Infinite Ebullience

The breeze of dusk shuffled in, like a mature beauty with enduring charm, tiptoeing into the beautiful dream of Midsummer Night with an evening wind in tow!

Declining Manager An's invitation to dinner and with a monthly salary of two thousand dollars in his pocket, Tang Zheng, carrying his orange travel bag from Camel Brand, seemed to escape hurriedly from the finance department. Confronted by An Xiuru's greedy eyes, akin to a grizzly bear fixated on a delicious honeycomb, the lad who had just concluded his freshman year couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. He had only watched a Japanese romantic movie once on his roommate's computer and hadn't even had a girlfriend yet, and he was still unclear about the meaning behind those eyes.

Unlike those boys in the university who, like animals in the mating season, couldn't wait to find a sexual mate, Tang Zheng had his own Utopia in mind — to accumulate a sizable fortune enough to splurge for 100 years within a decade after graduating from the university.

"Am I too indifferent?" After muttering to himself, Tang Zheng shook his head and discarded this anxiety. He began planning how to spend the last week of summer break in college. He couldn't go home at this point, but he could try visiting the nearby Mount Tai to see the sunrise. Bringing a camera was a must, if he was lucky enough to take a few good pictures, he might even compete in the National Geographic Global Photography Contest and win some prize money.

Take a left after getting out of West Bridge Street and walk less than fifty meters, and there's the line 9 bus stop which goes to the train station. Seeing that there were only seven or eight people on the bus, Tang Zheng hesitated for a moment, before biting his teeth and stepping on. If he could, he would really not go on with it. But it's probably better to confess now than to wait for the police to knock at the door.

Mu Nianqi was the most prominent newcomer of the year. Because of her domineering personality and numerous honours, she was jokingly referred to as the "queen". She represented the new students in delivering the speech at the opening ceremony, joined the student union as deputy president as a freshman, and became a top-ten young person in the province. A machinery-related patent she applied for in high school brought her millions in wealth too. Not to mention the numerous medals and honour certificates that represented the symbol of a good child in the eyes of her parents. But this pretty girl with many suitors sent her photos to Tang Zheng's mobile phone three days ago. Why was Tang Zheng all tensed up? Because these were large-scale COSPLAY photos of her; the revelation on the Internet would undoubtedly cause a huge stir. Among them, a few pictures of Mu Nianqi, wearing the German World War II uniform, stepping into knee-boots, wearing the M35 steel helmet, and carrying the MG42 machine gun shocked him so much that his eyes nearly popped out. He hadn't expected this "queen" to also be a military enthusiast.

This is indeed a joke. Tang Zheng doesn't feel lucky to have been hit by this pleasant surprise, but it's a deep annoyance because three minutes later a stranger's call came through, and he inexplicably answered and self-disclosed his name. Although the other party didn't say a word, the hurried breath was enough to prove that she is very angry.

Reaching into his pocket for his mobile phone, Tang Zheng guessed that the other party might be preparing to tie him up on the railway tracks for a humanitarian demolition. He knew she had the ability to do so. She called again 50 minutes later and directly named Tang Zheng. This proves how massive the power of Mu Nianqi's family is, something he, a common man, cannot imagine.

"I know you're from the same university as me, and of the same year, Tang Zheng, height 1.83 meters, weight 70 kilograms, strong character, calm, a bit of a male chauvinist, working part-time at North Supermarket ... Let's meet at the statue in front of the Train Station Square at seven in the evening three days later. Bear the consequence if you fail to show up!" Listening to the string of words from the other party that knew even more about him than his own mother did, sweat dripped from Tang Zheng's forehead.

"What do I do?" Taking out a coin, Tang Zheng checked the pattern on it to calm himself down. He didn't want to sit down and do nothing - like a wrongly convicted prisoner sentenced to the guillotine. As long as the execution had not taken place, there is a chance for escape. "Firstly, find a common topic to build trust, then try to dilute the significance of the photos being seen. But why would she give me three days? Is it to sort out my affairs? And who were those photos that were wrongly sent originally to be shown to?" Ongoing thoughts on how to deal with the domineering vice president weighed on his mind. Suddenly, a hysterically screamed 'watch out' harshly hit Tang Zheng's eardrums. His body then slammed out from the chair and rolled out. Before he lost consciousness, the last thing he saw was the sticky blood sliding into the corner of his eye. Glass fragments everywhere were like a downpour, followed by an orange-red sunset sky reflected on the glass trapping on the bus window spinning with the bus. The street was full of the sound of urgent brakes and various tumultuous noise. The panicked crowd was as if they were poured over by boiling oil.

...

When he woke up again, Tang Zheng's head was throbbing. A few people seemed to be standing on his left side, and various whispers filled his ears. Then a pair of hands hold him up from behind and help him sit up.

"Do you know where you are?" A woman dressed in a jewel-blue flight attendant uniform squatted in front of him, put her hands on Tang Zheng's shoulder, and asked with an anxious look.

Tang Zheng frowned, and as the dizziness faded away, a pair of legs protected in flesh-coloured stockings came into view. A pair of peach-shaped buttocks, wrapped neatly in a knee-length skirt, pointed directly at Tang Zheng's cheek while he was sitting straight, almost within his reach. A hint of fresh post-rain fragrance haunting his nose made him sneeze.