Lily (Part 1)

Just like that, the three of us marched resolutely down the path of anti-humanity and anti-society...

—Lingjing's Diary

As the saying went: a wife was not as good as a concubine, a concubine was not as good as a secret affair, and a secret affair was not as good as one that remained out of reach.

The principle was the same. Skipping class was always more thrilling and fun than having a vacation. Especially when all three of them had rebellious streaks buried deep in their bones, that thrill multiplied several times over. So when they climbed over the wall on one side of the campus, even Jiaming, who usually just went along with the crowd, let out a heartfelt cheer. Naturally, Lingjing and Huaisha cheered even more enthusiastically.

It was only a little past nine in the morning. After leaving the school grounds, the three headed from shop to shop. Of the three children, Huaisha's family was the wealthiest. Over the past few months, the Sand Bamboo Gang had been expanding its territory, and Huaisha's father was often away from home. After discussing it, the three decided to spend their entire day of truancy at Huaisha's house. After all, Jiaming basically had no standing in the Huang Family, while Lingjing had always acted like a good girl. Huaisha's home was naturally the best choice.

The two girls ran laughing ahead of him, darting back and forth between the counters of one shop after another. By the end of the morning, the three of them were carrying bags in both hands. Huaisha had paid for almost everything: two outfits and a pair of shoes for herself, a floral dress for Lingjing, a huge pile of videotapes, game cartridges, comic books, and even several pretty down pillows bought on a whim. There were also heaps of vegetables and fruit, pork, beef, and several pounds of rice. Clearly, the two girls had treated the whole thing as nothing more than playing house. In truth, that was exactly what it was.

Huaisha's villa stood halfway up a seaside mountain east of Jianghai City. The area was widely recognized as the city's wealthy district. But precisely because everyone living nearby was either rich or powerful, it was far from the territory controlled by the Sand Bamboo Gang. As a result, after buying the villa, Huaisha's father rarely lived there. Since it was too far from school, Huaisha generally did not stay there either, instead following her father around at the Sand Bamboo Gang headquarters.

The three took a bus across the river via the bridge, then prepared to transfer. As they passed beneath the bridge, Jiaming suddenly spotted two somewhat familiar figures. They were the mother and daughter from early that morning. He had assumed they would return home after the assassin had been dealt with, but they were now huddled beneath the bridge pier, where usually only homeless people gathered, dressed in nothing but thin pajamas.

The blonde mother held the delicately carved-looking mixed-race little girl in her arms, sitting there silently as though she were dead. Jianghai City was a major coastal city, so foreigners were not uncommon. Still, a mother and daughter sitting here in pajamas were bound to draw attention. Lingjing and Huaisha could not help glancing at them a few more times, guessing at their identities and circumstances. But when Jiaming looked over at them appraisingly, the little girl seemed to recognize him. She broke free from her mother's embrace, clasped her hands before her chest, and hesitantly walked over.

The little girl had neat black hair that covered her ears, her eyes brimming with tears. She wore pale yellow fleece pajamas, beneath which were adorable bare feet as pink and tender as lotus roots. It was only March, and a little girl walking barefoot in thin pajamas looked both cute and pitiful. Jiaming felt a headache coming on. The blonde mother had not recognized him, but this little girl had somehow noticed him through instinct. Though she probably was not certain either, seeing her approach with such a pitiful expression while timidly calling in English, "Brother, brother..." Jiaming knew trouble was coming.

Now that they were in middle school, Lingjing and Huaisha could understand simple English words. Though they were slightly dissatisfied that the little girl only called Jiaming "brother" and not them "sister," they still felt sympathy for the mixed-race girl, who was only around ten. After a brief discussion, they took out the two outfits and shoes they had bought that day, along with several pieces of bread, and stuffed them into the little girl's hands. Lingjing said in stiff English, "For... you..."

"Sir... help..." As she accepted what the two girls handed her, the little girl cried and spoke to Jiaming in a soft voice. Seeing her keep looking at him, the two girls were puzzled for a while. In the end, Huaisha took out almost all the money she had left and gave it to the little girl before they boarded the bus. There was not much left after buying so many things, but it was enough to let them eat well for a few meals.

Though they sympathized with her, neither girl had considered taking the little girl and her mother home with them. Even kindness had its limits. As for the little girl, under Jiaming's baffled expression from beginning to end, she finally began to feel that she might have mistaken him for someone else. With tears in her eyes, she watched the three leave.

Though they felt sorry for them, they were ultimately two strangers, and they had already done their duty as good people. Before long, the two girls' spirits rose again. After transferring buses, the three got off at a stop called Hillside. Looking out, they saw magnificent Western-style buildings with red roofs and white walls scattered amid lush green mountains. A quiet, clean road wound upward along the slope. To their right, a crescent-shaped coastline stretched away beside the mountain. The sea breeze was refreshing and soothing. It was Jiaming and Lingjing's first time at Huaisha's home.

After Huaisha showed her identification, the three children entered through a heavily guarded gate on one side of the residential complex. It was a two-story villa halfway up the mountain, with a beautiful swimming pool in the small courtyard. It looked lavish and grand. After opening the door, Huaisha magically announced, "Now this place is our territory!"

Afterward, Lingjing made a phone call from there and told her parents she would not be coming home that day. The three washed rice and cooked a meal. The villa, which had been silent for several months, became lively again. That afternoon, Lingjing and Huaisha curled up on the living room sofa to watch videos and play games, while Jiaming used the computer in the room that served as a study.

It was called a study, but the computer was really just decoration. Huaisha's father did not understand such things at all. Still, in terms of hardware, it was unquestionably top-of-the-line. By the 2010s, hacking skills had practically been mandatory for an outstanding assassin. Once Jiaming adjusted to the outdated DOS operating system, he tried breaking into a few small websites. By the time he regained the feeling that his skills had not dulled, it was already close to evening. During that time, the two girls took turns coming in to look at him several times, each wearing a completely baffled expression.

After dinner, Jiaming started the already installed game "Richman" on the computer, and the three played together. The two girls, who were trying computer games for the first time, immediately became hooked. But girls generally had no talent for games. Lingjing only knew to buy land properly, and after buying cards, she could never bear to use them. Huaisha, always violent, was obsessed with messing with people, tossing bombs and sabotage cards everywhere. Before long, Jiaming had driven both of them into bankruptcy. Then feathers flew all over the room as the two girls grabbed pillows and launched a brutal pursuit of Jiaming.

In the following rounds, the two girls joined forces against Jiaming, but they still usually ended up battered and disheveled. The three chased each other around with pillows, while the excited shrieks of the two girls rang out from time to time.

Though the game was fun, neither Jiaming nor Lingjing had a habit of staying up late. At a little past ten, the three shut down the computer and prepared for bed. It was also that night that something happened which would, to a great extent, determine the ambiguous relationship between the three of them afterward.

The cause of it all was a small object.

That night, Jiaming was assigned to sleep in Huaisha's old room, while the two girls chose to share the large bed in Huaisha's father's room. After bathing and changing into thin pajamas, the two sweet-smelling girls habitually roughhoused on the bed for a while. Then Lingjing discovered an interesting little plastic packet beneath the blanket. The packet was square, with a circular object inside.

Then, with the spirit of seeking knowledge without shame, Lingjing sincerely asked Teacher Huaisha what the thing was for.

"Oh? This thing? Mm, it's a condom. It's pretty common." Rarely getting a chance to show off her knowledge before Lingjing, Huaisha's cheeks reddened slightly. Still, she put on a composed act and explained it.

Dear readers, you had to understand that in 1995, all of China was still very innocent. Innocent in the same way as a condom that had been sterilized, vacuum-packed, and labeled: Swollen package, do not consume. Shasha did not understand much either. After a discreet explanation, Lingjing only shook her head, even more confused. To seize this rare chance to display her vast learning, Shasha began rummaging through the room. At last, she found several mysterious videotapes and prepared to give Lingjing a more objective explanation.

"Heh heh, Dad thought I didn't know about these, but I still found them. Lingjing, these are really interesting... la la la la..."

After happily showing off, Shasha remembered that her father's room had a VCR and television, so there was no need to go to the living room. After closing the doors and windows and turning off the lights, the television soon showed two naked, busty Western women moaning and writhing.

Spring nights were still somewhat cold. Beneath the blanket, the two studious girls clung to each other and stared at the television screen, neither daring to speak. Soon, their breathing began to quicken, and before they realized it, their bodies had grown somewhat hot...