Jiao Bai sat on his seat, eating lunch.

The stir-fried meat with garlic sprouts had cooled down and formed a layer of oil. The small green vegetables were nestled in the rice and still slightly warm. He picked them out one by one, arranging them next to the sweet pickled garlic that he liked.

Some time had passed since that scene by the wall.

Thinking back on it now, he still felt awkward.

At that time, Shen Er'an started walking away with his sketchbook without saying anything. Jiao Bai had wanted to wait until he had left and then work out what to do, but to his surprise, Shen Er’an stopped only after a few steps, so Jiao Bai had no choice but follow him.

The two of them walked in silence for a while before parting ways.

Jiao Bai was glad that Shen Er'an was taciturn, not the type to engage in small talk, and wouldn’t ask about him and Qi Shuang. At any rate, there was no way Jiao Bai was going to offer an explanation. The only thing he could do was act as if nothing had happened.

He was good at playing dumb.

Anyway, things should be peaceful on Qi Shuang's side for the time being, barring no surprises. Jiao Bai mixed the vegetables with the rice and started eating heartily.

“Bai Bai, you’re not done yet? You eat so slowly.” His female deskmate walked into the classroom through the back door, her voice bright and clear.

Jiao Bai turned his head, his gaze subtly brushing over her friend beside her. The girl’s hands were in the pockets of her uniform. A bag of frosted peanuts hung from one pocket, swaying as she walked.

“Only your deskmate is in the classroom, no Shen Er'an,” the friend mumbled quietly, her eyes revealing a trace of disappointment as they scanned the room.

“When I was at the store, I saw them walking together,” his deskmate whispered into her ear, “I'll go ask him.”

His deskmate came up to Jiao Bai. “Bai Bai, why are you here all alone? Where’s Liang Dong? Where did he go?”

Jiao Bai swallowed the food in his mouth, unscrewed his bottle and drank two mouthfuls of hot water. “Isn't Liang Dong playing ball on the court? You can see him from the window.”

His deskmate coughed, and the friend blushed.

Jiao Bai murmured, “I just don't know where Shen Er'an went.”

“He doesn't know either,” his deskmate said loudly to her friend.

Her friend tugged at her sleeve. “Forget it. I’m going back to the classroom.”

“Didn’t you want to find out his preferred university and major? Stay and hang out with me for a bit. He might be back soon…”

Jiao Bai didn’t pay attention to the two girls. He scratched his neck and pulled out a spray from his desk cubby, spraying it on the itchy spot. Even the sunlight in this weather was too much for his skin. It was practically impossible to live.

Jiao Bai took a few bites of his meal and glanced over at the classroom window. Shen Er'an had probably found a quiet place to fold his dragonfly.

In the comic, when Young Master Shen was his old man’s age, he was still folding dragonflies—one each day—and kept them in a special collection room that even Li Jue wasn't allowed to enter.

.

Shen Er'an sat on the stairs outside the computer room, holding a pair of small scissors. He cut along the middle line between the dragonfly's two wings, cutting from top down.

“An-ge, what are you doing up here?” Liang Dong climbed the stairs with a basketball in his arms, his sweaty jersey clinging to his already broad shoulders.

Last night, his family invited some guests to dinner, and they discussed the situation in South City the entire time. When he got home, his dad even called him into the study to ask for his opinion. What fncczlm opinion could he possibly have?

If his dad insisted on making him take over the family business, he would definitely bring the entire Liang family to side with An-ge. There was no need to even say it. It was obvious.

Back in junior high, he was a fat weak chicken, who was ridiculed and bullied. An-ge helped him, and from then on, they became brothers—lifelong brothers.

However, An-ge was mature beyond his years—and had no desires nor aspirations. He lacked the youthful passion and fervour typical for his age. He only liked reading and folding paper. Deceit, treachery and strife over money, interests, and power would never have a place in his world. They would never see a day when they would fight side by side in the business world, triumphing over all.

“An-ge?” Liang Dong called out again after receiving no response for a long time.

Shen Er'an had damaged the wing of the paper dragonfly while cutting.

Liang Dong closed his eyes in disbelief and then opened them again. An-ge had already torn off the damaged wing. With difficulty, he swallowed a hefty mouthful of saliva.

Something was off. An-ge was acting strange.

Liang Dong couldn’t figure out why. Holding the ball between his feet and his arms resting on the railing, he tried to strike up a conversation, “An-ge, did you notice that the other day, Jiao Bai was like an eccentric, resentful, scorned woman but today his face is glowing and he’s full of energy. He even hummed Mountain Road With Eighteen Bends[1] while taking a leak. He’s practically walking on clouds. I feel like I’ve been too naive. What I told you on the phone last night was wrong.”

Shen Er'an took a square piece of blue paper from his sketchbook again and focused intently on folding the paper.

“I think he came back to life overnight because he saw your dad at Fuyuan Restaurant last night. So, he isn’t trying to hook up with you after being thrown away by your dad.” Liang Dong glanced around to ensure it was safe before lighting a cigarette. “It’s because he still hasn’t given up.”

“I really didn’t expect this. He’s going after you because of your dad. He’s trying to use you,” Liang Dong said while watching Shen Er'an fold the paper. He thought to himself, An-ge’s nails are cleaner and tidier than the nails of many girls. I really wonder what kind of person his future wife will be.

“From beginning to end, it was all for your dad,” Liang Dong said, shaking his head with a cigarette between his lips.

Shen Er'an pinched the edges of the diamond shape and absentmindedly folded them inward.

“Let’s not even mention that your grandmother is like a giant guardian Buddha, warding off all the evil spirits trying to approach your front door. Your dad is about to get married, and this guy still wants to butt in and be a third wheel?” Liang Dong couldn’t understand it. In fact, most of the kept men and women in their circle were like this, but while he didn’t care about others, for some reason, he particularly looked down on Jiao Bai and everything about Jiao Bai rubbed him the wrong way. “Do you think something’s wrong with his head?”

Shen Er'an had broken the wing again. “You took him there, last night?”

The half-smoked cigarette on the corner of Liang Dong's lips shook. “Huh?”


[1] 山路十八弯 (Shān lù shíbā wān) - Mountain Road With Eighteen Bends – appears to be a song in Mandarin released in 2000 and performed by Li Qiong.