Translator: Lynn
As Jiang Yuduo walked to Building No. 3, Da Bin stood up from his squatting position, smoking a cigarette. “San-ge, everyone has been called over and is waiting on the seventh floor,” he informed.
“Let’s go up.” Jiang Yuduo replied, walking into the corridor.
He had not been to the tenant’s apartment since their death, and Lu Qian had not rushed him. However, the other tenants on the seventh floor had made calls, promising to pay the rent immediately and urging him to clean up the apartment quickly.
Jiang Yuduo dislikes and didn’t want to face the atmosphere of emptiness that lingered after the disappearance of a person who seemed to never have existed. He didn’t ask anyone to clean up, though. There was nothing to be afraid of when someone died. When the person was alive, they were a name in Lu Qian’s registration book, and they disappeared after turning a page. After death, they were nothing more than a name on Yama’s registration book, and they disappeared after turning a page.
As he approached the fifth floor, the smell of incense and burnt paper grew stronger. “What are they doing up there?” he frowned.
“Making offerings, to ensure that the deceased passes peacefully. This person doesn’t seem to have any family members,” Dabin replied in a low voice. “We’re also doing this to reassure the neighbors next door so that they won’t spread any rumors that could discourage future tenants from renting here.”
“Okay.” Jiang Yuduo said, nodding.
The windows on the seventh-floor corridor were open, but smoke still filled the air. The young men that Da Bin had called burned paper in the apartment and at the door, and lit incense.
“San-ge.” they greeted him as he approached.
“Is everything finished?” Jiang Yuduo asked.
“Yes, we’re done.” one of the young men replied. “I’ll go in and pack up his things later.”
“Pack them up in boxes,” Jiang Yuduo instructed. “There’s a small dilapidated house next to Building 2. Take his belongings there and give them to the old lady who collects trash. She wants them.”
“All right,” the young man agreed, then asked quietly, “Does she want everything from a dead person?”
“You don’t need to worry about that art,” Jiang Yuduo explained, adding, “Hurry up, clean up!”
A group of little brothers were cleaning up in the house; they probably didn’t work at home, and they were worried. Anyway, everything was dumped into the box, and it was cleaned up with a clatter, leading others who didn’t know what was going on to believe it was a robbery.
The old lady that was going to pick up trash arrived halfway through cleaning, and Jiang Yuduo had no idea how she got up to the seventh floor.
“Someone will bring it to you in a while,” he added, “but no one will take it away from you.”
“Let me take a look.” The elderly lady hunched into the room as she talked, picking up the cardboard box to inspect it. After a few glances, he reached into the box, pulled out a plastic cup, and tossed it to the ground, saying, “I don’t want this, I can’t use it, and I can’t sell it for money.”
Da Bin exclaimed, “What the hell! How the fuck did we bother picking it up if you’re just going to throw it away?!”
The old lady reiterated that it wouldn’t sell for money, then proceeded to pull out another item – perhaps a music box. Jiang Yuduo found it amusing how intriguing his tenant was, there was a bunch of trinkets in his house. Then she raised her hand and dropped the box on the ground, stomping on it a couple of times. She muttered, “There’s nothing worth selling here…”
Jiang Yuduo was surprised by her energy, and she even had to kick the box to break it apart. He frowned and approached the old lady, grabbing her arm and dragging her out of the room. Pointing at her, he said, “If you want to watch, stay here, or go home and wait. But if you move anything again, you won’t be given anything.”
The old lady glared at him and retorted, “Fine, keep your trash!” before cursing under her breath and standing aside.
Da Bin was upset and said, “Why don’t you acknowledge that even poor people have dignity? You gave her those things with good intentions, yet you don’t like it when she picks and throws things away!”
Jiang Yuduo responded, “Everyone has their own way of living. Getting angry with her won’t change anything. Let’s finish cleaning up and then mop the floor.”
Da Bin nodded in agreement.
Da Bin nodded and then Jiang Yuduo took out a red envelope from his pocket and gave it to him. “Give this to them later and grab a bite to eat. I need to get going.”
“Leave it to me,” Da Bin said while taking the red envelope. “You focus on your work.”
Jiang Yuduo stepped out of the hallway and breathed in the chilly air, instantly feeling more at ease. Lu Qian called and requested his assistance in purchasing green plants from the flower shop to safeguard their household against evil spirits and bring in wealth. They needed to be placed in the card house.
“There are old smokers there all day long, making it smoky,” Jiang Yuduo voiced his concerns. “What plant can endure it? And where can we find green plants this season?”
“There are plenty of plants kept in the greenhouse,” Lu Qian replied. “We can purchase some indoor plants like those, let’s buy a dozen or eight pots. They also purify the air.”
“Sure, let me check it out.” Jiang Yuduo said.
“Also, my mother will visit in two days and wants to see the old house,” Lu Qian informed him. “You can take care of it for the next two days.”
“Okay,” Jiang Yuduo agreed. “But didn’t she say she doesn’t want to go back? She always argues with Mrs. Zhang.”
“She’s lonely,” Lu Qian said. “She has been arguing all her life, and now suddenly, She doesn’t have the strength to argue anymore.”
“In that case, I’ll clean up the house first.” Jiang Yuduo suggested.
“No need to clean up. She won’t be staying for more than two days, so don’t bother,” Lu Qian said. “The nanny doesn’t want to stay in the old house either, so she must be brought back.”
“Understood.” Jiang Yuduo said.
Lu Qian’s mother has a peculiar temperament, and when she visits, she refuses to stay with her daughter and instead opts to stay in an old house where she argues with her elderly grandmother all day long. Jiang Yuduo used to vacate the new or rented house for her, but now both are occupied, leaving him with the only option of staying in a hotel.
The only issue was what to do with Meow, his cat.
While his brothers could take care of Meow, they are not responsible enough, so Jiang Yuduo considers leaving the cat at the dumpster. The only person he trusts to take care of Meow is Chen Qing, but since he lives with his parents who dislike shedding furry animals and even forbid him from keeping fish, it is uncertain whether he would agree to take care of the cat.
So troublesome.
Jiang Yuduo decided to purchase green plants and lit a cigarette before heading out. Although there were numerous flower shops in the vicinity, he had never visited any before, and he was unsure whether they would have the ten or eight pots of green plants that Lu Qian had requested. Additionally, the shop appeared small, making it doubtful that they would be able to accommodate that many pots.
The weather was sunny with mild winds, but the temperature remained chilly, resulting in people like Cheng Ke who were afraid of the cold will not come out. Thus there were few pedestrians on the streets. Jiang Yuduo appreciated the emptiness of the street, as he did not need to scrutinize each passerby, making it more relaxing for him.
Upon entering the flower shop, he realized there were plenty of flowers inside, and it was difficult to identify whether any of them met Lu Qian’s requirements through the glass display. Therefore, he chose a flower shop that seemed to have a greater capacity and walked in.
“Welcome,” a man greeted him inside.
Jiang Yuduo heard a voice but didn’t see anyone, so he instinctively turned towards the source and walked a couple of steps until he spotted a person crouching in the corner, tying flowers with bows. With the person in view, he surveyed the store and noticed that there were many flowers, but he couldn’t recognize them. The room was filled with a strong fragrance.
“Excuse me, do you have any large green plants here?” Jiang Yuduo asked.
“How large do you want it? And where do you plan to put it?” The boss got up and walked over to him.
“Indoors,” Jiang Yuduo replied, surprised at the appearance of the person in front of him, who spoke like a man but had short hair and eye shadow. “I want a bigger one… but I don’t think you have any here. Are you sure you have it?”
“If you want it, I can have it delivered to you directly. We don’t have it in the store,” the boss responded. “We’ll pull it from the greenhouse.”
“Okay,” Jiang Yuduo nodded. “Can you suggest something that’s easy to take care of?”
“Sure,” the boss took out his phone and showed him some pictures. “I’ll show you some options, and you can choose.”
Jiang Yuduo noticed the man’s Adam’s apple and confirmed that he was indeed a man.
Although he had seen men wearing makeup and skirts before, he had never had such close interaction with one, let alone engaged in conversation. He felt a bit awkward, especially after getting to know Cheng Ke, he could no longer just dismiss such individuals with a passing glance.
The thought of ‘pretty and cute’ kept circling in his mind, and he couldn’t shake it off.
Beautiful, cute, lovely… was it okay to think like this?
Maybe Cheng Ke would like this type, but Jiang Yuduo found the taste a bit difficult to understand.
At the gym,
“Brother Cheng, take a seat for a while,” Xiao Yang suggested, “I’ll fetch you a pot of fruit tea.”
“No, thanks,” Cheng Ke refused, “I’ll just look around.”
“Just sit for a while, I’ll be right back,” Xiao Yang insisted, quickly pulling out a chair in the leisure area and darting off to the tea room.
Cheng Ke had no choice but to sit down.
Xiao Yang returned soon with the fruit tea and sat across from him.
“To be fair, Brother Cheng, it’s not surprising that you don’t remember me,” Xiao Yang said, “We only talked briefly a few years ago.”
“We did?” Cheng Ke was even more perplexed. With his appearance, he could usually remember someone for a long time, even without talking.
“Yeah,” Xiao Yang sighed, “We were both working out at the same gym for a few months.”
“Really?” Cheng Ke glanced at him again, “I know all the personal trainers over there.”
“I wasn’t a personal trainer then. I was chubby,” Xiao Yang grinned, “Just working out and seeking your advice.”
“Oh,” Cheng Ke said politely, suddenly realizing that with Xiao Yang’s initial physique, he couldn’t have had any recollection of him from two or three years ago, “You’re doing well now, and you’re a personal trainer?”
“I was quite interested at the time and eventually passed the certification exam, so I quit and became a fitness instructor,” Xiao Yang explained, “If you’re living around here now, our gym is the best.”
“Yes,” Cheng Ke agreed.
Despite Xiao Yang introducing him for a long time, Cheng Ke wasn’t fully attentive to what he was saying. He only managed to listen to most of it, and the reason why he didn’t interrupt him was that Xiao Yang was handsome with a well-built physique. It was just like his previous personal trainer, but not as good as Jiang Yuduo.
Thinking of Jiang Yuduo, Cheng Ke’s thoughts started to wander, reminiscing about last night’s dream. Typically, such dreams vanish from one’s memory in the morning, leaving only a few scattered details. However, he could still vividly recall Jiang Yuduo’s part in the dream.
Perhaps it was because winter was coming to an end, or perhaps his mind was too fixated on Jiang Yuduo’s pros and cons, making his imagination too detailed.
“Brother Cheng?” Xiao Yang called out to him from across the table, “Is this arrangement okay?”
Cheng Ke cleared his throat and looked at the form in front of Xiao Yang, which had a lot of information written on it.
“Uh-huh.” He responded in a nonchalant manner. He had probably been lost in thought for too long, and from what he could gather, it was an arrangement for applying for a gym membership card.
‘…Just do it,’ he followed Xiao Yang to make the payment.
“Brother Cheng, let’s exchange numbers so we can keep in touch,” Xiao Yang suggested.
“Sure.” Cheng Ke took out his phone.
“Then we’ll start on Wednesday, the day after tomorrow,” Xiao Yang said.
“Okay.” Cheng Ke nodded.
After Xiao Yang escorted him out of the gym and onto the quiet street, Cheng Ke felt relieved. He found it strange that he had already applied for a gym membership and bought private training lessons, but he couldn’t even recall the name of the gym.
The commercial area was deserted with few people around, and Cheng Ke wandered into an empty Western restaurant. He ordered a steak and pulled out his phone to kill time, scrolling through his social media feed. Today’s Moments were dominated by Youfa and the global fan club of Jiang Yuduo, who shared rumors and praised the idol.
Cheng Ke clicked on a short video that Chen Qing had posted, which seemed to be recorded by Jiang Yuduo when he was helping someone find something. Jiang Yuduo turned around and stopped the camera when it was facing him. Then, there was a photo of Jiang Yuduo enjoying a barbecue with a group of people, followed by another photo of him having a meal with Chen Qing and some others after the barbecue.
After their barbecue together, Jiang Yuduo actually went out to have a meal with Chen Qing and others. Cheng Ke couldn’t help but be impressed by Jiang Yuduo’s impressive camera skills and multitasking abilities.
Very capable.
Cheng Ke was momentarily taken aback, then he returned his phone to his pocket.
As he perused Chen Qing’s moments, he felt a sense of disappointment. Although Jiang Yuduo considered him a friend, compared to the people he hung out with every day, those people seemed more like friends – at least they acted that way.
As a friend, he longed to see Jiang Yuduo, but he couldn’t find a good enough reason to do so.
In other words, he and Jiang Yuduo’s relationship could never be like that of Chen Qing and Jiang Yuduo, where no reason was necessary, where a mere word or visit to his house would suffice.
He was the only customer in the entire restaurant during lunchtime, and the waitstaff seemed bored, gawking at him the whole time.
After finishing the honestly delicious steak, Cheng Ke took out his phone once again.
Hastily, before he could regret it, he messaged Big Inch.
–Let’s have dinner tonight.
Several minutes elapsed before Cheng Ke returned his phone to his pocket, paid his bill, and headed out. It wasn’t until he was about to leave that Big Inch’s response arrived.
–I’m busy.
Cheng Ke stared at those two words for a long while before coming back to his senses.
“Oh, damn it!” Cheng Ke muttered to himself, feeling frustrated and angry.
He couldn’t believe that Jiang Yuduo, a lowly gangster who spends his time counting trash cans, could be so dismissive in his response. It was upsetting to be given only two words in a busy schedule.
Cheng Ke left the restaurant feeling very unhappy and hailed a taxi at the intersection to go home. Although Jiang Yuduo might speak in this manner when interacting with his friends, for someone with even a slight inferiority complex, such a reply would be a major blow to their self-esteem.
It was embarrassing for him, even if he didn’t have any ulterior motives. This was the first time he had ever received such a curt response, and it left a sour taste in his mouth.
Jiang Yuduo leaned against the door, sat on the ground, and flung the phone on the sofa, blood streaming out from the knife mark on the tiger’s mouth on his right palm.
A three-and-a-half-year-old boy and his grandmother were talking outside the door.
“I see Uncle Jiang’s hand is bleeding.” stated the three-and-a-half-year-old.
“Go into the house! Run back home when you see him in the future, he fights with people all day long, what’s so strange about bleeding, just ignore him, don’t pay attention to him, don’t listen to him!” his grandmother said quietly.
The three-and-a-half-year-old’s voice faded away as he probably entered the house, “I just saw it. I’ll ignore him.” After the door closed, the voice disappeared. Jiang Yuduo sat for a while before he stood up, walked to the window, and peeked out through the gap in the curtains.
The person from earlier was nowhere to be seen.
As he hurried back, the man followed closely behind him, the sound of his panting audible. It wasn’t until he reached the entrance corridor and saw the three-and-a-half-year-old child that the footsteps and panting gradually faded away.
Jiang Yuduo turned around and entered the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and ran his injured right hand under the tap, staining the water with blood as the color on the sink showed faint red.
After a while, he withdrew his hand, shook it, and took out the knife from his pocket. He rinsed the knife under the running water and returned to the living room.
As Jiang Yuduo disinfected his wound, Meow sat on the coffee table and watched him.
“I’ll feed you in a bit, wait.” Jiang Yuduo said, “I’ll take you on a trip tomorrow, but I’m not sure if your Uncle Cheng would be willing to look after you for two days.”
Meow took two steps towards him and jumped onto the sofa. She climbed up to his shoulder, purring into his ear.
“But I think he likes cats a lot,” Jiang Yuduo quickly wrapped the bandage around his hand, biting one end and tying a knot. After years of dealing with such wounds, he could almost do it without looking. “You’ll probably be fine for two days. I’m not worried about leaving you at someone else’s place.”
After finishing up with his wound, he got up to get some cat food, pouring half a bowl for Meow and scooping up two spoonfuls of canned food. “Eat up, you’re getting so fat.”
Cheng Ke hasn’t exercised for a long time, and today he suddenly touched the equipment again, and he felt a little uncomfortable.
Xiao Yang is very patient, so patient that he is a little wordy: “This sitting posture pushes the chest, pay attention…the upper back of the head and the buttocks are close to the backrest…”
“Yes.” Cheng Ke has already sat in the standard posture.
Just as he was about to push to see if the weight was appropriate, Xiao Yang’s hand suddenly touched his stomach: “Touch your stomach and raise your chest…”
Cheng Ke was already ready, but he was cheered up by his sudden push They all exhaled.
“Take a deep breath,” Xiao Yang said, and put his hands up on his chest, “Strengthen your chest, don’t fully straighten your arms when pushing…”
Cheng Ke collected himself, and slowly pushed a few times, feeling that the weight was okay, Just as he was about to continue, the phone next to him rang.
“You answer the phone first.” Xiao Yang walked away.
Cheng Ke had not exercised in a long time, and when he finally touched the equipment again, he felt a bit uneasy. Xiao Yang was very patient, perhaps a little too wordy: “This sitting posture pushes the chest, pay attention…the upper back of the head and the buttocks are close to the backrest…”
Cheng Ke followed his instructions and sat in the correct posture. As he was about to test the weight, Xiao Yang suddenly placed his hand on Cheng Ke’s stomach: “Touch your stomach and raise your chest…”
Cheng Ke was caught off guard by the sudden push and exhaled sharply. “Take a deep breath,” Xiao Yang instructed, placing his hands on Cheng Ke’s chest, “Strengthen your chest, don’t fully straighten your arms when pushing…”
Cheng Ke gathered his composure and pushed a few times, feeling that the weight was manageable. Just as he was about to continue, his phone began to ring.
“Answer the phone first,” Xiao Yang said, walking away.
Cheng Ke glanced at his phone and saw that it was Jiang Yuduo calling. He almost swiped it away out of habit, but then hesitated for a moment. He finally pressed the mute button and stared at the screen until the call ended.
As he was about to put the phone down, it rang again, and a message appeared on the screen.
Cheng Ke picked up the phone and glanced at it, it was Jiang Yuduo’s call.
When he habitually wanted to swipe away, his fingers stopped again. After two seconds, he pressed mute and then stared at the phone screen until the phone hung up.
Just as he was about to put the phone back, the phone rang again, and a message came in.
It was sent by Big Inch.
-Are you at home?
Cheng Ke replied happily.
-I’m busy
A mere second after the previous call, Jiang Yuduo rang again. The short interval caught Cheng Ke off guard, causing him to accidentally answer the call with a simple “Hello.”
“Are you available later?” Jiang Yuduo’s voice came through the phone.
Cheng Ke found Jiang Yuduo’s voice to be quite pleasant when they first spoke, and even now, it remained enjoyable to listen to.
However, Cheng Ke remained steadfast in his response: “I have something to do.”
“What’s keeping you busy?” Jiang Yuduo inquired, “It’s only 5 pm. Are you working late into the night?”
“I’ll be working until tomorrow night,” Cheng Ke replied.
“…Are you trying to get back at me?” Jiang Yuduo asked.
Cheng Ke clicked his tongue, remaining silent.
“No,” Jiang Yuduo also clicked his tongue, “Are you that naive?”
“I’m only three-and-a-half years old,” Cheng Ke retorted, “what’s the big deal?”
“Where are you?” Jiang Yuduo asked, “Are you outside? And what’s that music?”
“At the gym,” Cheng Ke responded.
“I’m at the gym,” replied Cheng Ke.
“Working out?” Jiang Yuduo sounded surprised. “You’re living the good life…Anyway, I’ll come to find you later.”
“What’s the matter?” Cheng Ke sensed that Jiang Yuduo had something important to discuss.
“It’s nothing,” Jiang Yuduo hesitated. “I’ll tell you later. Let’s have dinner together.”
“Sure,” Cheng Ke agreed. “I’m at the supermarket on the second floor of the gym on the next street in the business district.”
“What is this complicated location?” Jiang Yuduo sighed. “Okay, send me the address, and I’ll find it myself.”
Once Cheng Ke had sent the location to Jiang Yuduo, Xiao Yang approached him and asked, “Anyone coming over?”
“Yes,” Cheng Ke replied, sitting in a proper posture as he placed his hands on his stomach and chest.
“Do you want to end the session early?” Xiao Yang inquired, “We still have half an hour.”
“No,” Cheng Ke responded, “He should be arriving around that time.”
“Alright,” Xiao Yang grinned, “Let’s continue then.”
Although it was a bit far from Jiang Yuduo’s house, since he enjoyed walking, it should be around 20 minutes to reach the gym. Surprisingly, only ten minutes had passed since their phone call when Cheng Ke saw Jiang Yuduo walking towards him while he was in the middle of his workout.
As Jiang Yuduo entered the gym, because the place is well-heated, he took off his coat.
This pose of taking off his coat is very handsome.
“Brother Cheng,” Xiao Yang held the handle next to him, “concentrate.”
Cheng Ke withdrew his gaze, and only let go after pushing.
“Is that your friend?” Xiao Yang inquired, noticing Jiang Yuduo’s presence.
“Yes,” Cheng Ke replied, rising to his feet.
Xiao Yang acknowledged Jiang Yuduo with a nod before directing his attention back to Cheng Ke. “Shall we end the session for today? It’s almost time.”
“Sure,” Cheng Ke assented.
Once Xiao Yang had left, Jiang Yuduo asked in a hushed tone, “Who’s he?”
“My personal trainer,” Cheng Ke disclosed.
“I see,” Jiang Yuduo murmured, giving Xiao Yang another once-over, “Hm.”
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Cheng Ke questioned.
Jiang Yuduo cleared his throat. “Nothing.”
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