Five Cases

lemnly until, at last, he could not hold himself back from asking: “What’s wrong with your right leg?”

“I loved to play around as a child, and I fell out of a tree and broke my leg.” Lu Hui pulled out the excuse he used to dupe people for the past ten years, and answered without care, “It hurts on rainy days.”

Ji Fanyang half believed him and half doubted him.
He disembarked, took out the umbrella, locked the door, then opened the umbrella and walked side by side with Lu Hui: “I don’t believe you.” 

Lu Hui raised an eyebrow: “Why not?”

“I went to investigate you.” Ji Fanyang said, unperturbed, “It’s strange, your hospitalization records the year you were fifteen.”

“What else did you investigate?” Lu Hui teased, “What I like to eat, what colors I like, what TV shows I like, what woman I like, what brand of condom I like to use and which flavor?”

The more Lu Hui spoke, the more he went beyond what was proper.
Ji Fanyang interrupted him: “You had a friend named Yu Feiyang, who died.”

Lu Hui suddenly went silent.
He turned his head to stare fixedly at Ji Fanyang, like a lone wolf leaping up and baring its fangs: “What else did you investigate?”

“Just this bit.” Ji Fanyang said fearlessly.
He had experienced many battles, faced many different types of personalities, and was peerlessly courageous and patient.
He fed on pain, exposed it, soothed it, then sought the next wailing soul. 

“We’ll look at the apartment first.” Lu Hui did not acknowledge Ji Fanyang’s surveying look.
He was not willing to remember those days of foul stenches, hunger, wrath, despair, collapse, and staking it all on a single shot. 

They walked into the elevator.
Ji Fanyang pressed the button ‘15’, and the elevator went up. 

The elevator doors opened and Ji Fanyang brought Lu Hui to the apartment labeled ‘1521’ to the right. 

Ji Fanyang unlocked the door and went inside.
It was a two bedroom unit, with one living room, one kitchen, one bathroom, and a large, clean balcony facing the sun. 

Lu Hui was like a dog patrolling its territory as he walked around everywhere.
He entered the bedroom closest to the balcony, which had a fan and a door leading directly to the balcony.
He said: “This is my room.”

“Okay.” Ji Fanyang nodded. 

Lu Hui raised his head and peered at Ji Fanyang: “I don’t like living with people.
You know that.
Why did you invite me?”

“We’re friends.” Ji Fanyang said with a slight smile. 

“You have many friends.” Lu Hui said. 

Ji Fanyang shook his head: “If you’re referring to my ex-girlfriend, my ex-ex-girlfriend, my ex-ex-ex-girlfriend, and my ex-ex-ex-ex-girlfriend, then that’s indeed many.
But in Linhua City, the only friend I have is you.”

Lu Hui’s eyes sparkled as he smiled.
He liked courageous people.
The way Ji Fanyang could carelessly use his wounds to make jokes made him appreciate him. 

“Want to check out the balcony?” Ji Fanyang opened the door in the bedroom and stepped out onto the balcony. 

Lu Hui followed him out onto the balcony.
The balcony was completely enclosed and had all of the necessities, including a window, screen, and guardrail.
There was a long divan with two small cabinets on either side.
Ji Fanyang sat on the divan and brought up the topic that had been fermenting in his mind for a while: “Do you want to talk about your past?”

Lu Hui retreated a step, assuming a posture of certain refusal. 

“You know about my past, or a portion of it.” Ji Fanyang said.
He knew that Lu Hui was a logical beast and would settle his debts as a give-and-take interaction, “”I think I should know yours, too, a portion of it.” 

“I have a lot in my past.” Lu Hui said.
He sensed Ji Fanyang’s attempt to examine him, “And you only want to know about the most painful portion of it.”

“Of my four ex-girlfriends, the first was hurt by her parents’ divorce, the second had a severe inferiority complex, the third was weighed down by depression, and the fourth was abnormally dependent.” Ji Fanyang counted on his fingers, “I lent them my ear and guided them out of their own worlds.”

“So? You see me as your fifth girlfriend and you want to save me?” Lu Hui refuted caustically. 

Ji Fanyang’s brown eyes were like a drop of sunlight on this gloomy, rainy day.
He reassured Lu Hui calmly: “No, it’s because we are friends.” He explained further, “And friends help each other.
Isn’t this normal?”

The light in Lu Hui’s eyes went out.
He asked: “What you’re doing now isn’t helping each other.
It’s spying on private matters.”

“It’s been too long since you’ve had friends.” Ji Fanyang said, “After Yu Feiyang died, you refused everyone’s help.
I want to help you as a friend.”

Yu Feiyang.
Lu Hui was affected by this name that seemed almost unfamiliar and distant.
He sat down on the long divan.
His hand rubbed his right leg, massaging to ease the pain. 

Ji Fanyang shifted Lu Hui’s right leg onto his lap and started massaging it for him.
His eyelashes curved downward, soft and lovely.