Jiang Shiyan suddenly clenched his fist and slammed it against the wall. The sharp pain from the wound jolted him back to complete sobriety.
—
Jiang Shiyan’s knuckles were bleeding, leaving a small stain on the wall. He rose, returning to the living room with absolute composure. He carelessly bandaged his wound using the medicine Tang Yang had found earlier, cleaned the wall, and then tucked it in Tang Yang’s blanket, ensuring she had fallen back asleep before turning to the balcony.
Tang Yang lived on the 28th floor, offering a panoramic view. Jiang Shiyan stood by the railing, gazing down at the flickering neon lights of half the city, resembling a river or sea.
Back in their first year of high school, Tang Yang enjoyed reading all sorts of stories. When Jiang Shiyan found classes boring, he would listen to her narrate them. After tiring of romantic tales, Tang Yang would regale him with strange and unusual stories.
For instance, ghost stories.
Or tales like one about a man in a remote village who was bitten by a rabid dog and didn’t get vaccinated. The rabies incubation period was twenty years. When the disease finally manifested, the man went mad at home, biting everything in sight with bloodshot eyes. His family locked him in a room, but he bashed his head against the wall and gnawed at it with his teeth. In the end, he ate through an entire wall before dying.
The night breeze blew gently as Jiang Shiyan lit a cigarette, recalling Tang Yang’s vivid description.
Agitation, chaos, uncontrollable emotions.
Just like that afternoon in Yi Xiu’s office when he overheard her making dinner plans with Zhou Mo.
Just like that night at the old house when she prattled on about going on blind dates and marrying someone else.
Just like moments ago in her room, when she hadn’t said or done anything at all…
If the recent incident could be attributed to the physiological urges between adults, what about the previous occasions?
Hearing Gan Yiming call her, and seeing Gan Yiming touch her, he couldn’t suppress the urge to intervene…
Jiang Shiyan narrowed his eyes, taking a drag from his cigarette, then dialed Feng Weiran’s number. He spoke calmly, “Does your best TAXI hospital, the one that pioneered the national medical record mapping system, operate on weekends?”
That place specializes in treating difficult cases.
“Yes,” Feng Weiran’s voice changed, “Brother Yan, what’s wrong?”
Jiang Shiyan replied nonchalantly, “Then I’ll go get a rabies shot tomorrow.”
“Were you bitten by a dog?” Feng Weiran sighed in relief, “I think you need to get the vaccine within 24 hours. Why are you calling so late? When were you bitten? Any symptoms?”
Jiang Shiyan frowned imperceptibly, “I wasn’t bitten. I just made eye contact with a mad dog. Now I can’t quite control my hands and feet, or my eyes. My emotions are very unstable, like rabies symptoms.”
This explanation seemed unconvincing, so Jiang Shiyan added, “I was very close to that mad dog at the time. Aren’t many viruses transmitted through sneezing?”
This wasn’t transmission; this was deflection.
Knowing who Jiang Yanan was with tonight, Feng Weiran clicked his tongue, “Brother Yan, I can responsibly tell you that you might have made eye contact with Chang Xinyi.”
He left unsaid, “And now you’re lovesick.”
“What does Chang Xinyi have to do with this?” Jiang Shiyan was puzzled, “The dog incident happened during Tang Yang’s first week back when we went to Nanjin Street, and it’s happened many times since then…”
He didn’t know how to describe it.
Feng Weiran didn’t want to waste words with an idiot, so he asked, “Do you like Chang Xinyi?”
Jiang Shiyan replied, “I liked her before, I suppose.”
Feng Weiran asked again, “Do you like your Taiwanese girlfriend?”
Jiang Shiyan could barely remember, “I liked her before, I suppose.”
“That was all preamble and nonsense,” Feng Weiran said bluntly, “You like Tang Yang.”
Ash fell from the cigarette tip.
Jiang Shiyan slowly exhaled a smoke ring, “I remember we’ve discussed this before—”
Feng Weiran spoke quickly, “Then can you accept Yang getting drunk in front of other men, and being sent home by other men? You know men are driven by their lower halves. What if that guy took advantage of Yang’s drunken state, kissed her once, twice, and then…”
The cigarette fell from the 28th floor into the damp grass below.
Jiang Shiyan’s throat tightened as he ended the call.
Returning to the bedroom, he sat on the floor, quietly watching Tang Yang for a long time. Then he went to the kitchen, and afterward, found a blanket and curled up on the small sofa next to Tang Yang’s bed.
—
Tang Yang had a dream.
She dreamed that Jiang Shiyan brought her home, and she tended to his wounds. The man’s muscles were robust and beautiful. As she applied medicine, she suddenly became possessed, grabbing his collar and kissing him wildly.
He was hesitant but ultimately succumbed to her persistent advances, being a red-blooded young man.
They entangled in the bedroom. She removed his suit jacket, then his shirt.
Both were eager, but the more urgent they became, the harder it was to undress. She got stuck on the second button of his shirt, repeatedly tugging and entangling, light and heavy, in a desperate embrace, just like after the shirt fell away… in the latter half of the dream.
Jiang Shiyan had forgotten to close the curtains last night, and Tang Yang was awakened by the first ray of sunlight in the morning.
The pain in her body was real, the heaviness in her head was real, but upon opening her eyes, she realized it was a dream.
Her coat and socks were off, her makeup mostly removed, and the man from her dream was now curled up on the sofa, not lewd or flirtatious, but looking utterly proper.
The sofa was short, only 1.5 meters long.
Jiang Shiyan was tall, 1.88 meters.
His legs were uncomfortably tucked in front of him, a thin blanket covering the lower half of his refined face.
Many people like to describe high-class elegance as being above mere looks, but undeniably, attractive people often have outstanding temperaments. Jiang Shiyan had well-defined features and narrow, slanting eyes. When he smiled, there was often a flirtatious look in his eyes, and when he spoke casually, he exuded an air of indifference to worldly affairs.
After high school, Tang Yang rarely saw his sleeping face. Even asleep, he looked dignified, with a straight nose bridge and long, thick eyelashes softly covering his eye sockets. The light fell along his eyelashes, causing them to tremble slightly. Tang Yang, half-leaning against the headboard, felt a slight tickle in her heart.
Perhaps Tang Yang’s gaze was too intense, or perhaps the sleeping position was too uncomfortable.
Before long, Jiang Shiyan’s eyelids moved, and he opened his eyes. Tang Yang’s gaze didn’t retreat in time, and their eyes met squarely.
“You’re awake?” Jiang Shiyan didn’t notice.
“Mm,” Tang Yang responded, her gaze shifting away guiltily.
Jiang Shiyan rubbed his eyes and sat up, folding the blanket while speaking in a slightly hoarse voice, “I made you some millet porridge, it’s keeping warm in the pot. Rest a bit more, and it should be just right when you get up. The hangover medicine is on the coffee table, remember to take it.” He yawned, getting up to find his slippers. “I’m too tired, I need to go home now.”
Seeing him stumble as he walked, Tang Yang no longer harbored any amorous thoughts.
She silently cursed herself for being beastly while awkwardly saying, “I hope I didn’t cause too much trouble last night. I tend to get sleepy when drunk… What time did you go to sleep?”
Jiang Shiyan replied, “Around 3 AM, and I woke up once around 5 AM.”
Tang Yang got out of bed, “Why don’t you sleep in my bed for a while?”
Jiang Shiyan declined, “No, I want to go home and take a shower.”
Tang Yang offered, “I’ll see you off.”
Jiang Shiyan waved his phone, “I’ve texted my assistant.”
They left the bedroom together, and Tang Yang accompanied him to the elevator. Her ears were slightly red, she said, “About last night… thank you.”
Jiang Shiyan was about to enter the elevator but hearing this, he leaned down and tilted his head. His handsome face and low voice, tinged with a smile, suddenly came close, “How will you thank me?”
“Huh?” Tang Yang had just spoken casually, but encountering his eyes full of tenderness and seriousness, she immediately blushed to her ears, feeling guilty and tongue-tied, “H-how do you want me to thank you…”
You were quite nimble when licking my fingers last night.
Jiang Shiyan laughed inwardly but stopped teasing her. He reached out and lightly pinched her earlobe, then ruffled her hair. Yawning for the umpteenth time, he said, “We’ll talk about it later.”
Is it okay to touch and pat just because you’re tall? Yes, it is.
“Be careful on your way,” Tang Yang’s ears turned completely red as she softly cautioned him.
“And you be careful going back inside,” Jiang Shiyan mimicked her.
Strangely, Tang Yang didn’t retort but instead nodded with particular guilt. Seeing her unusually docile, Jiang Shiyan’s heart melted completely.
The elevator doors slowly closed.
Inside the elevator, Jiang Shiyan chuckled to himself. If she knew he had secretly kissed her last night, would she be frightened and explode in anger, calling him a presumptuous dog, or would she angrily pounce on him and scratch him?
Outside the elevator, Tang Yang dragged her heavy steps back inside, closed the door, and then suddenly squatted down, clutching her head in frustration.
That dog Yan brought you home, made you porridge, took off your coat and socks, and slept on the sofa. He treated you like a brother without a trace of impure thoughts. Tang Yang, what were you thinking? How could you, could you…
But then she thought, dreams aren’t something you can control. Dreams don’t represent the real person; dreams are often the opposite of reality.
The ancient wisdom that “food and sex are human nature” weighed on her like a mountain. She, Tang Yang, was just an ordinary person, barely weighing 99 jin even after gaining weight over the New Year. How could she escape it…
—
Jiang Shiyan rarely stayed out all night, and it was the first time he had called his assistant to pick him up so early in the morning.
Seeing his condition, the assistant was slightly worried and asked as they passed a hospital, “Do you want to get checked out?”
Jiang Shiyan replied, “No need.”
“But I think you…” the assistant hesitated.
Jiang Shiyan, with half-closed eyes, asked, “Am I dying?”
The assistant fell silent.
Jiang Shiyan asked again, “Do you think Tang Yang would let me die?”
The assistant didn’t dare speak at all.
Jiang Shiyan sprawled in the back seat, his arms stretched out. Thinking of something, his eyes flickered, and the smile at the corner of his lips became lazy and alluring, “She wouldn’t bear to let me die.”
“…”
Jiang Shiyan’s smile deepened, his thin lips enunciating each word, “But she will.”
Kill me slowly, like last night…