Midsummer.
The heat spread everywhere.
It was already seven in the evening, yet the sky remained bright.
At the bustling crossroads in the city center, a dense crowd of people was as thick as ever, and the hot, stifling air was filled with the sour stench exuded by the crowd. Breathing in such air, it felt as though his own body was gradually taking on that heated odor.
Yang Siguang hung his head, standing at the street corner, listening to the “click-click” sound of the red light, sweat layering over his back again and again.
It was too hot.
So hot it felt as if his mind was starting to melt, to the point that he was dazed, even though his companion had been talking to him for some time. Only when his companion gave him a light push did he gradually come to his senses.
“Hey, look over there. It’s Li Shen…”1Shen means God.
At the moment those two words reached his ears, Yang Siguang flinched reflexively. He then followed his companion’s gaze, looking toward the spot not far away. Then, the soft flesh beneath his ribcage began to tighten uncontrollably, tightening more and more.
Yang Siguang felt a wave of long-missed suffocation, and for an instant, he almost wanted to turn around and run. But reason told him that doing so would likely draw the attention of others… including that person.
And that was the last thing he wanted.
Because the person standing over there was Li Chen.
*
For Yang Siguang’s companion to call Li Chen “Li Shen” was natural, and there was a reason for it. It could be said he was truly worthy of the title, having never once been unseated as the top campus heartthrob at A University in the past four years. Even if one knew nothing about his many remarkable achievements, just seeing his appearance would be enough to leave a deep impression and make people look his way again and again—
Yes, Li Chen’s handsomeness was undeniable.
His features were deep-set, with sharp lines that seemed almost sculpted. Standing at 1.87 meters tall, he was head and shoulders above the crowd. Remarkably, despite his height, Li Chen’s proportions were flawless, and his disciplined exercise routine had given him a body of lean, compact muscle that looked strong without any hint of bulkiness.
Moreover, as a student at A University, people didn’t just marvel at his good looks; they were also astonished by his extreme academic excellence. With such a commanding edge in both appearance and academics, his privileged family background as a second-generation wealthy individual seemed to fade in comparison. Of course, with his array of enviable advantages stacked up layer upon layer, it seemed only natural that Li Chen had come to be known as “Li Shen” at A University.
Sometimes, Yang Siguang even suspected that he might be the only person at A University who avoided Li Chen like the plague.
Similarly…
That boy, always so gentle and excellent as if he were from another dimension, would show only him that rare, cold, and disdainful expression.
*
Like right now, for example.
*
Yang Siguang didn’t even know how Li Chen had noticed him. Maybe it was just because his companion was too noisy? Yang Siguang had always known that his companion admired Li Chen, but he hadn’t expected his friend to react so strongly upon seeing him, muttering continuously and even trying to lift his phone to secretly snap a photo of him—
“You don’t get it. A picture of Li Shen—just post it on the forum, and it’s guaranteed to go viral!”
Yang Siguang’s friend lowered his voice but couldn’t hide his excitement, even as Yang Siguang tried to shield him.
And it was just then that Li Chen’s expression turned cold. His icy gaze cut through the crowd and locked onto Yang Siguang with pinpoint accuracy.
At that moment, Yang Siguang froze, like a frog under the stare of a snake, unable to move as his blood chilled.
Li Chen’s eyes were a very light color.
Under the setting sun, his irises seemed to glow like gilt, and a distinct stripe across his right iris stood out.
Li Chen’s right iris had a natural pigment streak.
It was subtle unless you looked closely, but when he stared expressionlessly, that unusual eye held a distinctly sharp and piercing look.
Yang Siguang’s throat began to tighten.
But standing so far away—could he really see the details of that stripe?
Or was it just memories from his childhood that made him think so?
Jumbled thoughts flashed through his mind, and even time seemed to slow to a crawl.
“Hey, did he notice us? Whoa, he looks pretty annoyed… Could it be that he caught me trying to sneak a picture? Freaky… But he usually doesn’t care about this stuff…”
The voice of his friend sounded distant and muffled, as though it were coming from deep underwater.
Meanwhile, Li Chen still had no expression. Only when he looked directly at Yang Siguang did his brow furrow ever so slightly.
As though he’d seen something repulsive.
The moment Yang Siguang registered this thought, Li Chen’s cold gaze turned away.
He looked off to the side, so all Yang Siguang could see was his tense profile.
*
Ah, he really does hate the sight of me, after all.
Yang Siguang thought, feeling a dull ache in his chest.
Yet, strangely, having Li Chen’s icy stare fixed on him one more time actually brought a sense of relief.
After all, this wasn’t the first time he’d seen Li Chen’s disdainful, excluding expression…
In the sultry evening heat, the street was packed with people when the red light finally turned green and the crosswalk buzzer rang out.
Yang Siguang moved quickly, stepping out across the road.
Then, just then, he heard startled cries from the crowd, followed by a sharp honk and the screech of tires skidding on asphalt.
And then a loud crash.
In a daze, Yang Siguang turned back to see the all-too-familiar figure struck by a runaway car, thrown violently through the air.
Li Chen’s body seemed like a shadow, arcing gracefully midair before crashing to the ground.
Yang Siguang heard a dull, wet thud.
It sounded like an overripe tomato smashing on the ground or a thermos bottle with a soft shell, suddenly breaking apart…
Yang Siguang stood motionless, watching as blood pooled around the body.
*
“Ahhh! Someone got killed—”
“There was an accident! Call an ambulance!”
…
A second, or maybe two or three? Or possibly longer.
The crowd eventually reacted, rushing toward the scene of the sudden car accident.
Yet even then, Yang Siguang couldn’t move.
Before long, an ambulance arrived.
He watched as they rushed to Li Chen and lifted him onto a stretcher.
Strangely, they even covered his head as they lifted him.
The stretcher passed through the crowd, and right by Yang Siguang.
On the stretcher’s white sheet, bright red blood was seeping through the seams.
As it rocked, a pale hand slipped out from under the sheet. The strong arm was broken, revealing pinkish bone and the exposed, red muscle.
Blood dripped from the fingers onto the ground.
…
…
…
Li Chen was dead.
Right in front of Yang Siguang, killed by a drunk driver’s speeding car.
The speed of impact had broken multiple bones and even ruptured his internal organs.
Of course, Yang Siguang only learnt these details later from others.
In fact, even though he’d witnessed Li Chen’s death with his own eyes, he never really felt that it was real.
It felt more like a nightmare.
Or perhaps a horror movie he hadn’t been watching too closely.
His brain couldn’t reconcile what his eyes had seen with reality. So by the time he went home that night, Yang Siguang was still in a daze.
*
“Siguang, why are you so late? Your father and I couldn’t decide whether to save you any dinner! If you’re going to be this late, at least call ahead, right? You’re a grown-up now…” His mother, watching TV in the living room, started her habitual scolding the moment he opened the door. But when she saw his pale face and the bloodstain on his clothes, she gasped, her voice rising in surprise. “What happened to you? Why do you have blood on you?”
Yang Siguang stood at the doorway, dazed. After a moment, he looked down and saw that there was indeed a splatter of blood on his clothes.
The blood had started to darken.
Yang Siguang stared at the bloodstain for several seconds, unblinking. Only when his mother grew truly anxious did he murmur an answer.
“Ran into something.”
He spoke quietly.
“This isn’t… my blood,” he said.
“I’m tired; I’ll go rest in my room.”
Then, clutching his backpack tightly against his shoulder, he ignored his mother’s nagging and staggered back to his room, shutting the door with a thud.
The room was dark.
His mother knocked a few times but, seeing that he wasn’t responding, returned to the couch and resumed watching TV. Still, every so often, between lines of dialogue from the show, her grumbling would break through.
“… Honestly, I don’t know what to do with him. With that awful temperament, he’s just as useless as his deadbeat father… I always said he shouldn’t come back home. Here he is, in his senior year, and hasn’t even found a decent job. He’s killing me…”
In between, his stepfather’s usual, worn-out words of comfort came through.
“Alright, alright. He’s just introverted, you know? Besides, jobs aren’t easy to find these days…”
“Whatever. Just seeing him irritates me. I must have been cursed in a past life to end up with such a worthless child. And look at that little tramp’s family… you wouldn’t believe how well off they are now. That Li boy’s mother was nothing but a slut, yet look at him now, living it up…”
“Ahem, alright, that’s all in the past; why keep bringing it up? The Li family’s loaded, that’s why. And honestly, that boy’s worked hard for it—”
…
Clearly, they had no idea that the wealthy, accomplished Li Chen was now lying quietly in the mortuary of Third Hospital.
Yang Siguang leaned against the door, listening to the conversation outside with a blank expression, though his heart seemed fogged over, numb and dazed.
After a long while, a steady hum started up from his shoulder bag, the phone buzzing again and again.
Yang Siguang had no mind to answer, but the buzzing continued without pause.
Finally, he slowly moved his arm, reaching toward the bag for his phone like a zombie.
But either from holding the same position too long or from sheer numbness, even this simple motion was unusually hard for him. His hand shook, and all the contents of his bag spilled out onto the floor in a scattered mess.
The phone screen flashed as it vibrated, skidding slowly across the floor.
Yang Siguang picked it up and pressed the answer button. The next second, a classmate’s voice blasted into his ear, “Yang Siguang! Is it true? Did Li Shen really die in a car accident? Xu Lu said you were both there when it happened! He said Li Chen’s insides were literally spilled out, like seriously…”
Yang Siguang listened to the constant questions on the phone in silence, saying nothing.
“Hey, Yang Siguang? Are you still there? Why aren’t you saying anything—?”
…
Outside the window, a car seemed to race past, and a beam of light briefly flickered across the dark room through the gap in the curtains.
Among the scattered items on the floor, something glinted for an instant.
Yang Siguang’s gaze sharpened.
For a second, he thought he was seeing things… but as he reached out with a trembling hand to pick up that object, the damp, sticky feel against his fingertips cleared his mind with startling intensity.
It was an eyeball.
Yang Siguang’s breathing grew rapid.
The sclera was still soft and moist, a deep red nerve trailing from the back. A golden-brown pupil lay embedded in the eye, and under the light from his phone, the discolored spot on the iris reflected an eerie glint.
The eye lay in his palm as if still alive, staring deeply and unblinking right back at him.
waah I’m so confused