Originally published on jjwxc, now available on Iqiyi
Disclaimer: This is an unprofessional translation of pretty bad quality. It is completely free from the fans and to the fans of the 188 club. Support Shui Qian Cheng on her weibo: https://weibo.com/shuiqiancheng
More info on Sissy and summary can be found here: https://188group.carrd.co/#nnq
18+ due to heavy themes (take the age warning seriously, please)
Trigger Warnings: RAPE, NONCON, DUBCON, ATTEMPTED RAPE OF A MINOR BY AN ADULT, VIOLENCE AGAINST A MINOR, SCHOOL BULLYING, WORKPLACE BULLYING, HOMOPHOBIA, EMOTIONAL MANIPULATION, RAPE VICTIM BECOMES LOVER
General Warning: This is not a romance - rather a bleak psychological drama which depicts an abusive relationship and how it is perpetuated and tolerated in our society due to economic and social inequality. This novel however provides no solutions or answers to those problems but lets the reader make their own conclusions. If you prefer stories where the good prevails over evil with clear moral lessons presented by the author, you should find something else to read.
Chapter 1
âHey, Xiao[1] Li, turn around!â
Li Chengxiu was busy putting salt into the pot when he heard Manager Zhangâs voice behind him. He quickly put the salt away before turning his head.
The hotel he was working at has only been operating for three months. The appliances in the kitchen were all still new and shiny. One could see the lush fire reflecting in the silver-white cabinet door, which illuminated Li Chengxiu's fair and delicate face. The fine sweat beads on the tip of his nose were also shining like little crystals in this bright light.
He wiped the sweat from his face: "Whatâs the matter, Manager Zhang?"
Manager Zhang pointed at the person next to him and ordered, "Xiao Qian, you take over."
Then he said to Li Chengxiu, "Come with me."
In a hurry, Li Chengxiu handed his spatula to Xiao Qian, quickly turned on the faucet and nervously came up to Manager Zhang.
"Xiao Li, you're quite lucky," the manager said as he led him out.
Li Chengxiu followed behind him slowly and was confused: "What do you mean, Manager Zhang?"
"Mr. Liu came here today to entertain a distinguished guest. And even our boss showed up to accompany him! This guest was full of praise for the dishes you made. Next month, he is planning to hold a sea party in Victoria Harbor[2]. He still hasnât decided on the chef for the Chinese food, and he wants to see if you might be a good fit.â
Li Chengxiu was startled. The chefs he had worked with before had been invited by wealthy people to cook for private banquets - New Year's Eve dinners, etc. They only had to work for a few days, but the customers were so generous that one such engagement was worth several months of usual pay. These kinds of wages are really a pie in the sky! Because Li Chengxiu was not a very experienced cook, he had never had such an opportunity before.
Today, suddenly such a good thing happened to him, so he couldnât conceal the joy on his face. His heart was also pounding with excitement and anxiety.
Manager Zhang looked at him with a smile: "Be glad, you're very lucky! It's been less than a month since youâve been transferred from the headquarters. Hurry up, change into a clean set of clothes and wash your face!"
Li Chengxiu nodded and headed towards the cloakroom. Just as he was about to push the door, he remembered his manners and turned around, "Manager Zhang, thank you!"
Manager Zhang waved his hand: "Go and change your clothes first."
Li Chengxiu quickly walked in, took out his freshly washed white chef's clothes that still smelled of washing detergent and put them on. Then he splashed some water on his face. With that, the strong smell of oil smoke from the kitchen was much less prominent.
After he came out, Manager Zhang led him to the box, carefully coaching him on the way: "Xiao Li, I know you can't speak so well. You donât need to talk a lot - just shortly answer the questions they ask you.â
Li Chengxiu nodded quietly: "Ok."
"Just remember that after you go in, first you have to greet our boss and then Mr. Liu. Youâve never met him but you might have heard of him before - he is bald and he is wearing a blue shirt. You just say to him 'Hello, Mr[3]. Liu'. Finally, on his left, you will see our distinguished guest. His last name is Shao, he is quite young and he looks like a superstar, so heâs easy to spot. You should greet him with 'Hello, Mr[4]. Shao'. Do you understand?"
"Um."
"Donât forget the proper order - first our boss, then Mr. Liu, then Mr. Shao. The rest of the people are not that important, so you can just nod at them. You usually donât even say a few words a day, so Iâm afraid you will be too awkward. So, donât say anything after you have done your greetings, unless asked directly. Just leave everything else to me. Is it clear?"
"Yes, thank you Manager Zhang." Li Chengxiu nodded gratefully. Manager Zhang didnât usually talk to him very much. He didn't expect him to suddenly be so caring at this time, so Li Chengxiu felt a little flattered.
The two approached the box, and Manager Zhang knocked lightly on the door.
The boss's voice came from the inside: "Come in."
Manager Zhang opened the door and led Li Chengxiu in.
Li Chengxiu saw that there were nearly ten people sitting around the table, who all looked at him at the same time. He saw light flashing in front of his eyes, and his brain was buzzing. He was momentarily blinded. Even though the central air conditioner made the room chilly, he was so nervous that he sweated.
Li Chengxiuâs character was a bit autistic[5], and he usually had a hard time speaking to people. As the crowd stared at him, he felt so scared that his legs became weak and his tongue was knotted.
Manager Zhang pushed him.
Only then did Li Chengxiu wake up from his daze, and his eyes regained some focus. He first found his boss, and whispered, "Hello boss." Then his gaze located Mr. Liu in his blue shirt and he said, "Hello Mr. Liu." Then he looked around for the young one, who looked like a superstar...
Li Chengxiu's heart skipped a beat, as if someone had punched him right in the chest.
This person was profoundly handsome, had a dashing face, a smooth forehead, broad shoulders, and quite an interesting smile...
Li Chengxiu lowered his head in panic, as this half-smiling face with an inquiring expression appeared in front of him.
This man... he looked too familiar. Could it be him? More than ten years have passed, and he might be mistaken. But his last name was also Shao...
Manager Zhang was nervous, thinking that Li Chengxiu had forgotten what he had told him just now. He also blamed himself for having too high expectations for this guy! How could he have expected a person who canât fart at all to suddenly fart loudly in front of everyone's eyes? So he quickly slapped Li Chengxiuâs waist from behind.
Li Chengxiu came back to his senses and blurted out, "Hello, Mr. Shao."
Everyone at the table looked at him with interest.
Mr. Liu was the host today, and everybody agreed not to talk about business - just eat and drink to their heartâs content. So they only told anecdotes about politicians, gossiped, and discussed food and alcohol. From the moment Mr. Shao raised his head and praised the dishes for their authenticity, the conversation at the table shifted towards food. When the chef came in, for many people here it was an interesting sideshow.
The owner of the hotel was very happy and felt that the young chef did a really good job and won favor for him. Yet he saw that Chef Li was more thin-skinned than a girl, so he joked: "Li, is the air conditioner not working well enough for you? Look at how red your face is!"
Everyone at the table laughed.
Manager Zhang followed with a smile: "Our Xiao Li is good at everything. He is a talented person and a great cook. He is just shy and doesn't dare to speak when he meets strangers. I hope you all donât mind him.â
Boss Liu was obviously drunk, and laughed loudly: "Why does Chef Li look different from what I imagined? He cooks so much food every day, and he is still so slender. Can he share his secret?"
Someone at the table interjected with a smile: "Yeah, at our age, who doesnât suffer from the three common problems[6]? You said that he spins around in oil and salt all day, and yet he is still so thin!"
Li Chengxiu blushed almost to the point of bleeding through his skin, and he didn't dare to lift his head up.
Seeing his abashed appearance, Manager Zhang couldn't help but laugh. He quickly smoothed things out: "That's right, the girls in our hotel are talking about losing weight all day long. They are very jealous of him, since he doesn't get fat no matter what he eats."
The guests began to reminisce about how thin they were when they were young, how they gained weight later, and what was wrong with their bodies now. Their attention was temporarily away from Li Chengxiu.
He was finally free from the prying eyes and was about to breathe a sigh of relief when the young and handsome Mr. Shao spoke up. His voice full of pure male magnetism was pleasant and not too loud but as soon as he opened his mouth, everyone fell silent.
"Chef Li looks so young. I wouldnât have expected his craftsmanship to be so good."
Manager Zhang was afraid that others would think that Li Chengxiu was inexperienced, so he hurriedly retorted: "He looks young, but he is actually thirty years old."
Mr. Liu snorted: "He looks like a college student, very young."
Li Chengxiu silently corrected Manager Zhang. He was twenty-eight.
Manager Zhang poked his waist from behind: "Xiao Li, it is Mr. Shao, who asked you to be the chef responsible for Chinese food at the sea party."
Li Chengxiu raised his head and accidentally stared into Mr.Shaoâs eyes. Seeing that Mr. Shao looked at him with an inexplicable smile, he panicked.
"Th⊠Thank you, Mr. Shao."
The man gave him a calm smile and asked casually, "What is Chef Li's full name?"
Li Chengxiu was stunned, and couldn't help but wonder if Shao had recognized him as well. When he thought of this possibility, his heart tightened and he felt extremely uneasy.
Seeing that he acted like a clockwork doll that needs to be wound up every time after it gets frozen, Manager Zhang was so angry that he wanted to slap Li Chengxiu with the sole of his shoe. He desperately scolded him from behind: "Xiao Li, Mr. Shao has asked you a question."
"IâŠâŠ"
Mr. Shao blinked and smiled: "Why is Chef Li so tense? Are you so nervous that you forgot your name?"
Li Chengxiu tried to calm himself down, looked directly in the eyes staring at him, and said in a low voice, "My name is Li Chengxiu."
Mr. Shao let out a long "Ooooooooh", which made Li Chengxiu tremble.
Li Chengxiu tried desperately to comfort himself. It has been 13 or 14 years. It all happened when they were children. This man might not be the same Shao Qun. And even if he was, he might not remember him. And even if he remembers him, what is there to be so nervous about? It wasn't Li Chengxiu who did bad things, after all.
Thinking like this, he calmed down. The only thing that worried him now was the work at the sea party.
He didn't want to give up such a good opportunity to earn money, but if this person was really the same Shao Qun, he really didn't want to go.
The feeling this person gave him now was similar to what he felt about him as a child. He exuded arrogance of complete superiority. When he was young he was aggressively arrogant, but now the arrogance was coated with sophistication and manners. It wasnât offensive per se but it was very much visible at all times.This Shao Qun was equally difficult to approach as the one from his childhood, and he just wanted to stay away.
Mr. Shao smiled: "I'm surprised that Chef Li is so young, but it's fine. This party is supposed to have a pre-order menu, so itâs better if you take part in purchasing the ingredients. The day is going to be very busy. An older person might get overwhelmed. But donât worry, your boss promised to lend me a few more people, and they will all be available to you when the time comes."
Li Chengxiu twisted his hands in embarrassment. Mr. Shao's tone was particularly determined, and there was no room for rejection. He really wanted to push this matter away, but with so many eyes on him, he knew that he would definitely make a fool of himself if he talked too much.
The owner of the hotel, Mr. Chen, echoed right next to him: "Alright, Xiao Li, no need to be in such a hurry to thank Mr.Shao."
Li Chengxiu carefully looked at him and whispered, "ThâŠ, ank⊠you, Mr. Shao."
Boss Chen frowned slightly, and then said with an amused smile: "Young Master Shao, if it wasnât for you, I wouldnât be lending a chef from our hotel so easily. Our Chef Xiao Li might have had a difficult childhood, so he is a bit autistic and he doesnât speak so well. But this condition of his doesnât affect anything else, definitely not his cooking skills. He will not give you any trouble!â
Mr. Shao nodded with a smile, while his eyes never left Li Chengxiu: "I donât mind, as long as the chefâs tongue can taste the flavor."
The tone in which he said those three words "taste the flavor" sounded a little weird to Li Chengxiu and for some reason made him uncomfortable.
Boss Chen waved his hand and raised his chin in a gesture to Manager Zhang: "That's it, you can go back to work."
Manager Zhang and Li Chengxiu both turned around to leave, feeling as if they had been granted amnesty.
Mr. Shao suddenly called behind them, "Chef Li."
Li Chengxiu paused and turned around stiffly.
Mr. Shao looked at him with a smile: "Chef Xiao Li, I will pick you up in a few days, and we will discuss this matter thoroughly."
Li Chengxiu felt that his heart was jumping out of his throat..
He looked at Manager Zhang's tall and broad back all the way from the box to the kitchen, as he hesitated and couldnât find the courage to speak up. Finally, he whispered, "Manager Zhang."
Manager Zhang frowned and turned around.
He didnât usually have much contact with Li Chengxiu, even though one couldnât say that he particularly detested him. Yet, to be honest, he didnât like him much either.
Li Chengxiu was a man in his late twenties yet still as scrawny as a teenager. The word âemaciatedâ could best describe himâhe was so frail that he could be knocked down by a puff of wind. Wasnât this man beyond any help? Even worse, others wished to get him an amplifier whenever he was talking. He was such a sissy that even if he walked in a skirt for miles, nobody would notice.
Manager Zhang knew that there were some young workers in their hotel, who liked to mock Li Chengxiuâs speech and walking posture behind his back, and they always exaggerated by sticking out their little fingers and batting their eyelashes. He understood that Li Chengxiu was just a little girly, so he never engaged in any gossip with these indecent people but this complete uselessness made even Manager Zhang feel awkward around Li Chengxiu.
His performance today was worse than he had imagined. Li Chengxiu couldnât even say a complete sentence there, and always just looked down at his feet. These were their bossâs special guests inside that room today, and if they had made them unhappy, Manager Zhang would be the one to clean up the mess.
These thoughts made Manager Zhang even more hostile and impatient, so his tone was not very good: "What's wrong?"
Li Chengxiu glanced at him timidly, and said with hesitation, "Manager Zhang, can⊠canâŠ. I not go?"
Manager Zhang squinted his eyes and put his ear closer: "I canât hear what youâre saying. Speak up."
"That⊠sea⊠party⊠can⊠can I not go?"
Manager Zhang heard it clearly this time, and clicked his tongue: "Why wouldnât you go?"
Li Chengxiu lowered his head, unable to think of anything to say, so he just repeated: "Can I not go?"
Manager Zhang's face became a little ugly: "No, what do you mean ânot goâ? What are you even thinking? Don't presume things just because Mr.Shao is young - have you got any idea how powerful his background is? His family is directly connected to that." Manager Zhang did not say clearly what he meant, he just pointed to the advertisement for Nanhai Wine on the light box in the corner.
"Can you get this much money just for one event somewhere else?" Manager Zhang put his hand in front of Li Chengxiu again, but this time he spread out five fingers. "Normally you could save this much only after working hard for two months. What's wrong with you? Why don't you want to go?"
Li Chengxiu blushed, and suddenly asked Manager Zhang an unexpected question: "He⊠his⊠full name�"
"What?"
"Full name⊠Shao⊠Shao what?"
Manager Zhang frowned, his eyes stern: "You are just a cook. Why do you need to know something like that?"
"IâŠâŠ"
"You just need to cook! Don't think about things that donât concern you. Iâm telling you, Xiao Li, you canât seek connections with this kind of person just because you want to."
"I'm notâŠâŠ"
"I really don't understand what you want. Our boss has personally agreed to this, and it is impossible to change anything about it. You should just perform well and gain some advantages from Mr.Shao. But you are not allowed to embarrass our boss! He has to keep his face[7]. And if he gets angry, heads will fly. You have already worked in our hotel for several years, if you also count the time at the headquarters - after a few more years, you might even become the head chef . Don't tell me afterwards that I didnât warn you. You have to be down-to-earth, work hard, and not let the opportunities pass you by. Otherwise, you can't blame others for your problems."
These words sounded very reasonable, so Li Chengxiu couldnât refute anything.
After Manager Zhang finished his speech, he promptly walked away.
Li Chengxiu silently looked at the empty hall. It was illuminated by bright yellow lights that extended from one end of the hall to the other. At the opposite side, a dressing mirror covered almost the entire wall and reflected the hall making it seem like an infinite space. It felt terribly empty. The color scheme was warm, but the cold and hard marble floor made it look cold and lonely. Li Chengxiu's thin figure seemed like a tiny dot in this empty scene.
Li Chengxiu and Shao Qun
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Chapter 2
He returned to the dressing room first to change from his clean clothes and put the dirty ones back on again. Then he headed to the kitchen.
After he entered, the spoons, dishes, and knives in the hands of the staff abruptly stopped moving. He encountered gloating and questing looks.
Li Chengxiu knew that he was not popular here.
Actually, even in the past, he had never been popular amongst his peers. He mostly isolated himself and tried not to speak or even communicate with anybody, if it wasnât necessary.
People like him can easily offend others, so it was better to minimize his own existence to keep himself safe.
He was accustomed to being quiet around people, and the others naturally also responded with silence.
It's just that this place was different from what he had experienced before. Here, he didnât only feel the familiar contempt but also certain hostility.
He has spent ten years in Shenzhen[8]. He started as an apprentice of a handyman, and later entered this hotel to follow a mentor who treated him better.
Three months ago, the boss opened this new location. Because it is a hotel with a sea view, the environment here is good and the salary is high. The first batch of employees that were transferred will definitely have good chances for promotion in the future.
Deciding which personnel will come aboard was a complicated decision. Li Chengxiu had been working under their President Chen for five years, and his performance had been good, so he was transferred here to be a sous chef together with another colleague.
Where he worked previously, everyone was used to his introverted personality. But in this new environment, with many new colleagues, his restrained attitude was a problem during the initial time when everybody was getting to know each other.
What's more, he didnât have enough qualifications to be a sous chef, so it was inevitable that some people would be critical of him. If it wasn't for the urgent shortage of manpower at the new location, he would never have gotten this position.
Everyone just now had witnessed that he was called by the manager while in the middle of cooking. Considering the circumstances, most likely he was in trouble.
A young chef, Xiao Qian, who took over from him, came up and asked, "Li Ge[9], what did Manager Zhang want from you?"
Li Chengxiu answered truthfully: "There is a guest who wants to hold a party, so they asked me to cook there."
Xiao Qianâs jaw dropped in disbelief. Yet, after some time, he smiled: "Alright, Li Ge! Good for you!"
Xiao Zhao, who was preparing a cold dish, deliberately let out a heavy sigh: "Li Ge is so lucky. If he hadn't been on duty today, such a good thing wouldnât have happened to him."
The implication was that if the head chef or another sous chef had been here today, Li Chengxiu wouldnât have gotten the opportunity.
Others also said a few words, and he received some insincere congratulations.
Li Chengxiu nodded without saying anything, looked down at the electronic display with the dishes ordered by the guests, washed his hands, rolled up his sleeves and got to work.
Seeing that he wasnât responding, the crowd just continued to entertain themselves. A little colleague of his walked right behind Li Chengxiu while exaggeratedly twisting his waist. Everybody laughed.
Li Chengxiu couldnât hear so well with his right ear, and it was difficult for him to distinguish separate sounds in a noisy environment. However, the mocking laughter could still penetrate his eardrum and enter his brain.
He looked down at the crab roe and tofu he was cooking, and his heart gradually calmed down.
After dragging his tired body home at night, Li Chengxiu first threw himself on the faded carpet.
He had always been very neat and tidy, so he would never even touch his bed before washing his body thoroughly to get rid of the kitchen smells.
He rolled over and lay on his back on the carpet, resting his eyes and gasping for breath.
Shenzhen in July feels like a big hot steamer. When Li Chengxiu got off work at night, the bus was crowded with sweaty people, so his trip home felt like taking a bath in sticky sweat, which made him sick inside and out.
The company originally arranged accommodation for him, but his dormitory at the new hotel location wasnât ready yet. So they gave him a 1,000 RMB[10] lodging subsidy every month to let him rent his own place.
Li Chengxiu was happy with the arrangement. He didnât want to live in a dormitory in the future when it was ready. He would rather ride the bus back and forth for more than half an hour every day and receive the subsidy rather than room together with strangers.
He took his phone out of his pocket to check what time it was.
He kept the phone turned off during working hours, and after he switched it on, a few messages popped up directly on the screen. All of these were missed calls.
Some were from familiar numbers, others not.
Li Chengxiu looked at the familiar number, frowned slightly, pursed his lips, hesitated for a while, and finally called back.
"HelloâŠâŠ"
"Oh, why are you only calling back now?" A high-pitched female voice came from the other side.
"Fourth aunt, I was at work."
"So long? Youâre working too hard, Xiao Xiu! By the way, have you transferred the money for this month already?"
"Not yet, I will do it tomorrow."
"Then hurry up. Other people have already paid their dues! This time, you should give me an extra 1,000 RMB. Because next month your brother is bringing back his girlfriend. And I want to buy an air conditioner."
"âŠâŠOkay."
"Xiao Xiu, I understand that itâs not easy for you, and that youâre tired. But while youâre young, you should work harder. Otherwise, when will you be able to pay off the money you owe? You donât want to be in debt your entire life, do you?"
"No."
"That's all I have to say. Long-distance calls are expensive after all⊠In the future, if you transfer the money in time, I will not call you anymore. Letâs have no more delays, okay? Otherwise, since you are so far away, one can never know if you decided to run⊠Do you understand? I know that you are not that kind of person, but considering that you owe more than me... Itâs hard for everyone, so try to think about us too, okay?"
"Okay."
Li Chengxiu hung up the phone, feeling exhausted.
He struggled to get up, took a quick shower and sat down on the cot. He took out an old savings book from under his pillow, and stared at the numbers on it.
Suddenly his cell phone rang again, startling him. He moved, and the bed creaked.
He quickly took the phone, saw an unfamiliar number on the screen, and gently pressed the âacceptâ button.
"Hello?"
He heard soft breathing on the other side, and then a voice asked him tentatively, "Li Chengxiu?"
Li Chengxiu trembled, and the phone almost fell out of his hand.
He remembered this voice well - he had just heard it today. It was Mr. Shao.
The other party was silent for a while and then asked again: "Is it Li Chengxiu?"
Li Chengxiu hesitated for a long time, and finally whispered, "Yes."
There was a sigh of relief and a chuckle, "I thought I made a mistake."
Li Chengxiu silently put the phone next to his right ear. He would usually use his left ear when he was talking on the phone, since it was undamaged. But in the case of this particular voice, he felt that his anxiety would be less, if he could hear a bit worse.
"Why arenât you saying anything?"
"...Mr. Shao."
"Well, you still remember my voice. Not bad."
Li Chengxiu didn't know what to say, so he kept quiet.
"I asked your manager for your phone number. So, what time do you get off work tomorrow? I'll pick you up and we'll discuss the party."
Li Chengxiu felt repulsed by his indisputable tone: "Iâm not working tomorrow."
"Oh, thatâs even better! Then youâll have more time to serve me. Where is your house? I'll pick you up tomorrow morning."
Li Chengxiu said slowly: "Tomorrow, holiday." He deliberately punctuated the word âholidayâ. He only has one day off a week, and tomorrow he has to go transfer the money. Besides, he didnât want to meet Mr. Shao.
For a while there was silence: "Chef Xiao Li is probably tired. In that case, please rest well tomorrow. I'll pick you up the day after that. Goodbye then."
The other party abruptly hung up the phone. Li Chengxiu could hear displeasure in his voice..
He lay down on the bed and wrapped himself in the quilt.
No matter how much he didn't like it or how much he didn't want anything to do with Mr.Shao, he couldnât turn his back on the money.
He tightly hugged his pillow after stuffing his savings book under it again. After a long exhausting day, he quickly fell asleep.
After his holiday, he went to work again. On that day, another sous chef with last name Liu also showed up, and the look he gave him was not very friendly. He was fishing for information from Li Chengxiu - what exactly happened that day, what dishes did he cook, what did the boss say, how much he will get paid for cooking at the Victoria Harbor party, when this party was taking place and whether Mr.Shao was coming in again.
Li Chengxiu could only honestly tell him about the dishes he cooked - how would he know about any of this other stuff?
Chef Liu's face became more and more unsightly, which made Li Chengxiu feel uncomfortable at work for the whole day.
Even though it was just a small hotel, the infighting was brutal. Considering this was a newly opened location, the pioneer troops sent to "reclaim the wasteland" will have the most opportunities for promotion in the future. Everyone was giving their best, hoping to climb up the ladder. Li Chengxiu, who was originally the least optimistic about his prospects, was now officially the first one to show his face in front of the boss and the boss's friends. This, of course, caused a lot of jealousy.
After finally getting off work at ten o'clock in the evening, Li Chengxiu quickly packed up and hurried out.
He left through the main entrance, and was just walking out of the hotel door, when a champagne-colored sports car appeared in front of him under the bright yellow light.
The car looked very beautiful and very expensive - the body of the car was long and shiny.
Li Chengxiu looked at it indifferently and continued walking, carefully holding his bag of leftovers for breakfast tomorrow.
As he passed by the car, the car horn blared abruptly. Startled him, he looked out the window in amazement.
The car window rolled down, and Li Chengxiu, being not far away from it, suddenly felt a rush of cold conditioned air coming out of the car.
The young Mr. Shao stuck his face out of the window, waved his hand to greet him, and said with a smile, "I'm here to pick you up."
Li Chengxiu took a few deep breaths and looked at him blankly.
When the man saw that he was not moving, he frowned, opened the car door, got out, walked over to him, and stretched out his hand: "Chef Li?"
With embarassment, Li Chengxiu came back to his senses, looked at the hand stretched out in front of him, and subconsciously wanted to reach out too. However, when he raised his arm, he realized that there was a plastic bag in his right hand, so he hurriedly placed the bag in the other hand, and only then properly greeted Mr.Shao.
The man's handshake was dry and firm. For some reason, Li Chengxiu felt that he deliberately used a bit too much strength.
"Mr. Shao."
"Isnât it too weird to call me Mr. Shao, Li Chengxiu? Do you really not remember me?"
Li Chengxiu's heart skipped a beat. Although he had already guessed that this was indeed the Shao Qun he knew, he still felt unnerved when he heard the confirmation.
Li Chengxiu raised his head slightly, glanced at him and whispered, "I remember."
Shao Qun's eyes lit up and he smiled: "Really? We haven't seen each other for more than ten years. Seeing your reaction that day, I thought you had no memory of me at all, and I was quite sad. We were classmates after all. You donât have to act like thisâŠor do you still hold the grudge for the stupid things I did when I was a kid?"
Li Chengxiu's cheeks felt hot, and beads of sweat slowly oozed from his forehead.
Shao Qun deliberately emphasized the words "when I was a kid", making it seem that if he still had any hard feelings about the harm he caused him when he was young and ignorant, it would make Li Chengxiu petty and small-minded.
Indeed, what can an eleven- or twelve-year-old child understand? Looking back now, it wasn't a big deal, and Li Chengxiu had almost forgotten about all of it.
Back then, it seemed like a terrifying disaster on par with the sky collapsing over him, but now that he thinks about it, it only appeared so horrible because it was infinitely magnified by his youth at the time. In fact, itâs just a thing that happened. He was now still alive and well, after all. He lived in another city where no one even knew who he was. So why would he hold grudges?
He really didn't have any animosity against Shao Qun, but his fear and inferiority complex when facing this person remained unchanged even after so many years. He just wanted to stay as far away as possible.
Colleagues who were leaving work at the time kept throwing glances at them when they passed by. Both of them looked very uncomfortable. Seeing that he didn't answer, Shao Qun said, "Get in the car."
Li Chengxiu looked at the car behind him with hesitation: "Why?"
"To talk about work."
Li Chengxiu wanted to tell him that they had nothing to discuss at this late hour, and that he should come back another day. But then he thought it wouldnât do him any good to offend Shao Qun by procrastinating their meeting. Since he came all this way, Li Chengxiu didn't dare to turn around and leave.
So he nodded and got into the car.
When Shao Qun also got back into the car and closed the door, the smell of burnt oil filled the narrow space.
When standing in the parking lot, Li Chengxiu didn't feel that he emitted such a strong odor, but once he was locked in a closed car, the smell was really noticeable. He felt really embarrassed.
Shao Qun wrinkled his nose and rolled down all the windows. This move made Li Chengxiu feel even more uneasy. He blushed.
He couldn't help thinking that more than ten years ago, he also went to school smelling of burnt oil every day. Everybody avoided him because of that. At first, the disgusted expressions of his classmates really hurt, but then he gradually got used to them.
Since he started working and had a steady income, he washed himself very often. It's just that he had only gotten off work and didnât have time to take a shower. He didn't expect to be sitting next to somebody at this time.
It seemed that nothing had changed - Shao Qun was still the noble gentleman who was always clean and arrogant, while Li Chengxiu was still the smelly sissy outcast. Even he hated himself at this moment.
Now that he has grown up, why does Shao Qun still make him feel so embarrassed? In front of the bright shiny Shao Qun, he was still so inferior.
The champagne-colored sports car started silently, and Shao Qun drove quickly along the coast. The sea breeze blew into Li Chengxiu's eyes. He could only tightly hold onto the seat belt on his chest, trying to endure bouts of nausea.
After taking them into the city, Shao Qun slowed down, and rolled the car windows up again. He seemed to have been holding his breath all the way, and finally could breathe a sigh of relief. His face wasnât sullen anymore and he smiled at Li Chengxiu with ease: "No problem, I can just drive a little faster."
Li Chengxiu shook his head, his face pale.
"Have you eaten already?"
"Yes."
"Then I'll take you out for a late-night snack. I haven't been to Shenzhen a lot before, but I may be developing some businesses here for a while in the future. I really didn't expect to meet you here."
"We⊠talk about work?"
Shao Qun chuckled: "They make a good Tong Sui[11] in that shop! I don't know if you as a chef will appreciate it but letâs try it first!"
Li Chengxiu no longer asked about anything. Shao Qun was the same as before - no one could talk over him, and everything always had to go according to his wishes.
Shao Qun led him into the teahouse. The waiters obviously already knew him, and they immediately led them into a private room.
Shao Qun ordered ten kinds of Tong Sui at random, and noted to Li Chengxiu, "I got so hungry while waiting for you."
Li Chengxiu didn't know what to answer, so he could only nod stiffly.
Shao Qun looked at him silently, then suddenly moved his chair and leaned towards Li Chengxiu.
"Cheng Xiu - I can call you that, right? You're always so nervous around me. Do you hate me?" he asked softly.
Li Chengxiu raised his head in surprise and met his beautiful bright eyes. His heart skipped a few beats, and he awkwardly shook his head.
Shao Qun said sincerely: "I'm actually very happy to meet a former classmate in a completely different place. I have never forgotten about you, even after so many years. I was young and ignorant at the time, which brought you a lot of trouble. I always thought I would find an opportunity to apologize to you someday, but I didn't expect to see you again.Would you accept my apology now?"
Shenzhen. Part of another 188 novel âAdditional Inheritanceâ also takes place in Shenzhen btw.
What Shao Qunâs tacky champagne-colored sports car might have looked like lol
Some versions of Tong Sui.
Chapter 3
Shao Qun's eyes and tone were so sincere that Li Chengxiu felt even more embarrassed when he heard it.
He really hated Shao Qun back then. If it wasn't for him, he wouldn't be working as a cook in a hotel today. He should have been able to get into a good high school, a good university, and have a completely different life. But after fourteen/fifteen years, he had a more thorough understanding of many things, and he began to believe in fate. To him, Shao Qun was already a distant vague impression. Just like he wouldn't hate the kid who stole his candy when he was a child, same way he couldnât hate Shao Qun anymore. He had long since forgotten anything related to this person.
Under such earnest eyes, Li Chengxiu showed a shallow smile. He felt that the scars on his heart gradually started to melt away since he saw Shao Qun that day again. There was a sense of relief that came with it. So for the first time, when facing Shao Qun, he said clearly and without hesitation: "It's alright."
Shao Qun looked into his eyes, which were unusually bright, and Li Chengxiu felt a little uncomfortable, so he turned away.
Exquisitely styled desserts were served promptly, and Shao Qun warmly urged him to eat.
Li Chengxiu wasnât hungry, as he had just eaten dinner, so he just picked at the food.
While eating, Shao Qun asked him how he was doing over the years.
Without any hard feelings, Li Chengxiu explained that after dropping out of school, he went to work part-time. Later, he said, there were many job opportunities in Shenzhen, so he decided to come here.
Shao Qun nodded. He was silent for a moment, then he finally said, "After that incident, my family sent me to England. When I came back, I looked for you, but I couldn't find you."
Thinking of the difficulties and embarrassment he had to face at that time, Li Chengxiu felt stuffy in his chest. He didn't know what to say, so he just said "oh".
Shao Qun put down his chopsticks and reiterated: "I'm really happy to see you again."
For many years, no one had expressed enthusiasm or affection for Li Chengxiu. He was used to being either hated or ignored, and it was somewhat flattering to him that someone could be happy to see him. Even if these were just polite words. Shao Qun's superiority complex and arrogance suddenly became less repulsive to him, and Li Chengxiuâs mood improved. Slowly, pronouncing every word, he said, "Thank. You."
"Itâs me who should be thankful to you for helping me with this party!"
Li Chengxiu remembered the "business" they were going to talk about, and asked, "Party. How to do it? IâŠhaveâŠno experience."
"It doesn't matter, you don't have to worry too much about it. Specific things will be handled by other people. You only need to be responsible for preparing the menu, purchasing the ingredients, and then making certain preparations in advance. It is enough, if you make the dishes on the day of the party which is not so different from what you do at the hotel.â
Li Chengxiu was relieved to hear this. He has never done such work before. A couple of times in the past, the hotel had received conference groups, and he could use some of that experience but he was still afraid of messing up. If something went wrong, it might make his days in the hotel more difficult in the future.
Shao Qun told him roughly how many people were invited to the party, explained what flavor profile he expected from the dishes, mentioned which special dishes have to be included etc. Li Chengxiu listened very carefully to all the details.
In the end, Shao Qun said that he would take him to meet the party planner in two days, and they could focus on discussing specifics with each other.
During the meal, Li Chengxiu got less and less nervous in front of Shao Qun, and his speech became smoother and more fluent.
Shao Qun kept his curiosity at bay at first but finally asked: "You didn't speak like this before. Why..."
Li Chengxiu was stunned for a moment - his tongue that had just been liberated seemed to tie itself into a knot yet again.
Before he even met Shao Qun, Li Chengxiu was already very quiet. After dropping out of school, he became even more autistic[12], and it was normal for him not to speak with anyone for days at a time.
When he was a child, he always played with girls. As he got older and was able to see the difference in societal expectations for men and women, his mannerisms, his tone of voice, and even his whole personality had already been affected in such a way that he seemed weird amongst other boys. This made him a target of ridicule. In order to avoid calling more attention to himself, he could only hide behind the silence.
He spoke less and less, till he almost lost his ability to speak at all.
The two of them right now have been chatting so smoothly, that Li Chengxiu forgot about his awkwardness for a while. Shao Qun's reminder seemed to knock him right back to his original form.
Shao Qun also felt embarrassed by his own question, "I just asked casually."
Li Chengxiu lowered his eyes and nodded.
Shao Qun bullied him lightly: "You haven't changed much since school. You're still the same.â
Li Chengxiu sat up straight and subconsciously moved his body away from Shao Qun.
"You also haven't changed much."
Shao Qun curled his lips into a smile: "You know, after I met you that day, I immediately told Big Li and the others! Do you still remember them?"
Li Chengxiu shivered, and his face turned pale.
Shao Qun continued: "They were all very happy to hear about you.They want to see you again. Big Li and A-wen[13] are in Beijing, and Xiao Sheng is in Shanghai. At first, when I invited them to the party, they all said they were too busy. But as soon as they heard that you were coming, they immediately RSVPed. See, they respect you more than me..."
"No." Li Chengxiu whispered.
"What?"
"No." Li Chengxiu repeated with a trembling voice.
He didn't even want to see Shao Qun again, let alone his friends. He didn't even understand why they would be happy to meet him.
They treated him like beasts back then, and now they want to casually apologize and suddenly become good old classmates that haven't seen each other for ages? Do they think itâs possible to just laugh the whole thing away?
What happened back then can always be attributed to being young and ignorant, so Li Chengxiu had let it go a long time ago. If it wasn't for Shao Qun's appearance, he wouldnât even think about it anymore.
But now this group of people was going to appear in front of him again. It was like being chased by the dogs who had bitten him many years ago. Even if this group of dogs had grown up and stopped biting people, he still had lingering fears and was wary of them.
Shao Qun looked at him silently, suddenly raised his hand and touched his hair, "If you don't want to see them, I won't let them come."
Li Chengxiu's body jolted violently, and he jumped out of his chair.
He hadn't had physical contact with anyone for a long time, so at this moment he had the urge to dash for the door in panic.
Shao Qun awkwardly retracted his hand, as a strange look flashed in his eyes. But it quickly faded. He also stood up and said, "Are you full? Then I'll take you home."
Li Chengxiu nodded, picked up his plastic bag on the chair next to him, and quietly followed Shao Qun.
When Shao Qun turned around, he saw him walking slowly behind him with his head down, holding a bag on his arm like a woman. Shao Qun frowned and sped up when he was passing through the lobby of the tea house, in order to keep his distance from Li Chengxiu.
In the car, the two of them chatted for a bit.
Shao Qun took him right to the address Li Chengxiu gave him. As he looked at the dilapidated old house through the car window, he asked: "Do you live in this kind of place?"
There was a hint of surprise in his tone.
Li Chengxiu felt his face burn. He wanted to tell him that many people live in these kinds of places, but he suspected that it was useless to explain these things to a person like Shao Qun, so he only said, "Thank you. For sending me back. I'm going now."
Shao Qun nodded and unlocked the door for him.
Li Chengxiu was about to open the door and get out of the car when Shao Qun suddenly stopped him.
"Cheng Xiu, when is your next holiday?"
"Next Wednesday."
Shao Qun shook his head: "Next Wednesday is too late. You should take a day off this Saturday."
Li Chengxiu was stunned for a moment, and suddenly felt a little uncomfortable: "I can't just ask for a leave."
"Why canât you have a day off? The hotel can go on without you."
Li Chengxiu still shook his head: "I can't ask for a leave." If he asks for a day's leave, he will not get his bonus. So why should he ask for a leave for Shao Qunâs sake?
Shao Qun finally showed a bit of impatience on his face, tousled his hair, and said: "If you are worried about your boss, I will send him my regards. Just do it. If I wait until next Wednesday, the time will be too tight. I hope that my party will be flawless, and I sincerely hope that you will cooperate with me on that. Isn't that what your boss asked you to do?"
Li Chengxiu was left speechless. Shao Qun waved goodbye to him, rolled up the window, and his car sped out as soon as he stepped on the accelerator, as if it was too uncomfortable for him to stay even for a second longer.
Li Chengxiu was still holding on to tomorrow's breakfast. He groaned, as he walked up the stairs in the dark corridor.
Every time he took these stairs, he was scared. The light bulb in the corridor was broken, and no one got around to repairing it for the whole year. The stairs were steep and narrow. At night, he had to touch the wall to be able to move forward. But the wall was bumpy and uneven. During the day, he noticed how dirty it was. It was a terrifying experience for him.
The moment he returned to his room and turned on the lights, he was covered in sweat. Without even noticing he collapsed on the bed.
In the stairwell with no light, he was surrounded by darkness with no exit. There was deadly silence on the campus - the only sound was of him crying and begging to let him out. His voice echoed in the empty building, making it seem even more eerie.
This distant nightmare became clearer with the reappearance of Shao Qun in his life.
***Flashback***
Li Chengxiuâs last name was Li.
But very few people at school knew this.
"Cheng" was his motherâs last name. And since the teacher called him Cheng Xiu at the very beginning, everyone thought his full name was Cheng Xiu[14].
No one in this school really cared what Li Chengxiu's last name was or how his name was spelled, even though everyone in the junior high and high school knew him.
Whenever the students mentioned him, they used his universal nickname: Sissy.
Everyone must have encountered such a person in school or university.
Although he looks male, some of his actions, his tone of voice, and the ways he deals with the world make him seem feminine in the eyes of outsiders.
Li Chengxiu was such a person. Whether it was in his actions, or his manners or the way he behaved, he wasnât masculine at all.
Li Chengxiu wasnât actually ugly. He had fair skin, straight eyebrows, and a nice silhouette. His grades were also good. If he wasnât that sort of a person, he would definitely be popular amongst girls.
Even if one is a sissy, theoretically as long as people are open-minded enough and get over the uncomfortable first impression, they finally learn to accept such a person after getting to know him better.
But Li Chengxiu wasnât acceptable to anyone. Because he always exuded an unbearable smell. Sometimes he reeked of alcohol, sometimes he was stinking of greasy food. Often it was a combination of those two. He only changed his clothes a couple of times during the semester, and even old teachers with a lot of experience couldnât help but frown and avoid him when he was nearby.
He always seemed gloomy when he talked to people. At the age of thirteen or fourteen, he still looked thinner than girls. He walked softly and kept his head down, which made him look weak and dejected.
When he was a child, the situation wasnât as bad. Although his family was not well-off and he was scrawny, his clothes were at least clean and he didn't look completely malnourished. Later, they said, his father ran away with another woman, taking away all the money and leaving only a broken house behind. His mother started drinking every day and didn't care much about him.
Li Chengxiu managed to get into the best middle school in the city because of his hard work. He was one of the few people in his county who got admitted into this school, so the county financed his education. Otherwise, he wouldnât be able to study in a school full of children of high-ranking officials and wealthy businessmen.
His issues were not a secret. Everyone in class gossiped about him. Occasionally, there were a couple voices that felt bad for him. When they saw what he looked like, all they could do was shake their heads.
He was a person who kept his eyes on the ground and never argued with anybody. Even if his face turned red when he was being mocked, he wouldnât say a word. Even if he was pushed and shoved, he would just walk away with his head down. Such weakness made bullies even more aggressive, so all these spoiled children got to vent their aggression and superiority on Li Chengxiu.
Whenever the class was over, Li Chengxiu was always the first one to rush out of the classroom.
Usually, no one would prevent him from leaving. As soon as they saw him, everyone would exaggeratedly pinch their noses and back away a couple of steps.
He was used to this kind of contempt. His self-esteem was beaten out of him before it could even take shape, so he gradually became numb to such treatment.
Since his father left, the trajectory of his daily life in the past three years could be depicted as a triangle - home, restaurant, school.
He needed to commute for an hour on a bus between these places.
Taking the bus was the most relaxing part of his day. He could just sit there, and he didnât have to work. He used this time to think.
The 45-square-meter house was the only property he and his mother owned. He earned money for their daily necessities by working in a restaurant run by a distant relative's family. With that, he could barely maintain the minimum standard of living.
After a while it got even more difficult.
When his mother was sober, she would at least go sell vegetables and bring in some money. But after drinking too much all year round, her body was destroyed, and her mental health was deteriorating rapidly. Not to mention, that when she was drunk, it was common for her to throw things around and hit people. There were no more electrical appliances left in the house except for the lights. She had smashed everything, and they didnât have the money to buy those things again. This at least resulted in saving electricity. When Li Chengxiu grew up, at least he didnât have to wash the dishes and sweep the floors by hand anymore. After doing his apprenticeship for a few years, he had learned how to cook a couple of dishes and was able to get a higher salary and afford all those appliances.
Thatâs right, life goes on.
But at that time, the only way he could comfort himself was to fantasize about his future.
He wanted to study hard - the county had promised him that if he could also be admitted to the key highschool of the province, they would take over the costs. If he went to that high school and worked hard, he could get into a good university and find a good job after graduation. Preferably in a different city, where no one knew him. He could start a new life, and everything would change forever.
When he got home at night, it was past 10 pm.
Many of the neighbors had already turned off their lights. He walked along the wall of his house, and when he touched the doorknob, he realized that the door wasnât closed.
It has already happened several times before. But there was nothing in his house worth stealing anyway.
As soon as he stepped inside, he stepped into something and slipped. Fortunately, he was holding onto the door frame, otherwise, he would have fallen down. He looked down, and the light of the moon let him distinguish a translucent plastic bag on the ground. There was liquid dripping out of it.
It was his motherâs drink.
He remembered that during chemistry class, their teacher explained that these kinds of cheap âwineâ bags contained industrial alcohol[15]. He went home and told about the dangers to his mother but was slapped in the face for no reason in response. So he never dared to mention it again.
He touched the wall and finally found the electric cord. As soon as the room lit up, he heard a vague curse.
With a sigh, he walked over to help the drunk middle-aged woman get off the ground. He got her into bed with some difficulties and covered her with the quilt.
He liked it when his mother was sober because then she would just treat him like he didnât exist and wouldnât beat him and scold him. She would even cook for him sometimes.
It was a pity that lately she was almost never sober. She just kept spitting out her dissatisfaction and resentment at Li Chengxiu who was already used to hearing it.
After helping his mother, he started cleaning up the mess in the room.
In the past, his house was always clean. His mother was actually a capable and respectable woman. She kept her home in order - she would kneel on the ground and clean the floors daily, so Li Chengxiu grew up with good hygiene habits.
He didnât want to go to school smelling badly. But he couldnât afford to wash every day, due to high water bills. He only owned two or three pieces of clothing, and all of those were given to him by the people in the restaurant. That was his reality.
The way his classmates and his teachers looked at him was painful at first but soon he got used to it. He thought that if he could make money in the future, he could clean himself up and finally make friends. As for now... it was good enough to have food and warm clothes.
Li Chengxiu's only hope was the future. Thinking about it, imagining it was what kept him going through the hard days with less than five hours of sleep. He was sure that if he did his best now, he would build a different and truly beautiful life for himself.
My party should be flawless!
aka Shao Qun giving off Anna Delvey vibes
Chapter 4
Just as everyone in his school knew Li Chengxiu, Li Chengxiu was also familiar with another school âcelebrityâ - Shao Qun.
The two of them were different, though.
Because of being ridiculed and ignored for a long time, Li Chengxiu rarely looked up at the people around him. He could only recognize a handful of people in his school.
But Shao Qun was very different.
He was dazzling.
He looked noble, arrogant, and handsome. He exuded an aura that made it impossible to ignore him.
Li Chengxiu was not interested in anything other than studying and making money, but even he had noticed the young master who got out of the black car on the first day of school. He was wearing a straight school uniform, his facial features were impeccable, his whole face was flawless, his skin was tender and white as milk. He was obviously younger than Li Chengxiu, but he was already domineering and overbearing. For some reason, Li Chengxiu couldn't forget this image.
At that time, being a teenager, he had just realized that he was different from the boys his age. Although he had already known that he was weird in some ways, there was a secret that made him very, very different from everybody else.
Even though nobody would talk to him, while he was sitting quietly in the classroom, he would sometimes listen to the other boys in class discussing girls - which one was more beautiful, which one had bigger breasts and so on. Strangely, it didnât interest him at all. Rather than looking at delicate and beautiful little girls, he preferred watching boys play basketball on the court, as they pushed and shoved each other. Their sweat glistening in the sun, their youthful faces, their messy hair, their rich facial expressions, their agile movements and their cool-looking gestures drew Li Chengxiu in. But he didn't dare to look for too long, so he would just occasionally steal some quick glances.
As he got older, things got a bit more complicated.
But at that time, he was still very simple and naive, and he didnât quite understand what was so different about him.
Shao Qun gave him the answer.
The noon sun was so vicious that it seemed to fry people alive. If one stood still even for a bit, they would immediately start sweating.
The school was empty and quiet during lunchtime. Families of many students sent cars to pick them up. Those who didnât go home, rented houses next to the school for their lunch break. Li Chengxiu lived too far away from school, and renting a house was too expensive. So he had no choice but to stay in school during lunch.
Actually, the school rules didnât permit that, but everyone knew about his situation. Also, because he was a top student, the school administration turned a blind eye to this. But he still couldnât stay inside the classroom.
He usually hid himself on the roof of the school building.The campus police was not likely to find him there. Although the campus police were aware of his circumstances, if they saw him loitering around, they still had to symbolically reprimand him. The roof was a safe place - the light was good there, so he could rest, and it was also convenient for him to read and study there.
In his otherwise bleak life, he thought that having a space that only belonged to him was already a reason for joy.
That day, as usual, he dozed off in the shadow of the huge water tank.
Enjoying the rare tranquility of the campus, being able to sit in the shade, feeling the cool wind breeze, and closing his eyes for a bit of rest was a pleasant part of Li Chengxiu's day. He could temporarily forget a lot of things that were on his mind and concentrate on enjoying this quiet and comfortable time.
"What are you doing here?"
Suddenly, a clear voice sounded above him, startling Li Chengxiu. The moment he opened his eyes, he was blinded by the bright sunshine, and a golden afterimage appeared in front of him as he squinted. He saw a white face, black shiny hair and bright eyes.
When he got used to the light, the boy was still looking down at him.
Li Chengxiu felt that his face was suddenly on fire - the heat instantly rushed to the top of his head. He knew that he was visibly blushing.
The calm young boy was taken aback by his suddenly reddened face and bewildered look. He raised one eyebrow and looked at him with suspicion.
"I..." Li Chengxiu got up from the ground in panic, straightened out his clothes, and swallowed, while looking nervously at the boy, "Hel... hello."
One couldnât blame him for being so nervous. It's been a long time since somebody took the initiative to talk to him, especially such a good-looking and popular person from his school.
He remembered the first time he saw Shao Qun - his image of a noble and elegant young prince. Only later did he find out that beneath his deceitfully magnificent exterior Shao Qun was hiding a face of a shameless rascal who was involved in fights, hung out with gangs, bullied his teachers and classmates, and made all kinds of other trouble.
Shao Qun took a step back the moment Li Chengxiu got up, frowning at his wrinkled and oil-stained clothes. There was undisguised disgust in his eyes.
After seeing the familiar expression, Li Chengxiu was lost for a moment, but immediately regained his composure. After all, he was used to it, and he already knew how to deal with it. In the face of other people's disgust it was best to keep quiet. The quieter he was, the less they cared about him..
Li Chengxiu lowered his head, slowly turned around, and focused his eyes at a square brick in front of him.
"Hey, I just asked you what youâre doing here?" Young Master Shao Qun was very dissatisfied by this blatant disregard.
"Lunch break."
Shao Qun couldnât hear his mosquito-like voice at all, so he leaned down a little: "What?"
Li Chengxiu raised his head and looked at him: "Lunch break." He was a little stunned, as he pronounced those words. Little voice in his heart was wondering how someone could be so good-looking and have such long flickering eyelashes that just looking at them made him tingle on the inside.
"Isnât it forbidden to stay on campus during lunch? Who allowed you to be here? "
Li Chengxiu couldn't answer for a while, then he finally said, "You... you're⊠also here..."
"Are you the same as me?" Shao Qun's tone was full of disdain. He came up with the idea of playing hide-and-seek in this building because he was bored. He thought he could find a place to take a nap, but it was suddenly already occupied by this disgusting sissy.
Li Chengxiu bit his lip and lowered his head.
"Take your things and get out of here immediately. Even the air around you is stinky."
Li Chengxiu stuffed his book into his school bag, pushed himself off the ground using one hand, and ran towards the exit without raising his head.
"Wait! Come back!"
Li Chengxiu obediently stopped and turned around, keeping his eyes on the ground.
Shao Qun remembered that his friends were probably searching for him downstairs. If this sissy leaves suddenly like this, that would give them the idea where he might be. Although he didn't care about the game at all, he still hated losing.
"Stay here, you can go only after I leave."
Li Chengxiu didn't want to stay with him, but he immediately remembered that Shao Qun was the leader of a scary group of rascals. They would beat up anybody that got in their way. Since Li Chengxiu wanted to graduate safely, he didnât dare to offend this boy.
So he put on his bag and carefully tried to move back into the shadow.
"Stay where you are and don't move! Who the hell told you to come here again? Do you want to kill me with your stench?" The slender white boy sat down on the ground, squinting at Li Chengxiu and spitting out vulgar profanities that didn't match his beautiful appearance..
Shao Qun suddenly thought it was a good idea to keep this boy around to pass the boring time until the afternoon. Whenever he saw this sissy before, he would always try to avoid him. He was so dirty that he didnât even have any desire to bully him.
Li Chengxiu could only stand there helplessly, looking blankly at Shao Qun.
"Yes, just keep standing there and let the sun kill all your germs and disinfect you. You look pretty moldy."
Li Chengxiu stood there in a daze,as his hand was holding onto the strap of his bag so tightly that it hurt. After a few minutes, the sweat was literally pouring down his body in streams. Standing under the bright midday sun when it is hotter than 30 degrees[16] is too much even for an adult, let alone for a malnourished child.
Shao Qun wanted to take a nap for a while, but he was used to air-conditioning and felt that it was too hot here. He closed his eyes, but the hot air made him unable to relax at all, so he opened his eyes again and gave the boy standing under the sun an evil look.
"Hey, come here. Stand here." Shao Qun pointed to the spot in front of him.
After standing for nearly half an hour, Li Chengxiu was already dizzy from the sun. His throat was so dry that it hurt to swallow. When he heard Shao Qunâs words, it felt like a pardon. He quickly moved to the shade of the water tank and wiped away his sweat off his face.
Shao Qun stood up from the ground, circled around him twice, and finally stopped in front of him.
Li Chengxiu looked up at him nervously. Shao Qun was obviously developing much faster than him. Although he was two years younger, he was already much taller.
Shao Qun pointed at him rudely: "Why do you look like such a sissy bitch? Do you even have full grown hair down there?" Shao Qun himself wasn't sure what âfull grownâ hair really meant. Itâs just that it was a thing in their gang to let their dicks hang out and laugh at each otherâs lack of pubic hair, even though none of them had any growth.
Li Chengxiu blushed.
He didn't need yet another reminder that he wasnât manly enough. Everyone told him that on the daily. He himself didn't know why he was like this. Maybe it was because he only played with girls when he was a kid? Playing with boys always resulted in dirty and torn clothes. His mother hated it when he came home all dirty, and he knew that it would get him in trouble. Besides, the games boys played were often too rough for him, so he preferred to play more low-key games with the girls. Over time he just ended up mostly hanging out with girls.
As he grew up, the boundaries between men and women became more clear to him. When he realized that he was not acting as a man, he deliberately tried to adjust his words and his actions in order not to stick out. But it was already in his bones, no matter how he was trying to hide it, some things would just emerge unconsciously. Now he had realized that it was safer not to do nothing. As long as he didnât speak and didnât make any extra movements, he felt that he could seem normal.
"Why do you walk around looking like a garbage collector all day long? Are you deliberately disgusting people?"
Li Chengxiu pursed his lips and did not speak.
Shao Qun kicked him: "Cat got your tongue, huh?"
Li Chengxiu couldn't maintain his balance and ended up being kicked down to the ground by Shao Qun. Although he tried his best to endure it, he was still a child after all. After being treated like this, he couldn't help but give him a resentful look.
"You're really a fucking sissy⊠falling down just like that " Shao Qun squatted in front of him, "Hey, whatâs with the look? Have something to say? Do you know whoâs the boss in this school? Huh?"
There was some smugness in Shao Qunâs voice when asked who the boss was. He entered the school during the third year of junior high. From the very beginning, there were some tensions amongst him and some seniors. As a result, they had a fight, and Shao Qun made the other party unable to show his face for several weeks. When that person came back to school, everybody was in a state of turmoil. The power of his family could not be underestimated, and even the teachers didnât dare to offend him. In just a few months, he was ruling over the school, and no one dared to provoke him. Even the high school students avoided Shao Qun. For any self-respecting adolescent boy achieving such reputation and âstatusâ was worthy to boast about.
Shao Qunâs family was used to him being unruly from a very young age. He liked everyone's submissive attitude towards him, and was very happy to attack those who didnât bend to his will. But that didnât mean that he couldnât have some leisurely fun at the expense of the extremely obedient dirty little sissy in front of him.
Li Chengxiu remembered all the bad deeds of this trouble maker, quickly lowered his eyes and said, "You are."
"Good that you know it." Shao Qun raised his chin proudly.
He looked at Li Chengxiu, who was kneeling on the ground with his lips pursed and his legs together. He was unpleasant to the eye. How could this so-called âmanâ even sit like a sissy? Utterly disgusting.
Li Chengxiuâs face in Shao Qunâs eyes was almost begging to be slapped. Finally, he actually raised up his hand and gave him a slap.
Li Chengxiu looked at him blankly, and even though the rims of his eyes were a little red, he didn't dare to make a sound.
Shao Qun stared at the vague red mark that appeared on Li Chengxiuâs fair cheek and at his red eye rims - it looked like he was tossing around a little rabbit. This seemed particularly amusing for Shao Qun.
He couldn't help pinching Li Chengxiuâs face - it was smooth and tender, and felt very good to the touch. Not only did this guy act and speak like a girl, he also looked like one, and even his name was girly[17].
Li Chengxiu was pinched till his cheeks hurt. He felt like he had just become a target for a predator, and he started worrying whether his remaining three months in junior high would run smoothly.
Shao Qun saw that Li Chengxiu didn't dare to put up any fight and he felt bored again. There was still more than an hour left till the classes resumed. How long did he have to stay in this damn place?
The only one who could relieve his boredom was this little sissy with his useless and disgusting girly appearance. He felt angry just looking at him. And when he is angry, he usually wants to beat someone up.
Shao Qun sat down comfortably and asked: "Hey, I heard that your father dumped you and your mother and ran away with some vixen. Is it true?"
Li Chengxiu raised his head in surprise. He didn't expect somebody to be able to poke at other peopleâs scars in such a direct way. Shao Qunâs tone was light - as if he had just discovered a curious novelty.
He continued to ask excitedly: "Your dad really ran away with someone? I heard that your mother is an alcoholic. You walk around so dirty all day long because she doesnât give a shit about you, right? How are you not embarrassed to even show your face?"
Li Chengxiu's eyes were full of anger and sadness that he didnât dare to express. He stared at Shao Qun, and the more he stared, the more blurred his vision got. His heart ached in a way beyond description. The wound he carried inside him was treated like a joke, and he couldn't help being angry and sad. But he didn't have the courage to say anything, which made him even more aggrieved.
"Cry, cry, cry! Can you do anything other than cry? Are you even a man?" Shao Qun rudely pushed his head around several times. Li Chengxiuâs useless appearance drove him insane.
Li Chengxiu burst into tears, but he didnât dare to make a sound. He kept his head down, stared blankly at the ground and wiped his tears away.
Shao Qun opened his mouth and wanted to say something. But then the iron door was suddenly slammed into the wall with great force, making a loud noise. Both of the boys were startled and looked back.
Several teenagers appeared at the door, and they immediately saw Shao Qun: "Haha, we finally found you! You really know how to hide."
Shao Qun pouted in disdain: "It took you so long to find me. Was I the last one left?"
"Yeah, he found all of us first, and we helped him look for you... Who is this?" Surprised, the kid looked at a crying boy curled up on the ground in front of Shao Qun.
Li Chengxiu stared blankly at the guys who just came in. He recognized them - they were the ones hanging out with Shao Qun all day long. But he didn't know their names.
"Hey, isn't that Sissy? Shao Qun, why are you standing next to him? Aren't you afraid heâs contagious?"
The boys burst into laughter.
"I ran into him when I was hiding, but I couldnât go downstairs anymore."
"Yo, just look at you, you made the little girl cry, hahahaha." The tall thin boy with auburn hair walked over to Li Chengxiu and leaned slightly to look at him.
Li Chengxiu buried his head in his knees like an ostrich. He was in such a panic that he didn't dare to breathe. These boys were all well-known delinquents. He was now completely alone with a group of them. This made his heart beat wildly from fear.
"Hey, why are you hiding? Show your face to us, haha! Heâs still crying! Shao Qun, why are you bullying him? Donât you know that his father doesn't care about his mother and doesn't want to have a son who looks like a little hobo? How can you bully someone like that?" After these words, the boys were all in the mood to watch a good show.
"I was bored. I had to hide here and had nothing else to do. I let him spend some time with me. Who knew he would suddenly start crying like a little bitch? Disgusting."
"The rumors were right." The auburn-haired boy grabbed Li Chengxiu's hair and tried to raise his head up. Li Chengxiu's scalp hurt so much that he was forced to raise his head.
His face was covered in tears, and the teens around him laughed out loud.
Another boy exclaimed, imitating a female voice: "Oh, donât you think heâs too dirty to touch? Don't you know that he never changes his clothes or takes a bath? Are you not afraid of getting sick?"
The auburn-haired boy exaggeratedly retracted his hand as if he had been scalded. Then he kicked Li Chengxiu away from himself with disgust: "Damn, if you really infect me with lice or other parasites you might have on your body, I will throw you into the river to feed the fish."
Shao Qun looked impatiently at the group surrounding Li Chengxiu, as if they had just discovered a brand new world: "Have you had enough,guys? I want to go drink something, itâs too hot here. Letâs leave this disgusting sissy! Why are you gathering around him?"
The gang left at once, and the roof, which was noisy just a second ago, immediately became deserted. Just like it was during the countless other times Li Chengxiu had spent here.
Li Chengxiu's fingers trembled, as he patted his scalp that still hurt. Finally, he buried his head in his knees again, and his shoulders went up and down uncontrollably. This time he let out a quiet whimper.
Students, sitting in a house they rented specifically to have a lunch break
Shao Qun and his gang are a crossover of these. Change my mind.
When for some reason Shao Qun and his posse know all the T about Li Chengxiuâs family issues
Chapter 5
The auburn-haired boy poured the water into his hand, "I have washed it several times already, but Iâm not sure if it is clean."
"Okay, Big Li, what kind of OCD act are you putting up here?"
"It's better to be on a safe side. I'm afraid that his whole energy could also be contagious."
Li Wenxun adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose."What do you mean? Is being a sissy contagious?"
Big Li smiled mysteriously: "You canât even imagine.. I heard that these kinds of people are all..." He made a dramatic pause and looked around with a smirk.
Shao Qun frowned and impatiently took a gulp of his coke: "I know what you mean. Don't make people lose their appetite."
"I heard they're all gay."
"Gay?" The boys repeated in unison.
Li Wenxun winked and cursed at them: "Fuck, keep your voice down! Are you afraid that others wonât hear you?"
In the 1990s, homosexuality was a fairly new and unfamiliar term. For the slightly precocious junior high school students, it was not like they haven't heard about it before, but it was something very distant for them. In their minds, homosexuality had something to do with demons and monsters, and it was simply a sin against humanity.
Some guys were instantly very interested: "Who did you hear it from? How do you know?"
"My eldest brother told me that there are always people like that sissy hanging out in the nightclub he frequents. These people wear tights, put on makeup, and have girly voices. It is known that they are selling their asses to men."
Several boys gasped at the same time, as if they had just discovered a new sin - it was exciting and titillating.
"That⊠himâŠ, that guyâŠ.him just now, could he also be..."
"Iâm 80% sure he is. Have you ever seen a man so cowardly? If you ignore the dirt on his face and look closely, youâll see that his eyebrows are arched, his voice is high, and his body is also slim. They are all like this." Big Li was mysterious and smug about his broad knowledge of the subject.
Several guys showed exaggerated expressions of disgust, calling these kinds of people disgusting and perverted.
Shao Qun slapped his thigh, as he remembered a certain detail: "Hey, when he first saw me just now, he blushed!."
Guys laughed at him: "It's over, youâre done for! He likes you now! He has fallen for you!!"
"Bah, it's disgusting." Shao Qun remembered Li Chengxiu blushing and staring into his eyes. When he thought about what the guys just said, he instinctively felt awkward. Then there was an immediate surge of anger, as if he was horribly offended.
"Oh, itâs nice to be handsome! Not only girls like Shao Qun, but even boys now... hahahahahahaha."
All the teasing was just adding fuel to the fire. This made Shao Qun feel ashamed, as if he himself had now contracted the virus called "homosexuality" - and it was obviously that nasty sissy who was the culprit in all of this.
Young Master Shao, who had a nasty temper since childhood, suddenly stood up: "Damn, let's see if I can knock all his teeth out!"
"Oh, ohâŠ" Several people quickly grabbed him and forcibly dragged him back into the chair.
"We're just talking, but we're not sure about him. Do you have any evidence?"
Shao Qun stared at them: "He looks like shit. What other fucking evidence do you need?"
Big Li rolled his eyes: "No need to hurry. Whatâs the point in beating him up? How about we make him kneel down in front of you without even lifting a finger? Wonât that be fun?"
Several guys agreed.
"Then what do you say we do? I am unhappy now, and he is the one who made me unhappy."
"I have a great idea. It just happens that weâve been bored recently. How about we have some entertainment?"
"What kind of entertainment do you mean?"
Big Li licked his lips with a mysterious facial expression.
Li Chengxiu really didn't know what he did to provoke these delinquents.
A few days later, he was the first one to rush out of the classroom after school to catch the bus.
As soon as he left, a group of people blocked his path.
Shao Qun was standing in front of him, his arms folded: "Damn, youâre harder to catch than a celebrity. I've come here several times already, but every time you manage to escape without a trace. Are you in a hurry to reincarnate? Why are you running around all day long?"
Li Chengxiu didn't know what was happening, so he just tightly held his schoolbag in front of his chest, looking at the guys in horror.
He was a student from the top class, so he mostly was around other top students. Thus, he had little contact with Shao Qun and his gang. Now, suddenly there were a bunch of overbearing young masters attacking Li Chengxiu right in front of his classroom. Other students were watching through the windows with curiosity.
Shao Qun glanced at the group of onlookers and loudly cursed them out: "What the fuck are you all looking at? Get your heads back inside, shitstains!"
As soon as they heard master Shao's voice, the students instantly hid inside the classroom, closing all the doors and windows.
Li Chengxiu stood outside the door completely alone, looking anxiously at Shao Qunâs gang.
Shao Quni pointed at him: "You, come with me."
Trembling, Li Chengxiu asked: "ForâŠfor what?"
Shao Qun bared his teeth and smiled: "Iâm taking you out to play."
Only fools would believe that. Li Chengxiu took a step back in fear: "I, I have something to do."
Young Master Shao was immediately unhappy. He pointed at Li Chengxiuâs nose and said, "Fuck, are you not going to treat me with respect? If I want to play with you, I will play with you. You coming?"
Li Chengxiu was so frightened that tears rolled down his cheeks, while the finger was still pointed at his nose.
If he missed a day of work, he would lose 15 RMB[18], so he was reluctant to go with Shao Qun no matter what. And who knows what these delinquents were going to do to him. No matter how scared he was, he still shook his head, and then quickly glanced at Shao Qun to see his reaction.
Young Master Shao was burning with anger. In the high summer weather, he had deliberately skipped class and climbed from the first floor to the fifth floor in order to catch this guy. And now, this little sissy was wasting his time. He really wanted to slap him.
Shao Qun fiercely poked Li Chengxiuâs shoulder with his finger and threatened him: "I'll ask one last time, are you going or not?"
Li Chengxiu didn't dare to shake his head again, but he didn't want to nod either. With his eyes full of tears, he kept helplessly looking around.
Except for Shao Qun's few friends, there was almost no one in the long hall. Other classmates had either left or didn't dare to come out. Even if there were people around, they would not be willing to help him anyway. It was the first time that he felt so scared and helpless.
"Go⊠go where?"
"A fun place." Shao Qun pulled at his arm, "Come on."
Shao Qun dragged him outside the campus. Li Chengxiu noticed the strange looks and snickers, and the anxiety made him tear up again. He begged in a low voice: "Where are we going? I have something to do, I don't want to go, I...what do you want?"
Shao Qun said impatiently, "I told you Iâm taking you out to play."
Li Chengxiu cried, "I don't want to play."
Shao Qun shook his arm, pointed at him and shouted, "So fucking annoying, damn! Are you crying again?! If you dare cry, believe it or not, I'll fucking slap you to death!"
Big Li quickly put his arm on Shao Qunâs back to smooth things out: "Oh, Shao Qun, don't scare him. You should treat your schoolmates well, otherwise we wonât be able to play." Big Li winked at Shao Qun, deliberately emphasizing the word âplayâ.
Shao Qun curled his lips and cursed: "You ungrateful animal, I'm taking you to play with me. And you just keep weeping - itâs disgusting. Were you such a sissy from birth?" After scolding Li Chengxiu, he angrily rubbed the hand that he used to grab Li Chengxiu's arm on his clothes.
Li Chengxiu was frightened and angry, and his tears fell down uncontrollably. The more he wanted to stop crying, the more he cried.
Shao Qun became even more annoyed when he saw that. He had a very bad temper, and he got irritated by such men who were neither men nor women. At this time, he really wanted to just beat him up.
Li Wenxun looked at him, sighed, and adjusted his glasses. Then he said to Li Chengxiu, "Hey, buddy, we really just want to take you to play. What are you afraid of? Do you think weâre going to eat you?"
Li Chengxiu looked at him hesitantly, but still didn't believe a single word: "Why do you want to play with me?"
Li Wenxun coughed twice and said, "I was on the roof that day. We think that we said all the wrong things. We just want to apologize to you. I think we can be friends."
"Friends?" Li Chengxiu didn't believe anyone would want to be friends with him at all. It's not that he never had such a dream, but since his father ran away and his mother became like that, no one was willing to say a word to him. He couldn't think of any reason why these elite boys would want to talk to him and become friends all of a sudden. They always acted arrogant and unreasonable at school. Even if they beat someone up, they would never show any remorse. Why would they now apologize to him?
"Yes, we think that you are a good person. Let's be friends."
Li Chengxiu looked at him suspiciously, still feeling there was some conspiracy behind all of this.
Li Wenxun saw his doubts, rolled his eyes, and said, "To be honest, the real reason is this - I heard from the teacher that you have the best grades in school. Is it true?"
Li Chengxiu straightened his back and nodded: "Yes."
"Youâre aware that we are going to be divided into different classes in the second year of junior high. My dad said that if I didnât get into the top class, he would kill me. He is afraid that I will embarrass him. So we discussed it and decided that we wanted you to give us private lessons."
"Private lessons?"
"Private lessons?" Shao Qun was also surprised, but after Li Wenxun gave him a wink, he immediately nodded, "Yes, private lessons."
Li Chengxiu looked at the four boys surrounding him. Shao Qun was an arrogant bastard with a horrible temper, the auburn-haired hippie named Big Li without a doubt looked like a delinquent, the person who was talking to him seemed pretty nice and very gentle. Behind them was a boy with a cold face who didnât say a word this entire time. This thing with the private lessons sounded more or less believable.
But whether it was true or not, Li Chengxiu didnât want to have anything to do with them. He still felt that nothing good would come out of this.
So he shook his head: "I don't have time."
Shao Qun glared at him - he was so angry that he was about to have a seizure. Li Wenxun quickly waved at Shao Qun to shut him up: "Why don't you have time? I heard that you are always the first one to leave the classroom after class. Now youâll be leaving just a little later every day. Give us one or two hours...of lessons. The material for the first year of junior high must be very simple for you."
"IâŠI have to work."
"Part-time job? What kind of work are you doing? Oh, right, you smell like burnt oil all the time! Thatâs because you work in a restaurant, correct?" Big Li approached him, wrinkled his nose, and smiled wickedly.
Li Chengxiu didn't dare to look up and nodded.
Li Wenxun asked: "Ah, so you leave so quickly every day to go to work. How much money do you make a month?"
Li Chengxiu didn't want to name the amount, so he deflected and just said: "It's calculated by the day."
"Then how much do you earn in a day?"
Li Chengxiu pursed his lips: "...Fifteen, so I have to go every day..."
"Fifteen?" boys almost dropped their jaws on the ground.
It was the 90âs, and these guys were already wearing limited edition sneakers worth more than 2000 RMB[19] and watches that were worth tens of thousands. They had no idea what one could even buy for 15 RMB[20], much less why would one work hard for the whole day just to get this measly amount of money.
Actually, he only managed to get 15 RMB, because his distant relatives treated him decently. If he was just some random illegal[21] underaged employee, he would be lucky to get even 10 RMB.
Getting these 15 RMB every day, as well as leftover food for himself and his mother, was very important to him. To save money, he didnât dare to take baths or wash clothes too often, and he never bought any unnecessary things. Even though his height was almost 170 cm[22], he still had the cheek to only stuff 50 cents into the coin box on the bus[23]. Every time he saw the slightly contemptuous look in the driver's eyes, he felt his face get hot.
He really wanted to dress into clean and fresh clothes, and he wanted to look decent. But what could he do, if there was never any money? It was more important not to starve to death after all. Between having dignity and having food the choice was pretty clear.
His classmates were exhausted and nervous when they thought about upcoming examinations, but Li Chengxiu was actually really excited about the day of the senior high school entrance examination. As long as he got admitted to the top high school in the province, the county was willing to sponsor his education, as well as cover his monthly boarding costs. In addition, he would also get a living allowance. He wanted to jump for joy just thinking about it.
Then he'd be able to clean himself up and maybe even make friends. And after a few more years, when he got into a good university and found a decent job, he could have a good life, just like everybody else. Li Chengxiu was full of hope for the bright shining future.
As for now, he still needed those 15 RMB a day. Even if he was beaten up, he would still go to work and earn his money.
Shao Qun showed a strange smile, as if he wanted to mock him but at the same time thought that this whole thing was ridiculous. He snorted and said, "You dash out of here every day like a chicken without a head just for... Okay, how about on the days that you give us private lessons like A-wen asked you to, we give you 150 RMB? And on the other days when we donât need you, you can go wash your dishes for 15, okay?â
Li Chengxiu was dumbfounded and looked at the boys without an expression.
150? He must have misheard it!
Li Wenxun smiled and nodded: "See, it's a good deal. You give us classes for ten days, okay? Is there any other issue?"
Li Chengxiu's face turned slightly red, and he was suddenly really moved.
150! In order to earn that, he would have to work 10 consecutive days for 4 hours without a break in a sultry and sweltering kitchen. And just by giving some lessons to a few people, he could make so much moneyâŠ
Seeing his visibly shaken expression, Li Wenxun turned back to look at Big Li and Shao Qun with a smug smile. Both of them gave him a thumbs up and mouthed "Well done!" with their mouths.
"Then it's settled - you are not going to work today." Li Wenxun took out three one-hundred-notes out of his wallet and handed them to Li Chengxiu. "Iâm purchasing two classes from you, Little Teacher Li."
Li Chengxiu looked at the money that was right in front of him and hesitated to accept it.
"Take it." Li Wenxun put the banknotes into his hand, "Whatâs there to think about! Itâs a good thing, isnât it?"
Li Chengxiu still had some concerns at first. It really felt a little too good to be true. He wanted to push the money back to Li Wenxun but, as he was holding it in his hand, he just couldnât do it.
Three hundred RMB. He was holding three hundred RMB in his hand.
How could money come to him so easily? He felt conflicted for a while, but he couldn't resist the temptation.
He hesitated to look up at the boys, eyed the money in his hand, and finally gritted his teeth. He took the schoolbag off his back, and carefully put the money inside it.
The guys looked at his cautious appearance, and couldn't help showing their contempt.
Shao Qun smiled sarcastically and raised his chin: "Okay, so are you coming with us now?"
Li Chengxiu finally lifted his head, his face red: "Where are we going?"
Shao Qun glared at him: "We are taking you to change your clothes first. You canât teach us, wearing this. Do you want us to put on gas masks?â
Mood throughout chapter 5
***A note on Li Wenxun (A-wen) - he appears as a minor character also in âYouâre in love with an Idiot '' and in âMy Little Poplarâ. ***
Chapter 6
Li Chengxiu was in a daze when he got into the car.
Big Li was behind the wheel. Although the boy looked almost like an adult, he was still about eleven or twelve years old. Li Chengxiu immediately wanted to get out of the car.
Shao Qun sat down next to him and said impatiently, "Sit properly."
"He⊠does he⊠have a driver's license?"
"Oh, so you know what a driver's license is. What kind do you mean? Can't you see the one over there?" Shao Qun pointed at a copper sign on the windshield. Li Chengxiu could only see the back of this sign because it was facing outside. Judging from the pattern and the shape, it should have been something like a national emblem. "With that kind of driverâs license no one would dare to stop us."[24]
Big Li smoothed his red hair, turned his head and smiled: "Shao Qun, you are so brave. If your father finds out, heâll kill you."
Shao Qun forcefully kicked the back of his chair: "Just drive and stop talking nonsense."
Xiao Sheng, who was riding shotgun said softly, "Big Li, keep your eyes on the road."
"Don't worry, even though Iâm young, my driving skills are good." After saying that, he stepped on the gas, and the car started with a bang.
It was the first time that Li Chengxiu was inside a car. However, it wasnât as cool and glorious as he had imagined. He was so scared that his body was trembling, and he even felt sick.
Due to inertia, Shao Qun was pushed directly onto Li Chengxiu. He shoved him away in disgust, and hit the back of Big Li's head: "Fuck you, dude, slow down!"
Xiao Sheng frowned and glanced at him with disapproval: "Shao Qun, it was your idea to take the car. Why are you mad at him?"
Shao Qun glared right back at Xiao Sheng and leaned back in his seat, cursing: "Xiao Sheng, you bastard, you always take his side and make me the bad guy!"
Li Wenxun laughed.
After that the boys talked non-stop, laughing all the way till the city center.
After Li Chengxiu got out of the car, his face was as pale as a piece of paper. He bent down and put his hands on his knees. He retched for a long time, but nothing came out. He felt extremely uncomfortable.
Shao Qun snorted: "Are you made of paper? Come on, letâs go.."
Li Chengxiu touched his stomach, straightened up and followed behind the gang.
Li Chengxiu looked at the high-rise buildings around him, and was startled by the view for a while.
He hadn't been to the city center in a long time. In his memory, when he was in elementary school, and his parents were still together, all three of them would occasionally come here for a stroll. Basically, they didn't need to buy anything - it was enough to feel the lively atmosphere and look at the dazzling array of goods in the shopping windows. At the time, it was one of the most enjoyable entertainments for Li Chengxiu.
Boys led him into a sportswear store.
Li Chengxiu wasnât familiar with many brands. He had seen the large tick mark[25] before, but all he knew about it was that it was very expensive. He didn't dare to touch any of the fancy things. Even standing on the clean and translucent marble floor with not a single speck of dust on it, he felt like he was soiling it by his presence.
Li Wenxun picked two pieces of clothing and handed them to Li Chengxiu: "Go change into these here."
Li Chengxiu looked at him blankly, neither daring to hold the clothes too tightly, nor throwing them on the floor: "I.. I.. can't afford it."
"You don't have to buy anything, just put them on."
Li Chengxiu still shook his head: "Thatâs not good..."
Shao Qun pushed Li Wenxun away impatiently: "Why are you being so polite with this little sissy?" Shao Qun pointed at Li Chengxiu, "You, change into these immediately! If you dare appear in front of me in those tattered rags again, I promise I will slap you right here and now!â
The people in the store all turned around at the sound of the scolding. Everyone was quite surprised, when they realized that these were just some arrogant children screaming around..
Li Chengxiu quickly grabbed the clothes, and hid inside the fitting room.
He looked at the label on the short-sleeved top, and when he saw the price, he almost stopped breathing. But when he remembered the vicious Shao Qun who was waiting for him outside, he gritted his teeth and put the clothes on. He thought that he didnât even have that much money on him, so they couldnât make him pay anyway. Besides, he didn't have to buy this stuff just because he tried it on. Vendors in big shopping malls should be at least this reasonable.
After he came out of the fitting room, the boys stared at him, and the looks of surprise on their faces couldnât be concealed.
Big Li said "Hah!", turned away and took out his wallet to pay.
Li Wenxun smiled and looked at Shao Qun: "Not bad. Heâs pretty."
Li Chengxiu turned around and glanced at himself in the mirror with a blushing face.
Wearing such clean and beautiful clothes, he seemed much more energetic. He felt strangely ashamed when he looked at himself.
Shao Qun pointed at the row of clothes on one of the shelves, and said to the salesman, "Weâre taking all of these in his size." The young salesman nodded perfunctorily, looking at them with a bit of sarcasm and disdain in his eyes.
Li Chengxiu also found Shao Qun's arrogant attitude unpleasant. They were obviously children, but they acted very disrespectfully towards the adults. They were bossy whenever they talked to anybody. Just being around these boys would make anybody feel uncomfortable.
Li Chengxiu hesitated to say anything about not being able to afford all this stuff. Shao Qun also didn't say a word to him. He didn't even let him change back into his clothes. He just tore off the label and took him directly into the next store.
Li Chengxiu didn't know what they were up to, so he just played along and tried on all kinds of clothes he had never seen before in his life. He didn't dare to say a word anymore.
They shopped around for more than an hour. It was already dark, when they carried the countless bags to the car.
Afterwards, they took Li Chengxiu out for dinner in a restaurant.
Li Chengxiu was completely stunned by that time and didnât protest at all, for fear that they would make him do something that he really couldnât accept.
They bought him a lot of stuff and took him out for dinner. It was obvious that there was an agenda behind all this kindness. He didn't want any of these things at all, but he didn't dare to refuse, so he was forced to accept it. He was terrified and felt as if he had sold himself out to these guys. He could probably pay off the price of those clothes after several months of work. Li Chengxiu was already looking at these boys, as if they were his creditors.
He was scared, because he couldnât figure out the reason for them being so nice to him all of the sudden. What did they want from him?
Seeing Li Chengxiu just sitting there in a daze and not even moving his chopsticks, Li Wenxun tapped at his bowl: "What are you staring at? You havenât eaten anything."
Li Chengxiu raised his face, looked at him timidly, and summoned the courage to ask, "What do you guys want with me?"
Li Wenxun smiled lightly: "We want to protect you."
"Wh⊠why?"
"Youâre nice to look at, and for many other reasons. In short, if you hang out with us in the future, no one can bully you anymore. We will protect you. How about it? Be glad."
Li Chengxiu was confused and unable to speak for a long time. Finally he said, "I⊠I'm going to the restroom."
After saying that, he ran out immediately.
As soon as he left, Shao Qun's face turned grim and he glared at Li Wenxun, "Are you having fun? It's not fucking fun at all. I want to beat him up every time I look at him."
Li Wenxun kicked him under the table: "As I already said that day - if you can't play any more, you have to admit defeat. You can quit any time."
Big Li also coaxed him: "Yes, just admit that you lost. If you say it, I'll throw him out of here right now. As if Iâm willing to eat together with that sissy boy! It's embarrassing."
"Admit defeat? These words are not in my vocabulary."
"Then you should be nicer to him. You are so mean, that you almost scared him away a couple of times. Anyway, where should we go to confirm that he is one of those?"
When Shao Qun heard this, his mood improved a little: "We have to be 100% sure."
"I also think so. Then let him admit it himself. Can you cooperate with us? If you sabotage this, you will have to say that you lost, and we will stop playing."
"Fuck it. I know, I know. I will be nicer to him."
"That's right, you are our main weapon after all. He blushed when he saw you, didnât he?" said Big Li and laughed out loud.
Li Wenxun also smiled gleefully: "Maybe one day he will fall in love with you."
Shao Qun cursed: "Fuck off!"
Li Chengxiu went to the bathroom and splashed his face with water a few times. He calmed down a bit, and then came out as if nothing had happened. He sat down and asked, "Don't you want to start studying?"
Li Wenxun took a sip of his iced tea and said perfunctorily, "Ok, you can start now."
"Now, here? How should we begin?"
"Let's start with English. Name everything on this table in English for us."
Li Chengxiu was stunned for a moment and a little embarrassed. He hesitantly looked at the things on the table, and then started listing the objects: "These are called âchopsticksâ. Have you already learned this word in the first year of junior high? Can you spell it?"
Shao Qun spat out all the water he had in his mouth and looked at Li Chengxiu as if he was insane.
Big Li smiled and put his hand on Xiao Sheng's shoulder: "Oh really? Really, tell me more. Hahahahaha."
Li Chengxiu's face turned red, and he held up his chopsticks helplessly: "No⊠Do you even want to study�"
Li Wenxun wiped his mouth with a napkin and smiled: "Let's go to another place for a proper live lesson. Come on! "
Li Chengxiu had to get into the car again. Looking at the dark sky outside, he tried to negotiate with Li Wenxun, "It's already so late. How about we make up for this day some other time?"
"Late? It's not even nine pm!"
It takes two hours from the city center to his house. If Li Chengxiu didnât leave now, heâd only be home in the middle of the night.
But looking at the tough attitude of these guys, he couldn't leave even if he really wanted to.
He was so anxious that he could only watch Big Li start the car and drive him to a place he didn't know.
Finally, the car stopped in front of a nightclub that was covered in colorful lights.
Li Chengxiu was shocked.
Although he had never been in such a place before, he had heard of it. According to his knowledge, places like karaoke, discos, nightclubs, etc. were not where good people or children should spend their time.
Looking at the young men and women in various beautiful clothes who came in and out, Li Chengxiu intuitively felt that they were not good people. He was embarrassed to see the men being dressed so fancy and the women wearing so little.
Shao Qun dragged him out of the car and pushed him towards the entrance.
Li Chengxiu shouted, "What are you doing?"
His voice was normally as quiet as a mosquito buzz, so it was really unusual to hear him shout. and it was rare that his voice was so loud. The boys were startled.
Li Wenxun frowned and said, "Weâll just go in and play around a little."
Li Chengxiu's body trembled: "Play... We are only in junior high school. They wonât let us in. How can we go to this kind of place and play around?"
"My brother runs this club. It's fine."
"No. It's not right... Things are very messy inside. We shouldnât go in. Let's just go."
Shao Qun rolled his eyes: "What are you afraid of? Is someone going to eat you? We are kind enough to show you the world. Usually children canât go in here, so you wouldnât be able to get inside without us. What are you afraid of?"
Li Wenxun lifted his chin proudly: "You have to cherish this opportunity. Are you a man? All men have to come and play around in places like this. When you hang out with us in the future, you can't be such a coward."
Li Chengxiu still shrank back and refused to move away from the car.
Big Li rolled his eyes: "By the way, we can't go in like this. We have to change our clothes." They looked at themselves, and realized that they were still wearing school uniforms. Even if they were allowed to enter, it would be embarrassing to come in like that.
Children of that age often think they are very mature and not afraid of anything. They think that itâs enough to put on casual clothes in order to seem like adults.
Shao Qun pushed Li Chengxiu into the car again. Then they looked for the clothes they had just bought to change into them inside the car.
Li Chengxiu huddled in the corner, looking out the window. He didn't dare to watch the boys take off their clothes.
When Li Wenxun noticed that, he winked at Shao Qun. Shao Qun glanced up and saw Li Chengxiu twisting his neck and looking out the window. The streetlights outside the window were illuminating his profile, and the visible section of skin on his neck was white and almost translucent. Even in the dim light, he could still see that Li Chengxiu was abashed. His face was blushing. Suddenly, there was a strange feeling in Shao Qun's heart. He couldn't tell what it was exactly but it went away as quickly as it came, and then it was replaced by disgust.
He took out a set of clothes from the paper bag and threw it at Li Chengxiu: "Put these on."
Li Chengxiu grabbed the clothes, lowered his head and whispered, "I don't want to go."
Shao Qun clicked his tongue: "Hurry up and change, or do you want me to dress you?"
Li Chengxiu raised his head and glanced at him timidly: "Can I not go?"
Shao Qun pouted and raised his arm to hit him.
Li Chengxiu shrank in fright and closed his eyes tightly.
The expected fist didn't land. He opened his eyes carefully, and saw Shao Qun looking down at him. His childish, yet handsome facial features showed the kind of arrogance that didn't match his age. There was undisguised contempt in his bright eyes.
He simply spat out one word: "Change!"
Li Chengxiu bit his lip, digging his fingers into the hem of his school uniform, shamefully looking at the boys with his clean and innocent eyes. Seeing that they didn't do anything for a long time, he whispered, "Turn around..."
Big Li made a face: "Fuck". He opened the door, got out of the car, and then slammed the door shut.
Xiao Sheng also gave him a meaningful look and left the car.
Li Wenxun smiled ambiguously: "Why? Arenât we all men here? What are you afraid of? Or are you ashamed of something?"
Shao Qun sat in the back seat with his arms folded, just looking at him without any intention of getting out of the car.
Li Chengxiu blushed even more and tried to explain: "I'm not used to..."
"Weâre all men. What are you not used to? I heard, if you go to high school in the future, you will have to shower together with other guys.."
Li Chengxiu grabbed the hem of his clothes. No matter what Li Wenxun said, he just refused to change it in front of them.
Seeing that they had reached the limit with the teasing, Li Wenxun gave Shao Qun a wink, and the two of them got out of the car.
They lit up cigarettes, pretending to smoke and imitating adults as well as they could. In the meantime, Shao Qun, for some reason, turned his head and glanced inside the car. Through the dark windows, he could hardly see anything. But when Li Chengxiu was putting the clothes on, his back was right next to the car window, which happened to be seen by Shao Qun. He saw a thin pale back - so thin in fact that he could vaguely see the straight spine and ribs sticking out.
He suddenly felt that his throat was a little dry and hoarse. Before he could swallow, he choked on the cigarette in his mouth. His face turned red as he coughed
Li Chengxiu took a long time but finally got out of the car.
Shao Qun had given him a very fashionable set of clothes, but he felt embarrassed wearing them.
The clothes were so tight that they almost stuck to his body, and his thin waist and thin legs were highlighted. His limbs were flexible and slender. Wrapped in tight clothes, there was a certain youthful lure about him.
This particular set of clothes was chosen by Li Wenxun. He saw those male prostitutes in his brotherâs nightclub wearing something like that. He originally suspected that Li Chengxiu had a lot in common with them, so he bought those clothes specifically for him to wear. Now he laughed maliciously when he saw Li Chengxiu actually wearing them.
Li Chengxiu was even more uncomfortable hearing this laughter. After he put that stuff on, he felt that it was awkward and strange. Although he didn't know why, subconsciously he still felt ashamed. But he didn't dare to ask for other stuff to wear. It was given to him by Shao Qun. He felt that everything in that bag, including this set, was bought by other people. These werenât his things, so he had no right to choose.
Shao Qun got really irritated when he saw that Li Chengxiu was dressed neither like a boy, nor like a girl[26]. He went up to him and grabbed his arm, "Come on. Weâre going inside."
Li Chengxiu being literally âpretty-woman-edâ by a bunch of 12-year olds who have nothing better to do than to take their bullying target shopping
Chapter 7
The boys didnât go through the front door, but went around to slip into the back door.
A yellow-haired man who was squatting at the door and smoking looked up. As soon as he saw Li Wenxun greeting him, his face became angry, and he shouted, "My little ancestor[27], why are you here again? If your brother finds out..."
"Don't worry, my brother is on a business trip and will not come back today. If you don't tell, I won't tell either. How would he find out?"
"Didnât you say the same thing last time? As a result, not only did you get beaten, but I also got in trouble. You are a junior high school student. Why arenât you going to school, instead of running around here day after day?â
Li Wenxun giggled: "Guo-ge, just let me in! Itâs fun here. Don't worry about my brother. If he finds out, I'll say I sneaked in by myself, and it won't cause you any trouble."
"Forget about it. Your brother wonât believe a word you say. Iâm begging you, just go home."
"Oh, Guo-ge, don't be like that. Let us in, let us in! If you don't let us in, you wonât be my Ge[28] anymore!."
The two pushed and shoved each other at the door for a long time, The manâs big yellow head swayed like a sunflower in the wind. But he finally gave up and let them in with a sad face. He personally took them into a box and instructed: "Don't come out of here. If you want anything, tell the waiter. There is a toilet here too, so you don't need to come out at all. Donât let anybody see you, understand?"
"Yeah, yeah, I get it, go and do your job." Li Wenxun waved him away.
The yellow-haired man sighed with resignation, closed the door for them and left.
As soon as the door closed, Big Li jumped up from the sofa: "Damn, A-wen, you really did it! You really got us in."
Li Wenxun smiled smugly: "Nonsense, when have I not delivered on my promises!"
Big Li sat beside him, winked and said, "Hey, can we get a couple of girls in here?"
Li Wenxun laughed and scolded him: "Why are you so timid? How about asking for some guys?"
Shao Qun shouted at him: "Ew, youâre so disgusting! How dare you ask something like that?"
Big Li pouted in Li Chengxiu's direction, and then laughed at Shao Qun: "Don't you want to try?"
Shao Qun cursed: "Try what, my ass! Fuck off."
The boys broke out in laughter.
Li Chengxiu didn't understand what they were laughing about, and he was still in a state of panic.
When the yellow haired man took them through the hall and into the private room just now, he saw a group of people in the middle of the dance floor contorting their bodies like pretzels. Li Chengxiuâs ears were buzzing with loud high-decibel music, and it seemed that even his internal organs were shaking. On the way, he tried to make himself as small as possible and closely followed behind Shao Qun's gang. He had no idea who maliciously grabbed his butt out of the blue. He squealed like a frightened rabbit and jumped up. Still, he didnât dare to turn around and just continued to follow the boys. He really hated those guys but at this moment they were a reassuring presence.
He felt like a small animal who was thrown into a wolf's den. The box they were sitting in was sort of a barrier now. Although he didnât like being there, he didnât dare to go out either.
He was thinking about the moment he could finally go home, when suddenly there was a loud "bang", and a huge glass jar appeared on the table in front of him. It was filled with yellow and frothy beer.
Shao Qun pushed it towards Li Chengxiu: "Drink it."
Li Chengxiu was very familiar with the smell of alcohol. His house was full of that smell all year round - even the walls and furniture had soaked up that smell so deeply, it couldnât be eliminated anymore.
Still, this smell revolted him so much that his face contorted in disgust when he saw this beer.
Shao Qun took a sip first.
Li Chengxiu glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, and noticed his skinny arms that had just begun to develop some muscle. Shao Qun was holding a huge glass jar that looked unusually heavy. Suddenly Li Chengxiu wasnât so scared of him anymore. He seemed like a child who had just stolen a shoe from an adult and was trying it on. It looked ridiculous, and made one laugh.
Li Chengxiu was at a loss. Shao Qunâs face had flushed red after just one sip, and his eyes had widened. Yet, he was pretending really hard to be unaffected. This made it even more clear to Li Chengxiu that this boy was actually two years younger than himself. Why would this little boy scare him?
Shao Qun put the glass jug onto the coffee table with a loud bang again, and the sound made everybody jump up. He was buzzed after this sip of beer, and there was a bitter taste in his mouth. It wasn't too unpleasant, but it definitely wasnât very tasty either. The moment he drank it, he felt nauseated. As soon as he raised his eyes, he happened to see the little sissy looking at him from the corner. There was a strange smile in his eyes, as if he was mocking him. His anger flared up.
He pushed the jug right in front of Li Chengxiu, almost hitting his nose: "Drink it."
Li Chengxiu pulled back, frowned and turned his head away.
Shao Qunâs temper exploded when he thought about that mocking smile again. Just seeing this boy who looked like a slut made him want to pour the beer all over his head.
You don't want to drink? Iâll fucking force it down your throat.
Shao Qun put his knee up on the sofa, and gave Li Chengxiu a condescending and threatening look: "Iâm counting to three. One, two..."
Li Chengxiu glanced at his ferocious expression and used both of his trembling hands to hold the jug filled with cold beer.
Shao Qun urged: "Drink."
Others in the box also cheered him on: "Drink, drink! Men have to drink."
Li Chengxiu had no choice, so he put the heavy mug to his mouth and took a sip. His face immediately contorted.
The thing that Shao Qun disliked most about him was the nerve of this sissy. He could see Li Chengxiu fastidiously holding the beer mug in his emaciated hands, looking like their female classmates, and taking a careful sip. Shao Qun nearly exploded, so he pushed Li Chengxiu down with one hand, grabbed his chin with the other and then poured the beer right into his mouth, which was wide open in astonishment.
Li Chengxiu twisted his hands and feet and struggled to get away. He was thin, thatâs true, but he spent most of his time doing physical work, so his strength wasnât negligible. Shao Qun underestimated him, and didnât hold him down properly.
Li Chengxiu covered his head and retreated to the corner of the sofa, looking at Shao Qun in horror. There were wet stains on his cheeks - it wasnât clear whether it was beer or tears. His hair was also wet, and he looked very pitiful.
Shao Qun didnât look much better either. From his chest to his crotch his newly bought clothes were soiled with beer, making him shiver from the cold.
Suddenly, Shao Qun jumped up from the sofa, and slammed the mug in his hand onto the ground. Li Chengxiu let out a trembling cry, startled by the sound of breaking glass.
Shao Qun grabbed Li Chengxiu by the hair, and his fist was about to meet his face.
Li Wenxun hurried up to stop him: "Hey, hey, don't fight, don't fight! Don't destroy your friendship with him, Shao Qun. Calm down."
Big Li hugged Shao Qun from behind and moved him aside. The two of them whispered to Shao Qun for a long time before he finally let go of his rage.
Li Chengxiu shrank himself into a ball and looked at the three boys in fear, as if waiting for his own trial and execution.
Shao Qun glared at him, bent down, and took off his soaked T-shirt. He threw it on the ground, and then rushed over to Li Chengxiu.
Li Chengxiu timidly watched him approach step by step. Shao Qun dragged him up from the sofa by his arms and pointed at his own wet chest and abdomen: "Wipe it clean."
Li Chengxiu was stunned for a moment, but then quickly grabbed the tissue box on the table, took out some wipes and diligently cleaned Shao Qun up.
Shao Qun put his hands on his hips and looked at him coldly.
Although Li Chengxiu was two years older than him, he was half a head shorter. Now that the two of them were so close to each other that he could feel Shao Qun's breath on his face and smell Shao Qunâs fresh body odor that couldnât even be covered by beer.
The young boy's body already had a thin layer of muscle, his skin was delicate and fair, his chest and abdomen were hard and flexible. The longer Li Chengxiu rubbed his sturdy body, the more embarrassed he felt.
Big Li watched him finish wiping Shao Qun's chest, leaned over with a wicked smile, and pulled at the elastic band of Shao Qun's trousers with one finger: "Hey, itâs also wet inside here.â
Shao Qun slapped his grabby paws away from himself: "You want to lick me clean or what?"
Li Chengxiu thought that Shao Qun was talking to him. He looked up in horror and disbelief.
Shao Qun was also stunned for a moment. When he finally understood what exactly he had just said right now, his face turned red. In order to hide his embarrassment, he yelled loudly: "Fuck you! What the hell are you even thinking?"
Li Wenxun and Big Li held onto their stomachs, rolling from laughter. Shao Qun got angry and kicked Big Li's ass, when he was least suspecting it. He pointed at the untouched beer on the table and said: "Today, I will graciously spare you, if you can drink this whole mug at once!â
Li Chengxiu's cowardly eyes wandered between the beer and Shao Qun for a moment. Finally, he grabbed the mug and opened his mouth.
Shao Qun was calmly sitting on the sofa, as he watched Li Chengxiu's little face twisted in pain. It seemed like he had been injected with poison.
Li Chengxiu's skin turned red from the top of his head to the hem of his clothes. After a short moment, tears flowed out of his tightly closed eyes, while the beer was pouring out of his mouth onto his chin and then into his collar. It looked pitiful, yet it was also strangely touching.
Shao Qun looked at Li Chengxiuâs twisted pale and tender face, at his Adam's apple that kept sliding up-and-down, at his chest, at his slender waist and at his slightly upturned butt that looked prominent on his otherwise very slim frame. Shao Qun suddenly couldnât stop staring.
He felt that there was something wrong with him. He shouldn't consider another man's waist ânice to look atâ. And he definitely shouldn't think that this pitiful contorted face isâŠcute. Shao Qun was shocked and wondered if he was under a spell - he had heard that "this kind of people" were proficient in seducing other men.
Shao Qun got angry yet again, because he felt that he had accidentally been infected by this terrible virus called "homosexuality". It made him feel genuinely disgusted.
He shouted viciously: "I will fucking kill you if you leave even one drop."
Li Chengxiu took a few more sips, and after a short break, he continued to pour the contents of the mug into his mouth. He felt like his whole body was about to burn from the inside. Especially his throat all the way to the stomach felt hot and uncomfortable. He felt that something was coming up and he was about to vomit. His eyes were dim, and his head felt heavy. Although he was still conscious, he stand on his own two feet anymore.
He couldn't help but wonder, why would anyone enjoy drinking alcohol at all. It was unpalatable and nasty.
What made him even more uncomfortable than drinking itself was the feeling of complete helplessness and the embarrassment of being forced to drink.
With difficulty and disgust, he finally managed to finish the large jug of beer. Li Chengxiu's legs softened, he fell down on the sofa and started to cry, covering his face.
Shao Qun scolded him: "Youâre crying again! For fuckâs sake."
Li Chengxiu took a long breath and didn't dare to make another sound. He just shrunk into the corner of the sofa and closed his eyes tightly, as if he wanted to isolate himself from the world through this action.
Shao Qun didn't like to be ignored like this. He stood up and walked over to Li Chengxiu. He was about to say something when the door of the box was suddenly kicked open from the outside. The door hit the wall with a loud bang, which startled the boys. They stared blankly at the door.
A tall young man rushed in looking angry like the devil. As soon as he came in, his eyes looked for someone.
Li Wenxun called out: "Older brother!"
Then he covered his head and jumped into the corner.
The young man reached him in a few steps, twisted his ear and pulled him up.
Li Wenxun cried out in pain, "Brother, brother, it hurts. Let me go!"
Li Wenxun's brother forcefully shoved his head: "Fuck you, you bastard. Are all my words falling on deaf ears? How many times have I fucking told you that you are not allowed to come to this kind of place? If you don't study hard and get yourself involved in all kinds of messes, youâll grow up to be a gangster. Do you want that? Donât you believe I wonât kill in that case?"
Li Wenxun cried and begged: "Brother..."
The young man pushed him again, pointed at his nose and scolded: "Iâll teach you a lesson today you will never forget..." Suddenly he made a "huh?" sound, as if he saw something that surprised him. Then his eyes locked on Li Chengxiu who was huddled in the corner behind Li Wenxun.
Shao Qun was still in a stunned state, when he noticed the young man staring at Li Chengxiu.
Suddenly the young man's face contorted with anger. He cursed loudly, rushed up in three steps, passed by Shao Qun and grabbed Li Chengxiu up from the sofa. Before anyone could react, he knocked Li Chengxiu down on the ground with a heavy slap.
"You shameless slut! Who the hell hired you? Whatâs fucking wrong with you that youâre willing to sell it to a bunch of underaged bastards - are you poor, crazy, or just horny? This is my brother! If you touched him, Iâll fucking chop you up in pieces right now!â The man kicked Li Chengxiu's stomach again.
Li Chengxiu was in so much pain that he curled up into the shape of a shrimp. He couldn't say a word, and even his cries couldnât escape his lips, buried deep inside his body.
The young man raised his foot and was about to kick Li Chengxiu again when Shao Qun suddenly rushed up and shoved him away.
Shao Qun squatted in front of Li Chengxiu, staring at the man fiercely: "Yao-Ge, he is our classmate."
Li Wenyao[29] was stunned for a moment, his cheeks were puffed up, as he tried to suppress his anger: "You stinky brat..."
Li Wenxun rushed to grab his brother's arm: "Brother, he really is our classmate."
Li Wenyao glanced at him suspiciously, and then took a closer look at Li Chengxiu, who was crying in pain while holding his stomach. Indeed, he saw that it was just a child in front of him.
He got so angry at first because when he saw a person dressed like that in the dim light he automatically assumed he was a prostitute. Upon closer inspection, it turned out he was mistaken.
Li Wenyao pouted and muttered, "What the hell is he wearing?" He stopped paying any attention to Li Chengxiu and grabbed Li Wenxun's arm, "Come on, letâs go home now, so I can deal with you."
Li Wenxun showed a sad face, as he was dragged out of the room.
Big Li and Xiao Sheng just came back to their senses and were just standing there awkwardly.
Shao Qun silently helped Li Chengxiu up from the ground. Looking at his crying face, he felt a little uncomfortable.
He turned his head to Big Li and Xiao Sheng and said, "Let's go home. I'll take you back first."
"Rather not. If I get into the car with you, Iâll also smell like beer. My mother will definitely notice! Xiao Sheng and I will walk around for a bit to get rid of the smell, and then weâll take a taxi back. Him..." Big Li looked at Li Chengxiu who was not even moving anymore and added: "Take him home. He really got the short end of the stick..."
Shao Qun nodded and didn't look at the boys again.
When they left, Shao Qun sat next to Li Chengxiu for a while. Finally, he took away the hand that covered Li Chengxiuâs face and saw that half of his cheek was swollen. There was even blood at the corner of his mouth. He pulled up his clothes and saw large bruises on his waist and abdomen. He knew that Li Wenyao was a merciless person - he was an actual gangster. Being beaten up by him would be painful even for an adult, let alone such a thin child like Li Chengxiu.
Shao Qun felt some guilt and sympathy in his heart. In more than ten years of life, this was the first time that he actually felt guilty towards someone.
However, this feeling was too short-lived and disappeared in a blink of an eye. Instead, he suddenly felt that if it wasn't for him, Li Chengxiu would have been beaten by Li Wenyao to death today. So actually Li Changxiu should be grateful to him. Besides, it was his own fault for looking like a slut.
He lightly patted Li Chengxiu's face: "Hey, are you alright?"
Li Chengxiu was in so much pain that he couldn't speak. He had never experienced such pain in his life before.
He could only cry. There was nothing else he could do about the pain.
He could neither make the pain go away, nor make the person responsible pay for what he did to him. There was no other way to vent - only tears.
Xiao Sheng (who we forgot even existed) chilling during this whole ordeal in the nightclub
Chapter 8
Shao Qun touched Li Chengxiuâs purple-blue waist, causing him to shrink in pain.
Shao Qun felt his ribs up all the way down to his waist. After confirming it several times, he finally said, "It's alright, no bones are broken. Don't cry."
Li Chengxiu hugged his stomach, avoiding his touch.
Shao Qun patted him on the back: "Don't be such a scaredy cat. Why are you still crying? Get up and I'll take you home."
Li Chengxiu finally regained some energy when he heard that he was finally going home. He wiped his face with his hands and struggled to get up from the sofa. Unexpectedly, as he lifted himself up, his stomach turned inside and out, and he vomited with a loud âblergâ.
Although Shao Qun jumped away quickly, a big chunk of vomit still splashed onto his trousers. His face went dark.
Li Chengxiu vomited again, and then his limbs became weak. He couldnât exert anymore strength - all he could do now was lie on the sofa and pant heavily.
He felt like he was dying. He couldnât move, his whole body hurt, and he was unbearably stinky. What if he died like that? If he was going to die, at least he wanted to be clean.
He regretted that he was so greedy earlier and accepted that money from Li Wenxun. Making money should be a result of hard labor - he shouldnât covet a pie in the sky. This was his retribution for taking the money that did not belong to him.
He hated Shao Qun and the other boys, yet he also hated himself for being so useless. He deserved to die here.
Suddenly he felt weightless. He opened his eyes and saw Shao Qun's beautiful sharp chin.
Shao Qun had picked him up and taken him to the bathroom.
He put him in front of the sink, turned on the faucet, and pressed his head: "Rinse your mouth."
Li Chengxiu spat out the nasty stuff he still had in his mouth, put his whole face under the faucet, and rinsed his mouth like crazy.
Shao Qun took some water and poured it over Li Chengxiuâs head. After splashing around for a while, Li Chengxiuâs appearance only got messier.
Finally, Shao Qun just pulled him away and helped him out of the bathroom.
Li Chengxiu covered his stomach and muttered softly, "I want to... go home, go home."
Shao Qun stuffed him into the car and drove to the nearest hotel.
Li Chengxiu was so confused that he couldn't say a complete sentence. He had no idea where he was, when Shao Qun took him inside some hotel room.
He immediately threw Li Chengxiu into the bathtub, turned on the hot water and poured it all over the boy.
Both of them smelled of alcohol and vomit, not to mention that Li Chengxiu also smelled of smoke. Seeing the hot water flow all over him, Shao Qun let out a long sigh.
He was so unlucky today. In the end, he was left alone with this drunk stinky sissy boy. He had never been so embarrassed in his life.
He took off his clothes and rushed to get under the water. He cleaned his entire body before squatting down to take off Li Chengxiu's clothes.
Li Chengxiu was very comfortable under the hot water, and was a little drowsy. But when Shao Qun started moving around, he immediately woke up, half-opening his eyes. With a dull expression he watched Shao Qun take off his clothes.
When Shao Qun was undressing Li Chengxiu, he struggled for a while, as for some reason he felt that he should not be doing this.
If it was Big Li or A-wen in front of him, etc. he would not give it another thought. What hasnât he seen there anyway?
But Li Chengxiu was somehow different. Shao Qun couldn't treat him just like an ordinary same-sex person. For some reason he felt that taking off his clothes was just like taking off a girl's clothes. There was a secret shame in his heart, but at the same time there was some unspeakable expectation. Shao Qunâs hands were even shaking a little.
Li Chengxiu's skin was very pale, even morbidly pale. He was also extremely thin. As he was lying on his back, his ribs were clearly visible. The waist was so tiny that it seemed it would break just at the touch of a hand. His body hair was very sparse and soft. The lower part of his body was also exposed to the view, and Shao Qun could see his pink penis limply hanging between his legs, looking shy and pitiful.
Shao Qun remembered a porn movie he had just watched a couple of days ago. The Japanese woman in it also had this kind of pale, translucent skin, slender thighs, and a slim waist. The image in front of him seemed to overlap with the movie. As if in a trance, he suddenly had a fantasy about the naked body lying Ăn front of him - in his mind Li Chengxiu was the one spreading his thighs and gasping for breath.
Years later, Shao Qun could still recall that unfamiliar impulse he felt at that time. It was driven by teenage ignorance about such matters and natural curiosity about sex. It was the first time in his life that he discovered an indescribable reverie of shame he could feel about other people's bodies. Although in retrospect he found it kind of funny, at that time it was like a heavy blow for him. After all, he was looking at a male body, so he pinched his own thigh to snap out of it.
He felt that his thoughts were very wrong. How could he be thinking about this sissy whom he actually disliked so much?
Irritated, he got up and used the shower head to wash Li Chengxiu.
He finished up as quickly as possible, then wrapped Li Chengxiu into a sheet and threw him on the bed. Afterwards he left, feeling like he was running away from something.
Li Chengxiu slept until noon the next day. When he woke up, he had a splitting headache. He half-squinted his eyes and looked at the snow-white sheets. For a long time, he didnât understand where he was and whether he was already awake or still dreaming.
He slowly recalled what happened last night. He put his hand on his stomach and found that he was still in severe pain.
After lying in bed for a long time, he slowly came to his senses. He looked up and saw the clock hanging on the wall. Suddenly, he was so frightened that he quickly straightened out and jumped up.
Only then did he realize that he hadn't gone home overnight, and he hadn't gone to school today.
He had never stayed outside for the whole night before. And he had never skipped school for no reason. Today, he had done both. And now, there was no one around him, so all he could do was sit alone on this big bed, abandoned and at a loss.
When he lifted the sheet, he realized that he was naked. He couldn't help blushing when he thought that it was Shao Qun who had undressed him and given him a bath last night.
He got out of bed and looked around. It turned out that Shao Qun had left clean clothes for him. It made Li Chengxiu feel a little uncomfortable.
When he was putting on the clothes, the phone in the room suddenly rang, startling him.
"âŠâŠHello?"
"Hello, hello! Do you want to check out before twelve o'clock?"
"What?"
"If you can't check out before twelve o'clock, you will be charged another half-a-day fee for the room."
"Ah, Iâm checking out, Iâm checking out!"
Li Chengxiu put himself in order, and then looked at the messy room around him. It made him feel guilty.
He had never stayed in a hotel before and didn't know the rules, so he quickly rolled up the dirty clothes on the floor and put them in bags, then made the bed, folded the quilt neatly, and finally cleaned everything up in the bathroom.
Only then did he cautiously leave.
The maid who was doing room service told him to go downstairs to the front desk to check out, so he went, trembling on his way.
He didn't have a penny on him, and he didn't know how much it would cost to stay in such a high-end hotel for one night. In case he couldn't afford it...
Unexpectedly, instead of asking him to pay, the clerk gave him more than 200 RMB, saying it was his deposit.
Li Chengxiu took the money and left in a daze.
He struggled a lot about whether to go to school or go home first. Finally he decided to go home.
He didn't go to work yesterday, so he had to go back and make a phone call to explain his absence to his relatives. And since he didn't go back last night, he wasnât sure if his mother had eaten.
He remembered that his school bag was still in Shao Qun's car, so he could only use the money the hotel gave him to take the bus home.
As soon as he returned, he made a phone call from the telephone booth to his boss in the restaurant. He apologized and explained for a long time, as well as promised to show up this evening. Only then did he drag his tired body home.
When he entered the room, a disgusting stench of alcohol hit his nostrils. Fortunately, his stomach was empty, otherwise heâd have to vomit again. The food he had prepared for his mother last morning didn't seem to be touched. Since it was summer and it was left out for the whole night, it was stinking.
Loud snoring came from the back room, and he went in to take a look. His mother was asleep. It seemed that she hadnât even noticed that he didnât come back last night.
He went over and tried to wake her up: "Mom, mom, get up and eat some food!"
"Mom, get up and eat something!"
He called her for a long time, but his mother just mumbled in response, turned over and almost hit him with her hand. Li Chengxiu jumped back in fright, looked at his motherâs back and couldnât help but sigh.
He was so hungry that he picked at some of the spoiled food on the table. Then he took off the new clothes and soaked them in water. He changed into his own clothes, and then headed to school.
He arrived at school just in time for the afternoon sessions. He first went to the office building to inform the teachers about him missing half a day. He said that he wasnât feeling well in the morning. The teacher looked at his swollen face and bloodshot eyes, sighed, and let him go back to class.
He was restless the whole afternoon, because all his classmates were looking at him strangely. Usually he was invisible, and nobody even looked at him. But today their undisguised attention made him feel very uncomfortable.
During recess, he couldn't take it anymore and ran to the toilet. He looked into the bathroom mirror and was shocked. The right side of his face was so swollen that his eyes turned into slits, and he could barely open them. It also hurt a lot when he touched his face.
There was also a large ââbruise on his stomach, and every breath was accompanied by pain, which made him miserable.
He splashed cold water onto his face a few times, and the burning pain could be shortly relieved by the coolness.
Just as he was bending over to splash water onto his face, somebody hit him hard on the lower back. He reacted in time by grabbing the edge of the washbasin, so even though he slipped, he didn't fall onto the dirty floor of the toilet.
He turned his head and saw a boy from another class looking at him with a smile.
Li Chengxiu regained his balance, bowed his head and was about to leave when the boy blocked his path and asked, "Hey, where did Shao Qun and the others take you out yesterday? Did you stay out the whole night?"
Li Chengxiu raised his head. With a slight panic in his eyes, he made himself small and tried to move towards the door.
"Come on, tell me! I can see that only half of your face is swollen. Why is that? You went out with Shao Qun, and you came back alive today. It's not an easy feat. Did you guys go out to play?"
"NoâŠNo playing..."
"If not playing, what did you do?"
Li Chengxiu stayed silent.
How dare he tell them that Shao Qun took him to a nightclub? If the teacher finds out, he will probably be expelled from school.
The boy continued pushing him: "Speak."
Li Chengxiu stumbled and stood leaning against the wall, feeling that his stomach hurt so badly that he almost couldnât straighten out his waist.
There were several people surrounding him now. There were also a bunch of onlookers next to the door. Little by little, he felt like more and more people tightly encircled him. He prayed for the bell to ring soon.
A sudden cry came from the direction of the door, accompanied by the sound of something falling to the ground. The crowd at the door dispersed, and the light pierced through - a tall and slim figure enveloped by the sun suddenly stood in front of Li Chengxiu.
He raised his head slightly, feeling that the image was very familiar. On the sunny rooftop that day, the same young boy with a handsome face and gorgeous black hair looked at him condescendingly.
Shao Qun rushed in and kicked the boy standing behind Li Chengxiu to the ground. Several people around him retreated in fear. The narrow men's bathroom was in chaos for a while.
Shao Qun shouted: "Get out!"
The people inside and outside left in an instant. Only Li Chengxiu was still standing there, leaning against the wall, as he squinted and winced at Shao Qun.
Shao Qun grabbed Li Chengxiuâs chin and lifted his face up. He frowned at his swollen and deformed cheeks, and then poked them with his fingers.
Li Chengxiu hissed in pain and turned his face away.
Shao Qun took his hand away and raised his other hand in front of Li Chengxiu: "Your school bag."
Li Chengxiu was stunned for a moment, but then he quickly took his bag.
At that moment, Shao Qun grabbed him: "Letâs go."
Li Chengxiu pushed his arm away and refused to move: "Go⊠Go where? IâŠIâŠI wonât go."
"I want to take you to the school nurse."
"No. I have class."
"Bullshit. Will you die if you donât go to class?"
Shao Qun dragged Li Chengxiu out of the menâs toilet and took him downstairs under the gaze of the schoolmates that gathered around.
Li Chengxiu really didnât want to go anywhere, especially with that guy. He didn't want to have anything to do with Shao Qunâs gang anymore. His life was originally very peaceful, and he was slowly approaching his goals step by step. But these boys suddenly barged into his life and started messing with it. If it had any impact on his high school entrance examination, he would regret it for the rest of his life.
Shao Qun really took him into the school nurseâs office. The nurse happened to be absent at that moment, so Shao Qun took the matters into his own hands. He pushed Li Chengxiu into the chair and then opened the cabinet to look for something.
Li Chengxiu felt restless and tried to reason with him in a low voice: "The nurse isnât here. Don't just rummage through her things willy-nilly."
Shao Qun frowned and ignored him. Finally he found a box of medicine and a bottle of Huo Luo oil[30].
He handed the medicine to Li Chengxiu: "Itâs anti-inflammatory. Take two of those."
Li Chengxiu read the instructions carefully, before taking out a water bottle from his schoolbag and swallowing the two anti-inflammatory pills.
Shao Qun opened the oil bottle, pointed to the bed and said to Li Chengxiu, "Lie down."
Li Chengxiu held onto his school bag and looked at him blankly.
Shao Qun couldn't stand this stupid look of his. Li Chengxiu was wasting his time! So he just dragged him up and pushed him onto the bed: "Lie down. I'll apply the medicine for you."
Confused, Li Chengxiu asked: "WhâŠ. why?"
Shao Qun raised his eyebrows: "Your stomach is purple. I need to put the medicine on it so it heals. What do you mean why?â
What Li Chengxiu actually meant to ask was: Why would you want to apply the medicine for me?
Shao Qun's disgust and contempt for him was clearly visible. If it werenât for him and his friends, Li Chengxiu wouldnât have been beaten up for no reason. Why would he suddenly want to help him with his wounds? Did his conscience return after a long absence or what?
Li Chengxiu was unhappy in every possible way, but his fear of Shao Qun was engraved deeply in his bones. So he had no choice but to lie down obediently and stretch himself out.
Shao Qun lifted his clothes and looked at the large bruise on the left side of his waist and abdomen. It looked even more ghastly on Li Chengxiuâs snow-white skin. Shao Qun pursed his lips and said, "It hurts to even look at it."
Li Chengxiu's eyelashes trembled slightly and timidly looked at Shao Qun.
Shao Qun poured some oil into his hands, wiped it all on Li Chengxiuâs stomach, and said, "I'll rub it in for you. If it hurts a bit, just bear with it."
Li Chengxiu cried out, and his whole body curled up: "It hurts. Donât press."
"No, if I don't apply pressure properly, it will heal too slowly. Itâs better to bear with a little pain now than to prolong it.â
"Don't⊠don't press. It hurts."
Shao Qun pulled Li Chengxiuâs arms and legs apart: "Don't move. Just be patient."
Li Chengxiu refused to cooperate. He kicked around but for some reason this time it hurt him more than before. He wasnât sure whether his kick was too heavy or Shao Qunâs hand was too strong.
Shao Qun exclaimed angrily: "Why the hell are you so fussy? Will you die from a little pain? Will it kill you to endure it?"
With tears in the corners of his eyes, Li Chengxiu whimpered and cried out, "Bite me."
Shao Qun was stunned by this sudden rudeness.
He looked at the oil on his hands, noticed the pungent smell in the air, and suddenly realized what was happening.
What was he even thinking? When he heard that sissy didn't come to school in the morning, he felt uneasy. As soon as Li Chengxiu finally appeared, he rushed to see him, and even insisted on giving him a massage.
Why was he acting like such an idiot?
Shao Qun angrily threw the bottle at Li Chengxiu and cursed: "Fuck you." Then he angrily walked out.
Li Chengxiu suddenly remembered something and shouted after him, "Wait."
Shao Qun froze and turned around with unconcealed anticipation in his eyes.
Li Chengxiu quickly took out the 300 RMB from his school bag and then got the 200 RMB he received from the hotel in the morning out of his pocket. He then walked up to Shao Qun and handed it to him: "I don't want your money."
Shao Qun's face darkened immediately. And it wasnât just metaphorical - it was such a visible physical change that Li Chengxiu got scared.
Shao Qun slapped the bills out of Li Chengxiuâs hand and said viciously, "Keep it for your medical expenses."
The Huo Luo Oil (word for word translation âactive/activated oilâ)
Chapter 9
Li Chengxiu waited for Shao Qun to leave. Afterwards he rubbed his stomach for a while. But the pain was so bad that he couldnât press too hard. He was fine with waiting for it to slowly recover, anyway. His bones were not broken, so everything was going to be okay in the end.
He stayed in the nurseâs office for a while and then went back to class. Although his classmates peeked at him from time to time, no one dared to bother him anymore.
When classes were over, he was still the first one to rush out of the classroom to catch the earliest bus in order to go to his relative's restaurant. Although he felt very uncomfortable, he couldnât afford to take a sick day.
For several days after that, Shao Qun's gang didnât appear in front of him anymore. Li Chengxiu wanted to return their money and their clothes to them, as he felt that it was not a good idea to keep the things that didnât belong to him. Who knew what kind of bad luck they would bring? But it seemed that the gang had lost their interest in him, and Li Chengxiu was also unwilling to look for them on his own initiative. He was in a sort of a dilemma.
He always carried the money with him, and kept the clothes in his desk. In case he came across those guys, he could return everything immediately.
A week later, the swelling on his face had finally disappeared, and the bruise on his stomach had significantly improved. Just when he was about to throw Shao Qun and his gang completely out of his mind, he ran into Shao Qun yet again.
Strictly speaking, Shao Qun had planned that encounter.
As usual, at noon, Li Chengxiu ran to the rooftop of the teaching building to have his lunch break - read a book, revise some exam tasks, eat something, and take a nap.
While he was reading a book and nibbling on the steamed bun filled with fermented bean curd, the big iron door on the rooftop hit the wall with a loud bang. Li Chengxiu was startled and turned around to see who it was.
Shao Qun was squinting his eyes, standing in the midday sun. When he saw Li Chengxiu, he immediately walked towards him.
Li Chengxiu, who was previously leaning against the wall in a relaxed pose, sat up nervously, looking around with some helplessness. The scorching sun had dried the concrete floor, and one could feel how crazy hot it was just by looking at it. It was the spring season, yet the high temperatures already approached the midsummer levels. There was only one small patch of shade under the water tank where Li Chengxiu was sitting. It was originally the only comfortably cool and pleasant place on the rooftop.
He wanted to run the moment he saw Shao Qun. He wanted to pretend he hadnât seen him, turn around and head downstairs. But as Shao Qun was approaching him one step at a time, he was just too scared to move.
Shao Qun sat down beside Li Chengxiu and glanced at him: "Why do you still look so dirty? Where are the clothes I bought for you?"
Li Chengxiu looked at his wrinkled shirt: "In my desk. IâŠI⊠can give it back to you in the afternoon after school?"
Shao Qun was stunned for a moment, then he raised his voice: "Are you insane? What would I need them for? How can I wear something meant for a stunted body shape like yours? Even if I could fit in those clothes, I wouldnât dare touch them - Iâm afraid of getting your lice and fleas."
Li Chengxiu's face turned red, he choked up and tightly twisted the corner of his clothes with one hand. He was still holding a half-eaten steamed bun in his other hand. He lowered his head and kept quiet.
Shao Qun suddenly grabbed his chin and lifted his face up. He carefully examined his face and said: "Well, the swelling has disappeared." Then he reached out and pressed Li Chengxiuâs cheek.
Although the swelling really had subsided, it still hurt when pressed like that. Li Chengxiu closed his eyes and hissed.
"So it still hurts." Shao Qun took his hand away and suddenly reached out to lift up Li Chengxiuâs clothes.
Li Chengxiu was startled. He tried to block him with his hand, which was still holding the steamed bun. As a result, it fell directly onto Shao Qunâs thigh. The weather was hot, and Shao Qun was wearing shorts, so the red bean paste was rubbed all over Shao Qunâs upper leg.
This made Shao Qun really angry. It seems that every time he encounters Li Chengxiu, he always gets dirty all over. He kicked the half-eaten steamed bun away and shouted, "What the hell are you doing? I just wanted to check if your stomach is okay."
Li Chengxiu nervously stared at Shao Qun's thigh, turned around and searched for something to wipe him.
He was afraid that if something didnât go Shao Qunâs way, this little delinquent would beat him up. He was always very careful, but for some reason ended up offending him every time they met.
Shao Qun looked at Li Chengxiuâs anxious appearance - the way his nostrils slightly flared, the way his long eyelashes were fluttering quickly like little brushes, and the way he was biting his lower lip with a row of small white teeth. Shao Qun suddenly felt a little hot, and he had a bunch of evil thoughts he couldnât control anymore.
He stretched out his hand and grabbed Li Chengxiu's ear, pretending to be calm and pointing at his thigh: "I will kindly forgive you this last time. But I canât let it go just like that either⊠You have to lick it clean for me."
Li Chengxiu's eyes widened and then immediately filled with tears.
He didn't expect that Shao Qun could insult him like that. Li Chengxiu had tried his best to be cautious, humble and not to give him any opportunity to embarrass him. But he had completely overlooked the main problem - this person was deliberately troubling him, and there was no way to hide from him.
Shao Qun looked at Li Chengxiuâs aggrieved expression, and an uncontrollable excitement surged up inside him. He wanted to see what his tongue looked like and whether it felt just like he imagined it - soft and velvety. He wondered what it would feel like to have his thigh licked by that tongue.
Young Master Shao grew up with an innate ability to bully people. He would vent his bad temper on anyone he didnât like, but he had never felt this kind of... desire to manipulate towards any other people he bullied. It was an indescribable feeling - he vaguely sensed that he wanted to do something to Li Chengxiu, but he didn't know what exactly. He wanted Li Chengxiu's bright eyes to look at him, he wanted him to be scared of him, he wanted him to obey him, he wanted Li Chengxiu to flatter him like all other people did, and he wanted him to lick his thigh with his tongue .
He chalked it up to the fact that this boy was too much of a sissy to be treated like any other man. It was too boring to beat him up or slap him around. One just had to play something special with him.
So Shao Qun pressed Li Chengxiuâs head towards himself and forced him to lick his thigh.
Li Chengxiu cried.
He was already numb to the indifference and contempt of his classmates. To keep himself out of trouble, he isolated himself every day, ignoring all kinds of overt and covert acts of violence towards him. But that didnât mean that he had no dignity.
Although he had no idea what the deeper meaning behind licking his male classmateâs thigh was, he was still ashamed to do that. It seemed akin to the humiliation of crawling under somebodyâs crotch[31]. In the TV series he had watched as a child, this was the biggest insult to a man. As long as the hero still had the last bit of blood flowing in his veins, it was absolutely not acceptable to undergo such humiliation.
But Li Chengxiu was not a hero after all, so he didn't dare to spit on Shao Qun's face and tell him off with a few bold words. But even under the threat of being beaten, Li Chengxiu didn't want to do such an embarrassing thing. So he could only cry and try to push away Shao Qunâs hand on his head.
Shao Qun had always been defiant - the more one went against him, the more he pushed the person to obey. But this time, it was somehow different. Looking at Li Chengxiu's crying eyes, he suddenly felt a little soft.
But even though his heart softened, he still was unsatisfied.
"Don't you fucking cry again! Why are you constantly crying?"
Li Chengxiu felt that his grip weakened, so he quickly straightened out and took a big step back. From a safe distance, he looked at Shao Qun cautiously while wiping away his tears.
Irritated, Shao Qun picked up a notebook off the ground, tore out a piece of paper from there and wiped the fermented bean paste with it.
The unsatisfied longing was still there, and he had a strong desire to do something about it.
Shao Qun approached Li Chengxiu again, grabbed him by his clothes and stopped him from moving away.
"Damn it, I'm so good to you! If you didn't make me feel like I'm dealing with a girl and if you werenât such a sissy, I would have fucking beaten you to death for annoying me like that!â
In the opinion of Little Master Shao, he really was "good" to Li Chengxiu. His tolerance towards him was very high, so he was extremely annoyed that Li Chengxiu was such an ungrateful animal.
He pulled at Li Chengxiu's clothes: "I just want to see how your stomach is healing. If you don't lift it up, I'm going to get really angry."
Li Chengxiu was stubbornly holding onto his shirt. He choked and said, "No, donât look."
As soon as Shao Qun heard this, he immediately raised his hand to slap him, but seeing Li Chengxiu shrinking his neck in fear, he couldnât go through with it. He was so angry, yet he didnât know whether he was angry at Li Chengxiu or at himself.
The anger made him act - he suddenly threw Li Chengxiu to the ground, sat on his crotch, pressed his shoulder with one hand and pulled his clothes up with the other: "I just want to look."
Li Chengxiu couldn't throw him off, so he was forced to lift his clothes, revealing his thin waist.
Shao Qun put his hand on Li Chengxiuâs stomach. The skin was soft and warm to the touch, and he could feel how his stomach rose and fell with every breath.
Shao Qun couldn't help but gently stroke it a couple of times. It wasn't until he saw Li Chengxiu's wide eyes staring at him when he realized that his hand was now stroking the smooth and delicate skin of his chest.
Shao Qun had never been so embarrassed before. His cheeks suddenly blushed, and he pulled his hand away as if he was burnt.
Li Chengxiu's little face was also blushing, and his narrow chin was stretched out so far that it formed a stiff angle with his neck. What happened a couple moments ago seemed somehow abnormal - how can a normal man touch another man like that?
Young Master Shao got off Li Chengxiu and sat down next to the water tank. The atmosphere between them was awkward. Shao Qun secretly clenched his fists, in order to prevent the feeling of the soft and smooth touch from escaping.
Li Chengxiu also sat up, straightened his clothes, packed his book and his notebook back into his school bag and wanted to sneak out of Shao Qun's sight.
Shao Qun glanced at him from the corner of his eye: "Where are you going?"
"Ah... going back."
"Going back where?"
Li Chengxiu himself didnât know the answer to that. Anywhere where he didnât have to stay alone with that person was fine.
Young Master Shao pointed to the ground: "Sit down. Youâre not allowed to go."
The only thing left for Li Chengxiu was to sit down. The expression on his face was so painful as if he was forced to sit on a sharp knife.
Shao Qun puffed up his cheeks and stared at Li Chengxiu for such a long time that he could have counted all the hairs on his body.
Suddenly Shao Qun pulled up his previously discarded school bag towards himself - the shiny leather bag was mercilessly dragged all over the concrete floor. Shao Qun opened his bag and shook out a bunch of things.
Li Chengxiu looked down and saw that most of them were snacks, but there were also a few boxes of medicine and a few books inside.
Shao Qun piled the medicine in front of Li Chengxiu: "These pills are good. You will feel better soon after taking them." Then he pointed at the snacks, "These are also for you."
Li Chengxiu looked at him blankly.
Shao Qun opened the medicine box on his own, took out a few pills and handed them to Li Chengxiu together with a bottle of water: "Take the medicine first."
Li Chengxiu hesitated for a while, took the pills and swallowed them with water. Afterwards he stared at the pile of snacks in front of him.
"Don't just look! Eat some." said Shao Qun, picked up a bulging bag and started tearing it open.
Li Chengxiu quickly pushed the bag away: "Don't open it! I wonât eat any."
Shao Qun shook his hand away and opened the bag anyway : "Yes, youâll eat it! Why are you whining?"
Li Chengxiu shook his head: "I'm full."
Shao Qun frowned: "You have no fucking balls - if I tell you to eat, youâre gonna eat. You have to be obedient when Iâm angry with you, otherwise whatâs the fun in it for me?â
A trace of shame flashed in Li Chengxiu's eyes.
Shao Qun was right - he didn't have the guts to resist, so he might as well do what Shao Qun told him to. Provoking a young master like Shao Qun, who was accustomed to obedience, won't do him any good.
Li Chengxiu took a small orange-yellow cake from the bag. He could feel the sweet smell coming from it. He glanced at Shao Qun and lowered his head to eat it.
Shao Qun watched him cautiously handle a piece of custard pie the size of his palm - he was just like a little squirrel he had teased outside last month. What exactly did he do then? Right, he touched itâs head, and the little thing immediately jumped away in horror trying to avoid his touch. When it was far enough, it lowered its head and continued chewing.
Shao Qun stretched out his hand and lightly patted Li Chengxiu's head. Sure enough, the boy looked up in shock. Big glossy black eyes were looking at him in a loss. His long eyelashes fluttered as he quickly blinked twice and then quietly pulled his body up, trying to avoid Shao Qunâs hand.
Shao Qun laughed.
Li Chengxiu was stunned.
It was the first time he saw Shao Qun laughing. He was a very good-looking boy, with red lips and white teeth, and a heroic look about him. It's just that he liked to frown too much, and his actions were not so kind. Therefore, he always had a fierce expression on his face, and no one dared to approach him, no matter how handsome he was.
But when he smiled, it seemed like his whole person became brighter. The atmosphere of a vicious bully that usually surrounded him suddenly faded. This smile brought back the refreshing sunny youth that he should have been at this age. Li Chengxiu was speechless for a while, as he suddenly felt his heart skip a beat.
Shao Qun didn't take his hand away and continued touching Li Chengxiuâs hair which was very fine and soft. It felt really nice to the touch. Before, Shao Qun had always disliked this kind of soft messy hair but turns out it had such a pleasant texture.
He felt like he was handling a small pet - it was soft and warm, and it was pleasant to stroke.
Shao Qun suddenly realized that he liked touching Li Chengxiu so much because he regarded him as a pet! Finally he had found a reasonable explanation for his behavior. He had a cat and a dog at home. He also liked to play with them. He fed them when he was happy, and kicked them when he was unhappy.
Shao Qun got a little excited. He was suddenly like a child who just received a brand new toy and was looking forward to playing with it, as well as thinking about all the ways he could make this toy even more fun.
He moved even closer to Li Chengxiu and fondled his head the same way he did to his labrador: "I'll protect you in the future. So from now on follow me!"
Steamed bun with fermented red bean paste
âUnder the crotch humiliationâ
The origins of this idiom can be found in Sima Qian's "Historical Records: The Biography of the Marquis of Huaiyin". Apparently the marquis was forced to endure this kind of humiliation when he was poor and powerless. When he subsequently rose to power, instead of taking his revenge on the person who did this to him, he actually promoted the guy. The reason being that if that man hadnât come up with this humiliation technique at the time, the marquis would have been killed. So in a certain way he owed this man his life.
Custard pie (it has much less custard inside than one would expect >:( Will fight anyone who disagrees.)
Chapter 10
From that day on, Shao Qun seemed to be really hooked on the game of "protecting" him. Not only did he openly take him on walks around campus, but he often spent his lunch break with him.
Li Chengxiu was scared at first that he would do something wrong, and something bad would happen. More than that, he was actually deeply disappointed that Shao Qun had taken over his rooftop place which used to be his own âprivate landâ. Since he had nowhere else to go during lunch, he could only accept this new reality.
But after a few days of getting along with Shao Qun, he felt a lot more at ease.
Shao Qun didn't do anything bad to him - he just brought him a bunch of food, which he forced him to eat. He would touch his hair for a while and then pinch his face, as if he was playing around with a doll. It was a bit awkward at first, but if he dared to show any unwillingness, Shao Qun would immediately lose his temper. Li Chengxiu gradually got used to it and let him touch around as much as he wanted.
The more they got along with each other, the more his fear of Shao Qun faded. To think about it, even though Shao Qun would often threaten to beat him up, he had never actually done it. And now he was even⊠nice to him.
Li Chengxiu had finished the lunch box that Shao Qun bought for him. His facial expression was complicated, when from time to time, he would sneak a peek at the handsome boy who was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. The outline of his face was as beautiful as a painting.
He didn't understand why Shao Qun would suddenly hang out with him. He never concealed how much he hated Li Chengxiu before. As far as he could remember, Li Chengxiu had never done anything that would particularly please Shao Qun, yet they were now spending time and eating together every day.
He was vaguely afraid that Shao Qun might have some bad intentions, but he couldn't figure out what exactly he could do to him.
It was easier for Li Chengxiu to endure contempt and insults from others than to get used to someone being nice to him.
He had already eaten too much of Shao Qunâs food. He was also forced to accept the reference book[32] he had been eyeing for a while that Shao Qun bought for him. In a short time, Shao Qun had become his creditor.
Receiving something that didnât belong to him was very scary for Li Chengxiu, yet at the same time he was very moved.
Turns out there were still people in this world who would treat him well. It slightly frightened him. He had never imagined that this unattainable rich young master would do things for him that even his own parents never did for him.
He brought him delicious food, gave him medicine and clean clothes, and even told everyone to stop bullying him. Although Shao Qunâs attitude to him was uncertain, and he would still curse him out when he was unhappy about something, but more often than not, Li Chengxiu felt like he was being cared for.
Why did Shao Qun treat him so well?
Li Chengxiu couldn't help but be cautious, because generally good things never happened to him. He was even afraid that it was all just a dream. One day heâll wake, and all of this would turn out to be a fake.
Shao Qun seemed to sense his gaze. He half-opened his eyes and turned his head slightly to look at him.
Li Chengxiu raised the lunch box in his hand: "Thank you."
Shao Qun squinted his eyes slightly and smiled at him. The lazy expression on this handsome, yet delicate face was unusually charming.
Li Chengxiu's heart jumped again, and his cheeks felt slightly hot. He quickly lowered his head and continued to eat.
Shao Qun yawned and lay on the ground, turning his back towards Li Chengxiu: "Come here and give me a massage."
Li Chengxiu took a few more mouthfuls of rice, wiped his mouth, and rushed over. He kneaded Shao Qunâs shoulders with his thin but powerful hands. He was glad to do something that made him feel like he owed Shao Qun at least a little less.
Shao Qun closed his eyes and enjoyed it for a while. Then he suddenly said, "By the way, I rented a place outside the school - itâs only 5 minutes away from here. In the future, you can rest there at noon. I will take you there after school."
Li Chengxiuâs hands paused: "No⊠no need... I'm fine here..."
"Be obedient," Shao Qun said these two words lightly, yet his tone was harsh.
Li Chengxiu pursed his lips and couldn't help but ask, "Why are you doing this?"
"This? What exactly?"
"Why... are you taking special care of me?"
âIt makes me happy,â Shao Qun answered nonchalantly. He then raised his hand and pinched Li Chengxiuâs tender face, "Be obedient, and I will let you graduate comfortably."
Feeling embarrassed, Li Chengxiu nodded. There was a hint of shyness in his eyes.
After school, Shao Qun took Li Chengxiu to the apartment he had rented temporarily.
At the school gate, the two of them ran into Li Wenxun. This kidâs eyes were still bruised which was probably why he hadnât shown up at school for a long time. Big Li and Xiao Sheng usually hung out with each other, so Shao Qun was recently all by himself.
They greeted each other, and Li Wenxun gave Li Chengxiu, who was shyly standing behind Shao Qun like a little daughter-in-law[33], a surprised look.
Shao Qun told him what he was up to during the last week.
When Li Wenxun heard that Shao Qun had rented a place for Li Chengxiu, he dragged him aside with an expression of disbelief on his face and whispered, "Bro, you don't have to do this anymore, okay? Iâm telling you, Big Li has recently been too busy picking up girls. And Iâve been dealing with my brother and couldnât get out of bed for the last couple of days. None of us cares about the stupid bet anymore! You donât have to take it so seriously."
Shao Qun put his hands up in the air: "He's just funny. More like a puppy, really. I've been bored recently, so let's just keep him around for shits and giggles."
Li Wenxun snorted: "I donât feel too good. You can play around by yourself. My brother is really ruthless, and I now even have a curfew. My driver is already here, and I have to leave. Just gonna have to wait for my brother to chill out at some point. Then we can go to that place you rented to have a drink together."
Shao Qun pushed him: "Then go. See you around."
The apartment was really close to the school. They just basically needed to cross the road and turn a corner to get there. The neighborhood was a little old, but the room was newly renovated, clean and bright, and the layout was very warm and elegant.
The place wasnât too big - there was just one bedroom, one living room, a kitchen, and a bathroom. All of the rooms were pretty spacious, though. For one or two people it was more than enough.
Li Chengxiu had never seen such a beautiful apartment before.
He lived in an urban village[34] in the old part of the city. It has been up for demolition for ten years now but nothing has happened yet. The traffic there was inconvenient and the road conditions were not good. The bungalow he lived in was blocked by the residential building behind him, so there was only a short time during the day when he could see the sun. The lack of light also made the house humid and cold. In the summer, it could be considered bearably cool but in the winter, it was terrible, since the heating was not working very well. Sometimes Li Chengxiu himself wasnât sure how he and his mother could survive the harsh winters.
He had always dreamed of living in a house with broad windows, white walls, wooden furniture, and sunlight coming in generously and illuminating the room.
Shao Qun closed the door while holding the key in his hand. He wrinkled his nose and sniffed around.
"All right, it doesn't stink here. Although it's pretty crude, it has everything you need, and it's very clean. In the future, you can come here at noon. Then you donât need to sleep on the roof anymore. If you want to stay here at night, itâs also fine."
Li Chengxiu kept looking around, unable to conceal his excitement.
Shao Qun suddenly shouted "Catch!" and threw the key in his hand to the unsuspecting Li Chengxiu.
Li Chengxiu couldn't react in time, so the key hit him and then fell to the ground.
Shao Qun sneered: "Why are you so stupid?"
Li Chengxiu blushed, bent over to pick up the key, and stared at the silver-white metal in a daze.
Shao Qun sat down on the sofa and muttered to himself, "It was quickly available, and the layout is pretty good."
Li Chengxiu looked at him, and the rims of his eyes gradually turned red.
As soon as Shao Qun saw his rabbit eyes he asked: "What's wrong?"
"Is it for real? Are you really letting me live here?"
Shao Qun smiled and said, "Yes, really."
"IâŠâŠ"
"Hey, you're not allowed to say no. You have to take whatever I give you! Donât you know how to show your gratitude?"
Li Chengxiu was holding the key in his hand and felt uneasy. What did Shao Qun want in return for such an amazing favor? The problem was, that either way he was not allowed to refuse. This kind of forced acceptance made him feel embarrassed, and the guilt in his heart only increased.
Shao Qun stood up and took him by the hand: "Come here and Iâll show you."
He dragged Li Chengxiu through the whole place and finally reached the bedroom.
There were not many things in there, except for a conspicuously large beige bed.
Shao Qun suddenly jumped onto the bed, rolled around in it and let out a long sigh of relief: "Damn, I'm so sleepy. The old geography teacher is so boring. He always extends the class[35] because he talks too much."
Li Chengxiu stood in front of the bed and carefully examined the room.
Shao Qun supported his head and looked at him with curiosity. Involuntarily, he smiled and waved Li Chengxiu towards himself: "Come here and lie down. This bed is very comfortable."
Li Chengxiu swallowed, bent down and took off his shoes. He hesitated for a long time, and then finally cautiously climbed onto the bed.
Shao Qun was too impatient to wait, so he pulled him closer with his arm.
When he fell onto the soft bedding, Li Chengxiu felt as if the fatigue of the day had been relieved, so he unconsciously let out a comfortable sigh.
Shao Qun licked his lips, and then suddenly came closer and hugged Li Chengxiuâs waist.
Li Chengxiu was startled, but did not dare to move. He just lay there stiffly as he was hugged.
Shao Qun also seemed to be testing the waters. First, he just wrapped his arms lightly around him, then he slowly tightened his grip, and then he tightened it a little more. Seeing that there was no reaction from Li Chengxiu, not even a breath, Shao Qun became more daring. As if he had finally received permission, he wrapped himself around Li Chengxiuâs waist as tightly as possible.
Li Chengxiu felt that all the blood in his body had rushed to his face. At a complete loss, he just stared at the ceiling, not daring to react.
Shao Qun, on the other hand, gradually relaxed and became much less stiff. Soon he had already presumptuously put half of his body weight on Li Chengxiu and muttered: "I've been around you for a long time and I've already gotten used to your smell. Did you take a shower yesterday?"
"âŠâŠUm."
"Oh, that explains it... From now on you will take a shower here every day and change your clothes too. Do you understand?"
Shao Qun felt good holding Li Chengxiu in his arms - he was just the right size, so it made him comfortable. Suddenly he was really sleepy, so he closed his eyes.
"I'll sleep for a while."
Li Chengxiu nodded awkwardly and tried to move away.
Shao Qun pinched his waist: "No moving."
Li Chengxiu's body stiffened - every minute and every second he spent like this was very difficult for him.
It must be completely normal for two men to hug each other, so why was he so nervous? His heart was beating so loudly, he was scared it was about to jump out of his throat.
Fortunately, the "torture" didn't last long. A while after Shao Qun had closed his eyes, his cell phone rang.
Shao Qun cursed impatiently, took his phone out from his trouser pocket and put it to his ear: "I see. Iâm coming down now."
He sat up on the bed: "The driver has come to pick me up. My dad is coming home today... I gave you the key already. I canât stay here today but Iâll come over tomorrow, okay?â
Li Chengxiu also sat up, moved back quietly and nodded.
Shao Qun glanced at him, suddenly hugged him fiercely as if unwilling to let go and threw him on the bed again.
Li Chengxiu was startled, let out a low cry, and pushed him away: "Wha⊠what are you doing?"
"What's wrong with a hug? Why are you so cautious?" Shao Qun asked self-righteously.
Li Chengxiu didnât have anything to say to that.
There was really nothing wrong with a hug. He often saw his male classmates in school hugging each other on the shoulders. Sometimes Li Chengxiu even blushed when he noticed the boys do that. This right now was really just a hug... It was nothing unusual. He felt ashamed, when he thought that he had just behaved like a woman.
Shao Qun gave him another tight hug before finally letting him go and jumping out of the bed: "I'm leaving. See you tomorrow." Then he ran out the door like a gust of wind.
Li Chengxiu stared blankly at the empty room and unconsciously touched his blushing face.
Neither of them remembered at the time that "tomorrow" was Saturday.
Li Chengxiu didn't stay in the apartment that night. Seeing that it was still early, he went to the restaurant to work for a few hours. The next two days he was busy - he had reading to do, he needed to study and also work to make some more money. Occasionally, when he had some free time, he would think about Shao Qun.
Shao Qun he knew now was completely different from the Shao Qun he had met for the first time.
In Li Chengxiuâs opinion, although Shao Qun was arrogant and domineering, had a bad temper, and cursed a lot, he was actually a good person.
Even though he always forced Li Chengxiu to accept his kindness, in the end it was kindness after all. He didn't know why he was worthy of Shao Qun doing all of this for him. Maybe he pitied him? Even though pity is such a cheap feeling, Li Chengxiu was still grateful and happy to know that there was at least one person who was willing to waste this feeling on him.
Now, when he thought of Shao Qun, he felt warm in his heart. And when he saw that heroic and handsome face in front of him, his ears felt hot. The intimate hug he received from Shao Qun, although it was short-lived, was still fresh in his memory - the warm chest, the strong heartbeat, the fresh and clean breath seemed to be still surrounding him.
Shao Qun was so nice to him, that he couldn't help thinking how lucky he was to know him and be friends with him.
Li Chengxiu didnât know which high school they will be admitted to in the future. But wouldnât it be great if they went to the same high school? But even if they went to different schools, they would only have to be apart for two years. Li Chengxiu's mind had drifted far, far away, as he was already imagining how they would enter the same university, study there together and work really hard for their ideals and their future.
Go, little rock starâŠ
[1] âXiaoâ = âsmallâ, âlittleâ, a term of endearment for someone of a lower seniority/younger than you.
[2] Victoria Harbor is a natural landform harbor in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north (source: wikipedia)
[3] Actually, the title Manager Zhang wants him to use is æ» (zÇng), which is something like a âbossâ or âchiefâ.
[4] Also æ» (zÇng) - possible translations âchief Shaoâ or âboss Shaoâ.
[5] Itâs what it says in the original (èȘé). However, I would presume that he is not actually on the spectrum, rather the author wanted to say that he presents with certain symptoms of social anxiety.
[6] âThree highsâ (äžé«), meaning âhigh blood sugarâ, âhigh blood lipidsâ, and âhigh cholesterolâ
[7] Preserve his dignity/ avoid humiliation.
[8] Shenzhen (æ·±ćł) is a city in Guangdong province (southeastern part of China). It links Hong Kong to Chinaâs mainland, itâs a port city, and it has been called Chinaâs Silicon Valley (Tencent and Huawei started there).
[9] Older Brother Li
[10] Around 160 USD. Pretty shitty even for the 2010 Shenzhen renting prices. Basically, he couldnât afford anything decent, and the subsidy probably covered less than 50% of what he had to pay (correct me, if Iâm wrong)
[11] çłæ°Ž(literally âsugar waterâ) - collective term for any sweet, warm soup or custard served as a dessert at the end of a meal in Cantonese cuisine. Tong sui shops are one of the âmust-seeâ places when visiting Hong Kong.
[12] Again, itâs what it says in the original. Probably, it means that he became more socially withdrawn.
[13] Putting A(éż) in front of somebodyâs name is a term of endearment.
[14] Basically, everyone thought that the first character of his given name was his last name, and the second character of his given name was his name. Chinese full names usually consist of 2 or, more often, 3 characters.
[15] Industrial alcohol is distilled ethyl alcohol (C2H5OH), normally of high proof, produced and sold for other than beverage purposes. It is imperative not to confuse industrial alcohol with consumable alcohol! But people still drink it. My grand-uncle used to say that it was much cheaper and not that bad - he died of liver failure.
[16] 86°F
[17] Could be that he is referring to the meaning of character âXiuâ (ç§, âbeautifulâ, âelegantâ) in Li Chengxiuâs name.
[18] Around 2,40$. Bare monthly survival income would be around 380$. This is just to illustrate that he really canât afford to give up on those 2,40$.
[19] 350$
[20] It could get you a small meal, or 5 small bottles of coke, or 12 eggs, or at least 7 bus tickets. I think you could even get a cheap T-Shirt for 15 yuanâŠ
[21] To clarify: âillegalâ here means that he was doing illicit work, namely not paying any taxes.
[22] 5â6 ft
[23] In China children are only eligible for discounted bus tickets, if they are not taller than 150 cm (around 5 ft).
[24] The use of national emblems on vehicles is restricted to authorities/people in high places/rich assholes.
[25] Nike swoosh mark, I assume
[26] In the original these clothes are described as äžç·äžć„łçææź (could also be translated as âunisexâ). Iâm making this note here because Iâve seen a couple reviews/comments claiming that Shao Qun made Li Chengxiu put on womenâs clothes. That is not the case. I suspect he is just wearing some kind of k-pop idol outfit (no hate to k-pop idols)
[27] The original meaning refers to a title given to young masters by slaves when they are anxious. Nowadays itâs used when parents or other adults complain and blame children for being naughty.
[28] Older brother.
[29] Li Wenxunâs older brother also appears in âYouâre in Love with an Idiot '' as a minor antagonist. Li Wenyao is kinda insane when it comes to his brother.
[30] Muscle and joint massage oil in traditional Chinese medicine.
[31] Reference to a Chinese idiom âunder the crotch humiliationâ (èŻäžäč蟱) which refers to the practice of having to crawl between somebodyâs legs, showing humility and subservience.
[32] Could be a dictionary, could be an encyclopedia, could even be an atlas. Weâll never know.
[33] Means that someone is quiet, delicate, obedient, and pleasing to the eye. Modern usage doesnât imply any familial relations - rather itâs a joking description of someone who is behaving very properly.(ex. âHey, when did you become such a little daughter-in-law?â)
[34] Urban villages - are villages that appear on both the outskirts and the downtown segments of major Chinese cities. They are a unique phenomenon that formed part of China's urbanization efforts. Urban villages are commonly inhabited by the poor and transient, and as such they are associated with squalor, overcrowding and social problems. (source: wikipedia)
[35] Basically, he continues to teach, even though the class is already over.