Chi Lanyi didn’t dare emerge from under his blankets.
His head throbbed, his mouth was bitter. His overly sensitive body became the perfect instrument for the hangover to torment him. His body was feverish, yet he kept breaking out in cold sweats. For a moment, he was overcome with a hazy confusion.
Was everything that happened last night a nightmare? His mind currently only held scattered fragments of memory.
Yet just one look at his disheveled shirt was enough to confirm that last night’s events had indeed occurred.
He had been tricked into going to the bar by Zou Jun, stupidly drank out of spite, and was then taken upstairs to a room by him.
The thoughts in his teachers’ eyes were right—he truly was an idiot who didn’t know how to protect himself.
A painful shame of being deceived spread through his heart. The rumored Renault was a man; Zou Jun, who tricked him into drinking, was a man; the person who drove him to step into that psychology center was also a man.
The name “Chi Lanyi,” along with his design talent that his father scolded as effeminate—it seemed perpetually bound together with the word “man.”
What stung Chi Lanyi even more was another matter.
Last night, in that room on the fourth floor of the bar, a man had rescued him.
That man was taller than Chi Lanyi’s father, more mature than all his classmates, more domineering than any male professor he had ever met.
That man was forceful and cold. All it took was one kick for him to send the ill-intentioned Zou Jun flying to the other side of the room.
After that, the man had even kept watch over Chi Lanyi the entire night, only leaving at dawn. He had also left a doctor to examine Chi Lanyi when he woke up.
“The doctor will be in shortly.”
That was the only thing the man said to him after Chi Lanyi woke up in fright.
Then, without saying goodbye, without introducing himself, the man left the room and disappeared down the corridor, like a silent, sharp knife.
After the doctor came in, while giving Chi Lanyi an examination, he also chatted a bit about the relationship between Chi Lanyi and that man.
Chi Lanyi shook his head, saying he didn’t know. The doctor then said, “You don’t know him? And he still got a doctor for you… He’s a good man.”
That man was a good man.
But Chi Lanyi found it difficult to feel gratitude towards his protector—even though he felt ashamed to admit it was wrong of him. His mind was dazed, only a few thoughts circling around.
—That strange man had seen him at his worst, in his most chaotic and disgraceful state.
And moreover, when that man’s hand had gripped his waist, his body, even under the influence of alcohol, had reacted sensitively.
Recalling the events of yesterday, Chi Lanyi’s throat went dry. That intense fear and sense of shame almost made him vomit.
Mortified beyond measure, he could only throw himself into the bathroom.
Under the shower, Chi Lanyi washed himself relentlessly, the messy thoughts still spinning in his head. He wondered: had that man noticed him trembling when he was touched?
The water in the bathroom ran for a very long time; the swirling vortex of the drain gave a strong feeling of weightlessness. Watching it, Chi Lanyi felt he was sinking too.
He simultaneously felt that he was disgusting—how could he reveal such a filthy state in front of a kind stranger who was helping him?
Chi Lanyi wanted to force himself to forget everything. But at the moment he turned off the faucet, he suddenly remembered: aside from this morning’s “The doctor will be in shortly,” that man last night had also said something else.
“Have you done it before?”
“After becoming an adult, have you done it many times with others?”
All the memories from last night finally flooded back. Chi Lanyi abruptly recalled the look in the man’s eyes when he said those words.
Chi Lanyi’s breath hitched, and then he began to tremble uncontrollably.
From those eyes in his memory, Chi Lanyi realized that the man who had looked after him all night actually had that kind of interest in him too.
—That interest he had always been ashamed to admit he also held toward men.
…
Chi Lanyi didn’t leave his room for three days.
He lay in bed, completely motionless. The clothes he’d worn to the bar that day had been thrown away. The sheets and duvet cover he’d slept in upon returning had also been washed.
The study matters, the Renault business—Chi Lanyi never wanted to touch them again. Even his mother’s daily calls, demanding emotional support, were weakly ignored. Outside, it was still raining. Chi Lanyi wished he could simply disappear into the rain.
That way, he wouldn’t have to face his classmates’ strange looks and the school’s false accusations.
The awful incident at the bar a few days ago could also be washed away with the water.
His phone rang again; Chi Lanyi assumed it was another harassing call. He hung up, but it kept ringing non-stop.
It wasn’t until the caller ID on the last call caught his eye—it was a teacher who had always been very kind to him.
“Hello…?” he said weakly.
The teacher on the other end replied, “Lanyi, what’s wrong? The school dean said they’ve called you many times but couldn’t get through.”
“I’m fine… I’m fine…”
“Come to the office quickly. There’s a new development in the situation with you and Renault.”
A rigid shudder ran through Chi Lanyi’s entire body. He scrambled out of bed. After three days curled up in bed, his steps were terribly unsteady; with every step, he nearly stumbled.
Even though his heart was screaming to go out, to go to the office, to see how he had been proven innocent, he still washed his face first and changed into clean clothes.
He was worried his body might smell of sweat, or of the mustiness from being in bed these past few days—even though the only scent on him was the faint fragrance of laundry beads.
Yet Chi Lanyi still applied cologne, covered his face with a large black mask, and stepped out the door.
After days of heavy rain, the sky had cleared again. He walked very fast the whole way, afraid that everyone around him was watching him.
Thus, when he entered the office and was actually being observed by several teachers, Chi Lanyi felt an unreal sense of detachment instead.
“Renault has been dismissed. He will issue a public apology and pay the price for his actions. We’ve reviewed your selection process and coursework records and found them to be without any issues.”
If, after review, they could find them to be without issues, then why didn’t they review them before?
Chi Lanyi could hear his spirit sharply questioning them. But he had no strength, couldn’t utter a sound.
He only said: “The matter… is just over like that?”
“Yes, thank you for your cooperation with the investigation. The school will issue a public notice afterwards.”
The teacher’s voice carried a self-righteous politeness.
The rain he had suppressed in his heart for days finally fell. Chi Lanyi said softly: “Just like that? No one… is going to apologize to me?”
The few teachers exchanged glances. One of them said: “Student Chi, we deeply apologize for everything you’ve been through. But this was a necessary investigative procedure for the school…”
“Because of a baseless accusatory email you received, my entire reputation was ruined. Up until now, I still don’t know anything. I don’t know who sent that tip-off, I don’t know what happened between Renault and that student. I have no idea who Renault’s actual lover was, nor what new evidence you found.” Chi Lanyi said, growing agitated. “A few nights ago, someone even…”
He stopped abruptly, too ashamed to mention the bar incident. He then shrieked, “I’m being played for a fool by everyone! Come on! Tell me! Who reported me?!”
Chi Lanyi’s chest heaved violently. His eyes even perceived more things.
He noticed that the self-righteous teacher hadn’t taken care of her own hair, and was full of split ends. A person teaching fashion visual aesthetics had messy, unfashionable hair.
Another teacher was wearing this year’s trendy designer dress, but paired it with alligator leather heels that clashed horribly with the material of her outfit. The teacher looking at him with disgust had a bit of shaving foam on his shirt—this person, an F University professor, appeared before him so slovenly, and furthermore, with an expression that deemed him unsightly.
In that moment, Chi Lanyi could no longer tolerate it. Despairingly and hatefully, he thought: how could this be F University? These esteemed teachers passing judgment on him could be this ugly.
He hated his own uselessness; he hated the indifferent teachers; he hated Zou Jun who had deceived him.
He hated the person who reported him. He hated everyone.
Chi Lanyi was emotionally charged. His voice pierced through the door, resonating down the corridor.
In another office along the corridor, Gao Yuanzhou was leaning slovenly on the sofa. Facing the Vice-Chancellor, he said: “It’s fine, it’s fine, Chancellor. Just expel me. This is just a spring program or whatever, it doesn’t matter if I don’t get the certificate. As for my mom’s project, just switch to another faculty liaison. She’s pretty easygoing.”
Gao Yuanzhou felt it was a slight pity about not getting the school’s certificate—F University was, after all, one of France’s best design schools. But at least, he had smoothed things over.
The Vice-Chancellor, upon hearing that the investment project would continue, also sighed in relief and smiled, “Okay. During the announcement phase, we will also take your reputation into consideration and won’t disclose your name…”
Finally, he’d managed to fudge it through. Gao Yuanzhou felt a slight relief and slipped into the waiting room next door. Upon seeing the man on the sofa, his scalp went tight, and he quickly went over with an ingratiating tone: “Uncle, I’ve finished speaking with the chancellor.”
Gao Rong only gave him an indifferent glance.
Gao Yuanzhou scratched the back of his head, a bit awkward and a bit probing: “Uncle, is it okay now? Can I go home? That Vice-Chancellor is really a good guy. I went to confess my mistakes, he said he’d expel me, but also said he wouldn’t make my name public…”
“A good guy? You think he did that for your sake? He did it for the money Gao Xi invested in the project,” Gao Rong sneered. “Gao Yuanzhou, even now, your self-esteem is still so high. You’re still congratulating yourself that the other party said they won’t publicize your name.”
Gao Yuanzhou felt wronged: “How could I have known things would blow up like this? It wasn’t intentional. Did I force that student to jump into the river?”
Seeing Gao Rong’s suddenly terrifying gaze, he shrunk his neck and quickly added: “Alright, alright, I’ll go compensate that student who jumped in the river. I’ll find him, kneel and apologize, alright? And then, give him lots of money. I remember he studies design, right? I’ll have my mom give him some projects…”
“…Gao Yuanzhou.” Gao Rong enunciated each word coldly, “I truly regret having a nephew like you. Do you even realize that just by being alive, you cause many people’s deaths?”
Gao Yuanzhou paused, then cried out as if wounded: “Why do you make me sound so evil? Did I want it to be like this? You asked me to hand over evidence of Renault’s non-compliant practices, I handed it over. You asked about Zou Jun’s background, I helped you investigate. You told me to come here and apologize, to publicly admit I was the other man, I came. I was even afraid my mom would come bother you, so I helped you hide this from her…”
Gao Rong stared at him, only uttering one cold sentence: “Do you know how many people have been victimized because of your actions?”
“How many… it was just a relationship matter…”
Gao Rong stopped listening to his excuses. He threw down the newspaper in his hand and stood up, walked toward the corridor. Gao Yuanzhou chased after him. Gao Rong said, “After today, I won’t be managing your branch of the family’s affairs anymore. The tour is canceled. Go to the UK to reflect on your actions.”
“Gao Rong, what did I do wrong?! For you to be this furious! Didn’t I say I would compensate?! And you—you’re supposed to be the most selfish and self-interested. Suddenly dragging me out, forcing me to publicly admit this, bringing me here to apologize—you’re the strange one!”
Gao Yuanzhou screamed, but quickly realized the screams weren’t just his own.
On the other side of the corridor, from another office, screaming was also coming through.
Along with the voices of several teachers trying to persuade: “Calm down a bit…”
Huh? The voice sounded a bit familiar?
Gao Yuanzhou froze instantly. That screaming made him panic.
Gao Yuanzhou tilted his ear to listen. He didn’t notice that the cold and indifferent Gao Rong, standing beside him and seemingly unable to be swayed by anything…
Had, in an instant, a drastic change of expression.
