The Crossroads of Fate

By noon, Qin Yage was frowning as she rubbed her stomach.

“Yage, what’s wrong?”

“Why aren’t you going to eat?”

“Want to eat with me? I brought something good!”

Her classmates chirped around her like birds. Annoying! If they found out she hadn’t brought a lunchbox, she’d be laughed to death. And she had spent all her allowance yesterday. Sure, many would offer her food, but who wanted that charity?

“Sorry, I prefer eating alone.”

“Oh, okay…” A wave of disappointment washed over them.

Qin Yage and Qin An attended Red Star Elementary, one of the better public schools in Nan’an City. But the school had no boarding facilities, no cafeteria—only a small tuck shop selling terrible bread.

Qin Yage ran to the rooftop. The breeze brushed her cheeks. Her eyes stung, her stomach was flat, and she felt like crying. She was ridiculously cute, the class mascot, even the school mascot. Everyone knew her. Because of that, she never had to do chores. She just needed to study and be an adorable mascot. If only that idiot brother of hers were as obedient as everyone else—but no, he wasn’t. He hadn’t even prepared a lunchbox today.

The iron door to the rooftop creaked open. Qin Yage, startled like a rabbit, hid herself.

But it was only Qin An and the Little Tyrant, the two people she knew best.

“Great spot, right? This is my secret base!” The Little Tyrant stood by the railing, wind whipping his slightly long hair, looking quite dashing.

“Yeah, it’s nice.”

From the rooftop, you could see the whole panorama of Nan’an City: the distant docks, the green hills behind, the lively campus. Full of life.

The Little Tyrant opened his lunchbox, picked up chopsticks, and began to eat. Seeing Qin An motionless, he asked in surprise, “Aren’t you having lunch?”

Qin An rubbed his head awkwardly. “I didn’t bring any.”

“So you’re buying bread?”

“No, I don’t have money.”

“Uh, then you’ll go hungry?”

“Yeah.”

“How about looking for your sister? She might have money.”

“Forget it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Probably fine.”

“Well… you can have some of mine.”

For some reason, the Little Tyrant’s face tinged with a faint pink. Probably just a trick of the light.

“Really?”

The Little Tyrant gave a dashing smile. “Of course. Mom made too much. I can’t finish it.”

He ate half, leaving the other half and most of the meat, and handed it to Qin An.

Qin An grabbed the chopsticks and wolfed it down.

“Um, don’t you want to turn the chopsticks around? I used them. They’re dirty.”

Qin An waved his hand. “We’re both guys. No need to be so particular.”

“Yeah, I guess. Haha—” The Little Tyrant forced a laugh, his fingers unconsciously brushing his lips, cheeks flushed.

“Those two lovebirds—” Qin Yage, hiding in a corner, bit her sleeve in anger. “That damn vixen. That unfaithful brother. I hate them.”

“Hey, Little Tyrant, can you lend me some money?”

“What? Not full? Want to buy bread?”

“No, I’m full. It’s just weird not having a single cent on me.”

“Oh… but I only have…”

In the afternoon, Qin An and An Qi observed their non-aggression pact, like a squabbling couple, neither crossing the invisible line.

After school, the Little Tyrant went off to his sports activities. Qin An had thought he had few friends, but the Little Tyrant actually got along with many sports clubs, probably because he often filled in for games. As for Qin An, he was part of the “go-home club.” Now he waited at the gate for Qin Yage.

Walking home together was one of the rules Qin Yage had set.

Qin Yage slowly walked out of the school gate like a queen surrounded by admirers. She was that dazzling. Back in Dover, her assassin teacher had wanted her to use her beauty to lure targets before killing them—that method would have made her an A-rank killer for sure. But Qin An had stopped it before it began. How could he let his sister become a killer like a prostitute?

Qin An and Qin Yage walked three meters apart. He controlled the distance perfectly, not too close, not too far.

But his deliberate spacing annoyed Qin Yage. Big time.

They entered a small alley. Fewer people here. It was a bit dark. This wasn’t the way home. Qin An was about to call out to her when she bumped into him.

“Carry me.”

He almost thought he’d misheard.

“Carry me!” Her voice carried a hint of irritation.

“Why?”

“I don’t want to… just do it! Stop blabbering!” She sounded like a queen, though her head only reached his chest.

“Okay, come on then.” Qin An crouched down, waving her over.

Qin Yage swallowed. It had been her idea, but she couldn’t help feeling shy. Third graders knew about gender boundaries, but they were siblings, so it should be fine. She made up her mind and leaned onto his back.

His back wasn’t broad, and he wobbled a bit as he walked, but it felt so reassuring—like walking on a grassy plain. She whispered in his ear, “Am I heavy?”

“So heavy. You’re like a little piggy.”

She bit his neck hard, making him yelp.

“Don’t you know weight is a taboo topic for a girl? Even if I’m heavy, you should say I’m as light as a feather.”

Qin An played dumb. “Then you’d fly away, wouldn’t you?”

“Idiot.”

The siblings chatted idly, the evening scene adding a touch of warmth.

“Boss, two cotton candies.”

“Coming!”

At the sight of cotton candy, Qin Yage’s drowsy eyes instantly lit up.

Qin An paid. Money in the year 2000 was far more valuable—a single dime could buy two cotton candies.

He noticed she was listless and had insisted on being carried. He guessed she hadn’t eaten lunch and had spent all her money on candy from the vendor near home. Good thing only the family knew about her sweet tooth. Otherwise, some pervert could lure her away with a lollipop.

“Both for me?” Her voice was hesitant.

“Yeah.”

Qin Yage beamed, her eyes turning into crescent moons. The anger from noon melted away.

Still a ways from home, with sweetness in her mouth and honey in her heart, she fell asleep on his back.

But only Qin An knew what came next. This was the most important part. Only by surviving the coming crisis could he sever ties with Dover and live an ordinary life.

He didn’t head to his own door, but to the neighbor’s—Aunt Xia’s. She was a doctor at the city hospital and the school’s part-time nurse. She had treated all his wounds from fights with the Little Tyrant.

Knock, knock—

The door opened. “Aunt Xia,” Qin An said respectfully.

“Xiao An, what’s wrong? Is your sister sick?”

“No. I locked myself out. I forgot my keys. I’m going to climb in through the window, but my sister is asleep. Can she rest here for a bit?”

“Of course.”

Aunt Xia smiled and took the sleeping Qin Yage, who looked like a sleeping beauty, delicate like a porcelain doll. He had to protect that beauty. Qin An took a deep breath, tiptoed to his door, and pushed it open.

Of course, the locked door was a lie. Only Qin An knew how dangerous it was inside. In his previous life, at this very moment, Dover’s assassins had killed his foster parents, stolen the ten-billion-yuan inheritance, and taken them away. He remembered their words: “Hatred in your eyes—good, a fine seedling. If you don’t want to die and want revenge, come with us. When you’re stronger than us, you can take revenge.”

On the day he officially became an assassin, he killed those two—the ones who had dragged him and his sister into darkness.

Qin An carefully scanned his surroundings. No one had invaded yet. Not here?

He lay down on the sofa, pretending to sleep.

The lights were off. The house was pitch black. Then a voice came from the darkness.

“Didn’t we get word that someone here inherited ten billion? There’s no one here. Huh, there’s a kid.”

“Looks like he’s asleep.”

“Hey, what are you doing? You got a thing for kids? And boys? That’s not a good hobby.”

“I was just looking at his body. Not bad. Since we can’t find the money, we’ll take this kid to make up the numbers.”

“Barely acceptable. We came out to find kids to brainwash and train anyway. The money was just a bonus. We’re not short of cash. Carry him. He’ll thank us later.”

“Good idea. He’ll be bound to Dover forever.”

So it was them.

Suddenly, Qin An opened his eyes.

That was the sharpness cultivated between life and death. His gaze first fell on the pistol at the man’s waist. His hand shot out, snatching it.

In an instant, all three froze like statues.

The child on the sofa gripped the pistol, the man leaning over instinctively raised his hands, and the other man in black reached for his gun. The killing intent that erupted almost made them think it was an ambush. But then the two men exchanged a surprised look and laughed, albeit warily.

Because the child on the floor was too young, too thin. The safety was still on, and his fingers could barely reach the trigger.

“Hey, kid, let uncle show you how to hold a gun…”

Before he finished, Qin An’s finger flicked the safety off.

Bang—

The bullet tore through the man’s chest. He crumpled, a ghastly flower of blood blooming.

The recoil rocked Qin An’s body. The other man reflexively drew his gun. But in that split second of aiming, doubt filled his mind. His first reaction wasn’t that Qin An had fired.

Was someone ambushing them? Another party coveting the ten billion yuan?

A single thought’s difference, but both sides fired simultaneously. A bullet hole opened in the man’s forehead. He fell, his face frozen in disbelief. Qin An took a bullet in his right shoulder. Blood soaked half his body.

The same spot as before. But Qin An felt no pain. Only relief. The weight pressing on his heart had finally lifted. The trajectory of fate had changed. Even if he was just a weak butterfly, he must have flapped the timeline now.

He felt his energy draining. This fragile body wouldn’t last long…

But as long as his sister was safe, as long as she could stay far from the filth and horror of the world, and grow up healthy and happy.

In the distance, police sirens wailed. Habitually, he wiped his fingerprints off the gun and placed it back in the fallen man’s hand, then walked a few steps, holding his shoulder. The world began to spin…

In a haze, he heard his sister’s cries. Heart-wrenching sobs.