Part Twelve: Brothers (5)

Looking completely indifferent, Magician did not care in the least. “What else have you got?”

Wordlessly, Xia Zhi dragged Magician straight to the parking lot, and very quickly, they arrived in the middle of a meeting hall. When they entered, a dense crowd rushed over. He was prepared and made a beeline for the podium at the front of the hall. He picked up the mic and said loudly, “Everyone!” Everyone who had been quietly conversing looked over. He continued, “I won’t say too much, let’s welcome the star of today’s matchmaking, Jian He!”

Though he heard his own name, Magician merely continued to stand on the side of the stage in a daze. When he still hadn’t returned to his senses, Xia Zhi dashed over to drag him to stage center. He yelled out to the crowd, “Everyone, you ought to all know Jian He’s nickname, right? You’re all part of the circle and opportunity knocks but once—start introducing yourselves to Magician!”

Commotion erupted in the audience. At first it was scattered shouts, then the situation soon spiraled out of control.

Someone climbed onto stage and hugged Magician’s thigh, shouting, “Master, I finally got to meet you!” The person hadn’t even hung on for a second before being kicked off.

The chaos quickly spread. Soon, not even Xia Zhi could hold them back, nearly getting squeezed off stage. He kicked away someone who was trying to pull down Magician’s pants, grabbed Magician and made a run for it. Through the darkened safety exit, they ran like mad followed by a horde of madmen, every single one of them looking frenzied, with even one or two peeling off their clothes and streaking!

Xia Zhi ran aimlessly like a headless fly. He’d only scouted the area a bit during his preparations. Now, they had already run into a department store building and the dazzling surroundings left Xia Zhi clueless about what to do. A hand suddenly tightened over his and he was dragged into darkness, confined in a warm embrace.

After making sure the person in front of him was Magician, Xia Zhi very sensibly shut his mouth. The sounds of shouting and chaotic footsteps rumbled past until it was finally quiet. It was then that he realized that he and Magician were rather close. With their chests pressed together, it was quite awkward. He looked around and discovered they were in a narrow dressing room.

“Are they gone?” Xia Zhi asked quietly, breathing into Magician’s face as he spoke. At a sudden loss, he shut up and said nothing else.

Magician lifted a small corner of the curtain for a look and answered, “Just about.”

“Then let’s get out.”

Xia Zhi was about to impatiently leave when he was dragged back by Magician and pinned against the wall.

Magician’s handsome face leaned in, the tip of his nose pressing into Xia Zhi’s nose. He said softly, “Where did you find these people?”

Xia Zhi moved his face away conspicuously. “On a forum.”

“Which one?”

“Yes, master1.”

1This is in English

There was a subtle shift in Magician’s expression and a slight urgency in his voice. “How did you find this forum?”

Xia Zhi’s response began to sound fishy. “I found it myself obviously.”

He had barely finished speaking when his neck was squeezed by a strong arm. Magician’s tone grew severe. “There is no way you could’ve gotten in! Who told you about it?”

“Ye Qia! It was Ye Qia!” Xia Zhi’s face quickly grew red as he struggled frantically and squeezed out an answer, “Ye Qia told me!”

Strength fading, Magician leaned against the other side of the space, revealing a look of deep despair. This expression rendered Xia Zhi, with a stomach full of fury, unable to blow up. He shut his mouth and said nothing more.

Magician’s uncontrolled moodiness didn’t last long and he quickly reverted to his usual smile. “He did it as a way of telling me not to make any more trouble, or else he’s going to personally deal with me.”

Xia Zhi thought perhaps it was due to their surroundings that Magician appeared more vulnerable and helpless, yet it was also as if he had sighed in relief.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, Magician suddenly said, “You knew there was no way I would accept anyone. Why did you continue to introduce men to me?”

Xia Zhi was startled for a moment, revealing a conflicted look as if he didn’t know how to explain it. He thought for a long time. “I just wanted to convey my determination to you.”

Magician sneered. “Your determination?”

“I understand your unwillingness to give up, but Ye Qia is already mine, and will be in the future. I won’t let go of him. No matter how you try to destroy things, badmouth me, or think of ways to break us up, it’s all pointless. I’m committed to him, I won’t ever let go.”

Magician seemed shaken by these words. He opened his mouth, dazed for a while. Suddenly he bent over—he had vomited.

“…”

Xia Zhi hastily stood on his toes yet still he had touched a bit of the filth. He tensed up as tightly as he could, clinging to the side of the dress room, and said in a faltering voice, “Are you okay?”

“You’re too nauseating.” Magician hadn’t forgotten to taunt him in the midst of panting for his breath. “Your talk made me vomit.”

“…”

Xia Zhi really wanted to hit him, but he simply couldn’t withstand the vomited contents in front of him any longer. After holding out for a few seconds, he ended up running out and taking deep gulps of air that had no sour stench to it. Fortunately, most of the chasing horde had already passed and no one recognized them.

Soon, Magician emerged after him, and the first thing he did was to drag him off. When they were at the elevator, they heard the bellow of a sales clerk from behind. “Who threw up in the dressing room? Where are they?!”

The two of them decisively hopped into the elevator without a glance back.

All the way up until they reached the parking lot, no one said a word. Xia Zhi discovered that Magician’s face had gone pale and he reached out a hand wanting to support him but was dodged. Lips curling, Xia Zhi didn’t insist. When they were in front of the car, he couldn’t help but ask, “Are you really okay?”

“I’m fine.” Magician smiled an ugly smile and took a deep breath. “I drank too much during the blind date earlier.”

Xia Zhi didn’t go on to ask something like “why did you need to drink so much.” If it were him, he may not have been able to tolerate it to the degree Magician had, nor could he pursue such a fruitless relationship for so long. After he returned home, Xia Zhi was in very low spirits, not in the same way where he had been unsuccessful in the past.

Ye Qia just happened to be home. Seeing Xia Zhi like this, he laughed. “Unsuccessful again?”

“Yeah, but…” Xia Zhi recounted the day’s events and asked worriedly, “Is Magician alright?”

Ye Qia didn’t speak for a moment, then said, “He’ll bounce back.”

Xia Zhi said skeptically, “You honestly didn’t do anything to wrong him?”

“Of course not.” Ye Qia glared.

“Then why is he so persistent?”

“What he’s unwilling to let go of isn’t me, it’s the years that have passed, perhaps.”

The corners of Xia Zhi’s eyes drew down. “Although what you said is very poetic, I think it’s a little…blegh!”

“Shit, what the hell did you guys drink?!”

“Homemade rice wine.”

“And did you eat a purple biscuit? Brought by Magician?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

Ye Qia sighed and said, “It’s what we use to induce vomiting in slaves.”

“But he ate it too.”

Ye Qia said nothing and Xia Zhi came around, finally admitting: as expected of someone who’s been secretly in love for years, downright ruthless!

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