Looking at this "female fan" who had popped up out of nowhere, Chu Ge was so mortified he could have dug a two-bedroom apartment out of the floor with his toes. He could only grit his teeth and scrawl out an autograph for her.
The female fan seemed to run off perfectly satisfied, and the way people looked at him turned to amazement. Chu Ge, though, found the back half of the reunion hard going—it felt like there were needles under his seat, and all he wanted was for it to end so he could get back and find Qiu Wuji.
Fortunately everyone was grown and settled, with wives and kids glaring daggers at them from home, and men like Lin Wuyang had public posts to think of, so nobody could really get a drinking bout going. The reunion wrapped up fairly early.
Everyone was exchanging pleasantries and saying their goodbyes when Old Hong, who had gone to settle the bill, came running back. He stared at Chu Ge for a long moment with a strange expression, then sighed. "Well, well. The great author."
Chu Ge said, puzzled, "What now?"
"Someone up in one of the private rooms says he's a fan of yours. He beat us to the bill."
Holy shit... The table boiled over harder than when the "female fan" had shown up.
A fan is just a fan. It's not like that means I get to sleep with her, and marrying a fan is still a hundred thousand li away.
But someone actually picking up my tab—that happened right in front of everybody. That's a famous author's bearing if ever there was one. Night and day from the way they all pictured me: shut up in a room churning out smut.
By now the looks weren't just amazed; they were practically respectful. Just as Qiu Wuji had said before—if you really were a famous author, society would respect you.
Yet Chu Ge didn't feel a shred of smugness, because both of those things were fakes.
That female fan was Qiu Wuji in disguise, for some peculiar reason of her own... and whoever paid the bill could only be Zhang Qiren.
He glanced instinctively at Lin Wuyang. Lin Wuyang was already looking back at him, his gaze loaded with meaning. "Care to talk?"
Chu Ge hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Sure."
"Great author, don't be a stranger—look us up when you have time!" The reunion finally broke up amid everyone's gasps and praise for Chu Ge. He kept a smile plastered on as he said goodbye to each of them, and at last he and Lin Wuyang, the only two men left, walked slowly out of the hotel and strolled toward the river not far off.
Passing the parking lot, Lin Wuyang jerked his chin. "There. The G-Wagon. Zhang Qiren's. At least it's not a Rolls-Royce."
Chu Ge smacked his lips and said nothing.
Back when the Tank 300 had just hit the market, that bastard Zhang Qiren announced it was his dream car. I laughed at him back then—delicate-looking, wearing glasses, and the guy still had a wild heart in him...
Yeah, still wild, all right. Only the price tag is off by nearly ten times.
You damn liar.
"How much do you actually know," Lin Wuyang said, "about this roommate of yours?"
Chu Ge felt an alien force working on him, as though he couldn't hold back from telling the truth.
Something stirred in his heart, and he let the force in. Then he found himself heaving a sigh he couldn't control. "I used to think I knew him inside out. Now it turns out I know nothing."
Lin Wuyang nodded. The power had clearly taken effect—that was the truth.
His gaze softened, and he even looked a little apologetic about using his ability on a classmate. "Well, it's normal that you don't know," he said quietly.
Chu Ge followed the opening. "So what does he actually do?"
"On paper, he's the legal representative of a nightclub." Lin Wuyang lit a cigarette. "Smoke?"
Chu Ge waved it off and only asked, "A nightclub's legal rep—what does that mean? That it's not exactly clean?"
Lin Wuyang said, "People reflexively assume a nightclub owner can't be all that clean—but that's a stereotype too, and it isn't necessarily so. Besides, a legal rep... sometimes that's just a name to hang the blame on, or a step that lets us close a case. Full stop."
Chu Ge's face fell.
A fall guy?
Lin Wuyang went on, "So it only means he holds the authority he appears to hold. It doesn't mean he's the real boss. So when you ask me what it means—I don't know."
Chu Ge said, "By the sound of it, he's only taken over a few days ago. Doesn't that mean there's probably nothing on him?"
Lin Wuyang blew out smoke and shook his head. "I don't know whether there's anything on him or not, because our investigation was called off."
Then he laughed. "Otherwise I wouldn't have had the time to come to the reunion today. I suppose I should thank them for giving me the day off, ha."
For all Lin Wuyang's repeated "I don't know," and the way he even seemed to be making excuses for Zhang Qiren, Chu Ge could tell plainly enough that he had already marked Zhang Qiren as an important lead and was watching him. Judging by how the two of them had behaved at the door, they had clearly already recognized each other.
So those "excuses" aren't what he really means. It's just that he can't tell a civilian like me what he's actually concluded.
Sure enough, Lin Wuyang's next line was: "From what I can see, you really didn't know what he's been up to... but the two of you seem close now—not the kind of thing where you just cross paths once—so there's a chance he'll let something slip in front of you. If you learn anything about him later on, I hope you'll tell me."
Chu Ge didn't answer right away.
Lin Wuyang said, "You should know the difference between public and private... ah, hell, even putting it privately—am I not your old classmate?"
Chu Ge laughed. "So I'm guessing the only reason I haven't been hauled in for questioning is an old classmate looking out for me?"
Lin Wuyang waved a hand. "That's not on you or me... it never reached that point. How could we haul in everyone who's ever crossed paths with him? Like I said, he might just be the fall guy. It's not the man himself I'm after."
"Mm... if anything bad really does turn up, I'll tell you." Chu Ge asked, "By the way, which nightclub was it again?"
"That's no secret, no harm in telling you." Lin Wuyang said, "The Miracle Nightclub. You've probably never heard of it... and you'd better not go."
Chu Ge's expression turned very ugly.
"All right, I'll stop bending your ear—my wife's waiting for me at home." Lin Wuyang patted Chu Ge's shoulder. "Never thought our class would actually produce a famous author. I'm looking forward to the day your book gets adapted for TV, ha."
Lin Wuyang left. Chu Ge stood quietly by the river the whole time, watching the water, as if he were mulling something over—or waiting for someone.
Sure enough, only once Lin Wuyang's figure had vanished completely did Qiu Wuji appear beside him, smiling. "That constable of yours has a real sense of duty. Can't forget his case even on a day off, and he won't let it go just because it was called off—still thinking of poking around on his own."
"Mm... it's because there are people like him that ordinary folk get to live peaceful, easy lives." Chu Ge sighed with feeling. "At today's reunion, I really felt it—all those aimless little punks from back then have grown up. Lin Wuyang most of all. He used to get caught with a hair flick in the dorm and nearly got a school-wide reprimand, and now look at him—he's the guardian of our city."
"What's a hair flick?"
"Oh, we call the country to the north the Hairy Ones—films they put out."
Qiu Wuji eyed him sidelong, plainly not buying it.
Chu Ge said, "What are you staring at me for? Anyway—what was the point of coming here today dressed up as a fan and acting cute?"
Qiu Wuji gave a couple of huffs. "Before I went back, I'd already planned to come today. You always felt this reunion would make you lose face, didn't you? So I came to prop your face up for you."
Come to think of it, she really had asked about the reunion time twice, and said something about going back early. So she'd already planned this whole stunt back then? But her acting was just... way too cute. I never could have imagined Qiu Wuji doing something like that.
He truly didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "How did you even come up with a scene like that? Didn't you say that sort of thing was vulgar, common taste?"
Qiu Wuji said indifferently, "Because I saw that you cared. I didn't want this kind of worldly nonsense to upset your cultivation mindset—that's from the angle of your master. From another angle: no one gets to look down on Qiu Wuji's Father God."
Chu Ge turned to look at her profile. Qiu Wuji looked calmly back.
The river flowed slowly east, silent and still. A late-summer night wind brushed past, carrying a stray lock of Qiu Wuji's hair across her cheek.
Chu Ge instinctively reached out to brush it aside. Qiu Wuji stepped back half a pace, face stern. "What do you think you're doing?"
Chu Ge withdrew his hand and said quietly, "I didn't actually feel like I was losing face... but still... thank you."
"So how come you don't feel you lost face anymore?"
"Because you like it."
The air went quiet again. Only the soft sound of the river remained, flowing past his side, flowing through his heart.
"As long as you don't mind, then. Your state of mind has improved—you're not so vulgar anymore." Qiu Wuji drew a deep breath and schooled her face as she changed the subject. "Now, shouldn't we talk about the other matter?"
Chu Ge didn't follow for a moment. "What?"
Qiu Wuji pressed one fist into the other palm with a crack. "The certain someone who made this Sect Master crash into a wall—how does he plan to die?"
Chu Ge's face turned green.
How did I forget about that... I am so dead this time...