Dark clouds pressed down over the city, and the evening sky was terrifyingly gloomy.
“Looks like it’s going to rain,” Xiang Jing sighed, walking to the window with his thermos.
Fu Yuchu gave a faint “mm” while staring out the window.
Xiang Jing followed Fu Yuchu’s gaze. The man who had left the law firm not long ago was standing at the industrial park’s bus stop, looking up to search for something. After a moment, the man turned and walked away with his head hanging low. His silhouette, framed by the sunset, looked lonely and sorrowful.
“He’s a pretty handsome guy, didn’t expect him to be such a ‘love brain.’ Giving most of his fortune to his partner before even getting married, and he doesn’t even know if he can get it back. Sigh.”
Fu Yuchu twitched the corner of his mouth but didn’t respond.
“Hey, what’s with you today? You’re acting like you ate gunpowder. Did that guy offend you?”
Fu Yuchu: “What about me?”
“What about you?” Xiang Jing mimicked him: “‘Feeling guilty is human nature, it’s normal to want to switch’ you’re being so sarcastic.”
Fu Yuchu gave an “oh.” “Maybe it’s just those few days of the month for men; I’m in a bad mood.”
Xiang Jing: “???” Those few days of the month for men? Why don’t I have them? Am I not a man?
The figure on the small path turned a corner and disappeared from sight shortly after. Fu Yuchu pursed his lips and lowered his eyes.
Xiang Jing couldn’t help but gossip: “Why do you think Mr. Shi’s husband cheated? Having such a beautiful boyfriend and still stepping out… truly, some are drowning while others are dying of thirst.”
Fu Yuchu’s tone was foul: “If you want to know, go ask him yourself.”
“How could anyone have the nerve to ask that?” Xiang Jing said mysteriously. “But based on my past cases, I’d guess Mr. Shi is frigid. Their bedroom life wasn’t harmonious, so the partner stepped out.”
Fu Yuchu finally spared Xiang Jing a glance.
Frigid?
Fu Yuchu let out a cold sneer. He clung to me and wouldn’t let go, and he’s frigid? If he actually got ‘hot,’ how would one even handle him? Though, that night’s passion was likely due to the drugs…
“Sigh, truly, deep affection is always betrayed. I really want to pick a fight with those scumbags who don’t take relationships seriously.”
Fu Yuchu glanced at his watch and said coolly, “You’re a straight man, why are you worrying about the affairs of gay people?”
Xiang Jing: “…I’m just using an analogy! Do you understand the concept of ‘extrapolating’?”
“I don’t.”
“Coming back to it, do you know that Mr. Shi?”
Fu Yuchu’s brow twitched slightly, but he didn’t deny it.
“If you don’t know him, then you’ve taken a liking to him.” Xiang Jing was radiating gossip. “Otherwise, why give him your private WeChat…”
Fu Yuchu didn’t want to hear his nonsense. “I’m leaving, heading back now.”
“Hey hey hey, holy crap! The King of Overtime isn’t staying late? Attorney Fu is leaving work on time; that’s not easy.” Xiang Jing hurriedly followed him. “Spill it, why are you going back so early? Could it be…”
“Get in.”
Shi Zhi was standing by the roadside looking down at his phone. It was the peak of the evening rush hour, and many people were hailing rides. He had been waiting for over ten minutes, and no driver had accepted the order yet.
Just as he was about to walk to the nearby subway station, a cold voice rang out beside him. At first, Shi Zhi thought he was hallucinating. When he looked up, he saw the man he had met not long ago sitting in a car, looking at him through the rolled-down window.
Shi Zhi: “…Attorney Fu.”
Fu Yuchu looked at him without speaking. Shi Zhi looked left and right; there was no one else nearby, only him. The man had indeed been speaking to him.
But… Shi Zhi looked at Fu Yuchu in the car and didn’t move.
Fu Yuchu lost his patience. “Not coming in? Do you need me to get out and invite you?”
“No thanks.” Shi Zhi wasn’t a masochist. Fu Yuchu had been snapping at him all day, and he didn’t want to sit in his car just to be an outlet for his anger. “I’ll take the subway back.”
“The nearest subway station is two kilometers from here. Are you sure?”
I’d still rather not sit in your car. Shi Zhi lowered his head, using silence to indicate his refusal.
“What, feeling guilty?” Fu Yuchu sneered. “Didn’t you already give a tip? Rest assured, I won’t ask you to take responsibility; I won’t cling to you.”
Shi Zhi: “…It wasn’t a tip. Your clothes…”
“Are you sure you want to stand here and discuss with me whether that 800 was payment for a prostitute or some other fee?”
At that moment, a passerby happened to walk behind Shi Zhi. Upon hearing those words, they looked over in shock. They even stumbled over their own feet before quickly looking back at the road and frantically typing on their phone.
Shi Zhi: “…”
Rumble—!
A dull roll of thunder sounded as large raindrops, accompanied by spring thunder, began to fall. Shi Zhi’s hair was quickly dampened.
Fu Yuchu said again: “Get in.”
Shi Zhi didn’t want to be caught in the rain. He muttered a “thank you” and walked toward the back seat. Just as his hand touched the door, Fu Yuchu spoke coolly again: “The front. I don’t have a hobby of being someone’s chauffeur.”
Shi Zhi could only circle to the passenger side and get in.
“Seatbelt.”
“Oh.”
“Your hair.” Fu Yuchu tossed a pack of tissues to Shi Zhi.
“Thank you.”
Fu Yuchu glanced at him and asked while turning the steering wheel, “Where to?”
“Yuelan Residence.” Shi Zhi gave the name of the complex. Seeing Fu Yuchu set the navigation, he stopped talking and stared out the window at the street scenery.
The rain grew heavier, “pitter-pattering” against the windows. There were many cars on the road during rush hour, and the rain prevented them from driving too fast. The car hit a traffic jam as soon as it reached the main road.
Fu Yuchu’s finger tapped rhythmically on the steering wheel. In the gaps between moving forward, he used his peripheral vision to look at the person beside him. Shi Zhi had his head turned to look outside, his neck held so stiffly that a faint mark was visible on it.
Uncontrollably, Fu Yuchu thought back to that night—how he had tilted his head back, his neck long and slender. Fu Yuchu knew exactly how it felt to bite that spot. His teeth felt a bit itchy.
Fu Yuchu’s throat tightened. He hesitated before asking, “How… how did you get back that morning?”
The question was quite strange. Shi Zhi looked at him in confusion and answered honestly: “Hailed a cab.”
Fu Yuchu: “…”
Seeing Fu Yuchu remain silent, Shi Zhi suddenly remembered their earlier discussion about the nature of the 800 yuan. Thinking the man might mind it—after all, it was his own actions that caused the misunderstanding—he took the initiative to explain: “My clothes were dirty, so I took yours. I only had 800 on me then. I didn’t know how much your clothes cost. If it’s not enough, I’ll transfer the rest to you now.”
As he spoke, he reached for his phone to make a transfer.
Fu Yuchu suddenly felt a headache coming on. He said with a stiff face, “No need. Just return the clothes to me.”
“Alright then.” Shi Zhi thought he would send them to the dry cleaners before returning them.
For a time, neither spoke, and silence returned to the car.
“That money was good money,” Shi Zhi said suddenly after a while.
Fu Yuchu didn’t react. “What?”
“The 800 wasn’t ‘prostitute payment.'” Shi Zhi felt it was necessary to explain clearly. He stared at the windshield wipers working back and forth. “I had just withdrawn it before going to the bar. I originally wanted to hire some rent-boys (MB) for those two thugs, but they didn’t want them.”
So the money was clean. No matter how you looked at it, it was clean.
To Fu Yuchu, this explanation sounded absolutely ridiculous.
Money intended for rent-boys for thugs, so you gave it to me? What am I then? A rent-boy you hired for yourself?
It would have been better if he hadn’t explained at all.
Fu Yuchu took several deep breaths, getting angrier the more he thought about it. He couldn’t help but snap back: “Rest assured, I’m not some ‘duck’ (male prostitute); I’m clean too. Unlike you, Mr. Shi, who seems to know quite a lot and looks very experienced.” Finally, his mouth turned malicious as he added: “Instead, it’s your fiancé who’s stepping out. For safety’s sake, Mr. Shi should find time to get a check-up. It would be bad if you caught some disease.”
These words made Shi Zhi’s eyes turn red.
What did Fu Yuchu mean? He knows quite a lot and looks very experienced, so he’s not clean? His fiancé isn’t clean, so he isn’t either? Is he worried that an ‘unclean’ Shi Zhi sleeping with him would give him a disease?
“Rest assured, I don’t have any diseases. Do you want me to send you my physical exam report?” Shi Zhi asked with red eyes.
As soon as the words left his mouth, Fu Yuchu knew he had gone too far. Seeing the corners of Shi Zhi’s eyes turn red, he felt a sudden panic. He pulled the car over to the side of the road and said in a stiff tone, “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“If you’re really that worried, you can go get checked yourself. I’ll pay for the costs,” Shi Zhi said stiffly. He turned his head back to look outside, leaving Fu Yuchu with only the back of a very emotional head.
Fu Yuchu stared at the back of Shi Zhi’s head and opened his mouth, but no words came out. He didn’t know what to do; he had no experience in coaxing people.
The car fell back into a dead silence.
Shi Zhi was miserable. Xu Yining’s cheating wasn’t something he asked for, being drugged by thugs wasn’t something he wanted, and running into Fu Yuchu wasn’t something he could control. Fu Yuchu could have just ignored him and left him to rot in the hotel.
They were both adults; what was the big deal about a consensual one-night stand? Was it necessary to act like a sarcastic, resentful husband? It made it seem as if he, Shi Zhi, were some heartless scumbag.
And regardless of everything else, speaking strictly of that night—didn’t Fu Yuchu enjoy it? Was he, Shi Zhi, the only one who enjoyed it to the point of panting and growling during release? Since they both enjoyed it, what right did Fu Yuchu have to give him an attitude?
If one were to really look into it, he was the one who lost more. After all, Fu Yuchu only had pleasure, while he also had pain. His backside had hurt for days, and he still had bruises on his body. He hadn’t said anything, so why was Fu Yuchu dissatisfied?
Although it was his fault for sneaking away in the morning, what could he have done if he stayed? Sit there and stare at Fu Yuchu when he came out of the shower and discuss their “after-action report”? Leaving quietly was being considerate to both parties! He just didn’t want things to be awkward! What was his mistake?!
Of course, these thoughts only swirled in Shi Zhi’s head; he wouldn’t dare and couldn’t bring himself to actually say them out loud.
“I’m sorry, I said the wrong thing. I apologize to you,” Fu Yuchu’s voice sounded from the side. “Don’t be angry, okay?”
Shi Zhi sniffed but didn’t make a sound.
Fu Yuchu looked at the reflection in the window and spoke carefully: “I wasn’t worried, and I didn’t mean to look down on you at all.”
Shi Zhi turned his head back and looked ahead, still remaining silent.
Fu Yuchu breathed a secret sigh of relief. For some reason, he felt a sudden impulse to say this: “I’ve handled many cases of infidelity within marriage. In these types of cases, the cheating party never just cheats once, nor do they only cheat with one person. No one knows the background of those outsiders. Since your fiancé has already cheated, you… you should be more careful when dealing with him from now on.”
Shi Zhi remained silent. He knew these things even without Fu Yuchu saying them. Besides, he and Xu Yining…
“Of course, I did say the wrong thing just now. To show my apology, let me treat you to dinner,” Fu Yuchu said.
Shi Zhi turned to look at him.
Fu Yuchu pressed his advantage: “I know a Western restaurant nearby. Their desserts are quite good.”
“Give me a chance to apologize.” Fu Yuchu’s eyes curved; he looked very handsome when he smiled. “Is that okay?”