Later on, Xie Huai engaged in deep self-reflection, admitting he was also at fault that night.

His mistake was being too stingy, wanting to split the room cost with Xia Xia, and having bad luck when the police burst in at the exact moment with that crisp bill lying there in plain sight. The prostitution charge was slapped on him, and no amount of explaining could clear it up.

That day, Xie Huai went to Chang City to visit Qi Da and had some drinks in the evening. Qi Da had booked his accommodation. Having grown up together, they were as close as brothers, so when Qi Da led him into the club, he didn’t think much of it, assuming it was just a hotel with unique architecture.

Qi Da pushed him into the room but didn’t enter himself, smiling meaningfully: “Lucky you.”

The room was large, with a faint rose fragrance in the air.

When Xie Huai entered, he vaguely heard soft sobbing in the darkness. He turned on the light and saw Xia Xia crying on the bed.

Xie Huai froze and turned to call Qi Da.

Qi Da’s voice was roguish: “I know you’ve been feeling down and stressed lately, so I found you a little sister to help you relieve some tension. Let me be clear—she’s not from the club, I met her online. I vetted her for you, she’s super innocent and pure. If you don’t want her, I’ll take her myself.”

Xie Huai hung up the phone, the exchange having sobered him up considerably.

He stood there, observing the person on the bed.

The girl had luminous skin and wasn’t tall but had long legs and a soft waist, with a delicate figure.

She wore a simple, clean T-shirt and shorts, exuding an unusual air of innocence in this pleasure-seeking club.

Qi Da knew Xie Huai well. He was usually proud and aloof; in recent years, countless girls had followed him around, but he’d never shown favor to any of them. Xie Huai was picky about women—he liked pretty ones, especially the sweet, innocent-looking type that seemed pitiful.

The room’s air conditioning was set slightly high.

This wasn’t a quick-stay hotel but an entertainment club, hosting both sleazy affairs and pure couples’ stays. The themed rooms here were more expensive than quick-stay hotels because of their “special features.” The high temperature catalyzed something ambiguous in the air, mixing with the rose fragrance—once it entered the nostrils, it sparked desire.

Xie Huai had been drinking at night and was at the restless age of eighteen when even waking up in the morning meant washing his underwear. Though rebellious in his earlier years, he was still in school and didn’t dare go too far. The few girlfriends he’d had only progressed to holding hands.

The ceiling light was dim, casting shadows on his lowered eyelashes and leaving a dark patch on the side of his face. His eyelashes were very long, longer than many girls’, and were the softest, most gentle feature of his face, looking particularly beautiful when his eyes were half-closed.

“How old are you?” he asked.

The girl didn’t answer, hugging her knees and shrinking her shoulders.

Xie Huai walked toward the bed, not intending anything—he was just dizzy from drinking and wanted to sit down. As soon as he took a step, Xia Xia retreated to the other end of the bed, her rejection almost verbal.

Xie Huai had an arrogant and rebellious nature, and her obvious avoidance made him lose face.

He wouldn’t do anything to her, but he couldn’t just turn and leave either. What would that look like now? As if he were afraid of a girl—Qi Da would mock him if he knew.

Xia Xia watched him warily, afraid he might make a move.

Earlier, Xie Huai had only noticed half of her face. When she turned toward him, he saw that her other cheek was red and swollen, her lips bruised, with a clear mark around her neck. Several scratches and bruises intertwined on her collarbone, like a flaw on clear white porcelain.

Strangely enough, what should have marred her beauty, when mixed with her undried tears, revealed a kind of violated pitifulness that was tremblingly beautiful, unconsciously inspiring protective instincts.

Xie Huai called Qi Da again, who denied causing the injuries.

“I don’t even know her name. When she came in the afternoon, she was wearing a mask. I didn’t see any injuries on her… Ask her yourself, maybe she fought with her boyfriend and got beaten, then came out to get revenge by cheating…”

While talking to Qi Da on the phone, Xie Huai absent-mindedly pulled at the drawer below, accidentally dropping out a box of condoms.

Seeing the condoms, Xia Xia’s body stiffened. She had just been crying, and her voice was choked: “Can you stop opening the drawers?”

Xie Huai impatiently closed the drawer.

His hands restless, he casually opened the cabinet beside him.

As soon as he opened it, a pile of things fell out.

—Whips, candles, costumes, handcuffs, anal plugs, nipple clamps, vibrators, dildos, and a long roll of thin hemp rope.

Xie Huai: “…”

He tried to pick up the items, but as soon as he reached out, Xia Xia let out a terrified scream: “Don’t touch them————”

Qi Da heard the sound and asked over the phone: “What did you do to her? Why is she screaming so badly?”

Xie Huai felt extremely awkward and no longer cared about saving face: “This was your arrangement, I’m not dealing with it, come back and handle it yourself.”

Just as he finished speaking, something hit his head—Xia Xia was hitting him with a pillow.

Xia Xia pummeled Xie Huai’s head furiously with the pillow, then went to grab the bedside phone and lamp to throw at him. Xie Huai barely dodged, nearly getting knocked out.

Startled by her actions, he shouted: “What the fuck are you doing!”

Xia Xia’s eyes were red, tears falling in drops, crying messily but gritting her teeth to stay silent as if making a sound would deflate her and diminish her fierceness. She was like a little rabbit baring its teeth and claws, except neither were sharp or dangerous.

She trembled as she gripped a narrow vase, the roses inside falling onto the bedding, water spilling all over the bed, soaking her shorts and white T-shirt.

She seemed completely unaware of this, staring fixedly at Xie Huai and his phone.

Looking at the scattered S&M toys on the floor, Xie Huai suddenly understood.

He said to Qi Da: “Never mind, don’t come.”

The girl’s intense reaction started when he opened the cabinet and the S&M toys fell out. She had been arranged by Qi Da but then switched to someone else in the evening. When he was just on the phone trying to get Qi Da to come over, it must have seemed perverse to her.

Xie Huai didn’t approach her, instead sitting on the windowsill far away from her. The windowsill was narrow and low; with his height and long legs curled up there, he looked like a wronged child.

With him at a distance, Xia Xia’s grip on the vase finally loosened, and her crying gradually spilled out.

Xie Huai wanted to explain, but her emotions exploded, turning from soft sobbing to loud wailing. Her tears poured down like a flood—once finding an outlet, they couldn’t be controlled, and she couldn’t hear anything he was saying.

The situation was at a stalemate, and Xie Huai had a headache.

“Can you please stop? I didn’t spend five hundred yuan on this room just to hear you cry.”

“What are you even crying about? Did I touch you? My friend pushed me in here, and I even offered to let you leave—I’ve been quite the gentleman, haven’t I?”

Xie Huai grew impatient: “Are you leaving or not? If you’re not leaving, I will.”

He took two steps, then remembered something and returned to the bedside, looking down at Xia Xia.

The girl’s cheeks were flushed red, crying with tears and snot mixed together, wisps of hair stuck to her face with sweat, looking pure and pitiful.

He suddenly felt his earlier suggestion for her to leave was inappropriate.

Qi Da was two years older than him, from a wealthy family, and loved to party, being a regular at karaoke bars and clubs. Though this place wasn’t underground, it was still a red-light district with all sorts of people. It was so late at night—it wouldn’t be safe for a girl to go anywhere.

“I won’t force you. Lock the door and wait until dawn to leave.” Xie Huai looked at her, “The room costs five hundred for the night. Since you’re occupying my space, I’ll ask you for two hundred and fifty to split it. That’s not unreasonable, right?”

Xia Xia wiped away her tears and pulled out three hundred yuan, crumpled, from her pocket.

She smoothed out the bills one by one, stacked them together, and handed them to Xie Huai, her arm snow-white in the lamplight. Suddenly, Xie Huai noticed deep bruises and five dark red fingerprints on the inside of her forearm, starkly visible against her snow-white skin.

Xie Huai casually asked: “What were you crying about before I came in?”

Xia Xia kept her eyes down, saying nothing.

Xie Huai took the money and pulled out his wallet, taking out a fifty-yuan note as change for her.

Xia Xia had her face buried in her knees and didn’t see his outstretched hand.

Xie Huai didn’t mind, tossing the money onto the bedding and raising his handsome eyebrows: “I gave you the money, alright? Stop crying, it’s not like I abused you.”

…

Later events, Xie Huai tried his best not to think about.

If he had to think about it and summarize the experience, it could be done in two words—embarrassing.

Xie Huai was led out of the club with a group of workers and clients, head down and face covered.

Chang City was coastal, and summer nights were lively.

The sultry air, the salty sea breeze, the aroma of barbecue and stir-fry wafting through the streets, the cumin scent from grilled squid hitting the nose, the fragrant egg pancakes… There was a night market ahead, bustling with activity, but even the liveliest places couldn’t match the spectacle of over a hundred people being marched out.

Xie Huai felt like that squid on the grill, sizzling in oil and smoking, sprinkled with cumin and chili powder before being flipped over.

Thoroughly cooked, inside and out.

Countless onlookers craned their necks beyond the police line, with a TV reporter in a professional suit standing in front.

Xie Huai crouched by the roadside, trying to hide his face.

“Viewers, before us is Chang City’s largest anti-vice operation in three years… After meticulous planning by our city’s criminal police, over a hundred suspects have been arrested, and the premises have been sealed…”

…

Xie Huai didn’t want to mention that embarrassing incident again, but the next day after his release, several friends in Chang City sent him messages.

The messages were simple and consistent.

Qi Da called him, laughing so hard he could barely speak:

“Young Master Xie, you’re something else! Not only did you make the Chang City Evening News, but you also got the center spot on the cover. That’s what I call young and promising!”

Xia Xia was ordered to crouch in the farthest corner of the stall and not leave.

With nothing to do, she quietly observed Xie Huai.

Xie Huai was tall and slender. Nan City’s brilliant sunlight had burned away his earlier laziness and arrogance. When he smiled, he looked fresh and clean, with curved brows and white teeth. That youthful vigor flowed from him, charming the surrounding parents.

“Sister, let me open that, be careful of your nails.”

Xie Huai took a bag from a parent, using his pocket knife to quickly peel off the outer plastic and pull out the mattress inside.

The woman was pleased by his calling her “sister” and teased him: “Handsome boy, your prices are about the same as the supermarket’s.”

Xie Huai smiled: “Similar quality, naturally similar price.”

The woman bargained: “Make it cheaper, or I’ll just buy from the supermarket.”

Xie Huai looked at her daughter standing beside her, wearing a light pink dress with bunny ear hair clips.

He pulled out a pink and white mattress with Cardcaptor Sakura prints and placed it before the girl.

Xia Xia kept her eyes on Xie Huai, watching as he didn’t rush to speak but instead carefully observed the girl.

The girl’s eyes immediately lit up, and she secretly nudged her mother.

Only then did Xie Huai speak: “I’ve been to the supermarket. Their bedding is all stripes or checks. That’s fine for boys, but pretty girls should have pretty things.”

He smiled at the girl, whose face instantly turned red.

He then pulled out a set of pink bedding that matched the mattress perfectly: “Take the set, I’ll give you a ten percent discount.”

The woman still wanted to bargain, but Xie Huai looked toward the supermarket: “Many people came by earlier just asking prices without buying. Of course, people feel more secure buying the same items from the supermarket, but considering the time, their stock should be running low now—look, people are coming back.”

The woman was suspicious: “How do you know about their stock?”

Xie Huai smiled, showing his white teeth: “The supermarket was short-staffed for the new semester, so I worked there part-time for two days. I helped stock those items myself, so I know exactly how much they have and what colors. I can give you a ten percent discount now, but once everyone crowds over, I can’t offer special prices in front of so many people.”

While the woman hesitated, her daughter tugged at her arm: “Mom, I want this one.”

Worn down by her child’s pleading, and seeing the truth in Xie Huai’s words as people from the supermarket were indeed heading their way, the woman made her decision. Xie Huai remained unhurried and calm, smiling as he watched her, and she soon pulled out money to buy the bedding.

Now Xia Xia understood why Xie Huai had ignored people earlier.

—Those asking prices then weren’t planning to buy; they just wanted to compare prices and would likely choose the supermarket for peace of mind. Xie Huai hadn’t expected to sell much then.

He was waiting for this moment—when the supermarket’s stock was low and delivery trucks were still en route, parents would worry about not getting bedding and have to come to him. With perfect timing, he didn’t need to advertise; buyers would come to him. And having worked at the supermarket, he knew their inventory perfectly.

As noon approached, the sun grew hotter.

Xia Xia had thrown up the potato she ate that morning, and now felt dizzy from the heat and hungry.

She huddled in the shadow of stacked quilts, but the shade disappeared quickly.

Xie Huai took away a quilt from above her head, leaving her exposed to the scorching sun. Looking around, in just half an hour, most of the goods were gone.

“Hey!”

Xia Xia was lost in thought and only then realized Xie Huai was calling her.

Xie Huai pointed behind her: “Bring another quilt.”

Xia Xia hurriedly brought one over.

A middle-aged man at the stall took the quilt: “Is the quality really good? If I find any problems later, I’ll come back to make trouble.”

While Xie Huai could charm women with his “sister” talk, it didn’t work well with men. He had been explaining for a while, but this man still hadn’t been convinced, worrying about quality issues with items bought from a street stall even as he was about to pay.

Xia Xia secretly glanced at Xie Huai, seeing his furrowed brows as his sunny sweet boy image was starting to crack.

After a quick calculation, she gave the man an incredibly sweet smile: “Uncle, our goods come from the same factory as the supermarket’s, so the quality is guaranteed. If you find any quality issues after buying, you can come back for a refund or exchange.”

She had to seize this chance to please Xie Huai. Though she had no idea where he sourced his goods from, she told the lie without batting an eye. She felt no pressure—after all, if there were quality issues, people would come back to find Xie Huai, not her.

As soon as she finished speaking, she felt Xie Huai’s gaze on her. His look was neutral, with unreadable emotions lingering on her for two seconds.

The man looked down at the young girl’s clean face and pure smile, said nothing more, and generously paid before leaving.

Xie Huai’s expression remained calm as he rubbed off the cotton fluff stuck to his hands from handling the quilts.

His skin was fair for a boy, his hands a clear, cool white with elegant bones, not at all like hands that did manual labor.

Xie Huai’s palms were sweaty, wetting the cotton fluff as he rolled it into a ball and flicked it to the ground.

After a long silence, he spoke: “Now that it’s quiet, let’s settle our account.”

He bent down to pick up a pillow, holding it and patting it hard, making puffing sounds.

He looked at Xia Xia expressionlessly:

“That night, how many times did you hit me again?”