Every thirty minutes, Wen Ying took a photo of Huo Jueyue inside the bar and sent it to Butler Wang as proof that she wasn’t slacking off.
And every thirty minutes, Butler Wang replied with a “received,” followed by a deathly smiley face.
The two exchanged these dull messages back and forth, filling three whole pages. Wen Ying had already memorized the knowledge points she needed to study, but the party inside was only just reaching its climax.
Somewhere, a bottle shattered, its contents spilling toward the entrance and mixing with the rain. The scent stimulated his nerves, which had been numbed by the wet weather.
A disgusting smell, somewhat like the banquet hall of Star Palace.
Irritation gradually accumulated.
Just then, Wen Ying’s phone screen lit up.
Qu Huo: [There’s a batch of ingredients at the shop that needs to be delivered to Denghong.]
Qu Huo: [I’ve already asked someone else to handle it.]
Why was he telling him this?
It wasn’t like it mattered he was just reminding Qu Huo. Whether Qu Huo came or not had nothing to do with him.
Wen Ying stared at the two short lines of text, his mood lifting slightly.
He slowly raised his hand, about to reply to Qu Huo’s message, when a startled cry from inside the bar caught his attention.
His finger, resting on the screen, accidentally typed out a long string of characters, but Wen Ying didn’t notice.
Through the transparent glass window, he could clearly see Huo Jueyue’s movements.
In the five minutes he hadn’t been watching, Huo Jueyue, who had been laughing and chatting with his cronies moments ago was now furiously grabbing someone by the collar, looking like he was about to start a fight.
During the scuffle, the elegant mask covering the upper half of his face fell to the ground, leaving him looking quite disheveled.
Afraid of being caught in the crossfire, the other masked guests cleared the area, scrambling toward the corners.
Wen Ying:
So if he couldn’t grab Qu Huo’s clothes, someone else would fall victim to his hands.
He hastily shoved his phone into his pocket, not noticing that the screen hadn’t actually turned off.
“What’s going on?”
The receptionist at the entrance wore a worried expression. Seeing Wen Ying approach was like spotting a savior, and he hurried forward to meet him.
“Master Wang and Master Huo had some friction before. Maybe they got into a verbal spat.”
Wen Ying stared at the chaotic lights inside the bar, not particularly eager to go in. “Aren’t you going to stop them?”
Besides Huo Jueyue and that Master Wang, there were plenty of innocent students in there.
“We’re trying.”
The receptionist weakly raised his hand.
Following the direction he pointed, Wen Ying saw three timid waiters inching toward the center of the storm.
Like three gophers ready to dive underground at any moment.
At that pace, by the time they reached Huo Jueyue, the two would have already come to actual blows.
Seeing Huo Jueyue’s face growing redder and his hand gripping the other’s collar starting to lose control, Wen Ying let out a heavy sigh inwardly.
He had to get involved in this mess.
“Do you have any spare masks?”
He looked at the receptionist beside him. “One that covers the whole face.”
“We don’t have full-face ones, but we have plenty of masks.”
The receptionist hastily grabbed an ornate mask from a nearby rack one that covered most of the face and was adorned with tassels.
“Excuse me.”
Wen Ying didn’t hesitate, decisively fastening the mask over his face.
The raincoat kept him from brushing against passersby, and the mask disguised his identity, greatly easing the discomfort in Wen Ying’s heart.
Nimbly weaving through the crowded space, he strode quickly toward the most chaotically lit area of the bar.
To avoid drawing attention to himself, the young man kept his head down, pressing the brim of his cap low the entire time.
Just as Huo Jueyue was about to engage in a full-blown brawl with Master Wang and his lackeys, Wen Ying appeared like a ghost, pulling Huo Jueyue back half a step.
“Calm down.”
The momentum caused Huo Jueyue’s shoulder to bump into his.
It didn’t hurt much, but Wen Ying still furrowed his brow.
Hearing his voice, Huo Jueyue, who had been dressed in a feathered formal suit like some big black rooster instantly deflated.
“You, why are you here?”
Seeing Wen Ying’s less-than-pleasant expression, he grabbed Wen Ying’s shoulders and hastily apologized: “Sorry, are you hurt?”
Wen Ying’s lashes trembled slightly as he opened his eyes and gave him a look of utter exasperation.
He was fine before, but if Huo Jueyue used any more force, there might actually be a problem.
“If you want to cause trouble, go schedule a fight somewhere else. Aren’t you embarrassed making a scene in public?”
He lowered his voice.
Huo Jueyue had just calmed down a bit, but those words sent his blood boiling again.
“I’m not the one causing trouble!”
He gritted his teeth in rebuttal: “He’s the one who said that if my big brother hadn’t gone missing, I’d be a useless ”
He breathed heavily, not finishing the sentence.
“Keep your dignity.”
Wen Ying handed him a tissue, reminding him flatly: “There are still a lot of people in the bar.”
Huo Jueyue took the tissue and shot a glare at Master Wang across from him.
“Forget it. I’m in a good mood today.”
He flashed a defiant smile, though the malice and hatred in his eyes couldn’t be fully concealed: “Anyway, your Wang family is about to go bankrupt. I won’t bother with you.”
Before Master Wang could get riled up, Huo Jueyue snapped his fingers and announced loudly: “Sorry for ruining the mood, everyone.”
“Tonight, everything is on me Huo Jueyue’s tab!”
“Nice! Master Huo is generous!!”
The crowd, eager for drama, erupted in cheers, while Master Wang refused to back down either.
The chubby little sidekick beside him, after hearing whatever he said, stammered, “All the expenses these past two days, Young Master Wang here has covered them all.”
“Young Master Wang is generous”
The drumbeats in the background music grew fervent, the atmosphere reaching its peak.
Drowning in luxury, entertained to death.
Few people noticed the little incident from earlier, or the beautiful youth who had suddenly barged into the bar even with a mask on, he still stood out like a sore thumb.
Sensing that gazes filled with scrutiny and ill intent were still fixed on him, Wen Ying tightened the raincoat around himself.
He fumbled with his phone, without looking, swiped away from the chat page with Goose Goose, then snapped a photo of the already-cleaned-up scene and sent it to Butler Wang.
“Hey, handsome, you here alone?”
Someone tried to pat Wen Ying’s shoulder, but was scared off by the cold look hidden beneath his mask.
“How boring, coming all the way here just to kill the mood.”
The person averted his gaze and shrank back into the crowd, embarrassed.
Wen Ying’s mood hit rock bottom.
The air in the bar had been marinated in decadence; just being there for a moment had left him reeking of alcohol, which made him deeply uncomfortable.
His stomach was aching.
Huo Jueyue, surrounded by a crowd of admirers, wanted to talk to him but couldn’t break free from the throng.
Wen Ying didn’t bother with him either. He took off his mask, set it back on the rack, and headed straight for the side door.
“Hey, hey!!”
Huo Jueyue watched helplessly as he disappeared from sight. Summoning strength from who knows where, he finally broke free from the people trying to chat him up.
“Wen Ying!”
He tore off his mask and shouted toward the door as he walked.
But by the time he reached the entrance, the youth was already gone without a trace.
In front of the Neon Bar, two forked paths diverged one leading to the main road of Cherry Lane, the other to a secluded narrow alley.
That narrow path was rarely visited, only occasionally strolled through by couples.
Huo Jueyue had no idea which direction Wen Ying had gone.
The party was already halfway over, and by now, there were hardly any onlookers lingering at the bar’s entrance.
Desperate, he grabbed at straws and called out to a passerby in a black raincoat: “Excuse me.”
“Have you seen a guy with pink hair, wearing a transparent raincoat, carrying a backpack”
He stopped mid-sentence.
The “passerby” looked up, meeting his gaze.
Locking eyes with those distinctive, upturned sanpaku eyes so similar to that old man of his Huo Jueyue finally realized who the passerby was.
It was that annoying guy from class, Qu Huo, who sat by the back door.
But right now, he couldn’t afford to sneer at Qu Huo. In fact, he felt a flicker of relief.
If it was Qu Huo, then he must have seen Wen Ying leave in a hurry.
“Have you seen Wen Ying? I got separated from him.”
He waited expectantly for Qu Huo’s answer.
But Qu Huo let him down.
Water dripped from the raincoat in a steady patter as Qu Huo’s lips moved slightly: “I haven’t seen him.”
“Oh. Thanks.”
Huo Jueyue’s attitude turned cold in an instant.
His gaze swept across the two paths.
That unnamed narrow path had no stone paving it would be muddy and slushy in the rain.
Wen Ying was so particular about cleanliness; he must have taken the main road.
The main road was teeming with people. If he didn’t go find Wen Ying hidden among them now, he might never find him today.
He had to find Wen Ying, to thank him for showing up.
And then, sincerely apologize to him.
With that thought, Huo Jueyue brushed past Qu Huo and plunged into the surging crowd.
Qu Huo didn’t spare him a glance. Instead, he turned and walked toward the unlit alley.
The deeper he went, the rougher the path became.
The neat bricks turned broken, then vanished entirely, dissolving into muddy slush.
At the dead end, dim and shadowed, a youth leaned weakly against a patch of relatively clean wall.
His eyes were shut tight, arms crossed over his chest in a defensive posture, as if trying to calm himself. Rainwater dripped onto the back of his hands, yet Wen Ying, who was always so particular about cleanliness seemed not to notice.
“Why are you here?”
Qu Huo walked up close to him, and only then did the usually sharp Wen Ying react belatedly.
The moment he recognized who it was, the irritation on his face couldn’t be masked in time, shifting into a fierce-edged surprise and grievance: “I told you, stay away from the Neon Bar.”
Seeing that Qu Huo’s collar was still intact, he realized his attitude had been a bit poor.
But Wen Ying’s mind was a tangled mess, and he couldn’t figure out how to make up for his rudeness just yet.
Fortunately, Qu Huo didn’t seem to mind at all.
“I heard someone was causing trouble at the bar.”
The wind picked up slightly, and he opened the folding umbrella in his hand: “Around that time, your reply to me seemed a bit off. I was worried you might be in trouble.”
Reply?
Wen Ying froze.
He’d left in such a hurry that he hadn’t replied to Qu Huo at all.
He pulled out his phone and frantically opened Goose Goose.
In his chat window with Qu Huo, a long string of “ZZZZZ” sat there brazenly.
It must have been that he’d meant to type “Got it,” but was startled by the commotion inside and accidentally sent a string of characters instead.
And after the “Z”s, there was Qu Huo’s concerned inquiry.
Qu Huo: [What’s wrong?]
The response wasn’t a logical answer, but another full screen of “w”s.
Wen Ying’s pale face was tinged with a faint flush.
He had been in a hurry to put away his phone earlier, so it might have been an accidental touch.
After that “w,” Qu Huo had asked him several more times but never received any further reply.
Sending such a nonsensical response, no wonder Qu Huo thought something had happened to him.
The cat-mouth-shaped character stung Wen Ying’s eyes. His fingers curled unnaturally as he shut off the screen, mortified beyond belief.
How embarrassing!!
Why did Qu Huo always have to see him at his most humiliating moments.
“Thanks, I’m fine.”
Having been out in the rain for so long, his voice was once again veiled in a layer of mist.
“It was an accidental touch. I can’t unsend it.”
Wen Ying’s voice grew softer and softer, but unlike before, Qu Huo didn’t seem flustered this time.
“Find somewhere else to rest. This place isn’t good to stay in for long.”
He tilted the umbrella slightly toward Wen Ying and leaned down a little as well.
The boy in black spoke in a low voice: “He’s already gone.”