The rain in early May always falls without warning, pattering down and catching people off guard.
The green leaves and delicate flowers, under the rain, look lonely and fragile, with the sky also a shade of gray. Cars speed by in the rain, and people under umbrellas hurry along.
A low and damp feeling hangs over the entire city.
When Bai Xizhou arrived at Fujiang, it was already 4 p.m. The delayed train had caused him to arrive two hours later than planned, and the rain outside the station still hadn’t stopped.
He stood at the exit, waiting for a car to pick him up. Bai Xizhou was tall, and even just standing there with his umbrella was enough to attract attention. He wore a khaki trench coat, with a few drops of rain leaving dark water stains on it.
Bai Xizhou took out his phone to check the time, then closed it, pulling his suitcase along as he walked into the rain.
Because of the delay, the driver he’d arranged earlier had taken another job. Bai Xizhou decided not to wait any longer; he needed to reach the legal aid center before it closed to complete the handover.
In fact, he didn’t have to be in such a rush. The law firm had arranged for him to arrive a day early, but Bai Xizhou had been held up by some personal matters, forcing him to arrive a day later.
This time, the legal aid location was in Yunduan Town, more than an hour’s drive from the station. Everything felt rushed.
All the setbacks seemed to have piled up today, and combined with the bad weather, it left Bai Xizhou feeling a bit irritable.
Fortunately, there was a group of taxi drivers not far from the station exit, vying for passengers. Bai Xizhou quickly got into one of the cars, but the driver didn’t seem in a hurry to leave. Just as Bai Xizhou sat down, the driver was already preparing to leave.
“Not leaving now?” Bai Xizhou frowned. He didn’t understand where this driver intended to go with a passenger already on board.
“Oh, your destination is a bit far, so I thought I’d pick up a few more along the way, you don’t mind, right?” The driver, with a thick local accent and a grin on his face, replied.
Fortunately, the accent wasn’t too hard to understand. Bai Xizhou caught the driver’s meaning—he intended to take other passengers along, essentially turning this into a shared ride, though he hadn’t bothered asking for Bai Xizhou’s consent.
Already feeling irritable, Bai Xizhou was now even more annoyed.
“I do mind. Let’s go now; I’m in a hurry.” With a cold expression, Bai Xizhou spoke and reached for the door handle. “If we’re not leaving, I’ll find another car.”
After all, there were plenty of cars around; he was sure he’d find one that would leave right away.
The driver looked dumbfounded, probably not expecting this reaction, but unwilling to lose the fare, he sat back in the driver’s seat and started the car.
The scenery blurred as it sped by, with slanting raindrops streaking the car windows. Inside, it was warmer, and a thin layer of mist coated the windows.
Bai Xizhou had no interest in watching the passing scenery. He kept his head down, looking at his phone as he contacted the legal aid center staff to explain his current situation.
The driver glanced at Bai Xizhou through the rearview mirror, and the atmosphere in the car was a bit tense. It was his first time encountering a passenger who outright refused to share a ride. This guy, clearly not a local, seemed hard to deal with, and the cold expression he had just now looked like he might smash up the car any second.
“Uh, so, young man, I can tell you’re not from Fujiang by your accent.” The driver tried to make conversation to ease the tense atmosphere.
“I’m from Xincheng.” Bai Xizhou kept his head down but still responded to the driver’s question.
“Are you here to visit Fujiang? If you’re touring, you shouldn’t go to Yunduan Town. There aren’t any attractions there. You should go to other small towns, they’re much more interesting than Yunduan.”
The driver was a chatterbox. He had expected Bai Xizhou not to respond, but since he had answered his question, the driver naturally wanted to ask more.
“I’m not here for tourism. I’m here for work.” Bai Xizhou put his phone away, leaned his head against the window, his face showing signs of exhaustion.
The driver just said “oh” and didn’t continue.
Bai Xizhou couldn’t hold on any longer and closed his eyes.
The car drove steadily through the rain. Every time it turned, Bai Xizhou’s body shifted with the inertia.
He had to admit, no matter how tired he was, he couldn’t sleep in a moving car.
He hated the situation he was in now, both physically and mentally nearing their breaking points.
The thing that was holding him back suddenly popped into his mind, the source of the disruption was actually his father, who had surprised him greatly just the day before.
That surprise was enough to break down all the walls he had built over the years. Bai Xizhou was incredibly grateful for the legal aid assignment, as it provided him with a legitimate reason to escape that troublesome place.
His thoughts swirled into a chaotic mess.
Suddenly, the car braked hard. Bai Xizhou lurched forward a bit before bouncing back into his seat, then opened his eyes.
He couldn’t bring his emotions into work. See, this was the consequence.
“We’re at Yunduan Town. The legal aid center is just ahead.”
Bai Xizhou snapped out of his thoughts, rubbing his sore shoulder where the seatbelt had dug in. He quickly scanned the QR code, paid, and got out of the car.
The staff at the legal aid center were already waiting. Bai Xizhou apologized to them first, acknowledging that he was late, which was his fault, and thanked them for waiting.
“Lawyer Bai, hello. My name is Liu Li, you can call me Sister Li.”
The receptionist, Liu Li, had worked here for many years. She showed Bai Xizhou around the office and eventually led him to the reception room.
“This is the reception area. You and the other lawyers will take turns on duty. There will also be home visits later. The schedule is posted outside, just check it when the time comes.”
Liu Li pointed to a desk in front of them, where a sign reading “Aid Lawyer” was displayed.
The place wasn’t large. There were only two reception rooms. Across from them, there was another room. Two lawyers would be on duty each day, while the others had scheduled visits.
“I heard Lawyer Bai is about to be promoted to senior partner at your law firm. Why are you still coming here to do legal aid?” Liu Li had done her homework on the visiting lawyer team.
Xinze Law Firm held legal aid projects every year, but most of the time it was for junior lawyers. Occasionally, some senior lawyers participated, but it was rare. The man in front of her, who looked to be in his thirties, was a preparatory senior partner at Xinze. Normally, someone like him wouldn’t choose to come to such a distant place for legal aid.
“It was drawn in the lottery.” Bai Xizhou casually gave an excuse.
(TLN: “抽签抽到的” (chōu qiān chōu dào de): This translates to “It was drawn in the lottery.” In Chinese, this can sometimes be used casually to explain something that happened by chance or without much effort, even if it isn’t literally about a lottery.)
In reality, it was because this place was the farthest from Xincheng.
Liu Li didn’t ask any more questions. She knew well enough that all the lawyers who came here only needed to do their jobs properly.
After the work handover was completed, Bai Xizhou left first. The rain outside had stopped, but the sky was still dark, and he wasn’t sure if another rainstorm would come later.
He decided to find a place to stay. Originally, the law firm was supposed to arrange accommodation, but it was in the city center, which was too far and inconvenient. Bai Xizhou preferred to find somewhere close to his workplace.
Bai Xizhou aimlessly walked down the street. At this hour, the small town was at dinner time, and time seemed to move slowly. The whole street seemed to have come to a halt.
There was a small shop by the street. A family was eating under a canopy they had set up at the entrance. Occasionally, the owner of the neighboring shop would come over with a bowl of food, chatting and laughing. The atmosphere was warm and friendly.
In the city, Bai Xizhou rarely saw scenes like this. In fact, it was often the case that you could live somewhere for years without even knowing who your neighbors were.
Bai Xizhou, pulling his suitcase, smiled.
There was a hint of envy in his smile, but no one noticed.
As the sky was about to turn completely dark, Bai Xizhou found a place to stay. There weren’t many accommodations in Yunduan Town, and the Qingmei Inn in front of him looked slightly better.
Although he didn’t care much about the environment, he would be staying here for a month, so it couldn’t be too bad.
The inn was nice, with a few flower pots placed at the entrance. However, after the rain, the flowers drooped, looking quite battered.
Bai Xizhou pushed open the door, and a wind chime rang. Someone sitting by the window, who had been fiddling with something, looked up and made eye contact with Bai Xizhou, but quickly looked away.
He then lowered his head and continued fiddling with whatever he had in his hands.
Bai Xizhou didn’t have the energy to care. He walked straight to the front desk, took out his ID to check in.
“Ru Qing, come and help carry the guest’s luggage upstairs.” After completing the check-in process, the woman at the front desk handed Bai Xizhou the room key and his ID, then called out to the person by the window.
He was very thin.
This was the first impression Bai Xizhou had of Wen Ruqing—so thin that it seemed like he could be blown away by the wind at any moment, but his face didn’t really show it. His complexion was healthy and rosy, and only under the light, through his thin clothes, could you see his slender waist.
“No need, I can carry it up myself.”
He was worried that the suitcase might be too heavy and that Wen Ruqing, with his small frame, wouldn’t be able to lift it. What if it broke on the stairs?
Bai Xizhou thought this in an absurd way.
“Aunt, did you hear that? He said it himself, not that I’m being lazy.”
“I think you’re just lazy. You’ve been back for so long and still won’t lift a finger.”
“I’m tired, aunt, really tired.”
After Bai Xizhou went up the stairs, he heard Wen Ruqing’s voice behind him. It wasn’t quite what he had imagined—it was a bit lively, with a rising intonation at the end, as if he were whining.
He didn’t know why he was paying attention to this man he had never met before. Bai Xizhou shook his head and laughed self-deprecatingly, continuing to carry his luggage upstairs.
The room wasn’t large, but it was very clean—just enough for one person to stay. There was a window with a street view. The day had been so rushed that Bai Xizhou hadn’t had much to eat. Now that he had settled down, he was suddenly aware of how hungry he was.
There was no delivery service here, and Bai Xizhou, too tired to go out, remembered that there had been instant noodles for sale behind the man’s seat when he came upstairs.
When Bai Xizhou went downstairs, Wen Ruqing was still there, but the aunt at the front desk had already disappeared. Bai Xizhou walked past Wen Ruqing, grabbed a cup of instant noodles and a bottle of water, and paid according to the listed price.
Wen Ruqing was still immersed in his own world, seemingly unaware that Bai Xizhou was right behind him. But Bai Xizhou glanced at him to see what he was doing.
Wen Ruqing tore off a small piece of paper, dipped a brush in water, and used it to mend the torn paper on the table. He was doing it carefully, but with great skill.
He must have some experience with book repair.
Bai Xizhou found it intriguing, but it didn’t make him stay for long. He only watched for a brief moment before taking his things upstairs.
He thought the night would pass quietly, but trouble always seems to follow one after another. For example, when Bai Xizhou was about to take a shower, he found that the water heater wasn’t producing hot water at all.
It seemed like his bad luck was truly never-ending.
He had no choice but to go downstairs again. This time, Wen Ruqing was still sitting at the same table, not having moved.
“Hello, the water heater in my room isn’t working.” Bai Xizhou bent his fingers and knocked on the table with his knuckles.
Only then did Wen Ruqing look up, his eyes still showing a mixture of confusion and irritation—anger at being interrupted from his work, though it wasn’t the dominant emotion. What stood out more was a sense of indifference.
“Sorry, it’s too late, the repairman probably won’t be available until tomorrow.” Wen Ruqing stood up to apologize and, while speaking, walked toward the front desk. “I’ll give you another room.”
Wen Ruqing worked faster than the lady at the front desk had, quickly handing over a new room key to Bai Xizhou.
Bai Xizhou noticed a blue wristband on his right wrist. Wen Ruqing had a faint smile on his face, looking very kind and polite.
For some reason, perhaps because he had met so many people over the years, Bai Xizhou couldn’t shake the strong feeling of discomfort he felt from this person.
Before his curiosity could take over, the wind chimes hanging by the window suddenly chimed, their sound mixed with the breeze that blew in, echoing in the night. Bai Xizhou snapped back to reality and realized that he had crossed a line in his thoughts.
But he still couldn’t resist. As he reached the top of the stairs, he turned back, looking at Wen Ruqing, who had stood up to close the window.
“It’s getting windy.”
