Chapter Two: Night

I stared blankly at her face, so close to mine, fair and untouched by makeup, a subtle fragrance drifting softly into my nostrils.
“She…” I began to protest, but the beautiful girl before me seemed unwilling to give me any chance to explain. With a cold snort and a graceful turn, she walked over to Shi Yu and gently helped her up.
She reached out and softly caressed Shi Yu’s swollen cheek, speaking in a voice I could hear, “Men like this aren’t worth your attention. He’s nothing but a coward—don’t bother hoping for anything from him.”
Upon hearing this, Shi Yu suddenly slapped away the girl’s hand from her face. Her gaze was resolute as she replied, “You don’t need to comment on Yang Chen. I appreciate your help, but please refrain from judging him.”
“Oh?” The girl in black deliberately raised her tone, turned to look at me—silent as ever—and let out a mocking laugh before heading toward the bar’s entrance.
“My name is Luo Qing. If that woman comes looking for trouble, tell her to find me. I’ll be waiting for her at the Tianhua Building.” With that, the girl in black sunglasses opened the door and left.
The audience had mostly dispersed after the earlier commotion, leaving only Shi Yu, a few members of our band, and a couple of servers who seemed to have vanished somewhere.
“Shi Yu, are you… are you alright?” I hurried to her side, feeling a deep sorrow as I looked at her swollen, beaten face. But even more painfully, I felt the sting of the black-clad girl’s biting sarcasm—a barb lodged in my heart, one that might never fade, perhaps not even in a lifetime.
“I’m fine.” Shi Yu forced a smile as she met my worried gaze. “Don’t mind it too much. Things like this happen all the time in places like ours. Who knows how many more times we’ll face such trouble.”
An Ye stood silently nearby. I could sense his embarrassment and discomfort, as if Shi Yu had been bullied because of him.
Shi Yu seemed to notice An Ye’s unease and spoke gently, “Ye Zi, don’t worry. You did the right thing. If you hadn’t stopped Yang Chen, who knows how much more trouble there would have been.” She glanced at me, sighing softly.
I lowered my head slowly, unwilling to admit fault, but I knew I was in the wrong. Had I really charged up and fought, I wouldn’t just have lost face—I’d have lost my job, my only means of making a living.
I didn’t know that wealthy woman, but judging by her clothes and demeanor, she was surely some rich wife from a powerful family—someone far beyond the reach of small people like us. It’s no exaggeration: if I’d impulsively struck her, she could have ruined me, and she surely would have. That’s how society works. Without power, you’re trampled underfoot, forbidden to resist. Some perverse types would even force you to smile as you’re crushed.
“Shi Yu, I know I was wrong…” I didn’t know what else to say. The words “If you can’t even protect your own woman, why don’t you just die?” echoed in my mind. Though Shi Yu wasn’t really my woman, could I use that as an excuse to hide my cowardice?
She smiled and shook her head, saying she’d call the boss to report what happened tonight, then request to leave early and invite An Ye and me to grab some snacks at a night market to “calm our nerves.”
An Ye and I changed clothes and stepped out to wait by the bar entrance, chatting idly as we waited for Shi Yu.
“Chen Zi, I hope you understand, I did it for your own good…” An Ye was still brooding over what happened.
I laughed and teased him for acting like a woman. Deep down, I never blamed him—he was my truest friend, my closest brother, and in this complicated world, I believed he’d always have my back.
“What do you think… what’s that woman’s background?” I hesitated before asking.
An Ye seemed uncertain, answering evasively, “Who knows? These days, there are plenty of rich women. Who can tell whose family she’s from… But that girl in sunglasses, now that slap she gave, that was something else!”
The mention of the black-clad, sunglasses-wearing girl made my heart skip. Whether from guilt or something else, I couldn’t say, but I replied, “I didn’t see any sign of a rich heiress—she looked more like a street tough.”
“That figure, that skin, and…” An Ye became animated at the mention of beautiful women. Though I hadn’t seen her eyes, barely glimpsed her face, I had to admit that from her physique and aura alone, she ranked among the most striking women I’d encountered in my twenty-odd years.
Still, I was a man, and no matter how beautiful she was, so what? A man’s dignity is inviolable, sacred.
“She’s probably nothing special—wearing those big sunglasses to hide her face. How attractive could she be?”
An Ye made a contemptuous gesture, laughing, “You’re only saying that because she mocked you. Otherwise, you’d probably be chasing after her already.”
“Get lost!”
As we bickered, Shi Yu emerged from the bar, her face clouded with gloom. Upon seeing us, she forced a smile and asked, “Where are my little brothers planning to eat?”
An Ye and I exchanged a glance, each seeing the question in the other’s eyes, but neither of us spoke. We knew Shi Yu wouldn’t tell us anything she didn’t want us to know—whether hardship or pain.
“Let’s check out Zhengda Street!” I suggested. It was just one street away from the bar—close enough for Shi Yu, who was in charge of the main hall, to return quickly if needed.
Shi Yu nodded, and An Ye said nothing more. We walked toward Zhengda Street, not just for convenience, but because I wanted to accompany Shi Yu, hoping the walk would ease her troubled heart.
Though Shi Yu always appeared gentle and strong, who could truly understand the hardships and exhaustion a girl must endure working alone in the city?
No matter what, I vowed silently never to let her suffer again.