Wen Zhi
After settling Liang An in, Liang Xiaohui hurriedly returned to Xing'an Town.
As Liang An practiced day after day, he gradually got used to living alone. But every corner of this house had witnessed his growth and happiness. The laughter and joy of the past were gone, leaving only loneliness. His heart felt empty, and a huge desolation came over him with nowhere to hide.
But time doesn't stop for anyone's regrets. In the alternation of dawn and dusk, I bid farewell to the summer of my sixteenth year.
September arrived in the blink of an eye, and Liang An went to Haicheng No. 1 Middle School alone with his admission notice to register.
The morning light bathed the red bricks of this prestigious high school in a warm glow. As a century-old school, being admitted is an honor in itself. Parents led their children to register, their steps light and cheerful, their eyes filled with pride—a silent boast.
Liang An mechanically followed the flow of people and completed the enrollment procedures step by step.
Parents' greetings could be heard from time to time: "From now on, we'll be alumni parents," their tone revealing the tacit understanding and pride of being "parents of a top-tier middle school."
Liang An felt the pervasive joy around him, and his mind was filled with a strange, tearing sensation, as if he were being bathed in sunlight and then washed away by a torrential downpour.
The tradition at Haicheng No.1 Middle School is that after enrollment, all students in the same grade gather in two large classrooms for a week of classes, and then take a placement test to determine their final class.
After a week of classes, Liang An finally received the results of his class assignment and was placed in Class 9 of the first year of high school.
Haicheng No.1 Middle School has set up two elite experimental classes and nine regular classes in each grade, and the classes are assigned according to the results of the placement test.
Liang An was aware of his grades. For a long time after his parents' death, he wanted to break free from the grief of helplessness. He struggled to save himself in countless dark nights and tried to live bravely. However, the healing of trauma takes time. He helplessly discovered that he seemed to be blocking out information from the outside world, and this blocking caused him to have reading difficulties.
Therefore, he found it extremely difficult to complete the test paper during the placement exam. He needed a long time to read the questions, let alone solve them. His final score was as expected.
He just didn't expect to be assigned to Class 9.
Haicheng No. 1 Middle School, a century-old prestigious school, has always owed its development to donations from the community. The school's internal brochure states that, to express respect and gratitude to those who generously support education, a special "Chongshan Class 9" has been established to accommodate the children of distinguished individuals and alumni who have donated to the school to build libraries, establish special scholarships, and contribute to educational development.
The number of students admitted through special channels each year is limited, so Class 9 has gradually developed into a "mixed" class, with both ordinary students and so-called "special groups".
Although the school has repeatedly emphasized that this class is not a symbol of privilege but a vehicle for gratitude, the students still jokingly refer to it as "the 'Golden Ninth Class'" in private.
It's difficult for most people to predict when the gears of fate will turn. Just like Liang An couldn't predict that his parents would leave him when he was sixteen, nor could he predict that he would meet Wen Zhi in Class 9. He couldn't imagine that losing his parents would lead to a low point, and that meeting Wen Zhi would push him into the abyss.
For sixteen-year-old Liang An, falling into a trough was already the worst possible blow. Little did he know that a bottomless abyss could be hidden beneath the surface, demonstrating just how cruel fate can be.
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After the class assignments were finalized, Liang An officially began his life of going back and forth between home and school.
The other classmates quickly became familiar with each other, started putting their arms around each other, and gradually divided into several groups as they tested each other and got along.
A group of self-proclaimed academic geniuses, arrogant and conceited, banded together for mutual support, disdaining to associate with the "sugar baby underachievers" they saw as having gotten in through connections, and dubbed themselves the Academic Genius Group.
Meanwhile, the poor elementary school students who were the big spenders were not to be outdone. They flaunted their wealth all day long, making up for their lack of intelligence with money, and acting arrogantly and recklessly.
Some students survive in the cracks between the two, crawling in the shadows.
Wen Zhi was the leader of the slackers in Class 9, while Liang An was an anomaly among all the students. He was always unconventional and acted extremely out of place, seemingly lost in his own world and oblivious to everything. However, his appearance was striking, and soon after the start of the semester, he became known as the unattainable beauty among his classmates.
Liang An himself did not notice anything unusual. He was still struggling with his own senses, and all signals from the outside world were dull and blurry. So when Wen Zhi and his gang cornered him in an alley near the school, he was puzzled and did not know how he had attracted their attention. He could only frown and look at them in confusion.
"What are you looking at? Don't even think about going back until you give us an explanation. Damn it, take that look at you like you're an idiot away." A tall, thin boy with a tuft of blond hair on his head, who looked like a husky, was the first to jump out.
"Explain what?" Liang An asked slowly, clearly puzzled. He glanced around, finally meeting Wen Zhi's gaze as he stood against the wall behind the group.
Wen Zhi raised an eyebrow and smiled, neither avoiding eye contact with Liang An nor offering a reply.
"You dare to stare at our boss? Don't think you can get away with this just because you're good-looking. You'd better have the guts to send a complaint to the principal's mailbox, or admit it, huh? We've compared the handwriting, and it's definitely yours." The blond-haired guy said, waving his arm and pointing at Liang An.
Liang An's pupils contracted, and before the other person's fingertips could touch his eyelashes, he suddenly flicked his wrist, forcefully swatting the hand away so hard that the other person staggered half a step. He frowned and said impatiently, "Just talk, don't get physical."
"Hey, you dare push me?" The blond-haired guy staggered and bumped into a protruding rock. The pain instantly ignited a fierce glint in his eyes. As he regained his balance, he suddenly rushed towards Liang An, clenching his right fist and slamming it hard towards Liang An's face.
Liang An dodged to the side, and the others, seeing this, began to surround him, pulling and shoving. Someone threw the second punch, and what started as a two-person argument suddenly turned into a chaotic brawl. Liang An was hit several times in the back and shoulder, his jaw clenching in pain.
Not wanting to be passively beaten, he looked through the crowd at Wen Zhi, who was standing to the side looking carefree. He knew that Wen Zhi was the leader of this group. His father had said that when there were many people on the other side, if you couldn't beat them, you should focus on the main person and beat them until they were afraid.
Ignoring the dragging and beating by the others, Liang An pushed through the chaotic crowd, grabbed Wen Zhi by the collar, pulled him down, straddled him, and repeatedly slammed his other fist into Wen Zhi's face with vicious force.
Like a lone wolf, he gripped Wen Zhi's collar tightly with his five fingers. He was oblivious to the fact that his back was being kicked and he was staggering, his arms were being pulled painfully, and even the blood on his forehead was flowing down his brow bone and into his eyes. He just focused his ferocity on his fists and punched the other man hard.
The dull thud of fists landing on flesh, mixed with Wen Zhi's cry of pain, seemed to intimidate the others with this reckless fighting style. They reacted quickly, desperately grabbing Liang An's waist and dragging him backward, attempting to separate Liang An from Wen Zhi.
Liang An's eyes were bloodshot, his teeth were clenched so tightly they were grinding, his fingers were still gripping his collar like iron clamps and he wouldn't let go, and his fists were swinging mechanically.
Finally, the group pushed Liang An away, frantically helped the nearly unconscious Wen Zhi up, and left without paying any attention to Liang An lying on the ground.
Liang An lay sprawled on the ground, feeling as if a long time had passed before he slowly regained some strength, got up slowly, and staggered home.
Liang An had no idea how Wen Zhi's clique handled the aftermath, nor did he know what the whistleblower letter they mentioned was all about. No one spoke to him, and no justice came from above. The matter was like water flowing away without leaving a trace, leaving only bruises all over his body.
From that day on, he and the small group maintained a tacit understanding of keeping to themselves.
Whenever they started causing him trouble, he would stare at Wen Zhi with a sinister look, and then they would shut up.
Liang An gradually developed the habit of finding Wen Zhi first when entering the classroom. Every time the other members of the group saw Liang An's behavior, they felt a chill run down their spines.
It was under these circumstances that Liang An discovered Wen Zhi had disappeared for several days. Those days were peaceful and warm for Liang An and the small group.
Then, Wen Zhi returned. He chased away Liang An's deskmate and began his strange behavior of staring at Liang An during class and following him after class.
Liang An ignored Wen Zhi's behavior and continued to immerse himself in his own world.
"Has our boss been infected by that pervert?" Yellow Hair and the others, in groups of three or five, hid in a corner and watched Liang An and Wen Zhi.
"Did you know that the boss put his favorite limited edition Ladora on the little pervert's desk? Today he even brought the little pervert a popular dessert from McCormick, the kind that requires a three-hour wait."
"No way, the boss got manipulated."
Liang An didn't hear the whispers of Huang Mao and the others; he was frowning and silently refusing Wen Zhi's forced feeding.
He was very confused by Wen Zhi's behavior recently. Was he afraid of being beaten and was trying to please him?
Unable to understand Wen Zhi's motives, Liang An could only sneak off to the top floor of the teaching building for some fresh air during his lunch break.
Wen Zhi received his specially prepared lunch at the school gate. After returning to the classroom, he did not see Liang An. After thinking for a moment, he carried the lunchbox to the top floor.
Today, the wind was strong, and the railings on the rooftop were rattling loudly. The temporary warning sign that was originally placed at the rooftop entrance was blown to a corner by the wind, and it read "Rough railings, no entry".
When Wen Zhi carried the food box to the top floor, he did not see any warning signs.
He placed the food box in a corner near the entrance and then began searching for Liang An. He saw Liang An hiding in a sheltered corner, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed.
He quietly approached, sat down next to Liang An, and gazed at her with fascination, his fingers tracing Liang An's delicate features in the air. Finally, he couldn't help but lower his head and gently place a kiss on Liang An's cheek.
Liang An felt his cheeks become wet, and opened his eyes in shock, only to meet Wen Zhi's infatuated gaze.
"What are you doing?" Liang An asked in a trembling voice, wondering if he had damaged Wen Zhi's brain.
Wen Zhi did not answer. He cornered Liang An against the wall and tried to hug her.
Unable to bear it any longer, Liang An punched Wen Zhi, knocking him down. He then quickly got up and walked to the railing, away from Wen Zhi.
Wen Zhi rubbed his slightly swollen cheeks, looked up at Liang An, and his face actually turned red with embarrassment. He stood up, slowly approached Liang An, and said casually, "Let's date, you and me."
For a moment, Liang An thought he was hallucinating and wondered if his post-traumatic stress disorder had worsened, and why his speech was becoming garbled.
Wen Zhi looked at Liang An, as if he had made up his mind and was about to go all out, and shouted, "I like you!"
Liang An stared at Wen Zhi's handsome face and tall figure, speechless. He truly felt he had damaged Wen Zhi's brain; it was incredibly difficult to imagine how Wen Zhi could have developed such inexplicable love for him after such a bruised and battered confrontation, especially since it was a same-sex love.
Suppressing the sudden surge of annoyance in his heart, Liang An calmly said, "Haicheng No. 1 High School prohibits early romantic relationships, and even more so, homosexuality. If you have psychological problems, you should seek psychological counseling."
Wen Zhi stared at Liang An's constantly opening and closing lips. Unlike the sharp angles of most boys' lips, they had a natural roundness, and their opening and closing had an elegant rhythm that made people want to get closer and kiss them.
That's what he thought, and that's what he did. He quickly moved closer, wrapped one arm around Liang An's waist, pulled him close, and with his other hand, he was about to grab Liang An's neck to make it easier to kiss him.
When Wen Zhi grabbed his waist, Liang An reacted quickly. Just as Wen Zhi's other hand reached for his neck, Liang An punched Wen Zhi hard in the abdomen.
Wen Zhi, in pain, took a step back, but did not let go of Liang An. In the struggle, the two crashed heavily into the railing several times.
Neither of them noticed that after several impacts, the original cracks in the fence continued to widen. Finally, just as Wen Zhi staggered and grabbed Liang An to brace against the fence, the fence ripped open, and Wen Zhi and Liang An fell from the height together.
Liang An lost consciousness with a "bang".
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