Consumed by a fever of desire, Bai Hao was in no state to heed Zhao Lu's explanations. Before she could finish speaking, he silenced her with his mouth, his hands continuing their clumsy yet determined exploration.
Zhao Lu struggled frantically, but found Bai Hao's body unyielding as reinforced concrete. After a few moments, her resistance faded, as if her strength had deserted her. Two clear trails of tears streamed down her cheeks.
Bai Hao, burning with frantic heat, was on the verge of breaching the final defense of the delicate form beneath him when a bitter, astringent taste touched his lips. Some say a woman's tears are bitter, are acrid. Lifting his head to look at the weeping face below him, his body stiffened. It was as if a bucket of icy water had been dumped over his heart, drenching it thoroughly, and the raging flames of his desire vanished into thin air.
"I... I'm sorry." For a moment, Bai Hao was at a loss for words, only managing to stammer out the apology like a boy caught in a misdeed.
He hurriedly clambered off Zhao Lu, pulled the blanket over her trembling figure, and wrapped the bath towel he had torn off earlier around his own waist. Sitting beside the tearful beauty, he was at a loss as to how to offer solace.
Zhao Lu's body quivered lightly, her tears flowing unchecked. After several breaths, she began to sob quietly, the sorrow seeming to deepen with each passing moment.
This presented Bai Hao with a profound dilemma. To offer comfort felt wrong; to offer none felt equally so. A genuine panic settled in his heart.
Half an hour later, Zhao Lu's emotions finally stabilized. Her tear-streaked face emerged slowly from beneath the blanket. Her gaze fell upon Bai Hao, who had been sitting silently and foolishly by her side, waiting. Her expression was complex. She had thought he would force himself upon her, yet at the final moment, he had stopped. She didn't know if her tears had moved him, or if he had wrestled back his own control. Regardless, deep within her heart, a sliver of favorable regard for him sprouted. He was, at the very least, infinitely better than those men who were slaves to their baser instincts.
"I'm sorry." Seeing her gaze upon him, Bai Hao immediately offered a sincere and earnest apology.
Zhao Lu studied him, remaining silent for a beat before speaking in a calm tone. "You didn't actually do anything to me. I don't blame you."
Bai Hao let out a subtle breath of relief, though a deep sense of shame remained. Even if he hadn't carried through, it was still a violation.
Seeing Bai Hao's persistent, childlike expression of contrite sincerity, Zhao Lu couldn't help but offer a faint, wry smile. "I said I don't blame you. Actually, it was my fault. I shouldn't have teased you. The truth is, nothing happened between us earlier. You just had a drunken sleep. Alright, go fetch my clothes from the shower room."
"Mm, okay."
Bai Hao nodded and entered the shower room. He brought out Zhao Lu's clothes and handed them to her with great care.
Zhao Lu took the garments and said softly, "Turn around."
Bai Hao obediently turned his back.
Soon, Zhao Lu was dressed. She leaned back against the headboard. "Alright, you can come sit over here."
Bai Hao turned back and sat on the other side of the bed, shoulder to shoulder with Zhao Lu, less than a hand's breadth between them.
Zhao Lu draped half of the blanket over Bai Hao. Then, from her bag on the nightstand, she retrieved a pack of slender cigarettes and an elegant lighter, her movements practiced as she lit one. "Smoke?"
Bai Hao nodded.
Zhao Lu plucked a cigarette from the pack, handed it to Bai Hao, and lit it for him. The lady's cigarette was more slender than the regular kind. Bai Hao took a gentle drag. It was mild, carrying an extremely smooth flavor.
Zhao Lu exhaled a long, slow stream of blue smoke and began to speak, her voice measured. "I've been with many men. But I've only cried once. That was my first time. It was an older man. He raped me. After that, I swore I would never cry in front of any man again. Yet today, I broke that vow. Just now, you reminded me of that old man. The feeling of helplessness enveloping your body is despair. But you... you gave me hope. This burden I've carried—I always thought it was immensely heavy. I buried it deep in my heart for a long, long time. Until just now, when I suddenly realized how light it was, that it could be discarded in an instant..."
Her tone was even, almost detached.
Bai Hao, however, listened with a heart grown heavy, as if a stone pressed upon his chest, making it hard to breathe. This was a woman's story, one that invited sympathy yet made one wary of offering it.
The night flowed by like quiet water.
Bai Hao lay awake, resting silently. Lying beside him was a beautiful woman, a woman who knew how to tell a story.
Early the next morning, Bai Hao followed Zhao Lu back to the Night Paris, bid farewell to He Zhong, and boarded a high-speed train bound for Baoli City.
By evening, he had arrived at the final destination of his journey to the Central Star Cluster—Baoli City. Baoli City, a mid-sized metropolis on the southern continent of S3, was a city that had risen to prominence only in the last century. Yet now, it held considerable renown across the star sector. The reason was simple: the Baoli Corporation. The very corporation that Bai Hao was about to join, and that countless talented young elites across the Empire dreamed of entering.
The Baoli Corporation was one of the Star Luo Empire's mega-manufacturers of military arms and weaponry, boasting profound connections with the military. Its portfolio spanned from colossal stellar carriers down to mechanical rifles, covering nearly all military-industrial products. Its most famous line, however, was undoubtedly the mecha series. It was one of the pioneering corporate giants in the Empire to embark on mecha research and development; from the first generation to the latest models, its fingerprints seemed to be on them all.
Bai Hao's primary reason for choosing Baoli was precisely the mecha. Only by entering such a cutting-edge mecha design enterprise could he hope to access the newest, most advanced technologies. Only then could he possibly realize his grand ambition: to become the Empire's top mechanical engineer, to become the personal engineer for that Empire's foremost female mech pilot who basked in the starlight, to become her most solid and powerful rear support, to be the little man watching silently behind her.
"My radiance need only illuminate her. That is enough."
At a corner across the street from the main gate of the Baoli Corporation, Bai Hao gazed quietly at the entrance he would soon walk through. It felt as though a vast, boundless door had swung open in his heart, within which lay his dreams, the obsession for which he burned.
Night gradually fell, and the city's starlight—its myriad lights—slowly ignited, illuminating the figure standing in the evening breeze.
After a long look, Bai Hao finally turned and walked away. The official reporting date for Baoli was still over ten days away; he could not enter yet. He would have to wait.
Bai Hao had intended to find a hotel, but to his astonishment, the lodging prices in the vicinity were absurdly high, enough to make a poor out-of-town boy like him balk. He checked three different hotels; the cheapest was still two hundred Star Luo credits. Feeling the paltry notes in his pocket, he ultimately gave up. With less than five hundred credits to his name, a hotel stay would mean struggling to afford food in the coming days.
"Ah, I should have stayed with Brother Chun a few days longer," he sighed.
Wandering the bustling streets of Baoli City, a flicker of regret passed through him, though it was fleeting. In his mind, he and He Zhong were ultimately on two entirely different paths. Even if their ways had crossed, they were destined to diverge.
Baoli City's nightscape was beautiful, more resplendent than the starlight in the sky.
Bai Hao dragged his modest suitcase, walking aimlessly. He took in the lights in the darkness, the fashionably dressed beauties, the stunning and varied architecture that was a feast for the eyes...
The night grew deep.
The bustling districts gradually quieted. The once-thronging streets became sparse, and the lights in most shops along the roadside were extinguished. Only the nightclubs seemed still immersed in endless revelry.
Bai Hao walked slowly. He felt no loneliness, no solitude, only excitement. The sun of his dream seemed already to be illuminating the path ahead. He simply wanted to observe carefully the city where he might live henceforth. Everything seemed so beautiful, exuding a youthful, maiden-like vitality that invigorated him.
Around midnight, perhaps tired, Bai Hao sat on a public bench at the street side. He placed his suitcase down, took out a nutrient bar he had bought earlier at a small shop to stave off hunger, and began to sip it slowly. The bar contained a highly concentrated liquid sufficient for a day's basic needs, but it tasted like plain water—bland and flavorless. Yet, to Bai Hao at that moment, it seemed sweet, sweet to the core of his heart.
After resting on the bench for a while, Bai Hao continued his aimless wandering with his suitcase, finally stopping before a red public comm booth. He stepped inside and dialed a familiar number back on Mining Planet S3 in the Western Sector.
The comm rang over ten times before a voice, dripping with impatience and irritation, answered. "Hey, what the hell? You some kinda nutjob, calling in the middle of the damn night? You want me to chop your little dick off and feed it to the dogs?"
"It's me, Lezi," Bai Hao said with a bitter smile. This guy's temper was as fiery as ever.
"Of course I know it's you, you dog! You think anyone else would be calling me from the Central Stars? Get a grip, will you, my dear Bai Hao? I'm trying to sleep here! And you should've reached the Central Sector days ago. Only calling me now? Did you forget about me, you bastard? That's not very brotherly. Next time I see you, I'm gonna beat the crap out of you, knock your teeth out, make you cry for your mommy and daddy..."
Yin Ya, with undisguised irritation and anger, proceeded to berate Bai Hao from head to toe. Like a rapid-fire cannon, his tirade lasted a full five minutes.
Yet, Bai Hao felt profoundly warmed. Even though not a single word from Yin Ya was pleasant, he knew that was his brother. The real Yin Ya.
"I'm sorry, Lezi."
After Yin Ya finally calmed down, Bai Hao offered a faint smile and spoke softly.
"Pfft, save your sweet talk." Yin Ya wasn't having any of it. After a pause, his tone softened slightly. "You... how are you?"
"Good. Really good. I'm in Baoli City now. I'll be entering the Baoli Corporation in a few days."
"Good. That puts my mind at ease, at least."
"And you?"
"Me? Same as always. Oh, I might be leaving B5 soon too. I submitted an enlistment application. If it goes through, I'll probably head straight to the Eastern Sector."
"The Eastern Sector?"
"Yeah. I applied for the Special Forces preparatory track."
"The Eastern Sector is dangerous."
"I know. But damn it, I'm a man. I don't wanna rot in a shithole like B5 my whole life. And those regular grunt positions? I can't be bothered. Besides, I've got dreams too, you know. In the Eastern Sector, I might even get to see her. I'd be happy just to lick her boots."
"Ugh, could you have a little dignity?"
"Dignity? What the hell is that? Can I eat it? Why don't you show me some of this 'dignity' of yours, huh?"
"No."
"Exactly. So, why are you calling me in the dead of night? Run into trouble? Actually, scratch that. Even if you did, a tight-lipped fox like you would probably keep it bottled up. Doesn't that get stuffy in there?"
"Nope."
"Fine, be that way. How was the trip? Smooth? You're two days later with this call than I figured."
...
Bai Hao's call lasted a full half hour before he reluctantly ended it. In his mind, Yin Ya was not just a friend, but a brother. Being able to talk freely and without reservation was a rare and deeply comforting thing.