Chapter 1.1
The rainshower in the June month had made the entire city sultry, leaving the air heavy and the ground slick with moisture.
“Our bodies, hair, and skin are gifts from our parents. We should cherish and protect them; this is the essence of filial piety.:
Seated at a table, a girl spoke softly. ”I advise you to reconsider; you may regret getting this tattoo.”
Located opposite Pingchuan University, this tattoo shop attracted many college students. Most visitors, however, did not go for tattoos but for the owner, Xu Zhinan.
The wooden signboard at the entrance of the tattoo shop merely had a simple “Tattoo” written on it, lacking any formal shop name.
The shop’s interior embraced a dark theme, dominated by shades of grey, white, and black. Totemic figures adorned the walls. One of the walls was dedicated to display an array of CDs. A sofa bed was strewn with miscellaneous items. A shelf stocked with tattoo pigments and sealed coil rotary tattoo machines flanked the work desk. Thick books lined another shelf nearby.
The interior exuded a bold, unapologetically masculine ambiance starkly contrasting with the shop’s owner.
Xu Zhinan is stunningly beautiful, her most notable feature being her purity, effortlessly blending the allure of beauty with an air of innocence.
Her high ponytail and petite face accentuate her bright, doe-like eyes and fair complexion. Clad in a simple cotton dress, she revealed a gracefully slender neck and perfectly straight legs.
Before her lay a request from a young man seated across, asking for a tattoo of her own name, Xu Zhinan, on his shoulder. The chosen font was exquisitely elegant.
Yet another customer had arrived to flirt under the guise of getting a tattoo
The boy was an athlete with well-defined muscles. After listening to her recite, “The body, hair, and skin are all received from our parents,” as if it were an incantation, then chuckled , whilst slouching in the chair opposite her.
“Hey, I’m serious. How can you turn down a paying customer?”
Xu Zhinan lifted her gaze to meet his, her reminder stern. “This is my name.”
Her voice was soft and clear, and her eyes, slightly upturned, held an inexplicable allure.
The boy faltered, momentarily taken aback, before awkwardly averting his gaze and coughing. “But that’s exactly what I want inked.”
“…”
“Senior, I really admire you! This tattoo is my way of expressing my feelings for you!” he exclaimed passionately, swept up in his own emotions.
Xu Zhinan’s expression remained unchanged. She rose, poured herself a glass of water, and then returned to the wooden table. “I won’t tattoo this for you. If you insist, find another shop.”
Her refusal was unequivocal: “Get it done if you must, but not by me.”
It was a reply both cold and uncompromising.
Yet, her countenance remained serene and sincere, diffusing his potential anger like a firecracker failing to ignite.
The boy departed feeling aggrieved.
The wind chime at the entrance of the tattoo shop tinkled again. Just as the boy departed, a girl stepped inside.
Zhao Qian whistled. “A’ Nan, wasn’t that big guy who just left our junior? Why did he come here this time?”
Zhao Qian and Xu Zhinan were roommates, now in their third year. From what Zhao Qian knew, that big guy was a year younger than them and had been ardently pursuing Xu Zhinan for the past year.
“Tattoo.”
Zhao Qian raised an eyebrow, “Did he get it?”
“No,” Xu Zhinan sighed wearily. “He wanted my name tattooed”
“Whoa,” Zhao Qian exclaimed, giving a thumbs up. “That’s something. Seems clumsy but appears to be bold in his actions.”
Xu Zhinan couldn’t help but lightly slap her. “Clumsy in actions too.”
Zhao Qian seldomly heard her say such things. Not to mention, with her face, such words had a kind of indescribable sense of discordance, prompting her to burst into laughter and collapse onto the sofa.
Xu Zhinan silently returned to her seat and resumed designing a custom tattoo sent to her by a client via WeChat. Once Zhao Qian had recovered from her fit of laughter and composed herself, Xu Zhinan inquired, “What brings you to my shop?”
“Just bored,” Zhao Qian replied nonchalantly, grabbing a can of Coke from the mini-fridge. She chugged half of it down and let out a satisfied “ah.”
“Oh, by the way, want to hit the bar tonight?”
Xu Zhinan paused, her pen momentarily halting in mid-air as she looked up. “Why go to the bar?”
“I heard Lin Qingye might be there tonight. Have you heard the rumors that his band might be disbanding? He’s graduating soon and supposedly planning to enter the entertainment industry.”
Zhao Qian emphatically slapped the sofa. “Once he becomes a sensation in the entertainment industry, we won’t even have a chance to see him! It’s a rare opportunity!”
Xu Zhinan furrowed her brows slightly, deep in thought.
Zhao Qian playfully grabbed her hand, coaxing, “Come on, join me.”
“What about Jiang Yue?”
“She’s preparing for the postgraduate entrance exam, buried in the library every day. She won’t come out.”
Finally, Xu Zhinan relented.
At Pingchuan University, two legends stood out.
One was Xu Zhinan, One was Xu Zhinan, celebrated for her breathtaking beauty, widely touted as “Pingchuan’s Light.” As the campus belle majoring in art and design, her status soared further when she opened her off-campus tattoo studio. Her ethereal appearance sharply contrasted with her shop’s edgy vibe.
The other legend was Lin Qingye.
However, these two legends were in different leagues. Lin Qingye was the true icon of Pingchuan University.
At 16, he formed a band; at 18, he won a Golden Melody Award. Despite his immense talent, he had no desire to enter the entertainment industry, preferring to perform in bars. Nevertheless, his fanbase continued to grow unabated.
As the semester’s end approached, business slowed at the tattoo shop.
After finalizing a tattoo design and confirming the client’s approval, Xu Zhinan scheduled an appointment. She quickly tidied up before heading out with Zhao Qian.
The sky had darkened by then.
