APR 1

The slanted sunlight streamed through the window, falling upon the dark-haired young man lying on the bed. He was handsome, with pale, almost translucent skin glowing under the light.

He slept restlessly, his sweat-dampened bangs clinging to his forehead, the faint red mole on his wrist half-hidden beneath the covers.

Suddenly, an angry roar erupted from downstairs: “Useless!”

The glass window rattled, carrying the man’s loud scolding clearly into the room: “How dare you cry with such terrible grades? You’re nothing but an embarrassment to me.” This was immediately followed by a child’s heart-wrenching wails, slicing through the afternoon tranquility like a sharp knife.

Zhong Su was jolted awake by the cries. His eyelids fluttered a few times before he opened his eyes, expressionlessly sitting up.

The shrill scolding outside continued unabated. Zhong Su glanced at the alarm clock by his bed—it was 6:54 PM. He had only slept for twenty minutes before being disturbed.

The corner of his mouth tightened almost imperceptibly. “So annoying.”

Just then, a sharp click sounded from the bathroom outside, as if a pipe had finally burst under pressure. Immediately afterward, the unrestrained rush of water crashed loudly against the tiles.

“Tch, this damn water heater…” a hoarse male voice grumbled irritably, followed by the heavy clang of a metal tool being thrown to the floor.

“What’s going on?” Zhong Su pressed a hand to his throbbing head as he got out of bed. Stepping out of his room, he saw the bathroom door wide open, water splashing everywhere, and his roommate standing with his back to the door. The young man was tall and broad-shouldered, his upper body bare, water droplets tracing paths down the grooves of his sun-tanned back muscles and soaking the hem of his jeans.

Leaning against the doorframe, Zhong Su asked, “Chen Huan, are you fixing the water heater? Do you need a hand?”

Chen Huan turned off the valve and faced him, water dripping from his jawline. His handsome face carried a wild edge—deep-set eyes, sharp brow bones, and the broken eyebrow on his left side making him resemble a dangerous black panther.

Seeing Zhong Su, Chen Huan raised an eyebrow slightly. “Su Er, you’re awake? I just checked—the water heater can’t be fixed today. We’ll have to take cold showers tonight.”

He grabbed a towel from the rack, wiping his face as he asked, “What’s wrong? You look terrible.”

Chen Huan’s tone held a hint of irritation, likely from the water spraying into his face earlier.

“Just didn’t sleep well,” Zhong Su replied, pressing his throbbing temples. “The weather’s too hot…”

His body naturally ran cool, completely incompatible with Yan Gang’s oppressive summer heat.

Before he could finish, Zhong Su felt a warm touch on his forehead. Chen Huan’s damp hand pressed against it, the rough calluses on his palm scraping lightly against his skin with an undeniable firmness.

“Doesn’t seem like heatstroke,” Chen Huan stated bluntly.

“Go wash your face,” Chen Huan said, brushing his fingers over Zhong Su’s cheek. “The cold water will wake you up.”

“Alright.” Zhong Su didn’t pull away, allowing the touch.

After living together for two years, he had grown accustomed to Chen Huan’s boundary-less physical contact—draping an arm over his shoulder while walking, leaning against him while watching TV, like a restless wolf-dog constantly using touch to assert his presence.

The sudden beep of a pager broke the quiet. Chen Huan tossed the wrench into his toolbox and carried it out of the bathroom.

Zhong Su turned on the faucet, splashing his face with a handful of water, and heard Chen Huan pick up the pager from the table, pressing a few buttons.

Zhong Su kept his attention on Chen Huan and asked, “Who’s messaging you? Someone looking for you at this hour?”

Chen Huan rubbed the pager buttons, his sharp eyes shadowed with concern: “Shou Hou says something’s happened at Great Joy. We need to check it out.”

Zhong Su responded vaguely: “I’ll come after washing my face.”

“Alright, I’ll change clothes too.”

Chen Huan tugged at his jeans and clicked his tongue: “Fixing that damn pipe got my underwear wet.”

Zhong Su splashed water on his face, his head still aching slightly as he followed Chen Huan downstairs.

Before they even reached the first floor, they could clearly hear the man who’d been scolding the child earlier.

The first floor of their building housed the landlord’s family – a thin, long-winded man who was currently whipping his son with a willow branch.

“Why didn’t you get full marks in math? What’s the point of sending you to tutoring? Answer me!”

“Sorry Dad.” The child cried desperately, his palms already covered with red welts from the beating.

Spotting Chen Huan and Zhong Su, the landlord immediately stopped and greeted them: “Brother Chen, Xiao Zhong Ge, heading out?”

Chen Huan snorted at the scene: “Shouldn’t you be cooking at this hour instead of beating your kid? No wonder it’s so noisy.”

Zhong Su massaged his temples irritably: “I don’t interfere with how others discipline their children, but keep it down. Don’t disturb the neighbors.”

The man awkwardly pulled his son’s hand, forcing an embarrassed smile: “It won’t happen again. I won’t beat him anymore.”

He knew that in this rental life of his, there were only two people he couldn’t afford to offend – Chen Huan and Zhong Su from the Jiu Zhong Society. To put it plainly, these two were like the neighborhood’s bad omens.

Chen Huan’s black-and-gold motorcycle stood quietly against the wall, the sunset casting a dark red glow over its body.

In this rundown, mixed neighborhood, the expensive motorcycle stood out like a sore thumb – like treasure fallen into a slum, tempting others to steal it.

But Zhong Su knew the bike couldn’t be safer here. In this neighborhood, no one was foolish enough to touch Chen Huan’s belongings.

Zhong Su climbed onto the back seat. Chen Huan grabbed his hand and said: “Hold tight, or you’ll get thrown onto the road when I accelerate.”

Zhong Su tightened his embrace, feeling the muscles of Chen Huan’s waist and abdomen through the thin fabric, warm with body heat: “This should do.”

Chen Huan glanced sideways at him, twisted the throttle, and the motorcycle roared to life before shooting off like an arrow from a bow.

Great Joy Dance Hall was the most profitable venue in Chen Huan’s territory. Chen Huan usually paid close attention to it, stationing only his most trusted subordinates there.

If his men reported problems, it definitely wasn’t anything minor.

However, handling venue issues usually took time, so following their usual routine, the two decided to have dinner first before dealing with the matter.

The motorcycle stopped in front of Wan Ji Tea House, which specialized in simple meals.

It was peak dining hours. The tea house was filled with appetizing food aromas. The previously listless server immediately brightened upon seeing them, warmly greeting: “Brother Chen! Xiao Zhong Ge! What would you like today?”

Chen Huan pressed Zhong Su’s shoulder, leaning close to his ear: “Su Er, you order. I need to return Shou Hou’s call.”

“Go ahead.” Zhong Su responded, then realized: “Wait, what do you want to eat?”

“You know my preferences.”

Chen Huan walked up to the counter and tapped the surface with his index finger, addressing the person sitting behind it. “Let me use the phone.”

“Of course!” The man promptly brought out the landline, allowing Chen Huan to dial a number.

Zhong Su sighed helplessly and lowered his head to browse the menu, his fingertips lightly tapping the laminated pages. “One order of wonton noodles, one pepper salt spare rib rice, half a dozen grilled chicken wings—and two bottles of chilled beer.”

“Got it! Your food will be ready in ten minutes!”

The server swiftly set the tableware and brought over two plates of freshly made French toast. The golden toast, fried in butter, had slightly curled edges, while condensed milk slowly dripped down the knife marks. The warm, sweet aroma wafted straight into their nostrils.

The server said, “These are for you, Xiao Zhong Ge, and Brother Chen. The boss insisted we treat you well whenever you return. Thanks to your help last time, those troublemakers haven’t dared to cause any more disturbances at the teahouse.”

Zhong Su didn’t refuse but replied calmly, “Please thank your boss for me, but there’s no need to be so polite next time.”

From the front desk came Chen Huan’s low voice—the call had connected. Leaning against the counter, he spoke steadily, “Shou Hou… it’s me. Su Er and I will be there in about an hour. Tell me what’s going on first.”

Shou Hou’s voice sounded muffled through the receiver, as if filtered through frosted glass. “Brother Chen, that slippery Liu Yanhu is refusing to pay up. He even brought a few guys from the Longhua Gang to interfere with our business.”

“He must have paid his respects to the elders of the Longhua Gang and gotten their backing. Thinks that means we won’t dare touch him.”

Shou Hou spat out a curse. “Damn idiot.”

Chen Huan listened indifferently, his expression devoid of the gentleness he reserved for Zhong Su. His eyes darkened like the sea before a storm.

After venting his frustrations at length, Shou Hou finally hung up resentfully. “Brother Chen, I’ll keep an eye on things here until you and Xiao Zhong Ge arrive.”

Chen Huan gave a faint acknowledgment, replaced the receiver, and tucked a few bills under the phone to cover the call charge.

By then, all the dishes had been served. Chen Huan pulled out a chair and sat down, and Zhong Su pushed the pepper salt spare rib rice toward him.

Zhong Su said, “I only ordered your usual. Even if it’s not to your taste, make do with it.”

Only after Chen Huan took his first bite did Zhong Su pick up his chopsticks. His gaze swept over the fierce intensity in the other man’s brow. “I heard you mention the Longhua Gang. Are they causing trouble in our territory again?”

The Longhua Gang was a rival society to the Jiu Zhong Society, constantly eyeing the bar street under their control and stirring up trouble. In the three years since Zhong Su had joined the Jiu Zhong Society, he’d had plenty of dealings with the Longhua Gang.

In his opinion, they were all beneath contempt.

Chen Huan chuckled. “Pretty much. Our ‘clever’ Boss Liu has grown a backbone. He paid off the Longhua Gang and now says he doesn’t need our society’s protection.”

Zhong Su understood that Liu Yanhu was trying to skip out on the protection fee and nodded. “How far do we take it later? Just rough them up, or smash up the place too?”

“Doesn’t matter.” Chen Huan tipped a plate of grilled chicken wings into Zhong Su’s bowl. “This kind of trivial matter will be resolved quickly anyway.”

Chen Huan grinned slightly, his teeth sharp like a shark’s.

Zhong Su was all too familiar with that expression. Every time Chen Huan smiled like that, it meant someone was about to have a very bad day.

The two quickly finished their dinner and drove straight to Grand Joy. Grand Joy was an ornately decorated dance hall, its neon sign flickering while deafening music blared inside, the air thick with the pungent smell of cigarettes and alcohol.

Manager Huang was pacing anxiously near the entrance. The moment he spotted Chen Huan and Zhong Su, he immediately hurried over to greet them.