1985, the year of the great writer, began with Infernal Affairs!

"When? When what? In the modern era?" Chu Yunfei raised his eyebrows high, staring at Xie Lu. "Fourth brother, you wouldn't happen to be the author of Infernal Affairs, would you?"

Zhou Wenbin pushed up his glasses, his eyes widening: "Attorney Xie, you really submitted a manuscript?"

Xie Lu's heart skipped a beat.

Zhao Wanwan just blurted it out, but she didn't expect the three of them to react so strongly.

He quickly laughed it off: "I was bored after the college entrance exam, so I tried writing an article, submitted it, and it was rejected after only half a month."

That's half true and half false.

The truth is that he did submit the article, but the false part is that it was rejected.

Not only was he not rejected, but he also received a 600 yuan fee for his writing.

Chu Yunfei asked with a hint of skepticism, "What kind of subject matter?"

Xie Lu casually made up a story: "A rural theme, about our village's reform and opening up, that's not very interesting."

Zhou Wenbin said "Oh," somewhat disappointed: "I thought it would be something like Infernal Affairs."

"I don't have that level of skill," Xie Lu said with a smile. "If I could write something like Infernal Affairs, why would I be a student? I'd be your teacher."

Chen Xiangdong nodded: "That's true. I'm afraid even our school's teachers can't compare to someone who can write at the level of Infernal Affairs."

Chu Yunfei thought about it and agreed that it made sense.

Although Xie Lu appears composed, he is only eighteen years old after all, so it is indeed unlikely that he could write something as profound as Infernal Affairs.

"But it's quite impressive that you can submit your work." Chu Yunfei patted Xie Lu on the shoulder. "Keep up the good work, and maybe one day you'll pass the test. When that happens, we'll all have to call you Writer Xie."

"Thank you for your kind words."

Zhao Wanwan listened from the side, regretting that she had almost said the wrong thing.

Hearing Xie Lu laugh it off, she breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that she had almost let something slip.

She stuck out her tongue shyly and lowered her head to pick at the rice in her bowl.

The topic veered off course like that.

The five continued eating. They talked about the courses at Wuhan University, their respective majors, and their expectations for university life.

The atmosphere became lively again.

After finishing his meal, Xie Lu went to the counter to pay the bill.

The proprietress calculated: "Three yuan and two jiao, three yuan will do."

Xie Lu took out three one-yuan bills and handed them over.

"Come again often." At this moment, the boss also came out of the kitchen and said to Xie Lu and his group of five with a smile, together with the boss's wife.

"Yes."

Stepping out of the restaurant, the sun was blazing.

There weren't many pedestrians on the street, only a few bicycles rattling by.

The leaves of the sycamore tree swayed weakly in the hot wind.

Chen Xiangdong glanced at the sky and said, "The three of us will head back first. Fourth brother, you see your classmate off."

Chu Yunfei nodded in agreement: "Yes, yes, let's see them off. They've come all this way, we need to get them back safely."

Xie Lu knew they were deliberately giving him and Zhao Wanwan some space, so he didn't refuse: "Okay, then I'll take her to catch her ride."

Chen Xiangdong and the other two left first.

Before leaving, Chu Yunfei winked at Xie Lu and mouthed "Go for it!"

Xie Lu rolled his eyes at him.

After the three walked away, Xie Lu and Zhao Wanwan walked side by side toward the bus stop.

It was afternoon, and the streets were quiet.

The sunlight cast their shadows on the ground, very close together.

"I'm sorry about earlier," Zhao Wanwan said softly, feeling a little guilty. "I almost let it slip."

"It's alright, they'll find out sooner or later, it's just too early to say anything now."

Why?

"Just think about it, with Chu Yunfei's personality, if he knew I wrote 'Infernal Affairs,' wouldn't he be pestering me for the second half every day? Would I ever have a peaceful day?"

Zhao Wanwan thought for a moment and smiled: "That's true, he seems quite lively."

"Too lively."

After walking for a while, Zhao Wanwan suddenly remembered something, her eyes lighting up: "By the way, Xie Lu, did you know that your novel 'Infernal Affairs' is incredibly popular right now!"

"Oh?" Xie Lu pretended not to know. "What kind of fire technique?"

"All three of my roommates are die-hard fans of Infernal Affairs!"

"They've been discussing what will happen to Chen Yongren and Liu Jianming these past two days. They even had a fight yesterday about Inspector Huang's death!"

"And it wasn't just in our dorm; the whole East China Normal University was talking about it. A lot of people went to buy 'Contemporary' magazine just to watch 'Infernal Affairs,' but unfortunately it sold out too quickly, and many people couldn't buy it."

Xie Lu was actually quite happy to hear this.

The greatest satisfaction for any author is to have their work appreciated.

But he still maintained a nonchalant expression: "Really? That's good."

"What do you mean by 'pretty good'?" Zhao Wanwan looked at him. "This is fantastic! Xie Lu, you're really amazing!"

Her eyes sparkled as she said this, filled with adoration.

Xie Lu felt a little embarrassed by her gaze and changed the subject: "Where are you looking?"

"Seeing Officer Wong sacrifice himself made me so sad. What will happen to Chen Yongren? What will become of him?"

"Things will get better later."

"How did you know?" Zhao Wanwan asked, then suddenly realized that Xie Lu was the author of Infernal Affairs. If Xie Lu didn't know, then who else would?

Realizing what she'd done, Zhao Wanwan was a little embarrassed by her own stupidity: "By the way, have you finished writing the second half?"

"Finished writing."

"Can I see it?" Zhao Wanwan looked at him pleadingly, like a kitten begging for food. "Please, I really want to see it."

Xie Lu looked at her pitiful little eyes and his heart softened.

But he did not keep a copy; he had sent the entire 80,000-word manuscript he had written to He Chongshan.

"The manuscript has already been sent to Kyoto, and I don't have it here right now."

"Ah." Zhao Wanwan lowered her head in disappointment. "Then...when will it be published?"

"Next time, given this level of popularity, as long as they don't cause any trouble, they'll definitely follow suit next time."

Zhao Wanwan sighed, "We still have to wait another month. It's too agonizing."

Xie Lu laughed: "Good things come to those who wait, let's wait a little longer."

The two walked to the bus stop.

The bus stop sign was made of iron and painted green, with the station name and route written on it in white. There were only two or three people waiting for the bus.

Zhao Wanwan looked at the bus stop sign, then at Xie Lu.

"Attorney Xie, thank you for treating us today."

"Don't mention it."

Zhao Wanwan looked up at Xie Lu with a very serious expression and said, "I'm not just being polite, I'm saying thank you for introducing me to your roommates, they are all good people."

"Yes, they're all good people."

The car is coming.

It was an old-fashioned green bus with mottled rust on its body.

The door opened, and Zhao Wanwan, who had just gotten into the car, turned around.

Xie Lu was still standing under the platform.

"Lawyer Xie!" she called out.

Xie Lu looked up at her.

"You're really amazing!" Zhao Wanwan blushed as soon as she finished speaking and quickly turned away.

The car door closed, and the car drove away.

Xie Lu stood there, watching the bus drive away and disappear around the street corner.

He smiled, turned around, and walked back.

When I got back to the dormitory, the door was ajar.