Zhou Xuying held a black umbrella, one arm draped around He Qian’s shoulder. The umbrella tilted silently toward He Qian’s head.
Watching the snow fall like drifting petals, He Qian could not resist running out. He caught a handful of snow and squeezed it into a snowball. Looking at the snowball in his palm, he handed it to Zhou Xuying.
“Hold this for me for a bit.”
Zhou Xuying took it.
He Qian began molding a second snowball, continuing all the way to the school gates. When he looked up to ask for the first snowball back, he discovered that Zhou Xuying had crushed it; it had split into several pieces.
He Qian was speechless. He gave Zhou Xuying a resentful look.
Zhou Xuying closed the umbrella, sat in the car, and molded the snow back together before handing it back to He Qian. He Qian leaned in, sniffed it, and decided he did not want it anymore.
He held the snowball in his own palm. Zhou Xuying also held one in his hand. By the time they reached home, the snow had mostly melted. He Qian’s hands were cold, so his small snowball was still there, but Zhou Xuying’s snowball was gone.
As they got out of the car, Zhou Xuying held the umbrella over them. He Qian looked at the small snowball in his hand. “It is snowing.”
“Yes, the New Year is coming.”
The New Year.
He Qian’s eyes grew misty. He had no home and could not celebrate the New Year. He looked up at Zhou Xuying; Zhou Xuying had a home.
He Qian placed the snowball in the courtyard, letting the falling flakes cover it. He stood and watched it for a while before going inside. While He Qian was showering, Zhou Xuying walked into the courtyard. Next to He Qian’s snowball, he molded a very large one.
They were a pair. This year, they would spend the New Year together.
As New Year’s Day approached, He Qian put all his money into an envelope and sent it to Xia Tianming along with a handwritten letter. That evening, He Qian received a delivery notification. The package was at the school gate post station, a local delivery.
He Qian opened it to find a reply from Xia Tianming. He Qian’s money had also been returned. He Qian took a deep breath and opened the envelope. After reading it, his hands were shaking. He pulled out his phone to make a call, but his finger hovered over the screen. Looking at the three words “Zhou Xuying,” he could not bring himself to press it for a long time.
The letter He Qian received was a letter of thanks. In the letter, Xia Tianming thanked him for everything he had done for Xia Tian. He said the court date was approaching, the evidence was sufficient this time, and the person who had committed perjury for the principal back then had been found.
The witness was willing to testify. Meanwhile, with the help of a psychiatrist, Xia Tian was gradually becoming willing to leave her room. Although she only came out for a few minutes at a time, it was a wonderful start. Xia Tianming expressed gratitude in every sentence for everything He Qian had done during this period, insisting that he could never accept the money.
He Qian knew that Xia Tianming had the wrong person. He had mistaken He Qian for the “benefactor.” In the capital, there were very few people who knew about Xia Tian’s situation and possessed such power. Zhou Xuying was one of them. Aside from Zhou Xuying, He Qian could not think of a second person.
He Qian looked at the letter in his hand over and over again. Zhou Xuying was not that bad.
The Shen Family
Zhou Xuying sat on the sofa. The atmosphere in the living room was frozen. Old Master Shen sat opposite him. Zhou Xuying, wearing black leather gloves, tilted his head to light a cigarette. The smoke drifted past his face, but it could not hide his sharp gaze.
“Mr. Zhou, whatever it is you want, feel free to speak your mind.”
Zhou Xuying looked down and smiled. His peripheral vision swept past Shen Xi and landed on Shen Xi’s father, Shen Chang. His gaze suddenly tightened. With a wave of his hand, his special assistant handed him a file folder. Zhou Xuying took it and tossed it onto the table with a thud.
Old Master Shen took it. After opening the folder and reading the contents, his face grew increasingly pale. Finally, he slammed it against Shen Chang.
“Look at what you have done!”
Shen Chang frowned, not daring to complain. He opened the folder to look. Inside were many photos of him with his mistress, along with evidence of him accepting bribes. Shen Chang worked for the Procuratorate.
“I…”
Shen Chang was speechless, his hands trembling uncontrollably. He had always acted with extreme caution; he should not have been discovered. How did Zhou Xuying know?
Shen Xi snatched the documents from Shen Chang’s hands and flipped through them repeatedly, his palms breaking into a cold sweat. No one in the Shen family had known about this. Shen Chang had hidden it perfectly, which was why he was so astonished.
“CEO Zhou, I think we can completely cooperate. Whatever you want, I can give it to you. I…”
Shen Chang approached Zhou Xuying with a stiff, fake smile. Shen Xi’s mother, coming down from upstairs, heard everything. She rushed over furiously and, in front of everyone, delivered a crisp slap to Shen Chang’s face.
Shen Chang’s stiff cheek burned with pain. He pressed his tongue against his cheek, gritted his teeth, and tried to placate his wife, but she pushed him away. As she went back upstairs, she only said one cold sentence: “Shen Chang, do not expect to have an easy life.”
Shen Chang’s dignity lay shattered on the floor. It had been this way for years. His expression was grim, but he forced a smile as he approached Zhou Xuying, solicitously pouring a cup of tea. “CEO Zhou, we can talk this through properly.”
“Tell me, what can you give me?”
“Money. Thirty million. No, fifty million!”
Shen Chang offered the tea. Zhou Xuying’s brow furrowed slightly as he exhaled a cloud of smoke, expressionless.
Shen Chang changed his offer again. “Eighty million! I only have eighty million! That is about all the money I have taken over the years.”
Zhou Xuying let out a sneer. The special assistant lifted a recording pen in his hand. “Prosecutor Shen, will you turn yourself in, or shall I help you?”
Shen Chang’s smile froze completely. Old Master Shen fainted on the spot. Zhou Xuying stood up, his long legs crossing past the coffee table. He suddenly looked at Shen Xi and said slowly, “And you.”
A chill ran down Shen Xi’s spine. He did not remember ever provoking Zhou Xuying.
As Zhou Xuying left the Shen residence, his memories were swept into the cold wind as the gates closed. The Shen family shared the credit for He Qian’s eventual leap from the building.
The Shen and He families were close friends and colleagues. He Qian’s father, He Shaoyuan, and Shen Chang were both prosecutors. Both were exceptionally thorough in their conduct, and the promotion slot was to be decided between the two of them. At such a critical juncture, Shen Chang’s affair was discovered. Although He Shaoyuan promised not to make it public, he demanded that Shen Chang confess to his wife.
Shen Chang had married into the family; his wife was by no means good-tempered and would certainly cause a scene. Not wanting his career damaged, Shen Chang turned his sights on He Shaoyuan’s wife.
He Qian’s mother owned a jewelry business. She was reported for selling fake jade, damaging her reputation, and the business was seized after the public reports were verified. What was originally a groundless accusation grew larger and louder under the pressure of online public opinion.
He Shaoyuan was suspended pending investigation, and Shen Chang was successfully promoted. However, things continued to escalate. Unable to bear the pressure, He Qian’s mother committed suicide. The online vitriol only intensified, continuing even after her death. He Shaoyuan was driven to schizophrenia and died in an accident.
The entire burden fell upon He Qian. At twenty-four years old, everything he took pride in vanished in an instant. At thirteen, he could not save Xia Tian from her living hell. At twenty-four, He Qian could not even save his own parents. The law he believed in could not bring him evidence; his creed of justice had disappeared.
It felt as though everything was wrong. It had been wrong from the very start. The evening sun withdrew the fragmented light from He Qian’s hair, leaving only darkness. When He Qian jumped, he did not hesitate for a second.
Zhou Xuying sat in the car as it sped down the road. The dappled shadows of the trees streaked across the window, scattering over his hair. The snow on the road had melted, leaving puddles on the ground. The water would flow into the sewers or be evaporated by the sun.
The road ahead remained bright. After arriving at the company, Zhou Xuying held a three-hour meeting. It was 8:00 PM when it finally ended. An exquisite gift box sat on Zhou Xuying’s desk. Inside was a set of women’s clothing.
The first time he and He Qian met, He Qian had been dressed as a woman.