Lu Nanyang was always amazed by how low Wen Fei’s standards were when it came to relationships. Just last month, he had been passionately pursuing Xie Quan, and now he was casually chatting about the new handsome guy he had a crush on at the dinner table.
“I’m telling you guys, I really found a treasure! Thick eyebrows, big eyes, and he’s an athlete too! And somehow no one’s pursuing him!” Wen Fei banged on the table, speaking righteously. “With a catch like this, once I make a move, it’s guaranteed—I don’t even need you girls to worry!”
“Who’s your girl?” Lu Nanyang rolled his eyes dramatically and shoved a plate of grilled chives in front of him. “Eat up and maybe you’ll shut up.”
Sitting next to them, Xie Quan picked up his cup with a bright smile and took a sip of tea, not saying a word the whole time.
But Wen Fei’s mouth was unstoppable. After a bite of chives, he kept going on and on about his athlete. Lu Nanyang sighed, leaned closer to Xie Quan, and whispered, “He’s always like this. Don’t mind him.”
“I think it’s great,” Xie Quan said with a squinty smile. “No matter what emotional drama happens, he makes everything seem so simple. I don’t dislike people like that.”
Indeed. If everything in life could be as simple as Wen Fei switching boyfriends, how much easier things would be.
Overall, the atmosphere at dinner was pretty good. After his initial surprise, Wen Fei quickly accepted that Xie Quan was Lu Nanyang’s roommate. Especially after hearing that Xie Quan’s old apartment had burned down, he immediately understood.
Given how well he knew Lu Nanyang, it wasn’t surprising to him at all that this “Bodhisattva” would be out there saving the world.
“I was just telling him yesterday,” Wen Fei said, pointing at Lu Nanyang, “If you had told me earlier that your new roommate was Dr. Xie, I would’ve thrown my full support behind you! I seriously don’t understand why you had such a big problem with him at first. There must’ve been some misunderstanding. Dr. Xie’s such a great guy—handsome, considerate—if you’re not satisfied with living with him, then I don’t know who you could possibly be satisfied with.”
Lu Nanyang clicked his tongue and thought to himself: Why don’t you try being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night with a UV light to check for urine spots on the toilet?
“It’s fine. All of that was just a misunderstanding,” Xie Quan said, smiling as he turned to Lu Nanyang. “Now he knows what kind of person I really am. No more misunderstandings, right?”
“Right,” Lu Nanyang replied with a fake smile. “I’ve reflected deeply and realized I’ll never find a more suitable roommate than you.”
“Now you’re thinking straight!” Wen Fei clapped his hands cheerfully.
Xie Quan couldn’t help but lower his head and chuckle softly.
Seeing Xie Quan laugh, Lu Nanyang relaxed a bit. Bringing him out tonight was definitely the right call—he hadn’t seen Xie Quan smile in a while.
Even though that smile was probably just part of his polished social persona, maintaining his “graceful and courteous” image in front of Wen Fei, Lu Nanyang still thought that that smile looked much better than his usual cold expression.
“By the way, Dr. Xie, did you ever find out who was behind the smear campaign against you on the school forum?” Wen Fei suddenly changed the topic as he stood up after the meal.
“Sort of. The school has already dealt with it,” Xie Quan replied calmly, reaching out naturally to steady Wen Fei so he wouldn’t trip over some loose bricks by their feet. “Why do you ask?”
“Did they expel that jerk who spread the rumors?” Wen Fei asked.
Lu Nanyang stood up too, walking on Wen Fei’s other side. Without hesitation, he slapped away Xie Quan’s hand that was resting on Wen Fei’s arm. “Wasn’t that post already taken down? It’s been a while—why bring it up now?”
“If only it were that easy to erase the impact of a rumor,” Wen Fei said. “Even though the post was deleted, a lot of people on the forum are still gossiping and badmouthing Dr. Xie.”
Xie Quan reached out again and lightly squeezed Wen Fei’s shoulder. “Let the bored people say whatever they want. No need to care.”
Lu Nanyang slapped Xie Quan’s hand away again. Just as Xie Quan was about to raise his hand once more, Lu Nanyang caught his fingers and pinned them in place.
In Xie Quan’s light gray eyes, mischief sparkled. But under Lu Nanyang’s glare, he had no choice but to restrain himself a little.
“Actually, I was going to bring another friend tonight,” Wen Fei sighed, looking rather upset. “But… once he heard Dr. Xie would be here too, he flat-out refused and even told me to stay away from people like him.”
In that instant, Lu Nanyang felt the fingers in his palm tremble slightly.
He looked at Xie Quan. The latter’s face showed no change at all, like nothing had happened.
“No matter what, I believe in Dr. Xie’s character,” Wen Fei said firmly. “There’s no way he did any of that nasty stuff they accused him of—throwing away gifts from girls, hooking up at bars, and definitely not the drug use. He’s a doctor, for crying out loud! How could he do things that would harm his own body?”
Then Wen Fei turned his head toward Xie Quan. “Right, Dr. Xie?”
Xie Quan’s lips parted slightly, as if about to say something, but just then, Lu Nanyang squeezed his fingers tighter.
The warmth and pressure passed through his fingertips, and Xie Quan could even picture Lu Nanyang’s thumb pressing against his middle finger, flattening it slightly.
Then Lu Nanyang let go of his hand, casually throwing his arm over Wen Fei’s shoulders and giving the back of his head a playful shove. “Come on, if Xie Quan were really like that, would the school have let him be the face of the medical school? Would so many girls have a crush on him? You think all those girls are idiots, wasting their feelings on some scumbag?”
“True!” Wen Fei’s mood immediately brightened. “It’s all because of that stupid post. It stirred up a bunch of jealous haters. They see someone successful and can’t stand it, so they spread lies and try to tear them down! These people are the worst—jealous and lazy. Pah!”
“…” Xie Quan stayed silent, curling the fingers that Lu Nanyang had just squeezed into his palm, feeling an unexplainable, faint irritation.
After the summer break started, the university town had grown much quieter. Most students had gone home, and while many shops were still open, the owners were relaxed—either scrolling on their phones or gathering in small groups to smoke and play cards.
The moon had already risen halfway through their meal—a thin crescent hiding behind dark clouds, barely visible under the halo of the streetlights. A few old buildings loomed on either side of the narrow road, with cars squeezing through every little gap, making the already cramped street feel even tighter.
Not far ahead was where Xie Quan used to live. Now Lu Nanyang finally understood why the fire truck couldn’t get in back then.
“I wonder how the repairs on that building are going,” Lu Nanyang glanced toward the old neighborhood.
“Since we’re nearby, let’s go take a look,” Wen Fei suggested. “I’m not in a hurry anyway.”
“What do you think?” Lu Nanyang turned his head, only to find that Xie Quan was no longer by his side. Looking back, he saw that Xie Quan had fallen a few steps behind, standing by a wall and staring intently at something.
“What’s wrong?” Lu Nanyang walked over and was surprised to find a large poster plastered on the wall—with a blown-up photo of Xie Quan.
In bold colors, the poster shouted in huge letters: “Bastard! Scum! Burned down the building for money! Disgusting and vile!”
A big red X had been drawn over Xie Quan’s photo, and the blank spaces were filled with words like “Disgusting,” “Liar,” and “Bastard.”
Lu Nanyang stared at the poster in shock, then immediately tore it down. “Who the hell put this up?”
But he quickly realized that similar posters were plastered everywhere—on walls, utility poles, residential buildings—and the closer they got to Xie Quan’s old place, the more there were.
He tore down poster after poster as he walked, ripping down more than a dozen, until he reached the old apartment complex.
In front of the building, a crowd of people had gathered, gossiping animatedly. Lu Nanyang spotted many familiar faces—neighbors who used to know Xie Quan.
“What’s going on? Who’s been putting these things up?” Lu Nanyang raised his voice, waving the crumpled poster in his hand.
“Xie Quan!” A middle-aged woman spotted Xie Quan and immediately shouted, “This says you burned down the building on purpose to scam compensation money—is it true?”
“If you really did it, you should go turn yourself in at the police station,” an older man advised. “That woman’s been making a scene every day. The whole neighborhood’s fed up!”
The crowd quickly surrounded Xie Quan, everyone chiming in. Caught off guard, Xie Quan stumbled back a few steps. “Wait—I have no idea what you’re talking about!”
“Quit pretending! Either come with me to the police station right now or figure out a way to shut that woman up!”
Wen Fei, having never seen such a scene before, stood frozen until a loud crash snapped him back to his senses.
Lu Nanyang had kicked a nearby iron pipe, the loud bang silencing everyone.
“Watch what you say. Without evidence, it’s slander—and slander can get you up to three years in prison, detention, or restriction of political rights,” Lu Nanyang said calmly. “If you have something to say, you’d better be clear. Who put up these posters? Who is this woman? And on what grounds are you accusing him of arson?”
The previously noisy crowd now fell into an awkward silence. Only the chirping of crickets in the nearby bushes could be heard.
Just then, a sharp burst of static sounded from behind them, followed by someone slapping a megaphone to life and lifting it to their mouth.
“Little bastard Xie Quan! Stole my property, burned the building, scammed compensation!” the voice blared at full volume. “Filthy scum! Bastard! Disgusting!”
The face behind the megaphone was one Lu Nanyang recognized immediately.
Heavy makeup caked on her face, spitting saliva as she screamed—none other than Liu Qiuyan, the woman who had just recently lost a lawsuit.
