Zhou Ji had a frank and straightforward personality and was very talkative. He did most of the talking throughout the meal. Lin Qingye was in a foul mood and disliked such occasions, so he only responded faintly, drinking a few glasses with him.

Zhou Ji rested one hand on the edge of the table, and Lin Qingye noticed a faint cyan tattoo on his arm.

Noticing his gaze, Zhou Ji laughed. "This? The makeup artist said it's not good to show tattoos on a TV show. Even if it's shown, it'll have to be censored later, so they just covered it with concealer. To be honest, this show is a pain in the ass. Besides the good equipment, it really doesn't feel very free when you're singing."

Lin Qingye held his wine glass, his wrist hanging limply, and commented, "It looks good."

"You like them too?" Zhou Ji glanced over his body but didn't see any visible tattoos. "Do you have any?"

"No, I know a tattoo artist."

"Alright then. Next time I want a new one, can you introduce me?"

Lin Qingye's lips curled into a smile. He didn't say yes or no.

The two clinked their glasses and downed another cup. Lin Qingye asked, "Does this thing hurt?"

"Your tattoo artist friend never told you?" Zhou Ji raised an eyebrow. "This spot is okay. It's bearable."

After drinking for a while longer, Lin Qingye's patience in this world of fame and fortune ran out. He said he was going to the restroom and got up to leave.

After going to the restroom, he didn't return to the banquet hall and left directly.

It wasn't too far from his apartment, so he couldn't drive back. He put on a mask and a hat and walked back.

He didn't take the main road, opting for a shortcut through a small alley instead.

The old walls in the alley were a bit dirty, and the air was filled with the unique damp smell of continuous rainy days. Green moss sprouted from the cracks between the stones.

He had never walked this path before and pinched the metal strip on his mask.

In this weather, he felt as if the smell of alcohol on him couldn't dissipate, leaving him feeling woozy.

Halfway there, Wang Qi called, asking why he hadn't returned.

"I left."

"Left?! Everyone's waiting for you to take a group photo!"

Lin Qingye chuckled lowly. "You guys go ahead and take it."

After hanging up in a few sentences, he looked up and saw a woman sitting at a broken table opposite him. Her hair was a silvery gray, and the wrinkles on her hands were like tree bark. At a glance, she looked like she had one foot in the grave.

She had set up a stall in this small alley.

Just as Lin Qingye was about to look away, he saw a book on the broken table—a Buddhist sutra.

It was very familiar. He remembered Xu Zhinan had one too.

"Fortune-telling, fortune-telling, five yuan a session," the female charlatan shouted, her voice like a broken copper gong.

Lin Qingye looked straight ahead and continued walking.

The charlatan directly handed over the bamboo stick container. "Have your fortune told."

"No need."

"I see a sign of misfortune on your face."

Lin Qingye laughed and raised an eyebrow. "You can tell even with a mask on?"

"The heart must be sincere. I know at a glance. As for how to resolve it," she once again presented the bamboo stick container to him, "draw one."

"I don't have any money."

"You can scan to pay." As she said this, she actually pulled out a tattered QR code from under the table.

"..."

Lin Qingye stared at the Buddhist sutra on her table for a while, and then, as if possessed, he actually took out his phone and scanned the code. "Five yuan?"

"Five yuan for one stick, no cheating young or old," the old charlatan said.

Following the mechanical female voice's "Alipay receipt of five yuan" notification, Lin Qingye drew a stick.

The charlatan took it and chanted mysteriously, "In the realm of love and desire, one is born alone and dies alone, comes alone and goes alone. One must bear the suffering and joy oneself, with no one to take one's place."

'If Xu Zhinan were here,' Lin Qingye thought, 'one little nun and one old nun could certainly have a good chat.'

He had no interest in asking what those words meant, treating it as five yuan spent on some entertainment. As he was about to leave, the charlatan asked again, "I see your love life has been rocky lately."

He paused in his steps but didn't answer.

"Your inner demon is too strong. It's not good for you, and not good for others." The charlatan's expression remained unchanged. "Your destined partner is a good person; you're lucky to have her. But you must overcome your inner demon."

Lin Qingye watched as she took out a small pink packet wrapped in kraft paper from her pocket and pushed it forward. "Dissolve in warm water and consume. Your inner demon can be severed. This secret formula cannot be shared. For just five hundred yuan, you can put your mind at ease."

Lin Qingye sneered.

He felt he must be crazy to have stood here listening to this charlatan ramble for so long. He turned and walked away.

Lin Qingye returned to his apartment.

After taking a shower, he sat by the floor-to-ceiling window. From here, he could see the entire bustling city of Yan City.

He picked up his phone and opened his chat with Xu Zhinan.

The last message was from the day of the graduation gala.

Xu Zhinan had come out to find him and sent a message asking where he was.

He scrolled up the screen. Xu Zhinan had a habit when she looked for him. Even though it was a private chat, she would always add "Brother Qingye" at the beginning.

She did the same when speaking, always calling him "Brother Qingye" in a soft voice.

They didn't have many chat records; they didn't usually talk much.

Lin Qingye had a habit of deleting things regularly, so he quickly reached the top.

He leaned back against the sofa and clicked on her Moments.

Coincidentally, Xu Zhinan had just posted something.

It wasn't about tattoo designs, but a candle emoji.

Lin Qingye casually liked it.

Then he remembered that night. It was no longer "Brother Qingye," but his full name, "Lin Qingye," spoken with anger, her eyes frighteningly bright, yet it made her features breathtakingly beautiful.

That bottle of water had been thrown quite smoothly, too.

Lin Qingye let out a soft sneer.

And then he unliked it.

The author has something to say:

Ah Nan: Why are you being so dramatic?