At the farmers' market in Zhonghai's West District, a bustling crowd of pedestrians and vehicles drifted carefree through the evening. Vegetable leaves and sewage littered the ground, and shop signs of various colors, their paint faded, were punctuated by the occasional monotonous flicker of neon lights. Workers returning home, children returning from school, elderly people shopping, and a variety of dusty passersby made the gray sky seem even gloomier.
Perhaps in such an international metropolis, such areas are like the stains people most despise, stains they wish had never existed.
Beside a low wall near an intersection, a man leisurely engaged in what others might consider mundane activities.
He was a young man selling lamb skewers, wearing a greasy white vest, dark brown shorts, and a pair of dark blue plastic slippers. His hair was a little disheveled, but his handsome, slightly mature face still had regular features. If you looked closely, you could even detect a hint of masculinity. Unfortunately, despite his resemblance, the girls passing by wouldn't even glance at him, for he was just a kebab vendor.
The young man kept a few freshly grilled skewers. The hot weather made grilling easy, but selling them was more difficult. While two skewers for fifty cents was a good deal, he only made a dozen yuan all day, barely enough for two meals.
However, the young man's face showed no sign of frustration. Instead, he exuded a look of contentment and ease. He slumped down on a small bench, watching the busy, anxious traffic flow before him. The scene seemed the most beautiful.
"Lao Li, it's time to pay the money you promised us two days ago!" A thick-necked, duck-like voice suddenly emerged nearby. Three young men, seemingly under twenty, approached, dressed in tattered clothes. The leader had his hair standing up, a silver metal chain dangling from his neck, and his jeans were ripped. His face was a little thin, and a cigarette dangled from his lips.
Lao Li, a vendor selling fried snacks, sat next to the young man. Likewise, with little business in the scorching heat, he sat there, worried.
"This..." Old Li said bitterly. "Honey, please bear with me for a moment. It's so hot, how can I pay my bills without any business..."
"Old Li, don't be like that! If it weren't for our Brother Feng protecting you, your stall would have closed long ago," said a younger brother who was accompanying him, both threatening and flattering. The thug known as Brother Feng seemed quite pleased with himself. He grinned, patted the fawning little man, and then shouted at Old Li, "Today's protection fee, whether you give it or not, I'm going to take it. Otherwise, I'll ruin your business!" With that, he picked up a string of sausages, took two big bites, and threw the remaining half to the ground.
Old Li was at a loss, clutching the small wad of bills in his pocket, determined to spend it lavishly. It was money for his wife's medical treatment and medicine. How could he bear to "give" it to these scoundrels like this?! "I'll pay for him." A young man selling lamb skewers suddenly approached and pulled a few dry bills from his trouser pocket. The total couldn't have been more than a hundred yuan. He handed them over, saying calmly, "That's all. Old Li is old and desperately needs money. You should do something good, too."
The young thug narrowed his eyes and chuckled. He took the bills and handed them to his younger brother behind him. "Yang Chen, you're the only one pretending to be a good guy. You didn't even pay your own protection fee!"
Yang Chen frowned, feeling sorry for these little guys. Why wouldn't they study hard at such a young age and become thugs? But he wasn't their father, so he couldn't say anything, and he didn't want to cause any trouble. He said calmly, "Tomorrow, I'll pay you tomorrow."
"Okay, I'm not being unreasonable." "Let's work together. I'll protect your business, and you pay me. It's only natural... I'll come back tomorrow to pick it up." With that, the young thug and his two followers swaggered off to harass vendors elsewhere. Old Li's eyes were red as he looked at Yang Chen with a hint of bitterness. "Xiao Yang, why are you doing this? You're always paying my lackeys, and I can't bear it..."
"Old Li, don't say that. When I first came here, I knew nobody. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have a friend to confide in. You're my benefactor, and this is my way of repaying you."
"You, young man... what can I say about you..." Old Li seemed to know he couldn't get rid of Yang Chen, and could only sigh silently.
Yang Chen smiled faintly. His smile was light, but sincere, unaffected by the extortion. "By the way, how is your wife's condition?"
Old Li's eyes were filled with gratitude. "Thank you for lending me the money for her surgery a while ago. Now she just needs more tests and some medication."
"Oh, that's great. I wish her a speedy recovery." Yang Chen nodded in satisfaction. Old Li smiled wryly and said, "Xiao Yang, I'll definitely pay you back the money you lent me. If I can't repay you before I die, I'll have my daughter pay you back... Alas, if it weren't for me, you could have opened a nice shop with that 100,000 yuan. Why do you have to come here and sell lamb skewers, enduring the bullying of those little hooligans?"
Yang Chen curled his lips. "I actually quite like this kind of life. Selling lamb skewers isn't bad either. It's simple, and I can eat several meals a day with it." "I'm talking to you..." Old Li said somewhat glumly. "Xiao Yang, you're only twenty-three or twenty-four. Most young people your age are either in college or working their way up. You don't even have a girlfriend right now. Are you planning on selling kebabs forever? You're not anxious, but I get anxious just looking at you."
Seeing Old Li's genuine concern for him, Yang Chen couldn't help but feel a hint of bitterness at the corners of his mouth. It wasn't that he wasn't anxious, but that he hadn't even thought about it.
After nightfall, Yang Chen packed up his stall and pushed his wheelbarrow back to his shabby rented apartment.
It was a small building, who knew how many years old. The monthly rent was only a hundred yuan. It was incredibly cheap, as no one lived there. Unlike the others, Yang Chen wasn't worried about the house falling apart, so he moved in when he saw the bargain.
Yang Chen's room was simply furnished, mostly secondhand finds: a bed, a cabinet, a chair, and a TV that only played closed-circuit television.
After shoving the items from the stall into his small room, Yang Chen glanced at the calendar on the wall, calculated the days, and suddenly remembered something, so he ran to the bathroom.
In less than five minutes, after a cold shower, Yang Chen emerged naked from the bathroom. He His skin was a healthy tan, his features well-proportioned, and his muscles were not prominent, yet upon closer inspection, a hidden masculine beauty could be sensed. Walking to the large wooden cabinet beside the bed, Yang Chen scratched his damp hair with a distressed look. He surveyed the mess of clothes inside. After selecting a few, he finally put on a beige shirt and light-colored linen trousers. He still wore his plastic slippers.
After leaving the room, Yang Chen headed straight for the West District's busiest commercial street. It was also the only street worth mentioning in the dilapidated West District, known as "Bar Street."
The vibrant nightlife was already in the air. Colorful skirts and a variety of perfumes filled the air. The moment he entered Bar Street, the urban atmosphere enveloped him.
Yang Chen didn't, like the other young men, drool over the fair thighs of the women on the street, either overtly or covertly. Instead, he walked straight to the door of a bar called "ROSE."
The bar's neon sign wasn't particularly dazzling. For a medium-sized bar, it exuded a somewhat ambiguous atmosphere. The billboard was dotted with colorful rose-shaped lights. After entering the bar, Yang Chen walked along the edge with familiarity to the bar counter and sat down in the corner.
"Brother Chen, you're here." The young bartender in a black suit and vest saw Yang Chen, smiled warmly, and handed him a glass of water. "Sister Rose has been waiting for you for a long time."
Yang Chen smiled at him, took the glass, and took a sip of the water. "Sister Rose, are you mad? I got home a little late, so I'm late." "Not angry, not angry." The pimples on Xiao Zhao's round face seemed to chuckle. He whispered to Yang Chen, "Brother Chen, teach me when you have time. How did you seduce our Sister Qiang? You know, in Zhonghai City, the number of men interested in our boss's wife stretches from the West District to the river mouth. In all these years, I've never seen our boss's wife so attentive to a man. And now, just asking if you're here, she's already asked me no less than five times today..."
"Don't talk nonsense. There's not as much between me and Sister Rose as you think..." Yang Chen replied helplessly. Xiao Zhao's face grimaced. "Even if I killed you, I wouldn't believe it!" Then he sighed. "Ah... Brother Chen, honestly, you're truly cold-blooded. To woo a beauty like our boss's wife, any man would want to be her every day. Only you, on such a rare occasion, would keep her waiting. Otherwise, why do they say that what's out of reach is best?" This also applies to women…"
Just as Xiao Zhao was boasting like a playboy, a charming yet commanding voice boomed from behind him, "Xiao Zhao, how many more deductions can I make from your paycheck?"
Xiao Zhao felt as if an electric current had passed through him. He froze. Coming to his senses, he quickly ducked aside and continued to pretend to mix drinks as if nothing had happened. But the cold sweat on his forehead betrayed his fear. She was wearing a gorgeous, modern cheongsam, with a thigh-high slit, hinting at both seduction and sensuality. With ample breasts and a slender waist, a face as radiant as finely carved porcelain, and shoulder-length hair adorned with strands of lavender, the young woman walked gracefully before Yang Chen like a figure in a painting.
Yang Chen smiled, meeting the woman's gaze without embarrassment, and said sincerely, "Sister Rose, you are so beautiful. Happy birthday to you."