“So… what?” Shi Zhi repeated in disbelief.
Xu Yining kept a stiff face and didn’t speak, his eyes still smoldering with lingering rage.
“Xu Yining.” Shi Zhi took a deep breath. “From the day your mom found out about our relationship, she has never given me a kind look, squeezing in snide remarks time and time again. Because of you, I never took those things to heart. She is your mother, and I respect her. But today, when she spoke that way about two people who are no longer here, was I supposed to remain silent?”
Xu Yining’s tone was rigid: “She is my mother, after all…”
“Your mother is your mother, but were my parents not my parents!” Shi Zhi couldn’t stand Xu Yining’s logic and said angrily, “I gave your parents the respect they deserved, but what about you, Xu Yining? What did you do! You all think dead people are interfering in the affairs of the living, well then don’t come to me to borrow money! Don’t use their money! Did I say anything wrong today? Isn’t the breakup a fact? Did I get a single thing wrong?!!”
“Right, you’re not wrong! You’re never wrong!” Something seemingly poked Xu Yining’s sore spot as his face turned a flushed red. “How could you possibly be wrong? You, Shi Zhi, are always right, and the one who’s wrong is always Xu Yining!”
Xu Yining completely let go, his tone becoming aggressive: “Have I not been good to you? Huh, Shi Zhi? Have I not been good enough? Have I not humored you? From the time we met until now, has there been a single thing I didn’t go along with? Why can’t you do even this one little thing! You promised me you’d give me time, promised me you wouldn’t tell my mom—why couldn’t you even do that!”
“Did I do something atrocious? I only slept with someone else, why can’t you forgive me? WHY!!!” Xu Yining’s eyes were red, speaking words without restraint: “Because of those photos with Yu Chongyao, you’ve repelled me every time I wanted to be close to you. I endured it for two years. In two years, I haven’t had a single normal sexual experience. Are you, Shi Zhi, really that noble and pure?”
“Are you in such a hurry to break up with me now because you finally can’t take it anymore, can’t keep up the act? Do you just want to be f*cked by other men—”
BANG—!
Shi Zhi smashed a fist into Xu Yining’s face.
Xu Yining’s body wobbled but he stood firm. Feeling a warmth in his nasal cavity, he reached up to find a hand full of blood. His eyes cleared, finally realizing what he had just said. He hurriedly reached out to grab Shi Zhi’s hand. “Does your hand hurt…”
“GET AWAY!”
Xu Yining stood still, the warmth from his nose flowing down, dripping past his chin onto his chest, staining his white shirt with spots of blood. He pulled a few tissues from the dining table and wiped himself haphazardly.
He composed his emotions, restoring his usual gentle and polite demeanor, but a streak of madness hid in the depths of his eyes, and his words were even more beyond reason: “Shi Zhi, it doesn’t matter if you want to break up with me. I won’t give you back the small building anyway. You said where you are, the building is. You gave it to me, so it’s mine. It doesn’t matter if you despise me, hate me, or want to break up—as long as the building is with me, you are mine. I will tell my mom, I’ll let her see that my choice wasn’t wrong. I am not wrong.”
“Aren’t you frigid? Don’t you repel me?” Xu Yining looked at Shi Zhi, his tone almost tender: “It’s perfect then. Yu Chongyao can handle my physical needs. You don’t have to fulfill marital duties or feel pain, and I won’t have to worry about scaring you. We’ll just be like before. You only need to know that I love you. I only love you.”
Finally, Xu Yining said, “I have to go on a business trip for a while. When I get back, I’ll take you to stay at Xizhu for a few days. When the wedding date arrives, we’ll get married.”
Shi Zhi and Xu Yining’s confrontation ended on a disastrous note.
After Xu Yining left, Shi Zhi’s legs went weak, and he slumped onto the floor. He felt a wave of fear after the fact. Xu Yining’s appearance just now looked as if he might have hit back. The man exercised year-round and kept a good physique, whereas Shi Zhi stayed home and hated exercise; the difference in their builds was significant. If Xu Yining had fought back, Shi Zhi would have been on the receiving end of a beating.
Hitting someone was an impulse driven by emotion; after giving Xu Yining that punch, Shi Zhi regretted it. A wise man doesn’t fight against the odds; he had still been too impulsive.
Shi Zhi didn’t know why he felt Xu Yining would have hit back just now. Xu Yining always seemed gentle and good-tempered; before today, he had never even seen Xu Yining get angry.
Although the Xu household was run by Wang Suzhen—from daily meals to Xu Yining’s education and the company’s development—Xu Yining didn’t seem influenced by his mother at all. His personality was more like the silent and gentle Xu Zhenchao. Teachers and classmates held him in high regard; he was loyal, generous, smart, handsome, and kind. Everyone who knew them said Shi Zhi was lucky to have such a perfect boyfriend.
But the Xu Yining who had just argued with him—that distorted, hideous face—terrified Shi Zhi. He realized Xu Yining had seemingly become a different person, like a puppet whose mask had been ripped off, caught off guard and enraged into his original form.
Shi Zhi wondered if Xu Yining was simply too good at pretending; he realized he had never truly known the man.
The shattered figurine and picture frame lay quietly on the floor. Shi Zhi rubbed his aching finger, his gaze landing on the frame. Inside was a watercolor painting: the sky encased in orange, mountains reflecting green pines. The signature bore two names: Yu An and Zhi Yi Shi.
Zhi Yi Shi was Shi Zhi’s pen name. Yu An was one of Shi Zhi’s favorite artists in the community. This painting was done in the second semester of his sophomore year. At that time, Yu An wasn’t as famous as he was now, but he was already well-known in their circles. Shi Zhi was a student at the Fine Arts Academy of An University then; the Dean had invited Yu An for an exchange, and this painting was done during an outdoor sketching trip.
Shi Zhi’s use of color was bold and his emotions full; Yu An liked the sky depicted in the piece and, with Shi Zhi’s consent, added the green pines in the mountains and signed both their names. During that trip, Shi Zhi had completed a work with his idol and also accepted Xu Yining’s pursuit.
Xu Yining was two years older than Shi Zhi. When Shi Zhi was a freshman, Xu Yining was already a junior. He fell in love with Shi Zhi at first sight and pursued him for over a year, refusing to give up even after being explicitly rejected. During that sophomore sketching trip, Xu Yining heard news of Shi Zhi’s location and drove all the way there to follow him.
Shi Zhi had been caught up in the excitement of working with his idol and didn’t watch his step while descending the mountain; he slipped and nearly tumbled off the path, but Xu Yining protected him. A tree branch slashed Xu Yining’s abdomen. In the ambulance on the way to the hospital, a trembling Shi Zhi accepted Xu Yining’s confession.
He had been terrified. Having once experienced being in an ambulance with his parents only for them to never wake up, Shi Zhi didn’t want to face loss again. Fortunately, Xu Yining’s injury wasn’t severe—the branch had slashed the surface of the skin, requiring 7 stitches. Later, Shi Zhi personally designed a pattern that Xu Yining tattooed over the scar by his navel, calling it a “medal” of his love for Shi Zhi.
Xu Yining was very grateful for that trip and the injury, once jokingly saying that Yu An was half a matchmaker for them. He promised that whenever Yu An held an exhibition, he would take Shi Zhi to support the “matchmaker’s” career.
In three years, Yu An had never held an exhibition, and their joint painting had hung on the wall. Four months ago, Shi Zhi finally got news that Yu An would be holding an exhibition in An City on April 23rd. Shi Zhi had purchased two tickets early, wanting to go with Xu Yining.
The exhibition date hadn’t changed, but Shi Zhi had long lost the heart to go. He looked at the shattered frame on the floor, seeing several cracks appear in the watercolor painting. In truth, the green pines and the orange sky had never matched; his idolization had been too blind.
Shi Zhi hugged his legs and buried his head in his knees.
In the end, Shi Zhi still decided to go to Yu An’s exhibition. As a long-time idol, even if their styles were now worlds apart, he still wanted to put a “period” on his past affection. He called Fu Yumeng to go with him; the tickets were innocent and shouldn’t be wasted.
The two agreed to meet at the exhibition entrance. Fu Yumeng’s first words upon seeing Shi Zhi were: “Holy crap, how did you turn into such a mess?”
Shi Zhi was confused: “What about me?”
Fu Yumeng looked him up and down. “Listless, no energy, bloodshot eyes… well, no dark circles. Did you go steal a person in the middle of the night?”
“…” Shi Zhi was speechless. “What are you talking about? I’ve been finishing a few paintings lately and haven’t slept enough.”
“Crap, is Xu Yining still making you take commercial commissions? That bastard, does he even understand your value? Those things he takes are all a mess! He claims it’s for your own good, but in truth, he’s using your paintings to suck up to clients. It’s disgusting!”
Shi Zhi waited for Fu Yumeng to finish cursing before saying, “It has nothing to do with him. There’s a competition in the second half of the year, and I’m preparing my entry.”
“Oh.” Fu Yumeng wasn’t embarrassed about cursing the wrong person, adding: “Well, he’s still pretty disgusting.”
Shi Zhi laughed. “Yumeng, you really are my best friend.”
“Duh.” Fu Yumeng rolled her eyes, dutifully doing what a best friend should: “How are things with Xu Yining? Did he see you? Did you talk? I’ve looked for you lately but you wouldn’t come out, just stayed home every day.”
Shi Zhi looked up at the sky and sighed. “Yumeng, we might really end up in court.”
Fu Yumeng gestured for him to continue.
“He refuses to return the small building to me.” Shi Zhi remembered Xu Yining’s appearance that day and said helplessly, “I think his mental state isn’t right now; he’s in a mode of competing with his mother. And he’s avoiding me, refusing to communicate.”
Fu Yumeng was about to say something when Shi Zhi’s next sentence, “I gave him a punch,” made her shut her mouth and let out a slow “Oh.” After a moment, she asked worriedly: “Did he hit back? Did he beat you?”
Shi Zhi shook his head.
Fu Yumeng’s heart settled, and she comforted him: “As long as you’re not hurt. As for his refusal to return the building, a lawsuit is the only way. You lately… huh? Attorney Fu!”
Shi Zhi followed Fu Yumeng’s gaze to see Fu Yuchu walking toward them… and beside him was a beautiful woman.