Chapter 16: Getting Out Of Monster’s Claw |
*His fate is an endless and restless journey.
Chen Kong Alley is a dangerous place.
In the cramped and filthy shantytown, it was filled with jackals and tigers. Not only was there a foul ditch where Zhi Qi stepped on, but the entire area… almost had no good places.
But if it was just the external conditions, the most dangerous presence happened to be his father, Jiang Quan.
Since Zhi Qi came to this alley, Jiang Qi felt that he couldn’t stay here.
He couldn’t live here, and he couldn’t let Zhi Qi come looking for him again. The boy covered the wound on his shoulder, cold sweat dotted his pale forehead; he laboriously lowered his head to find a roll of bandage under the bed, wrapping it around his injury.
His deathly pale face had no trace of color on his lips, obviously in extreme pain.
Jiang Qi closed his eyes to endure this piercing pain and slowly got up, leaving the already gloomy low house. He struggled to move with pain all over his body, gritting his teeth, and managed to walk out. After struggling for two hours, he finally reached the place of his uncle Jiang Shi in the Itada district.
Jiang Shi only returned home with his vegetable stall in the evening. At the door, he saw the boy curled up in the corner of the stairs. There was a sudden ‘thump’ in his heart.
Jiang Qi pressed his lips, not answering the obvious question.
After a stalemate for a while, he asked in a low voice, “Uncle, can my household registration be transferred to your name?”
Jiang Shi was stunned, and there was a somewhat impatient joy in his tone, “Are you serious?”
The boy’s voice was hoarse, and he replied with a muffled ‘yes.’
Only then did Jiang Shi let him in. Aunt Guan Yue happened to come out of the kitchen with her apron tied around her, and when she saw Jiang Qi, she was stunned. Then, noticing the red marks on the boy’s shoulder, she regained her composure.
“Tsk, such cruelty.” Guan Yue spat, pulling Jiang Qi over and tearing open his clothes. There was a deep wound on the boy’s shoulder, flesh and skin turning, incessantly bleeding, a strong smell hitting their noses, causing Guan Yue to involuntarily step back.
But those accustomed to the harshness of life could tell at a glance that the wound on Jiang Qi’s shoulder was caused by a sickle. Looking from the neck down, the boy’s fair and bony upper body was densely covered with scars—burns, knife wounds… countless of them, old ones not yet healed, new ones emerging, layer upon layer covering half of his body.
Jiang Shi and Guan Yue both knew that these were the ‘masterpieces’ of Jiang Quan.
Women’s hearts are still somewhat softer. Guan Yue sighed, reaching out to rub Jiang Qi’s head, “Go to the hospital for stitches.”
In the past, when Jiang Quan played drunk, they could handle the lighter injuries he left on Jiang Qi themselves. But in cases like this, not going to the hospital was not an option. Jiang Qi silently nodded, obediently listening like a lost dog.
On the way to the hospital, Jiang Shi and his wife discussed moving Jiang Qi’s household registration under their name. Guan Yue’s eyes brightened.
“Is it true?” The woman excitedly exclaimed, then, seeming to think of something, sighed in a low voice, “But big brother… can he agree?”
Jiang Shi couldn’t help but glance at Jiang Qi.
The young man sat quietly, his features cold. He stiffened for a moment when he sensed Jiang Shi’s gaze, then spoke in a low voice, “I agree. Uncle, you can sell the house in Chen Kong Alley.”
In fact, this was the fundamental thing that could truly make Jiang Shi and Guan Yue happy. The two looked at each other, suppressing the joy in their eyes without a word. After all, the boy in front of them was different from others.
The boy’s household registration was forcibly ‘withheld’ when Jiang Qi’s grandfather was still alive.
When Jiang Quan was underage, he went to jail for robbery and murder. He came out after more than ten years, almost thirty years old, wasting his time in debauchery. His character became so irritable, gloomy, and fickle to the extreme.
When the old man was alive, almost all the money in the house was ruthlessly plundered by Jiang Quan, except for the house in Chen Kong Alley. That low, small house had the old man’s name on it, the place where he intended to spend his later years. The old man despised Jiang Quan and originally planned to leave this only property to his younger son, Jiang Shi—although the younger son was uneducated and not promising, he was at least relatively honest.
However, at this time, Jiang Quan encountered a woman.
A woman who had all the vices of eating, drinking, gambling, and debauchery, a woman who happened to get along well with Jiang Quan. She was a dishonest girl, willing to sleep with anyone for money. However, Jiang Quan took all the money from his father and brother, sleeping with her for a month alone.
A month later, this woman became pregnant, and the child in her belly could only be Jiang Quan’s.
On a summer day more than ten years ago, the woman, holding a cigarette and a bottle of liquor along with a medical report, came to Chen Kong Alley to negotiate with the old man.
Plan one: she would take the abortion money and compensation, get rid of the child, and have no further connection with Jiang Quan.
Plan two: she could give birth to the child, but after giving birth, she would receive twenty thousand yuan, then leave without any connection to the Jiang family.
Even as a night club girl leading a debauched life, she didn’t want to entrust her future to a man like Jiang Quan.
The old man almost without hesitation chose the latter, using his pension to ‘save’ Jiang Qi’s life—For the old man, the child in the woman’s belly represented the continuation of their family, the continuation of blood. Even though the poor surroundings had no ‘throne’ to inherit, they had to fight to keep this root.
Born of his mother, Jiang Qi’s features resembled her. The woman was extremely charming and cold, with the most beautiful face, doing the most ruthless things.
She and Jiang Quan were actually a natural pair, both with dark hearts.
After ten months of pregnancy, Jiang Qi was sent to the old man’s place without even drinking a day of his mother’s milk. From then on, the woman disappeared without a trace, and Jiang Qi never saw his mother again.
As for Jiang Qi’s name, on the day the woman sent him to the Jiang family, the old man happened to be taking Jiang Shi to the temple for blessings. He named him Jiang ‘Qi’ on the spot. Unfortunately, both of them lacked education, and when they registered the name, ‘Qi’ was mistakenly written as ‘祁.’
The boy’s name itself might be a mistake from the beginning of his life.
But the only solace in Jiang Qi’s life was the old man.
The old man treated his grandson like his life, transferred his household registration under his own name, kept Jiang Qi away from Jiang Quan, and even wrote a will connecting the house and household registration, leaving them both to Jiang Qi.
Unfortunately, the old man passed away in less than two years. In the end, only a household registration and a house were left for Jiang Qi, lifeless objects.
And this house became Jiang Qi’s only ‘refuge.’ Although the low and dilapidated house in Chen Kong Alley was small and broken, it was still a house within the city limits of Lin Lan. There was a possibility of future redevelopment in the shantytown, so both the devilish father and the calculating uncle and aunt were eyeing the house.
Only by transferring Jiang Qi’s household registration under their name could they openly have the right to claim the house.
In the past, when Jiang Qi was young, he could only live with Jiang Quan, who stubbornly stayed in Chen Kong Alley. He was often subjected to abuse and beatings—middle-aged men with nothing to do, except venting their accumulated anger from drinking and smoking heavily onto their own son.
Jiang Qi had nowhere to go, nowhere to escape, and the matter of ‘domestic violence’ was not something the police would intervene in, let alone anyone else. He could only silently endure Jiang Quan, live with him in mutual hatred, gradually get used to this kind of abuse, and gradually become numb…
In order to go to school, he could only help Jiang Shi’s vegetable stall from a young age, collecting and selling vegetables to earn some tuition and book fees. After all, he couldn’t get a single penny from Jiang Quan.
Jiang Yu never considered it his ‘duty to raise a son,’ but Jiang Qi knew he had to study, not live in confusion. With a young and tender mindset accompanied by growing resentment, as it gradually took root and spread like a towering tree, he still remembered that he had to ‘stand out.’
Going to school seemed to be the only hope visible in the dark and long road. Jiang Qi didn’t want to give up. Even though in his childhood, lying on the steel-wire bed in the cramped and dilapidated room, he would shiver uncontrollably every time he heard the heavy footsteps outside, almost unable to control the trembling of his teeth.
He was afraid of getting beaten, afraid of Jiang Quan.
Jiang Qi felt that he was probably very wicked, very dark, because every moment… he hoped that his so-called ‘father’ would die outside, preferably quietly, without even needing to claim his body. So he doesn’t have to resist in vain anymore, doesn’t have to endure the pain on his body that makes it impossible to concentrate in class from time to time.
He won’t have to… live in constant anxiety.
It’s a pity that wishes are just wishes. The demon Jiang Quan is still there, but Jiang Qi no longer wants to stay with him in Chen Kong Alley.
He is willing to use the house left by his grandfather to exchange for a place to stay with his uncle, willing to attend middle school in the distant Itada District away from the city center, as long as he can get away from Chen Kong Alley.
During the stitching at the hospital, Jiang Qi remained silent the entire time, allowing beads of sweat the size of soybeans to slowly drip from his forehead.
Even the doctor who was stitching couldn’t help but praise, “The little boy has backbone, quite resilient to pain.”
Jiang Qi didn’t speak, but Guan Yue couldn’t help sighing softly on the side.
—How could this be considered resilience to pain? Clearly, he’s accustomed to it.
*
On the night after the household registration was completed, it was the first time in Jiang Qi’s life that someone called the police for him when facing Jiang Quan’s beating.
When Jiang Quan came aggressively to their door, the first thing he did was aim a fierce kick at Jiang Qi’s chest, kicking the slender figure into the corner. The head involuntarily made a ‘bang’ sound as it hit the wall, and Jiang Qi frowned, his head hanging soft.
Amidst Jiang Quan’s furious curses, there was also Guan Yue’s screams.
In the chaotic sound of glassware shattering, Jiang Shi dragged Jiang Quan into the courtyard, and the door inside the house ‘click’ locked. In the extreme pain, Jiang Qi couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
For the first time, in the confrontation with Jiang Quan, he felt a sense of ‘protection’—even if this feeling was exchanged for a house. Later, the two brothers from the Jiang family went to the police station with swollen faces.
After briefly describing the situation, the police seemed accustomed to scenes where fights erupted over ‘family property.’ They calmly said to Jiang Quan, “Breaking and entering, taking the initiative to fight, fifteen days of detention, double if repeated. If you have any objections, you can file a lawsuit in court.”
However, Jiang Quan was not in a position to file a lawsuit.
He had no money, relying on small tricks every month to scrape together a living. Where would he get the money to go to court against Jiang Shi?
Moreover, the homeowner of the house was Jiang Qi, and regardless of his self-proclaimed identity as his ‘old man,’ it couldn’t change this fact.
“F*ck his b*tch mother.” Before being detained, Jiang Quan, with a gloomy gaze, dripping water, once smirked at Jiang Shi, “Tell my son to wait for his old man to come out.”
The latter part of the sentence didn’t need to be said; Jiang Shi could guess what it was.
It was nothing but ‘I’ll kill him,’ a statement Jiang Quan had uttered countless times to them.
*
“Since then, my household registration has been at my uncle’s place, so I attended high school at Itada District No.1 Middle School. Later, I even got into Third Middle School.”
Countless embarrassing memories flashed through his mind, but facing Zhi Qi, Jiang Qi didn’t want to narrate his past as if ‘seeking sympathy.’ He provided only brief explanations. However, from the subtle hints and phrases, Zhi Qi could sense that the young man had gone through a tough time.
His pair of hands were clearly long and delicate, with distinct joints. However, there were several clear scars on them, indicating the rough and often hardworking nature of those hands. Just moments of holding her hand, Zhi Qi could feel the thick calluses…
Thinking about Jiang Qi’s casual remark, ‘Most of the time, I help my uncle sell vegetables at the market,’ the young girl couldn’t help but feel a twinge in her heart.
At this youthful age, most boys and girls are carefree, thinking about where to go during holidays or which celebrity is the most handsome. At most, they focus on studying. But how many are like Jiang Qi, selling vegetables for the sake of education and livelihood?
Suppressing the bitterness in the corners of her eyes, Zhi Qi knew that Jiang Qi wouldn’t want to see her feeling pitiful and wanting to cry.
After sniffing, the girl forced a smile and said, “Jiang Qi, it’s actually my fault. I should have thought that you not attending that High School must have a reason. And then I… got angry with you.”
This really shouldn’t have happened. The more Zhi Qi thought about it, the more she felt she was being unreasonable. But Jiang Qi didn’t want to see her with any self-blame or guilt. The young man’s sharp eyebrows slightly furrowed, “Don’t talk nonsense.”
He liked it when Zhi Qi was angry with him. As long as Zhi Qi was still willing to talk to him, everything was fine.
“Jiang Qi, are you still helping your uncle sell vegetables now?” Zhi Qi didn’t want him to dwell on those sad things, deliberately changing the topic. She looked at the boy’s delicately contoured profile and smiled, “Are you the most handsome person in the vegetable market?”
Jiang Qi couldn’t help but pause, only realizing belatedly that the girl was praising him, praising him for being… handsome. Unconsciously, the warmth rose to the young man’s ears, and he lowered his head in silence—he couldn’t shamelessly admit that he was the handsomest in the vegetable market.
However, Zhi Qi didn’t let him off. The girl tugged at Jiang Qi’s fingers and continued to smile, “Next time you sell vegetables, take me with you, okay? I want to give it a try too.”
She wanted Jiang Qi to know that selling vegetables wasn’t something to be ashamed of. Everyone has their own way of making a living, and she could handle selling vegetables too. Jiang Qi understood the meaning behind the girl’s words, and his gaze unconsciously softened bit by bit.
He softly agreed, “Okay.”
Under Jiang Qi’s amber-like light-colored eyes, Zhi Qi had a moment of distraction. She thought, the boy is really obedient, willing to listen to everything she says, which is really good.
-His eyes are like the calmest lake.
-Let sorrow settle peacefully in my heart, just like dusk in a quiet forest.
*
But if you really consider Jiang Qi as a ‘very obedient’ boy, that is one of the biggest illusions in life.
What Zhi Qi didn’t know was that Jiang Qi was only obedient to her.
Towards others, Jiang Qi might be, as Chen Liufang mentioned before, like a pretentious and arrogant show-off. If someone provoked him, he would unreservedly turn into a madman. Perhaps due to his upbringing, Jiang Qi had an extreme lack of trust and a reluctance to engage with everything around him.
The young man didn’t make friends with people in the class, not even saying a word to them. He lacked the vitality and sunshine typical of sixteen or seventeen-year-olds. All he had was a gloomy atmosphere. Jiang Qi’s silent and unsociable nature quickly became ‘well-known’ in the class, but even the teachers couldn’t do anything about it.
Because not liking to talk and being unsociable aren’t crimes, and there’s nothing to be done about not fitting in.
Moreover, Jiang Qi had good grades.
Since childhood, the boy had a single-minded desire to ‘stand out’ through good studies. Although he was covered with ‘thorns’ that didn’t fit into this world, he was serious about his academic pursuits. Otherwise, Jiang Qi wouldn’t have been able to transfer from a middle school in the poor district of Itada, where the student resources were lagging, to Third High School with top-notch grades.
In this class, he only spoke to Zhi Qi.
Just like in elementary school, he still carried a vacuum layer around him, keeping everyone at a distance of a thousand miles. Only Zhi Qi could enter, and everyone else felt out of place.
At the beginning, Zhi Qi didn’t feel anything wrong. She could still have lunch with Jiang Qi as usual, explore problems together, and in the evening, Jiang Qi would even walk her home. For the little girl, it was pure happiness.
But gradually, there were some rumors in the class.
For example, some people said that Zhi Qi and Jiang Qi were in a puppy love.
‘Puppy love’ was a very serious and taboo term in high school, and Zhi Qi had never thought that she could be associated with this word. Because in her perception, she had known Jiang Qi since childhood, and interaction and close contact were natural things, not related to any ‘puppy love.’ But it wasn’t until Tang Jiao called her out to whisper after school that Zhi Qi realized that in the eyes of others, she and Jiang Qi were indeed in a puppy love relationship.
“Um, Qiqi.” Tang Jiao whispered to her, seemingly embarrassed, “Are you and Jiang Qi… um, getting too close?”
At first, Zhi Qi didn’t understand what she meant, blinking her big eyes in confusion, “What’s wrong? We’ve known each other for a long time.”
“Yes, but…” When it came to matters related to ‘affection,’ girls usually felt very embarrassed. Tang Jiao hesitated as she advised her, “But our classmates are saying that you and Jiang Qi… you two are in a romantic relationship.”
When the three words ‘in a romantic relationship’ were mentioned, the girl’s voice became almost as weak as a mosquito. After hearing what Tang Jiao said, a thunderous sound echoed in Zhi Qi’s mind, and her snow-white face turned red from her forehead to the roots of her ears in an instant.
“N-No way!” The girl stammered in defense, her voice trembling with indignation, “We haven’t, haven’t done that.”
For a girl who was so naive that she didn’t even have the concept of love, Zhi Qi couldn’t bring herself to say the three words ‘in romantic relationship.’
Her small hands involuntarily clenched into fists, and after taking a deep breath, she said firmly, “This is a rumor, Jiao Jiao. Who spread that about us?”
“I don’t know.” Tang Jiao frowned in distress, sighing softly, “Qiqi, many people in the class are talking about it now. If someone tells the teacher, it won’t be good.”
“How about… how about you just stay away from Jiang Qi a bit? Don’t you find him a bit strange?”
From Tang Jiao’s perspective, this was a ‘well-intentioned’ suggestion.
However, Zhi Qi was furious.
Why should she distance herself from Jiang Qi just because of the gossip and rumors of those around her? Shouldn’t the most important thing be her own clear conscience? Moreover, where was Jiang Qi ‘strange’?
In fact, Zhi Qi and Tang Jiao had a good relationship, almost like talking about everything as front and back desk buddies. But at this moment, the girl still remembered her first ‘friend’ from elementary school, who she fell out with because of Jiang Qi—Zhi Shuang.
It was also because of Jiang Qi that Zhi Shuang followed the crowd and slandered Jiang Qi along with the public. Although the ‘herd mentality’ is human nature, Zhi Qi still couldn’t help but feel that this kind of follow-the-crowd thinking was a sign of an unhealthy personality. But Tang Jiao was not Zhi Shuang, and she was no longer the girl who would casually break off friendships with people.
“Jiao Jiao, Jiang Qi is not strange; you just don’t understand him.” This time, Zhi Qi took a deep breath, choosing to explain to Tang Jiao. The girl’s delicate face showed an almost serious attitude—
“I’ve known him for many years and know that he is a good person.”
“In this world, not everyone has to be sociable or likable.”
“Jiang Qi may just be someone not very likable, but I like him.”
…
Tang Jiao couldn’t help but look at her in astonishment.
And Zhi Qi just smiled slightly, openly and honestly saying, “I’m talking about liking as friends.”
“Following the crowd in judging someone can sometimes blind one’s eyes. Under the spread of false information, it also damages another person’s reputation.” Zhi Qi smiled, picked up her backpack and slung it over her shoulder. Before leaving, she sincerely said to Tang Jiao—
“Jiao Jiao, both you and Jiang Qi are my friends. I hope you observe him with your own eyes rather than judge him based on others’ words. Goodbye.”
With that, the girl turned and went downstairs.
At this moment, the first-year students had mostly left, while the second and third-year students were still in class. Under the big locust tree on the playground, there was the slender shadow of a boy waiting for her. A faint dimple appeared at the corner of Zhi Qi’s lips as she walked towards Jiang Qi in the moonlight. She trusted him, liked him, and that was all.
*
Zhi Qi and Jiang Qi certainly didn’t have a puppy love, at least not at the age of sixteen in the first year of high school.
As for later… in fact, they had long understood some things.
It’s just that in the moment of youth, young people don’t understand which comes faster, tomorrow or the unexpected. So the love that had been declared long ago finally faded away silently amidst the ‘thunderous’ casualties.
Now, after four years, they were approaching each other for the first time.
But Zhi Qi still remembered the fact that Jiang Qi was now a ‘public figure.’ After removing the boy’s mask, the girl hesitantly covered his face with her hand. The slightly cool lips were covered by the girl’s soft palm, and Jiang Qi was momentarily lost in thought. Then, Zhi Qi, as if feeling guilty, put the mask back on the boy stealthily. With a slightly tiptoed and adorable posture, you could see her long eyelashes fluttering like little fans when she lowered her eyes.
Zhi Qi took Jiang Qi’s hand and spoke softly, “Come with me.”
The area around Lan University was bustling, making it inconvenient to talk. Zhi Qi led the boy to the back garden of the female dormitory at Lan University. It was usually a popular spot for couples in the evening, but during the day, it was deserted, making it a good place for conversation.
The two sat on a bench in the garden, surrounded by lush scenery. The boy, however, stood out in his all-black attire.
This time’s ‘reunion after a long separation’ is different from the one in high school, but Jiang Qi is still… very nervous. His slender fingers unconsciously clenched into fists, and the palm of his hand quickly became moist with cold sweat.
Zhi Qi looked at the evident nervousness in Jiang Qi’s light-colored pupils. She felt like laughing, but she restrained herself, maintaining a calm expression and tone.
“How did you know I was here?”
She could be infatuated and passionate about Jiang Qi on the internet, expressing her love for him as if he were a confidant every day. But in real life, Zhi Qi had to convey her attitude to Jiang Qi—she minded the young man repeatedly leaving without notice and suddenly reappearing, even though she was genuinely concerned about him.
“I…” Jiang Qi’s voice under the mask was muffled, his eyes staring at her without blinking. “I saw you at the fan meeting.”
His voice was noticeably uneasy.
Zhi Qi remained silent for a moment, squinted her eyes, and asked, “Saw me?”
She didn’t have a VIP ticket, nor was she in a good position among the thousands of people. How could Jiang Qi spot her?
“Yeah.” Jiang Qi nodded, taking out his phone and handing it over obediently. “I knew you were at the fan meeting today.”
So, he had been looking for her all along.
Zhi Qi took the phone suspiciously. On the screen were rows of private messages in the Weibo ‘Confession’ box.
…
The fair-skinned girl’s face instantly turned red, then exploded!
“You!” She stood up suddenly, looking down at Jiang Qi, her voice involuntarily stuttering, “Aren’t you celebrities supposed to ignore Weibo private messages?”
Could it be that Meng Chunyu lied to her? But this was too, too, too embarrassing!
Zhi Qi looked at the private message list filled with shameless and cheesy words, feeling like she could crawl into a crack in the floor.
Meanwhile, the young man with a ‘steel straight male heart’ still didn’t understand why Zhi Qi suddenly got angry.
Jiang Qi stood up somewhat awkwardly, shaking his head in explanation, “I only recently saw it. Before that, my assistant used to log in to this account. I didn’t… didn’t intentionally see it and not come to find you.”
He thought Zhi Qi was angry because of this reason, explaining with genuine emotions.
Zhi Qi, still embarrassed, didn’t look at him, turned her head and asked with a pout, “Then why are you here now?”
Jiang Qi replied without hesitation, “I just found out you were here, so I wanted to come and find you.”
…
Perhaps when it comes to someone you care about, the bottom line is that a casual sentence from them can easily break down all the defenses you’ve built in your heart.
Just like six years ago, when they reunited.
In reality, there were many questions she wanted to ask—
‘How is it inside? When did you come out?’
‘Why did you enter the entertainment industry? Are you doing well now?’
‘In these years… have you ever thought of me?’
But with countless thoughts swirling in her mind, she suddenly felt like she couldn’t ask anything.
After a while, Zhi Qi just sighed softly. Then, she turned around, familiarly removed half of Jiang Qi’s mask and put it back on for him, her voice gentle, “Your phone has been ringing continuously, go back.”
Zhi Qi looked at the private message list filled with shameless and cheesy words, feeling like she could crawl into a crack in the floor.
