Rating: ★★★★★

Synopsis:

Is there a possibility, that love doesn't exist in the world?

Review:

This is a dark story about a young, quiet girl, Chen Nian, who suffers from stuttering. When the Police begins to investigate the suicide of her classmate, Chen Nian, who had inadvertently witnessed a vital bullying scene by accident decides to clam up in fear of getting bullied herself. However, Chen Nian ultimately manages to screw up her courage and expose the bullies for who they are, thus setting off a series of events which changes her life irrevocably. Having exposed the bullies, Chen Nian incurs the wrath of the bullies and attempts to seek protection from various sources to no avail. Finally, Chen Nian is reduced to seeking protection from the male lead, Bei Ye, who has a soft spot for Chen Nian.

Although the story deals with the darker side of human nature, it's beautifully written and I'm quite impressed with how Jiu Yue Xi managed to craft such a compelling story which just drew me in. Having read Dear Archimedes, I feel that Jiu Yue Xi's writing is much improved here. The story is less draggy, and although the story is rather short, Jiu Yue Xi manages to pack each chapter with great detail and successfully crafts three dimensional main characters whom we can sympathize with. That said, being a short story, the side characters inevitably suffer from the lesser attention paid to them – but it doesn't impact the story much, as the story's main focus is really the male and female lead.

We finally embark on the first chapter of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautifulwhere we're introduced to our main character, Chen Nian, a silent and quiet girl right smack in the middle of some ongoing investigations. Whilst the content is slightly darker in nature when compared to I Don't Like This World, I Only Like You, the author still manages to weave a compelling story that provides people with glimmers of hope at the end of her dark tale. Stick around, and I hope you enjoy the ride! On a side note, I'm still trying to figure out the release schedule for The Youthful You as the chapters are much harder to divide into two, so please be patient and I apologise in advance for the wait!

Chapter 1.

"Mutualism refers to the relationship between two organisms whereby each individual benefits from the activity of the other individual. When either individual is absent, the other individual experience serious negative repercussions, and may even die." The biology teacher's voice rang out loudly and clearly, as though he was a singing cicada.

The warm glow of the setting sun filtered into the classroom, casting its light on half the classroom, whilst the other half remained shrouded in darkness. Chen Nian sat on the boundary that divided the dark from the light. The bright sunlight caused her to squint, her long, black eyelashes offering little help in blocking the sunlight.

A shadow loomed over her. It was the form teacher. Two police officers trailed behind him.

Silence descended upon the entire classroom.

"Chen Nian," The form teacher stood before her, a warm smile plastered over his usually stern face. "Could you come out for a minute?"

Chen Nian looked towards the two police officers, her face paling slightly. She took a quick glance at the empty seat in front of her, and slowly put her mechanical pencil down. When she rose from her seat, she tugged at the skirt that had been stuck to her legs.

The gaze of the biology teacher, along with those of the entire class, followed her out of the classroom; and when their eyes could no longer see her, their ears followed her, the hair on their ears standing upright in their effort to hear what little news they could.

The form teacher patted Chen Nian's skinny shoulders, and attempted to comfort her, "Don't be anxious, they're just going to ask you a few questions."

One officer had an extremely stern expression on his face, whilst the other young police officer wore a gentle smile on his face.

Chen Nian nodded her head, and silently followed the form teacher to his office. Having taken a few steps, the form teacher suddenly turned his head back into the classroom, chiding the students who were bursting with curiosity, "Concentrate!"

Upon arriving at the form teacher's office, Chen Nian sat down, the cold air from the air conditioner crawling into her skin......

The form teacher looked at Chen Nian and asked calmly, "Chen Nian, you do know why these two police officers are here today, don't you?"

"I......kn......know." Chen Nian had a habit of stuttering despite not being anxious in the least. Although her face was terribly pale, it was because she was born with naturally pale skin.

The young police officer took sympathy on Chen Nian, and asked, "You know we're here because Hu Xiao Die committed suicide by jumping off the school building?

Chen Nian nodded her head, her black eyes staring unblinkingly at him.

"You ought to know why we chose to ask you, and not anyone else, right?"

"That day I......I was...... was on clean...... clean-up duty."

"That day, Hu Xiao Die, you, and two other classmates were responsible for cleaning up the classroom together. After the four of you had completed the duty of cleaning up the classroom, the two students left, leaving you and Hu Xiao Die in the classroom."

Chen Nian nodded her head.

"You mentioned that you left before Hu Xiao Die did?"

Chen Nian nodded her head once more.

"That day, did Hu Xiao Die leave you with any message or reveal any information to you?"

Chen Nian shook her head, her eyes sharp and clear.

"Did you detect any abnormal behaviour on Hu Xiao Die's part?"

Chen Nian shook her head once more.

The other police officer interjected, "Could you describe to us Hu Xiao Die's state and behaviour that day when only the two of you were left in the classroom?"

"I already wrote...... wrote my......ob......observations down."

The form teacher interrupted at this point, "It's simply too difficult for this child to speak. The police had already questioned her previously – the interrogation was recorded too."

Chen Nian quietly glanced at the form teacher.

The police officer thought for a moment before asking, "You mentioned that you didn't see Hu Xiao Die after school that day. As such, you decided to return home."

Chen Nian nodded her head.

Last week, as the security guard conducted his usual patrol on the school grounds, he discovered a pool of blood on the tiles in front of the staff building, with Hu Xiao Die's broken corpse lying in the middle of the blood pool. Hu Xiao Die was the school belle, but she died in a most ugly fashion.

The police officers made an initial determination that Hu Xiao Die had committed suicide. However, the reasons for her suicide remain clouded in mystery.....

When the police had no further questions, the form teacher instructed Chen Nian to return to class.

As Chen Nian walked out of the air-conditioned room, a thin layer of sweat formed over her body immediately, as though she had been cling wrapped. Chen Nian gazed at the blindingly white sunlight. For a moment, Hu Xiao Die's milky white corpse flashed before her eyes, causing a cold shiver to crawl up her spine.

Having taken a few steps, a voice rang out from behind, "Chen Nian."

It was the young police officer. He passed her his namecard and smiled, his piercing gaze seemingly capable of deciphering the unknown, "My surname is Zheng. If you ever need help in the future, you could always give me a call."

Chen Nian's heart dropped for a moment. She nodded her head slowly.

When she entered the classroom, it was as though someone had accidentally pressed the mute button – all ballpoint pens and assignment books were frozen at a standstill. Chen Nian acted as though she hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary, and simply walked towards her seat. Amongst the ten gazes that were glued onto her body, Chen Nian felt one which was particularly cold and sharp.

Chen Nian glanced at Wei Cai, who was seated in the last row. Wei Cai's eyes were framed with eyeliner, and her dark gaze conveyed a harsh and cruel threat.

The minute Chen Nian sat down, Zeng Hao, who had been sitting diagonally in front of her, pinched her legs slightly under the table. Chen Nian started feeling under the table, and retrieved a note from Zeng Hao's hands. The note asked, "What did they ask you?"

Chen Nian fell silent, glancing at Hu Xiao Die's empty seat in front of her before glancing at the rest of the students surrounding her. Despite the sudden disappearance of one single classmate, the class didn't appear to be terribly affected – only Hu Xiao Die's good friend, Zeng Hao, had been found crying on various occasions.

The rest of the class were mostly focused on gossip; rather than being melancholic, the majority of the class was simply curious and confused.

Or rather, they were simply bewildered.

One of the significant traits and advantages of being a youth is one's forgetfulness. Despite the setbacks one encounters, one is nevertheless still able to easily forge ahead after shrugging off one's disappointment.

The students who had been whispering away just a minute ago all fell silent at this very moment. Their bright eyes were fully focused on the clock above the blackboard – one last minute till the end of school!

Although students were not allowed to talk or whisper during class, the knowledge that school was about to end gave courage to every single student. The students who were usually extremely disobedient even began to count down aloud, "20......19......"

Gradually, the noise became louder, as though a horde of bees was slowly nearing.

The biology teacher knew about the inherent tendency of organisms to converge and mimic the actions of the group, but he refused to admit defeat by putting the textbook down. An increasing number of students began to join in the countdown, "13......12......"

Chen Nian could feel her heart beating in time with the rhythm created by the disobedient male students. She had finished packing her bag under the table; the moment the school bell rang, she would rush out of the classroom immediately. In the heat of the evening, a thin sheen of sweat formed on her nose.

The biology teacher made a final attempt to gather the students' attention, "Besides mutualism, parasitism and competition, what is the one other relationship that exists between organisms?"

The entire class shouted out in excitement, "Predation!"

Ring...Ring...Ring... The final bell exploded in the classroom, and the classroom erupted into chaos.

Chen Nian quickly walked out of the classroom, and after ascertaining that she was no longer being pierced with that cold and cruel gaze, she started sprinting with all her might. Across the corridor and into the stairwell, her white canvas shoes moved frantically across the steps.

Her legs were extremely thin, and looked as though they were about to break from the speed at which she was running at. A couple of male students sped past her, roaring along the way. Chen Nian disregarded them, instead opting to pump all her energy and concentration into running. Once in a while, Chen Nian would look back – it was as though there was an invisible evil ghoul racing behind her in an attempt to take her life.

By the time the final bell stopped ringing, Chen Nian's white school uniform had already disappeared from the entrance of the school.

Chen Nian continued running, only stopping when she no longer had any energy to continue on. By then, Chen Nian had already reached the small alley near her home. Panting from exhaustion, she continued walking forward slowly.

Her heart was beating as loudly as a drum. Chen Nian wiped the sweat from her mouth, and tightened her grip around her bag.

The small alley was shrouded in the evening glow, with the occasional wisp of freshly cooked dinner drifting out from the nearby homes.

Pingpingpangpang... Amidst the clanging noise caused by the ladles clashing against the metal pots, Chen Nian discerned punching and kicking noises.

A bunch of hooligans was beating someone up in a corner. A boy dressed in a white T-shirt had curled his body up on the floor; he neither resisted the punches, nor did he make a single sound.

Chen Nian lowered her head and attempted to walk past the hooligans, who were shouting and swearing at the boy in the white t-shirt.

Chen Nian kept her gaze straight, and did not even bother giving the hooligans a second glance as she walked past them. However, the minute Chen Nian rounded the corner, she retrieved her mobile phone immediately. Chen Nian managed to key in two numbers with much success – but before she managed to key in a third number, she was suddenly yanked by the collar.

Chen Nian was like a little chick which was unceremoniously dragged into the center of the crowd.

Trapped in such a situation, Chen Nian had little choice but to lower her head.

A hooligan gave her a light slap on the cheek, "Little Bi***, who were you going to call?"

Chen Nian lowered her eyelids, "My mo......mother."

The other party twisted her hand, successfully revealing the screen of her mobile phone. The numbers "11" could clearly be seen on the screen.

"110?" Before Chen Nian could react, she was forcefully slapped. "F***ing Bi***, you wanna die?!"

Chen Nian fell onto the boy in the white t-shirt, her face blazing with pain. All of a sudden, she was hit with waves of regret. She should have simply minded her own business. None of this concerned her. Even if these hooligans had beaten this boy to death or had beaten him till he was crippled, it was none of her concern.

"Who's this little shit!" Just as the hooligan was about to kick Chen Nian, another hooligan intervened. The hooligan who had intervened squat on the floor, grabbing Chen Nian's ponytail and forcing her to raise her head.

Chen Nian caught a glimpse of the school uniform which was hanging loosely on the hooligan's waist. Ah, the hooligan was the same age as her. However, despite the similarity in ages, the hooligan and her were worlds apart. It was as though they were natural enemies, organisms which belonged to different classifications.

The hooligan used his chin to point at the boy in the white t-shirt, "You know him?"

Pulling Chen Nian by her hair, he twisted her head to face the boy in the white t-shirt. In the dim evening light, Chen Nian's gaze was caught by a pair of emotionless and dark black eyes.

"Don't......"Chen Nian struggled to speak aloud, "Don't know."

"You don't know him?" The hooligan was still grabbing Chen Nian by her hair, which by now had transformed into a bird's nest. He shook her head roughly, "How dare you be such a busybody even though you don't know him?"

"I won't......won't be such a busybody anymore." Chen Nian's voice was extremely soft, but her regret and her plea for mercy was still patently obvious in her answer.

She lowered her eyelids once more, not daring to look at the eyes of the boy in the white t-shirt.

Despite having lost interest in Chen Nian, the hooligans were still unwilling to let her off so easily, "If you don't know him, why do you still try to help him? Hmm?"

Chen Nian replied slowly, "I'm not sure."

Chen Nian gradually felt stirrings of unease within her.

"You think he's good looking, don't you?"

Chen Nian remained silent, her mind void of any answer. Chen Nian could tell that the boy in the white t-shirt was an extremely handsome boy when she glimpsed at him a few moments ago. However, she hadn't had the opportunity to see his face when she first decided to help him.

"Of course he's good looking – after all, his mother is famous for her great looks in our city." The hooligans snickered whilst exchanging glances. "There's a huge train of people lining up to get into her bed and......"

"Who knows, maybe it'd finally be my turn one day? I've been wanting to enter a woman from behind for the longest time......"

Chen Nian grit her teeth; she could feel a sense of shame that did not belong to her exploding on her face. At this moment, she couldn't muster even the slightest bit of courage to look at the boy in the white t-shirt. When the hooligans finally stopped mocking the both of them, they grabbed Chen Nian by the collar, "Do you have any money on you?"

"Ah?"

"He doesn't have any money. Do you?"

Ah, so these were bullies who frequently extorted money from weak students. As Chen Nian came from a rather poor family, she couldn't bear to part with her money. However, she decided to part with her seventy dollars as she feared that the hooligans would search her body. As she handed over the money, her eyes reddened in the process, "I on......only have...... this much."

The hooligans snatched the money from her, and insulted her as being a 'cheap idiot' in the process. However, the hooligans were extremely dissatisfied with the small amount of money, and had to find ways in which they could vent their unhappiness.

"Well... Since you saved the boy, we'll reward you by allowing you to kiss him on the lips!"

Chen Nian was stunned for a moment before crawling up from the ground, violently resisting the hooligans who had surrounded her. The hooligans easily overpowered her, and pressed her onto the ground. Fury and shame engulfed Chen Nian, but even shame could do little for her.

Chen Nian shrieked and struggled, trying her best to resist the hooligans who were manhandling her; meanwhile, the boy in the white t-shirt simply looked at her coldly from his narrow eyes.

Her mouth knocked into his, her soft lips pressed against his sturdy teeth. Her head was held in place by the hooligans, and the both of them were forced to lie on the muddy floor. The hooligans on the sidelines were happily counting as time passed, and insisted that they had to count till '110'.

Chen Nian finally stopped her resistance, a stream of tears falling from her eyes onto his face.

The boy in the white t-shirt silently looked at her without making a single sound.

In Chapter 2 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we learn more about Chen Nian's predicament in school and how she seems to be caught between a rock and a hard place. We learn that Chen Nian's mindset is really an escapist one – since she doesn't have the power to change her surroundings, she'd escape to a place where the surroundings suit her, and her graduation exams would serve as her important key to freedom.

Chapter 2.

Chen Nian was greeted with cigarette fumes the moment she exited her toilet cubicle. Chen Nian turned away and started coughing. When the fumes finally cleared, Wei Cai's arrogant face entered into Chen Nian's vision field. Remnants of make up were still left on Wei Cai's youthful face, the overly mature makeup looking extremely out of place on such a young face.

Chen Nian, too, wished that she would be able to age tremendously within a single night. Only then would she be able to successfully escape the ferocious and cruel colosseum, and avoid being preyed on by the merciless vultures.

However, she was unable to escape her youth no matter how hard she tried.

Chen Nian started towards the door of the toilet. However, before Chen Nian could even take a single step, Wei Cai abruptly slammed her onto the cubicle door. Chen Nian hoped from the bottom of her heart that this would simply be an one-off incident, and didn't serve as a signal of the start of Wei Cai's war on her.

Wei Cai slowly moved her cigarette towards Chen Nian's stiff face, before finally pressing it against the cubicle door. She closed the distance between her and Chen Nian, "What did the police officers want from you?"

Chen Nian replied calmly, "They...they asked the same...... same few questions."

"Sa...same....same..." Wei Cai mimicked Chen Nian's stutter. "Why is your mouth so stupid? Can't it speak properly? Just look at you – the police would still suspect that you're lying even if you're speaking the truth."

Chen Nian shook her head vigorously.

"So, Chen Nian. Tell me – where was I when Hu Xiao Die jumped from the school building?"

The sunlight shone on Chen Nian's face, highlighting her pale complexion; Chen Nian glanced at Wei Cai, trying her best to complete the sentence in a single breath, "School......" Wei Cai stared at Chen Nian viciously, and was about to slap Chen Nian when Chen Nian finally finished her sentence, "Outside school...".

That day, Chen Nian was on her way home when she saw Wei Cai and her friends surrounding a female student from High School. They were extorting money from her.

Wei Cai looked at Chen Nian coldly, "You stuttered this to the police?"

Chen Nian lowered her head. On spotting some slight movements from Wei Cai's hand., Chen Nian immediately shook her head and replied, "I wrote."

However, the slap still found its way onto Chen Nian's face.

Chen Nian's head was tilted to the side, her long black fringe serving as a cover for her flushed facial expression and her shame.

"I knew you wouldn't dare to speak about rubbish." Wei Cai spat at Chen Nian. Just then, the bell rang, signaling the start of lessons. Xu Miao, who had been standing guard at the door, started to urge Wei Cai, "Come on, let's go."

Wei Cai walked closer to Chen Nian, and grabbed a few strands of hair from Chen Nian's neat ponytail. She coiled the hair strands around her finger, and gradually pulled on the strands till they broke, "Chen Nian, you better keep your mouth shut tight."

......

Every class is like a miniature society. There's people whose personalities are bright and extroverted, there's people who's busy all the time, and there's people who's quiet and reserved. There's also people who are individualistic and independent, people who are simply normal and ordinary, and people who are simply invisible.

Chen Nian belonged to the final group.

Chen Nian managed to hurry back into the classroom before the bell stopped ringing. She took a look at the teacher and the students who were bustling about, only to find that nobody had noticed her. She walked back to her table and seated herself down.

Hu Xiao Die committed suicide. She repeated internally.

Although she was initially distracted by the pain that remained on her cheek, calmness gradually descended upon her. She lowered her head and started solving the mathematics problems, her mechanical pencil making rustling noises as it moved across the paper.

The Mathematics teacher walked past her, observing how she solved the problem. Finally, the teacher nodded his head, and walked to the front of the classroom before calling out, "Chen Nian."

Chen Nian raised her head.

"Tell us the answer for this problem."

Chen Nian slowly put down her pencil, and straightened up. She replied in a small voice, "A......A......Alpha plus 3 Beta."

"A......A......A......" Wei Cai mimicked Chen Nian's stutter in a breathy voice, her eyelashes fluttering rapidly, and an ambiguous expression forming on her face. The classmates found Wei Cai's little interruption rather hilarious, and burst into laughter. To them, classes were only interesting with such interruptions; it didn't matter whether Wei Cai possessed any malicious intent when interrupting Chen Nian.

Chen Nian calmly remained standing upright. She had grown up surrounded by a sea of mocking laughter, and was used to people laughing at her by now.

The jeering and the disdain had started since she was in Kindergarten. Whoever said that man's nature at birth is fundamentally good? Whoever said that it's only a 'children's game'? It is precisely the collective disdain and bullying of children that is the cruelest and rawest form of human nature. Unlike adults, children have no idea how to cloak themselves with layers of pretense. As such, children often displayed their hate and disdain for others openly without any shame. They bullied her, mocked her, isolated her, and jeered at her – all without experiencing any sense of shame.

"Silence!" The Mathematics teacher hit the table in his rage. "The rest of you may be able to laugh now, but how many of you would be able to laugh after the Mathematics exam?" The teacher's power is always limited to mocking the students' uncertain futures.

"Wei Cai, stand in the corridor as punishment."

Screech. The chair scratched against the floor of the classroom, the sound ringing out loud and clear, arrogantly challenging the teacher's authority. Wei Cai stood up lazily, and nonchalantly walked out of the classroom whilst chewing her gum. Before she left the classroom, she turned back, giving Chen Nian one final stare.

Chen Nian sat down on her seat. Her deskmate and good friend Xiao Mi squeezed her hand encouragingly, and looked at her with an apologetic expression. Chen Nian shook her head, indicating that she was fine.

As the final exams neared, everybody suffered from the stress of having to get into a good new school. To them, feelings of happiness and sorrow dissipated as quickly as the wind, and they didn't expend any effort in taking anything to heart. Rather, they preferred to focus their entire energy on studying and preparing for the examinations.

Physical Education classes were now allocated to the students as free time. Those who wished to study could remain in the classroom, whereas those who wished to relax, or those who had long given up on studying, could head to the field for some exercise.

The basketballs and badminton rackets that were originally in the basket were long gone, having been snatched by the enthusiastic and eager students. Chen Nian picked up the lone skipping rope that lay at the bottom of the basket.

"Chen Nian, do you want to play badminton together?" Li Xiang's voice rang out. Li Xiang was the tallest boy in class. Although he broke the district's record for the 100m race, he as not merely an athlete. Indeed, he also excelled in his academic studies. Thus, he had already been offered a spot in an extremely prestigious university.

Chen Nian shook her head, the ponytail at the back of her head bobbing in the process.

"Chen Nian, you really don't like to talk, do you?" Li Xiang lowered his head and smiled at her.

Chen Nian had to raise her head to look at him due to his height. Whilst majority of the students had to wear spectacles, Li Xiang's vision was extremely good; indeed, his eyes shone brightly, and was radiating with vigour.

"There's no.......nothing much to sa......say." Chen Nian's throat clammed up naturally. It was a pity that she had such a good voice.

Chen Nian had an extremely delicate and pretty appearance. Her eyebrows were rather pale, whilst her eyelashes were extremely black and long. She also had a rather small mouth, which made Li Xiang think of the description 'small cherry lips', which was often utilised in novels. No wonder she had so little to say.

Li Xiang said, "Chen Nian, there are a few students in class who are rather annoying, but don't pay them any attention. Just work hard and focus on your studies. Once you're done with your examinations, you will be able to leave this place once and for all."

The comfort offered by the youth was careful and encouraging, and sparked a small hope in Chen Nian. Chen Nian nodded her head.

"So... How about playing badminton together?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

Li Xiang smiled, and found a way to defuse the situation, "We could always play together in the future."

He left. As Chen Nian turned around, she saw Wei Cai sitting on the ledge and staring at her coldly through her narrowed eyes. Or rather, she was staring at something behind Chen Nian.

Chen Nian looked back, and saw Li Xiang engaged in a conversation with Zeng Hao. He handed a badminton racquet to Zeng Hao, and the both of them went off to play badminton together.

With her jump rope in hand, Chen Nian went off in search of an isolated corner that was separated from the crowd. As she concentrated on the jump rope, she gradually moved from the isolated corner which was exposed to the blazing heat of the afternoon sun into the cooling shade of the mulberry trees. The song of the cicadas surrounded her.

"Hey." A low male voice rang out emotionlessly.

Chen Nian halted her jump rope, her heart beating like a drum. She surveyed her surroundings but not a single soul was in sight – the students were all gathered on the faraway field, exercising.

The youth smirked coldly, "Here."

Only then did Chen Nian turn her head in the opposite direction. The boy who had been in the white t-shirt the previous night stood outside the school gates, under the blazing heat of the afternoon sun. He donned another white t-shirt today, along with a pair of school pants. As his jacket hung loosely from his waist, Chen Nian was unable to tell whether he came from a vocational school, or a technical school...

He had an unlit cigarette in his hand, and his fingers played with the cigarette slowly.

The cicada's song pierced the azure blue sky.

A thin sheen of sweat had formed on Chen Nian's nose, and her usually pale face had turned into a healthy shade of red; perhaps because of her exercise, her heart was trembling rather violently. Subconsciously, Chen Nian pressed her lips together, and took a step backwards.

The school gates served as a boundary – one side was shrouded in darkness whilst the other was bathed in light.

His extraordinarily bright eyes swept across the boundary dividing the darkness from the light, "How much money did they take from you?"

"Sev......"Chen Nian took a deep breath and continued, "Seventy dollars."

He fished around in his pockets, and managed to produced two brand new fifty dollar notes. His arm reached across the school gates in an attempt to pass the money to her.

Chen Nian refused to take the money, shaking her head, "No......"

He waited for a few seconds. On discovering that Chen Nian hadn't continued her speech, he replied in a distant tone, "You don't have to give me any change."

Stunned, Chen Nian shut her mouth, swallowing the word 'change' that had been lingering on the tip of her tongue. At a loss as to how to respond, Chen Nian simply opted to continue shaking her head.

His arm was still hanging in mid-air. The youth narrowed his eyes and stared at Chen Nian for a few minutes before letting out an abrupt, cold laugh, "Are you going to take the money, or not?"

Gripping the jump rope in her hand, Chen Nian turned away and was about to leave when the youth suddenly retracted his arm and stepped away from the school gates.

Astonished, Chen Nian turned back to look at him – only to see the youth break out into a sudden run towards the school gates. Using both his arms and his legs, the youth managed to clamber up onto the school gates; and without breaking the momentum, the youth leapt off the school gates, easily landing on the grass patch before Chen Nian.

The youth lowered his head, sweeping off the dust that had gathered on his hands.

Chen Nian's heart had leapt into her throat. Speechless, she could only stare at him with widened eyes.

His face was rather clean and pale, and several bruises had already formed above his eyebrows. Standing under the shade of the mulberry trees, his eyes seemed to be even darker and even colder than before. He walked towards her, finally standing in front of her. He was much taller compared to her, and his forceful presence overpowered her. As Chen Nian had been gripping the jump rope tightly in her refusal to take the money, the youth simply stuffed the notes into her fist through the gaps in between her fingers.

It was newly minted notes, causing Chen Nian's hand to hurt.

The youth turned around immediately and left. Chen Nian stared at his silhouette; it appeared to be rather thin and cold, and radiated an air of youthful decisiveness.

Having taken a few steps, the youth suddenly turned back.

He stared at Chen Nian with the same unreadable gaze. "What's your name?"

Chen Nian hesitated for a moment, "Chen......Chen Nian."

Mildly bewildered, he asked, " Chen Chen Nian?" Due to his Southern accent, Chen Nian's name sounded like an old type of wine that was clearly lacking in youthful vigour.

Chen Nian neither nodded her head nor shook her head, hoping that by doing so she'd be considered to have silently admitted the truth of his statement. If so, the youth would finally leave the school compound...

The youth gazed at Chen Nian speculatively. He didn't leave. Instead, he picked up a nearby twig and returned to Chen Nian's side. He pointed the twig towards the ground before passing it to her, and instructed, "Write it out."

Chen Nian squat down and wrote her name in the sand.

"Chen Nian." He voiced aloud before continuing, "What does Nian mean?"

Belief (Xin Nian), Reminiscence (Nian Jiu), or Diligence (Nian Shu)?

Chen Nian tried her best to explain, "It mea......" She expended a huge amount of effort, but the words were still as soft as ever. "means being......being true to one's heart."

The youth looked at Chen Nian out of the corner of his eyes, finally understanding why she had said "Chen Chen Nian" the first time round.

Chen Nian knew that the youth had discovered her habit of stuttering. She looked at him calmly and peacefully, waiting for him to laugh at her and to mock her. However, his cold face betrayed no sign of any emotion.

Chen Nian could hear shouts originating from beyond the school walls. They were calling out a single name.

White t-shirt walked to the school gates and stepped onto a clump of mud. With his height, the youth simply needed to raise his arms in order to grab hold of the arrowheads on top of the school gates. With the exertion of a small amount of force, his thin body easily defied gravity as he leapt onto the gates.

Chen Nian thought that the arrowheads would scratch the youth, but they did not. They didn't even manage to touch the school uniform that had been hanging from his waist. Like a sparrow, the youth easily landed on the ground beyond the school gates.

He left. This time, he didn't look back.

Chen Nian emerged from the shade of the mulberry tree, and took a glimpse at the crowd outside. A group of male students were waiting at the opposite side of the road, all of them armed with wooden bats and sticks.

Chen Nian placed the crumpled notes into the pockets of her exercise outfit. She coiled the jump rope up, deciding to return to the classroom to study.

Li Xiang had managed to voice out her innermost thoughts. "Just work hard and focus on your studies. Once you're done with your examinations, you will be able to leave this place once and for all."

All the hard work that she put in, all the effort that she expended – it was all so she could escape her present predicament.

In Part 1 of Chapter 3 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we delve further into the mystery of Hu Xiao Die's suicide – did Hu Xiao Die say anything to Chen Nian before she died? If so, why is she keeping mum? Did Wei Cai play a role in Hu Xiao Die's death? Everything remains shrouded in mystery due to Chen Nian's silence. And once again, when Chen Nian runs into trouble, the youth in the white t-shirt makes a timely appearance to help her out. It appears that although Chen Nian's spontaneous moment of kindness has been causing her to run into various forms of trouble, it nevertheless also offers her a safe harbour from which she can seek protection.

The afternoon sun blazed down in its fiery glory. Chen Nian darted into the shaded pathway, coolness washing over her body.

The man-made mountain and the pavilion was linked to the back entrance of the school. As Chen Nian walked along the pathway, she spotted Zeng Hao, Hu Xiao Die's good friend who had previously passed her a note in class.

Chen Nian knew that Zeng Hao had intentionally waited for her at this spot, and came to a stop.

Zeng Hao's eyes were as swollen as walnuts. She stared at Chen Nian, "Why didn't you reply my note?"

Chen Nian silently shook her head in an attempt to indicate that she had nothing to say to Zeng Hao.

Zeng Hao clenched her fist tightly, "They interrogated me several times too, because I was Xiao Die's best friend. But I really had no idea what happened, so I'm not able to offer any form of help." As she spoke, tears began to fall from her eyes, "That day, Xiao Die was behaving weirdly. Everybody could discern Xiao Die's drastic change – she no longer liked to talk, and she always appeared to be brooding over endless problems. I'm not sure whether she was unhappy due to her deteriorating friendships with the rest of her friends, but I don't think it would have affected her so much. I did ask her what was troubling her, but she claimed that the deteriorating friendships weren't the cause. Subsequently, she......"

Chen Nian stood there expressionlessly, and turned her head to take a quick glance at the classroom. The leaves rustled in the wind whilst the sunlight danced on the swaying leaves.

"I don't believe that Xiao Die would...... But they said that when Xiao Die died, the entire school compound was empty, and that no strangers were present. Even the security guards have been eliminated as suspects. If Xiao Die truly did commit suicide..." Zeng Hao suddenly raised her head to look at Chen Nian, "Chen Nian, you're the last person to see Xiao Die alive. Did she tell you anything?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

"Chen Nian, please say something." Zeng Hao was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

There was a silent pause. Chen Nian slowly opened her mouth, "Nothing. I'm not fa......familiar with......her. If you......you don't even kno......know her secrets, how.......how would I know?"

Zeng Hao insisted, "It's impossible for Xiao Die not to have said anything if she truly did commit suicide."

Chen Nian looked at Zeng Hao straight in the eyes, and countered, "What......what would she say?"

Zeng Hao was stunned into silence.

Yeah. What would she have said?

"Chen Nian, are you speaking the truth? Xiao Die really didn't say anything to you before she died?"

Chen Nian: "It's true."

The older one grows, the more excellent one's ability to lie convincingly becomes. It's as though this talent was naturally cultivated over the years.

Zeng Hao scrutinised Chen Nian. Chen Nian was as pale as ever, her skin resembling that of a person who's perennially stuck in winter; Chen Nian's eyes were extremely black and calm, and they resembled the dark winter night.

Zeng Hao's shoulders sagged, "Alright."

Chen Nian managed to capture a glimpse of Zeng Hao's discouraged and saddened expression. For a moment, Chen Nian almost wanted to remind Zeng Hao that it was more important to focus on the upcoming final examinations, and to stay away from Li Xiang – but in the end, Chen Nian simply kept her mouth shut.

As they walked into the stairwell, Zeng Hao, who had been trailing behind Chen Nian all this while, suddenly grabbed Chen Nian by the arm, the words tumbling out of her mouth, "Could it be because of Wei Cai? I always felt that Xiao Die couldn't possibly have committed suicide over Wei Cai, but I can't think of any other plausible reason! Tell me, is it because of Wei Cai?"

Chen Nian quickly wrenched her arm out of Zeng Hao's iron grasp.

......

Chen Nian carefully stored three hundred dollars into her bag and stuffed the remaining one hundred dollars in her pocket. Having stored away all her money, Chen Nian walked away from the ATM machine. She took a quick glance at her surroundings before scurrying away.

Just as Chen Nian walked past the intersection, Chen Nian smelt the heavenly scent of freshly baked bread. She entered the bakery, intending to purchase two loaves of bread for her dinner. She handed the one hundred dollar bill to the shop-owner, and waited for her change.

"Don't you have smaller denominations?" The shop-owner furrowed his eyebrows.

Chen Nian pursed her lips and shook her head. The shop-owner began rummaging in the drawer, but was unable to find any fifty dollar notes. Annoyed, he looked into his bag for some change. On finding sufficient change, he immediately stuffed the notes to Chen Nian.

Chen Nian stood at the front of the queue, and concentrated on counting the change. $98.80. She checked the ten dollar and twenty dollar notes, and proceeded to check the fifty dollar note. However, as the fifty dollar note was too old, Chen Nian had to spend a longer period of time checking the note. By then, a long queue had gathered behind her, and some customers began to mock her, "You're taking so long just to check your note. Why don't you bring a counterfeit detector around in the future?"

The shop-owner also began to rush Chen Nian, "Stop blocking the way. Everyone in the queue is waiting for you."

Chen Nian felt slightly embarrassed, and simply stuffed her bread into her bag before leaving the shop.

Having walked some distance away from the shop, Chen Nian still felt a niggling sense of unease, and took out the fifty dollar note once more for a more detailed check. However, before she could discern any problem with the note, she spotted a few familiar faces – it was the group of hooligans who had extorted money from the boy in the white t-shirt a few days ago. They were headed to another destination whilst smoking various cigarettes. Chen Nian's heart plummeted. She quietly crumpled the money into her fist before slowly moving her fist to her pockets.

Chen Nian tightened her grip on her bag and prepared to make a detour. Just then, the entire group recognized her, "You there! Stop!"

Left with no choice, Chen Nian stopped in her tracks.

"I heard you have a habit of stuttering." The leader of the group laughed aloud, "Say...say... two sen......sentences......we wanna lis......listen." The entire group burst into laughter.

Surrounded by the group of hooligans, Chen Nian lowered her head. She was like a small kitten which had been surrounded and attacked by a bunch of mice – her movements were clumsy, and she had nowhere to run to.

The hooligans continued mocking her for some time before turning to the main topic.

"Do you have any money on you?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

"You really don't have any?"

"Yup."

"Humph. We let you off easy the previous time, so don't lie to us."

Chen Nian bit her lip nervously before shaking her head.

"Well then. Search her body."

Chen Nian started to run without a moment's hesitation, but she was easily caught. Although there were various passer-bys who witnessed the tussle, they simply increased their speed in an attempt to leave the troubled area. Not a single person dared to help Chen Nian. Courage was always a luxurious item possessed by precious few.

Very soon, the hooligans discovered the fifty dollar note that had been hidden in her left pocket, and the remainder $48.80 in her right pocket.

"What's this? Ah?!" The leader smirked at Chen Nian, and raised his hand in order to give Chen Nian a good, hard slap. However, the slap never landed on Chen Nian's face – Chen Nian had rushed at the leader in an attempt to retrieve her money from his hands. That sum of money was meant to pay for her living expenses.

The leader was immensely surprised at Chen Nian's strength – she refused to loosen her grip on the money, and even scratched his skin to the point where he started to bleed. Angered, he grabbed hold of Chen Nian and lifted her by the collar, "Do you still have any more money? Ah?"

Chen Nian's face was deathly pale. She barely managed to breath out, "There's no...none...left."

"This bi*** isn't honest." The leader slapped Chen Nian a few times before instructing the rest of his cronies, "Search her bag!"

Chen Nian struggled, trying her best to resist the hooligans' attempts to snatch her bag away from her. "There's......no more money. It's true! None......none left!" She said every single word extremely forcefully, as though she was cursing. She hoped that the hooligans would believe her lies.

But the hooligans didn't believe her. They successfully snatched her bag away from her, unzipping it before emptying its contents on the floor. Chen Nian saw her Chemistry textbook (where the money had been hidden) drop on to the floor, with a corner of the hundred dollar note peeking out from its pages. Suddenly, her mind went blank, and a overwhelming sense of desperation and pain overcame her.

"Wait a minute! This fifty dollar note is a fake!" An angry shout drew the hooligans' attention away from the contents of Chen Nian's bag. A hooligan who was holding on to the fifty dollar note shouted infuriatedly, "The money's fake!" The fifty dollar note made its rounds amongst the bunch of hooligans. After taking a look at the note, all of the hooligans declared that it was a counterfeit note.

The hooligans stared at Chen Nian, the anger unmistakable in their eyes – they were angered with what they thought was a deliberate lie spun by a cunning and sly girl.

"You dare to use counterfeit notes in an attempt to cheat us?!" The leader of the group raised his hand threateningly. Chen Nian hugged her head tightly.

"Hey." A cold male voice rang out.

The slap never found its way to Chen Nian's cheeks.

Chen Nian peered out from under the nook of her arm. It was the boy in the white t-shirt. He stood in the glow of the setting sun, his pale, long arm dangling by the side of his body. He had a cigarette in his hand, the fumes swirling in darkening sky.

Previously, he had been at their mercy, and, along with his mother, suffered from a barrage of disgusting and humiliating insults hurled by the group of hooligans. Just as Chen Nian thought the situation would worsen further, to her utter surprsise, the group of hooligans restrained themselves and prepared to leave after throwing her bag and the fake fifty dollar note on the floor.

"Return the money to her." The youth blew the smoke out from his mouth. With a flick of his finger, the cigarette ash fell onto the floor.

The group of hooligans threw a wad of cash on Chen Nian's school bag and left.

Chen Nian didn't understand what just happened, but she wasn't interested in understanding. Glancing at the youth, she noticed the new bruises that had formed above the youth's eyebrows, as well as the numerous frightening wounds on his arm. Initially, Chen Nian had thought that the youth had been an object of bullying, oppressed and tormented – but it turns out that both the youth and the group of hooligans were the same type of people.

The white t-shirt youth remained rooted to his original spot and stared at Chen Nian, his unwillingness to help her pack her items unmistakably clear. Chen Nian squat down and picked up the money. Dusting the dirt away from her books, she carefully placed them in her bag before straightening up with her bag in hand.

The youth walked over to Chen Nian and stood in front of her. He towered over her, his body effectively casting a dark shadow over her.

When Chen Nian looked straight ahead, she could only see his jaw. However, she did not intend to raise her head and look him in the eye. She shrugged her shoulders, her body language clearly evincing her intention to leave.

"Hey."

Chen Nian lowered her head slightly. She knew that at the very least, she ought to thank him for his help.

The youth in the white t-shirt furrowed his eyebrows. Unable to stomach Chen Nian's obvious disregard of his presence, he said, "Hey, Little Stutterer."

Chen Nian raised her head and looked him in the eye.

The youth gave a slight snort, "There's still some stuff lying on the ground." With a nod of his head, he gestured at the fifty dollar note which had been lying on the floor.

Chen Nian picked up the fifty dollar note, and carefully examined the note for any Braille Dots. She soon discovered that the note was extremely flat, and that it did not possess the slight protrusion a real note would have had. Her heart felt cold and empty; she hated herself for having lowered her guard, and she hated her cheap sense of pride which she defended at the bread shop.

She replied, "Fake."

The color in the youth's face changed rapidly. He snorted derisively, "I'm fake?"

Chen Nian knew that he had misunderstood. She wanted to explain herself, but no words came out of her mouth when she opened it. Hurriedly, she fished two other crumpled fifty dollar notes from her pocket and held them up to his eye level. She pointed to him and made some gestures that indicated that the two fifty dollar notes were the notes which he had returned to her previously.

"Your mon......money" She tried her best not to stutter, "Real."

The displeasure on the youth's face gradually faded away. The youth asked lazily, "Where did the counterfeit money come from?"

Chen Nian didn't answer his question. She took out thirty dollars from her wallet and passed it over to him. In a quiet voice, she slowly made her intentions clear, "Return...you." The youth scrutinized her for a few seconds, his pitch black eyes narrowing slightly. He began to feel feelings of displeasure once again. In the end, the youth simply accepted the money and silently put them in his pocket.

Chen Nian felt her face burning up. Lowering her head, she softly said, "Thanks."

The youth snorted in return. It was unclear whether he was mocking her, or whether he was expressing his feelings of disdain. Chen Nian could barely discern a bunch of people on the streets hollering a name. The youth turned to look at them before strolling in their direction. It was a group of rowdy hooligans. His companions.

Chen Nian tied her hair neatly. Tightly gripping the bag of bread which she had bought, she left in the opposite direction.

In Part 2 of Chapter 3 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we continue with Chen Nian and her confrontation of the bread shop-owner who handed her the counterfeit note. Although it's harsh, the sad reality dawns on Chen Nian that sometimes, the law just isn't capable of protecting every single victim out there, that the law also serves to balance the rights of the victims and the potential accused, and that it isn't all-powerful. Despite her disappointment in the law, through this incident, Chen Nian nevertheless manages to come to a realization that perhaps, she is slowly growing into the precise kind of person whom she detests. Although cowardly, those who turn a blind eye and look out for their very own self-interest can hardly be blamed – after all, it is always much easier to turn a blind eye to the innumerable victims that suffer from malicious acts (whether major or minor) surrounding us than to stand up for each and every single one of them. Things are still moving rather slowly now, but good things come to those who wait – the story will definitely rev up as the novel progresses.

The shop-owner of the bread shop was shifting the steamers back into the shop. When he saw Chen Nian, an unnatural expression flittered across his face.

Chen Nian showed him the counterfeit note, "The change you...... you gave, it's fa.......fake."

"You came to spread malicious rumours when you can't even straighten your tongue? Clearly you must be suffering from a lack of confidence! You must be telling lies!! In any event, how are you going to prove that this fifty dollar note was the one I handed to you?"

Chen Nian's face reddened, "It just......just is."

The shop-owner raised his voice instantly, "Hey, that's not how one conducts oneself! Come on – you're a student, and you look like a decent girl – do you take me for a fool?!"

Chen Nian stared into his eyes calmly, "Guilt......guilty conscience."

"You......" Having been exposed by Chen Nian, the shop-owner raised his voice even louder, and even mimicked her in an attempt to humiliate her, "Guilt......guilty conscience......You can't even speak properly, how dare you talk about guilt......guilty conscience."

A few customers laughed in response. Even though they bore no ill intent, Chen Nian felt that all of their laughter was full of malice.

The wife of the shop-owner came over to clarify the situation. On learning what happened, she shot a glare at the shop-owner before turning to Chen Nian, "Young lady, are you sure that we're the ones who gave you the counterfeit note? I've been running this shop for many, many years, and I've never ever given customers counterfeit notes. Perhaps you received this counterfeit note from other shops but mistakenly thought that we were the ones who gave it to you?"

Chen Nian was extremely sure, "I didn't mix it up." She continued, "Not......you." Chen Nian pointed at the shop-owner, "Him."

The shop-owner crumpled his facial features together in an exaggerated fashion, and protested, "Why do you continue to accuse me relentlessly? Do you think that I won't be able to deal with you just because you're a woman?!"

The wife of the shop-owner interrupted him midway. Turning to Chen Nian, she said gently, "There's a sign at the cashier which states that money is to be checked on the spot, and that we're disclaiming all responsibility the moment you leave. If everybody attempts to follow in your footsteps by claiming repayment for counterfeit money, my shop would definitely collapse – even banks would collapse if they gave in to requests like yours."

The shop-owner and his wife then proceeded to serve their customers and paid no heed to Chen Nian who remained standing by the sidelines. The customers purchasing bread would often cast curious glances at her; however, as Chen Nian's problem didn't concern them in the slightest, they simply minded their own business and left after having purchased their bread.

After some time, Chen Nian broke her silence, "Report to Police."

The wife of the shop-owner sighed in exasperation, "Why are you so obstinate? I've told you numerous times, we weren't the ones who gave you the counterfeit note. We're just a small business, and we don't want any trouble."

Chen Nian stared at the shop-owner's wife silently.

Angered, the shop-owner replied, "Do it then. Call the police."

Chen Nian called the Police.

Before long, two Police Officers arrived at the scene. They separated Chen Nian from the shop-owner and his wife, and questioned each group separately. The Police Officer who had questioned Chen Nian believed her version of the story, but there was nothing he could do as Chen Nan had no evidence.

The shop-owner's wife insisted to the Police Officer, "We don't blame the young lady, she was simply mistaken."

When Chen Nian saw the Police Officers preparing to leave, an overwhelming sense of injustice washed over her. Aggrieved, she asserted to the Police Officers, "I'm not......not mistaken. They're really......really the ones who.......who gave me the fake note."

The shop-owner's wife took one glance at her before leaving to continue selling her bread.

The Police Officer brought Chen Nian to the side and patted her shoulders. He sighed helplessly, "We can only proceed with complaints based on evidence. Young lady, be more careful in the future, okay?"

Chen Nian eyes gradually started to reddened. The situation would have been better if the Police Officers had never arrived. Now that they have arrived and left, she felt an even stronger sense of helplessness.

The world is filled with slightly evil and malicious people.

But evidence does not always exist to prove their commission of the malicious acts.

Chen Nian was extremely unfortunate – even though she was the victim of a malicious act, she was unable to do anything in response. Unable to resign herself to such a conclusion, Chen Nian obstinately remained rooted in the shop. There were numerous curious by-standers who kept peering at Chen Nian. Meanwhile, the shop-owner invested all his energies into serving his customers. Now that the Police Officers have arrived and left, he felt an increased boost in confidence.

Chen Nian looked at the shop-owner, who had intentionally plastered his face with a genuine smile. For a moment, Chen Nian was possessed by a desire to burn the shop down.

When the thought flashed across her mind, Chen Nian froze.

It was so easy for malicious thoughts to be born, even in a calm and peaceful heart.

Just then, the lower hem of a white t-shirt appeared in Chen Nian's field of vision, along with a hand which was clasping a cigarette. With two fingers, the person snatched away the fifty dollar note which had been drenched in Chen Nian's sweat.

"Wait for me by the roadside."

Chen Nian raised her head. He had thick, black brows, and extremely dark eyes. He had a calm facial expression, and the fringe hanging on his forehead was so long they nearly poked his eyes.

Chen Nian didn't move. The youth gestured to the left with his jaw as an indication for Chen Nian to leave.

Chen Nian walked to the roadside. The youth slowly stretched his cigarette into the steamer, and forcefully stubbed the cigarette out on the white loaves of bread in the steamer. The shop-owner and his wife were thunderstruck, both at a loss for words.

The cigarette remained vertically erect on the white bread.

The youth slapped the fifty dollar note down onto the steamer, and said something which Chen Nian was unable to discern. Gradually, the facial expressions of the shop-owner and his wife turned into one of shock and fear.

However, Chen Nian couldn't even spare the slightest attention for their expressions. All she could focus on was the youth's back figure – his tall and slender figure.

Without a moment's hesitation, the shop-owner took out a fifty dollar note and handed it to the youth. The youth turned away and descended the steps leading to the roadside. When he reached Chen Nian, he handed the brand new fifty dollar note to her, "Real money."

Chen Nian asked, "What did you......you say to.......to them?"

The youth simply gave Chen Nian a lopsided smile, clearly indicating an absence of intention to tell Chen Nian what he had said to them.

Chen Nian took one glance at the bread shop, and noticed that the wife of the shop-owner was sobbing into her hands.

The youth followed Chen Nian's gaze and turned back to look at the shop-owner's wife. He stated colldly, "They're both husband and wife – when the husband gives out counterfeit notes, how could the wife be entirely clueless about his acts?"

"I know." Chen Nian responded.

The youth raised his eyebrow questioningly.

The tall youth served as a shade that sheltered her from the setting sun. Chen Nian lowered her head, and silently walked forward. As she walked, she tightly bit her lips and asked, "Fifty doll......dollars. Did they really have......to do what they......did?"

"Don't you know? All humans are like that. The longer they live, the worse they become."

Chen Nian shook her head slowly, "I want......" She fished her mobile phone out from her bag, and searched for Zeng Hao's contact number.

He asked, "What do you want?"

"As I mature, and grow.......older, I don't want......to become a.......worse person." She began stuttering again, and only managed to spit out one sentence after much effort, "Don't want to......transform into......the type of people I hate......hate the most during my......my youth."

In Chapter 4 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we finally learn the name of the male lead – Bei Ye. Bei Ye and Chen Nian's strange connection finally evolves into a somewhat tenuous friendship despite Chen Nian's avoidant nature. Although Chen Nian is prone to closing others off and locking herself up in her solitary world to protect herself from the hurtful jeers and laughter, Bei Ye's persistence and patience allows her to slowly emerge from her protective shell.

Chapter 4.

The youth twisted his head to look at her. After a few seconds, a strange smile formed on his lips.

On lowering his eyes, he caught a glimpse of the two loaves of bread Chen Nian was holding in her hands. When Chen Nian caught him staring at her bread, she waved the white paper bag containing the bread in front of his eyes, and asked, "Do you want some?"

The youth furrowed his brows, making no attempt to disguise the look of disdain on his face.

The white paper bag was extremely crumpled, and had a layer of oil and water on the interior of the bag. When Chen Nian noticed the shabbiness of the paper bag, her face gradually turned beet red. Embarrassed, she retracted her outstretched hand, "It's gone cold." It was no longer nice to eat.

Having walked a few steps, the youth suddenly asked, "You're eating bread for dinner?"

Chen Nian nodded her head.

After a few seconds, the youth asked, "Are you deaf?"

Realizing that the youth had failed to see her nod her head, Chen Nian squeaked out, "Yup." As her reply had come out of nowhere, it was unclear whether she was answering his question about dinner, or his question about being deaf.

The youth slowed down and came to a stop, his brows furrowing in unhappiness. Chen Nian belatedly realized that the youth had been staring at her for some time, and raised her head to return his gaze. Unable to stare a response out of her, he couldn't formulate an appropriate response and simply continued walking ahead.

Chen Nian didn't bother to catch up with the youth before her, and trailed behind him slowly. By the time she reached the traffic junction, the youth was already halfway across the pedestrian crossing. As Chen Nian didn't have to cross the road, she readied herself to turn around the corner and return home. Although she wanted to bid the youth farewell, she felt that there was no need to do so.

After all, there wouldn't be any other interactions between the both of them in the future. It would be best if they simply parted ways here and now.

The youth slung his jacket over his shoulder. When he reached the midpoint of the pedestrian crossing, he turned back to look at her.

Chen Nian stood quietly at the edge of the curb, her posture upright and erect, as though she was a small tree sapling. Standing there, she gazed at him silently. Her skinny and frail frame was evident even under her large uniform, which billowed around her.

In the afterglow of the evening sky, the youth crinkled his eyes.

She pointed towards her left, indicating that her house was in that direction.

In response, the youth jabbed his thumb in the direction behind him, signaling to Chen Nian that she ought to continue trailing behind him.

Chen Nian's hands slowly fell to her sides. She hugged her school jacket with both hands and simply gazed at him from afar, unmoving.

In the gentle glow of the evening sun, vehicles and pedestrians swarmed around them.

The youth didn't bother waiting for Chen Nian's response, and simply continued on his journey. When he reached the other end of the pedestrian crossing, he turned back to look at Chen Nian, only to discover that she was already in the midst of crossing the road.

He snorted to himself, the corners of his lips curling into a small smile. Sticking both his hands into his pockets, he continued walking forward. Before long, the youth reached the entrance of a small restaurant. Sitting himself down on a plastic chair at the outdoor dining area, the youth pulled out a cigarette and started smoking.

After some time, Chen Nian finally appeared before his eyes. She stood quietly at the side and looked at him.

He raised his eyes and returned her gaze. She had a small and pale face, and her hair was neatly tied into a ponytail. A few strands of hair had escaped her ponytail, and were shining like gold in the glow of the setting sun.

To him, Chen Nian was like a snail – she was extremely slow in all that she did, regardless of whether it was walking, talking, or some other task that she was focused on. He could even visualize how she would gradually retract her antennae into her shell whenever strangers gave her a slight poke.

After a few seconds had passed, he waved his hand at her and indicated for her to take a seat.

"What do you want to eat?"

"Any......anything's fine."

"Order the dishes."

Chen Nian shook her head, and pushed the menu back to the youth. The 'menu' was, in actuality, simply an oily piece of laminated paper. The youth glanced at the menu, and casually ordered three dishes.

Chen Nian lowered her head and stared at the plastic table cover and the oil stains on it, the honking of congested vehicles and chatter of the crowd surrounding her.

The sun was about to disappear. The final, remnant glow of the evening sun shone on Chen Nian's face, casting a reddish glow over her face. Chen Nian couldn't open her eyes.

The youth placed his cigarette on the cheap disposable cup containing his tea. "Which Year are you in?"

Chen Nian lifted her eyelids. His face appeared fuzzy to her in the glow of the evening sun. In response to his question, Chen Nian didn't say anything, and simply raised three fingers.

"Primary 3?" The youth asked, displaying a rare moment of playfulness.

Chen Nian knew that the youth had misinterpreted her signs on purpose. However, she still chose to play along, and slowly shook her head. "Year 3 of.......High School."

"You have a very youthful appearance, like a little kid." His eyes swept over Chen Nian, his piercing gaze seemingly able to look past her clothes. He commented drily, "You're malnourished."

Chen Nian felt a red hot wave of embarrassment rushing over her, as though it as a sudden rash that had unexpectedly broken out on her face. She curved her shoulders inwards even further.

Sensing her shame, the youth changed the topic, "Your graduation exams are nearing."

Chen Nian nodded her head.

Having finished his cigarette, the youth threw the cigarette butt into his cup of tea. He stared at her, "You don't like to talk."

"When I.......I talk, others......laugh."

The youth looked at Chen Nian calmly whilst she formulated her sentence. When she completed her sentence, he responded with a single "Oh.", without a single expression etched on his face.

After some time had passed, he resumed questioning, "Why do they laugh at you? Is it because you're a Little Stutterer?"

"......"

Chen Nian was never angry with the youth no matter how many times he referred to her as "Little Stutterer". After all, she was still able to differentiate different types of tones.

When the dishes were served, the youth ordered a bottle of iced beer. Leaning towards Chen Nian, he offered, "Want some?" Chen Nian hurriedly shook her head. The youth didn't insist on his offer. The two of them proceeded to eat their meal in silence, and when they finished, the youth fished out his wallet to pay for the meal.

Chen Nian wanted to suggest splitting the cost of the meal equally between the both of them. However, just as she opened her mouth, she realized that she didn't know his name. "Uh......"

He turned his head to look at her. His eyes were extremely dark, and there were hints of harshness in his gaze. He raised his thick eyebrows, "You called?"

"What's......what's your.......your name?"

"You don't know?" His piercing gaze pinned her once more.

Chen Nian was unable to comprehend why he assumed that she had known his name.

"My friends hollered my name before." He stated coldly. "Twice." Once when they were outside the walls of her High School, and once when they were on the street. However, Chen Nian failed to notice on both occasions.

The youth stared at her for a long period of time. He slowly raised himself from his seat, obstinately piercing Chen Nian with his stare all this while. Ultimately, however, he averted his gaze, a deep crease forming on his forehead. He kicked the chair and left.

Chen Nian tottered along behind him.

Their walk was spent in silence.

The youth swayed from side to side as he walked, whilst Chen Nian trailed behind him in an obedient fashion. Once in a while, the youth would intentionally turn back to glance at Chen Nian in a seemingly unconcerned fashion, so as to ensure that she was still following him.

As Chen Nian's walking speed was terribly slow, the youth had to frequently wait for her. Once, he turned back and stared at her for a few seconds before spitting out his chewing gum and wrapping it in a plastic wrapper. With a flick of his wrist, the plastic wrapped chewing gum flew straight towards Chen Nian's head. Stunned, Chen Nian froze on the spot as the plastic wrapper grazed her ear and ultimately fell into the rubbish bin right beside her with a loud 'Dong'.

"......"

Ah, boys. They'll always enjoy tossing objects into specified targets.

Once the chewing gum found its way into the bin, the youth immediately turned back and continued walking. Behind him, Chen Nian rubbed her neck morosely. Due to his unexpected scare, she had accidentally swallowed the chewing gum which she had been munching on.

As they reached the alley near her house, it was time for both of them to part ways. The sky had already darkened.

Glancing at the alley, he turned back and asked, "Are you scared?"

Chen Nian raised her head to look at him, her gaze clear and bright. Her brows furrowed slightly, her honest expression betraying her internal feelings and thoughts.

The youth continued, "Let's go."

Sticking his hands into his pocket, the youth continued walking ahead. Before long, his ears picked up the soft footsteps that were trailing behind him. The corners of his lips turned up in a wry smile.

After having taken a few steps, he managed to finish out a sweet from his pocket and offered it to Chen Nian. Chen Nian shook her head. Once again, the youth didn't insist on her acceptance of his sweet, and simply returned the sweet back to his pocket.

Soon, they arrived at the entrance of Chen Nian's house. It was an old multistory building, with the surroundings engulfed in total darkness. Chen Nian pointed towards a unit on the second story, indicating to the youth that she stayed there.

He stuffed a cigarette into his mouth before turning around and leaving.

Chen Nian had only taken a single step on the stairs when she heard his voice ring out, "Bei Ye."

Chen Nian instantly whirled her head around, the straight pony tail at the back of her head whipping around as though it was a black cotton dress.

Greeted with such an unexpected sight, the cigarette in his mouth drooped down suddenly. He removed the cigarette from his mouth.

"My name is Bei Ye." He continued, "Remember that."

Bei Ye walked towards Chen Nian. Despite his slight frame, he was rather tall. His imposing aura was akin to a physical wall; when Chen Nian raised her head to look at him, she subconsciously took several steps backwards. Before she knew it, the back of her foot was pressed against the stairs, and with nowhere else to retreat to, she plopped herself down on the stairs and hugged her knees with her arms.

He stood in front of her and lowered his body. Squatting on the floor, he made sure that his eyes were level to hers before he instructed her, "Say it."

"Say......say what?"

"My name."

"Bei......Bei Ye......" Her gaze was locked onto his pale face under the dim moonlight.

He slowly shook his head carefully.

Chen Nian knew why Bei Ye shook his head. She rubbed her hands together, and focused all her energies on pronouncing his name. "Bei......" she opened her mouth helplessly, "......Ye......"

"Repeat after me." He said. "Bei."

"......Bei."

"Ye."

"......Ye."

"Bei Ye."

"......" Chen Nian stared at him, her eyes shining like black grapes in the night.

"......" He didn't show any signs of impatience, and guided her slowly. It was as though he was teaching a toddler who had just started learning how to speak. "Bei."

"Bei."

"Ye."

"Ye."

"Bei Ye." He said.

"......" Chen Nian rehearsed the phrase mentally several times before opening her mouth. However, when she opened her mouth, she couldn't produce a single sound.

He didn't say anything in response, and simply looked at her. Chen Nian was unsure whether he was waiting for her, or whether he was trying to stubbornly compete with her stutter.

Chen Nian's mouth trembled slightly, "Bei, Ye." Bei Ye continued staring at her, silent and expressionless. Chen Nian took a deep breath, and prepared for a while before opening her mouth once more, "Bei Ye."

"Good." He continued instructing her, "Repeat ten times."

Chen Nian stared at him.

"Do it."

"Bei Ye." Chen Nian pronounced his name carefully, her voice soft and muted, "Bei Ye, Bei Ye, Bei Ye, Bei Ye......"

She shut her mouth tightly. Her gaze interlocked with his as the gentle breeze of the night drifted around them. The single step that she was sitting on had some remnant heat from the blazing hot afternoon seat.

He placed his cigarette behind her pale ears, his fingers lightly brushing against the side of her ears. The minute contact caused Chen Nian's sensitive skin to flush red instantly. He instructed, "Continue."

"Bei Ye." She opened her mouth once more, and gradually slowed down, "......Bei Ye......"

Bei Ye listened to her quietly, the shadow of a smile flitting across his lips. He reached into his pocket and found the sweet he had offered her earlier. He tore the wrapper open and popped the sweet into his mouth.

She was still obediently repeating his name, "......Bei Ye......Bei Ye......Bei Ye......"

She had completed the repetition of his name. Ten times.

She looked at him. He returned her gaze freely.

After some time had passed, she finally spoke up, "Finished."

"Little Stutterer," He cupped her pale cheeks in his warm palms, "You only said it nine times."

Chen Nian's heart nearly leapt onto her ears, and she stammered, "Ten......Ten times."

"You have to say it one more time to make it ten."

"No......"

"Yes."

Chen Nian had no other alternatives, and simply wanted to be done with the repetition, "Bei......"

Suddenly, Bei Ye knelt on one knee and pinched her chin, forcing her to look at him. Lowering his head, he gently bit her lips.

It was different from the previous time. This time, his tongue slowly reached into her mouth. The sweet and sour taste of tangerine exploded in Chen Nian's mouth, and a fire blazed across her face. Her tongue trembled and her face was reddening from her inability to breathe.

When the kiss ended, the youth sniffed her lips before straightening up. "Since you pronounced my name well, I thought I ought to give you a prize."

Chen Nian didn't know where to put her hands and feet, an orange sweet quietly lying in her mouth.

In Chapter 5 of I Don't Like This World, I Only Like You, we gradually see Chen Nian play a somewhat more active role in fighting back against the bullies by trying to help Zeng Hao as inconspicuously as she can, as well as the expansion of the relationship between Chen Nian and Bei Ye, which may come in mighty handy given that Chen Nian's is slowly shaping up to face the Big Bad Wei Cai.

Chapter 5.

"29. In the ocean, the clownfish's brightly coloured body often causes it to be the target of numerous predators. Although the bright and vivid colours of sea anemone give it a beautiful exterior, its tentacles are highly poisonous. Thus, the rest of the marine animals often stay away from it. However, the mucus coating on the clownfish contains some unique properties that allows it to survive the sea anemone poison and live safely beside the sea anemone. Whenever the clownfish encounters danger, the sea anemone would use its body to shield the clownfish from its predators. Similarly, the immobile sea anemone would use the clownfish as bait and attract other fishes to its vicinity in order to prey on them. The clownfish would also share its food with the sea anemone.

In the world of nature, such relationships are known as ( )."

Chen Nian swiftly wrote the answer "A" on the answer sheet.

It was the second half of the school semester, and the school began to hold mock tests once every month. The students no longer complained and whined like they did in the first half of the semester; those whose results were poor had already given up all hope, whereas those whose results were excellent simply treated these tests as regular checks to verify their understanding of the school material. In addition, these tests also helped them to accumulate more courage and confidence for the final graduation exam.

Integrated Science was Chen Nian's best subject. Within an hour, she had alrady completed the final problem in the Physics paper. She flipped to the front of the paper and started checking her answers and shading her answers in the Optical Answer Sheet (OAS). The pencil lead moved swiftly across the OAS. The shaded circles were black and reflected a mild metallic shine. They reminded her of the eyes of the youth in the dark of the night.

She suddenly recalled the deep kiss he gave her that night.

But within a second, she had already collected her thoughts.

Very soon, students started rising from their seats and submitting their exam scripts, causing a slight stir within the classroom. Wei Cai and her group of friends always handed in their script ahead of the deadline, so that they would be able to head out and play. The teacher warned them to keep their volume down so that the other students would not be affected.

Affected? Nobody would be affected – not a single student seated in the first half of the classroom raised his/her to look at Wei Cai, their energies totally focused on solving the questions. Conversely, the students seated in the second half had already been preparing to head out of the classroom.

Just as Chen Nian completed the Chemistry paper, Zeng Hao rose from her seat. Although Zeng Hao's results were extremely good, Chen Nian was still mildly surprised at the unexpected speed at which she solved the questions.

The resultant effect of watching a good student hand up her paper earlier than expexted was vastly different from that of a delinquent student handing up her paper early. The moment Zeng Hao rose from her seat, an invisible pressure settled on the remaining students who were still struggling with the papers, and they casted numerous peeks at her from their desks. There were times when Chen Nian, too, would hand in her paper early and walk towards the podium with an calm and collected expression, casting the invisible pressure on the rest of the students.

You had to be the first in order to exert pressure on the rest; being the second was meaningless.

Zeng Hao raised her head and walked out of the classroom calmly. She didn't stray far from the classroom, and simply leaned against the railing, watching the sky.

Chen Nian lowered her head and resumed solving the exam questions. When she completed her Biology paper, she cast a quick glance at her watch. There was 40 minutes left. She took a swift look outside the window. There was nobody at the railing. Zeng Hao was gone.

That day, after the incident with the counterfeit money, she told Zeng Hao all that she knew. After she confessed to Zeng Hao, she never contacted Zeng Hao again.

Chen Nian checked through her answers a few more times. Gradually, people began to hand up their exam scripts. Chen Nian didn't bother rising from her seat, and instead started to practise her writing on the scrap paper. Higher marks would be awarded to the composition scripts with nice and neat handwriting.

The bell rang, signalling the conclusion of the exams.

The female toilet was flooded with people. Ah, it was always troublesome for females to head into the toilet, because they always had to queue for a cubicle. Every single female in the toilet was chattering excitedly about the exam questions. Gradually, people grew impatient from the long wait, and started banging on the door of the innermost cubicle.

"Hey, what's going on? Who's inside? Why aren't you coming out? Could you not poop since you're experiencing constipation? There's so many people waiting outside."

No response emanated from within.

Chen Nian glanced at the female who had raised her voice – it was a student from another class. Although the surrounding female students also chimed in and expressed their dissatisfaction, it was to no avail as they weren't allowed to pry the door open.

On the way back to the classroom, two invigilators walked past her. They were discussing the papers, "Zeng Hao seems to have submitted her paper in a hurry. She failed to notice a glaring error."

Chen Nian had checked through her paper multiple times. She felt that she would be able to do well in this round of examinations – hopefully, she might even manage to reach 610 marks. Every single time she sat for an exam, she would always have harbour some indistinct hopes that soon, she would be able to finish her exams and leave this place. She would be able to go to some place further and better. She would be able to go to the North.

The students congregated outside the classroom, chatting and laughing. Chen Nian returned to her seat and gradually lost herself in her thoughts. In front of her, Hu Xiao Die's seat will still empty. Once again, the image of Xiao Die's pale and shivering body flashed across Chen Nian's mind.

A shadow loomed over her, and Li Xiang suddenly appeared in front of her. He sat himself down on Hu Xiao Die's seat, and turned to smile at her. His smile was as bright as the afternoon sun, "Chen Nian, how did you find the exam?"

"Normal."

"Your results have been rather stable for the past few exams, scoring 600 marks would definitely be no problem for you."

Chen Nian pursed her lips slightly, and managed a faint smile.

Li Xiang looked at her, "Where do you want to continue studying after graduation?"

"Depends on results."

"Go to Beijing!" Li Xiang's eyes shone brightly. "It's right beneath the Emperor's foot[1]! There's history, and there's culture too! Nowadays, people all refer to Beijing as the 'City of Emperors' – doesn't it sound grand and magnificent?"

Chen Nian kept mum.

Xiao Mi pitched in as well, "Li Xiang, aren't you encouraging people to head to Beijing only because you've accepted the offer from Beijing's university?"

Li Xiang openly admitted his motives, "Of course, I hope that I won't be alone in the University without a single friend from High School – if that's the case, I wouldn't even have a friend to eat out with on weekends. However, to speak the truth, Beijing's such a great city! Don't bother staying here, it's so meaningless."

Xiao Mi laughed aloud, "Don't worry. Chen Nian and I both want to go to Beijing. Isn't that right, Chen Nian?" She gave Chen Nian's arm a slight push.

Chen Nian calmly replied, "Perhaps.......I can't......can't get in......."

Xiao Mi glared at her, "That's impossible! Unless you decide to miss the exam!"

Li Xiang: "You'll definitely be able to get into Beijing! Shall we arrange to meet in Beijing after examinations?"

Chen Nian didn't respond to his request, and simply gazed out of the window.

"Li Xiang, I heard that your aunt is teaching in the High School Affiliated to Beijing Normal University." Xiao Mi said, "Our small school definitely won't be able to compare to such a well known High School. Could you please help us to get their test scripts? I think it would be useful for us to practice using their scripts!"

Li Xiang was extremely glad. He could almost visualize his colourful and wonderful University life away from home. "No worries, just count on me."

Just then, the shrill clang of the bell rang out, signaling the start of class. Li Xiang returned to his seat.

As it was class time allocated for the students to engage in self-studying, Chen Nian took out last month's test paper and analyzed the questions which she had answered wrongly. When she raised her head, she realized that Zeng Hao's seat was still empty. After the conclusion of the monthly exam, teachers are generally busy marking the exam scripts. With no supervision, self-studying had always been undertaken based on the students' own initiative. Those who didn't wish to self-study were generally considerate enough not to loiter around the classrooms, and would head to the field to play. Chen Nian mulled over Zeng Hao's absence for some time before finally deciding to continue with her own revision.

However, Zeng Hao still failed to appear after a long period of time.

When it was nearing the end of self-study class, Chen Nian strolled out of the classroom. The corridor was empty, and the entire building was extremely quiet. The only noises came from the faraway field where various students were playing basketball.

The toilet was located at the far end of the corridor. It was so quiet, Chen Nian could hear the water dripping out from the tap, and the splashing sounds it made as the water droplets fell onto the ceramic floor.

The door of the innermost cubicle remained tightly shut.

Chen Nian stealthily tiptoed over to the innermost cubicle. The occupancy indicator was red. Chen Nian slowly pulled out some tissue and lay it on the floor. Carefully, she knelt down, lowered her body such that her head was nearly plastered onto the ground, and peeked into the cubicle.

She saw two legs, along with some red liquid.

Chen Nian straightened her body gingerly, and disposed of the tissues in the rubbish bin. When she reached the entrance of the toilet, however, she chose not to exit; instead, she chose to turn back into the toilet, and dumped all the rubbish around the entrance of the innermost cubicle.

When she returned to the classroom, Xiao Mi asked, "Did you go to the toilet? You should have called me along as well!"

"Nope." Chen Nian replied slowly. "I couldn't.......solve a quest......question, went to......consult teacher."

"Did you manage to find the teacher?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

"Let me take a look at the question."

Chen Nian pointed to a question offhandedly. Xiao Nian looked at the question for some time before exclaiming, "You can solve it using this method. I'll teach you!"

Just then, Wei Cai and her group of friends entered the classroom. When her gaze collided with Chen Nian's, Wei Cai shot her a cold, harsh look. However, Wei Cai's face displayed no other emotions.

Chen Nian collected her gaze, and glanced at her revision materials. One statement instantly leapt out to her – "The eagle preys on wild rabbits and snakes. When the amount of wild rabbits sharply decreases in the ecosystem, there would be a sharp increase in the percentage of snakes being successfully hunted."

After school had ended, Chen Nian and Xiao Mi walked out of the classroom together. Wei Cai brushed past the both of them. Xiao Mi took a quick look at Wei Cai's arrogant posture before asking Chen Nian, "Nian, I've been mulling over something."

"Hmm?"

"Do you think that it could be Wei Cai?"

Chen Nian turned her head sharply to look at Xiao Mi.

"There were several times when I saw Wei Cai intentionally picking on Hu Xiao Die in school. I felt that Xiao Die was very affected by the bullying." Xiao Mi didn't wait for Chen Nian's response before shaking her head severely, "But it shouldn't be. Who would commit suicide over some bullying incidents? Since our teacher warned us not to spread rumours, I haven't been able to discuss this incident with anyone else."

Chen Nian kept silent, a creeping sense of danger crawling up her spine.

As Chen Nian and Xiao Mi's homes weren't located in the same area, they parted ways at the school entrance.

Chen Nian had just turned round the corner when she heard a sharp whistle ring out, along with the urgent braking of a motorcycle. Chen Nian turned her head around, only to find Bei Ye on a red and black motorcycle. He was donning a black t-shirt and jeans, and carried a huge guitar case on his back. His entire person seemed to be glowing, as though he was a beautiful picture.

Chen Nian stared at him.

With his back remaining arched, he turned his head to look at her, his fingers softly drumming the handle of the motorcycle. Having looked at her for some time without receiving any response from her, he straightened up his body, his brows furrowing slightly. "Come over here."

Chen Nian walked over to him, and stood at the edge of the curb.

He gestured to his back with his jaw, "Come up."

Chen Nian was about to crawl onto the motorcycle when he stopped her. "Wait." He threw a helmet over to Chen Nian. It was similar to his – it was a black helmet, with some white bolded numbers at the side.

It was brand new.

As the helmet was slightly tight, Chen Nian had to expend some effort in putting it on properly. After wedging the helmet onto her head, she clumsily hooked the strap together.

Bei Ye took a quick glance at Chen Nian and pushed her hands away. With a quick tug on the strap, Chen Nian staggered and stood right before him. He lowered his eyelids, his fingers quickly managing to tighten the strap properly.

With Chen Nian's helmet strapped on properly, he removed his guitar from the back and hung it on her. Upon receiving the guitar case, Chen Nian did a slight stagger – the guitar was rather heavy.

Chen Nian crawled onto the motorcycle. Bei Ye had planted his feet onto the ground to support the motorcycle, but when Chen Nian crawled on, the motorcycle slightly swayed to the side. Frantic, Chen Nian quickly grabbed hold of Bei Ye's shoulders. Chen Nian's palms could feel the warmth emanating from the hard bones under his T-shirt. Meanwhile, Bei Ye remained stationery, his hands still perched on the handles.

When Chen Nian had seated herself properly, she released her hold on his shoulders.

The motorcycle roared into the distance, the youth speeding in the night breeze.

As Bei Ye intended to bring Chen Nian out for dinner, he came to a stop when they reached a restaurant. Chen Nian crawled off the motorcycle, staggering slightly as she hadn't recovered her balance. Just then, Chen Nian accidentally staggered into a pedestrian behind her, her foot stomping on the pedestrian's foot and her guitar case crashing into the pedestrian's face. Chen Nian immediately whipped around, "So......Sorry."

The male pedestrian was flanked by two others, "Don't you have eyes?"

Bei Ye removed his helmet and swiftly hopped off his motorcycle, "Well, you clearly have eyes at the back of your head."

Chen Nian saw that Bei Ye had succeeded in angering the pedestrian. She immediately used her body to block Bei Ye and apologized profusely, "So......Sorr......"

Enraged, the pedestrian hollered, "Do you really stutter or do you simply not want to apologize."

Chen Nian could feel Bei Ye pushing against her – she wasn't going to be able to hold him much longer.

Another pedestrian looked at Bei Ye and pondered for a bit before breaking out into a sudden, mocking smile, "Well, well....Isn't this Bei Ye? Isn't your mum the whore and your dad a rap......"

Bei Ye pushed Chen Nian aside, a strange smile forming on his lips. He threw his keys to her, "Hold them for me."

Chen Nian hurriedly caught the keys, and gripped them tightly in her palm.

He did a cursory scan of the three pedestrians, before unleashing a sudden kick on the opposing party. Chen Nian's eyes widened in surprise. She could no longer discern the reason for his sudden fight – is it because of himself, or is it because of her?

With the flames of war ignited, even the plastic chairs from the roadside stalls weren't spared.

The three pedestrians weren't Bei Ye's match, and were quickly defeated.

Bei Ye dusted his palms. Having totally lost all desire to eat at the restaurant, he returned to Chen Nian's side and retried his helmet and keys from her. Perching himself onto the motorcycle, he inserted his keys and swiftly put on his helmet. He glanced at her whilst tightening the helmet straps, "Are you staying here to enjoy the show?"

Chen Nian hurriedly clambered onto the motorcycle.

When they reached a traffic junction, the traffic light suddenly turned red. The inertia caused her body to keep moving forward, and she found herself plastered against Bei Ye's back, like two pieces of scallion pancakes on a frying pan.

The summer clothes were extremely thin. Coupled with the fact that the two of them were seated at such close proximity, Chen Nian wasn't able to escape the smell of Bei Ye's sweat. Slightly embarrassed, Chen Nian gingerly shifted her butt backwards. However, given that she was seated on the slope of the backseat on top of carrying a huge box at her back, the effect was minimal.

She froze on the spot.

The glow of the setting sun shone on them. The numbers on the timer of the red light gradually decreased with the passing of each second, from 153 to 59. Finally, Bei Ye turned back to look at her, his gaze colliding into hers. He didn't avert his gaze.

"You seem very surprised just now."

"I was......afraid......that you would......" Chen Nian pursed her lips, trying her best not to repeat the word 'would', and continued "get, beat, up."

"You thought that I was going to lose?" He raise his eyebrows, a cold smile forming on his lips.

"That day......"Chen Nian stammered, "The first time......"

He maintained his posture, with his head turned back towards her, his gaze meeting hers over his shoulder. Even though he knew what she wanted to say, he nevertheless chose to patiently wait for her to complete her sentence. Chen Nian continued, "I saw......you, you were......getting beat......up."

"I had a fever that day, and there were too many of them." He had a certain degree of pride in him. "Don't you know the saying – 'A wise man knows when to retreat.'?"

"Oh." Chen Nian replied, nodding whilst supporting the helmet on her head.

Bei Ye looked at her for some time before concluding, "You look rather stupid."

Chen Nian: "......"

Having stared at each other for far too long, Chen Nian lowered her head, and asked softly, "You......you're good at.......at fighting?"

"That's not a good thing?"

Chen Nian shook her lowered head gently, and raised it once more. Her clear gaze held his, and she declared, "I think.....it's good."

Bei Ye's face betrayed no hint of any expression. He scrutinized her for some time before turning back. Chen Nian fell into silence.

When the light turned green, Bei Ye took a left turn.

Chen Nian pressed her lips together tightly. In order to reach her home, Bei Ye had to go straight.

[1] Right beneath the Emperor's Foot is a Chinese saying that indicates that the Emperor is residing in this City; thus, the people of the city are the closest to him (right beneath the Emperor's foot).

In Chapter 6 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we continue with Chen Nian and Bei Ye's little meeting, where Bei Ye finally decides to take Chen Nian under his wing – but at a price. After all, despite their mutual good feelings for each other, Chen Nian and Bei Ye have not truly developed any sort of relationship or trust between each other at this point in time. Bei Ye has, up to this point, only been focused on trying to repay Chen Nian's moment of kindness towards him when he was down and out. Having repaid her kindness, any other effort expended on his part would have to come at a price.

Chapter 6.

The motorcycle turned into an abandoned steel rolling mill. The road was filled with numerous potholes, and the tree leaves were covered with a thick layer of dust and soot.

During the 70s and the 80s, the steel industry was booming. As a result, the employees who worked in the steel rolling mill were held in high esteem by the people surrounding them, and often had an easy time landing themselves a marriage partner. Indeed, regardless of which era one lived in, one would always be subject to societal hierarchies...

But Fortune is fickle, and along with the various transformations in the New Century, people gradually began to perceive the processes of the steel rolling mill as being extremely inefficient, wasteful, and harmful to the environment. The decreased reliance on steel mills ultimately resulted in the steel rolling mill laying off its employees and declaring itself insolvent.

This plot of land was thus left abandoned for more than a decade. Presently, the steel rolling mill remained in a dilapidated state, and constantly seemed to be on the brink of collapse. Only the innermost staff dormitory remained upright, its walls greatly darkened by its prior constant exposure to the black fumes spewed by the steel mill.

The motorcycle came to a sudden halt, causing Chen Nian to bump into Bei Ye's back. Chen Nian hurriedly grab hold of her helmet and readjusted her position. Holding Bei Ye's shoulders for support, Chen Nian carefully climbed down from the motorcycle. An old-fashioned staff dormitory loomed ahead of her. In the late afternoon, wisps of cooking smoke drifted out from various doorways, causing the entire building to look like a huge honeycomb that was on fire.

Bei Ye said, "This way."

Chen Nian turned back to look at him.

Behind the thick, lush trees, there was an old building that consisted of two storeys in total. The shutter doors of the building were shut, and didn't seem to be capable of inhabitation, but resembled a goods transfer station instead. There was a rusty iron staircase on the right side of the building, connecting the second storey to the first.

The tree leaves gave off an extremely pleasant and fresh smell; beneath the foliage, thin and delicate strings of white silk hung from the tree branches, akin to an astounding pearl curtain. Upon Chen Nian walking nearer, Chen Nian discovered that there were white, fat bugs hanging at the bottom of the white strings.

A cold shiver shot up Chen Nian's spine. She carefully avoided the white strings and began climbing the stairs.

On the second floor, the corridor was covered with a thin layer of coal ash. Various plastic bags, old bicycles and other waste objects lay strewn around the corridor.

Bei Ye squat down, unlocked the shutters, and lifted the shutters in one fluid motion. The metallic shutters clanged noisily whilst dust motes swirled around in the evening light. Momentarily stunned, Chen Nian blinked a few times before a small smile formed on her lips. Turning back to look at Chen Nian, Bei Ye asked, "Why so happy?"

Chen Nian lowered her head, "This door......is very......cool."

Bei Ye looked at Chen Nian expressionlessly and didn't make a single sound.

Chen Nian continued, "Motorcycle......also."

"Also what?"

"Also, very cool."

Bei Ye remained expressionless. Lifting the shutters fully, he marched into his home quickly. Once his back was turned towards her, his lips curved into a quick smile before returning to a neutral expression. Turning towards her, he said, "Come in."

Chen Nian hesitated for a moment before following him into the house.

The interior of the house was extremely dim, and the hot and humid smell of his bed sheets filled the entire house. It smelled like scent of the mulberry trees outside, or the scent of the rain soaked ground – slightly bad and moist, but filled with vitality.

Chen Nian looked at Bei Ye – as his arms were raised to pull the shutters down, the lower hem of his T-shirt rose along with his shoulders, and revealed a thin and lean belly with numerous unfamiliar and sexy lines carved on it. Chen Nian quietly averted her gaze.

Grabbing hold of the edge of the shutters, Bei Ye pulled the shutters down in one swift motion. The shutters clanged down immediately, only stopping at Bei Ye's lower waist. Lifting his feet, Bei Ye stepped on the edge of the shutters, causing the shutters to be completely shut.

Bei Ye didn't lock the shutters. Instead, he walked to the lamp and tugged at the light switch which was hanging in midair. With a loud crackle, the white ceiling lamp flickered on, the dim yellow light resembling a light bulb filled with fireflies.

The reddish glow of the setting sun shone through the gap between the curtains, dividing the room into two halves; one half consisted of a simple bed and wardrobe whilst the other half contained various tools and machinery lying around in a messy fashion, along with a slightly heady scent of oil.

As the window faced west, the room was extremely warm and stuffy. The moment one entered into the room, sweat would immediately seep out from one's skin, as though it were mushrooms sprouting from the mud after the rain.

Bei Ye dragged the fan over and switched it to its maximum speed, causing Chen Nian to stagger from the force of the wind. Her hair whipped onto her neck, and the wisps of hair covered her sweaty skin like cobwebs. Upon seeing Chen Nian's flustered state, Bei Ye snorted, "Are you made of paper?" Grabbing the kettle, he brought it to the tap and began filling it with water.

Chen Nian removed his guitar case and placed it on the table. She removed the wild strands of hair which were plastered on her face, and looked around curiously. There were numerous posters stuck on the walls, featuring Sakuragi Hanamichi, Monkey D. Luffy, and Jay Chou. The paint on the walls had yellowed and cracked, clearly unable to withstand the test of time. Some parts had even swelled up, as though it was the skin of the elderly.

Bei Ye took out a few packets of instant noodles, and asked Chen Nian, "Which do you prefer?"

Chen Nian quickly glanced at the available options before answering, "Sour and......sour and spicy...beef."

Bei Ye towered over the table, tearing the plastic wrapper seasoning packets open with ease. Chen Nian went to his side and tried to help. However, just as she tore the sauce packet open and squeezed the sauce out, she accidentally stained her fingers with the sauce. Bei Ye took one glance at her before grabbing a tissue and wrapping her finger in it. Pinching her finger, he rubbed it carefully before removing the tissue from her finger.

It was as though he was handling a child's hand – all nooks and crannies must be carefully wiped clean before the tissue could be thrown away.

Chen Nian raised her eyes to look at him.

Bei Ye had already turned around to fill the instant noodles with hot water. After pouring the hot water into the cups, he quickly found two books and used them to press the lids of the instant noodle packets down. One of the books was a English textbook meant for students in Year 1 of High School. The cover had been torn off, and the characters in the book were conversing.
– How old are you?
– It's a secret.

Chen Nian looked at him, "You......" She had just begun enunciating when his dark, black gaze swiveled over and settled on her face. Chen Nian stiffened for a moment and stared at him for two seconds before continuing, "How old......are you?"

Bei Ye's gaze remained fixed on Chen Nian's face. Coolly tossing the question back to her, he countered, "How old are you?"

"Six......teen."

His lips curved into a slight smile, "You began studying at such a young age?"

Chen Nian nodded her head. She wanted to tell him that she had even managed to skip a few grades, but decided to swallow her words as she was afraid that she would stutter in the process. Bathed in the glow of the setting sun, she asked, "You?"

"Seventeen." He leaned against the table, and began to fan his collar. Suddenly, he asked, "Are your studies any good?"

Chen Nian replied, "Good."

Bei Ye paused, and looked at her for some time before continuing, "You're not lying?"

Chen Nian replied, "Nope."

Falling into silence, Bei Ye reached for a new pack cigarette on the table and tore the packet open. Taking a cigarette out, he placed it in his mouth, his thoughts unreadable from his expressionless face. Finally, he removed the cigarette and said, "You look rather stupid."

"..." Chen Nian reminded him, "You, said that......before."

Bei Ye looked at her, "You looked rather stupid then, and you still look rather stupid now, so it doesn't matter how many times I say it."

Chen Nian: "......"

The heart of the youth is an extremely sensitive one; Chen Nian gradually came to a realization that perhaps, she had given a wrong answer to his question; or rather, she had simply answered too quickly.

The reddish glow of the setting sun gradually dimmed with the passage of time. Bei Ye went over to the windows and pulled the curtains open. Pushing the windows open, the buzzing noise of the crowd streamed in. The cool evening breeze entered the house, and brought the aroma of freshly baked bread with it; the remnants of the setting sun shone golden against the darkening sky, as though it was the shiny glaze on confectionary bread.

"Something.......smells nice." Chen Nian commented.

Bei Ye cast a quick glance at his watch, "Two more minutes."

"Hmm?"

"After two minutes, the man responsible for collecting discarded household appliances would pass by in a motorcycle, the train bound for the provincial capital would pass by, and the freshly baked coconut bread would come out from the oven." With a agile jump, he leaped out of the window and disappeared into the night.

Shocked, Chen Nian rushed to the window and peered out.

There was an extremely narrow cement ledge beneath the window which was connected to the emergency stairwell. The emergency stairwell was, in turn, right next to the walls that surrounded the steel rolling mill, and an old and dilapidated alley lay beyond the walls.

Without expending much effort, Bei Ye clambered onto the walls and leapt down into the alley before swiftly disappearing into the bread shop located opposite the alley.

The alley was bustling with activity in the evening; tailors, canteens, bread shops, cobblers and various other shops populated the area. A bicycle bell rang out amidst the hustle and bustle of the evening, and Chen Nian could hear a man hollering at the top of his lungs, "Buying and collecting—– Scrap Metal!" Further away, Chen Nian managed to spot various railway tracks that led into the distance.

Chen Nian returned to the table and removed the English textbooks from the lids of the packets of instant noodles; upon lifting the lids of the instant noodles, a wave of hot air rushed at her face. Luckily, the noodles weren't overcooked.

Beep——, the train whistle shrieked shrilly in the evening. Chen Nian raised her head, a gentle smile forming on her lips.

Bei Ye clambered onto the window in one swift motion, pausing momentarily when he saw Chen Nian. Chen Nian was partially illuminated by the glow of the setting sun as she stood by the table, tearing the lids of the instant noodle packets. As the fan rotated from left to right, the wind caused her skirt to alternately fly and deflate on various occasions, her slim figure evident beneath the thin, white material.

Bei Ye felt small flames of desire shooting up his chest from the area beneath his belly. His throat itching with thick desire, he helped himself through the window and swiftly pulled the curtains shut. Within seconds, the room grew dimmer.

Chen Nian raised her head, slowly speaking up, "The noodles are, still......hot."

Bei Ye passed the freshly toasted bread to her, "Eat this first. Especially when it's hot."

Chen Nian bit into the bread. It was soft and fluffy, and the scent of fresh milk engulfed her. Chen Nian's body stiffened suddenly – Bei Ye's hand had slipped under her skirt, and was gradually sliding up her inner thigh.

Chen Nian turned her head to look at Bei Ye, her gaze colliding with Bei Ye's stare. As his hands continued their offending movements beneath her skirt, he asked in a low voice, "Are you afraid?"

Chen Nian stood on tip-toe in an attempt to avoid his touch, but his unrelenting fingers followed her ever movement. Trembling, she stared at him unblinkingly, confusion and fear pertinent in her wide eyes.

The train continued rumbling past outside the window, its speed causing the air to shudder and the earth to tremble.

"Why did you come back with me if you were afraid?" With a slight amount of force, he nearly carried her with his single, offending hand. With a muted whimper, Chen Nian continued investing all her energies into supporting her tip-toed position.

Bei Ye insisted, "Did you think it through before coming back with me?"

Chen Nian shook her head vigorously. Beads of sweat began to form on her forehead, dampening her forelocks and causing them to transform into small and tiny curls.

She desired protection, but she hadn't expected Bei Ye's price for offering such protection.

Chen Nian's legs began to tremble from over-exertion, and her body started to sway from side to side. The minute her legs gave way and she rocked back onto her heels, Bei Ye withdrew his offending hand.

Chen Nian remained rooted at her spot, waves of helplessness washing over her. She was angered and annoyed with her own cowardice and rash nature. Burning with feelings of shame, she finally gathered her thoughts and replied in a low voice, "I'll be......making a mo.....move then."

Narrowing his eyes, Bei Ye used his fork and tapped on the instant noodle packets forcefully, "Eat before you leave."

"There's......no need......" Chen Nian started. However, upon seeing Bei Ye's facial expression gradually darken with every word that she spoke, Chen Nian finally relented and sat beside the table.

As Chen Nian ate rather slowly, Bei Ye completed his meal much faster than she did. Taking out his pack of cigarettes, Bei Ye withdrew to the window and sat on the window sill for his smoke.

When Chen Nian finished her meal, she tidied the place before facing Bei Ye, "I'm......done."

Bei Ye swiftly extinguished his cigarette butt. Hopping off the window sill, Bei Ye started to show Chen Nian the way out.

As they exited the shutters, Chen Nian mustered her final ounce of dignity and asserted, "I'll go......home my.......myself."

Bei Ye let out a short laugh. However, the absence of any laughing intent was extremely evident from his laughter, "Really?"

As his laugh was slightly cruel, Chen Nian decided to keep mum. Both of them knew that Chen Nian did not have the courage to independently walk out of the steel rolling mill in the darkness of the night.

The weather seemed as though it was about to change, with the night wind being unexpectedly chilly.

Chen Nian sat on the motorcycle, her body shivering in the cold. The journey seemed to be extraordinarily long. Both Chen Nian and Bei Ye did not say a single word during the entire journey, and Bei Ye did not turn to look at her when the motorcycle stopped at the red traffic light.

When Chen Nian arrived at the entrance of her home, the slight breeze had evolved into a huge gust of wind, causing the leaves to rustle in protest. Chen Nian removed her helmet and returned it to Bei Ye.

Bei Ye responded with a single sentence. "We're quits."

Although he phrased it as a sentence, there was a slight trace of uncertainty in his voice.

Pressing her lips together as tightly as she could, Chen Nian nodded her head.

Bei Ye: "Speak up."

Chen Nian: "We were......quits.......long ago."

Bei Ye turned his head to glance at her, his eyes filled with an air of desolation; however, he quickly returned to looking ahead, and within seconds, he had already ignited the engine of his motorcycle, his solitary figure disappearing in the darkness of the night.

At that precise moment, huge droplets of rain started pouring from the sky, forcefully falling onto Chen Nian's head. It had begun to rain. Chen Nian could no longer make out Bei Ye's shadowy figure amidst the rain, and his red taillights rapidly disappeared as he turned a corner.

The rain grew heavier.

Ah, the rainy season is about to arrive.

Chen Nian's phone rang just as she ran into the stairwell. It was Zeng Hao – she must have managed to escape from the toilet. Clicking on the "Answer" button, she placed the phone beside her ear. Chen Nian froze on the spot. The raindrops were pelting from the rooftop, causing small clumps of mud to splatter onto her leg. A chill shot up Chen Nian's spine.

"You......You told them......that I spilled the.......beans to you?" Chen Nian grit her teeth angrily in the raging wind. Angered, betrayed and confused, her stutter worsened involuntarily, "But you pro......promised me! You promised......not to.......drag me into......this!!"

Chen Nian hung up.

Guilty, Chen Nian turned back, only to see the vast rain the dark and eerie alley.

All of a sudden, Chen Nian rushed up the stairs in a frenzy and speedily grabbed her keys from within her bag. Chen Nian was unable to see clearly as the stairwell was rather dark, and was unable to insert the key into the keyhole despite numerous attempts. Her feelings of fear grew tenfold.

Hands trembling, Chen Nian's keys fell onto the floor.

As Chen Nian squat down to retrieve her keys, she caught a glimpse of a muted glow from the dark corner of the stairwell. It was a cigarette butt.

Frozen, Chen Nian turned back stiffly, only to find herself face to face with a pair of cold and cruel eyes.

Wei Cai flicked the ash from her cigarette before rising from the floor and facing Chen Nian.

In Chapter 7 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we continue with Chen Nian's narrow encounter with Wei Cai, who had been waiting to corner her for having spilt the beans to Zeng Hao. As Zeng Hao continues to drag Chen Nian down with her, Chen Nian gradually gets sucked into the escalating conflict between Zeng Hao and Wei Cai. Having told Zeng Hao the truth out of the goodness of her heart, it is a pity that Zeng Hao isn't putting in the requisite effort to protect Chen Nian and repay her kindness. With such dark and selfish people around her, it truly isn't easy for Chen Nian to be brave and maintain a pure and good heart amidst all the conflict.

Chapter 7.

Chen Nian startled awake from her dream, her heartbeat throbbing loudly in the silence of the night.

Last night, just as Wei Cai flung herself towards Chen Nian, Chen Nian managed to find her keys amidst the flurry, hurling herself into the house before locking the door shut.

Lightning flashed across the dark night sky. Wei Cai kicked Chen Nian's door ferociously, the loud echoes reverberating throughout the entire house. Chen Nian leaned her entire body against the door, scraps of paint falling from the walls every single time Wei Cai kicked the door. Some paint fell into Chen Nian's eyes, causing her eyes to sting with pain.

After some time, Wei Cai left. Chen Nian could vividly recall Wei Cai's haunting words before she left, "Chen Nian, you have a death wish."

Even though the rain had stopped, the air was still terribly warm and stuffy. Chen Nian turned over and looked at her mobile phone. It was only 5 in the morning.

Chen Nian wiped the sweat off her neck and switched the electric fan on before returning to her bed and falling into a daze. The sky gradually grew lighter with each passing moment. When 6:45AM finally arrived, Chen Nian picked up the phone and called her mother who was currently faraway in Zhu Hai.

"Hello? Is this Nian Nian? You're not in school yet?" The slightly raspy voice of her mum rang out. Chen Nian could hear sounds of communal showering from the other end.

Chen Nian lowered her head and rubbed her eyes, "Mummy."

"Eh? There's no more toothpaste! Big sister, could you lend me some toothpaste?" Her mum appeared to be very busy, and only managed to continue the conversation after getting some toothpaste, "Nian Nian, is there something wrong? Why aren't you heading to school yet?"

"Mummy, could you......come home......to take care......care of me? At least, until.....until after......examinations, end?"

Chen Nian's mum rinsed her mouth before responding, "I can't even take a single day of leave now, as it's currently the peak production period for the factory. If I tried to take two month's worth of leave, I'd definitely be fired. Nian Nian, be good and persevere for two more months – you can do that, can't you?"

Chen Nian fell into silence.

Having received no response from Chen Nian, Chen Nian's mum gradually quietened down and went to a more secluded corner, "Nian Nian, are you missing mummy?"

Chen Nian nodded her head, before responding in a low and quiet voice, "Yes."

Chen Nian's mum coaxed her gently, "Our Nian Nian is going to enter University soon, so mummy needs to earn sufficient money required to pay for University. If mummy stops working, who else would be able to provide for Nian Nian? We can't possibly beg, could we?"

Chen Nian wiped the sweat from her face, and asked in a muffled voice, "Are there......electric.......fans at your.....dormitory?"

"It's not hot over here." Chen Nian's mum replied, "Don't worry about me. Nian Nian, focus on your studies. Mummy would only be able to enjoy life when you start University."

Chen Nian's feelings gradually returned to some degree of normalcy and calm.

Even if her mum returned, she could do little else except comfort Chen Nian. Furthermore, her wish was rather extravagant in nature, and was in actuality a luxury that her family was unable to afford.

When Chen Nian opened the door and stepped out, she was greeted with a huge expanse of the azure blue sky. Chen Nian could already feel the heat from the glare of the morning sun.

Chen Nian cautiously made her way to school, and succeeded in arriving at her classroom in one piece. Zeng Hao's seat was still glaringly empty.

The entire classroom was engaged in a hearty discussion.

Xiao Mi began to tell Chen Nian what little that she knew, "Chen Nian, something shocking happened in school yesterday."

"Oh?" Chen Nian put on a clueless expression.

"Yesterday, the cleaner was about to clear the rubbish from the toilet yesterday when she noticed that huge chunks of rubbish were strewn on the toilet floor. As she cleared the rubbish, she started to rebuke the students for their irresponsible actions. All of a sudden, she heard someone crying for help from a toilet cubicle. When she peeked into the toilet cubicle, she discovered numerous red stains, and nearly fainted in shock!! It turned out that there was someone inside the cubicle that was locked for the whole of yesterday – that person is Zeng Hao!" Xiao Mi paused appropriately upon reaching the suspenseful climax.

Chen Nian continued looking at Xiao Mi, a calm expression on her face.

"Of course, she wasn't dead." Xiao Mi continued, "However, her clothes and shoes were removed, and she had red paint splashed over her entire body. As she was afraid of the gossip that would ensue if she was seen by her classmates, she didn't dare to come out from the cubicle, and only pleaded for help when she heard the cleaner come into the toilet."

Chen Nian turned back to look at Wei Cai's chair, only to find it empty.

"Hey, listen to me!" Xiao Mi protested, and turned Chen Nian back to face her. "Zeng Hao sad that Wei Cai, Xu Miao and their group of friends are responsible for her plight."

Chen Nian: "Ah?"

"She was bullied by Wei Cai and her group of friends, so all of them are currently at the police station. Most importantly, Zeng Hao claimed that the reason why Hu Xiao Die committed suicide was because of Wei Cai and her friends! – Ah, so it really was Wei Cai and her group of friends. I know that I'm not the only person who thought this way, everyone else had the same thoughts as well!

Indeed, the entire class was engaged in a heart discussion, every single classmate detailing when and where he/she saw Wei Cai and Hu Xiao Die entangled in some form of conflict when Hu Xiao Die was still alive.

The dam that had suppressed the flood had broken. The situation was irreversible.

Chen Nian felt as though she was trapped in the vortex centre of the rushing flood, sinking into the mud with each passing minute.

Li Xiang walked over to Chen Nian and Xiao Mi, a bright smile plastered on his face. Waving the exam scripts from the High School Affiliated to Beijing Normal University, he asked, "Chen Nian, Xiao Mi, how are you two going to thank me?"

Chen Nian took one glance at him, not saying a single word.

Li Xiang noticed that Chen Nian's slightly dark facial expression, and instantly changed his tune, "I was just teasing you guys! Here, you guys can have the exam scripts."

Xiao Mi retrieved the papers and thanked Li Xiang in a loud voice.

Before Li Xiang could even respond, the bell rang, signaling the start of class. The teacher strode into the classroom, and the students returned to their respective seats. However, even before the Mathematics teacher had the opportunity to announce the start of class, Chen Nian's form teacher appeared at the entrance of the classroom, waving his hands at Chen Nian.

"Chen Nian, could you come out for a minute?"

The bustling classroom fell into a deathly, eerie silence.

Chen Nian exited the classroom calmly, and quietly followed the form teacher out of the school building.

"You have to make a trip to the Public Safety Bureau with me."

Chen Nian nodded her head.

Whilst they were on their way to the Public Safety Bureau, her form teacher spoke up, "Zeng Hao insisted that you told her that Wei Cai and Xu Miao......" Her form teacher paused, scrambling for an appropriate word to use, "That they had a conflict with Hu Xiao Die."

Chen Nian hesitated. After some deliberation, Chen Nian finally decided to say yes, and was about to do so when she raised her head and saw the form teacher's intense and direct gaze, an indistinct pressure settling over her. Carefully, Chen Nian swallowed the words that had already begun to form at the tip of her tongue.

"Did you truly say that? You do know that our school is the best in the city, don't you? We're also one of the top ten schools in the province. Our school has never ever experienced problems relating to conflict amongst students."

Chen Nian pursed her lips together, "Zeng......Zeng Hao was also......also bullied."

"What about Hu Xiao Die? She was probably only bullied once, wasn't she?"

Chen Nian was unable to discern the meaning behind her teacher's words, and cautiously studied his facial expression.

"If she was frequently bullied, I wouldn't be totally clueless about it – I'm her form teacher after all! And if she was indeed frequently bullied, the other teachers would have also picked up various hints and put sufficient measures in place."

"The entire......class talked...... about......the incidents."

"Those incidents which the class talked about were merely small, ordinary conflicts that commonly occurs between classmates. I'm referring to something more serious in the present case – bullying."

Chen Nian fell into silence. After some time, she lowered her head and answered, "Yes."

Chen Nian had only confessed to Zeng Hao the truth about Hu Xiao Die's suicide on the sole condition that she would not drag Chen Nian into Hu Xiao Die's matter. Since Zeng Hao didn't keep her word, Zeng Hao couldn't blame her for subsequently denying or retracting her confession. Chen Nian told herself internally.

The moment Chen Nian entered the lobby, she heard a piercing cry ring out. Hu Xiao Die's parents were tussling with the parents of Wei Cai and Xu Miao, whilst the government officials were trying their hardest to separate them to no avail.

"Murderer! Criminal!" Hu Xiao Die's parents were extremely emotional. Hu Xiao Die's mother even wailed aloud, "They caused my daughter's death!! They caused it!!"

Wei Cai's mother rebutted in a shrill voice, "All accusations must be backed up by evidence! It is common for children to engage in some form of verbal arguments or minor conflict with their schoolmates. If you commit suicide the moment I scold you, then all those who squabble on the street ought to be rounded up and shot to death!"

"Your daughter beat my daughter up! They were bullying her for a long period of time." Hu Xiao Die's mother shook Wei Cai's mother violently, "Murderer! Criminal! You gave birth to your child but you didn't bother raising her properly!"

Wei Cai's mother was about to retort when Xu Miao's parents stepped in. With tears flowing down her face, Xu Miao's mother pleaded, "Nobody wanted things to turn out this way. It's our fault for failing to take our children in hand, and I admit that I'm at fault. But please, please do not place all the responsibility on our children. They're still young, and they have a long road ahead of them. Even if they were at fault, we have to give them a chance to change."

Wei Cai's mother refused to admit fault, and continued squabbling with the other parents. The Public Safety Bureau descended into chaos once more.

The form teacher led Chen Nian into the elevator.

A police officer was waiting for her at the entrance of the interrogation room – it was the young police officer who had previously questioned her in school. He was attired in his work uniform, and looked especially handsome and bright. A smile formed on his lips when he saw Chen Nian, as though they were close acquaintances. He had just graduated from school, and wasn't much older than Chen Nian. When he looked at Chen Nian, his gaze was always gentle yet sharp, as if he had the ability to peer into the inner depths of her heart.

The form teacher patter Chen Nian's shoulders, "Don't be afraid. Take your time to tell the police officer what you wish to say."

Chen Nian followed Officer Zheng into the interrogation room. The door closed shut.

"Did Hu Xiao Die tell you anything the day she committed suicide?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

"Are you certain about that?"

"Yes." Chen Nian knew about the importance of consistency in testimony.

"Zeng Hao testified that you previously told her the following: on the day before Hu Xiao Die committed suicide, you had seen Wei Cai and her group of friends......" Officer Zheng paused momentarily, his dark eyebrows gently creasing, "abusing her."

The term "abuse" caused Chen Nian to startle.

Chen Nian didn't respond. She wanted to deny the testimony presented in front of her, but she couldn't open her mouth no matter how hard she tried.

"Chen Nian, if what you said was the truth, the persons who inflicted the abuse would suffer the corresponding punishment."

Chen Nian felt as though a heavy brick was weighing on her throat. She met Officer Zheng's intense and firm gaze. A tag hung proudly from his chest, his name inscribed on the tag: Zheng Yi[1].

Officer Zheng softened his voice, "Chen Nian, trust me."

There was only the two of them in the interrogation room. The atmosphere gradually froze. In his eyes, Chen Nian could see a tolerant and understanding love for the bigger world and its civilians.

After an internal struggle, Chen Nian finally nodded her head.

"Could you describe the scene that you saw in more detail?"

Wei Cai had initially picked on Hu Xiao Die because she simply didn't like her. Or perhaps it was because Hu Xiao Die was too pretty. Alternatively, Wei Cai might have picked on Hu Xiao Die because Hu Xiao Die was extremely friendly with all the males in class, or perhaps it was because Hu Xiao Die was smitten with the basketball player Li Xiang, and openly evinced her desire to get closer to him. At this point in time, the initial reason Wei Cai picked on Hu Xiao Die was no longer something that could be deciphered. In any event, Hu Xiao Die frequently suffered from cynical taunts and verbal insults whenever her classmates were around, and was often unintentionally "bumped" into and accidentally "hit" by numerous objects. Conversely, when her classmates were no longer around, in locations such as the balcony, the toilet, the library, and the corner in the canteen, Wei Cai and her group of friends......

Of course, it would be impossible to assert that the surrounding classmates failed to detect any signs of the ongoing bullying activities. However, due to various reasons, everyone simply chose to remain silent and to overlook the bullying activities – they convinced themselves that it was merely an ordinary conflict between classmates; after all, everyone had people they disliked.

Wei Cai and Hu Xiao Die's conflict didn't concern them in the least;

The stress from studies already left the students battered and weary;

In addition, they weren't familiar with Hu Xiao Die. Who would truly take the problems of strangers to heart?

When the strong engages in a confrontation with the weak, the situation inevitably devolves into one whereby one party is isolated whilst the other party enforces the isolation; or where one party is bullied whilst the other party inflicts the bullying. In such situations, organisms would subconsciously turn away from the party who was being bullied and isolated.

People fear straying from the group, and this was especially true for children. Compared to adults, children were often more afraid of being non-conformist, as they were frequently classified as the weak.

Chen Nian had seen Wei Cai, Xu Miao, and their group of friends insult and assault Hu Xiao Die, and when she saw them tear Hu Xiao Die's clothes and strip her naked, she left the scene immediately. Chen Nian was afraid – she feared that she too, would become part of the bullied, part of the hunted.

The form teacher was detained for further questioning. By the time Chen Nian exited the elevator and stepped into the lobby, the chaotic group of parents had already been dispersed. The marble floor was extremely empty and clean. It reflected the vibrant glare of the summer sun, causing Chen Nian's eyes to water.

On her way back to school, Chen Nian felt an indistinct sense of trepidation. However, at the same time, she felt extremely relaxed.

There was always a solution to one's problems. She was extremely grateful that she had managed to rein herself in at the brink of the precipice – she hadn't resorted to seeking protection from that person who was her total opposite; she didn't step onto a path she knew would definitely leave her with infinite regrets.

Just as these thoughts were running through her head, she saw him.

Ah, the Heavens were being so deliberate.

Bei Ye was seated on a roadside bench, a cigarette in his hand. One of his legs was propped up on the bench, whilst his other leg was stretched outright, appearing to be extraordinarily long.

The white cast on his arm was especially obvious.

There was a group of lax and undisciplined people surrounding him, all of them breathing out cigarette smoke as well. They were joking and ribbing each other. Chen Nian could hear words such as "F***", "Bi***", "Dam***" and other forms of profanities being spewed around.

Bei Ye's head was lowered as he smoked; thus, he hadn't seen Chen Nian. One of his companions had slung his arm over Bei Ye's shoulders, and was talking to him about various rated matters. His companion was in an extremely gleeful mood, and was laughing uncontrollably. As a result, Bei Ye was also swayed from side to side, causing Bei Ye to smile in response.

Raising his head, Bei Ye instantly spotted Chen Nian, who had been passing by. Her white school uniform and her white school shoes stood out in the crowd.

Chen Nian shot him a quick glance, which did not go unnoticed by his companions. His companions challenged, "What are you looking at?"

Chen Nian immediately turned her face away.

Bei Ye lowered his head and tapped his cigarette on the bench, causing the cigarette ash to fall away.

His companion turned back to look at Bei Ye. On discovering that the rest of the group were still chatting, he interjected, "Bei Ge[2], look – the female students from First High School are all so pretty."

Bei Ye didn't respond. However, a yellow-haired person laughed at the companion, "Lai Zi, all females are beautiful in your eyes."

The person called 'Lai Zi' lowered his voice, "Ah, why are the wrists and calves of females all so slender and graceful?" As he spoke, he started to estimate the size of Chen Nian's wrists with his fingers, "Her wrists and calves are only about this thick – a mere twist would cause them to break!"

After looking at Lai Zi's rough estimation, the entire group turned back to look at Chen Nian. Her slender and pale wrists and ankles were glowing under the afternoon sun.

Just then, Bei Ye pressed his cigarette into the bench and put it out. Placing his feet on the floor, he straightened up, "Are we leaving or not?"

"Alright, let's go! Let's go grab some tea first." The entire group of people swarmed into the nearby convenience store.

Bei Ye strolled behind the group in an unhurried pace. He didn't look at Chen Nian as he brushed past her. Neither did she.

Having walked past her, Bei Ye stopped in his tracks. Running his tongue over his teeth, he ultimately turned back to look at her.

"Hey."

Chen Nian turned back to look at him.

"What are you doing running around on the streets? Shouldn't you be in school studying?" Ah, look at the way he chided her – as if he himself possessed the requisite qualification to chide her.

Chen Nian didn't reply. Although the apology in her eyes was evident for only a mere second, the very next moment, his gaze had already drawn a clear boundary between the two of them, "I'm leaving."

The moment he turned his back to her, Bei Ye was overcome with a sense of deflation; the secret happiness that he experienced a few seconds ago on seeing her no longer existed. Between them, there were simply too many insurmountable differences to overcome.

He waved his hand nonchalantly, indicating that she could take her leave.

[1] The pronunciation of "Justice" in Mandarin is Zheng Yi. Thus, Officer Zheng is akin to a symbol of justice to Chen Nian.

[2] Bei Ge: Directly translated to Brother Bei. 'Brother' is a polite term often used to address people whom one respects and looks up to. Thus, Bei Ye is clearly the leader of his cronies, who flock around him and look up to him.

n Chapter 8 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we begin to see that sometimes, doing the right thing really doesn't pay. Chen Nian had previously placed her trust in the official institution, believing that the law and societal order would, at minimum, ensure that she wasn't punished for confessing and doing the right thing – instead, she was rewarded with endless torture, and countless bullying incidents. She did the right thing, but is the law truly capable of protecting her?

Chapter 8.

"The clownfish is able to help the sea anemone remove dead tissues and various other parasites, whilst the clownfish is itself able to remove the parasites and bacteria growing on its very own body through the constant contact with the sea anemone's tentacles."

As Chen Nian entered into the final two months of revision, she commonly encountered questions similar to the ones she had previously done, and could answer such questions without any difficulty. However, the teachers often emphasised that the examination setters enjoyed putting a new spin on old questions, and warned the students against being overconfident in their abilities.

Having completed the exam scripts Li Xiang had previously passed to her, she carefully compared her answers with Xiao Mi's. The two close friends quietly discussed the questions which they had answered wrongly; by the time they completed their analysis of the papers, the school bell had begun to ring, signalling the end of class.

Chen Nian felt satisfied.

Chen Nian slowly stretched out her arms, and pointed to the corridor with her jaw, indicating to Xiao Mi that they ought to head out for a short breather. Standing in the corridor, the two close friends leaned against the railing and looked at the azure blue sky. As the rainy season had arrived, there was torrential rain every single night. However, the days still remained bright and sunny.

Xiao Mi piped up, "Chen Nian, ever since you returned from the Public Safety Beareau, you seem to be more relaxed than before."

Chen Nian replied, "I did......something which I ought......ought to have done earlier......and managed.....to achieve......an acceptable result."

Xiao Mi understood what Chen Nian was referring to, and gave her an encouraging smile in response. However, Xiao Mi's smile faltered after a few minutes. Curious, Chen Nian turned to see what had caught Xiao Mi's attention – Zeng Hao had appeared at the school gates. Her parents had arrived to pick her up from school, and seemed to be persistently nagging at her.

After looking at Zeng Hao for some time, Chen Nian averted her gaze. As her gaze swept across the faraway field, she caught a glimpse of a group of youths walking past the school gates, all of them donning similar white t-shirts. Before she could take a closer look, however, the group of youths had already disappeared. None of them tried to enter the school compound by climbing up the high school gates.

Somehow, Chen Nian managed to learn bits and pieces about the story of that youth. Many years ago, a prostitute had alerted the police, reporting that she had been raped. The male was sentenced to imprisonment, passing away from an illness thereafter. Meanwhile, the prostitute continued on in her line of work, and simply left the child to fend for himself at the welfare centre.

Subsequently, that child managed to successfully grow into a youth. However, despite his complicated background, this youth wasn't even the least bit threatening – in fact, Chen Nian never ever felt a single ounce of fear whenever she faced him.

Chen Nian's train of thought was suddenly interrupted by Xiao Mi. "Chen Nian, sometimes I reflect upon the entire incident, and I wonder – were you truly the only person who saw Hu Xiao Die being bullied by Wei Cai and her group of friends?"

Chen Nian didn't respond, and simply looked at Xiao Mi silently.

Xiao Mi began to explain herself, "I'm not chiding you. If I were in your shoes and had witnessed the bullying, I'd be afraid too. I'd be afraid that Wei Cai would unleash her anger on me if I tattled on her. There's a high chance that I would have kept mum about the bullying incidents, because nobody could have expected Hu Xiao Die to commit suicide. If Xiao Die hadn't died, the entire bullying incident wouldn't even be worth mentioning; however, Xiao Die died, and as a result, the entire bullying incident takes on a more serious tone."

"I've thought.......thought about these matters......too." Chen Nian began to rub her palms together subconsciously. "I've always focused on.....leaving as soon as possible......I wasn't concerned.......about anything else, I didn't.......didn't want any trouble. However, I......I also didn't want to.......to transform into the type of person......person I hated."

Xiao Mi continued, "That's why you made a correct final decision, and spilt the beans."

Chen Nian responded, "But, choosing......choosing the right path......generally isn't accompanied......by any benefits......only problems."

Chen Nian gently lowered her eyelids. She was truly feeling rather lost.

Xiao Mi cocked her head to the side, and let out a long sigh, "I don't understand either."

The two close friends furrowed their brows, remaining silent and contemplative.

"No. Choosing the right path doesn't only entail negative consequences." Xiao Mi suddenly spoke up, "Whenever somebody does the right thing or the wrong thing, his or her actions would definitely influence the people surrounding him or her. It's like the law on energy transfer, there'd always be a chain effect. I hope that the world would always maintain its goodness, and not transform into something which I hate. I believe that every single person on Earth has the power to change the world, so we just need to start by consistently being good people. Even if it's of minimal effect. Chen Nian," Xiao Mi paused, turning to flash a bright smile at her before enthusiastically voicing out, "Let's always be good people, shall we?"

Xiao Mi raised her arm in mid-air. Chen Nian saw the sunlight stream through the gaps in Xiao Mi's fingers, the reddish glow of the sunlight gradually filling her with a huge sense of hope.

In that very moment, Chen Nian felt at peace. For once, the constant urge to leave and escape from this small school compound receded into the background.

On innumerable occasions, youths would stand by the railings and stare into the vast expanse of the sky, their brains frequently filled with endless questions which appeared to be unanswerable no matter how hard they thought about it. Day after day, year after year, these youths would contemplate the puzzling mysteries of society, the complicated interpersonal relationships, the meaning of right and wrong, the meaning of life, and the difference between kindness and evil.

When one is still a student, one would often feel that the passage of time is arduous and slow. Thus, one is often able to expend huge amounts of time to contemplate numerous things. However, as one grows up and gradually gets busier – as doctors, teachers, police officers, and owners of bread shops, one would be constantly preoccupied with making a living, and can no longer expend the same amount of time contemplating the very same issues that bothered them in their youth.

Perhaps, cracking one's head over unsolvable problems is the true meaning of being a student.

Chen Nian turned back, only to see Zeng Hao on her way to class .

Her gaze collided with Zeng Hao's. Without a single expression etched on her face, Chen Nian turned away, and walked into the classroom by herself. Retrieving a book from her desk, she lowered her head and continued her revision.

—

Once again, it was time for Physical Education. Chen Nian was feeling tired and sweaty from having played badminton with Li Xiang. As Li Xiang had huge amounts of energy, he continued playing badminton with his other male friends whilst Chen Nian returned to the classroom to rest.

In order to avoid the blazing sun, Chen Nian ran up to her classroom. As she casually trailed past the trees, numerous shadowy figures who had been waiting beneath the trees caught her attention.

Chen Nian's heart dropped.

Wei Cai's tall and slim figure was especially conspicuous at the head of the pack, the murderous hate in her eyes brutal and undisguised.

Chen Nian was stunned – she had assumed that Wei Cai and her group of friends would be placed under supervision! An overwhelming sense of fear and panic overcame Chen Nian in that very instant, causing Chen Nian to remain frozen on the spot.

"Well, well. Did you enjoy badminton?" Wei Cai sneered.

They began walking towards Chen Nian whilst Chen Nian remained rooted to her original spot. Chen Nian felt like a small rat which had been trapped by a mousetrap: at the brink of death, and yet unable to do anything to turn the situation around.

Chen Nian felt a harsh slap sear across her face. Li Xiang, Hu Xiao Die; Wei Cai now had a new vengeance against her in addition to the old, existing grudges. Her ears rang from the force of the slap.

Wei Cai gestured to her group of friends. Within moments, a group of two to three girls began pulling and tugging at Chen Nian. Despite her attempts to resist Wei Cai and her friends, Chen Nian's efforts proved ineffectual; instead, she was rewarded with a few tight slaps. Just as Chen Nian was about to get dragged off by Wei Cai and her group of friends, an angry voice rang out, "What on earth are you guys doing?!"

Hugging her head tightly, Chen Nian obstinately refused to raise her head.

"Wei Cai! Luo Ting! And the rest of you! Are you all looking to fail graduation?!" The form teacher was enraged beyond words.

"Who allowed you guys to enter the school compound, huh?!" The furious form teacher continued chiding Wei Cai and her friends. However, Wei Cai and her friends paid no heed to the form teacher, none of them bothering to answer his stream of questions. Evidently, they were not in the least bit intimidated by the form teacher. Rolling their eyes at his incessant nagging, Wei Cai and her group of friends gradually began to disperse from the scene.

Just as Wei Cai strolled past Chen Nian, she gave Chen Nian a small, inconspicuous shove . Staring into Chen Nian's eyes, a cold smile formed on Wei Cai's lips, "Just you wait."

Chen Nian's heart contracted sharply.

Having overheard Wei Cai's threat, the form teacher shouted, "You guys are still unrepentant?!"

Wei Cai and her group of friends didn't even bother turning back to acknowledge the form teacher's scolding, and simply strolled off in a rather lackadaisical fashion.

The form teacher was extremely enraged, and called every single parent of Wei Cai and her group of friends. Despite his insistence that the parents take their children in hand, the parents were too preoccupied with their work, and simply brushed him off. As a result, the form teacher's fury only worsened after his calls.

Chen Nian remained rooted at her original spot, her hair and clothes in a terrible mess.

The anger of the form teacher subsided the moment he glanced at Chen Nian. Strolling over, he patted Chen Nian's shoulders and sighed, "Don't be affected by them, and don't get distracted – just persevere a little longer. They will no longer be able to bother you after you complete your examinations."

Once, Chen Nian had pinned all her hopes and dreams on the upcoming examinations; now, the stairway to hope seemed so fragile and distant.

"Teacher......" Chen Nian raised her head and looked him in the eye, her lips trembling slightly, "Could you......send me home......after school?" Her voice was extremely small and shaky, as though it was a string entangled to the point of deformity, "She will......definitely find ways to......execute her......revenge. I know this......for sure."

The following week, Chen Nian didn't dare to journey to and fro from school alone. Instead, the form teacher was responsible for fetching her to and fro from school. During the journey, Chen Nian frequently saw Wei Cai and her group of friends; they were like persistent spirits which refused to leave, and always stared at her from a distance away. Every single time, however, they only appeared for an instant – thus, by the time Chen Nian tried to point them out to the form teacher, they were no longer there.

However, school was where Chen Nian's nightmare truly began.

The remaining group of girls who were good friends with Wei Cai viewed Chen Nian as a thorn in their side, and frequently bullied and tormented Chen Nian – they began to blatantly mimic and mock her stutter in class without a single ounce of fear; they would frequently trip Chen Nian whenever she was distributing worksheets; and they even splashed red ink on her chair, so that Chen Nian's white skirt would be splattered with 'menstrual blood' the moment she sat on her chair. After school, their bullying extended to secretly pinching Chen Nian whenever she walked past them and locking her into various cubicles; on innumerable occasions, they would splash Chen Nian with water 'by accident' in the course of their bantering, and whenever Chen Nian 'blocked their way', they would simply push her out of the way or even slap her directly.

Chen Nian had informed the form teacher about these bullying incidents, but this group of students were no longer amenable to the disciplinary actions of the school.

Li Xiang tried to help her several times. Chen Nian too, attempted to fight back. However, the end result was that the bullying became more severe. And when Xiao Mi attempted to help Chen Nian, she too, nearly became the target of bullying as well.

Many others, however, simply chose to turn a blind eye – like Zeng Hao.

Zeng Hao's parents had instructed her to strictly keep herself out of these troublesome matters; rather than lashing out and making enemies, she ought to be fully focused on her studies instead. That day, when Zeng Hao and Wei Cai were at the Public Safety Bureau, Zeng Hao's parents voluntarily forgave Wei Cai and subsequently forced the two to shake each other's hands as a sign of "reconciliation".

As a result, out of all the potential prey Wei Cai could hunt, only Chen Nian remained.

The school was akin to a community of biological animals. Just as animals instinctively yearn after various benefits and conscientiously avoid all forms of disadvantages, Chen Nian's classmates naturally drifted away from Chen Nian, the current target of bullying and ostracism.

As graduation neared, the form teacher faced an increasing pile of work. As a result, he no longer had the effort and energy to deal with Chen Nian's troubles, and could no longer find the time to send Chen Nian to and fro from school. Additionally, Wei Cai's failure to reappear also helped to soothed his worries.

One day, the form teacher informed Chen Nian that he was no longer able to send her to and fro from school, and instructed her to contact him the moment she encountered any form of trouble as she was on her way to school.

That day, Chen Nian didn't dare to stay in the classroom after school ended. Chen Nian didn't dare to walk out of the school compound either, and simply lingered in the vicinity of the school gates. As her schoolmates streamed past her, she seemed akin to a mortal who was unable to move a single inch after having been placed in a protected zone by the immortals.

As the last student exited the school compound, the light in the guardhouse flashed on. The security guard exited his guardhouse, ready to purchase his dinner. Upon seeing Chen Nian, he asked out of curiousity, "Why aren't you leaving?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

As Chen Nian's legs gradually grew numb, she seated herself on the steps of the school gates. Silence descended upon her. As Chen Nian stared into the darkening sky, she felt as though she was trapped in her very own grave.

She was at the end of her rope.

A fuzzy memory suddenly flashed across her eyes. Hurriedly, she dug out Zheng Yi's namecard from her school bag.

By the time Zheng Yi arrived, the sky had already darkened completely. Soft glows of yellow light radiated weakly from the open windows of every household in the vicinity, as though each and every single household was an old lantern. Chen Nian quietly sat on the steps, her body curled into a small ball.

"I'm sorry I'm so late, work's simply too busy." Zheng Yi huffed and puffed as he ran towards Chen Nian. Carefully, he patted Chen Nian's skinny and frail shoulders, "Let's go.

Chen Nian sat there, unmoving. Her arms were wrapped around her legs, and her head was buried in her lap. It was as though she was a pupa.

She was simply too tired.

The gentle night breeze drifted past Officer Zheng Yi's drenched back, causing a small chill to run up his back. Gradually, Officer Zheng Yi sensed that Chen Nian wasn't behaving normally. He distinctly recalled his promise to her – that as long as she told him the truth, punishment would definitely be meted out to that group of bullies.

However, they weren't punished – not even in the slightest. Ultimately, the person who was dragged to hell was her. Chen Nian.

His inability to keep his promise filled him with a great sense of frustration and disappointment. He made an internal promise to himself – from this point forth, he would use his utmost effort to protect her, and shield her from harm.

Slowly, Officer Zheng squat down till he was at Chen Nian's eye level. However, before he could even open his mouth, Chen Nian had already shook her head. Her gentle and quiet voice rang out in the night, "School, isn't supposed to be like that."

Her single sentence rendered Zheng Yi speechless.

"Will University......be any better?" Chen Nian raised her head, her eyes filled with tears. "It will, won't it?"

She pleaded, "It will definitely be better, right?"

Zheng Yi looked at the small and frail girl seated in front of him, his heart feeling as though it's been stabbed by a knife.

Chen Nian's eyes brimmed with tears, her lips quivering as she confessed, "Officer Zheng, I......I lied. I have......sinned. Sorry.......Hu Xiao Die, that......that day when she......committed suicide, she.......she did say something......to me."

Zheng Yi felt his heart tighten, "What did she say to you?"

"Wei Cai, and her friends, are bullying me, can't all of you see that?"

Can't all of you see that?

Why isn't anyone doing anything?

Why aren't you guys doing anything?!

In Chapter 9 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we see Chen Nian struggling to survive amidst the marginal protection offered to her by the law and Zheng Yi. Although Officer Zheng can protect her for a short period of time, he can't possibly protect her forever – like her form teacher, he too, has various responsibilities and a life to live. When all's said and done, who can really be there for Chen Nian, to protect her and care for her?

Chapter 9.

Zheng Yi felt rather helpless about the entire situation.

Zeng Hao's family had forgiven Wei Cai, and simply viewed it a prank between classmates that unfortunately went overboard; although Hu Xiao Die was indeed on the receiving end of numerous bullying incidents, Hu Xiao Die's death was ultimately caused by suicide. Thus, from a legal point of view, there was no direct connection between her death and Wei Cai's bullying incidents.

With respect to Wei Cai's physical humiliation and beating of Hu Xiao Die, the forensic investigator had already pronounced that the injuries on Hu Xiao Die's body failed to meet the requisite criteria necessary to constitute an 'injury' under the law. Although procedure provides for Wei Cai and her group of friends to be detained for a certain period of time, they had been released on account of their young age.

Although Wei Cai was expelled from school, this was meaningless to Chen Nian.

Since Wei Cai and her group of friends were no longer in school, they transformed into a bunch of wild, rabid wolves on the streets, and had absolutely no restrictions or restraint. They concealed themselves near the roads to and fro from school, and pounced on you the very moment you let down your guard.

There was no war between the wolves and the sheep on the food chain – a war implied that both parties had equal power; instead, the wolves hunted whilst the sheep were devoured.

Zheng Yi began fetching Chen Nian to and fro from school on a daily basis.

He treated her extremely nicely. He would always purchase breakfast and dinner for her, and would occasionally bring her to various restaurants on the pretext that she was too skinny, and required additional nourishment.

Due to the nature of his job, Zheng Yi frequently worked irregular hours. As a result, Chen Nian gradually grew accustomed to sitting on the steps in front of her house whilst waiting for him. On several occasions, Chen Nian would even utilise the surrounding lights to memorise numerous vocabulary.

The warm glow of the early morning sun shone on her head and the back of her neck. Chen Nian saw her own shadow in front of her – the shadows around her head betrayed the tiny, unruly strands of hair that refused to be tamed.

Chen Nian glanced at her watch. She was going to be late once again. Redirecting her attention to the book in front of her, she simply continued with the calm memorization of her vocabulary.

The sound of approaching footsteps rang out, but it wasn't Zheng Yi. Chen Nian held her breath, and gradually rose from her seat. She gingerly placed her right foot on the step before her, and readied herself to run back into the house if the situation called for it.

The face of the youth appeared beyond the surrounding walls. Taking a seemingly unconcerned glance beyond the walls out of habit, Bei Ye's gaze grazed past the metal gates and collided with Chen Nian's. The two of them stared at each other, the surprised and blank expression on their faces coloring the entire incident with a comical tone.

She hadn't seen him for a long time. Bei Ye's hair had grown longer during this period, and the bandage on his arm was now glaringly absent.

He took the initiative to begin the conversation, "What are you doing here?"

Chen Nian retracted her right foot in an inconspicuous manner, and straightened herself before explaining in a small voice, "This is......my home."

Stumped by her reply, Bei Ye only managed to continue the conversation after a minute had passed, "What I meant was, what are you doing here now? Aren't you supposed to be in school?"

Chen Nian remained silent.

"I'm asking you a question." With his hand stuck in his pocket, Bei Ye kicked the metallic gates with his foot, and was about to enter the yard when Chen Nian's voice rang out.

"It's none......of your concern."

Bei Ye froze on the spot, the metallic gates still trembling with the remnant force of his kick. The breeze drifted past the two of them, causing the petals from the roses grown on the surrounding walls to swirl in the air, and ultimately land on his shoulders.

Chen Nian lowered her eyelids, and stuffed the vocabulary book into her bag. Ass she descended from the stairway and walked past Bei Ye in her attempt to get to school, she wondered whether he had grown taller since the last time she saw him.

Bei Ye turned his head and stared at her. After she had walked some distance away, he suddenly raised his foot and began to chase after her.

Chen Nian quickened her pace. The moment she saw Zheng Yi's figure appear beyond the corner, she ran over to him with lightning speed.

Bei Ye, on the other hand, came to a sudden stop. He squinted at the both of them from a distance away. Ah, her cold attitude was now rather self-explanatory.

"Brother Bei –"

"Little Bei –"

His friends, Lai Zi and the yellow-haired Da Kang, caught up with him. Da Kang grabbed him by the shoulders and began chatting to Bei Ye. However, Bei Ye didn't respond to any of Da Kang's chatter. Puzzled at Bei Ye's lack of response, Da Kang followed Bei Ye's gaze, and ultimately saw Chen Nian. After scrutinizing Chen Nian for a period of time, he raised his voice in excitement, "Hey! Isn't this the girl......" Da Kang suddenly recalled something, and pushed Bei Ye in a playful manner, "Do you know her?"

Bei Ye staggered slightly under Da Kang's push. Turning away from Chen Nian, he began walking in the opposite direction. When he saw the white rose petals that had fallen on his shoulders, he brushed them off in an annoyed manner.

"Hey, so tell us – how did you get to know her?" The ever-curious Da Kang grabbed Bei Ye by the shoulders once more, and persisted in his relentless questioning.

"I owe her money." Bei Ye replied in a clipped tone.

"How much do you owe her?"

"So much I can't even count." Furrowing his brows, Bei Ye shrugged off Da Kang's arm.

When Bei Ye caught Lai Zi still staring in the direction Chen Nian had left, his brows furrowed even further. He chided, "What are you looking at?"

Lai Zi unwillingly turned back, only to see the yellow-haired Da Kang making eyes at him, hinting for him to keep his mouth shut. However, Lai Zi simply took Da Kang's hint as an indication that Bei Ye wasn't in the best of moods, and didn't delve further into the Bei Ye's puzzling behaviour. After all, Bei Ye was the coldest to girls amongst their group of friends – perhaps because of his mother, Bei Ye always had an inexplicable hatred for females. Through the years, Lai Zi had already lost count of the number of pretty girls who abandoned their pursuit of Bei Ye after receiving his disgusted gaze.

Chen Nian ran to Zheng Yi, and raised her head to look at him.

After the constant journeying to and fro from school, the two of them had managed to cultivate a certain degree of tacit understanding. Without Chen Nian needing to open her mouth, Zheng Yi could already understand what she wanted to ask. "I have already informed your form teacher in advance that we're going to be late, no worries."

Chen Nian nodded her head, and quickly walked ahead. When she turned round the corner, she turned back and glanced behind her in a seemingly unconcerned fashion; only to find that the alley was now empty. The youth was no longer there.

Zheng Yi passed Chen Nian the breakfast which he had purchased for her. Today, it was a freshly baked waffle. Chen Nian accepted the waffle, and began munching on it as she walked to school.

Zheng Yi was only six years older then Chen Nian. Although a fresh graduate from University had no lack of topics to talk about with a graduating high school student, Chen Nian's was rather silent most of the time, and never took the initiative to converse with him. Additionally, she often replied his queries with monosyllabic words. Zheng Yi guessed that Chen Nian was uncomfortable with conversation due to her stutter. Thus, he never ever forced her to converse with him.

When they reached the main road, Zheng Yi tugged on Chen Nian's arm as a reminder for her to take note of the traffic light, which was presently a bright red colour.

"Chen Nian."

"Yes?"

"What do you want to major in when you enter University?"

Chen Nian swallowed her waffle before answering, "Math......mathematics or....Physics."

Mildly surprised, he lowered his head and smiled at her gently, "Why Physics or Mathematics?"

Chen Nian lowered her head, and answered honestly, "These are......fundamental subjects, and have.......plenty of scholarships; it's.......easier to.......go overseas." After a slight pause, she added comfortingly, "For......further studies."

Zheng Yi's smile froze. Chen Nian's facial expression was extremely calm. Slowly, Chen Nian began to munch on the waffle once more. She had always been like that – she never ever displayed her anger or her happiness publicly. It was as though she was a plastic doll, calm and emotionless.

The traffic light turned green.

Zheng Yi silently grabbed her skinny arm, and led her across the road. Even after having reached the opposite end of the traffic light, Zheng Yi still hadn't loosened his grip on Chen Nian.

Chen Nian gently squirmed out of his grip. Zheng Yi was momentarily stunned. Suddenly, he was struck by the realization that although he saw Chen Nian as a little child, he wasn't a parent figure to her, but was simply a young male in her eyes.

Subconsciously, he turned his head to look at Chen Nian. She was wearing a simple school uniform. Although she was rather skinny, the figure of the youthful girl was fresh and gentle, and had the signature air of vibrancy which youths her age all had.

He retracted his gaze.

After walking for a period of time, Zheng Yi suddenly asked, "Do you blame me?"

Chen Nian remained silent for a few seconds before gently shaking her head.

"Are you disappointed?"

This time, Chen Nian didn't move. Instead, she continued eating her waffle in silence.

The flowers were in full bloom. Chen Nian and Zheng Yi walked beneath the shade of the trees.

"Chen Nian, I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you had to see such ugliness and cruelty at such a young age. I'm sorry that you had to discover at such a young age, that justice doesn't always exist, that justice doesn't always prevail. The world is frequently unfair, and we are often powerless to change the unfair ways of the world. However, I still hope that you will not lose hope in society, and that you will not lose hope in humanity."

Chen Nian continued eating her waffle, choosing not to respond to Zheng Yi.

"Acts that benefit oneself often conflict with acts that benefit others." Zheng Yi continued, "But, if we choose to do the wrong thing, we would gradually lose all hope in society. When I was growing up, people often said that one would slowly lose oneself in one's environment, and that my idealistic thinking would gradually fade with time. At that time, I was terribly unconvinced by their words, and I silently made a pact to myself – that I would not cave in to societal pressure, that I would not transform into a person I dislike."

"Chen Nian, don't be influenced or affected by them. Don't transform into a worse person simply because of them."

Still, Chen Nian gave no response to Zheng Y's words. Having finished the waffle, she threw the plastic wrapper into the rubbish bin. Zheng Yi showed no signs of displeasure or unhappiness. Instead, a gentle smile formed on his lips, and gently patted Chen Nian on the head. Chen Nian raised her head, her gaze slightly forlorn and lost.

Upon reaching the entrance of the school, Zheng Yi asked, "Is there anything else bothering you?"

Chen Nian shook her head.

"Go on then."

As it was class time, the school compound was empty and quiet. Chen Nian turned back, and saw Zheng Yi still standing at the school entrance. Zheng Yi gave Chen Nian a small, short wave before walking off.

After Chen Nian told Zheng Yi about the bullying incidents that happened in school, he took the initiative to look for those girls in private and talked to them. Chen Nian wasn't sure whether the girls truly understood their mistakes, but at the very least, they no longer harassed and tormented her. Now, Chen Nian could simply stay in her quiet corner and focus on her studies.

As she walked past the bulletin board, the notice that was counting down to the final examinations jumped out at her. 45 days left.

After her examinations, she would have plenty of time on her hands; as she no longer had to attend school on a regular basis, she could take up taekwondo lessons. Once she filled in her university application form, she would b free to return to her mum's side – however, before she made her escape, she would buy the nice cup she saw in the gift shop as a present for Zheng Yi, as a reminder to drink more water.

That day, after school had ended, Chen Nian went to the gift shop once again. The gift shop had newly stocked a variety of cups, and was of better quality than the one Chen Nian had originally picked out. Of course, the price was more expensive as well. After some thought, Chen Nian felt that the protection and care which Zheng Yi offered her is not something that could be repaid with a single cup. However, all she could offer him was a cup; she wasn't able to afford anything more expensive than that.

Walking out of the gift shop, Chen Nian was surprised to see that Zheng Yi was already waiting for her at the entrance of the school. Chen Nian hurriedly ran over to his side. His back was facing her, and he gaze was fixed on the horde of students streaming out of the school compound. Chen Nian hesitated for a moment, before finally deciding to poke his back.

Zheng Yi turned back, and broke into a smile the moment he saw Chen Nian.

Chen Nian's brows were furrowed together, and her gaze filled with questions; Zheng Yi understood Chen Nian's confusion, and explained, "I managed to get off work on time today."

The two of them began the journey to Chen Nian's home.

Zheng Yi asked, "Since I finally have some time on hand, what would you like to have for dinner tonight?"

Chen Nian didn't want Zheng Yi to incur additional expenses, and replied, "There's some......noodles at home." After some thought, she added, "Let's eat......noodles to......together."

Chen Nian was, in her own way, trying her best to repay Zheng Yi and invite him over to her house. Momentarily stunned, Zheng Yi was at a loss of words; however, he quickly recovered and rubbed his hair awkwardly whilst shyly smiling at Chen Nian, "That works too."

As they neared Chen Nian's house, Chen Nian pondered over whether she ought to head to the supermarket to purchase some vegetables – after all, they couldn't possibly eat their noodles without any toppings. Just then, Zheng Yi's mobile phone rang. Zheng Yi answered the call. As the conversation progressed, Zheng Yi's brows began furrowing together. Finally, he said, "I'll come over now."

An extremely gruesome case had occurred, and Zheng Yi was required to rush over immediately. Chen Nian said, "Just go ahead, I......I don't have school........tomorrow and the day after tomorrow."

Since Zheng Yi had already left, Chen Nian no longer intended to purchase any vegetables.

When Chen Nian was a mere two streets away from her house, she suddenly saw Wei Cai appear before her. Although Zheng Yi had been sending her to and fro from school the past few days, Chen Nian's wariness had not diminished in the slightest – as such, Chen Nian began sprinting in the opposite direction the very moment she spotted Wei Cai.

The hunt began in the alley.

Bicycles, pedestrians, vehicles, roadside stalls – nobody knew what the young student was running from, what she was hiding from; neither will they give any thought to what the group of students chasing after her were going to inflict upon her. The youthful girls were like a breeze that rushed past them, leaving absolutely no traces behind.

Rushing out of the alley, Chen Nian ran onto the main road, nearly getting knocked over by a car in the process. The driver of the car hurriedly stepped on his brakes, and wound down his window to holler at her, "Are you courting death?!"

Chen Nian looked back. Wei Cai and her group of friends had begun crossing the road – they had absolutely no intention of abandoning the chase.

Chen Nian hurried crawled up, and staggered away. She ran into a small and old condominium, only to find that the backdoor had been locked!

Chen Nian stared at the backdoor, the despair and shock evident in her eyes. Breathing heavily, Chen Nian rushed to the door and started shaking it vigorously. However, the heavy metal door refused to budge.

Innumerable mosquitoes were dancing in the nearby rubbish pile. Behind her, Chen Nian could hear the voices of Wei Cai and her group of friends growing ever closer. Without a second thought, Chen Nian dived into the rubbish bin.

The stench was overwhelmingly powerful. Chen Nian used her hands to cover her mouth and her nose. The heat of the summer caused her entire uniform to be drenched in her sweat.

Just now, Chen Nian had been overly preoccupied with running; thus, the feelings of fear and worry were temporarily forgotten. Now, Chen Nian had to pay the price. Fear was like a bug – it wormed into her every single pore, and gnawed at every single part of her body.

"F***, where's that bi***?!"

"Did she run to the back of the east block?"

"Bi***! F***, she better not give me an opportunity to lay my hands on her!"

A few rats squirmed out of the rubbish pile, and squeaked at Chen Nian. With their small black eyes warily focused on Chen Nian, they carefully inched to her feet. Frightened out of her wits, Chen Nian stared at them with widened eyes. Both her hands were tightly clamped to her mouth, and she still refused to make a single sound.

Her sweat poured down like rain and flowed into her eyes, causing her eyes to sting in pain.

Her sweaty legs were stuck together. The mosquitoes and houseflies were feeding on her pale, skinny legs.

Suddenly, Chen Nian thought of Hu Xiao Die. Like everybody else, she too, had turned a blind eye to the bullying and torture inflicted on Hu Xiao Die. Now, she suffered the same fate as Hu Xiao Die – nobody could 'see' the bullying and torture inflicted on her, and nobody would try to stand up for her.

After a long period of time, when a deathly silence had descended on Chen Nian's surroundings, Chen Nian mustered her remnant energy and crawled out from the rubbish bin. She was totally drenched, as though she had been scooped up from a river.

Chen Nian slowly trudged through the alley, as though she was a soulless zombie. She didn't dare to return home; neither did she dare to walk on the roads which she usually travelled.

The familiar scent of bread caught her attention. She raised her head, and saw the familiar bumpy and rough walls surrounding the steel rolling mill, the rusty emergency stairwell, and the window which that youth had clambered over previously. The setting sun hung low in the sky, partially illuminating the world with its weak rays of sunshine.

The aroma of the freshly baked bread caused her stomach to grumble in hunger. With great effort, she crawled up the bumpy walls, and climbed onto the narrow cement ledge. She tugged at the window, but it was locked.

Exhausted, Chen Nian sat herself down on the narrow cement ledge. Any slight movement from Chen Nian could easily result in her falling from the cement ledge – however, it was of little use to her, as the fall would not result in her death; instead, it would only cause her to break her legs.

The night breeze helped to dry the layer of sweat on Chen Nian's body. As the setting sun shone on her grimy face, Zheng Yi's words suddenly flashed before her, "I hope that you will not lose hope in society, and that you will not lose hope in humanity."

With a blank expression on her face, Chen Nian mechanically opened her mouth. After some time, she managed to squeak out a single word, "Please......"

As the sun continued to set, the sky gradually began to darken. The light bulbs in the numerous shops began to light up one after the other – Kacha, Kacha. The scent of freshly baked bread drifted past Chen Nian, again and again. However, Bei Ye's light never lit up.

Chen Nian was akin to a homeless spirit hovering outside Bei Ye's window.

She carefully pronounced each and every word, and slowly practiced that single sentence, "Please......"

There were innumerable mosquitoes in the summer night, and they stung Chen Nian's arms, legs, neck, and face. However, Chen Nian remained entirely focused on practicing that single sentence, "Please......"

The sky had, by now, darkened entirely, and flashes of lightning streaked across the black night sky. Finally, Chen Nian heard the shutter door clang open with a loud noise. The very next moment, dim light emanated from within.

Raising her head, she quietly stared at the window.

There were numerous sounds originating from the house – Chen Nian could hear the scraping of the chair against the floor and the fan being turned on; she could hear the toilet door being kicked open, the sound of somebody peeing, and the subsequent flush of the toilet bowl...

After what seemed like a century, the sharp and skinny shadow of the youth finally appeared behind the curtains of the window. As the youth opened the curtains, the warm, golden light pierced the darkness of the night and bathed Chen Nian in its yellow glow.

Bei Ye stared at her, astounded and speechless.

Chen Nian didn't stutter – without a single pause in her speech, she pleaded, "Please protect me."

Now that Chen Nian finally asked Bei Ye for his protection, we begin Bei Ye and Chen Nian's journey proper. Chen Nian knows that Bei Ye's protection comes at a price – but she is left with little choice as circumstances have proven, time and again, that no one is able to truly protect her – not the law, not Officer Zheng, not her form teacher, and not herself. Left with little choice, Chen Nian can only pin her hopes on Bei Ye; and yet, she remains wary of the price he requires in exchange for such protection. Luckily for her, Bei Ye proves to be quite the gentleman, choosing to shower her with care and attention instead of forcing her to pay the price.

Chapter 10.

As Chen Nian had curled up for far too long, her entire body was rather numb. Consequently, when Chen Nian attempted to straighten her body, she very nearly fell off the narrow cement ledge. Thankfully, Bei Ye stepped up in the nick of time and managed to catch the skinny and disheveled body in his arms, the nasty smell of dried sweat and decomposed rubbish nearly overpowering his sense of smell.

The raging wind continued its rampage.

Bei Ye dragged Chen Nian in from outside the window, as though he was dragging a heavy gunny sack. Having ensured that Chen Nian was now safe and sound in his house, Bei Ye began to remove the tree leaves and unidentifiable pieces of rubbish from her hair and her clothes. As time passed, Bei Ye's actions gradually became rougher. When he was finally done, he closed the windows, before asking in an icy tone, "Who did it?"

Streaks of lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating their pale, white faces.

"I'm asking you a question!" If Chen Nian was a chair, Bei Ye would have smashed her onto the floor out of anger, "Who f***ing did this?!"

Chen Nian lowered her head. After a long period of time, her low voice rang out, "Your arm, is it better?"

A tiny trace of surprise flickered over Bei Ye's face. The charged fury which Bei Ye had been radiating earlier on simmered down instantaneously. Bei Ye subconsciously shifted his newly recovered arm, and turned his head away from Chen Nian, "It's fine now."

The two youths stood beneath the dim yellow glow of the ceiling lamp and stared at each other silently. Bei Ye felt that Chen Nian was like a patch of cotton wool – no matter how hard he tried, he was simply unable to vent his frustrations on her. Repressing his infuriation, he huffed, "You should bathe."

Chen Nian lowered her head and stared at the ground, clearly at a loss as to what to do.

Bei Ye assumed that she simply had an extremely slow reaction, and began to close the distance between the two of them in an attempt to help her. It was only when he placed his palms on her back that he discovered that her previously sweat drenched uniform was now rather stiff after having been dried by the lengthy exposure to the wind.

His palms remained in contact with her back. Chen Nian didn't shy away from his touch.

"I'll pass you some new clothes." Pulling open the cupboard door, Bei Ye randomly fished out a white t-shirt for Chen Nian and passed it to her. As Chen Nian reached out for the clothes, she discovered that her hands were extremely filthy and grimy, with clumps of black dirt clumped underneath her fingernails. Awkward, she retracted her outstretched hands.

Bei Ye walked into the bathroom and simply hung the clothes on the rack. On turning back, he discovered that Chen Nian had silently followed him into the bathroom. Walking to the shower, he retrieved the showerhead and began scrubbing the greyish white limescale off the showerhead. Lowering his head, he pointed at the tap and explained, "Turn this way for hot water, and the other way for cold water." As he adjusted the water temperature for her, he continued, "The water pressure isn't fully stabilised, so take note that......"

Raising his head, he swallowed the remnant words back into his throat.

Within his line of sight, Chen Nian's bare, dirty feet began to approach him. Her skirt fell onto the floor in one fell swoop, and lay haphazardly around her ankles. Initially, the skirt remained rather stiff. However, as the water gradually washed away the grime and the sweat, the skirt began to soften, and slowly regained its original clean and white appearance.

The heart of the youth felt like the filthy clothes that were gradually being cleansed of their dirt.

Chen Nian began to strip herself of the remaining clothes.

The water dripped onto the ceramic tiles, and meandered around Bei Ye's feet.

Bei Ye breathed in sharply, and raised his eyes to look at her. His gaze was immediately drawn to her soft and tender skin. As his gaze slowly moved up her body, a beautiful painting unfurled in front of him – her dark, black, inky hair fell around the ivory white curves of her body.

At last, he stared into her eyes. She too, returned his gaze, her outwardly calm appearance unable to mask her inner anxiety and wariness.

A sudden jolt of pain caused him to take a sharp step back. The excessively hot water flowing from the showerhead had scalded his hand. He hurriedly adjusted the temperature of the water flowing from the showerhead, his bent posture effectively masking the unnatural stiffness in his pants. Having successfully moderated the temperature of the water, he swiftly shoved the showerhead back onto the ledge and quickly walked away.

Bei Ye walked to his table, subconsciously removing a cigarette from the pack and lighting it up in his daze.

The door to the bathroom wasn't locked. Bei Ye could hear the sound of the water splashing onto the ceramic floor.

Inhaling his cigarette deeply, Bei Ye gradually exhaled a long stream of smoke and turned to look at the bathroom. After some time, Bei Ye walked towards the bathroom, and stood at the boundary separating the bathroom from the rest of his house. The boundary was akin to a vast wall, which Bei Ye ultimately chose not to cross.

Leaning against the wall, Bei Ye continued his smoke whilst listening to the quiet sound of water dripping onto the floor. As time passed, Bei Ye slid onto the floor and sat himself down. Lowering his head, he propped up his left leg and casually placed his left arm on his leg. His other hand slowly reached into his pants, and began its rhythmic movement.

Beads of sweat began to form on his forehead, and Bei Ye's eyebrows were furrowed into a deep knot. At long last, Bei Ye's legs began to tremble involuntarily, and a repressed moan escaped from his throat.

Chen Nian's sensitive ears caught Bei Ye's repressed moan. Standing beneath the shower head, a belated and uncontrollable shiver crawled up her spine.

Having cleansed herself thoroughly, Chen Nian placed the dirty clothes into the washing machine, and began looking for some washing powder. Carefully opening the drawer beneath the basin, she unintentionally discovered a foreign object that wasn't meant for her eyes. Stunned, she hurriedly closed the drawer shut. In the end, Chen Nian managed to succeed in locating the washing powder.

As Chen Nian exited the bathroom, she found herself face-to-face with Bei Ye who had just clambered into the room from the window, his hands clutching a bag of freshly baked bread. Without looking at Chen Nian, Bei Ye tossed the bag of bread onto the table in a seemingly nonchalant fashion.

Chen Nian retrieved the bread and munched on it slowly. Spotting a small packet of milk in the bag, she carefully inserted the straw and took one huge gulp. When Chen Nian was halfway through her meal, she belatedly discovered the small bottle of anti-itch floral water which had been lying in a conspicuous position on the table all this while.

Chen Nian had received numerous mosquito bites, with her legs suffering the most bites.

She opened the bottle of mosquito repellant floral water, and began applying the floral water onto her wounds.

As the fan turned from side to side, the scent of floral water began to fill the entire house.

Throughout this period of time, Bei Ye had simply been seated on the window ledge with his back facing the house. As the wind continued to billow around him, he slowly inhaled his cigarette.

The sharp bolts of lighting were flashing across the sky more frequently than before. Bei Ye could hear the warning bells ringing from a distance away as the railway pedestrian gates began to descend. After a few minutes, the train chugged past, its engines clanking nosily in the night. It was 10:00PM.

Bei Ye turned back to look at Chen Nian. Chen Nian had already crawled onto the bed, her tiny and frail body curled up into a small ball. Her petite body was facing the wall, and she only took up a small corner of the bed.

The breeze rippled across the huge white shirt she was donning – the white t-shirt that was a perfect fit for him was overly huge on her, and could very well serve as a dress for her. The wind lifted the ends of his white shirt, revealing the pale and slim legs beneath the shirt.

Her soft and pale body was like a slab of butter ensconced in his white shirt; a single touch would seemingly cause her to melt.

In the past, every single time the train chugged past in the evening:-

The stranger his mum brought home would always pass him a few dollar bills, and instruct him to head out to play. Mum would also chase him out of the house, closing the shutter doors in one swift motion and casting him out effectively. The shutter doors would still be in the midst of closing when the impatient stranger would already begin to reach his hand into his mum's shirt.

After some time, he returned home, only to find that the shutter doors would still be locked. As such, he would crawl up the walls that surrounded the steel rolling mill and ascended the emergency stairwell. As he stood outside the window, he would always see the stranger violently moving on top of his mum's clean and pale body. The bed would tremble from the force exerted by the two entangled adults; shrieks, pants, vulgarities – innumerable sounds of pain and satisfaction would worm into his ear along with the clanging of the train.

Bei Ye had finished his cigarette. Lowering his head, Bei Ye let the cigarette fall onto the cement ledge, extinguishing itself along the way.

With the roar of the thunder, huge droplets of rain began pouring from the sky. Bei Ye closed the windows and turned off the lights before crawling onto the bed and laying down alongisde Chen Nian.

The bed sank under his weight.

The entire bed was filled with the smell of floral water. The stars twinkled shyly beyond the curtains, casting the room in a misty glow. Silence descended upon the room.

In the darkness, Bei Ye's gentle voice rang out, "How long did you practice that sentence?"

Chen Nian opened her eyes, "The...entire......night."

"Who was that guy you were with the previous time?"

"Po......police officer."

"Ok."

After some time, Bei Ye continued, "I'll send you to school tomorrow morning."

Chen Nian's shook her head, "Tomorrow......and the day after.......tomorrow are......school breaks."

"Oh."

There was nothing left to say. The two youths lay quietly in the darkness, their eyes bright and sparkling in the deep of the night.

Outside, the wind and rain continued howling with rage, as though the storm was determined to wash all the dirt and grime off the face of the earth.

Exhausted, Chen Nian's eyelids gradually began to droop out of fatigue. Just as she was about to fall asleep, Chen Nian felt the bed sink – Bei Ye had turned around, wrapping his arms around her in one swift movement.

At that very instant, all traces of fatigue disappeared, and Chen Nian's hair stood on end. Despite the cooling effect provided by the revolving fan, Chen Nian could still feel the heat radiating from Bei Ye's body.

Chen Nian shut her eyes as tightly as she could, and remained immobile. However, Bei Ye didn't take any further action, seemingly content with hugging her from the back.

It was as though the two youths were quietly probing each other's boundaries; or rather, they were simply locked in a deadlock, each refusing to budge.

After a long period of time, Bei Ye finally loosened his hold on Chen Nian and turned away from her.

Entirely drained of energy, Chen Nian felt her body gradually go limp.

After a few seconds, Chen Nian suddenly felt Bei Ye distribute a portion of the blanket to her.

Sharing a single blanket, the two youths managed to fall into slumber with their backs facing each other. It was a good night's rest.

Despite the relentless storm the night before, the bright and blazing sun quickly made its appearance the very next day.

Such was the temperamental nature of the rainy season.

By the time Chen Nian woke up, it was already 10:00AM in the morning. Bei Ye was nowhere to be seen. A plate of eggs and a cup of milk lay quietly on the table.

Chen Nian crawled up from bed, quietly eating her breakfast whilst flipping through her books. When the clock struck noon, Chen Nian heard footsteps making their way up the staircase outside – Bei Ye was about to return. A mild feeling of anxiety overcame Chen Nian, and she buried her head in her pile of books.

The shutters rose and fell. The youth made his way into the house and headed straight into the kitchen without acknowledging Chen Nian's presence.

Chen Nian stole a couple of glances at him from the corner of her eyes. The faint outline of a shoeprint on the hem of his jeans caught her eye – in that very instant, she understood why Bei Ye had disappeared for the entire morning. A tingling sensation crept up her nose and a lump formed in her throat. She wanted to thank him for all his help, but she simply didn't know where to start.

On the other hand, Bei Ye appeared as though he had nothing to say to her.

The small, narrow house was occupied by two living persons, but the atmosphere in the house was strangely rather dead.

Bei Ye collapsed onto the bed and began flipping through his comics whilst Chen Nian sat at the table, quietly reading her textbooks. Neither of them spoke to each other, the stale silence broken only by the whirring of the rotating fan.

As such, the two youths managed to spend their day together in this peaceful and quiet manner. As the sun began to set in the west, the temperature in the damp and stuffy house gradually began to build.

Bei Ye rose from the bed. Leaving his comics lying no the bed, the entered the washroom, peed, flushed the toilet bowl, and washed his hands.

When the door opened, he suggested, "Let's head out." Chen Nian raised her head to look at him. He continued, "It's too warm in here. I'll bring you out for a walk."

Chen Nian placed her books neatly on the table before following him out.

As the sun gradually began to set in the evening, it was cooler outside compared to the interior of the house. As it was the rainy season, the trees and abandoned factory dormitories seemed to be cleaner than before.

The abandoned factory lay at the outskirts of the town. Thus, aside from the noisy and crowded alley directly outside Bei Ye's window, the surrounding area was entirely filled with wild grass and trees. The untamed wilderness silently lay at the borders of the town, abandoned and forgotten; yet, the wilderness teemed with the vibrancy of life – the tall grass grew to extraordinary heights and flowers bloomed in abundance.

The setting sun hung in the sky, radiant and warm.

Chen Nian silently traced Bei Ye's footsteps. Neither of them spoke to each other. Subsequently, he brought her to a small restaurant for dinner. After dinner, the two youths retraced their footsteps and headed home. As the sun gradually began to set, its dying rays painting the sky a vibrant, blazing red.

Darkness began to creep into the sky, gradually but steadily devouring the remnant reddish hues left by the dying sun.

Chen Nian continued trailing behind Bei Ye, the empty houses and forlorn trees that were lining the roads seeming ever so desolate and frightening.

Still, neither of them spoke.

Chen Nian followed Bei Ye closely, feelings of fear creeping over her. Gradually, she came to a realisation that both of them were the only persons in this godforsaken place.

Suddenly, Bei Ye stopped in front of Chen Nian. Turning back to look at her, he instructed, "Close your eyes."

Chen Nian stared at him timidly, gripping her fists tightly out of anxiety and uncertainty.

He snorted derisively, "I told you to close your eyes."

Left with no choice, Chen Nian shut her eyes as instructed. Due to her fear, her breathing was mildly erratic.

Chen Nian couldn't detect any sign of movement from the surroundings, neither could she hear the sound of his footsteps. After waiting for what seemed to be a century, she finally heard his voice ring out.

"5, 4," The youth began his countdown, "3, 2, 1."

The summer breeze gently caressed the chinese parasol trees.

Chen Nian slowly opened her eyes, only to be greeted with a magical sight. The very moment Chen Nian opened her eyes, the streetlamps lining the street lit up instantaneously, their warm, yellow light steadily and slowly illuminating the entire world. Every tree seemed to be smiling, and every empty house appeared gentle and homely.

Just as Chen Nian was staring at the overwhelming sight in front of her, Bei Ye rushed to her side. Grabbing her hand, Bei Ye began to run along the empty, illuminated street without a moment's hesitation.

"We still have one minute."

Chen Nian didn't know what the one minute related to, but she instinctively placed her trust in Bei Ye and ran with all her might.

"45, 44,"

As Bei Ye counted down in his low and steady voice, Chen Nian pumped all her energy into her skinny, frail legs.

"20, 19,"

They rushed into a small building and sped onto the rooftop. The wild darkness silently stretched out behind them, as though it was a mysterious and unknown abyss. Before them, the entire city was shrouded in darkness, the mist seemingly close to swallowing up the whole city.

Hauling her onto the cement ledge on the edge of the rooftop, the two youths came to a halt. With their hearts hammering in their chests, the two youths shouted aloud in unison, "3, 2, 1!"

The magic began.

The road lamps lining the entire city began to light up one after the other, the soft, yellow glow akin to the gentle moonlight that slowly rippled throughout the entire city.

Ah, the unexpected gentleness and carefulness had slowly crept its way into someone's heart, lighting up the heart with hope.

The beads of sweat that had formed on their foreheads and their chests had been easily dried by the breeze, and their uneven breathing gradually resumed normalcy.

"Let's go."

The youth jumped down from the cement ledge, and used his arms to support Chen Nian down the cement ledge as well. The moment she landed on the ground, he loosened his hold on her, his fingers smoothly sliding from her arm onto her palms before carefully grabbing hold of her skinny, tiny fingers.

The gentle breeze quietly swirled around the two youths, softly caressing their hearts.

My dear youth,

Life is akin to a citrus tree in summer with its green, unripe fruits hanging from its branches,

Whilst some fruits would be undeniably bitter,

Others would be irrefutably sweet.

In Chapter 11 of The Youthful You Who Was So Beautiful, we resume with Bei Ye and Chen Nian's temporary cohabitation, where Bei Ye continues to try to make Chen Nian feel more comfortable around him. Luckily for him, Chen Nian does show signs of warming up to him as she begins to perceive Bei Ye as a genuinely good person – but is that enough to break the barrier between them?

Chapter 11.

The next day. The sun hung in the centre of the sky, its fiery rays blazing down on the city beneath it.

It was afternoon. Bei Ye sat by the side of the table, strumming his guitar and humming various tunes. Conversely, Chen Nian sprawled by the window, peering at the lively alley not far away. As it was still rather early in the afternoon, numerous farmers sat by the roadside, peddling their freshly grown vegetables and fruits.

The melody in the house came to a sudden stop.

Chen Nian didn't move, and remain sprawled by the window. Before long, Bei Ye's shoes appeared in her vision field. Chen Nian raised her head to look at him. Hopping onto the window sill, Bei Ye suggested, "Let's go for a walk."

Chen Nian readied herself to clamber onto the window sill. However, before she could even attempt to do so, Bei Ye had already stooped down and offered his hand to her. Chen Nian paused for a second before placing her tiny hand firmly in his palm.

Easily lifting Chen Nian onto the window sill, Bei Ye mocked her, "You're so skinny you're like a starved monkey."

Chen Nian, "..."

With a fluid jump, Bei Ye successfully landed on the cement ledge. Once again, he turned back and stretched his hand out towards Chen Nian. As the cement ledge was rather narrow, Chen Nian's legs began to tremble at the possibility of falling onto the ground below. Chen Nian lowered her body as slowly as she could before finally managing to grip Bei Ye's outstretched hand. With his help, Chen Nian easily slid onto the narrow cement ledge.

The two youths pressed their bodies to the wall whilst traversing the cement ledge. Before long, they easily reached the emergency stairwell, and managed to climb onto the walls surrounding the abandoned steel mill.

There was a peddler at the bottom of the wall, selling his freshly harvested vegetables. There was a pile of discarded vegetable leafs next to his makeshift store.

Without any hesitation, Bei Ye leapt off the wall. Conversely, Chen Nian was still stuck on the wall. Staring blankly at her surroundings, Chen Nian shifted from one foot to the other, feebly attempting to source for a more stable position on the wall.

Bei Ye stretched his arms out towards Chen Nian, urging her to jump into his arms. Tightly pressing her lips together, Chen Nian shook her head gently, indicating that she did not require Bei Ye's help.

Bei Ye snorted before retracting both his arms and readied himself for a good show. As he stared at Chen Nian's white skirt, he suddenly began to squint, his lips curving into an immensely naughty smile.

Thunderstruck by the realisation of what Bei Ye was smiling at, Chen Nian's face reddened with embarrassment. Without a moment's hesitation, she began to carefully tuck the folds of her skirt around her.

And with that, Bei Ye could no longer admire the view.

Bei Ye threatened, "I'm going to leave you here if you're not going to come down in a few minutes' time." He started to turn his body away from Chen Nian, putting in a bluff for her, "You can just wait for me on top of that wall."

Chen Nian didn't want to wait on the wall, and hurriedly squat down on the wall whilst carefully covering herself with the skirt, "Don't......"

Upon seeing Chen Nian's anxious face, Bei Ye's heart felt greatly comforted. Bei Ye 'unwillingly' stretched his arms out towards her, and coxed her gently, "I'll catch you, so you won't fall."

Chen Nian mustered all her courage and leapt off the wall, successfully crashing into the youth's arms. The moment Chen Nian jumped off the wall, Bei Ye wrapped his strong and steady arms around her, and the two youths tumbled into the pile of discarded vegetable leafs.

In the crowded alley, numerous farmers from the surrounding neighborhoods had set up various makeshift stalls to sell their freshly harvested fruits and vegetables. As Chen Nian and Bei Ye browsed through the produce, they spotted one particular stall selling extremely fresh cucumbers. Bei Ye bought a single cucumber and split it into two halves. He began to munch on one half by himself whilst handing the other half to Chen Nian.

As they continued browsing, a group of small yellow ducklings caught Chen Nian's eyes. They were a furry, tiny bunch, and were all squeezed together in a relatively small box. Noticing that Chen Nian had glanced at the ducklings more frequently than usual, Bei Ye asked, "Do you want one?"

Chen Nian nodded her head gently.

Bei Ye squat down by the box of ducklings, his gaze sweeping over the yellow, furry ducklings. Before long, he grabbed a small duckling by its neck and flipped it over in order to examine its butt. Uncomfortable with its present position, the small duck began kicking wildly in an attempt to protest its unhappiness. Bei Ye returned the small duckling into the box, and grabbed another duck for its examination.

Chen Nian looked at Bei Ye suspiciously, in a state of half-belief. Having selected the second duckling, Bei Ye placed it right beside Chen Nian's feet. After some consideration, he grabbed hold of the first duckling once more and placed it alongside the duckling waddling besides Chen Nian's feet. The two ducklings stared at Chen Nian, confusion evident in their blank stares.

Chen Nian squat down beside the two ducklings, and patted their heads happily.

Bei Ye paid the money over to the stall owner. "Let's go."

The two ducklings invested all their energies into their short tiny legs, waddling shakily behind Chen Nian.

The two youths didn't return home using the way they originally used; instead, they routed round walls of the abandoned steel mill and re-entered the compound from the main gate. The yard was devoid of any signs of life. Chen Nian followed Bei Ye dutifully whilst the two ducks followed her loyally.

Even after reaching home, the two ducklings still traced Chen Nian's footsteps relentlessly – even when Chen Nian went to the toilet, the two ducklings insisted on following her. However, before the two ducklings could even set foot inside the toilet, Bei Ye had already intercepted the two ducklings, grabbing them by their necks and chiding them in annoyance, "Indeed – with a body full of yellow hair, there is little wonder that you have such yellow thoughts[1]."

[1] Yellow thoughts – Chinese slang for nasty, perverted thoughts. Since the two ducklings wanted to follow Chen Nian into the toilet, Bei Ye is chiding them for their "perverted" nature.

Having received a scolding from Bei Ye, the two ducklings turned their attention towards him. As such, they began their journey of following Bei Ye dutifully. Annoyed and impatient, Bei Ye grabbed them by the neck and placed them in an old shoe box.

Just then, the phone rang. Walking to an isolated corner of the house, Bei Ye picked up the phone.

"F***, can't you keep your bloody legs in check?"

"I f***ing told you to stop!!"

"If you do it one more time, I f***ing swear to God......" On hearing the bathroom door slide open, Bei Ye hopped out of the window and headed to the emergency stairwell.

Before long, Bei Ye returned with a dark expression on his face. Turning to Chen Nian, he informed her, "I'm heading out for a short while."

Chen Nian stared at him calmly. It was her signature gaze – clean, clear and distant. Although her gaze betrayed no hint of any emotion, it was like a infant's hand which gripped you tightly, leaving you trapped with nowhere to run.

Bei Ye's face paled slightly. Subconciously lowering his voice, Bei Ye explained, "My friend ran into some trouble outside."

"A childhood buddy." Dissatisfied with his previous explanation, Bei Ye added.

Chen Nian simply continued looking at him, before nodding her head quietly and turning back to the ducklings.

Bei Ye's gaze chased after Chen Nian's figure. After some time, he walked to the table and retrieved a spare key from the drawer. Handing the spare key to Chen Nian, he instructed, "It's for the shutter door."

Chen Nian responded, "I won't.......need it."

Bei Ye patiently explained, "You might want to head out for a short walk."

Chen Nian gently refused, "I don't......want to.......walk."

"..." Bei Ye lapsed into a momentary silence. Ultimately, he still handed the key over to Chen Nian. "Keep this. Remember to be careful when you're pulling the shutters down – don't injure your hands in the process." Chen Nian was about to retrieve the key from Bei Ye when he suddenly retracted his hand. Walking back to the drawer, he began to sift through the contents in the drawer until he found a long, red string. Threading the red string through the key, Bei Ye hung the red string around Chen Nian's neck.

Chen Nian didn't protest, silently assenting to Bei Ye's actions. Lowering her head, Chen Nian peeked at the key before quietly pouring a bowl of water for the two small ducklings.

Bei Ye started towards the shutter door, but returned shortly after having taken a few steps. Trudging over to the couch, he began digging in the crevices of the couch in an attempt to locate the remote control for the television. Upon locating the remote control, he suggested to Chen Nian, "You could choose to watch the television whenever you're bored."

Having jabbed a few buttons on the remote control, Bei Ye discovered that the remote control was out of battery.

Chen Nian raised her head to look at him, and gently pointed towards her pile of books. "I have......my books."

Bei Ye paused momentarily, before responding, "Oh, right. You have books." Lowering his head, he removed the depleted batteries from the remote control.

When he squirrelled out from beneath the shutter door, he turned back to look at Chen Nian one last time – Chen Nian was still squatting by the old shoe box and playing with the tiny yellow ducklings. She didn't bid him goodbye.

Tearing his gaze away from Chen Nian, Bei Ye jogged along the corridor and hurriedly descended the stairwell. For the very first time in his life, Bei Ye experienced a fervent desire to return home even before he had left his house.

It was evening by the time Bei Ye finally settled his friend's messy affairs. Veering his motorcycle into the abandoned steel mill, he managed to spot Chen Nian's pale figure from a distance away. Suddenly, Bei Ye was overcome with the urge to smile – however, he didn't smile. Instead, he simply increased the speed of his motorcycle and sped over to Chen Nian, only braking when he was right in front of Chen Nian.

Chen Nian was sweeping the yard under the shade of the tree. Wherever she went, her broom left a clear and distinct mark on the dust-filled ground. An indescribable emotion surged in Bei Ye's heart – it was as though the broom had engraved the clear and distinct marks on his heart.

Hopping off the motorcycle, Bei Ye asked, "Why do you bother clearing the leaves?"

Chen Nian replied, "After sweeping......the leaves......the yard looks......cleaner."

Trooping up the stairwell, Bei Ye discovered that the stairwell too, had been swept clean. The stacks of rubbish and scrap papers that used to line the corridor had all disappeared, and even the bicycle and junk appliances were neatly stacked together.

Bei Ye remarked, "I didn't hire you to be my cleaning lady."

Chen Nian quietly followed Bei Ye, choosing not to respond to his remark.

Turning to Chen Nian, Bei Ye lowered his voice and inquired in all seriousness, "Are you very bored?"

Chen Nian shook her head, "I was reading.......my books.......I swept......the floor as a......short break."

"Break?" Bei Ye repeated in a mocking tone. Trudging into the house, a pile of neatly stacked books on the table caught his eye. With every breeze that swirled past, the pages of the book would flip to a new page. At that very instant, Bei Ye's heart felt as light as the pages of the book.

Turning towards Chen Nian, he threw a packet of items towards her. Flustered, Chen Nian carefully caught the unknown packet and carefully looked at it. It was a packet of dried plums. Chen Nian noticed that Bei Ye would always bring some snacks back for her every single time he left the house.

Chen Nian placed the packet of dried plums in her school bag.

Fanning himself with his shirt, Bei Ye retrieved a bottle of beer from the fridge and rammed the lid of the bottle against the sides of the table. The bottle cap immediately dislodged itself from the beer bottle, and fell into Bei Ye's palm. Bei Ye threw the bottle cap into the bin and began to down the bottle of beer, his Adam's apple bobbing with every gulp of beer he drank.

Chen Nian's eyes were glued to Bei Ye. On lowering his head, Bei Ye caught Chen Nian staring at him. A glimmer of happiness flickered across his eyes as Chen Nian hurriedly turned her head away.

"What would you like for dinner?"

Chen Nian used her hands to smooth the creases in her skirt. Sitting herself down on a chair, Chen Nian slowly replied his question, "I'm fine......with anything."

Lowering her head, Chen Nian was about to continue reading her books when her textbook was suddenly snatched by Bei Ye. Raising her head in alarm, her gaze locked into his.

"Speak properly." Bei Ye instructed.

Puzzled, Chen Nian continued looking at Bei Ye, the confusion evident in her bright eyes.

Straightening himself up, Bei Ye walked over to the drawer and dug out a book that had been stored at the bottom layer of the drawer. Dusting the thick layer of dust off the cover, Bei Ye opened the book and presented it to Chen Nian, "Read this."

Chen Nian lowered her eyelids, gazing at the book. It was a Primary School textbook.

Bei Ye flipped through the book cursorily before quickly setling on a passage. Using his fingers to point at each and every word, he narrated, "It's snowing." After waiting for a few seconds, he looked at Chen Nian out of the corners of his eyes, "Why are you looking at me? Look at the passage!"

As such, Chen Nian began to read the passage in silence.

Exasperated, Bei Ye instructed, "Aloud."

Chen Nian, "......"

There were numerous illustrations in the Primary School textbook, and every single Chinese word had the corresponding Hanyu Pinyin [2] right beneath the word. It was an extremely childish book.

[2] Hanyu Pinyin – the official phonetic system for transacribing the Mandarin pronunciations of Chinese characters into the Latin alphabet in mainland China and in Singapore.

Bei Ye repeated, "It's snowing."

Chen Nian narrated after him, "It's .......snowing."

"It's snowing." Bei Ye repeated once more, his low voice ringing out loud and clear, the deep and rich tone resembling the melody that originated from the cello.

"......It's snowing."

"A group of artists"

"......A group of artists" Chen Nian subconsciously nodded her head as she spoke, struggling to express the entire sentence without a single pause.

"arrived in,"

"arrived in"

"the snow."

"......the snow."

Bei Ye narrated loudly and clearly, "A group of artists arrived in the snow."

Chen Nian, "......"

"Don't be anxious. Repeat the sentence a few times in your hed before you speak." Bei Ye coached her carefully.

Chen Nian lowered her eyelids. Following his instructions, she first repeated the sentence a couple of times in her heart, before carefully and slowly pronouncing each and every word, "A group of artists arrived in the snow."

Having narrated the sentence fluently, Chen Nian carefully and discreetly raised her eyes to look at Bei Ye; although Bei Ye's head was lowered, he was gazing at her as well, an unmistakeable and small smile forming on the corners of his lips. Lowering his eyes, he continued reading the book.

The glow of the setting sun softly shone on Bei Ye's face, causing Chen Nian's heart to beat erratically.

Bei Ye resumed his narration, "The little chick drew bamboo leaves,"

"The little chick......drew bamboo leaves," Predictably, Chen Nian began to stutter once more. Embarrassed, she lowered her head in shame.

The innermost thoughts of the youthful girl was akin to a deep lake, whilst the voice of the youthful boy was akin to the bubbles that formed on the surface of the lake.

"The little chick drew bamboo leaves," Bei Ye's low and steady voice rang out once more.

Chen Nian collected her thoughts, and focused entirely on the sentence, "The little chick drew bamboo leaves,"

"The little dog drew plum blossoms,"

"The little dog drew plum blossoms,"

"The little duck drew maple leaves, the little pony drew the moon.

They didn't use crayons; they didn't use pens,

Within moments, the picture was formed.

Why didn't the frog participate?

It's because the frog had fallen asleep in its hole......"

The blazing sun splattered reddish, blue and purple hues over the vast sky; somehow, the sun had already begun to set.

The scent of freshly baked bread wafted into their noses.

Everything was bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun.

The next morning, Bei Ye was woken by the unending stream of noises from outside the window. Struggling to open his eyes in the humid and stuffy room, Bei Ye slowly turned to look behind him, only to discover that the other half of the bed was empty.

Bei Ye sat up instantly, and surveyed the room meticulously.

Chen Nian wasn't around.

Jumpning off the bed, he headed over to the shoe box. Although the shoe box remained in place, the two tiny ducklings had disappeared.

As the the shutter doors were locked from within, Bei Ye hopped out of the window ledge, and made his way to the walls surrounding the abandoned steel mill. Standing on those walls, Bei Ye looked at the alley pensively. It was unlikely that Chen Nian left via this route – after all, Chen Nian couldn't even jump off the wall herself the previous day, not to mention she had two tiny ducklings tagging along with her this time round.

The barely audible sound of someone narrating drifted into Bei Ye's ears.

Bei Ye turned back, carefully scaling the stairwell and headed to the rooftop. As he ascended the stairwell, the voice gradually became clearer and louder. The narrator had a steady and extremely gentle voice, "A thirsty crow began to scan its surroundings for water........The crow spotted a bottle which contained some water.......But the bottle was......extremely large," Chen Nian paused, letting the words roll over her tongue before continuing, "but the opening was rather small. Furthermore, there wasn't much water in the bottle......so the crow was unable to consume the water. What should it do?......"

Chen Nian sat on the edge of the roof with the book in hand, her two pale legs swinging freely in the air. Because Chen Nian had lowered her head as she read, a tuft of stray hair fell before her eyes, which she attempted to brush away but to no avail.

Bei Ye trooped over and sat down beside her.

Chen Nian closed the textbook, and placed it by the side.

The two youths sat side by side at the edge of the rooftop; beneath them, innumerable people bustled about, carrying on with their way of life whilst various buildings stretched into the distance. A railway snaked through the town, ultimately disappearing in the horizon.

Chen Nian started, "When I was looking......for books, I saw this."

It was a small, black Bible.

Chen Nian looked at Bei Ye, the question evident in her eyes; Bei Ye ­­put on a mask of cluelessness, asking her directly, "What do you want to ask?"

Left with no choice, Chen Nian had to ask her question aloud, "Have you.......read it?"

"Nope." Bei Ye leaned back, using his arms to prop himself up. Gazing at the sky, he continued, "My mum bought it."

Chen Nian nodded in response.

After a few seconds, Bei Ye let out a short, cold laugh, "She uses it as a prop when she's acting as the nun."

Chen Nian only had a hazy notion of what Bei Ye was talking about, and furrowed her brows as she looked at him. However, Bei Ye did not return her gaze, and simply stared into the distance. The morning breeze gently whipped the stray locks of hair in front of his forehead, easily revealing his full and clean forehead. Staring into Bei Ye's eyes, Chen Nian could tell that Bei Ye wanted to leave – he wanted to escape to somewhere far away.

The sharp whistle of the train pierced the peaceful calm of the morning. Chen Nian glanced at the bright red train, its metal exterior carrying innumerable people on their journeys to faraway lands.

One more month.

After one month, her tiny figure too, would be on the train.

The two youths gazed at the rumbling train.

The smell of freshly baked bread wafted into their noses once again. The two youths were immensely hungry.

All of a sudden, Bei Ye stood up and declared, "Let's run away."

Let's escape!

The two youths quickly reached an agreement, both deciding to run away from home.

The deadline: One entire day.

With the guitar and the two ducklings in hand, the two youths leapt off the wall surrounding the abandoned steel mill, their hearts filled with anxiety and anticipation. They purchased freshly baked bread from the bakery in the alley as rations for their journey; traversing the crowded and noisy marketplace, every single thing appearing especially new and curious to them.

One day – how far would they be able to go?

Their hearts beating in trepidation and excitement, they walked along the alleys till they reached the intersection before the railway station. From this point onwards, they left the city and the town behind them; they walked along the railway track, heading towards the unknown.

When they reached the lake, the two youths sat themselves down by the riverbank, replenishing their energy by devouring their bread. They looked at the various cargo ships and cruises navigating thee waters, streams of white smoke commonly emerging from their respective kitchens.

Having rested themselves sufficiently, the two youths continued their journey.

The two youths crossed the bridge over the river, the wild grass growing in clumps around the railway track.

With one entire day, they felt as though they had travelled to the ends of the world. However, Chen Nian didn't feel tired at all. Not even the slightest bit tired.

School, home, everything seemed to have slipped away quietly. The pressure and influence they exerted on her had gradually diminished till they disappeared entirely.

She was free.

She walked beside Bei Ye as they walked on the railway track, their shoulders touching each other from time to time.

The railyway track beneath their feet began to tremble violently. Bei Ye said, "The train is coming." The two youths hopped off the railway track. As the piercing whistle of the train grew closer, the two youths continued walking on the wilder side of the railway track where clumps of wild grass grew to an astounding height.

On the other side of the track, Chen Nian could see beautiful fields of bright, yellow sunflowers. Admring the beautiful sunflowers, Chen Nian said in a wistful tone, "The sunflower fields are so pretty."

"Well, let's head over there then." As he spoke, Bei Ye had already stepped onto the railway track.

100 metres away, the train cruised towards Bei Ye at high speed. The youth easily navigated the railway track, flitting over to the sunflower fields without much difficulty. The moment he reached the other side, he turned back, waving towards Chen Nian and urging her, "Come on!"

Chen Nian's heart tightened. Leaning forward, she turned her head to look at arriving train, the rapidly approaching train looking like a humongous metallic bug.

70 metres, 50 metres... The shrieking of the whistle and clanking of the train was accentuated by the quietness of the surroundings, nearly deafening Chen Nian in the process. Chen Nian's heart began to beat wildly. She took one step forward. Her body was raring to head to the other side, and her brain was in a frenzied state. Her heart wanted to rush over to the other side!

30 metres, 10 metres.......

Whoosh!......

The bright red monster swallowed the sunflower fields and the youth, the huge train separating the two youths from each other.

Ultiamtely, Chen Nian didn't take that one, final step.

The strong wind whipped Chen Nian to the point where she felt as though it was about to tear her face off and separate her soul from her body. In the wind, her white dress billowed about her like a white flag.

With the departure of the train, the youth reappeared in the sunflower field. He didn't say a single word, and simply stared at Chen Nian quietly.

Her gazed interlocked with his. In the deathly silence, an invisible train lay between the two of them, separating them for eternity.

In the month of May,

when the flowers were in bloom and the breeze was gentle, Chen Nian stood by the railway, the initial rush of excitement from having run away faded away, and a wistful sense of sorrow gradually formed in her heart.