After the train left, Li Zhen sat on a bench, feeling like he was in a dream. He only snapped out of it when Lu Yan called him, asking blankly, "Is it just the two of us left?"

Lu Yan looked at him, hands in his pants pockets, and grunted an "Mhm."

Li Zhen actually hadn't felt much in the past two days. He went to the music store to teach his students as usual, ate well, and slept well. He didn't know that sometimes, a person's emotions can be delayed. So, he repeated as if to himself, "It's... just the two of us left?"

"Let's go," Lu Yan said, "Let's head back."

Li Zhen lowered his head and wiped his face.

Lu Yan looked up at the sky outside again and added, "Let's swing by the Air-Raid Shelter while we're at it."

Li Zhen: '???' 'Is it what I think it is?'

Lu Yan said quite naturally, "Recruiting new members."

Besides being a place where various bands gathered to rehearse, the Air-Raid Shelter was also where new members were auditioned. The trace of sorrow around Li Zhen was instantly shattered by Lu Yan.

Li Zhen was in disbelief. "You were just telling Huang Xu and Da Ming that they'll always be a part of Vent. Those words were so damn touching, I almost cried. And now, not even two minutes after they got on the train, you turn around and want to recruit new members?!"

Lu Yan: "Is there a problem?"

Li Zhen: "..."

Lu Yan was just joking. After he managed to stir Li Zhen up, he said, "Just kidding. Besides, there's no one at the Air-Raid Shelter at this hour."

Li Zhen punched him and followed, "You bastard, the point is that there's no one there right now, isn't it? If there were people, you'd go immediately."

Lu Yan walked ahead of him, agreeing with feigned seriousness, "Yeah, what a shame."

Lu Yan didn't use many words to comfort him, but Li Zhen knew he was telling him: 'Don't be down. Just keep going.'

And that was indeed Lu Yan's intention.

The bassist and guitarist positions wouldn't be easy to fill anytime soon, and now there were two empty spots.

It wasn't easy to find suitable people. Even if they hung around the Air-Raid Shelter every day, there was no telling when they'd find someone. So, rather than recruiting for the band, Lu Yan wanted to first fill the financial gap related to their daily expenses.

...People have to eat.

"Hey," while waiting for the bus by the roadside, Lu Yan nudged Li Zhen with his elbow. "Let me ask you something."

Li Zhen took a pack of cigarettes out of his pocket and offered it to Lu Yan. "What's up?"

The two of them squatted on the curb, smoking.

Lu Yan took a drag before saying, "You got any work?"

Li Zhen began to search his brain for information. "You mean a job? Let me think..."

Lu Yan didn't beat around the bush and got straight to the point. His lips were a little pale as he smoked, but his words weren't weak at all. "Don't you teach drums at a music store? I think your job is pretty decent. Can you recommend me to your boss?"

Li Zhen: "Teach what? Gui-guitar?"

"Mhm," Lu Yan said, turning his head to the side and pondering it very seriously. "I can do bass too."

Li Zhen: "..."

Li Zhen took a deep drag of his cigarette, stood up, and took his leave. "My bus is here. I'm leaving first."

Brothers couldn't be counted on. Lu Yan could only rely on himself.

He sighed, planning to find a few short-term part-time jobs to get through this blank period.

The few local part-time job websites he had bookmarked hadn't been updated with much new information recently. Lu Yan scrolled through them the whole ride after getting on the bus. He didn't find a job, but he did receive a basketful of greetings.

Good news never leaves the house, but bad news travels a thousand miles.

The first message was from a brother band—the Spades Band, who always competed with them in the Air-Raid Shelter to see whose volume was louder. Their bassist, Kangaroo: Your band broke up?

Broke up?

Really broke up?

...

Lu Yan replied: What do you mean broke up? This is called reorganizing. Don't worry, your daddy is still your daddy.

Kangaroo: Hehe.

After his "hehe," Kangaroo couldn't bear it. He was a man with a conscience, after all, so he sent another message: Everything is about fate. Don't be too sad.

Lu Yan glanced out the bus window, his fingers tapping carelessly on his phone screen: Kangaroo.

Kangaroo: ?

Lu Yan: Interested in joining our band?

Kangaroo: ...

Lu Yan: I think you and our V-Team have quite a bit of fate together.

Kangaroo: ...

Lu Yan had long fingers. When he typed, his knuckles bent, his nails trimmed neatly—his fingers were truly long. Huang Xu's complaint before he left was from the bottom of his heart. As the band's guitarist, he couldn't help but be envious of this trait. However, he also genuinely didn't know why Lu Yan couldn't play the guitar well. A hand like that could span several frets!

Lu Yan: We're lacking someone with dreams and skills like you. How long has it been since your band released a new song? I've got a new song demo here. Come to me, display your talent.

[Kangaroo has enabled friend verification. You are not his (her) friend.]

The second person to message was the captain of Spades.

The captain started by sending a set of violent beating sticker packs: Lu Yan! What's the meaning of this? You'd even stoop to poaching members? Do you have no shame!

Facing the Spades Band captain's fury, Lu Yan typed a reply: Well, how about... you come to my band?

Captain: ...

Lu Yan: I remember your guitar playing is passable, right? Although your technique is lacking, there's room for improvement with diligent practice. Why don't you stop playing drums and come here? We can build something great together.

What greeted Lu Yan was another set of violent beating sticker packs.

A stick figure was grabbed by another stick figure, spun around a few times, and then fiercely flung away.

Captain: I'd have to be fucking crazy to come to you!

Lu Yan leaned against the bus window and laughed for a long time. The last message he sent was: Really, I'm fine. Thanks, bro.

The bus turned out of the endlessly flowing traffic, winding its way south and heading toward the next stop under the scorching sun.

Lu Yan now had a habit of glancing at the door of 601 opposite his before opening his own. However, the woman from 601 was usually not home; the door was shut tight, and she was nowhere to be seen.

The argument before he left had left too deep an impression.

Just recalling the word "prostitute" still felt grating to the ear.

Lu Yan turned his head away, not thinking about the matter anymore. He shoved the key into the keyhole.

The door opened.

After he got home and checked the part-time job sites again, a few new listings had just been updated on the local job website.

Among them, the most eye-catching one was:

Sincerely recruiting a class substitute. My bro hasn't been to school for a few days. To let him have fun without worry, I'm looking for a fated person to attend classes for him. C University Economics major, main courses include International Economics, Business Management, Marketing, International Finance, etc. Price is negotiable.

This was a large part-time job platform.

It covered all sorts of services, including some ridiculous gigs. More than once, he had seen students looking for backup for a fight: "XX Middle School, the grove behind the school, need ten people. He dared to steal my girlfriend, I'm going to let him know who the real man is!"

The tasks posted on this kind of part-time platform were mostly odd jobs with daily pay. Although the scope of business was unimaginably wide, class substitution was indeed rare.

All in all, the gig of being a class substitute was quite tempting.

No need to be out in the wind and sun, and you could even learn some useful and useless knowledge.

At worst, you could slack off in class, which was basically a paid vacation.

Lu Yan scrolled back through the job posting while taking off his clothes, finally stopping on the words 'C University'.

LY: How do I contact you?

The other person replied quickly: I'm here.

Lu Yan was shirtless. He hadn't expected such a fast reply. He had just pulled out his belt, his jeans hanging loosely on his hips. He couldn't be bothered with that and quickly started typing to sell himself: I have many years of experience attending classes on campus and possess a strong part-time work ethic...

But before he could finish typing, the other person sent a direct message: Got a photo?

'They want a photo?'

'What kind of weird request is this?'

Lu Yan had been drifting through the local part-time job sites for years. There was no job he hadn't done; he had even gone to the grove twice. This was the first time he'd encountered someone asking for a photo.

The person on the other end also knew this request was unusual, so they explained: It's like this, my bro is too handsome. An ordinary person can't substitute for him.  

LY: ...

Other person: Sigh, being handsome is also a burden.

Other person: So, do you have a photo? Can you take one and show me?

'It would've been better not to explain.'

'The more they explain, the weirder it gets.'

Lu Yan felt this person was weird. He was just about to make a slow retreat when his phone chimed 'ding-dong,' and another message came in from the other person: Two hundred per class. If you think it's too little, you can ask for more.

LY: A photo, right.

LY: Got one.

LY: Taking one for you right now.

The speed of his reversal was too fast.

Lu Yan didn't have time to feel the sting on his face. After changing his clothes, he opened the front-facing camera, ran a hand through his hair, and felt glad that he had just gotten a haircut.

Otherwise, he would have had to take a big close-up of his face, and the person might have asked: 'Where's your hair? Take a picture of your hairstyle. You're not bald, are you? Move the camera up a bit.'

The indoor lighting wasn't very good, but Lu Yan's selfie skills were passable, mainly because he was used to striking poses on stage. He found a good angle, snapped a picture with a 'click,' and sent it straight to the other person.

The person on the other end was probably talking to several applicants at once. Two minutes later, Lu Yan received a reply: Is this you?

LY: Mhm.

Other person: Perfect!

Other person: It's you, then! Let's add each other on WeChat to connect. I'll send you the class schedule.

Other person: This wasn't easy at all, I've been looking for days!

For some reason, Lu Yan felt that the person's words revealed a sense of crying with joy.

After the two settled on it, they exchanged contact information and discussed the details of the class substitution.

Although he had sent a photo, Lu Yan was still worried this person might be shady, so he checked their social media profile. The first post he saw when he clicked on it was: The fifth day Brother Heng hasn't come to class.

The location tag was C University's academic building.

Seeing the real-time C University location tag, Lu Yan felt that this gig was probably reliable.

Other person: [/Photo] This is the class schedule.

Other person: The student ID is 12xxx44.

Lu Yan saved the class schedule and student ID number.

The other person added: By the way, our campus is the South Campus. Don't go to the wrong one.

C University was a large school. Even by subway, it was a two-stop ride, and it was split into several campuses... South Campus.

'South Campus, huh.'

Lu Yan repeated it twice in his mind.

'How could I go to the wrong one?'

This was a place he had been to countless times in his heart. Without even calculating, he could estimate the time it would take to get there from the Lower District.

Lu Yan could even hear a voice from five years ago in his ear, saying, "I want to get into C University, the music department."

That voice was so familiar, and yet so strange.

Lu Yan couldn't remember the circumstances under which he had said those words. Maybe it was when he was filling out his college applications, and his homeroom teacher was trying to persuade him? 'Your score is a bit low for C University. I suggest you apply to a safer school.'

He really couldn't remember clearly.

Lu Yan didn't have long to think before the other person sent over a WeChat contact card. The profile picture was all black, and the name was 'Don't Bother Me Unless It's Important.'

Other person: Add my bro. It'll be convenient to contact him if anything comes up.

Lu Yan: Okay, what's his name?

Lu Yan sent a friend request to the black profile picture.

About ten seconds later, as the other person replied with the name, the black profile picture also responded to him. Two consecutive messages popped up in Lu Yan's chat box. One was a system notification: [The other party has declined your friend request].

Lu Yan: "..."

The other person replied: My bro, Xiao Heng.

The author has something to say: This isn't a campus novel~ but it will involve some of it in the early stages.

Xiao Heng is 23 years old and still a college student, a senior.

Lu Yan didn't go to college.