Chapter 15: Physiognomy

7TH FEB 2022~ VERALUCTL

In fact, An Jie realized that he had mistakenly underestimated the turkey sister’s attributes and attack power. As the conscienceless Mo Cong said though, at least his sister was no longer skipping school.

In the morning:

“Wow, An Jie-gége, what a coincidence- you’re going to school with me! Even Xiao Yu didn’t want to wait for me, you know.” Her face, which was shockingly similar to Mo Yu’s, was quite pretty after removing all of her makeup, but her overall style was still terrifying, almost twisting the waist of an old man taking a walk downstairs1.

At lunch:

“Aw, is An Jie-gége not going home? Wow, how can you eat the junk food from the school canteen! I prepared some lunch, hehe, do you want to try? Come on, just a bite, just a bite!” An Jie took a silent look at her outfit which was even more colorful than the food in the bowl and felt the last of his appetite vanish.

During breaktime:

“Fuck, you guys come here immediately after lessons? Have you never met a man before?” It turned out that the legendary turkey sister was in fact capable of human speech. Before An Jie could finish his lamentation, she turned around and immediately went from a fierce delinquent to a shy little loli. “Aw, An Jie-gége, how was your first day in class…”

Miss, your ancestors must have come from Sichuan right? Otherwise how could you change faces so easily?2

At night:

“An Jie-gége, wait for me, hehe. You seniors have such a hard time, being let out of school so late. Are you tired? Do you want me to make you some loving desserts, hehe? An Jie-gége, you’re so thin it hurts me just to look at you, you know…” An Jie felt like he had never been looked back on so much, especially with those expressions, like he had just escaped from the zoo.

Finally, they made it home. Mo Cong had no afternoon classes and leaned against the door when he heard the commotion, watching as his little turkey fired a ‘wow’ here and a ‘gége’ there, laughing uncontrollably. An Jie felt that even if this kid Mo Cong helped him move houses another two times, he would have already returned the favor.

Apart from the frequent harassment from the turkey sister though, An Jie’s life was very simple and unvaried. This kind of life used to be something unimaginable; many years earlier, never would he have thought that he would settle down in his heart and follow an early-morning, late-night sort of routine.

It was a strange feeling to be in a classroom. He had to temporarily sit in the back row as a transfer, and from that perspective, he could see the entire class.

There were girls with glasses who studied ceaselessly aside from going to the bathroom after classes; boys who stared with blank faces at their test papers filled with crosses; girls who secretly felt that their faces were too big and talked to people with their heads slightly lowered; boys who stank of sweat all the time and couldn’t stop glancing at the basketball courts even during class; girls who hid nail polish and cheap lipsticks in their desks; boys who kept discreetly staring at the back of the prettiest girl…

In a moment of inattention, he was caught losing focus by the female teacher at the lectern spitting out formulas. She gave him a fierce glare, pondering indignantly if the countdown to the date of the entrance exam at the back of the classroom wasn’t enough to arouse this child’s sense of urgency. Such an important time period and he was still not paying attention in class, eyes drifting across the classroom with a foolish grin on his face.

An Jie hurriedly gave her a smile, sat up, and started copying down notes.

To be fair, things such as understanding really did increase with age. These high school topics weren’t too difficult for An Jie, but what made him slightly depressed was all this stuff related to the entrance exam. Given that they really had little to do with his life over the years, he had long since returned his knowledge of them to his teachers after graduation, and he now basically had to relearn every subject apart from English.

Every day started to become more difficult in the afternoons. These suffering children who supposedly woke up before the roosters and went to sleep after dogs began to become overwhelmed. The entire classroom was filled with a heavy scent of coffee. Some pinched themselves in an effort to keep going; some were on the verge of sleep with heavy eyelids; some walked a few rounds like Tuzki3 before collapsing; some stared at the teacher with panda eyes, soulless and numb. And so, the figures of those who kept writing appeared even more remarkable.

Such an atmosphere of national lethargy really was infectious. If it was at the same time as English classes, An Jie would also follow the local tradition and rest for a while on his table. Even though he was unable to fall asleep, it let him relax at the least.

A month passed in a trance, as long as a lifetime, until he could only remember his blind adventures in his dreams, along with… those shell-shocked days of his youth.

The days of frivolous youth were long past. It was said that every misdeed you did would be returned to you. 

He never expected that he would be able to rectify the wrong turn he took back then, to be able to sit in between these normal children, peacefully, calmly, passing the days.

This life, which could almost be called comfortable, sometimes left him in a brief daze, unsure of where he was.

The children sat in the classroom, the rustle of their pen tips against their test papers a testament to their youth. They had a future, had ambitions, had so much they would like to do.

But An Jie had no goals of his own. He wanted to get into Mo Cong’s university and silently protect his three children for a few years; it would be best to wait until ten years later, when Mo Cong had reached the thirties and had truly become an adult, had formed his own family and stabilized his career, before he left them. 

Truly staying true to the deceased.

Where would he go when he left? He hadn’t thought that far ahead yet. Maybe… he would continue roaming.

For the disheartened, time flashed by like a colt in the distance. What comfort was there in life?

In the blink of an eye, it was late autumn. The summer heat had yet to leave when the weather seemed to suddenly turn austere in a single night. The scenes of forests dyed in dozens of hues left, large swathes of foliage decaying in the snap of a finger, dying in their most prosperous moment. After escaping from Mo Jin’s ambush once more, An Jie wandered somewhat aimlessly on the main street.

It was a Friday. He suddenly thought that as a good student, what he should do now was to go home immediately with his reference books, write up a weekend plan, and then study without a stop until midnight.

An Jie swung his bag onto his shoulder. The more he looked back on this period of time, the more absurd it became. It was said that the mind was a servant to the form, so melancholy and alone in its sorrow. He didn’t find it very melancholic, but rather somewhat laughable. He hesitated by the road before shaking his head as if in mockery of himself and laughed. “Fuck student code of conduct.”

He walked in another direction.

Night soon fell over the city.  As the city entered late autumn, the days became shorter and shorter, the darkness arriving earlier and earlier. As the night lights lit up one by one, some people ripped off their righteous skins, and demons poured out of their nests.

The bar was extremely noisy. On most occasions, An Jie felt that he didn’t belong to 

any sophisticated one. He avoided the places that played instrumental music with plaques saying ‘This Bar is Not a KTV’, where no unkempt person nor dog was allowed.

He liked places with deafening music, filled with all kinds of fallen guests searching for pleasure, dark and smelling of cigarettes. Or rather, he was used to such foul corners to hide in.

Intimate. 

Ordering a not-too-strong drink, An Jie sat in a small, not-so-noticeable corner, his bag next to him. The darkness completely engulfed his face and his eyes reflected only the faintest glint of light. The look in his eyes were unreadable, but if one looked closely, they could faintly see that he was staring aimlessly at the crowd. For some reason, it made people less inclined to approach him.

Sometimes, there was an aura on people, one had to admit.

Suddenly, a tall young man entered the door. Compared to the colorfully-attired guests mingling, this person was extremely low-key with an old shirt and a pair of discolored jeans, his head lowered, his somewhat long hair covering half of his face. He walked quietly, traversing through the crowd with almost no one noticing him.

An Jie’s dazed eyes suddenly focused, wandering over this person. He narrowed his eyes. Mo Cong. Why had he come to such a place as this?

His night vision was excellent, he couldn’t have mistaken it.

They had been neighbors for a month or so and he knew that Mo Cong would sometimes leave the unit at night… ahem, because the turkey sister Mo Jin would often use it as an excuse to eat at his house with Xiao Yu. He hadn’t paid too much attention to it. Mo Cong was young and without the stress of the university entrance exam; of course he would have plans of his own, but…

An Jie frowned. After all, this place wasn’t too ‘clean’.

Mo Cong’s eyes briefly swept around before he walked inside without glancing to the side. It seemed that someone had asked him out. An Jie lightly placed his wine glass down and stared after his young neighbor from a more convenient angle.

As expected, a man stood up to welcome him. It was a middle-aged man, not very memorable, his expression placid, his features normal, but as he stood up, An Jie saw his expression and his fingers unconsciously drew out circles on his glass. That person’s eyes were cold. Not indifferent or apathetic; it was that anyone he looked at would feel cold, like he was some sort of highly venomous reptile.

But the way he treated Mo Cong seemed to be very cautious, a hint of ingratiation in his gestures. Mo Cong looked to have said something and the man immediately smiled and nodded, directing Mo Cong to a seat and calling for a menu. Mo Cong waved his hands to stop him, his gesture even a little rude.

Just before he sat down, as if he felt a prying eye on him, Mo Cong suddenly turned and glanced in An Jie’s direction. An Jie saw his face clearly- in his impression, this young man’s face was always with a smile that made one’s heart feel warm, a typical enthusiastic youth. But this person… if not for An Jie’s faith in his eyes, he wouldn’t have recognized him.

Gloomy, harsh eyes… there was even a hint of ruthlessness in that sharp, tightly-held chin.

Mo Cong failed to find the owner of the gaze that had made him uncomfortable. He frowned slightly, eyes sweeping across his surroundings, before he sat down cautiously. The place he sat down in was very similar to how An Jie was used to picking out seats: a corner in which a good half of his body was hidden from the light, using darkness to keep away prying eyes both near and far.

An Jie knew he shouldn’t change angles again- this young man was shockingly sensitive. The only thing he could do now was wait silently where he was.

The middle-aged man spoke more often, his lips constantly moving as if he was speaking fast. As he spoke, his fingers rubbed nervously at his trousers, the ingratiation on his face becoming more and more obvious. About twenty minutes later, a look of joy appeared on the man’s face and the ravaging of his pants lessened. Another while later, An Jie noticed that he was obviously relieved as he took out a handkerchief from his lap and wiped off the sweat from his brows. Then, he stood up and reached out a hand intimately to Mo Cong.

Mo Cong didn’t move, hidden in the dark. It seemed that he had rejected the act of goodwill. The man’s face stiffened a little before immediately recovering. He smiled as he said something, nodded, and left.

The moment the man turned around, his face returned to its original cold and placid expression. The vividness just then appeared as if it was never there.

An Jie absentmindedly picked up his own wine glass and took a small sip.

Author’s Notes: Aw, I like that little turkey ‘wow’ girl Mo Jin.

1Read: Her fashion sense is so frightening she almost killed an old man taking a stroll.

2A reference to Bian Lian, a style of Sichuan opera that involves the rapid changing of face masks. An example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1IVyo7Txus

3A Chinese sticker set starring a very cute rabbit!