Chapter 2660: South City Tonight Has Rain 22

Xie Linzhou returned to his previous apartment and barely got through the night.

The feeling of being unsuited filled every gap.

The house had been vacant for too long; even if a cleaner had been sent in ahead of time, it could not dispel the deep‑seated chill left by long closure, the lack of human presence, and the silence that made one's heart uneasy.

He slept in a daze all night, chaotic dreams flashing one after another, bizarre and fantastical; upon waking he felt his head about to split, as if repeatedly struck by a blunt object.

Walking into the Living Room and pulling open the curtains, rare sunlight streamed in, stinging his eyes.

Xie Linzhou had little appetite, hastily shoved a few bites of bread, and washed down a painkiller with warm water to dull the vexatious ache.

In the morning, the doorbell rang; through the peephole he saw someone standing outside, and Xie Linzhou was even unsure what mindset he had in opening the door for them.

Ren Xian stood at the doorway, his expression somewhat complex, also not expecting Xie Linzhou to open the door, and he forced an unnatural smile.

"Long time no see."

Xie Linzhou turned sideways, his face showing little expression, his tone cold: "If I were you, I wouldn't dare show my face to come knocking again in this lifetime."

Ren Xian heard this and instead let out a low laugh, tinged with self‑mockery.

"It's a shame you're not me; I'm far more shameless than you, and you've always known that."

Xie Linzhou: "……"

Xie Linzhou didn't respond, turned and walked to the Living Room Sofa to sit down.

Ren Xian followed him in, glanced around the spacious, cold apartment, and sat on the single sofa opposite him, with a glass coffee table between them.

He looked at this indeed long‑unseen "friend" before him, inexplicably wanting to light a cigarette, his fingers fumbling for the cigarette case in his pocket.

But thinking of Xie Linzhou's usual dislike of smoke, and following the principle of accommodating the host, he still forced himself to suppress that urge.

"Truly rare," Ren Xian found a topic to start with, "I even thought I'd never have a chance in this life to sit calmly with you and exchange a few words."

Xie Linzhou lifted his eyes to look at him, his gaze lacking warmth: "If you want to be kicked out right away, you can."

Ren Xian narrowed his eyes slightly, unable to tell how much of that was joking and how much serious.

He gathered his casual demeanor somewhat and said, "I'm here to apologize."

"I don't care." Xie Linzhou answered quickly, almost without pause.

Ren Xian blinked, then twitched the corner of his mouth: "Also, you ruined my three best‑performing bars, nearly bankrupting me; this revenge is more than enough."

He shifted the topic: "Have you and Jin Chen laid your cards on the table?"

Xie Linzhou's tone grew colder, quite resistant: "What does this have to do with you…"

Before he could finish those words, he suddenly paused, recalling Jin Chen's frank confession that night—Jin Chen had known Ren Xian longer than he had, and their relationship might not be bad.

Xie Linzhou looked at Ren Xian and sneered: "You and Xie Shao are quite the schemers."

This time Ren Xian fell silent for a few seconds; when he spoke again, his tone carried a rare, not‑so‑feigned sincerity.

"The plan was Xie Shao's idea; I initially… shouldn't I have also considered you a bit?"

He seemed to be reminiscing, his tone somewhat vague: "I just felt that Jin Chen was aloof and cold‑hearted, hard to develop genuine feelings for anyone; I thought even if he agreed, he probably wouldn't really pursue someone, let alone have deep affection… so I recommended him to Xie Shao."

Ren Xian said this and still revealed a hint of self‑mockery: "Who would have thought… he treats you so differently, completely exceeding my expectations."

Xie Linzhou lowered his gaze, looking at the wood grain on the coffee table, and did not respond to that.

"Are you telling me this just to make yourself feel better inside?"

Ren Xian fell silent for a moment.

He took a deep breath, as if giving up something, stood up, and said: "Xie Shao has recently been messed up badly by Jin Chen, frazzled and overwhelmed; he had me come to you to plead… but now it seems useless."

Ren Xian walked to the doorway, hand on the door handle, glanced back at Xie Linzhou once, and said: "Farewell."

Only after leaving the apartment building and getting into the car did Ren Xian pull out a cigarette case from his pocket and light one.

Smoke rose; he leaned back against the chair, recalling why he and Xie Linzhou had become friends in the past.

Probably because back then they were too much alike, both living in a pit of hopeless mud, struggling desperately, trying to shake off the shadow, longing for a bit of pure love.

But unlike him and Xie Linzhou—Xie Linzhou would choose to wait in place, while he would spare no effort to seize an opportunity, such as the former Xie Shao.

It's a pity Xie Shao's acting is too good; he misjudged people.

But there's still… Jin Chen.

Ren Xian stubbed out the cigarette, took out his phone, and replied to Xie Shao with a message.

": No way, he refuses to see me."

——

Xie Linzhou returned to his own apartment for the third day.

South City's rainy season flared up again, the sky overcast, continuous autumn rain falling without cease, moistening the city's entire autumn atmosphere.

A black car slowly pulled up beneath the apartment building.

The wipers scraped back and forth tirelessly on the windshield, the car door opened, and Jin Chen stepped out from under a long‑handled umbrella.

Raindrops struck the umbrella surface, emitting a sound like heated red wine.

Inside the room, Xie Linzhou hugged his knees and curled up on the single sofa.

Outside the window the sky was dim and overcast, casting the interior into unusual gloom.

He had lived here three days, yet seemed unable to infuse this long‑vacant apartment with any liveliness; instead it grew even more desolate.

The phone screen beside him lit up.

Jin Chen: Zhouzhou, come open the door.

Xie Linzhou jumped, his heart inexplicably pounding; he rose and hurried to the window, pulling back a corner of the curtain to look down.

His floor wasn't high, and he could see that familiar black car stopped in the rain.

Given his understanding of Jin Chen, that person was certainly not just sitting calmly in the car waiting; he was probably already standing outside his door at this moment.

But… how would Jin Chen know he lived here?

Xie Linzhou gripped his phone, standing by the window for a long while as rainwater traced winding paths down the glass.

Zhou Zhou: Go back. I'm resting, I don't want to see anyone.

After sending the message, he stared intently at the screen.

Outside the door, Jin Chen slowly narrowed their eyes.

Ling Gun Gun: 【Host, I'm sure he saw the protagonist uke just two days ago.】

Soon, Jin Chen's next message popped up.

Jin Chen: Open the door, be good.

Xie Linzhou: ……

He stared at those words, pressed his hand against his aching brow, and muttered to himself: 'I can't be so useless…'

Three minutes later.

The useless Xie Linzhou twisted open the lock.