It was raining heavily and traffic was rushing.

The silence of the car was broken by a ringing bell, which stopped and rang again. After this continued for several times, the driver glanced at the rearview mirror.

There was only one person sitting in the slightly empty back seat. He was wearing a white shirt and trousers, and was in a casual posture. Veins were visible on his white arms under his shirt sleeves. He looked at the name on the screen of his private cell phone with cold eyes, without any emotion in them.

The man's face already showed signs of aging, but his natural bone structure still allowed him to maintain the good looks of his youth.

Finally, when the ring rang for the fourth time, the call was connected.

The man pressed the speaker and threw his phone on the seat next to him.

Once the call was connected, the violent and vulgar language coming from the other end of the line was extremely penetrating, especially in the quiet carriage.

"Chen Qizhao, you are so brave, you are hiding it really well. You are not afraid of dying young even though you are so sinister..."

The scolding continued, and the voice on the other end of the phone became more impatient, "Oh, that's right, it's not that you have a short life, it's that you have a strong life. Your father died of a serious illness, and your mother followed not long after. Even your eldest brother committed suicide in front of you. All the Chen family members were killed by you. How come you are the only useless person alive?"

The incessant cursing continued, and the person on the other end of the phone was venting his emotions, which was extremely unpleasant to hear.

It happened to be a red light, and the driver looked up at the rearview mirror and saw the man in the back seat with his usual cold face.

The man said, "Uncle Lin, a gentleman doesn't swear."

He smiled and said sincerely, "Is it raining there? Do you have an umbrella?"

The person on the other end of the phone didn't understand what was going on, and continued to curse: "Bring a shit umbrella, Chen Qizhao, are you crazy enough?"

"It's raining here. It's raining heavily."

Chen Qizhao glanced at the heavy rain outside the window and said without any emotion: "It was also raining on the day my eldest brother died."

The person on the other end of the phone was stunned for a moment, and before he could speak, Chen Qizhao continued:

“Rainy days are good days.”

Chen Qizhao seemed to sigh: "What a good life it is to spend the rest of your life in prison."

He suddenly laughed and changed the subject: "I heard that Uncle Lin's birthday is next week. I don't have anything good to give him, so I'll just give him a blessing."

"I wish you a long life and life imprisonment--"

The cursing from the other end of the phone disappeared after a moment. The driver glanced at the rearview mirror and Chen Qizhao hung up the call on his own initiative, as if the cursing from the other party had just happened and had not affected his mood at all.

The car soon turned at an intersection and entered the deserted suburbs.

It was drizzling, and the driver hurried out from the driving seat, opened the door and held an umbrella.

Chen Qizhao handed him a cigarette and said, "Wait for me outside."

The driver took it respectfully and watched the man in front of him walk into the rain with an umbrella, step by step into the tombs in the mountain.

The cemetery was quiet and Chen Qizhao stopped.

"I didn't bring any flowers." Chen Qizhao looked calmly at the three tombstones in front of him. "Lin Shizhong is hopeless. His accounts are very dirty. He will have to spend the rest of his life in prison. It's a pity that I didn't let you see it with your own eyes. Do you think you died too early?"

No one responded, only the whistling sound of the wind.

Chen Qizhao didn't care. He lit a cigarette and stood in front of the monument: "I bought a piece of land and took the initiative to choose it next to yours. I don't know if you will leave a place for me after I go down."

"Forget it, it doesn't matter whether you stay or not, so that you won't be mad at me again."

Chen Qizhao quietly finished smoking a cigarette and tried to see the photo on the tombstone through the rain, until Chen Shiming's face came into his sight. In a trance, he saw a rainy day many years ago through the rain.

My eldest brother Chen Shiming also died on such a rainy day.

The day chosen was a good one, the same day my mother died.

The Chen family went bankrupt, his parents died one after another, and finally the eldest brother committed suicide. After so many years, Chen Qizhao still remembers the time when he stepped into his eldest brother's residence, saw his relatives sleeping peacefully on the sofa, and only heard the sound of raindrops outside the window.

The sound of rain was much quieter at that time, unlike now, when you can't even hear the sound clearly.

What some people said was indeed true. All the members of the Chen family died, and in the end he was the only one left.

"I have sent everyone who should be sent to jail, and I have also repaid the debt of the Chen family." Chen Qizhao smiled, and sat down next to Chen Shiming's tombstone, and said self-deprecatingly: "Even if I have no merit in the past ten years, I have worked hard. It would be best if you could keep a place for me."

There was only howling in the wind and rain, the night enveloped the entire cemetery, and a few lonely lights seemed to light up in the drifting rain.

The rain poured on my face and the coldness gradually eroded my limbs.

Chen Qizhao closed his eyes.

-*

The lights are bright and the partying is going on. The flashing lights have a subtle rhythm and the noisy sounds are coming one after another.

The silence receded like the tide, and the next moment a piercing sound rushed in.

Chen Qizhao was awakened by the sound. In his daze, he was repeatedly enveloped by the cold rain and the heat of alcohol, making his mind a chaos. He seemed to have fallen asleep while sitting in the cemetery... It was raining so hard, could he have given himself a fever?

It’s so noisy, who is talking?

"It's hard to say about college entrance examination choices..."

"I am in charge of volunteers now, but I don't know what I will be in charge of in the future."

"But Xiao Zhao does have to have a sense of crisis. You can't just hand over your family's things to your eldest brother in the future, right?"

...College entrance examination? volunteer?

Chen Qizhao suddenly opened his eyes.

The lights were extremely dazzling, noisy sounds came from all directions, and a huge amount of information was mixed in. The stabbing headache pulled Chen Qizhao back to his confused thoughts. He looked at the unfamiliar scene in front of him and glanced at the people around him with scrutiny. Some of them were familiar, some were unfamiliar, and they looked young and immature.

Where is this?

Isn't he in a suburban cemetery?

bar? Even if you get caught in the rain and have a fever, you won’t be sent to a hospital in this kind of place.

There were five or six boys in the bar booth, clinking glasses and talking. The first person Chen Qizhao noticed was the boy in a white shirt and glasses sitting diagonally opposite him. He looked so bookish and didn't fit in with the scene.

Seeing that Chen Qizhao didn't reply, the boy in white shirt asked, "What do you think, Qizhao? Volunteering is one thing, do you have any other ideas for the future?"

Chen Qizhao said nothing.

What do you think?

"We were talking about volunteering, why did you bring up something else?"

"Brother Qin, aren't you giving Qi Zhao some advice?"

"Yes, since Qi Zhao has told us the story, we can't just sit back and do nothing about it, right?"

"Brother Xingfeng is right. You and your eldest brother don't get along well, and he rarely cares about you. But now he suddenly intervenes before you fill in your application form and advises you to study finance or management. Don't you think it's a bit strange?"

"You are stupid. Chen Shiming is doing very well now. When Qizhao graduates and joins the group, he will still have to work under his nose. He played the role of a good brother in front of others and made a lot of money. But in the end, Qizhao was still suppressed by him."

Noticing the details in other people's words, he pieced together a name that was both strange and familiar.

Qin Xingfeng...Chen Qizhao hasn't heard this name for about eight years.

The last time I heard this name was when Qin Xingfeng’s financial crime was reported in the media. In a sense, Qin Xingfeng in his early years was indeed one of his "good friends", the kind of good friend who betrayed him to death.

College entrance examination application, bar, Qin Xingfeng… That should have happened 17 years ago, when he was 18 years old.

Is he dreaming...?

Chen Qizhao thought he might be confused because of being caught in the rain. He lowered his head and saw all kinds of beer on the booth in front of him. In the chaotic light, he could see the English labels on the glass bottles.

It's beer, not strong.

It was something he could drink at eighteen.

When he was young, he did love to play, and he would call his friends over to spend time drinking and partying. He should be thankful that his youthful indulgence had enabled him to develop a good alcohol tolerance, so that after the Chen family went bankrupt, he had the capital to drink with others.

But later, he couldn't drink anymore.

Because of drinking, he bled and suffered from a lot of illnesses.

The bar booths at the age of 18 still had a certain sense of age, the lighting was busy and dazzling, the privacy between the booths was not strong, and the beer bottles were still in the old packaging. The more carefully he looked at it, the more real these scenes and the surrounding sounds became, like an absurd dream that truly took him back to the absurd time when he was 18 years old.

Chen Qizhao's eyes turned mechanically and finally looked at the glass bottle on the table.

The noises around were so loud, everyone was repeating the same thing over and over again.

Qin Xingfeng looked at Chen Qizhao opposite him, with a hint of impatience in his eyes, but he soon returned to his humble and gentle appearance. He said in a gentle voice: "It's actually not that complicated. University majors can teach you theoretical knowledge, which will be much more convenient after you enter the industry. But Qizhao, if you want to consider your future, you really have to prepare for some things... If you really work under your eldest brother, you may be restricted in many ways."

The people around him also somewhat agreed with Qin Xingfeng's analysis.

"It's not that exaggerated, they are brothers, they can't be that cruel, right?"

"...Even brothers have to settle accounts sometimes."

"Who knows what your eldest brother is thinking? Look how ruthless he is to his business rivals. If he really wants to deal with you, you'd better be on your guard..."

The DJ in the venue changed the song, and the restless music became even more lively.

Qin Xingfeng looked at Chen Qizhao. Chen Qizhao had not spoken since the beginning. He was about to say a few more words when he suddenly saw Chen Qizhao looking at him. There was no emotion in his eyes, and he just raised the wine glass in front of him.

"Are you finished?" Chen Qizhao asked.

Qin Xingfeng was stunned, "What?"

Chen Qizhao didn't say anything, just raised his glass towards him.

Qin Xingfeng felt very confused, but he still picked up the glass to clink with him, "Xiao Zhao, what you just said..."

Snap——

The sudden explosion startled the people around. When they came to their senses, they saw that the glass in Chen Qizhao's hand fell onto the table and shattered all over the floor. There were also a lot of glass fragments falling on him, and beer was flowing down the table.

The surroundings suddenly became quiet, and everyone looked at Chen Qizhao in astonishment, especially Qin Xingfeng.

Qin Xingfeng forgot what to do for a moment and just held the wine glass in a daze.

The waiter next to him hurried over and stopped for a while when he saw this scene.

The glass fell all over the table after it slipped out of his hand, with glass shards all over the floor and a lot of them splashed onto the people nearby.

At this time, the beam of light from above swept across, and a boy wearing a fashionable brand jacket was sitting casually on the sofa. A few blood beads appeared on his fair and thin arms, and soon gathered together, sharp and creepy in such an atmospheric light.

"It's not a fever..." Chen Qizhao murmured in a low voice.

He glanced sideways, his eyes lingering on the blood on his arm for a moment, then quickly fixed his gaze on the boy in white shirt opposite him, and said coldly: "You are not hurt, are you?"

"No...it's okay." Qin Xingfeng was still in shock, and an inexplicable sense of guilt gradually grew on him.

Seeing two waiters coming over, Chen Qizhao looked away, seeming a little regretful.

He looked at the waiter and said, "Hello, please take down the medical gauze and iodine."

"Okay, wait a moment."

The waiter was stunned for a moment, then turned around to get the medicine box.

The others in the booth were about to speak up when Chen Qizhao, who had just finished explaining things to the waiter, suddenly turned his eyes to them and said, "I drank a little too much, and my hand slipped."

After hearing this, several boys breathed a sigh of relief and reacted immediately.

"You get drunk even after drinking beer. Qi Zhao, you can't drink that much."

"This is so scary. Do you want to deal with the glass on your body? And your hands, are they scratched?"

"Are you okay? Are you still dizzy now?"

Chen Qizhao added: "I'm sober now."

The waiter quickly brought the first aid kit and cleaned up the mess. The liveliness of the bar was not disrupted by this little episode. Chen Qizhao treated the wound on his hand expressionlessly. The stinging sensation from the alcohol disinfectant reminded him of the reality of this ridiculous scene.

This was not a dream, he really returned to the age of 18, back to the age when nothing had happened.

His eyes scanned the surroundings and finally stopped at Qin Xingfeng. He said in a natural tone, "Brother Xingfeng, where were you just talking about? I was drunk and confused, so I didn't hear clearly."

Qin Xingfeng was slightly surprised. Although he was still frightened by the incident just now, Chen Qizhao's good attitude after he sobered up made him relax. He continued, "I started my own business during college, so the importance of experience goes without saying. I just suggest that if you want to have a better say, you can try to accumulate capital and experience yourself."

“How does this add up?”

"Brother Xingfeng, can you give me some advice?"

"Entrepreneurship is not theoretical knowledge. If Qizhao is interested, I have a friend who has a research project in artificial intelligence with great prospects. He is looking for investment everywhere." Qin Xingfeng spoke gently and looked at Chen Qizhao with a friendly look: "If you want to try to start your own business, you can consider investing in it yourself. Our company has evaluated this project. It will not make a big profit, nor will it lose money. I wonder if you are interested?"

"It's not bad to invest on your own. Didn't someone invest in a college student project last time and make a lot of money?"

"This is actually a good choice. Qi Zhao will have achieved a lot by then, and he won't be pressured too much if he really wants to join the group."

"Even if I don't get in, more capital means more confidence."

Chen Qizhao looked at the funny and interesting pros and cons analysis in front of him, and felt very calm inside, even recalling the long-lost past.

When he was young, he was not on good terms with his elder brother Chen Shiming. This was something that everyone in the circle knew about. Some people even used this matter as a topic of conversation behind his back, or to sow discord for personal gain.

Qin Xingfeng is one of them.

This man appeared young and promising to outsiders. He left his family to start his own business successfully in his twenties. In addition, he had a gentle and good temper, and was very popular in their circle. When Chen Qizhao and his elder brother Chen Shiming were unhappy about volunteering, Qin Xingfeng used a few words to turn an ordinary family matter into something that Chen Shiming did intentionally, and fanned the flames by saying that those who joined the group would be suppressed by Chen Shiming.

Qin Xingfeng is also very smart. He said it was a suggestion in a high-sounding manner, but in fact he was abusing his power for personal gain. When I was young, I had no theoretical knowledge at all, so how could I understand so many details of starting a business? I was soon deceived by Qin Xingfeng’s sweet words. It was said to be a cooperation, but in fact I was just giving money to Qin Xingfeng. Giving money would have been fine, but Qin Xingfeng was also allowed to rely on the Chen Group for this matter, and I don't know how many conveniences he got in private.

When Chen's capital chain was in crisis, he thought of this project and realized that his cooperation with Qin Xingfeng was a joke. The money invested was wasted and the project that was hyped up was just an empty shell.

Chen Qizhao looked at the others and asked, "Do you have cigarettes?"

The person next to him lit a cigarette with ease.

But Chen Qizhao didn't seem to have any intention of smoking.

Qin Xingfeng looked at him and felt a sense of pressure for unknown reasons.

"Okay, Brother Xingfeng, if you have time, bring the project to me." Chen Qizhao held a cigarette in his hand and continued, "It's just that I don't understand it. I still need your help with some things."

When Qin Xingfeng saw his behavior, he felt relieved, but it was just a superficial appearance.

He acts like an old hand, but actually he can't even hold a cigarette properly. He knew Chen Qizhao. The Chen family had a good upbringing. Seeing how much Chen Qizhao drank tonight, he knew that this man had hardly touched alcohol before, let alone smoking.

"Then I'll tell you in detail later." Qin Xingfeng talked about some business matters. After chatting for ten minutes, he looked at the time, stood up and said, "I have something to do in the company. You should drink less and remember to call a designated driver on the way back."

"Don't worry, Brother Xingfeng."

"You go and get busy first."

Qin Xingfeng left quickly.

"Brother Xingfeng is a good person."

"Yeah, last time I messed up my investment and almost got into trouble, luckily I asked him more questions."

"Qizhao, we all know the character of Brother Xingfeng. He is trustworthy."

"Really?" Chen Qizhao raised his eyelids slightly, "He's quite handsome, with a nice face."

On the surface, the character is well done, he speaks sweet words and has good acting skills, but it's a pity to invest in it.

The others looked at Chen Qizhao, seemingly not understanding what he said. One of them laughed and said, "Brother Xingfeng is indeed good-looking, a bit like the handsome young man in a TV drama."

Chen Qizhao ignored them. His hand skillfully tapped the ashtray, letting the spark burn backwards little by little.

"Chen Qizhao."

Suddenly, a familiar and young voice sounded behind Chen Qizhao.

Chen Qizhao was stunned for a moment, then turned back suddenly——

In the aisle behind the booth, Chen Shiming, dressed in a suit and tie, stood there, his stern face covered with a layer of frost.

Their eyes met, and after a while, Chen Shiming's gaze moved from his face to his hand holding the cigarette.