The newcomer Young Master "Xiao Xia" got booked for the whole hour on his second night working, setting off a wave of wild rumors that took flight faster than a chicken grows wings, spreading far and wide inside the Golden Splendor.
When I returned to the Young Master’s resting room, I overheard a sneakily malicious guy nearby muttering through clenched teeth, "What a natural-born lowlife. She’s just a newbie, and after seeing the rich and handsome client, couldn’t help flirting with him. The club has rules against following a guest out for overnight stays, and that little slut dares to break them. I must tell the manager."
The other Young Masters nearby didn’t make a peep. That rule was just for show anyway; hardly anyone in the club actually followed it. Plus, the story they heard was different. The supervisor said that "Xiao Xia" and that rookie client hit it off at first sight—like a thunderbolt ignites a fire, uncontrollable once started.
Mo Xixi hadn’t witnessed the scene, but the gossip bug inside her was itching with excitement. Li Zhen didn’t show up until twelve, looking very serious as if something major had occurred. Seeing it was getting late and not in the mood to sell drinks with Mo Xixi, she sent her home early.
At twelve o’clock, when I got back to the apartment, Xia You was sitting on the couch with a plate of sliced peaches in front of her, waiting for me to return.
"Hey, how come you’re back so early? Didn’t you and that newbie go do that thing?" Mo Xixi asked with a sly grin, making an ambiguous gesture as she impolitely sat down and grabbed a peach slice to stuff into her mouth.
"Dirty! Use a toothpick," Xia You pulled out a toothpick, threatening Mo Xixi to not spit out any uncivilized words.
"It’s not like I’m talking nonsense; this is what the Young Masters’ supervisor said—that the person lit up at the sight of you, nearly drooling. By the way, these peaches are really good. Are they imported?" Mo Xixi asked while eating the peach, noting it was out of season and judging from its juicy crisp sweetness, it was surely imported.
"Yeah, a customer bought them," Xia You responded.
She had been pulled out of Golden Splendor at eight-thirty. When getting into Ren Minghang’s car, she was initially wary. Ren Minghang had taken good care of her back at Longzhi, but the shock and annoyance in his eyes when he saw her made it seem like he wanted to devour her whole, even though she hadn’t provoked him.
"Instructor?" Xia You tentatively called out. Ren Minghang was probably around the same age as her, but after all, he had been her shooting instructor, so he was somewhat of a teacher to her.
"After you left Longzhi, you came here?" Ren Minghang was distressed, punching his fist on the car, causing the horn to blare. His earlier annoyance and surprise were replaced by regret.
Ren Minghang had always been a serious and polite person since childhood due to his upbringing. He was not good at expressing himself and was somewhat gloomy. At Longzhi, he got along with everyone, but he didn’t really have any close friends. After Xia You’s incident, he had an argument with Lu Xun and then suppressed his feelings about Xia You.
He convinced himself that Xia You was just an episode in his life, and now that the episode had ended, it was all in the past. But after seeing countless new students, and when they called him "Instructor," he would sometimes imagine hearing Xia You’s voice.
In shooting class, during the shooting demonstrations, and when assembling firearms, whenever he pulled out his gun, the warmth from her hands that had long faded from the weapon would somehow resurface.
Then finally, tonight, when he decided to indulge himself for once, he saw that photo. And afterwards, the real person, Xia You with a hint of shyness and panic under the supervisor’s pressure, looking helpless. Her friends looking at her with judgmental eyes—all of this was too much for Ren Minghang to bear. Ignoring his friends’ mockery and the rumors that might reach his family, he impulsively rescued Xia You from there.
"Uh, sort of," Xia You looked to the side at her instructor who seemed agonized. Indeed, she probably looked like a "fallen woman," willfully debased.
"Quit it," Ren Minghang said without a second thought, immediately demanding.
"I can’t," Xia You couldn’t explain she was on a mission and needed to carry out this task, "I must do this job."