【4】How Did It Feel When You Kissed Brother That Day?
Wen Ran played until 4:00 AM and reached Grandmaster. Jiang Yan had already paid the internet fee until 9:00 AM. Wen Ran turned off the computer and curled up in the chair, planning to sleep for a while.
He was thinner than his peers to begin with, his body much more petite, and he was only 172cm tall. The large gaming chair could accommodate him completely.
“Little brother, why are you sleeping here?” The network administrator saw Wen Ran lying on the table when he came to deliver cola to the next table. “We have private rooms upstairs, fifty yuan a night. Want me to open one for you?”
How could Wen Ran afford that now? He waved his hand to decline the admin. “No need.”
Sleeping on the table was actually very uncomfortable, not to mention people nearby were smoking and playing games. The clack-clack of keyboards mixed with a few shouted dialect curses he couldn’t understand. Wen Ran drifted into a hazy sleep.
He had a dream.
In a dark little room, he was locked inside without a trace of light. A man was whipping him with a stick.
“Little mongrel! Let’s see if you dare to run after I beat you straight!”
“Send him over tomorrow!”
“Mom, I won’t go, save me!” Little Wen Ran was beaten so badly he couldn’t lift his arms. He struggled to grab his mother’s pant leg. “Mom, I want to go to school.”
But what greeted him was the man’s brutal kick. “What’s the use of studying? I’ve raised you, this money-losing waste, for so many years. I’ve already done more than enough!”
“If you dare cause me trouble again, I’ll beat you to death!”
After speaking, he glared at Wen Ran’s mother. “If you dare help him, I’ll beat you too!”
Finally, he stomped ruthlessly on Wen Ran’s face.
Wen Ran woke up with a start.
He looked around. The big brother next to him was surrounded by cigarette butts, a half-burnt cigarette in his mouth.
I escaped long ago…
So why… do I still have those dreams?
Wen Ran reached out and patted his own head.
He didn’t have a penny on him right now. The lease on the place he rented before had just expired, and coupled with Li Hao’s scene, Wen Ran didn’t want him to know his address again, so he simply messaged the landlord that he wouldn’t renew.
The urgent task now was to find a job first, then he could rent a room.
Wen Ran didn’t dare apply to the large stores that looked like they paid well.
He eventually found a construction site.
Wen Ran pulled his clothes tighter. “Hello, I saw that wages are paid daily here. Can I work with you?”
The foreman sized up Wen Ran and waved his hand in disgust. “Shoo, shoo. You’re not even an adult, right? We don’t hire child labor!”
“And look at your thin arms and legs. Can you even do the work?”
“I’m an adult,” Wen Ran lowered his eyes, looking at the foreman innocently and aggrievedly. “Uncle, to tell you the truth, I just arrived here, and my money and ID were stolen.”
“Now I can’t even go home.”
Wen Ran was good-looking to begin with, and that face was youthful and tender, looking very young. It made it easy for people to feel pity for him.
Seeing he was truly pitiful, the foreman agreed. “Alright, you can follow along here for now. Since you’re in a tough spot, go organize the warehouse. The things there aren’t heavy. 180 a day, how about it?”
“Thank you, Uncle.”
The construction site provided meals, and there was a small cot in the warehouse. When Wen Ran got his first day’s wages, he immediately found that ‘Lao Liu’ Jiang Yan on WeChat and transferred ten yuan to him.
Jiang Yan accepted it without hesitation: [Little friend actually keeps his word. Not bad, not bad.]
Wen Ran: [What did you expect? Grandmaster rank achieved, money paid. We’re even now, right?]
Jiang Yan had only wanted to tease the kid at the time. Later, he logged in to check and saw that he had indeed reached Grandmaster. When he went back to the internet cafe, he was told Wen Ran had long since left.
He hadn’t thought of initiating contact, assuming their fate ended there. But unexpectedly, the other party actually remembered those ten yuan.
Tsk, somehow a bit cute.
Jiang Yan: [Of course.]
Wen Ran let out a breath, thinking he could finally delete this ‘Lao Liu’. Just as his finger slid to the delete interface, the chat box popped up again.
Jiang Yan: [But I have one more question to ask you.]
Wen Ran: [?]
Jiang Yan: [How did it feel when you kissed Brother that day?]
Wen Ran sprayed out a mouthful of water.
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