Wolves of a Pair Prowl Together

Bian Nan had a bad temper, but he could restrain himself a little when it came to girls. This was the first time he had met up with a girl and tossed her aside after saying just a few words.

He was actually quite tolerant of Zhang Xiaorong, and would not have been angry if this was any other time, but today could be considered Zhang Xiaorong’s bad luck.

After walking off the footpath, he slowed down and strolled aimlessly along the road. It was very windy outside and the air was not very pleasant, but there were still a lot of people on the street on weekends.

Bian Nan didn’t have the habit of shopping. He felt that there was nothing to shop for as he was always in sportswear, all year round. On the days with tough training, he would just want to sleep. And on his free days, he would spend a little while in the Internet cafes. Shopping had no practical significance for him, basically a waste of time.

But today, he wandered around for a long time. When Wan Fei’s text message came, he took out his phone and looked at the time. He had unexpectedly been around for an hour, far from Wan Fei’s house. He could even walk back to school with a little more effort.

The text from Wan Fei was brief, just three words. “What’s the situation?”

Bian Nan didn’t reply. He stuffed his cell phone back into his pocket, went into a small coffee shop on the side of the road and ordered a glass of milk. He sat in a daze, looking out the window.

What’s the situation?

The situation was simply too complicated.

Bian Xinyu, the one person who knew the secret Bian Nan was unwilling to reveal the most, was friends with Qiu Yi. 

And both of them were quite at odds with him.

The look in Bian Xinyu’s eyes and the tone of her voice as she walked away made him almost certain that she would tell Qiu Yi…

Bian Nan drank a mouthful of milk. He didn’t mind the fact that Bian Xinyu had been full of malice towards him from childhood to adulthood, that she always spoke to him like he was the enemy, that she could naturally lie and plant dirt on him whenever she opened her mouth.

The only thing he cared about was Bian Xinyu telling the truth.

Apart from Wan Fei, no matter how well he knew his friends, no one knew the true background of the seemingly well-off and carefree Bian Nan.

His biological mother was a mistress, the nail in the coffin.

Bian Nan’s feelings for his own mother couldn’t be described.

He didn’t know what had happened between his father and his mother. He didn’t know how it had started and how his father had turned back to the way things were right now.

In short, he had only spent a short time with his biological mother, maybe a year or two. He was brought back to his current home by his dad when he’d heard that Bian Nan’s biological mother would lock him in the toilet for a whole day when she went out to play mahjong.

Bian Nan did not remember being locked in the toilet. Even now, when he thought of his mother, his intuitive impression would only be money.

He would visit her once in a while, and when he had barely said two words, she would mention money. Bian Nan didn’t understand where all the money, the house and the shop she had taken from his dad had gone.

Bian Nan sighed and looked out of the window.

Outside the coffee shop, a little boy squatted under a tree, wiping his tears. In the past, he used to love squatting and crying. When he was beaten up by Bian Hao for some strange reason, he would squat in the backyard to cry.

He wouldn’t cry for such a long time, though. He considered himself to be a big-hearted person; things will pass after only a few minutes of despondency. 

After finishing a glass of milk, the child outside the door was still crying, and when passers-by stopped to ask, he would just look down and wipe his tears without a word.

Bian Nan couldn’t bear to look at him. He put down his cup of milk and left the coffee shop. He bought two chocolates from the small supermarket nearby and squatted down next to the child.

“Want some chocolate?” he peeled off a piece of chocolate and took a bite.

The child looked up at him with tears on his face.

The child was very pretty, with big eyes and curly hair, looking like a doll. Bian Nan handed him another piece of chocolate: “It’s my treat.”

The child hesitated for a moment, took the chocolate, and after giving it a thought, he fished out half a packet of beef jerky from his pocket, “Then I’ll treat you to beef jerky, but I’ve already eaten half of it.”

“I’ll just have a piece.” Bian Nan didn’t like snacks, especially beef jerky. But he still pinched a piece from the bag and put it in his mouth. “You’ve been crying here for a long time. Did you get beaten up or have you broken up with someone?”

The child had stopped crying and was about to lower his head to peel off the chocolate to eat. But as soon as he heard Bian Nan’s words, his hands froze, and with his head still lowered, big drops of tears started falling on the ground.

“Hey,” Bian Nan quickly grabbed the chocolate and stuffed it into his mouth, “Don’t cry. People might think I did something to you…”

“My… my…” the child raised his hand and wiped his tears. “My money is gone…”

“Money?” Bian Nan breathed a sigh of relief and patted him on the back. “Ai, I thought something big happened. How much money was it?”

“Over three hundred yuan.” the child cried even more after mentioning the amount.

(t/n: about $46 USD) 

More than three hundred yuan was quite a lot for a child seemingly from the first or second grade of primary school. Bian Nan tsked, “Why did you bring so much money out… How did you lose it?”

The child cried while eating the chocolate, “I brought out the piggy bank.”

“You really don’t get tired,” this was the first time Bian Nan had heard someone bring a piggy bank out to play, “You brought it out to buy something?”

The child shook his head, “I said… I saved… about three hundred yuan. Fang Xiaojun said he wanted to have a look at it, so I took it out and showed it to him.”

“Is he done having a look? Where did you hide it?” Bian Nan thought about it, “How about gege help you find it?”

“It’s in the hole in the tree over there ……” The kid pointed to the side street next to the coffee shop.

“The tree hole?” Bian Nan froze, “You put the piggy bank in the tree hole?”

“Mn.” The kid nodded.

“Then it’s gone? What were you doing putting the piggy bank in the tree hole?” Bian Nan thought he couldn’t comprehend this child’s thinking.

“Fang Xiaojun said it wasn’t safe to take it with me. He told me to hide it in the hole.” the child bit his lips.

“Did this Fang Xiaojun’s mom drop him on the ground when she gave birth to him?” Bian Nan was a little speechless. “So where did you two go after hiding it in the hole?”

“Home,” the child said, “Fang Xiaojun went home, and I also went…”

“Your piggy bank was still in the tree hole and you went home?” Bian Nan couldn’t help but raise his voice, “Did your mom knock your head when she gave birth to you?”

“I don’t know,” the child whispered. “My mom is dead.”

“… sorry.” Bian Nan sighed and touched the child’s head.

“I didn’t go home. Halfway there, Fang Xiaojun chased me and told me that the money was gone. But no one was watching when I put it in,” the child said and began to cry again. “I went to see it and it was really gone. The jar was still there, but there’s no money in it. My ge will hit me if he knew…”

When Bian Nan heard this, he finally made a judgment, “Ask Fang Xiaojun, he took it.”

“He said he didn’t take it,” the child continued to cry, “My ge will hit me…”

“OK, don’t cry. Your snot is coming out,” Bian Nan took out a piece of tissue. He wiped his face a few times, then took out his wallet and pulled out four hundred yuan. “I’ll make it up for you.”

The child suddenly raised his head. When he saw the money in his hand, his eyes dimmed again, “My money was coin by coin, not whole.”

“It’s just money.” Bian Nan put the money in his pocket.

“But my ge will find out and he’ll hit me.” The child was very persistent.

“Is your ge sick? It’s not like it’s less money, why would he hit you!” Bian Nan’s patience was running out.

“He gave me a yuan every day, and I saved up for a long time… if he finds out I lost them…”

“He’ll hit you, right? How is your ge so violent, hitting such a small child!” Bian Nan couldn’t help but stand up and look around, “Then I’ll have to find a bank to get some change for you? The people working at the bank must think I have nothing better to do.”

Bian Nan led him to the hole in the tree and took out the piggy bank; the money was really gone.

It was only when he dragged the child to find a bank that the kid reacted and jerked to a stop, “I can’t take other people’s money, my ge will hit me if he finds out.”

“Holy shit,” Bian Nan frowned, “your ge really is sick, have him beat me up if he can!”

“I can’t take your money.” The child stopped dead in his tracks and refused to move.

“I’ll lend it to you, and you can pay me back later when you have money.” Bian Nan squatted down and stretched out his little finger, “Just pinky promise.”

The child stared at him for a moment and stretched out his little finger to hook it onto his.

There were only two banks in this area. Bian Nan took the kid in and asked. There were not enough coins for four hundred yuan. After a long time, only two hundred came out.

“That’s it,” Bian Nan helped him put the money into the piggy bank and shook it again, “Your ge won’t open it and count it for you, will he? If he does, you can tell him that you took two hundred and changed it into whole money, okay?”

The child nodded hesitantly, “Thank you, ge ge.”

“Alright, go straight home, don’t make any more holes in walls or trees to hide things in!” Bian Nan instructed him.

“Mn!” The child ran away with the piggy bank in his arms, but after a few steps, he stopped and ran back to Bian Nan, “Ge ge, give me your phone number, I’ll call you when I have money to pay you back.” 

Bian Nan borrowed a pen from a nearby shop and wrote the number on the child’s hand.

After the child ran away, Bian Nan stretched out, his previous depressed mood greatly relieved by this incident.

He took out his phone and called Wan Fei, “Where are you?”

“I’m at home. Have you finished your meeting?” Wan Fei was eating and asked vaguely, “Why so soon?”

“Meeting my ass,” Bian Nan frowned. He shouldn’t have come to meet Zhang Xiaorong today, “Come out.”

“Okay.” Wan Fei said.

Bian Nan and Wan Fei usually had three destinations when they went out—internet cafes, restaurants, and the arcade.

While at school, the only options to go to after climbing over the wall were Internet cafes and restaurants, so if the two of them came out together on weekends, they would hang out at the arcade.

“Qiu Yi knows Bian Xinyu?” Wan Fei was sitting in front of the game console and was surprised after listening to Bian Nan’s brief summary. “Fuck, they actually know each other?”

“Hmm.” Bian Nan stared at the screen.

“Will she tell Qiu Yi about your mom? Fuck!” Wan Fei was distracted and was KO1’d by Bian Nan’s double attack. “I think she’d definitely tell him.”

“I guess so.” Bian Nan took a sip of the drink next to him.

“How fucking fantastic, out of everyone, it just had to be Qiu Yi!” Wan Fei kicked the machine. “If he fucking spread this out… why not beat him up tonight before it’s too late.”

Bian Nan smiled silently. 

In the evening, after they’d had dinner, Bian Nan dragged Wan Fei to continue soaking in the arcade. It was almost ten o’clock before they took a taxi back to Wan Fei’s house.

Wan Fei proposed several times to go to the restaurant to beat Qiu Yi up, but Bian Nan didn’t take a stand.

He and Qiu Yi were definitely not finished. However, if Bian Xinyu had really revealed his secret and if he were to stir trouble with Qiu Yi at this moment, he would only look like an idiot. Also, if Zhang Xiaorong were to think that this was all because of her, he would be even more of an idiot. Although he and Qiu Yi were mutually at odds, the real reason was due to Zhang Xiaorong. 

Besides, there would be a game in April, and he didn’t want to cause too much trouble before it. Not to mention, Pan Yifeng would want to take revenge for his chin during this time, so he could just watch the show first. 

A few days after returning to school, Bian Nan had seen Pan Yifeng in the canteen with his chin bandaged up. To have an injury on this part of the body was difficult to hide, and one could only watch from a distance. It was a shame for Pan Yifeng, who firmly believed that he was the flag of the sports school. He didn’t look good to anyone. 

Bian Nan’s injury had recovered quickly, his training resuming back to normal. However, Lao Jiang obviously increased the amount for him. The amount of excessive training escalated from twice to thrice a week, and the technical training had also increased. Practising overhead throws alone was enough to cause Bian Nan’s legs to become soft.

Bian Nan’s fitness had always been very good. At most, he would feel a little tired during normal training. But now, he was being tossed around by Lao Jiang for two consecutive weeks. After training, he didn’t even have an appetite and would only want to drink water.

He couldn’t stomach his dinner, but his eyes would turn green with hunger in less than an hour. There was nothing to eat in the canteen, and he didn’t even have the strength to climb over the wall to get something to eat.

“I feel like I’m starving to death in bed.” Bian Nan held onto his stomach while lying on the bed.

“What do you want to eat?” Wan Fei’s training went on as usual and even swept up the meal Bian Nan couldn’t eat, “I’ll go out and buy it for you.”

“Anything’s okay, as long as it’s food…”

“Why don’t I bring it back to you later?” Sun Yifan was changing his clothes. He and Zhu Bin were going to climb over the wall to the Internet cafe. “Xiao Fei Fei2, don’t get caught on the wall again.”

“Fuck off!” Wan Fei scolded, “It’ll be the next morning by the time you bring it back. Bian Nan would be hungry.”

Everyone in the dormitory was out. Bian Nan laid on his bed with his earphones in his ears to listen to some music. He turned it off after two songs, the grumbling of his stomach almost overpowering them. 

He sat up to look at the time; it had been an hour. He frowned. There were places to eat around the school; one could even buy noodles from the small supermarket. Wan Fei had been gone for a little too long. 

Got caught again?

Or was he in trouble?

Bian Nan moved his arm and got out of bed before putting on a coat and leaving the dormitory.

The weather was a little warmer, the sprouts of people on the streets creating a spark full of energy. 

The conflicts between the sports school and Hang Yun rose from time to time; a showdown would occur over a plate of noodles. Even within the sports school, the number of fights that happened was more frequent than winter itself. 

For a person like Wan Fei, whose anger was often fueled by fighting and would never run away even after being beaten to death, Bian Nan was a little worried. He went out of the dormitory building and stealthily headed to the wall.

There were not many people in the school at this time. Those who were more active would study in the classrooms at night, and those who were lazy had gone back to the dormitory to enjoy life.

Bian Nan first looked at the fence to make sure no one was hung on a nail, then glanced around, preparing for a run-up onto the wall. 

Usually, he didn’t need a run-up when he went out. With just two lifts of his hand, he would be able to jump up the wall. But he was too tired today, afraid that he would flail and trample.

After a few steps of running up, he stepped on the wall and pulled himself up with his hands on the top.

As he leaned up, he heard a rush of footsteps on the opposite side.

Someone came running towards the wall.

Wan Fei?

As soon as Bian Nan poked his head above the wall, he heard Wan Fei’s shouts. The sound was still a distance from here, but it was full of energy, “Fucking run!”

Without waiting for him to ask what was going on, he saw a figure jumping up the wall.

“Fuck! Who!” Bian Nan was startled. He restrained the momentum he had from climbing the wall to avoid hitting his face on the person’s leg.

The person who climbed over had stepped on the top of the wall with one leg. He seemed to be startled when he heard his voice, and his figure froze.

At this moment, Bian Nan saw this person’s face clearly.

It was Qiu Yi!

He immediately felt a stream of blood rush to his forehead. How fucking arrogant! 

“Fuck!” Bian Nan cursed. Although his current posture was not very suitable for attacking, he released his left hand that was holding onto the wall and grabbed Qiu Yi’s leg.

Qiu Yi quickly retracted his leg and avoided his hand. As Bian Nan was about to jump off to attack him, Qiu Yi had already jumped off the wall. 

His arm suddenly stretched out and punched Bian Nan in the face.

Bian Nan didn’t have time to avoid it. He was hit directly from the wall by this arm and fell heavily on his back to the ground.

Footnotes–

knock outcute name for Wan Fei