I have reminded you again and again.

Zhang Pai said it was troublesome.

Long Xiaole replied, "It's nothing," then added, "Now it's my turn, right?"

"Yes," Zhang Pai said. "Go ahead."

Long Xiaole said, "Before I tell you, you have to promise me something—don't tell anyone. Keep it to yourself."

Zhang Pai took a sip of his drink and said, "You know it's uncomfortable to keep things bottled up; you want to talk to someone, but now you want me to hold it in?"

"I just helped arrange a job for you. In return, what's the harm in keeping this to yourself?" Long Xiaole said.

Zhang Pai replied, "Fine, you're the boss. Say it, I'll keep quiet."

Long Xiaole reminded him again, "We've agreed, right?" Then he continued, "I have two friends, we're pretty close, often drinking together. One of them has been dating a girl for about a year; we've all met her. A few days ago, I went out and saw that girl with my other friend… Do you understand?"

"I do. You have friends A and B, A has a girlfriend C, and one day you saw B and C together," Zhang Pai asked, "What were B and C doing?"

"Checked into a hotel," Long Xiaole said. "When I first saw them, they came out of a restaurant holding hands like a couple."

Zhang Pai asked, "What do you mean by holding hands like a couple?"

"Interlocked fingers," Long Xiaole demonstrated with his hand, then said, "I was afraid I was mistaken, so I followed them. They left the restaurant, drove to the cinema. I hesitated whether to tell my friend, but thought maybe it was a misunderstanding, maybe nothing happened. I don't know if you have friends like this, but it really bothered me, so I kept waiting outside the cinema."

"Finally, when the movie ended, they went to the parking lot, got their car, and headed to a hotel. I waited outside the hotel until two in the morning; they didn't come out, so I figured they wouldn't and went home," Long Xiaole sighed. "When I got home, I couldn't sleep. Damn it, what a rotten situation."

He downed a glass of liquor and continued, "Right now, I'm the only one who knows. I don't know who to tell, or whether I should tell my friend. They have a pretty good relationship… If I say something, their friendship is definitely over. Might even end up in a fight—stabbing someone wouldn't be out of the question. I'm torn. What do you think I should do?"

Hearing Long Xiaole's question, Zhang Pai said, "You really have incredible luck, running into something like this."

"Cut the sarcasm," Long Xiaole said. "What should I do? If I blurt it out, those two will break up, sure, but they'll fight for sure. If someone ends up dead… Damn, why did I have to see it?"

Zhang Pai raised his glass, "You're a good friend. Cheers."

Long Xiaole clinked glasses, "Good friend, my ass. This is killing me. Seriously, if I hadn't told you, in a city this big, I'd have no one to talk to!"

Zhang Pai said, "Aren't you on the provincial team? Go play ball, keep busy, give it some time and you'll forget."

"Provincial team? Haven't you noticed I'm idle every day? I quit the team," Long Xiaole said. "Snooker depends on talent. I spent some time in England, didn't work out. I asked my dad, he said he won't interfere, it's all up to me. I asked for advice, he said it's useless, all depends on what I want."

He laughed, "But my dad's decent. As long as I don't commit crimes, I can do whatever I want, he'll give me money."

Zhang Pai said, "Playing ball is all about practice."

Long Xiaole replied, "I know, I've practiced for seven years. My coach told me to treat it as a hobby. If I really want world rankings, don't waste time at home, go straight to England. But after two years in England, nothing came of it. Honestly, it was a failure."

Zhang Pai asked, "Do you like billiards?"

"Of course I do, I love it. Why else would I practice seven years?" Long Xiaole said. "I don't lack money. If I didn't love it, wouldn't chasing girls be easier? Why spend my days around a billiard table?"

"If you like it, that's enough. Just go for it. Since you don't lack money, play," Zhang Pai said.

Long Xiaole shook his head, "Forget it," then returned to the topic, "So, what should I do?"

Zhang Pai said, "First, stay away from B. Second… stay away from B."

Long Xiaole said he understood, but should he tell his friend?

Zhang Pai said, "Some things, you have to decide for yourself."

Long Xiaole thought it over, "Forget it, it's already rare that you'd listen to me. Thanks." He raised his glass for a toast.

After finishing that drink, Long Xiaole changed the subject, "Tell me about your book?"

"What do you mean?" Zhang Pai asked.

"Your book. That chubby friend of yours said you're living a hard life," Long Xiaole said.

Zhang Pai replied, "That's nonsense. I'm living great."

Long Xiaole laughed, "Your definition of 'great' is pretty simple."

Zhang Pai said, "It has to be great," then paused, "No matter what state you're in, remember, everything is your own choice, no one forces you, so you must be happy."

Long Xiaole said, "If you insist, fine, you're living well." Then he asked, "Have you sold out your books?"

"No," Zhang Pai said. "I reckon even after I'm dead, they won't sell out."

Long Xiaole said, "That's not true. As long as you keep writing, once you're famous, even if your books are crap, they'll sell out easily."

Zhang Pai nodded, "I get it. You're saying my books are crap."

Long Xiaole hurried to deny it, "I was just saying. Don't let your imagination run wild."

"Don't you know sensitive people are fragile?" Zhang Pai said.

"You fragile? Doesn't show at all," Long Xiaole said. "Let's drink. Order whatever you want."

Zhang Pai said, "We're almost done eating, and you only now remember to let me order?"

"Go ahead, order anything, we can pack it up," Long Xiaole said.

Zhang Pai thought for a moment, "Then I won't be polite."

"I wasn't polite to you, don't be fake. I hate people who act fake. If you act like that all the time, go wherever you want, I can't deal with it," Long Xiaole said.

Zhang Pai replied, "Alright." He called the waiter over, "Fifty small skewers, fifty large, five squid, five yellow croaker, that's it."

Long Xiaole asked, "Is that enough?"

"It's enough," Zhang Pai raised his glass, "Thanks."

"Don't be too polite," Long Xiaole said. "If you ever have something troubling you that you can't tell anyone, you can come to me."

Zhang Pai said, "I don't really have anything I can't tell others."

"You look so serious when you brag," Long Xiaole laughed.

Zhang Pai chuckled too, "Anyway, I have to thank you today for helping my friend find a job."

"It's nothing," Long Xiaole said. "I'm still undecided about my future."

Zhang Pai interrupted, "Speak normally."

Long Xiaole laughed, then said, "I'm done with billiards, need to find something to do. Don't want to work with my dad. What do you think would be good?"

"Besides billiards, what do you like?" Zhang Pai asked.

"Cars," Long Xiaole replied.

"Other than cars?" Zhang Pai pressed.

"Women," Long Xiaole said. "No, women come before cars."

Zhang Pai sighed, "No matter which comes first, you can't open a hair salon, nor a garage. Any other hobbies?"

"A garage? That's pretty creative. I could open a dealership," Long Xiaole said.

Zhang Pai said, "It's not bad, but there's no need to invest so much up front. Start small, test the waters, mainly learn to deal with people. You'll meet all kinds—police, prosecutors, tax officials, government, everyone. Get some experience, so you won't get taken advantage of later."

Long Xiaole said, "Makes sense. Start small. What do you think I should do?"

Zhang Pai said, "If I knew, would I be struggling so much?"

"True," Long Xiaole thought aloud. "Let's drink and worry about it later."

So they drank, finishing a dozen beers. Long Xiaole was a bit wobbly when he left by taxi after paying. Zhang Pai took the packed skewers home.

Sure enough, the five monkeys hadn't slept yet, gathered together bragging. Being broke, two bags of peanuts and a bottle of spirits counted as drinking.

Zhang Pai handed over the skewers, "What are you talking about?"

"Can't focus on studying, so we're drinking," Old Pi took the skewers, "Brother, you're the best."

Zhang Pai said, "Don't rush to flatter me. Wait until after the monthly exam."

Old Pi said, "The exam is the exam, now is now." He tore open the bag and laid out the skewers.

Zhang Pai said, "Remember to return the skewers tomorrow."

Old Pi agreed, then asked, "What meat should we buy tomorrow?"

"Beef, lamb, chicken wings, and pickles. Get some cucumbers to smash, peanuts to fry, or just buy five-spice ones. Anything else you want?"

"With more than forty people together, what we eat isn't the issue," Old Pi said.

Zhang Pai agreed, stood up, "Go to bed early," and went to his room.

Six beers in, his head was spinning. He didn't turn on the light, just pulled a chair to sit by the window, looking out into the dark world, though there were always plenty of lights. After a while, he got up and went to bed.

The next day, the first thing at school was to announce a lunch gathering. The students were delighted and liked their homeroom teacher more and more.

He'd been homeroom teacher for only half a month, already led the students in three brawls, grilled meat once, and now again. And in the near future, there'd be more barbecues. Where could you find such a good teacher? Best of all, he didn't force them to study; just showing up every day was enough.

Checking the time, Zhang Pai told them to study well, then took his laptop to the office.

Saturday, Luo Shengnan had no class, so she didn't come. Zhang Pai had the big office to himself, typing intently. He wrote until it was time for Chinese class.

He saved the document, shut down the computer, grabbed his textbook, and headed downstairs.

Yesterday, Da Niu's fight had sparked an idea, and Old Pi's dinner issues made him want to pursue it further. He needed to find the students' weak spots—whether for encouragement or threat—so that, ultimately, the kids would learn.