Sanya couldn’t explain the source of the bloodstains that had ended up on You Que. After a moment of hesitation, he had no choice but to reveal his right hand. A short but deep cut marred his index finger, fresh crimson blood still oozing from the wound.
“Apologies, I accidentally cut my hand just now and must have gotten it on you,” he said.
You Que couldn’t figure out what in the restaurant could have caused such a sharp wound. However, his relationship with Sanya was too shallow for him to ask too many questions without seeming intrusive. Sliding his hand into his coat pocket, he appeared to search for something, but the pocket was empty save for a lighter. Left with no options, he gave up and said, “Your hand is still bleeding. You should find a clinic to get it bandaged.”
Sanya smiled faintly. “Your Excellency, it’s just a small cut.”
As he finished speaking, Sanya brought his injured fingertip to his lips, lowering his head to suck away the crimson blood. A faint trace of red stained his pale lips, more vivid and striking than any rouge.
After this, Sanya showed You Que his fingertip, now no longer bleeding, as if to indicate it was nothing serious. “What brings you here? To eat?”
You Que didn’t hide the truth. “No, for a blind date.”
Sanya hadn’t expected that You Que was also here for a blind date. He paused almost imperceptibly before asking, “Did it go well?”
You Que replied, “I scared him off.”
Hearing this, Sanya was momentarily stunned. He recalled the day You Que removed his mask, and in an instant, everything became clear. He licked away the faint trace of blood on his lips, his voice low and inscrutable as he remarked, “What a pity. If he had been willing to sit down and slowly share a drink with you, he might have realized you’re quite an exceptional male.”
“Really?” You Que glanced at Sanya, thinking to himself that this female zerg was handing him yet another “nice guy card.” “But unfortunately, I’m not too fond of drinking syrup.”
Sanya was momentarily caught off guard, his words stuck for a second. Awkwardly, he said, “Alright, the wine that day was indeed terrible. But I wonder, would you give me a chance to make amends and invite you to a proper drink at the bar?”
You Que glanced at the time before declining, “Maybe next time. I’ve got something else to do today.”
He realized he had been standing by the restroom door chatting with Sanya for far too long and was about to run late for taking his ID photo. After a brief pause, he quickly said his goodbyes, “Sorry, I have to go.”
Sanya clearly hadn’t expected to be turned down. After all, in Salaranfa, 99% of male zergs would never reject an invitation from a beautiful female. Yet You Que walked away without looking back, his parting words sounding almost perfunctory and indifferent. It left Sanya feeling a trace of awkwardness and irritation.
Standing where he was, Sanya raised an eyebrow faintly, his expression cool:
Next time? If he misses this chance, there might not be another. Next time, I might not even feel like inviting this male zerg for a drink.
Sanya straightened up and hung a yellow “Do Not Disturb” sign on the restroom door, preparing to leave. However, as soon as he stepped out of the corridor, he bumped into You Que, who had unexpectedly returned.
Sanya quickly stepped back, agile as ever, to avoid brushing against the male zerg again. “Your Excellency, didn’t you say you had something urgent? Why haven’t you left yet?”
Had the other zerg had a change of heart?
You Que didn’t respond, but instead handed him a sterilizing band-aid. “Treat your wound.”
Sanya paused in surprise before instinctively taking it. “You just…”
You Que’s reply was brief and to the point. “I asked the waiter for it.”
You Que truly had no time left. Gu Yigu had been sending him messages, urging him to hurry. After handing the band-aid to Sanya, he was about to leave when suddenly, his wrist was grasped by the female zerg. Without making a sound, Sanya quietly slipped a card into his jacket pocket.
“This is a complimentary drink card for the bar,” Sanya said softly. “Whenever you have time, feel free to drop by for a drink.”
Sanya spoke, but suddenly noticed that You Que’s jacket pocket, just like before, had a red paper rose pinned to it. With a swift motion, he flipped his wrist and took it, then whispered, “I don’t think you need this beautiful rose anymore. Would you give it to me?”
You Que, who had stolen things for so many years without ever being stolen from, stared at Sanya’s eyes, which held a slight allure. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being entangled by a rose vine with poisonous thorns. If he struggled too forcefully, he would only end up bleeding.
…But it must have been just an illusion.
You Que had originally intended to throw away the rose. Coming back to his senses, he said, “If you want it, take it.”
With that, he turned and headed for the main door, quickly leaving the restaurant. His figure soon vanished into the flow of traffic.
It seemed like he really did have something urgent to attend to.
Sanya withdrew his gaze and looked down at the band-aid. As a female zerg, his constitution was typically strong, and he really didn’t need something like this. Still, he tore open the packaging and carefully placed the adhesive on the wound.
With the medicine applied, the wound should heal faster, right?
By the time You Que arrived at the police station, Gu Yigu and John were already waiting by the roadside. As soon as they saw You Que approaching, they quickly stepped forward and urged, “You Que, why are you only here now? My uncle is about to finish his shift!”
You Que casually made up an excuse. “There was some traffic. Is it still on time?”
Gu Yigu replied impatiently, “If you keep talking, it’ll be too late. Come on, let’s go inside.”
The atmosphere in the police station’s lobby was serious, with military females coming and going all around. As a thief, You Que couldn’t help but feel a little out of place as he entered. He followed Gu Yigu down the corridor, eventually stopping in front of an office door.
Gu Yigu bent down and knocked on the door, his voice low, almost as if sneaking: “Uncle, it’s me.”
While Gu Yigu was knocking on the door, You Que took the opportunity to lift his hand and remove the mask from his face. He glanced at the mirror beside him, peeling off the scar bandage, then used a tissue to wipe away the redness and swelling on his face, making sure everything looked fine. Only then did he throw the tissue into the trash bin.
Before long, the office door clicked open, and a middle-aged female zerg in uniform walked out. This was likely Gu Yigu’s uncle, Richard. “Has the zerg who needs their photo taken arrived? I’ve only got ten minutes before my shift ends.”
Hearing this, Gu Yigu hurriedly pulled You Que over. “He’s here, he’s here! Please take his photo quickly, and once it’s done, we’ll leave right away.”
Richard, well aware that his nephew was unskilled and likely surrounded by a shady crowd, glanced up in annoyance at the mention of the photo. However, when his eyes landed on You Que’s face, he was taken aback. What met his gaze was a handsome, aloof face, one that could easily outshine every male zerg in Saint Lieux Town by at least three streets.
Richard was momentarily stunned. “You’re the one who needs the ID photo?”
You Que nodded. “Sorry to trouble you.”
He was surprisingly polite.
Richard’s tone softened a bit. “Come in, then. Do you have your ID card with you?”
You Que pulled an ID card from his pocket and handed it over. “I’ve got it.”
Richard sat down behind the holographic terminal and placed the ID card into the scanner. After a moment, the screen flashed with a dense array of identity information. He glanced through it briefly and said, “This ID card has fingerprint data, and the birthdate and name can’t be changed. However, the photo in the database can be replaced. You just need to take a new photo in a bit.”
Gu Yigu asked, “Uncle, you don’t think he’ll be found out, do you?”
Richard took a sip from the teacup beside him and replied nonchalantly, “What’s there to be found out? As long as he looks like the photo in the database, who’s going to check that much? Saint Lieux Town is a backwater, not the heart of the Imperial Capital.”
He added after a moment, “The only condition is that you don’t mess up and get caught by the police.”
Gu Yigu gave an awkward smile. “Of course not, I’ve been behaving myself lately.”
The process at the police station went much faster than You Que had imagined. After he took the photo in the studio, Richard directly uploaded it to the StarNet database. Before finishing, he reminded, “I’ve changed the photo for you. But if you run into a government audit, remember to avoid it. They don’t just check photos, they also check fingerprints.”
You Que thanked him and then asked, “Is there really no way to get a new ID card?”
Richard shook his head, his aged eyes seeming to see right through You Que’s thoughts. “I heard from Gu Yigu. You don’t have a birth certificate, so you can’t get a new one. Saint Lieux Town sees so many zergs coming and going each year—some are smugglers, some are doing business, and some are fleeing from something. The empire has almost given up on managing it. In the end, whether you have a new ID or not doesn’t matter. Staying alive is what’s truly important.”
You Que belatedly realized that obtaining a completely new identity, a fresh start, was as difficult as climbing to the heavens.
Richard seemed to remember something and pointed at the ID card in You Que’s hand. “By the way, do you need me to change the photo on this ID too? I can get you a new one. It’ll make things more convenient in the future.”
You Que declined, “It’s fine, let it be. Thank you for your help today.”
He had already taken too many advantages from using this ID; he couldn’t bring himself to replace someone else’s photo on it.
You Que had always been pragmatic and indifferent, feeling that, in the face of survival, everything else had to take a backseat. But for some reason, perhaps because he had moved far away from that remote village and spent too much time mingling with Gu Yigu and the others in this crowded town, he had, to some extent, picked up a bit of the human touch.
After leaving the police station, You Que and Gu Yigu found a random spot on the street to squat. Some of them smoked, some picked their teeth, and some simply stared off into space.
You Que ran his fingers over the ID card in his pocket, suddenly asking, “The news said there’s been a lot of interstellar pirates causing trouble outside the town. Has it gotten any better?”
The original owner of this ID had died in the wilderness, and his body was never found. If possible, You Que had thought about going to retrieve his body and give it a proper burial.
Gu Yigu picked at his teeth with a toothpick, sounding utterly bored. “What good is it? Look at the troops stationed in our town—always holed up, never leaving the gates. If the interstellar pirates show up, the first ones to run are them. Don’t even think about leaving the town. What if those interstellar pirates take you out for being careless?”
You Que flicked the ash from his cigarette. “Has Saint Lieux always been this chaotic?”
Gu Yigu shrugged. “It’s been like this ever since I was born—chaos, a complete mess.”
John, who had been silent up until now, stammered, “I… I’m really hungry. Can… Can we find somewhere to eat?”
You Que reached into his pocket, only to pull out a handful of small coins—about a dozen star coins, leftover from when he bought bread in the morning. “This is all I have.”
Gu Yigu also checked his pockets, and it turned out he was even poorer than You Que. “I’m out of cash. What should we do? Want to go steal a couple of things?”
You Que furrowed his brows, saying nothing.
John quickly spoke up to stop them, his voice anxious. “Let’s not… not steal anything. Things are getting tense lately… A couple of days ago, a little thief got caught stealing at a bar. His hand was ruined, and he was dumped on the street, covered in blood… Even the military zergs didn’t dare to do anything about it.”
Gu Yigu, clearly having heard about the incident, looked uneasy. “So what now? Do we just go our separate ways?”
The petty thieves and troublemakers were never the type to stay quietly at home, and You Que wasn’t one to stay home either. Hearing what John said, something suddenly came to his mind. He pulled out a card from his jacket pocket—the complimentary drink card that the female zerg had slipped to him earlier today.
You Que tried to make sense of the card, searching for even a single word. But both the front and back were completely clean, making it look more like a random note card from the restaurant’s wall than anything else.
Could it be that the female zerg was just fooling him?
Gu Yigu noticed the card in You Que’s hand and leaned over to take a look. “What are you doing with a useless piece of paper?”
You Que half-jokingly, half-seriously replied, “A free drink card for the Kulture Bar. Want to give it a try?”
Gu Yigu thought You Que was treating him like a fool. “I don’t want to end up tossed out on the street by their bar bouncers.”
You Que reluctantly stuffed the card back into his jacket pocket. He stood up, stubbed out his cigarette and threw it into the trash bin, then kicked both Gu Yigu and John in the rear. “Stop sitting around, let’s go. I’m buying you both a drink.”
Gu Yigu turned around in surprise. “Aren’t you broke?”
You Que flicked his wrist, revealing two hundred-star coins held between his fingers. “I found two hundred star coins. Three drinks should be enough, right?”
Gu Yigu felt a strange sense of familiarity with the two star coins and instinctively checked his own pockets. “Where did you find the money?”
You Que casually replied, “Oh, nothing. Found it in your pants pocket.”
Gu Yigu: “!!!!” That damn You Que!!
Due to You Que discovering Gu Yigu’s hidden savings, the three of them now had the funds to indulge at the bar. As usual, You Que walked down the street, his scars now gone, drawing intense gazes along the way. Every now and then, a female zerg would become so entranced by his looks that he’d forget to watch where he was going and crash into a pole with a loud “bang.”
Hansen happened to be patrolling with a colleague and, upon spotting a familiar figure walking towards him, was about to turn and avoid him. However, before he could make a move, a handsome face suddenly appeared before him, causing him to freeze in place.
Every time You Que went on a blind date, he wore the same suit. With his tall and slender figure and light brown hair, Hansen almost immediately recognized that the zerg on the opposite side was You Que, the one he had been on a blind date with.
But how could this be? Wasn’t his face supposed to be beyond repair?!
Just as Hansen was still in shock, You Que had already brushed past him and entered the nearby bar with Gu Yigu and the others. Only his colleague stood by, whispering in awe, “My God, Hansen, did you see that gentleman just now? I’ve been in Saint Lieux for so many years, and I’ve never seen a male zerg more handsome than him!”
Hansen, hearing this, finally snapped out of his daze and forced a smile, replying, “Is… is that so?”
You Que had been on too many blind dates, and since Hansen had been wearing his police uniform earlier, he didn’t recognize him. However, the curious gazes from around him still made him feel somewhat uncomfortable. As he entered the bar, he immediately put his mask back on.
You Que was a thief, always lurking in the shadows, and the less attention he attracted, the better. Clearly, this kind of public scrutiny was not ideal for his line of work.
You Que and Gu Yigu took their seats at the bar, not noticing that familiar figure. Instead, a round-faced female bartender was working inside, mixing drinks and adding ice with smooth, efficient movements, clearly much more professional.
You Que tapped his fingers lightly on the table: “Two Montelos, and one iced tea.”
The bartender replied, “Please wait a moment, Your Excellency. I’ll prepare them for you right away.”
Fei Wen happened to be sitting at a table on the second floor, chatting. He casually glanced down and suddenly spotted You Que. With a teasing tone, he called out, “Hey, Sanya, that ugly creature’s back again. Aren’t you going to go down and check it out?”
On the leather sofa across from him, a slender female zerg was lazily lounging, clearly half-asleep. His posture was languid, like an elegant but dangerous snow leopard.
“Ugly creature? Who?”
Fei Wen: “The male zerg who was chatting with you at the bar last time.”
Sanya, upon hearing this, silently opened his eyes. His silver irises reflected the colorful lights above, flickering with a glimmer. He swiftly rolled off the sofa and sat up, immediately glancing downstairs. Sure enough, he spotted a familiar figure sitting opposite the bar.
You Que liked to sit in a corner, playing dice by himself, in the dimmest part of the bar. He absentmindedly shook the dice cup, casually glancing upward, but was taken aback when his eyes met a pair of silver ones. His movement paused instantly.
The sound of dice clinking gradually stopped.
Sanya leaned on the railing, not expecting You Que to suddenly show up at the bar. Didn’t he say he didn’t have time tonight?
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