Chapter 33.1

Luo Rui was startled by him, and he widened his eyes like a deer in headlights. "W-What’s up?"

"Can you stop speaking nonsense?"

"I haven't said anything!"

"Didn’t you suggest that Luo Yi might be responsible for Luca’s predicament? And also…" Wen Xiaohui’s voice became an octave deeper. "Sydney-jie’s ex-husband…"

Luo Rui covered his mouth with his hand. "You’re the one who should stop speaking nonsense - that person’s already dead."

"Fuck, Luo Rui, why did you have to bring this up?"

"Fuck you! You were the one who came to talk to me about this!"

Wen Xiaohui cradled his head. "It can’t be. It can’t be. It can’t be!"

Luo Rui rubbed his hands together anxiously. "I was only saying… Just pretend I was talking gibberish."

"But you fucking said it already, it’s not like I can lose my memory!"

Luo Rui sighed, "Seriously, Baby, it’s more scary the more you think about it."

"Bullshit. I already know." Wen Xiaohui wrecked the hair that he had carefully blow dried. "No, I have to find out the truth."

"Sometimes you’re better off not knowing."

"Can you stand it? I can't." Wen Xiaohui said irritably, "No matter what, I want to find out. That’s just how I am and nothing will make me change."

"I know. Then what are you planning to do?"

"Firstly, I’ll see what I can find out from Sydney-jie. Actually, I thought she seemed hesitant when I saw her after that incident. I didn’t think too much about it at the time, but reflecting on it now, it seemed like she knew something, but was too scared to tell me."

Luo Rui bit his lip, appearing nervous.

Wen Xiaohui grabbed Luo Rui's hand. "Xiao Ma, tell me… What should I do if Luo Yi really did it?"

Luo Rui gasped, "I-I don't know."

Wen Xiaohui didn’t know what to do if Luo Yi was completely different from what he’d imagined. From the beginning, his impression of Luo Yi was one that was gentle and sunny, which gradually changed to intelligent and complex, and now full of suspicion. He couldn’t accept the fact that the Luo Yi he knew wasn’t actually how he'd imagined. Luo Yi could be gentle and considerate to him, but he could also be callous, ruthless, and dangerous to others. The fact that the two clashing personalities could be found in the same person, and he was so close to that person, made him tremble in fear.

He faced a dilemma - he didn’t have to find out the truth and he could act dumb, but he wouldn’t be able to put his mind at ease. Who would be able to react so calmly to the possibility that there was a hibernating beast by their side?

Luo Rui stroked Wen Xiaohui's head. He consoled, "At least he treats you well."

At least he treats you well.

That’s true, at least Luo Yi treated him well... But he couldn’t accept Luo Yi’s cruelty to others and it didn’t matter whether he had a grudge against them or not. He only cared about finding out what kind of person Luo Yi really was.

Wen Xiaohui shook his head. "I have to find out what kind of person he is."

Luo Rui grimaced, and his eyes were brimming with concern.

—----------------------------

Wen Xiaohui pondered for a couple days before he worked up the courage to call Sydney. Sydney often came to see him before the incident occurred, and she would occasionally invite him out to chat over a cup of tea even if she didn’t need her hair styling. However, they were nearly complete strangers now. He had always thought that Sydney had found it awkward, but thinking about it, there might have been other reasons behind this.

Sydney appeared very surprised when she received his call. When she heard that Wen Xiaohui wanted to invite her out, she immediately replied that she was really busy recently and didn’t have the time. Wen Xiaohui refused to give up; he was determined to find a day when she was free, so she was unable to turn him down. Finally they agreed on a date the week after next.

Since the day when he questioned Luo Yi, they hadn’t seen each other in nearly a week. Wen Xiaohui thought that avoiding him wasn’t the way forward, and instead he chose a day to go over and spend the night. Luo Yi behaved like normal, as if nothing had happened, but Wen Xiaohui’s doubts had begun to form layer-by-layer. He started to pay attention to the little details that he would have ignored in the past. For example, he deliberately used an excuse to go up to the third floor, he brought up the subject of the gun, and he talked about Sydney’s ex-husband on purpose, but Luo Yi cleverly managed to change the subject. Wen Xiaohui suffered a great defeat in the face of such a disparity in IQ, so he could only give up on his plan of finding out the truth from Luo Yi.

Luo Yi gladly shared news of his company with Wen Xiaohui, and he seemed even busier ever since he formed the company. Although he said that the purpose was to gradually transfer across the assets left by Luo Yaya to keep them out of the hands of Cao Hao and his biological father, Wen Xiaohui thought that he seemed serious about doing business. Although he didn’t know what Luo Yi was going to do, he wasn’t interested in finding out either.

—-------------------------

After the start of the Chinese New Year, the studio started getting busier and busier, and although they’d recruited a lot of new starters, experienced stylists, as always, could almost do the work of three. Wen Xiaohui finally gained enough experience to become a senior, and he started to take on trainees. Not only did his salary increase significantly, he also began to accept more private work, thus taking half a step into the entertainment industry.

One afternoon, Wen Xiaohui received a text message out of the blue from Li Shuo, whom he hadn’t heard from in a while. He invited him out for dinner that evening to meet his friends, and asked him to bring Luo Rui along with him.

Wen Xiaohui had been feeling down, but as soon as he saw this, he thought that it would be a good way to relax his mind. He immediately agreed to it, and he phoned Luo Rui to tell him to get dressed up for dinner that night.

That evening, he and Luo Rui went there with great expectations. Li Shuo brought two of his friends with him who were handsome and seemed nice - one look and you could tell that they were great quality men. However, compared with Li Shuo, Li Shuo was naturally more eye-catching.

The meal was enjoyable - mature men were clearly not the same, with their refined ways of speaking and tailored to the occasion. There was never an awkward silence. After the meal, one of the guys took Luo Rui home since it was on his way ,and Li Shuo was planning to take Wen Xiaohui home.

As soon as they got into the car and Wen Xiaohui gave his address, Li Shuo responded, "Oh? It's not the same place as last time."

"Yeah, that was the house that I rented with my colleague. I’m heading back to my own house today."

"Oh." Li Shuo said, "What do you think about my friends?"

"They’re not bad. I think Liu-ge is interested in my childhood buddy."

"Leave them to stay in touch and see what happens. I can’t guarantee anything else about my friend, but there definitely won’t be any issues with his character."

"Thank you, President1 Li."

Li Shuo laughed, "Don't call me President Li, it’s too weird."

Wen Xiaohui said coquettishly, "Li dage2."

Li Shuo nodded with a smile, and he started chatting with Wen Xiaohui.

Wen Xiaohui really enjoyed chatting with Li Shuo because he was a great conversationalist. He was also very enticing when he remained silent with a slight smile on his face.

The car drove past the dwindling lights of the city. The hustle and bustle outside contrasted with the relaxing music and soft voices inside the car, which made it appear even quieter and comforting. Wen Xiaohui felt the distance close between him and Li Shuo, but it might have been a product of his wishful thinking. He still thought that they genuinely seemed a little closer.

As the car drove down a side street, Wen Xiaohui, who was looking out the window occasionally, spotted the fried chicken restaurant with the bright yellow neon lights. He recalled how this place was recommended to him loads of times by Xiao Ai, and it was responsible for her putting on five catties in weight. A second later, not far from the fried chicken restaurant, he saw Xiao Ai and her boyfriend, whom he’d met once during a meal.

"Stop, stop the car!" Wen Xiaohui suddenly shouted. He’d seen Xiao Ai and that guy tugging at each other, and there was also a woman at the side.

Li Shuo was surprised by his shouting. "What's happening?"

"Quick, stop the car. That's my friend!"

Li Shuo urgently stopped the car on the side of the road. Wen Xiaohui rushed out with a fierce look on his face, as soon as he pushed the door open. People who were gay were especially perceptive, and if his guess was right, he must have stumbled upon the scene of catching the adulterer red handed3.

As expected, he heard Xiao Ai crying as he got closer - she was crying and shouting ‘scum’ and ‘go to hell.’ The guy looked very embarrassed and humiliated4. The woman standing next to him was wearing 10cm high heels with her arms crossed over her chest and rolling her eyes.

Wen Xiaohui shouted, "Xiao Ai!"

When Xiao Ai was surprised when she saw him. Her look of helplessness made him feel particularly distressed.

The guy was also shocked when he saw Wen Xiaohui, but he didn’t think much of the seemingly effeminate Wen Xiaohui who was half a head shorter and a clothes size smaller than him.

Wen Xiaohui said crudely, "What the fuck is going on?"

The scumbag said pretentiously, "Adi, this is a family matter so stay out of it."

Wen Xiaohui sneered, "Since when did an unruly dickhead like you become part of Xiao Ai’s family? Oh please, I’m only getting involved because our Xiao Ai’s dog mated a feral bitch."

"What the fuck did you say!" The guy revealed his ferocious appearance.

"I said that I don’t give a damn about stray dogs like you, but try not to bring any contagious diseases home."

"Goddamn sissy, are you after a beating?!"

Xiao Ai said quietly, "Xiaohui, don't..."

Wen Xiaohui said sternly, "If you dare back down, don’t come crying to me!"

Xiao Ai clenched her fists and her lip quivered.

Wen Xiaohui took his jacket off and shouted, "Come watch me beat up this dog!"

His cries attracted more and more passersby, who came over to satisfy their curiosity. The scumbag looked embarrassed, and he rushed towards him aggressively.

Wen Xiaohui swung the denim jacket in his hand into his face, and the scumbag used his arm to block it. Wen Xiaohui immediately kicked him in the small of his back. After the kick, he used the jacket to viciously flog the scumbag’s body and face. The scumbag had been flogged a good few times, before he got back up with great difficulty and grabbed onto Wen Xiaohui’s waist. They both fell over.

The scumbag's fist flew at Wen Xiaohui's face and Wen Xiaohui cocked his head to dodge; the fingerbones brushed past his cheek and he felt a burning pain. Wen Xiaohui hated people hitting his face the most. He swung his fists towards the scumbag’s ribs and spleen. He knew all the weak points on a person’s body and he was also aware of the amount of damage that could be caused by using a certain amount of force. His dad, who was retired from the special forces, had taught him all of this. His dad’s greatest wish was to mould him into a righteous man, but that wish was not yet fulfilled. Nonetheless, he had taught Wen Xiaohui how to fight. Although they were both effeminate, Luo Rui had been bullied throughout his childhood, while Wen Xiaohui had been rowdy from an early age.

The scumbag was badly beaten, but using the fact that he was larger than Wen Xiaohui to his advantage, he punched Wen Xiaohui a few times. Wen Xiaohui couldn’t get up from the ground, but then he felt the pressure on his body easing. He tilted his head to see Li Shuo hoisting the scumbag up by his wrist.

He saw Li Shuo’s calm expression as he kicked the scumbag’s knees a couple of times, and the scumbag knelt down. Li Shuo pressed his foot down on the scumbag’s back and pinned his hands behind him. Unable to move, the scumbag howled.

Wen Xiaohui felt flustered as he got up from the ground; he had long forgotten that Li Shuo was there. He thought to himself how the delicate lamb image that he had painstakingly tried to maintain had been destroyed. He might as well destroy his image completely. He coughed once. "Thank you."

Li Shuo replied, "Don’t mention it. What should we do about this?"

Wen Xiaohui was about to reply when he realised that the woman was about to run off. He rushed over and grabbed her by the hair. "Bitch, you dare steal my friend’s boyfriend and now you want to run off?"

The woman was still acting arrogantly as she shouted, "What do you want?!"

Wen Xiaohui kicked her behind the knee, forcing her to kneel with a thud. He cackled, "Apologise!"

Xiao Ai was so stunned that she didn’t know what to do. The people who had gathered around to watch were very hyped, and they heckled the woman to apologise.

The woman blushed and she looked like she was going to cry.

Wen Xiaohui grabbed her chin and tilted her face up to look at Xiao Ai. "Apologise or I'll strip you naked."

The woman trembled incessantly, and she whispered, "I'm sorry."

"Xiao Ai, did you hear that?"

Xiao Ai took a deep breath. " No."

"Louder!"

"I'm sorry".

"Louder!"

"Sorry!"

Wen Xiaohui finally released her.

The woman stood up, ready to run. Wen Xiaohui said sternly: "Stand still. You can only go if I give you permission."

The woman trembled as she returned.

Wen Xiaohui walked up to the scumbag and kicked him a few times. The scumbag struggled with all his might in vain, as Li Shuo held him firmly. Wen Xiaohui called out to Xiao Ai. "Come here."

Xiao Ai went over.

Wen Xiaohui pointed at the scumbag. "Beat him. Beat him until you’re no longer angry."

Xiao Ai bit her lip as she looked at Wen Xiaohui; she was a bit too scared to act.

"Hit him. Are you going to keep this kind of idiot around?"

The crowd followed suit and jeered.

Xiao Ai made up her mind and she slapped the scumbag on the face.

"That wasn’t hard enough."

Xiao Ai's eyes looked red, and she started to slap him with both hands. She slapped the scumbag over a dozen times that she started panting.

Wen Xiaohui shrugged. "Are you tired? I’ll help you." He slapped the scumbag’s face over ten times and a few streaks of blood appeared at the corners of his lips.

In the end, Wen Xiaohui gave him another kick, and he asked Li Shuo to release him. "Piss off! Leave Xiao Ai alone in future, or I will beat you up each time I see you."

The scumbag ran off with the woman without looking back.