guy named Gu!” The supported waiter gritted his teeth, his hand trembling uncontrollably.

“It was him, he pointed the laser pointer at the balloons…”

Before the words were finished, several glass windows in the club simultaneously shattered, and the flames quickly shot up. Two more fire trucks arrived just in time, and water jets were once again directed at the base of the flames.

“Yes, it was Gu Mingchen.” Another waiter, voice trembling, echoed his companion, looking pleadingly at the only colleague who knew the truth.

The colleague looked at the two of them, then at the burning club, struggling with his gaze for a long time, unable to speak.

The manager searched the crowd for Gu Mingchen’s figure but didn’t see him.

“Could he have run away?” Someone questioned.

“Go find him!” The manager suppressed his anger, directing the employees to search for him, while he dialed the phone to contact the bosses as soon as possible.

The ringtone of a WeChat voice message echoed in the smoke-filled, cramped space.

Light and pleasant, one after another.

Gu Mingchen’s fingers twitched, struggling to open his eyes. He picked up his phone, seeing a blurry avatar.

It seemed to be the avatar he had looked at countless times.

Gu Mingchen’s heart suddenly leaped, suppressing the urge to cough, trying hard to open his eyes wide, bringing the phone screen closer. The moment he confirmed it, he couldn’t help but smile.

Ah Ting.

The scene before him was so beautiful it felt like an illusion. Gu Mingchen reached out to touch the answer button, but the image in front of him grew increasingly blurry. Before Gu Mingchen could press the right spot, the ringtone stopped.

Gu Mingchen opened his eyes wide, continuously touching the phone screen, fingers constantly tapping, but there was nothing in front of him, not a single glimmer of light.

There were faint sounds outside. Gu Mingchen groped around, based on previous memory, stood up, and felt his way to the narrow window of the bathroom.

Earlier, he had stuffed the door cracks with wet cloths and cooled the door with water, all to wait for rescue.

But it seemed no one realized he was trapped.

Gu Mingchen knew well that his personality was cold and unsociable, and he didn’t fit in. He understood that some of his actions were misunderstood, making him a symbol of eccentricity.

No one caring about him was the most normal thing.

But now, there was someone very important, someone he wanted to see.

His fingers touched the narrow window. Gu Mingchen took off his vest, wrapped it around his fist, and with a sideways force, smashed the glass with a punch.

The moment the window shattered, the airflow made the flames even more intense. Gu Mingchen could almost hear the sound of the door being breached by the flames, the scorching tongues of fire nearly licking his cheeks.

Gu Mingchen kept his eyes open, feeling his way up the narrow windowsill, squeezing out of the window bit by bit.

The broken glass easily cut through his shirt and skin, blood dripping continuously. Gu Mingchen’s fingers touched the outer windowsill, relying on his past outdoor sports experience, mobilizing his body, both hands gripping the windowsill, his body hanging outside.

Four floors, about sixteen meters high.

The position of the bathroom window was on the shady side of the club. It was still nighttime, and Gu Mingchen couldn’t see any light, unsure if anyone saw him.

Even if someone did see, Gu Mingchen no longer placed his hopes on others.

Gu Mingchen’s mind kept recalling the positions of the trees below the club. He stepped on the wall, suddenly pushing off in the darkness, both hands releasing the windowsill, rotating his body in mid-air, feeling the leaves and branches brush against his arms, reaching out to grab anything he could. Accompanied by the “crack” of branches, he tensed his muscles in advance, crouching and bending with the impact.

The moment he landed, Gu Mingchen leaned forward, extending his arm, stopping with a single-handed roll, unable to hold back a mouthful of black blood.

Still, he couldn’t see anything.

“Hey, how could that guy named Gu cause such a big disaster?”

A somewhat familiar voice came from not far away. Gu Mingchen clutched his chest, struggling to get up, feeling his way to hide behind a tree.

“Those who set up the venue are also responsible. How could they use hydrogen balloons? Helium balloons can float too!”

Gu Mingchen slightly turned his face, frowning as he listened to the voice.

“He was also stupid, using a laser pointer on the balloons. So many balloons exploded, immediately igniting the private room. Now, the whole club is on fire. I don’t even know where to find a job next month.”

“As long as everyone’s okay, jobs will come later.”

“But I heard from the manager that Gu Mingchen’s act counts as arson, and the waiters with him can testify. He’ll be in jail for over ten years.”

The voices passed by, and Gu Mingchen held his breath, closing his eyes, slowly clenching his fingers.

In the private room, to protect customer privacy, there were no recording devices.

Gu Mingchen had never seen any laser pointer, and it was likely burned to ashes in the high temperature.

A sudden dull pain surged in his chest. Gu Mingchen bent down to steady his breathing, feeling his side, his hand covered in warm, slippery liquid.

As if suddenly remembering something, Gu Mingchen quickly searched himself, feeling the familiar velvet texture, his eyes involuntarily stinging slightly.

If there was still one last place to go in the world.

Gu Mingchen reached out, feeling around, searching for the route with the fewest people in his memory, advancing bit by bit in the boundless darkness.

×××

A shareholder’s hour-long call interrupted Xie Ting’an’s vacation.

The matter wasn’t complicated. Previously, a chain cinema company had its major shareholder suddenly withdraw investment, affecting the company’s cash flow, halting projects, and even struggling to pay employee salaries.

This company had over five hundred cinemas, with a relatively mature business model. At the time, both the Gu and Xie families were interested in acquiring the company’s shares. Xie Ting’an even personally visited to negotiate.

But after repeated comparisons, the company decided to cooperate with the Gu family.

Now that the Gu family was in trouble, even with a signed contract, the share acquisition fell through. The Gu family had gone bankrupt, and they couldn’t even get the penalty fees, leaving them to return in embarrassment.

Xie Ting’an never liked giving second chances, but the shareholder, acting as an intermediary, hoped Xie Ting’an would consider his face and meet with the company again tomorrow, regardless of success.

The shareholder’s face couldn’t be ignored, and Xie Ting’an didn’t have the habit of going back on his word. So he set the meeting place at a teahouse close to home, planning to refuse them over tea and continue his vacation.

The next morning, Xie Ting’an arrived at the teahouse on time, but the other party hadn’t arrived yet.

Glancing at his watch, Xie Ting’an stood up, putting on his coat. Qin Assistant stood at the private room door, about to open it, but the door opened from the outside first.

“Mr. Xie, I’m sorry, really sorry!”

The cinema chain company’s representative, with a disheveled suit, entered, apologizing repeatedly before catching his breath, extending his hands to Xie Ting’an. “Mr. Xie, hello, my name is Xiong, I’m the representative of Moon Bear Chain Cinemas. We’ve met once before. I encountered some issues on the way, which delayed my time.”

Xie Ting’an paused for a moment, his gaze brushing over the bloodstain on the representative’s suit corner, then looking at his health value, a green 81, indicating the injury wasn’t on him.