Chapter Eight: So-called Cowardice

“It was that morning—I found out he wasn’t staying at the dorm anymore. As soon as he left the school, I wanted to follow him to see what was going on.”

“I hadn’t gone far before a group of people grabbed him and dragged him into a building in our neighborhood. I sneaked after them. Just as I pressed my ear to the door, I heard them beating him up. I rushed to get help, but the moment I stepped out of the complex, Yu Chen came limping out.”

“He didn’t even look at me. He just pushed his bike and left.”

“That afternoon, his sister called the teacher to ask for leave on his behalf. Only then did I realize that his family had no idea he was hurt, nor did they know what had happened. He told everyone he’d been hit by something that morning.”

“I see. Do you know who those people were who took him?” Gu Yan asked.

“I don’t. I’ve never seen them before, but I’m sure they’re connected with that gang of delinquents.”

“Alright, I understand. Did you see any of them today?”

“No… Wait, actually, I think I caught a glimpse of him when I was taking a cab here, but I’m not sure. It was just a passing glance through the window.”

Hearing this, Gu Yan felt a jolt of anxiety. He jumped to his feet and ran outside, forgetting even the tea he had brought for Yu Sheng.

Li Bingxia watched him dash away. She’d thought about following, but since her task was done, she sat back down.

Once seated, Li Bingxia took a deep breath and pulled out her phone.

I’ve told him everything.

Good. I’ll keep your secret, too.

Reading this message, Li Bingxia finally relaxed and took a long sip of her bubble tea.

On his way over, Gu Yan was filled with unease.

By right, it shouldn’t be happening now, but he was deeply worried that his interference might change the course of Yu Chen’s troubles.

Fortunately, the tea shop wasn’t far from Yu Chen’s school; it only took a few minutes by taxi.

No sooner had he gotten out than he saw Yu Chen wheeling his bike out of the school gate. Gu Yan was about to wave when two strangers suddenly grabbed Yu Chen and steered him towards an old neighborhood nearby.

These must be the two people Li Bingxia mentioned. Gu Yan was about to rush over, but a plan swiftly formed in his mind. He decided against direct action, instead pretending to be a passing student and quietly followed at a distance.

The two men escorted Yu Chen into a narrow alley. Gu Yan tailed them, thinking it would end there, but they led Yu Chen all the way to an unfinished building at the back of the alley.

Damn, Gu Yan thought. Isn’t this a bit much? Aren’t they tired?

He crept closer, just as the sound of clinking bottles reached his ears.

“Hey kid, where is he? Our boss is running out of patience!” one of the men barked.

Yu Chen stayed silent.

“You little punk, you really don’t know what’s good for you! Last time I didn’t break your legs, I must have been too soft!” shouted the other.

“Do as you please,” Yu Chen replied.

“If I don’t beat you to death today, I’m not worthy of my reputation!” With that, he raised a bottle to strike Yu Chen.

In a flash, Gu Yan burst out from behind the wall, phone in one hand and a brick in the other.

“I’ve already called the police, and I’ve recorded everything you just did.”

“Oh, another one wants to die? Just what I needed to stretch my muscles,” sneered the man with the bottle, moving to throw it, but his companion quickly stopped him.

“Things are tight lately—the boss told us to keep a low profile. Don’t make trouble.”

The man with the bottle hesitated, but at the mention of that person, he put it away.

“Spit! Next time, you two are finished!” he spat at them before leaving with his partner.

Once they were gone, Gu Yan dropped the brick and hurried to help Yu Chen up.

“We really are a pair of cowards, aren’t we?” Yu Chen said with a helpless laugh.

“This isn’t cowardice, it’s wit. Besides, I didn’t actually call the police.”

“Aren’t you afraid they’ll come after you next time?”

Gu Yan grinned. “Little brother, let me show you what it means to take care of things without leaving any trace.”

Yu Chen looked a little alarmed. “Come on, bro, that’s not necessary.”

“I’m just speaking metaphorically. We’re good, upstanding young people—how could we ever do anything illegal?”

“What are you going to do, then?” Yu Chen asked.

Gu Yan narrowed his eyes at the question. “That depends on what you tell me, little brother.”

If Gu Yan had ever wanted to maintain his image as the aloof and gentle idol, that pretense was gone now—except, perhaps, in front of Yu Sheng, where he still tried to play it cool.

When they returned to the neighborhood with Yu Chen, they found Yu Sheng waiting at the gate.

“Yu Sheng?”

“Sis?”

Both Gu Yan and Yu Chen spoke at once, like two guilty children caught in the act.

“Your class monitor said you went to pick up Yu Chen,” Yu Sheng said to Gu Yan.

Li Bingxia?

“Oh, right. I had some errands near his school, so I came back with Yu Chen.”

Gu Yan winked at Yu Chen, who caught on immediately.

“That’s right, sis. We just ran into each other by chance.”

Yu Sheng looked at them, baffled. “What’s with you two? I didn’t say there was anything wrong with you being together. I just came to get some tea. Why are you both acting so shifty?”

“Li Bingxia didn’t say anything else to you?” Gu Yan probed.

“No, nothing.”

Gu Yan let out a sigh of relief. It seemed Li Bingxia was true to her word.

“Oh, right—the tea!” Gu Yan slapped his forehead.

He wasn’t in a hurry to tell Yu Sheng everything yet. It wasn’t time; the matter wasn’t resolved.

After dinner at Yu Sheng’s home, Gu Yan wanted Yu Chen to come over and recount what had happened, so he gave him a look.

“Yu Chen, I still don’t get that game you told me about—come downstairs and walk me through it.”

“Sure,” Yu Chen agreed.

“What game?” Yu Sheng inquired.

“It’s a guy thing. Even if I told you, you wouldn’t get it,” Yu Chen replied.

Yu Sheng was left confused. Since when were these two so chummy?

Once at Gu Yan’s place, Gu Yan poured Yu Chen a glass of water and motioned for him to start.

Yu Chen had never imagined that a single act of standing up for someone would have such a profound effect on his life.

That night, after returning to his dorm from evening study, an upperclassman called him out.

“You’re Yu Chen?” asked Shen Henyun.

“Yes.”

Shen Henyun looked him up and down, clicking his tongue in regret.

“What a shame, such a good kid. Why’d you have to mess with that jerk?”

“What?” Yu Chen asked, confused.

Before he could react, Shen Henyun’s crew grabbed him and hauled him away.

“Senior, what do you want? Lights out is soon,” Yu Chen protested.

Shen Henyun ignored him, giving a warning glare to the dorm, “Don’t call anyone. He’ll be back soon.”

Yu Chen was dragged to a small grove on campus, where three people stood waiting. In the center was a man in a suit, smoking, his back to them.

“Here he is. Make it quick—lights out’s coming. I don’t want my old man nagging me if I get caught,” Shen Henyun said.

The man in the suit turned, gave Yu Chen a hard look, and nodded at Shen Henyun.

Having delivered the goods, Shen Henyun left the grove, cigarette dangling from his lips, to rejoin his gang on the sports field.

Shen Henyun was a good student, but his character left much to be desired. He constantly got into trouble with his rowdy friends, giving his father endless headaches.

“You’re Yu Chen, right? Yu Dong’s your father?” the man asked.

“So what if he is?” Surrounded by strangers in the dead of night, Yu Chen grew angrier the more he thought about it.

The man’s eyes flashed with menace. At his signal, the two beside him knocked Yu Chen to the ground and began to beat him.

The attack came so suddenly, Yu Chen didn’t even have time to react before he was pummeled.

“Stop!” the man ordered, and the beating ceased.

Blood trickled from Yu Chen’s split lip, half his face smeared with it.

The man bent down, grabbed Yu Chen by the hair, and yanked his head up from the dirt. “Listen closely. My name is Liu Quan. Tomorrow, same time, bring me your father’s police badge. If you don’t, you’re finished.”

With that, the three of them climbed over the wall at the back of the grove and disappeared.

Yu Chen wiped the blood from his face and staggered out.

Shen Henyun hadn’t left yet. Seeing Yu Chen in such a state, he shook his head with mock sympathy.

“Damn, they really did a number on you. Why’d you have to provoke that idiot?”

“Get lost!” Yu Chen snapped without even looking at him.

One of Shen Henyun’s lackeys, annoyed by his attitude, moved to take a swing, but Shen Henyun held him back.

“Enough. The guy’s already in that shape—give him a break.”

Watching Yu Chen’s retreating figure, Shen Henyun’s lips curled into a smile.

Tough kid. I like that.

Yu Chen couldn’t make sense of what those people wanted, so he kept it to himself.

The next day, he didn’t go to the grove. To his surprise, no one “invited” him.

When nothing happened that night, Yu Chen breathed a sigh of relief, hoping they’d only meant to scare him.

But the third day at noon, as he went out for lunch, the group caught him off guard again.

This time, they had more people. Yu Chen didn’t have a chance to escape.

Once they’d dragged him to a deserted spot, they set upon him again without a word.

“That’s what you get for standing us up last night!” one of them spat.

“Careful, Chen Yan. Don’t kill him—the boss isn’t here yet.”

Chen Yan, the thug, took a drag on his cigarette and kicked Yu Chen again.

“The boss got called away last night, so we were sent instead. And Shen Henyun bailed on us—once I’m done with you, I’ll deal with that guy next!” Chen Yan spat on the ground in disgust.

“The boss is here!”

A crowd clustered around Liu Quan as he approached Yu Chen.

“I hear you didn’t cooperate last time?” Liu Quan said.

Yu Chen glared at him in silence.

“Impressive—just what I’d expect from a cop’s son.”

Liu Quan glanced around, then picked up a beer bottle and smashed it down hard on Yu Chen’s arm.

Yu Chen screamed in pain.

“They say a badge is useless, so I don’t want it anymore. Go tell your father to stay out of the Liu family’s business. Otherwise, it won’t just be your arms and legs—I’ll go after your sister, too,” Liu Quan said, his expression vile.

“Don’t touch my sister!” Yu Chen shouted.

“Make your father behave, and I won’t,” Liu Quan replied.

He was about to say more when his phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, his face changed drastically, and he hurried off with his men.