Zou Yang’s hand was a bit cold, carrying a very slight tremor.

Fan Jun’s lips and hand were sensitive like never before.
He could simultaneously perceive the delicate palm of Zou Yang’s hand, and the distinct metacarpal bones on the back of it.
And beating beneath his thumb, Zou Yang’s pulse.

His breath collided between his lips and Zou Yang’s heartbeat, producing a burning hot temperature.

Perhaps a few seconds, perhaps a few minutes—he suddenly lost all basic judgment of time… It wasn’t until his eyes and ears were burning hot that he abruptly let go of Zou Yang’s hand.

Zou Yang’s hand paused slightly in the air before also abruptly pulling back.

“I’m going to take a shower,” Fan Jun stood up and walked into the bedroom.

Zou Yang didn’t make a sound the entire time. Fan Jun didn’t dare turn back to look, grabbing his pajamas from the wardrobe and heading to the bathroom.

“Get me a bottle of iced water,” Zou Yang said, “I’m dying of thirst.”
“Mineral water or a soft drink?” Fan Jun walked over and opened the fridge.
“Mineral water,” Zou Yang said.

Fan Jun grabbed a bottle of mineral water, conveniently unscrewed the cap slightly, walked to the sofa, and handed it over, quickly glancing at Zou Yang’s face.

He couldn’t see anything clearly. The lights weren’t on in the room, and the curtains were drawn.

“Need anything else?” he asked.
“No need,” Zou Yang gulped down two mouthfuls of water.

“Don’t drink lying down,” Fan Jun turned and headed toward the bathroom. “You’ll choke in a bit.”
“Mm,” Zou Yang responded.

Closing the bathroom door and drawing the shower curtain, Fan Jun leaned back against the wall, closed his eyes, and let out a long, deep sigh.

His mind was in total chaos.

He wasn’t some ignorant kid who didn’t know anything.
But in his twenty-four years of life, no matter what kind of relationship it was, he had only ever been a bystander.
Watching, listening, passing by.
Not remembering.

This was the first time he was personally experiencing this kind of emotion.

Zou Yang had just swung a broadsword and hacked his way through. Fan Jun hadn’t even had time to calm down and think about the ‘ifs’, ‘buts’, and ‘whys’, before everything was already hacked to dust.
His head was spinning.

He reached out and turned on the showerhead, cold water splashing all over his face and body.
It took him a good while to realize he hadn’t even taken off his clothes.

Stripping off his clothes and turning the showerhead back on, he leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, and held his breath as the cold water poured over his head. It took a long time before he slowly let out a long sigh.

When he returned to the living room, Zou Yang still hadn’t slept. His hand, hanging off the side of the sofa, was idly spinning the mineral water bottle.

“Not sleepy?” Fan Jun asked.

“I am,” Zou Yang turned his face toward him. “Will you be able to fall asleep in a bit?”
“Probably,” Fan Jun walked back into the bedroom, pulled a small quilt from the cabinet, walked to the sofa, and placed it over Zou Yang. “Your body might not be sleepy, but your brain is.”

Zou Yang grabbed the small quilt and shook it: “I don’t need to cover up with anything.”
“The AC is on,” Fan Jun said. “You’ll catch a cold when you fall asleep. Cover your belly button.”

“Fuck,” Zou Yang started laughing. “Why do you sound just like my mom?”
“That’s what my mom always used to say.” Fan Jun also smiled.

Just as he turned and walked to the bedroom door, Zou Yang spoke again in the dark: “If you can’t sleep tonight, you can wake me up.”

“Mm,” Fan Jun responded. “Good night.”
“Good night.”

He couldn’t sleep.

And his bladder was full of beer.
He usually drank at night too, just to get a bit sleepy. He didn’t need to get drunk, just a little drowsy was enough. But he never just collapsed straight into bed after drinking; he always had to make at least a few trips to the bathroom…

He hadn’t closed the bedroom door tonight. From this angle lying in bed, catching the faint moonlight filtering through the gap in the curtains, he could just perfectly see Zou Yang’s legs on the sofa.

He couldn’t sleep.
He simply rested his head on his arm and quietly watched the legs on the sofa that occasionally shifted.

Fortunately, Zou Yang was a college student with absolutely zero sleep issues; falling asleep was his forte.
Probably not even fifteen minutes later, Zou Yang stopped moving, lying quietly.

Even when Da Hei stepped on his legs to jump onto the back of the sofa, he didn’t move.

Fan Jun got up quietly, crossed the living room, and went to the bathroom.
Looking out the living room window, there was a fifth-floor platform; looking out the bathroom window, you could see the open space downstairs.

The moonlight was very bright. The shadows of the trees and buildings on the open space were clearly visible. The sharp contrast, if stared at for too long, gave the illusion of being under a blazing sun, a glaring, suffocating feeling like overexposed film.

There was no one suspicious downstairs, but his unease was stronger than usual.

Returning to the bedroom and lying down, he watched the quietly sleeping Zou Yang on the living room sofa in the darkness.

The temperature of Zou Yang’s palm still lingered on his lips, carrying a slightly cool warmth.

He closed his eyes, slowed his breathing, and emptied his mind.

…

On days when Xiao Bai slept beside the bed, Fan Jun basically never woke up later than seven-thirty.

Xiao Bai wasn’t like some dogs that would bite your hand, pull the covers, or even climb onto the bed to step on you, but it would sit by the bed, unable to control its urgent whimpering.

Fan Jun always felt that it knew its owner couldn’t hear clearly out of his left ear, so it would always walk around to the right side of the bed.

“Sigh…” Fan Jun rolled over and reached his hand out to the side of the bed, waving it slightly.

Xiao Bai’s nose instantly leaned over and nudged his hand twice.

“Wait here.” Still with his eyes closed, Fan Jun made a hand gesture, “Don’t go out.”

Xiao Bai obediently lay down on the floor.

Zou Yang was still sleeping. This person didn’t seem to sleep very properly. Last time he put his legs on the table; this time his legs were directly propped up on the back of the sofa.

The small quilt given to him yesterday had already been kicked onto the floor, and his glasses—who knows if they were thrown or dropped—were on the rug along with the quilt.

Fan Jun went over, picked up the glasses, and put them on the table.

And he even said he could wake him up if he couldn’t sleep in the middle of the night… With him sleeping so deeply, who would have the heart to wake him.

After washing up, Fan Jun opened the bedroom door, made a hand gesture to Xiao Bai inside, and said in a low voice: “Slow.”

Xiao Bai slowly walked out of the bedroom, slowly walked out the front door, and only after seeing him close the door did it excitedly begin to stamp its front paws back and forth on the ground.

South Zhouping was a place that went to bed early and woke up early. By past four o’clock there were already people on the streets—various small trucks and pushcarts, people delivering goods and setting up stalls.

By seven o’clock, the entirety of South Zhouping had already entered its first round of chaotic noise.

Fan Jun took Xiao Bai for a slow jog along the small streets, looking at the familiar roads, looking at the familiar people.

His footsteps were light.

His watch showed that he had run almost five kilometers, and Fan Jun headed to the breakfast shop gathering spot.

When he opened the door carrying a large bag of food, Zou Yang was still sleeping on the sofa spread-eagled in that exact same posture.
Showing absolutely no sign of waking up or wanting to wake up.

Fan Jun turned on the floor lamp in the living room with softer lighting. He took Xiao Bai’s bowl into the bedroom, poured its food, and then topped up Da Hei’s food as well.

Returning to stand by the sofa, with two animals in the house, there was bound to be quite a bit of noise no matter what. If it were him, he would have woken up ages ago, but Zou Yang was still sleeping.

Fan Jun began to doubt if he was pretending to be asleep.

“Zou Yang?” Fan Jun called out to him very quietly.
No response.

Fan Jun wanted to call out again, but hesitated. Previously he just thought Zou Yang was a good sleeper who fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, but today he seemed to really be exhausted.

Probably his alcohol tolerance wasn’t that great either…

When he left the house this morning, he hadn’t had the nerve to look closely at Zou Yang’s face. Now standing by the sofa, he could clearly see him from head to toe.

Very handsome, although his sleeping posture was truly terrible. His clothes were even messed up in his sleep, exposing a section of his belly.

Fan Jun glanced toward his stomach, then quickly withdrew his gaze.

After hesitating for a moment, he lifted a corner of the small quilt from the floor and very lightly placed it over Zou Yang’s exposed belly.

Just as he turned to go to the kitchen and sort out the breakfast, Zou Yang’s voice came from behind him: “What time is it?”

“Not eight yet,” Fan Jun said. “You can sleep a little longer.”
“Mm,” Zou Yang responded, his voice filled with grogginess. “Did you just call me?”

“…Yes,” Fan Jun looked at him. “Thought you didn’t hear it.”

“I heard it. I was climbing a snow mountain,” Zou Yang said with his eyes closed, his voice becoming increasingly slurred. “Climbing three steps and sliding down five… Climbed all night to the foot of the mountain… and then you called me…”

Fan Jun held back a smile: “Then why don’t you climb it again?”
“Mm…” After Zou Yang responded, there was no more movement.

Going back to sleep is usually the deepest sleep.

Fan Jun arranged the plated breakfast on the small table, leaned against the sofa, and slowly ate his portion, covering up everything left for Zou Yang.

Zou Yang was still sleeping.

Fan Jun glanced at the class schedule on his phone. He had to go to the new-new gym to teach at ten o’clock today. Before that, he had to go to the old gym first to find a vehicle to haul away the last two lockers from the new gym’s locker room, and then the new gym would basically be closed…

He took out a pen and paper, and left a note on the table for Zou Yang.
– I’m going to the new-new gym, call me when you wake up.

After writing the note, he got up and went into the bedroom to change into a T-shirt.

“Where are you going?” Zou Yang’s nasal voice sounded in the living room.
“Hmm? You’re awake?” Fan Jun quickly walked out.

“Been awake. I could hear you the whole time you were eating, just didn’t want to open my eyes…” Zou Yang yawned, stretched long and hard, and finally reached his arm out to grab the note from the small table. “Let’s see…”

He held the note close and then far away, adjusting for a long time before finally reading it out loud: “I’m going to the new… new gym, call me when you wake up… Hello?”

Fan Jun froze for a moment before realizing, and replied: “Hello? You’re awake?”
“Mm,” Zou Yang smiled. “Did you leave me any breakfast?”

“It’s on the table, take a look,” Fan Jun said.
“Are there steamed dumplings?” Zou Yang asked.
“And other things too, I was afraid you’d get sick of having them two meals in a row,” Fan Jun smiled.

“Smart,” Zou Yang said, then sat up. “Hanging up now.”
“Mm,” Fan Jun responded.

Zou Yang rubbed his face with his hands, grabbed his glasses from the table and put them on, then uncovered the breakfast items.

Steamed dumplings, fried cakes, siomai, egg burgers, soy milk.

“Are you running a shop?” Zou Yang laughed at the sight.
“Didn’t know what you wanted to eat.” Fan Jun walked over and sat down beside him.

“Aren’t you going to the new-new gym?” Zou Yang asked.
“I am,” Fan Jun said.

“Then why are you sitting here again?” Zou Yang glanced at him. “Eat some more?”
“…Mm.” Fan Jun nodded.

“Then wait for me a bit,” Zou Yang stood up. “I’ll wash up.”
“Okay.”

After washing his face, Zou Yang leaned on the sink and looked at himself in the mirror.
He had been groggy all morning; only now after washing his face was he finally fully awake.

His brain started working again, and the memories of last night came back as well.

…The memories of last night.

Zou Yang felt the expression on his face was a bit unpredictable, the corners of his mouth holding a half-smile.

Tsk.
He quickly lowered his head and splashed some more water on his face.
What a humiliating expression.

Adjusting his state of mind, he returned to the living room.

Fan Jun had grabbed a bottle of coffee and was drinking it.

“I want one too,” Zou Yang said.
“I’ll get it for you.” Fan Jun said, about to get up.

As his hand pressed against the floor, from his neckline, one could clearly see his collarbone protruding from the exertion…

Zou Yang quickly pushed his shoulder: “I’ll do it myself, I’m standing.”
“Hey?” Fan Jun was almost pushed backward by his shove. “You’ve got quite a bit of strength? Recovering well.”

“Fuck.” Zou Yang walked over with a smile, opened the fridge, and grabbed a bottle of coffee.

Just as he was about to speak, Fan Jun’s phone rang.

Xiao Bai nudged Fan Jun’s hand from the side to remind him.

“I heard it…” Fan Jun took out his phone. One glance, and his expression changed.

“Who is it?” Zou Yang immediately leaned over to take a look.
Officer Liang.

Did they have news about Sun Xulei?
Or Fan Gang?

“Officer Liang,” Fan Jun answered the phone. “What is it… mm, mm… What? How serious? Have you notified Sun Lao Wu?”

It was Sun Xulei.
Zou Yang breathed a sigh of relief.
But immediately felt a bit disappointed as well.

Fan Jun spoke a few more words and hung up the phone.

“What’s the situation?” Zou Yang asked.
“I have to go to the police station,” Fan Jun said. “Sun Xulei has been found. He’s no longer in our city and is quite seriously injured. It was the hospital that contacted the police station here…”

“Injured?” Zou Yang was stunned.

“Mm, he just woke up, but refuses to speak,” Fan Jun said while standing up. “Officer Liang’s idea is for me to go over and do a video call with him, see if I can ask about the situation, and then arrange for someone to go over…”

“Do you want me to go with you?” Zou Yang asked.
“It’s fine, you eat first. I’ll go check it out. Here’s the key, take it with you if you go out,” Fan Jun said, then added another sentence, “It’s really fine. As long as he’s not dead, it’s already good news.”

“Mm,” Zou Yang nodded. “Then I’ll sleep a bit more in a while.”

Fan Jun hurriedly left the apartment.

Zou Yang sat back at the table, picked up an egg burger, and took a bite.

Having news of Sun Xulei was very important to Fan Jun. One of the weights hanging over his heart had finally dropped. He just hoped the kid’s injuries weren’t too serious…

After finishing breakfast, Zou Yang returned to the sofa and lay down for a while, but he couldn’t fall asleep.

He got up, walked to the window, lifted a corner of the curtain, and looked outside.

The view from this apartment’s window was truly full of everyday life. Even if there was nothing to hide, this curtain probably wouldn’t be opened often. Outside were all other people’s windows and balconies; one glance and it felt like you could see right onto someone’s bed.
The platform below was also quite lively. Someone was already hanging laundry to dry early in the morning…

After looking out the window for a while, Zou Yang turned his head and looked at Fan Jun’s bedroom.

The door was open, and the layout inside was clear at a glance. It was very simple: a wardrobe and a bed, a small bookshelf, and a desk set.

Zou Yang hesitated for a few seconds, then walked in.

Then he stood awkwardly right in the middle of the room, feeling the guilty conscience of a thief.

It took him a while before he walked over to the bookshelf. A sanda coach who graduated from No. 21 High School, actually reading books…
It was quite professional; they were all sports-related books.

However, on the top shelf, there was a copy of The Little Prince.

Zou Yang took the book down and sat at the desk.

After reading for a while, Zou Yang took out his phone and glanced at it. Only half an hour had passed? He surprisingly felt like it should have been at least over an hour…

He picked up the book and read a few more pages, then heard a noise outside the door.

Xiao Bai, who had been lying beside the cat bed, also perked its head up.

“Is your brother back?” Zou Yang put the book down and quickly walked out of the bedroom.

As he walked toward the door, he heard the sound of the door lock.

He immediately stopped his motion to open the door.

Fan Jun hadn’t taken his keys.
And if Fan Jun had finished his business, he definitely would have called him right away…

A thief?
…Fan Gang?

Without overthinking it, Zou Yang immediately reached out, preparing to lock the door from the inside first.

But just as his hand reached the lock, the door was already opened.

As Zou Yang stepped backward, the already open door was violently rammed into by someone, slamming over at a speed he completely couldn’t dodge.

He didn’t even have time to see clearly who was outside before the door smashed heavily into him.

Then, something he couldn’t identify smashed against his head.

Zou Yang didn’t feel pain, only a wave of dizziness, his vision flashing chaotically with a black background and golden lights.

His entire body fell backward uncontrollably.

The last scene he saw was Xiao Bai suddenly leaping up…