The Long Night - Chapter 36

Tang Shaocheng cleaned up the mess for him and only took him out after Yan Liao had written a letter of guarantee.

“You really called a lawyer for something this small.”

The police officer yawned and urged them to leave quickly. As soon as Yan Liao stepped off the stairs, the person behind him, who was bruised and swollen and had agreed to the settlement, spat out viciously, “You just wait, this isn’t over!”

Tang Shaocheng and Yan Liao both turned their heads at the sound. Tang Shaocheng looked at him seriously for a while, but David’s face was so swollen that it really looked like a pig’s head and his features were unrecognizable. Even the sideburns he had carefully styled were swollen like fermented dough.

He blustered for a long time with his neck stiffened, then limped away, dragged by his employees who were gently coaxing him, asking if he was so exhausted tonight that he wanted to close the shop for a day tomorrow.

The sky was like an overturned ink slab, with the dark black spreading along the horizon. There were hardly any cars on the road, and the streetlights were on their last legs, almost ready to go out.

Tang Shaocheng asked him why he would get into a fight. Yan Liao looked up, met his gaze, and then quickly looked away, saying in a calm voice, “I just didn’t like the look of him.”

It felt a lot like his rebellious phase.

Tang Shaocheng raised an eyebrow and looked at him intently. He didn’t say anything and just walked forward. Yan Liao paused and hurried to catch up but then, as if in a huff, didn’t get too close. He kept a distance of about half an arm’s length, looking up at the straight back in front of him. Tang Shaocheng slowed down but still didn’t see him next to him. He turned his head and called out, “Come here.”

Yan Liao’s expression was on the verge of frustration and anger. He looked up at Tang Shaocheng, then lowered his head and, holding back his temper, slowly explained what had happened. The more he spoke, the more irritated he felt. Finally, he pursed his lips and said in a stiff, commanding tone, “Don’t be mad.”

“Why would I be mad?” Tang Shaocheng glanced at him with a laugh.

“Because I caused trouble,” Yan Liao raised his hand and grabbed Tang Shaocheng’s clothes. The cold of late autumn wrapped around them, and his finger joints were stiff with cold. His voice was stuttering. “Will you say I was impulsive or something?”

His slightly lowered eyes quickly looked up again. The two of them had already reached the parking lot. Tang Shaocheng opened the passenger door for him. “You didn’t throw the first punch. You didn’t do anything wrong.” He found it both frustrating and amusing. “Did you think I would want to watch you just stand there and get beaten up?”

“And you’re not mad about being called over by the police?”

“No,” Tang Shaocheng leaned slightly toward him and pulled the seat belt to fasten it for Yan Liao. “First, ensure safety. Then, deal with the aftermath.”

The car slowly drove out of the underground parking lot. Yan Liao was in a great mood. “I was acting like a Good Samaritan, you know.”

His tone, as if he were seeking praise, made Tang Shaocheng chuckle. He nodded in agreement. “Yes, very impressive.”

The evening rush hour was over, and there were very few cars on the road. Once they got on the overpass, the speed picked up, and it was a smooth ride all the way. Yan Liao rolled down the window a little, but it didn’t take long for the cold wind to make his nose run. He rubbed his reddened nose and rolled the window back up. The inside of the car suddenly became quiet from the whooshing sound of the wind.

Yan Liao suddenly became curious. “What would have happened if you were there? I’ve never seen you get into a fight.”

He couldn’t have imagined it back in school, and it was even harder to imagine now.

Tang Shaocheng turned on the left-turn signal and quickly spun the steering wheel, but his voice was still calm and unhurried. “I would have protected you.”

The night passed just like that. They bought two bento boxes from the convenience store downstairs, heated them in the microwave, and by the time they finished eating and cleaning up, it was almost ten o’clock.

Some of Tang Shaocheng’s plans for tonight had to be postponed until tomorrow. He created a new schedule in his notes before he went to shower. He didn’t feel like the kid was a bother. Instead, he felt that his life experiences were truly rich.

In the dead of night, the two of them lay in bed. Yan Liao insisted on cuddling up to Tang Shao-cheng and sharing a pillow. They both smelled of the same peach-scented body wash. Their cool and dry skin felt comfortable against each other after the shower. Yan Liao held his phone horizontally between them.

“See? This is what it’s all about.”

The feigned casual tone couldn’t hide his pride. Yan Liao opened the video that Shen Yi-ran had just edited and posted. It was a one-shot video from the entrance to the end of the corridor. The whole thing went very smoothly. It was good for promotion and also made some money.

Because he was unwilling to speak, the comments section said he had a “quiet and reserved” personality. If anyone who knew him well saw this, their eyes would pop out.

The video only showed Yan Liao and the others eating cake by the window after the exhibition, but people who had been there in the live comments mentioned the fight that happened afterward, guessing that it was due to a disagreement about work. Some people even said that the police came.

“Why didn’t you clarify what happened afterward?” Tang Shaocheng frowned.

Yan Liao pursed his lips. “Old Shen said controversy gets more attention, so he told me not to worry about it. My account is with him anyway, so I didn’t want to bother.”

He propped himself up and reached out to touch Tang Shaocheng’s eyebrows, using his index finger to smooth them out. “Who cares what they say?”

…

Yan Liao’s slightly cool fingertips moved from Tang Shaocheng’s brow bone to his high-bridged nose, then slowly moved to his lips and pressed them. He lowered his head and quickly licked the other’s lips.

The atmosphere was perfectly暧昧, and the sweet peach scent of the body wash they had used lingered in the air. In the dim light, they could only make out the contours of their faces, which were the closest things to them.

Tang Shaocheng took the initiative, propped himself up, and changed their position, slowly pressing Yan Liao down onto the spacious bed. Outside the window was the dark night. The stars and moon were hidden by thick clouds. Their tangled breaths were like a messy ball of yarn. Tang Shaocheng gently stroked the soft hair on the back of Yan Liao’s head while gently sucking on his rosy lips.

Yan Liao’s hands behind Tang Shaocheng grabbed his pajamas and pulled them up. After they were face-to-face, Tang Shaocheng kissed his nose and then reached for the bedside drawer. A moment later, he lowered his voice and asked with some distress, “There are no condoms. What should we do?”

Yan Liao’s hands were on his shoulders, his fingers curled up. He felt something slowly rubbing against the skin of his inner thigh. His face was buried in Tang Shaocheng’s chest, and the tips of his exposed ears were red and hot like sugar-coated hawthorns. He buzzed like a mosquito. “…Leave it in.”

The sound of rumbling thunder was like a train’s wheels constantly hitting the tracks as it moved forward.

After a few autumn rains, the weather became increasingly damp and cold. Sometimes, a small cloud of white mist would appear when they spoke. But then it would become unpredictable. After a few cold days, the temperature would suddenly rise, making it hot as if a person were trapped in a stuffy steamer.

Yan Liao’s first art exhibition gained a lot of attention, not just because of the artwork, but because more people clicked on the video to see the fight that happened at the end.

The more doubtful and controversial something was, the more people wanted to find out about it. The more people let their imaginations run wild and created convoluted stories.

Unlike others who would avoid controversy, most people would constantly correct their mistakes. Yan Liao, on the other hand, accepted his mistakes as part of himself and coexisted with them without a guilty conscience.

Even with the sudden and abrupt interlude, the exhibition left Yan Liao with a very good memory. He would feel happy whenever he thought about it, both then and in the many years that followed.

Perhaps memories from a person’s youth are more beautiful and unforgettable because there are so many “firsts.” Because it was the first time, there was endless courage and passion, making it all the more precious.

Since then, Yan Liao’s workload also increased. He had received a series of invitations for book signings and had become quite popular in the industry, from being a newcomer to being a hot commodity. His schedule was full every day.

When Tang Shaocheng came back, he saw him so tired that he had fallen asleep on the sofa. The air conditioner was on hot, and there was also floor heating. Maybe it was cold when he came back. Yan Liao was covered with a blanket, and a thin layer of sweat had beaded on his forehead. His damp bangs were stuck to his skin, and his cheeks were flushed.

“Wake up, don’t sleep here.” Tang Shaocheng nudged his shoulder.

Yan Liao was very groggy and couldn’t even open his eyelids. He half-consciously pursed his lips, his mind still a little slow. “I’m not hungry… I’ll eat tomorrow.”

He finished the sentence slowly and dozed off again.

It was only seven o’clock. If he slept now, he would wake up in the middle of the night and have to stay up until morning.

Tang Shaocheng deliberately lowered his voice. “Wake up, I have something to ask you.”

He just wanted to wake the person up by talking. Yan Liao heard him and sat up groggily, his head still lowered and his eyelids drooping. The dense eyelashes cast a thick shadow on his lower eyelids from the light. Because he was so tired, his reactions were very slow, so he answered every question as if he were hypnotized.

The questions went from “Did you have a dream when you were sleeping?” to “When was the last time you got a haircut?” from questions that didn’t require much thought to ones that needed some effort to think about. Yan Liao finally woke up a little. It was too late to get angry, but he was so angry his face turned red. He solemnly accused him, “All your questions are so boring.”

Tang Shaocheng laughed, stood up, and stretched his legs, which were numb from squatting. He patted Yan Liao’s back. “Go back to the room. If you curl up on the sofa like this, your bones will hurt.”

Now that he was awake, there was no way he could go back to sleep. Fortunately, he hadn’t slept for too long, so he didn’t have a headache. Yan Liao brushed away his slightly damp bangs. “It’s so hot.”

“The air conditioner is on too high. Go take a shower and you’ll cool down.”

Yan Liao didn’t listen to anything he said. With his fair and full forehead exposed, his features became clearer and more striking. His black eyes were still covered with a layer of sleepy mist, the tip of his nose was slightly red, and his lips were pursed in impatience. When he spoke, his voice was a little muffled. “You’re so annoying.”

Tang Shaocheng, who was annoyingly hot for no reason, turned off the air conditioner. After the living room cooled down a bit, Yan Liao’s mood also improved. He felt that since he had been sitting and lying down so much these days, he was about to devolve into a soft-bodied creature. So he went to the bathroom, grabbed a rag, and started mopping the floor.

“I’m mopping the floor.”

Whenever he did chores, the first thing he did was announce it to the world.

Tang Shaocheng saw his efforts and exaggeratedly praised him, “You’re such a good boy, baby.”

Yan Liao nodded, repeating his words in a very approving manner. “I’m such a good boy.”

Yan Liao lived a chaotic, somewhat topsy-turvy life for a while. Because he was so tired and couldn’t get his energy up, he would consume a lot of coffee. It was as if he had developed an immunity, so when it no longer worked, he started drinking tea. He would use this method to stay awake, and then he would suffer from insomnia at night due to the excessive caffeine, so he would be too tired to open his eyes the next day.

After a few days of this vicious cycle, Tang Shaocheng couldn’t stand it anymore and began to try and correct some of his bad habits.

Although Tang Shaocheng also lived a very busy life, the things he did every day still seemed very positive. For example, he exercised regularly, ate healthy food, maintained a regular schedule, and created a sense of value that was meaningless, all to gain a sense of accomplishment and spiritual satisfaction.

Tang Shaocheng convinced Yan Liao to sign up for a city marathon six months later, so he would forcibly drag this person to go for a run every morning.

Yan Liao had once suggested they switch to running at night, but he would always end up standing at the entrance of a food street. Before Tang Shaocheng could catch him, he would use his hundred-meter sprint skills to run in and then come out empty-handed.

Mid-December, Thursday morning.

As soon as Tang Shaocheng arrived at the law firm, he saw Li Yi-yun, who had just returned from a business trip, waiting for him at his desk. In front of him was a cup of brewed coffee, with steam still rising from it.

“Weren’t you always investigating cases related to the Qin family? How about this? I’ve brought one directly to you.”

Tang Shaocheng imperceptibly pursed his lips and said calmly, “I don’t have the ability to investigate them.”

“I figured it out,” Li Yi-yun said.

Ever since the worker suicide case in the winter three years ago, Tang Shaocheng had always paid extra attention to cases related to the Qin family. They were mostly financial disputes and corporate battles, but the results were always the same: the plaintiff would withdraw the lawsuit.

He had always thought he wouldn’t be noticed at this point, but he didn’t expect to be sold out by his own person, who was completely unaware and smugly said, “I bet you want to make a big splash at the Qin family.”

“Did you figure that out too?” Tang Shaocheng looked at him with a helpless smile when he heard the last idiom.

Li Yi-yun laughed heartily. “My analysis doesn’t matter. This time, Chairman Qin called me himself.”

A large corporation like the Qin family had its own legal department with more than a dozen legal staff. It was not normal for Qin Li to meet a fledgling lawyer like him alone.

After Tang Shaocheng started his position as a legal counsel at the Qin family, he had to frequently enter and exit the Qin’s Group building. It was inevitable that he would see familiar people from the past.

When he got out of the elevator, he saw a man who was tall, straight, and overly conspicuous, even through the dense crowd. Qin Yun-qi walked very fast, and the secretary behind him couldn’t keep up even at a jog, as if he were in a hurry to report his schedule. Qin Yun-qi didn’t even move his eyes, clearly not listening.

Tang Shaocheng squinted at him through the distant crowd. He had seen him a few times in the company, but the two of them never had any interaction.

Until that day, when Tang Shaocheng saw a person in the parking lot who was completely covered, wearing a hat and a mask.

Perhaps it was because it was the last case of his previous career, so the impression of this person was deep. Even just like this, he could recognize him. It was Yu Xing.

The last time they met, Yu Xing was already a shadow of his former self, his gaunt bones clearly visible, as if they could pierce his pale skin at any moment and reveal his crimson flesh. His eyes couldn’t focus. He didn’t dare to talk to anyone. When no one was looking, he would hide in a dark and narrow closet, as if he treated a coffin like a reassuring cradle.

For the first few times, Tang Shaocheng could only talk to him through the closet door. A few days later, Yu Xing was finally willing to come out of the closet. The first time he saw him, his face was paler than the tiles on the wall, and his lips were terrifyingly red, covered in dense bloody bites that he had chewed himself.

The first time Yu Xing spoke, his voice was very hoarse. He said he saw many eyes, eyes on the walls, floors, and tables, and also on his arms, shoulders, and neck. He nervously touched his own neck and earnestly begged Tang Shaocheng if he could help him cut off the eyes here.