In his fourth year of university, Yan Lie secured his guaranteed postgraduate placement, and his time opened up considerably.

The few remaining courses posed no real challenge to him, and he didn’t need to look for an internship, so he began early on gathering materials for his graduation thesis.

Although he wasn’t short on money, his advisor introduced him in advance to a paid side project, asking him to study and learn alongside his senior fellow students.

It was fairly late by the time he left the company, and cabs were hard to come by in the suburban area. His senior fellow student treated him to dinner at a nearby restaurant, then called someone to drive them back, and by the time they returned to campus it was nearly eight o’clock.

Yan Lie’s phone had died — he never liked carrying a portable charger — and only connected to power once he was back in the dormitory.

When it turned on, four or five missed calls appeared on the screen, along with several green WeChat notifications, all from a friend he knew through the student council. The earliest call had come five minutes ago.

Yan Lie took note of them and kept scrolling, making his way down to Fang Zhuo’s account.

An hour earlier, Fang Zhuo had asked whether he wanted to go out for a late-night snack.

Yan Lie replied to her first, telling her he had just come back dusty and tired. Exhausting, but not hungry.

He put on his one-man pity show, then went to check the other messages.

Just then, Xiao Pang called again. Yan Lie answered and put it on speaker.

The guy called out from the other end: “Yan Lie, you finally picked up! I was about to say that if you didn’t answer, we’d leave without you. Lucky you!”

Yan Lie changed into a short-sleeved shirt and straightened the hem, then asked: “What’s going on?”

Xiao Pang said cheerfully: “Senior Xia Lan is back in City A — she happened to be passing by the school, and says she left too abruptly at graduation and wants to treat us all to a late-night snack. We’re just heading out. Come quickly — we’ll wait for you at the east gate.”

Xia Lan had been their former department head. She was warm and easygoing, and had always looked after them well. Though Yan Lie had already left the student association, they still kept in touch. He thought it over briefly and agreed.

The group met at the school gate and followed the navigation to find the restaurant the senior had booked.

The place had just recently opened, near a shopping mall. The décor was clean and simple, the prices reasonable, so business was brisk. As soon as you pushed open the glass door, you were met with the din of voices and the savory, spicy fragrance drifting through the air.

The table Xia Lan had reserved was in a corner. By the time the others arrived, she had already ordered.

A server brought out a few appetizers, and seeing their party was now complete, went to rush the kitchen on the hot dishes.

Since it had been called together on short notice, in the end only three guys and two girls had come.

Noticing Yan Lie struggling with the restaurant’s level of spice, Xia Lan pointed to the menu at the corner of the table and said: “I know you can’t eat spicy things, so I ordered you a dessert, a stewed soup, and an iron-plate beef. Look through the rest yourself if you want anything else.”

Yan Lie smiled: “Thank you, senior. You’re still so thoughtful.”

Xia Lan said: “Eat freely, everyone. Your senior has been earning wages and her wallet is full. No need to spare my money.”

She smiled brightly, waved a server over for a few bottles of alcohol, and sat drinking while chatting with the younger girls about life after graduation.

In everyone’s memory, Xia Lan had always been generous, sharp, and emotionally intelligent — they had all assumed she would thrive in the private sector. But when the topic came up, she closed her eyes, put on an expression of extreme suffering, and said: “Not at all — it’s absolutely disgusting, everyone. I’ve really had my eyes opened. All kinds of outrageous people exist. On the surface they’re all smiles, like you’re the long-lost daughter they’ve been searching for, but behind your back they look for chances to report you, to take advantage of you. The troublesome clients they don’t want to deal with get handed off to you like it’s some great act of charity, and when there’s a complaint, they make your life difficult… I hope none of you ever encounter this kind of person in your workplaces.”

The younger girls were considerably unnerved, and started wondering whether they should go to graduate school for another three years just to put off the inevitable.

Xia Lan said with a cold smile: “Once I’ve settled this score, I’m coming back to City A. A place with university alumni connections is in a completely different league, girls — don’t waste the opportunity of having gotten into University A. The world out there is not a pure place.”

Xia Lan had excellent social connections at the school and was genuinely capable. If she had stayed in City A to develop her career from the start, things would have been much smoother.

Xiao Pang asked, puzzled: “But isn’t your boyfriend in Province C?”

Xia Lan acted as if she hadn’t heard. She raised her glass and said: “Once I finish handing over my work, I want to try to come back and sit the postgraduate entrance exam. If all goes well, I might become your classmates. Don’t forget that I used to be your senior.”

Everyone laughed and clinked their drinks against hers.

Yan Lie turned to discuss graduation credits with Xiao Pang, and by the time he sensed something was off, it was already too late. Several empty bottles had accumulated beside Xia Lan. She sat with her head bowed, eyes rimmed red, her mood visibly agitated.

She reached for another drink, and Yan Lie pressed his hand over the top of her glass. She ignored him, tugged at it twice, and when she couldn’t pull it free, simply picked up the bottle directly.

Yan Lie said in a low voice: “Senior?”

The others fell quiet too, watching her with concern.

Xia Lan drank down a bottle and set it back on the table — as if in a contest with herself, her fingers gripping the neck of the bottle so tightly her knuckles went white.

“I’ve been broken up with,” she said, pressing a hand to her forehead with a look of humiliation. “No — wrong. I’ve been cheated on!”

Everyone was taken aback. Their impression was that her boyfriend was in a long-distance relationship with her, and had always presented himself as a model of virtue.

Xia Lan’s chest heaved violently. The last of her composure allowed her to shield her eyes from the group, but the alcohol evaporating through her system had unleashed the resentment in her heart. The muscles in her face trembled. She drew a long breath and said with contempt: “I never looked down on him for not doing well on the university entrance exam, and he has the nerve to say I’m not gentle enough. I specifically went to Province C and found a job there for him — uprooted myself from everything — and he tells me he’s found his ‘true love.’ What true love? Is it money? Does he really think that a free ride tastes good? How did I not see through that piece of garbage sooner?!”

The group didn’t know how to react and could only frantically exchange glances with each other.

Xiao Pang pulled out a tissue and carefully tried to pass it to her from the side, only to have Xia Lan wave it away.

She spoke with a mixture of fury and bitterness, through gritted teeth. Primarily she was raging at her own failure and desperate circumstances — wasting four years of university, and squandering the advantages that came with being a fresh graduate. Then came her contempt and revulsion for everything her ex-boyfriend had done.

Even drunk, her dazed expression couldn’t conceal the killing intent on her face.

Her judgment was clear, her priorities precise, her mind slightly muddled.

Yan Lie listened quietly for a while, and thought to himself that Xia Lan had every reason to have made it to department head. He had ample reason to believe that Xia Lan’s ex-boyfriend might not be long for this world.

Xiao Pang tugged at Yan Lie’s sleeve and said nervously: “Yan Lie, say something to comfort her.”

Yan Lie came to his senses and said quietly: “Why me specifically? You could comfort her too. She always doted on you the most.”

Xiao Pang said urgently: “None of us have ever tasted the bitterness of love — we don’t know how to comfort someone!”

Yan Lie said: “But I haven’t tasted the bitterness of love either.” Isn’t love supposed to be sweet?

Xiao Pang said indignantly: “At a time like this, you’re still showing off?”

Yan Lie was momentarily speechless, thinking to himself: wasn’t he just stating the truth? Besides, Xia Lan and Fang Zhuo weren’t necessarily the same kind of person.

Yan Lie stood up and said: “Let’s stop drinking. Let’s call it a night.”

Xia Lan was reluctant, but the alcohol had hit her hard and she could barely stand. When one of the younger girls pulled at her, she nearly tumbled to the floor.

The server, seeing how drunk she was, refused to bring her any more alcohol. Late at night, a young woman alone — it was far too risky.

The two younger girls also didn’t dare take her back to a dormitory, afraid that if the alcohol really took hold, she’d be the talk of University A by morning.

A hotel seemed problematic too — Xia Lan hadn’t brought her ID.

One of the younger girls supported her and reached into her pocket to find her phone, unlocking it with a fingerprint. She scrolled through the contact list, found a number in the recent calls labeled “Landlord,” and let out a sigh of relief.

The two girls called the number, confirmed Xia Lan’s current address, and decided to send her home first.

The place was quite far away. The two girls couldn’t manage to carry someone on their own, but they also couldn’t just have the guys take her back alone — if anything went wrong, no one would be able to explain themselves. So the whole group headed out together in a procession.

Xiao Pang was tall, and being single, was in a more unambiguous position. He hoisted Xia Lan onto his back and went to hail a ride at the curb. But barely out the door, just as he was about to step down from the entrance step, his movement was a little uncoordinated and he threw out his back — nearly folding himself in half — and cried out dramatically for Yan Lie to come save him immediately.

Yan Lie was both exasperated and amused, and quickly took the person off his back.

Xiao Pang, afraid of being mocked, kept rubbing his lower back and muttering: “No wonder they say drunk people are especially heavy — it’s true, there’s scientific backing for this. And these steps are way too tall. I can prove with systematic reasoning that they’re structurally unreasonable…”

Yan Lie could hardly bring himself to burst his bubble.

He carried Xia Lan out through the alley, his stride steady. About halfway there, Xia Lan suddenly convulsed, and from her throat came two dry heaves.

Yan Lie was immediately on alert. Xiao Pang was even more agitated, shouting: “She’s going to be sick!”

The streetlights didn’t provide nearly enough illumination, and there was really no time to think. Yan Lie carried her quickly toward a corner up ahead — and then his foot plunged into a narrow drainage ditch, and his ankle twisted sharply.

His reflexes were fast enough: before the searing pain could register, he managed to squat down, one hand braced against the wall, while the other instinctively shot back to steady the person on his back.

Then his left knee hit the ground, and the delayed wave of pain nearly blacked out his vision. He sucked in a sharp breath and said: “I’ve twisted my foot — come help!”

The only remaining able-bodied person stared in disbelief and said: “What is wrong with you two?! How have you both gone down within two hundred meters? Are you made of paper?!”

Xiao Pang cursed furiously.

Once Yan Lie recovered slightly, he said calmly: “I need to go to the hospital first. Something cut my foot — the wound needs to be treated.”

The other guy urged him: “Go quickly, and call your girlfriend while you’re at it.”

Yan Lie reached for Xiao Pang’s supporting arm and looked up: “What would be the point of disturbing her? Can she carry me, or can she cure me? Don’t tell her.”

“Let your girlfriend keep you company — I know you,” the guy said, slanting a look at him with a knowing expression. “A perfectly good excuse.”

Yan Lie had to admit, once it was pointed out, that it did seem reasonable. But it was so late, and he couldn’t bear to trouble her. He said: “Don’t bother her. Xiao Pang, call another car to the hospital.”

“Tragic,” Xiao Pang said, pulling out his phone sadly. “This is why people should not eat late-night snacks. There is empirical data to support this.”

Yan Lie clapped him on the shoulder, half-laughing: “Stop talking nonsense.”

Fang Zhuo only found out Yan Lie was injured the next morning.

A classmate asked her how his injury was doing, and she was puzzled at first. Then she heard that Yan Lie had twisted his ankle while walking a senior classmate home.

Those few words carried the weight of an entire story.

Fang Zhuo called Yan Lie. His voice sounded perfectly normal. He told her he was at a nearby hotel because his right foot was injured and it wasn’t convenient to be in the dormitory for the time being.

The hotel was right near University A. When Fang Zhuo arrived, Yan Lie was already waiting on a sofa in the first-floor lobby. Xia Lan had gotten there before her, and was sitting across from Yan Lie.

Xia Lan kept apologizing, sliding a bag of gifts across the coffee table and saying: “I’m so sorry, truly, I’m so sorry. This bag is calcium supplements for you, and this box is an apology gift for Xiao Pang. I really didn’t think I was capable of taking down two perfectly healthy young men in one go. I will deeply reflect on this going forward.”

Xia Lan had bought Yan Lie a box of calcium tablets and a box of cod liver oil. For Xiao Pang, she had bought a cashmere knee brace.

Yan Lie felt there was a faint undercurrent of mockery in her words, and that her apology was not entirely genuine in its intent.

Fang Zhuo stopped beside the two of them.

Yan Lie had spotted her from across the lobby, adjusted his posture, reached out his hand toward her, and introduced: “My girlfriend, Fang Zhuo.”

“Hello, junior,” Xia Lan said, shaking her hand. She offered a brief apology for her behavior the night before and then made to leave: “I have something to take care of, so I’ll go first and leave you two alone.”

The sound of her footsteps gradually faded away.

Fang Zhuo lowered her gaze to Yan Lie’s bandaged foot, which looked as though it had swollen a full size larger.

“An occupational injury sustained in the line of heroism,” Yan Lie said, patting his own leg and explaining: “It was too late by the time I left the hospital last night, so I could only stay in the hotel.”

“Mm.” Fang Zhuo sat down beside him, keeping a slight distance. “How exactly did you twist it?”

Yan Lie said: “Are there particular techniques involved? It’s not like I twisted it into a pretzel.”

Fang Zhuo said mildly: “I think that for someone to injure themselves just carrying a person, there must be some kind of technique involved.”

Yan Lie went quiet and studied her expression. Then, while Fang Zhuo’s face still wore a look of genuine puzzlement, he folded his arms, leaned back on the sofa, and said slowly: “Are you jealous?”

Fang Zhuo pressed the back of her hand to his forehead to check his temperature, her expression serene: “Not good.”

Yan Lie said with a smile: “Heart rate elevated?”

Fang Zhuo said: “On the surface he looks fine. Which means it’s probably an internal injury.”

Yan Lie caught the hand she was withdrawing, pressed it to his chest, and with a serious expression asked: “Dr. Fang, is wanting to see my girlfriend worried about me a kind of psychological illness? And if so, how would you treat it?”

“In public,” Fang Zhuo said, poking him once in the chest, “I would generally advise you to work on overcoming it yourself.”

“Absolutely not!” Yan Lie toppled forward and leaned against her, like a cat that feigned docility but was in fact entirely shameless — nestling his head against her shoulder and nuzzling lightly, he said with a laugh: “My girlfriend likes it.”

That was without question a slander.

Fang Zhuo raised her hand and ran it through his hair.