Xiaobai Is Also Troubled Today

The street at dusk seemed endless, stretching so far that the end disappeared into a hazy gray mist. The orange streetlights could barely reach that far. Sparse shrubs and scattered trees along the roadside deepened the shadows, hiding a narrow little path that most people wouldn’t even notice.

 
“Old Lin [1], do we really have to take this path?”
 

“Didn’t Miss Bai agree to it too?” Old Lin — Lin Yunian — didn’t even turn around. He just shrugged it off and strode straight into the dim forest trail.
 
Behind him, Bai Tingzhi sighed helplessly and shrugged. Fine. He was the one losing his nerve. He had agreed too at first, but now that he was staring at this gloomy forest, for some reason he felt a flicker of fear rising in his chest. Just a flicker. Nothing more!

 
And......
 

“Could you not?! Still got the guts to mess with me?!”
Seriously, how did he — a grown man — always end up getting teased like this?
 

Up ahead, Lin Yunian took off the second he heard the shout. He knew someone was getting a little pissed off. Maybe it was partly because of what had just happened at school — but that didn’t matter. It didn’t stop him from running.
 
Watching his so-called best friend disappear into the trees, Bai Tingzhi flinched when a raven suddenly burst out from the branches. His shoulders jerked. His bravado drained out of him all at once.

 
“This brat…” Bai Tingzhi grumbled through gritted teeth. His pale, delicate face looked so refined he almost could’ve been mistaken for a girl.
 

The woods at dusk still held a trace of leftover warmth, but the shadows behind him grew thicker, and every now and then, a cold breeze drifted through.
 
Home wasn’t that far away. No way was he walking back alone now — so he braced himself and stepped onto the forest path.
 

Rustle, rustle…
 
A few birds scattered in the branches, flapping noisily. The deeper he walked, the darker it got — until it was so dim he could barely see.

 
“Old Lin? Hey! Old Lin! Lin Yunian!”
 

Rustle, rustle, rustle!
 
More ravens took off from the trees, wings scraping the air, their caws echoing around him like broken laughter.

 
“Where the hell are you?!”
 

The weak light from his phone made him the only flicker of brightness in this pitch-black forest. But it couldn’t chase away the darkness — and it sure couldn’t stop the fear trembling at the pit of his stomach. It felt like monsters could jump out from any direction and shred this lone “outsider” to pieces.
 
Before he could pull up Lin Yunian’s number, a familiar voice came right by his ear.

 
“There’s a snake.”
 

His heart skipped half a beat. Instinctively, he slapped a hand over his mouth. A strong hand grabbed his wrist and yanked him forward.
 
Not daring to say another word, Bai Tingzhi followed Lin Yunian and ran for dear life, tearing through the woods. In his panic, he completely forgot how to think.

 
Light finally broke through the trees, spilling into view. Who knew how far they’d run, but at last they stumbled out to the roadside, where the orange glow of the streetlights washed over them and scattered the darkness still clinging to their backs.
 

Bai Tingzhi bent over, hands on his knees, gasping for breath. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Lin Yunian — who was trying way too hard to keep a straight face.
 
“How… how are you not scared at all…?” he panted.

 
Lin Yunian’s mouth twitched so badly it was practically crooked.
 

“I Lied. There’s no snake.”
 
“WHAT?!”

 
Bai Tingzhi lunged and bit his hand — no hesitation.
“OW! OW! OW! Okay! Okay! Stop! Stop!”

 
“That’s what you get for messing with me!” Bai Tingzhi growled. He gave his so-called best friend a vicious pinch in the side for good measure.
 

“Ah—fine, fine! Let’s hurry back. It’s getting late.”
 
Lin Yunian winced and forced a grin, trying to pry him off.

Bai Tingzhi shot him a glare, but finally let go — and hurled his bag straight at him too.
 
“Here. You asked for it."

 
“Yes, yes, I know. Miss Bai [2] ’s so gracious.”
 

“You’re still running your mouth?!” Bai Tingzhi raised a hand to smack him again, but Lin Yunian dodged to the side with a grin.
 
He skipped a few steps away just in case Bai Tingzhi decided to chase him down again. “By the way, you seriously not gonna consider Gu Junzhu? She’s gorgeous — like a real ice queen. Who’d have thought she’d confess to you?!”

 
He still couldn’t wrap his head around it. The famously cold and quiet school beauty from the next class had actually stopped Bai Tingzhi on the stairway this afternoon to confess. Thankfully, it was so late that not many people saw.
 

“You know I already have someone I like, and you still bring it up?! … Gu Junzhu’s really pretty, yeah… but she’s a lesbian!!”
 
Bai Tingzhi’s voice cracked as the embarrassment came flooding back. Doesn’t that mean he got mistaken for a girl again? He could still remember that uncertain look in her eyes.

 
“Alright, alright. Forget about it then. Look over there!”
 

Lin Yunian threw an arm over Bai Tingzhi’s shoulder and pointed. Just ahead by the roadside, a small grocery store appeared out of nowhere. The old, faded decor looked like it hadn’t changed since the last century.
 
Inside, it was brightly lit. A single lamp by the door cast an oddly warm glow for passersby.

 
As they walked closer, they both spotted the big sign out front.
 

“’Scratchers worth five hundred million yuan! As long as you are willing to scratch, happiness is tomorrow! Only 0.5 yuan......” Lin Yunian fumbled with his chin and softly read out the advertisement slogan on it.
 
But something like this was too fake, even a child couldn’t possibly believe it.

 
“Looks shady as hell,” Bai Tingzhi muttered, biting at the skin on his lip.
 

Just then, the half-closed door creaked open, and an old man stepped out, bent slightly at the waist.
 
“Here to try your luck…?” the old man asked slowly, his voice kind, like he was genuinely surprised to see guests.

 
“No, just happened to be passing by.” Bai Tingzhi hastily waved his hand.
 

The old man gave a small, regretful smile. “Are you really not going to buy one to try? Maybe there will be a surprise......”
 
“What kind of surprise? Five hundred million?” Lin Yunian asked lazily, clearly just messing around.

 
“Yeah, # Nоvеlight # five hundred million — I’m afraid ordinary people can’t earn it in their whole life ...... But this is supposed to be a big gamble.”
 

Five mao [3] for a shot at five hundred million? Bai Tingzhi’s eyes returned to the billboard, there was a small line under those bold words –
 
“If you’re given a scratch card with the chance to win five hundred million, and if you don’t win, you’ll have good luck the next day. But if you do win, your best friend will lose a leg. Will you still try?”

 
Perhaps it was because of the transparent probability policy of the raffle, even for this event, an even smaller line at the bottom of the notice board labeled the probability of winning five hundred million as a pitiful
 

0.000001%
 
Bai Tingzhi tugged on Lin Yunian’s sleeve and whispered, “Old Lin, Look.”

 
Lin Yunian also followed the direction and looked again, then the two of them looked at each other and smiled. A moment later, the two of them walked out of the small store with the corners of their mouths slightly raised and continued to walk in the direction of home.
 

One yuan for a day of good luck — not a bad deal. And if they did win… well, five hundred million was five hundred million.
 
Lin Yunian and Bai Tingzhi, who grew up together, Of course knew exactly what the other was thinking, but it was five hundred million yuan, even if one leg was missing — so what? Not to mention that the two had never placed their hopes on something, they just happened to both have the habit of asking for a good omen.

 
“See you tomorrow?” Lin Yunian waved goodbye at the intersection.
 

“See you tomorrow.”
 
Bai Tingzhi replied back softly as he picked up his own school bag.

 
The shopkeeper said that this scratch-off didn’t have to be scratched in the store; it was the same if they brought it home and scratched it there. For some reason, the two of them seemed to have no thought at all and just brought it back. It was already late, so going back the same way today was impossible.
 

So… maybe tomorrow, they’d get lucky.
 
TL notes:

[1] Old Lin (Lǎo Lín): is an affectionate or familiar way to address someone with the surname Lin — “Old Lin.”
 
[2] Miss Bai: If you couldn’t tell already this is not a translation error Lin Yunian is calling Bai Tingzhi Miss to make fun of him.

 
[3] Five mao: means “0.5 yuan,” or about seven US cents. It’s a playful way to say the stakes are tiny, like saying “betting spare change?” or “betting a nickel?” in English.