You know best what I am.

“Want to corrupt you.”
@Infinite Good Stories, Exclusively at Jinjiang Literature City

The words landed by Xu Fengluan’s ear, but before she could respond, chaotic footsteps approached.

Xu Fengluan hurriedly pushed Liu Tingsong away, grabbing tissues to shove at her, wiping her own mouth frantically.

She’d had enough teasing—if they saw her with lipstick marks, tonight’s talk would be all jabs about her and Liu Tingsong.

Chu Cheng was still ranting loudly, her tone laced with scolding. “…I’m telling you, who’s that guy? Some nobody you can’t even name, and he thinks he’s on your level?”

Xu Fengluan frowned, standing up. “What’s up?”

The group entered—Chu Cheng, Kuang Ye, Ji Lunan, and her wife.

Ji Lunan’s wife, Chu Qingyan, shared Chu Cheng’s surname but no relation, hailing from a prominent family. Their marriage was arranged, but Ji Lunan had famously fled it, only to be tamed by Chu Qingyan.

Among them, Ji Lunan was the wildest in the band’s early days, bar-hopping, switching girlfriends, living a carefree, reckless life.

Everyone speculated who’d tame her, but no one expected Chu Qingyan, S City’s charming social butterfly.

Chu Qingyan spoke first, her peach-blossom eyes curving with a smile. “A-Feng, you’re here early?”

Xu Fengluan, caught off guard, called out, “Boss Chu.”

She introduced Liu Tingsong behind her. Chu Qingyan stepped forward, her teasing easing the tension, and everyone laughed, greeted, and sat.

Xu Fengluan didn’t forget Chu Cheng’s earlier words, bringing it up again.

Chu Cheng slapped her thigh. “Guess what Kuang Ye was up to?”

Kuang Ye tried to cover her mouth, but Chu Cheng swatted her hand, fuming, “She rushed here early, and I was touched, thinking she topped my best friend list. But guess what?!”

“She came for someone else!”

At that, Xu Fengluan and the others turned to Kuang Ye, gossip-hungry.

Despite her tattooed arms, necklaces, six ear piercings, lip ring, and tongue stud, Kuang Ye was a classic blockhead. Beyond drumming and fixing cars, she’d never dated.

They’d once thought she liked her tattoo artist, too shy to pursue, using tattoos and piercings as excuses to get close. Chu Cheng even dragged her to get an ear piercing to test for sparks, but it was clear—Kuang Ye just admired the artist’s skill, their relationship purely transactional.

Now, with Burning Meteor’s fame, Kuang Ye had no shortage of suitors, some even introduced by Chu Qingyan, but she never budged.

“You won’t believe it—she almost fought someone over a girl!”

Ji Lunan and Chu Qingyan, arriving late, missed it, and Xu Fengluan and Liu Tingsong were too absorbed to notice the commotion, so everyone was curious.

“Shut up, I’ll tell it,” Kuang Ye cut in, fearing Chu Cheng’s exaggeration.

Her lips twitched, a rare blush showing. “I… do kinda like her.”

“Whoa, our Iron Tree’s blooming!” Chu Cheng clapped dramatically.

Ji Lunan pressed, “Where’s she from? What’s her job? Is she downstairs? Invite her up!”

Chu Qingyan chimed in, “Why don’t we all head down?”

Xu Fengluan hissed, unconsciously gripping Liu Tingsong’s hand, her earlier fluster from Liu Tingsong’s teasing sidelined.

Liu Tingsong quietly squeezed back.

“Don’t—she’ll get scared,” Kuang Ye blurted, anxious.

Everyone let out a teasing “Ooh!”

Kuang Ye scratched her head, rushing before more jabs. “I’ve only known her half a month.”

“She owns a nail salon.”

“She’s really cool.”

Under their stares, she stammered, “I was biking up the mountain, and her motorcycle broke down by the road.”

“Roadside rescue, huh?” Chu Cheng couldn’t resist.

Kuang Ye paused, embarrassed. “I ignored her.”

The air stilled, everyone stunned.

“She stopped me on my way down.”

Ji Lunan asked, “Then you helped?”

Kuang Ye’s face stiffened. “No, I gave her my shop’s card…”

Everyone: …

“It was broad daylight, not far up the mountain, no real danger.”

Silence.

Kuang Ye scratched her head.

Xu Fengluan couldn’t help asking, “You sent someone to get her?”

Kuang Ye looked at the ceiling. “I was busy with my second lap, didn’t go.”

Xu Fengluan’s lips twitched. Liu Tingsong looked down.

Chu Qingyan buried her face in Ji Lunan’s neck, shaking with laughter.

Chu Cheng glanced at one couple, then the other. “She came to you?”

Kuang Ye’s eyes dodged. “She was probably mad, kept coming to the shop with car issues, and we… got to know each other.”

Chu Cheng lowered expectations. “Just friends?”

“Dated,” Kuang Ye defied norms.

Everyone gasped, eyes flashing with respect.

But then, “Three days. Didn’t get to tell you—she dumped me.”

Ji Lunan: “Wow.”

Chu Cheng: “Impressive.”

Xu Fengluan, at a loss, managed, “So now you’re…”

Kuang Ye mumbled, “I want to win her back, but I don’t know how.”
@Infinite Good Stories, Exclusively at Jinjiang Literature City

“A few days ago, her friend came to my shop. I gave her a card here—she likes rock.”

“You’re generous,” Chu Cheng said, face purple.

Her bar had only issued ten VIP cards since its trial run. Band members each got one—no reservations needed, free booths, half-off tabs, and second-floor access—basically a loss.

Kuang Ye, knowing she was in the wrong, muttered, “I’ll cover the card’s tab. I didn’t know what else to do.”

“That’s not the point! Stop with the fluff!” Chu Cheng scoffed.

Xu Fengluan rubbed her brow. “What happened just now?”

“She came with friends, next to Lingzi’s table. I sat with them, then saw a guy from another table hitting on her, trying to buy her drinks,” Kuang Ye’s face darkened, her voice icy.

“I stepped in to stop him.”

Chu Cheng laughed bitterly. “Protecting her, huh?”

“When I got there, she was telling him, ‘This is my friend’s bar.’”

She mocked, word by word, “First day of official opening, I don’t want trouble for her.”

“Our Little Ye, all righteous, had me touched, thinking she’s a true friend.”

Chu Cheng leaned back, staring at the ceiling, wailing, “Loyal to love, disloyal to friends!”

“Little Nan, pour me wine—I need to drown my sorrows.”

Xu Fengluan held back a laugh, unconsciously wrapping Liu Tingsong’s hand in both of hers.

Liu Tingsong lifted her gaze, glancing at her, leaning closer.

Their arms and thighs pressed together, closing the small gap, Liu Tingsong almost nestled in Xu Fengluan’s arms.

Ji Lunan, pouring Chu Cheng’s wine, caught their subtle move, pulling Chu Qingyan closer.

Married confidence.

Kuang Ye, guilty, missed the others’ actions, or she’d be as sulky as Chu Cheng. She continued slowly, “The guy argued with me, yelling about a drum-off.”

Chu Cheng sipped, reviving. “I know him—a small-time band’s drummer, mediocre but thinks he’s hot stuff. Last time I was dining, he butted in, whining about being undiscovered, begging for a chance.”

“I brushed him off, and he followed me here.”

“He got nervous when I showed up,” Chu Cheng sneered. “He first eyed her, then you, wanting your spotlight.”

“With all the fans here, a video of you competing—win or lose—he’d ride your fame.” @Infinite Good Stories, Exclusively at Jinjiang Literature City

“Good thing I saw from upstairs and stopped you.”

Chu Cheng added, “I’ll blacklist him tomorrow, save the trouble.”

The full story was clear.

Xu Fengluan sensed something off—Kuang Ye wasn’t impulsive, and even angry, she’d typically have someone kicked out, not argue publicly until Chu Cheng intervened.

But the thought was quickly buried as everyone dove into strategizing for Kuang Ye.

The dice sat untouched, but plenty of wine was opened.

A staffer brought milk and fries, but Liu Tingsong pushed them aside, slipping a wine glass into Xu Fengluan’s hand.

Xu Fengluan glanced at her but didn’t set it down.

She drank little—just two whiskey glasses’ worth, including earlier.

Liu Tingsong, though, drank plenty.

The others noticed Xu Fengluan’s shift but were focused on Kuang Ye. Chu Cheng’s tease was redirected by Xu Fengluan, sidestepping it.

Halfway through, Xu Fengluan’s phone lit up.

Li Jianbai again.

Everyone glanced over. Xu Fengluan let go of Liu Tingsong’s hand, shielding the screen, saying, “I’ll take this outside.”

It went unnoticed, and chatter resumed as she left.

Only Liu Tingsong watched her quickening steps, thoughtful.

Just a call, yet Xu Fengluan went outside, stopping in a secluded spot.

The first call went unanswered, but a second followed immediately.

The screen lit her face, her earlier smile gone, brows knit, a glint of menace in her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she answered.

“A-Feng,” Li Jianbai’s anxious voice came through. “Your grandma’s in the hospital!”

Her words faded, met with silence.

As if expecting this, Li Jianbai pressed on. “I know you resent them, but it’s serious. Even my parents say the surgery’s risky—20% chance at best.”

“Come see her if you can.”

“No matter what, they raised you. They’re better than your dad, right?”

She rambled emotionally. “Last year, she was fine, busy. This year, retired, and this happens.”

“I don’t want you to have regrets, A-Feng.”

“She’s been staring out the window, dazed. If it wasn’t so serious, I wouldn’t push.”

Xu Fengluan didn’t reply, her gaze fixed afar. The night was heavy, thick clouds tinged purple, no moon or stars. Distant lights dimmed, drunks were helped out, laughter entered the bar, music seeping through the walls, making her heart ache.

“I know you resent them, but… look at me and my parents now, we’re fine.”

“We’re not the same,” Xu Fengluan gritted out.

“How? I understood them after working. They feel guilty now…”

“It’s not the same,” Xu Fengluan snapped, temper flaring.

“They’re your blood family, you can’t cut that.”

Xu Fengluan took a deep breath. “It’s not that simple.”

“But she’s…”

“Li Jianbai!”

Cutting her off, Xu Fengluan’s suppressed anger exploded, her voice sharp.

“What do you know? Playing saint now that you’re a doctor?!”

“Think everyone’s like your parents, or you, the obedient kid?!”

She was a bristling hedgehog, heedless of her words or Li Jianbai’s response.

“Why speak for them?!”

“When we were left home alone as kids, I was with you. New Year’s Eve, locked in the hospital lounge, it was me. When you were sick, I was there!”

“I remember, but they had work, they had no choice…” Li Jianbai squeezed out.

“No choice?” Xu Fengluan nodded, trembling with rage. “Was forcing us into medicine their job too?”

“You forgot how they treated us. Why you chose dermatology, why I can’t stand a single flaw, lasering off every mole?”

“Li Jianbai, you forgot?”

“How can you pretend to let go, brushing it off as ‘no choice’?”

“A-Feng, she’s really…” Li Jianbai’s voice shook, barely audible.

Xu Fengluan leaned back, head hitting the wall, her recent calm replaced by sharp hostility.

She sneered, eyes cold. “You forgot—they kicked me out.”

“You know what I am.”

“You have parents. I’m just a bastard with no father.”

“A-Feng, don’t say that,” Li Jianbai tried to interrupt.

But Xu Fengluan didn’t stop, her voice softening but chilling.

“When I knelt at their door, begging, what did they say?”

“Two choices: study medicine or get out with my bastard mother, never dirtying their doorstep again.”

Her words carried eerie relief, like flesh cut by a blade, pain easing after the slice.

“When I was discharged last time, at your hospital, they knew, didn’t they?”

Xu Fengluan’s lips curled. “Li Jianbai, don’t be naive. You think they’re good to you?”

“If you weren’t a doctor, would they still treat you like this?”

The hospital corridor fell silent, a chill rising despite the summer heat, Li Jianbai’s face paling.

Xu Fengluan hung up without another word.

The heavy clouds loomed, dark with a strange purple, pressing on skyscrapers as if to snap their steel frames.

She lingered in the shadows, returning inside slowly after ten minutes.

Later, a drunken Xu Fengluan was helped out of the bar.