Chapter 136: Floating

"I can avoid this path," I replied. "As long as I can follow you, I don't mind which path I take."

Rong Ye's face changed, and he said annoyedly, "A Jin, I don't need anyone to follow me anymore. My money is enough to last until I die! You're just dragging me down, do you know that?!"

"I..." I was deeply hurt by Rong Ye's words.

Maybe it was because I'd drunk too much, since I'd never felt this bad before.

Rong Ye didn't need me anymore, and Jiu Zai didn't need me anymore.

I had become a fist floating in mid-air, without a body or a brain.

Where should I land? And where should I settle?

"I understand," I nodded, feeling a sting in my eyes and nose. "Rong Ye, I won't cause you any trouble. I'll leave at dawn tomorrow."

Back at Rong Ye's home, I lay on the sofa but couldn't fall asleep.

What had gone wrong?

Why had everything changed?

That foolish "brain," the "fist" was gone—why didn't he run?

Why did he get himself into this?

Where had all his usual cleverness gone?

Damn it, I think you're not a "brain" at all—you're just a fool.

The more I thought about it, the worse I felt. The night grew deeper, and I couldn't calm my mind.

As soon as I closed my eyes, Jiu Zai's face appeared before me.

All those nonsensical words he used to say, which I had dismissed like passing gas, now stuck in my mind vividly.

"A Jin, if you didn't have me as your 'brain,' what would you do?"

"A Jin, you should smile more. Right now, you look like a block of wood."

"A Jin, say 'Wo Diu' with me! It sounds more forceful. 'Wo Diu'! Don't like that? How about 'Kan Jia Chan'?"

"A Jin, remember to put on your shirt! How did you come out like this again?"

"A Jin, protect me! Wo Diu! If the 'brain' gets hurt, you'll turn stupid too!"

"A Jin, if one day I'm gone, just find another 'brain'."

"A Jin, if you can't find a 'brain,' then just smile more. At least be a happy ghost."

I touched my cheek and realized tears were flowing, cold and wet.

"Wo Diu..."

I gave a bitter smile. Living in this world is really tough.

Thinking about that, I sat up, grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge, quietly opened the door, and went up to the rooftop.

"A Jiu, is it because you knew early on how hard it is to live that you always kept smiling?"

I sat on the edge of the rooftop, my legs dangling over the side.

Gazing at the dazzling neon lights below, in that moment, I felt like I was standing on the whole city, with an indescribable sense of freedom.

I took a sip of beer and poured some on the ground.

The early morning breeze made me shiver with cold—I'd forgotten to put on my shirt again.

"Jiu Zai, let's drink our fill today."

"Ah!" Suddenly, a cry came from behind me, startling me so much I almost jumped off.

I steadied myself and turned around to see a middle-aged woman slumped on the ground. In her left hand was a broom, and in her right, a stack of yellow paper.

She stared at me trembling, as if she'd seen something utterly terrifying.

I sensed something was off and quickly climbed down, going over to check on her. "Auntie, are you okay?"

"You... you..." The auntie furrowed her brow, but her expression soon calmed. "Young man, you nearly scared me to death!"

"I... I don't understand. I was just sitting here drinking—how did I scare you?"

"You!" She pointed angrily behind me. "Your tattoo! Who told you to get something like that?!"

I had a vague idea and said, "Auntie, don't worry. I have a tattoo, but I'm not a bad person."

"Who said anything about that?" The auntie stood up, brushing the dirt off herself. "Why couldn't you get something normal? I thought I'd seen a ghost."

A thought flashed through my mind.

"Auntie... have you seen other people with a line of text on their back before?"

"Of course I have..." She squatted down and spread out the yellow paper on the ground. "There was a young guy whose tattoo was a lot like yours. He jumped off here last week. If you two didn't look different, I'd swear I was seeing a ghost."

"What did you say?!"

"Why? Am I making this up in the middle of the night?" She carefully scattered the yellow paper, then pulled out a lighter from her pocket. "Today is that young guy's seventh day. I'm just a cleaner, but I still follow the proper customs."

She lit the yellow paper, clasped her hands together, and murmured, "I'm just a sweeper, no intention to disturb—please don't blame me, don't blame me..."

The flickering flames danced in the early morning light, reflecting in my eyes, which were as still as a stagnant pool.

"Auntie, don't burn that." I turned around expressionless, showing her the tattoo on my back. "Take a good look. Are you sure his tattoo was a lot like mine?"

The auntie glanced at me impatiently and said, "Yes, of course it was. The words are just different. Yours is 'Tian Di Ben' something, and his was 'Feng Ah Hua Ah'—his had more words."

Hearing that, my heart completely sank.

"Ah, the police said that young guy wasn't even a resident of this building. Why would he jump off here for no reason? It messed everything up for me..." Realizing she'd said too much, she slapped her mouth three times. "Tsk, tsk, tsk! Wrong words—don't blame me, don't blame me!"

I finally understood.

Jiu Zai had jumped from here seven days ago.

So Rong Ye had lied to me.

I turned my head toward the edge of the rooftop, as if I could see Jiu Zai's shadow standing there.

He was bare-chested, with a line of elegant cursive text on his back—

"Feng Hua Xue Yue Ben Xian, Er Rao Rang Zhe Zi Rong."

"Why did you jump?" I asked.

Jiu Zai's shadow gave a bitter smile and said, "A Jin, carry my smile and keep living."

I blinked, and the shadow vanished.

I wasn't sure if it was because I'd drunk too much that night, or if Jiu Zai really came back on his seventh day, but in that moment, it felt like I'd truly seen him.

His expression was full of sorrow.

I knew Jiu Zai well—if he'd been killed, he wouldn't look that sad.

He'd just boldly tell me to avenge him.

But why was he so sad?

Because he never wanted to die.

I tried to mimic Jiu Zai's carefree smile and think from his perspective.

"This time, lend me your brain."

In the past, with Rong Ye and Jiu Zai around, I never had to think for myself, but now it's different.

So...

What was Tong Ye's goal in pursuing Rong Ye?

It was the money.

Tong Ye wouldn't kill him, or he'd lose both the person and the money—he'd be the biggest loser.

Besides, the "pursuit" was handled by Chong Ge, and Chong Ge wanted to recruit me.

Even though he found Rong Ye's location, he didn't send people to kill him.

So the "pursuit" was just a bluff.

And Jiu Zai being killed was complete nonsense.

I looked up at the moon and asked, "Out of loyalty or some other reason, you wanted Rong Ye to return the money to Tong Ye, right?"

The sky was completely silent.

"Rong Ye not only refused but thought you were turning against him, right?"

I asked the moon again, but no one answered.

"You had no idea Rong Ye was going to kill you, so you came to the rooftop unprepared, right?"

The moon looked fuzzy, hidden in the early morning mist.