After the car was fixed, no one had driven it yet, especially Ding Hanbai. The moment he got near it, Ding Yanshou would bring up his past misdeeds again. The sound of his scolding lingered incessantly, making walking a more pleasant alternative.

Fortunately, Jade Pavilion had been busy recently. Ding Yanshou left early and returned late, so Ding Hanbai was finally free from his control.

He got up early to dress: a shirt, a jacket, woolen trousers, a Swiss watch, and a pure cowhide bag. The whole outfit was worth two months of someone else's salary. And this "someone" couldn't be a manual laborer; it had to be someone like Director Zhang of the Cultural Relics Bureau.

Dressed so impeccably, Ding Hanbai walked into the adjacent bedroom, thinking he was gracing the humble room with his presence. He walked toward the bed, holding his breath, listening intently for the other person's breathing. When he reached it, he stood still and lightly patted the fluffy crown of hair on the pillow.

Ji Shenyu pushed down the quilt, revealing sleepy yet bright eyes.

"The quilt isn't even thin, yet you're wrapped up like a swaddled baby," Ding Hanbai said. "Get up, take a shower, and change. You begged me to take you to school, and I still have to be the one to wake you up."

His nitpicking words were as numerous as the stars. But if one treated them like shooting stars, forgotten as soon as they passed, they weren't so annoying.

Ji Shenyu tumbled out of bed and gathered his clothes to take a shower. He took out a shirt, then turned his head to size up Ding Hanbai. Why was he dressed so sharply? So he put it back, repeating this a few times. Ding Hanbai, irritated by his dawdling, snapped, "What are you picking at? You only have a few things. Don't tell me you're trying to fashion a Gold-threaded Tunic out of them?"

Of course, Ji Shenyu didn't have a Gold-threaded Tunic. He turned and leaned against the wardrobe door. "Senior Brother, thank you for taking me to school." His voice, just woken, was soft and hoarse. "If the teacher scolds me, can you just let it go in one ear and out the other?"

Ding Hanbai sat at the foot of the bed and asked why, adding, "And why should I?"

Ji Shenyu replied, "I'm afraid you'll have a bad impression of me, that you'll think I've gone astray." His hoarse voice gradually cleared, but also grew quieter. He turned back to get his clothes, his back looking so thin. "I won't fall behind in the midterm exams. Don't judge me either, wouldn't that be nice?"

Ding Hanbai grunted an "Mhm," which sounded extremely perfunctory, but in reality, he found it inexplicably difficult to respond.

They finally left the house. The trees on Sha'er Street had all turned yellow, their leaves brittle, and some unknown flowers were bright and beautiful. Perhaps because of this lovely worldly scenery, the two of them didn't exchange a single word from the moment they left, remaining silent all the way to the gates of No. 6 High School.

The school gates were wide open, with students bustling about like at a country fair. Ding Hanbai turned off the engine and got out of the car, standing out like a poplar tree in a grove of willows. He accompanied Ji Shenyu into the school and was, as expected, stopped by the old gatekeeper.

The old man asked, "You again? What are you going in for?"

Ding Hanbai said, "If his teacher hadn't invited me, would I deign to grace this dump with my presence?"

Hearing this, the old man exclaimed, "Dump? This is your alma mater!" He looked like he wanted to enact justice on behalf of the heavens.

Ding Hanbai retorted, "Then why are you asking me questions for coming to my alma mater? You go home and check if your own mother has someone bossing her around."

He pushed Ji Shenyu inside, leaving the old man and the student on duty speechless. Ji Shenyu wasn't surprised at all; he was already used to Ding Hanbai's wild arrogance. It was just that the closer he got to the academic building, the more uneasy he felt.

'With a personality as proud and spoiled as Ding Hanbai's,' he thought, 'how frustrating would it be for him to be lectured by the teacher in a moment? At the very least, he'd have to listen to the teacher criticize the guardian for a lack of supervision.'

"Alright, go to your classroom," Ding Hanbai pushed him. "I'll go find your teacher."

Ding Hanbai strolled unhurriedly down the corridor, knocked on the office door, and strode in after receiving an affirmation. He scanned the room and first saw the oldest teacher there. He pondered for a moment, then exclaimed cheerfully, "Teacher Zhou, you haven't retired yet?!"

He exchanged pleasantries with him, nearly reminiscing about the old days.

After chatting, he remembered the purpose of his visit and moved to a desk by the window. He pulled over a chair to sit, but not before patting its surface, as if afraid of dirtying his trousers. "Hello, Teacher Du." He sized up the other man—middle-aged, chubby, and a bit like Ding Houkang.

Teacher Du also looked him over. "Are you Ji Shenyu's guardian?"

Ding Hanbai replied, "I guess so."

Teacher Du was not satisfied. "What do you mean, 'I guess so'? Did you just find some random buddy to come and fool me?"

'This teacher is pretty sharp,' Ding Hanbai thought. "It's like this: our family adopted Ji Shenyu. His hometown is in Yangzhou, he has no relatives left, his life is like a rootless duckweed tossed about by the rain and wind." Seeing the other's expression soften slightly, he continued, "This kid, you see, is living under someone else's roof with no one to really look after him, sighing his lonely fate on the vast, lonely sea."

In the corner, Teacher Zhou snorted with laughter, cursing his rotten character under his breath.

Ding Hanbai leaned back in his chair, looking completely at ease, fighting the urge to cross his legs. In just two sentences, he had painted a pitiful picture of Ji Shenyu, attempting to arouse a bit of the teacher's sympathy. But how could he know that his own aura was so aloof that it would be hard to evoke pity even with a magnifying glass? Looking at him, the other man only felt that he was being fooled.

Thus, Teacher Du's attitude remained unchanged. "Ji Shenyu has been inattentive in class these past few days, and his efficiency is very low."

Ding Hanbai said, "Perhaps what the teacher is teaching isn't to his taste, so he's pondering it on his own."

Teacher Du's temper flared, and he also leaned back, folding his arms. "This is a school. Do you think a teacher's lecture is like ordering from a restaurant menu?" He suppressed the urge to speak harshly. "Even if he's first in his class, he can't just follow his whims. Besides, the midterm exams are coming up. If he continues like this, he'll very likely fall behind."

Ding Hanbai planned ahead. If he did fall behind, they wouldn't call the guardian again, would they? He had already thought it through: next time, he'd have Jiang Caiwei come. His young aunt could surely coax the teacher into a good mood.

At this thought, his expression darkened.

Ji Shenyu usually likes Jiang Caiwei so much, why didn't he ask her to come today?

The more Ding Hanbai thought about it, the more annoyed he became, leaving the teacher hanging. Teacher Du tapped the desk and said, "There's something even more serious. He has been frequently skipping school these days. If there isn't some urgent family matter, I'd like to hear an explanation."

Ding Hanbai snapped back to his senses. "He just came from Yangzhou and is unfamiliar with the place. He's probably not up to any trouble."

Teacher Du was incredulous. "As his guardian, you don't know either? You just let him run wild?"

These words were a wake-up call for Ding Hanbai. He really didn't know. What Ji Shenyu liked, what he disliked, what little secrets he had—he was completely clueless. His train of thought shifted slightly; he didn't know much about Ding Erhe or Ding Keyu either. He had always been like this, indifferent to other people's affairs.

During this time, the teacher lectured on and on. Ding Hanbai listened quietly—the good, the bad, the trivial. The image of Ji Shenyu as a student gradually became clearer in his mind. He lowered his eyes and waited until the teacher finished speaking.

Ding Hanbai returned to the corridor and walked slowly. Ji Shenyu standing by the railing to read, Ji Shenyu hugging the wall to avoid classmates who were roughhousing, Ji Shenyu lending his homework to others to copy, breaking the rules... he remembered these things.

Ji Shenyu's cautious and prudent school life was very interesting, which Ding Hanbai found novel. Walking and thinking, Ding Hanbai stopped amidst the flood of students. Two meters away, Ji Shenyu ran out just as the bell rang, his expression like someone searching for a lost treasure.

He considered himself very important, but wondered if he was just flattering himself.

Ji Shenyu ran over, panting, calling out "Senior Brother" and grabbing Ding Hanbai's arm. He wanted to ask, 'Did the teacher give you a hard time?' He wanted to ask many things, but under the prying eyes of the passing students, everything was condensed into a single "I'm sorry."

Ding Hanbai said, "I've settled things with the teacher. You're not allowed to run off again. Be good and attend your classes." He had been a teenager once too, and feared Ji Shenyu would feign compliance while secretly disobeying. Before leaving, he added, "I'll come pick you up at random times, for spot checks."

Ji Shenyu clung to the railing, watching Ding Hanbai leave. Even after his back was out of sight, the railing had been warmed by his hands.

Before long, the car pulled over in the Chongshui District. Ding Hanbai temporarily pushed aside his thoughts of Ji Shenyu to come and claim the Jade Boy Figurine that haunted his dreams. The broken door was locked. He stood tall and waited, hands in his pockets, frowning, staring blankly at the tattered lantern on the eaves.

After a long while, the tattered lantern had been swayed by the wind a thousand times over.

Zhang Sinian finally showed up, carrying a limp bag. Ding Hanbai analyzed the situation: no money in the bag meant he hadn't sold anything. Just as he felt relieved, Zhang Sinian crushed him: "Came from Daimao, went straight to the bank to open a passbook account."

Ding Hanbai asked, "You didn't sell the Jade Boy Figurine, did you?"

Zhang Sinian replied, "Sold it, along with the Lotus Leaf Brush Washer."

With a loud bang, Ding Hanbai turned and kicked the door open, his temper flaring. "Waited half the day for nothing!" He vented his anger whenever he felt it, not caring if it was his master or his father. "It's only been a few days, how could you be so impatient?! If you're short on money, tell me. I'll give you however much you need as a filial gesture! Selling it without a word, where the hell am I supposed to find it now?!"

Humming an opera tune, Zhang Sinian washed his hands, ignoring the scoundrel. He had seen it clearly that day—Ding Hanbai didn't care for the Jade Boy Figurine, he wanted to find the person who made it.

He stated it plainly, "I've been fighting with Liang Hecheng for half my life. You want to get close to his apprentice, and your next step is to win him over, isn't it?"

Ding Hanbai fell silent. He paced back and forth in the small courtyard, feeling the anxiety of losing the Jade Boy Figurine, but even more so the turmoil of having his true intentions exposed. From the moment he had acknowledged Zhang Sinian as his master, it was like making a resolution—a resolution to do something in the antiques trade that he loved.

"This isn't your era anymore. It's not a time where you have to ride a shabby tricycle from door to door, using junk collecting as a cover to acquire a piece," he said. "Master, I love this trade, I love these objects, but I can't be like you, just hanging around the antiques market, picking up bargains and offloading them."

Zhang Sinian's gaze turned cold. "What are you trying to do?"

Ding Hanbai said, "I'm greedy." He spoke earnestly, "I'm extremely greedy. I trade things back and forth because I like it, and also for the money. The more money I have, the more treasures I can get my hands on. But no matter how much money or how many treasures, they are just single units within the market. It's not enough. I like to be in charge. One day, I will intervene and control it."

Zhang Sinian gave a dry cough and silently lit a long-stemmed pipe.

Ding Hanbai stood in the gray-white smoke. "There were no antiques markets before, but they appeared when there were enough people. And after that?" He crouched down, pressing on Zhang Sinian's bony knees. "Old man, Jade Pavilion has been a leader for generations. To be demoted is a death sentence. I've fought my way to the top with talent and hard work. Being unable to become the champion would also be a death sentence for me."

Silence. It was so quiet that even the soft fall of ash from the pipe could be heard.

The cigarette butt fell, and Zhang Sinian's hand fell with it, covering the back of Ding Hanbai's hand.

"He's easy to find. He has six fingers," the old man said. His tone was flat, but just like that, with that same flat tone, he had compromised.

Ding Hanbai smiled. "Why don't you two get along? Did he poke your eye out?"

The engine, mixed with the autumn wind, sounded like the noise made by a young man. Master and apprentice had confessed and joked, some things said openly, others kept for now. Zhang Sinian listened to the sound fade into the distance, sitting alone in the courtyard in a daze. After a long while, he hummed a line from an opera. The lingering note trailed on, refusing to dissipate, instead hooking out a memory from his youth.

As for Ding Hanbai, his language skills were quite good, and he even knew a few hundred poems, but only today did he truly understand how satisfying it was to speak one's mind freely. His ideals and thoughts had been shelved for a long time, and once pried open, they couldn't be taken back, just like this car, which was only on the right path when it was roaring full-steam ahead.

He went home, pondering his opening lines for when he finally found Liang Hecheng.

The setting sun was like molten gold. The large living room was at its liveliest at this hour.

Two seats were empty. Ji Shenyu was busy carving the jade incense burner and hadn't come.

Jiang Caiwei asked, "Why isn't Hanbai here for dinner either?"

Jiang Shuliu said, "He must have eaten his fill at a restaurant before coming back. He's the last one you need to worry about."

Ding Hanbai was truly wronged. He hadn't eaten anything; he had only gone to the machine room to find a piece of material and got caught by his little adversary. The jade incense burner was meticulously divided: the lid, the plate, the body, the three feet—each part had different patterns and required different carving techniques. Ji Shenyu held the carving knife, asking one question after another, being extremely cautious.

Ding Hanbai simply sat down. "The flame pearl on the lid is movable. That's the first place for openwork carving."

Ji Shenyu's fingertip traced it. "This part is also openwork, with cloud patterns. The four decorative flame pearls need to have small characters carved in intaglio." His hand moved down. "The plate isn't carved yet..."

Ding Hanbai reminded him, "The whole thing is carved in the round, the plate is in relief."

Ji Shenyu committed it to memory. "Intaglio carved rope knots below, twin butterfly handles on the sides... holding loose rings." He muttered, leaning to one side to touch the three feet, bumping against Ding Hanbai's shoulder.

Ding Hanbai raised a hand to catch him, pulling Ji Shenyu into his arms. Feeling the strangeness of the posture, he gave the needless warning, "Don't fall." But Ji Shenyu was perhaps too tired, as he simply let his shoulders slump and relaxed into the crook of his arm. Ding Hanbai was holding him securely; he'd have to be a ghost to fall.

"Senior Brother," Ji Shenyu said, "Openwork is so troublesome. Can you teach me?"

Ding Hanbai was noncommittal, only remembering that on the day Ji Shenyu arrived, he had been carving openwork characters.

It had been several months. The teasing nickname "Ji Zhenzhu" had actually been used for several months.

Ding Hanbai snatched the knife, picked up a discarded piece of jade, and hooked an arm around Ji Shenyu's shoulders. His own head brushing against Ji Shenyu's hair, he let Ji Shenyu continue to lean on him to rest. "Watch carefully." He encircled the other boy, giving orders, applying the knife, moving the blade. Jade dust fell onto Ji Shenyu's lap, and the hands resting on his lap slowly clenched into fists.

"See clearly?"

"...No."

Ding Hanbai continued to carve and asked again, "See clearly?"

Ji Shenyu still said no, as if timid, but also as if brave.

The part of his chest pressed against the other's back shoulder felt hot. Ding Hanbai's breath brushed against Ji Shenyu's cheek, and he wanted to know if Ji Shenyu felt the heat too.

"I see it clearly now," Ji Shenyu suddenly said.

And with that, Ding Hanbai knew: the other's cheek must be very hot.

He had seen it clearly. He should let go, should leave this place, should go to the living room without looking back to fill his stomach. But as if possessed, he remained motionless, only continuing to grip the carving knife. He hated how Ji Shenyu sat securely in his lap with a flushed face; if he had struggled even a little, he would have let go.

After a long moment, reason finally conquered his inner demons. Ding Hanbai shoved Ji Shenyu away, striking first with his words, "You're a teenager, still sitting in someone's lap. Aren't you ashamed?!"

Ji Shenyu was embarrassed by his words, but he retorted stubbornly, "...I'm not that ashamed."

Ding Hanbai was so choked up he threw down the knife and stormed off, thinking with particular longing of Master Liang's prized apprentice. They were the same age, yet that other person was dignified and steady without even showing his face, while the one at home was frivolous inside and loved to talk back. The comparison revealed the truth, and he absurdly recalled a vulgar saying.

—The wildflower is more fragrant than the flower at home!

Ding Hanbai made a secret resolution. He had to part the clouds and mist and see the true face of that wildflower.

Ji Shenyu felt an inexplicable chill and instantly tightened his grip on the knife in his hand!

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Gatekeeper: You again? Ding What-bai? —Ding Hanbai. What Hanbai? Ding Hanbai. Ding Han-what? Ding Hanbai