After the breakup, I was taken in by a group of trendy young women.

Bai Jie sent a message.

"Mr. Lin, Li Hao wants another match. He said he was dissatisfied with his loss last time and wants to win this time. The stakes are still that car—if he wins, the Fluorescent Purple Ghost Fire will be returned to him. If he loses, he will never bother you again."

Lin Ye turned his phone screen towards Huang Mao.

The blond-haired girl was playing video games at the other end of the sofa, the hem of her cartoon nightgown rolled up to her thighs. She glanced at the screen, tossed her phone onto the sofa cushion, and sat up.

"Let's compete! If we could beat him last time, we can beat him again this time!"

Lin Ye picked up his phone and replied with three words: "Okay. Same place."

Bai Jie replied instantly: "See you at the bridge pier tomorrow at 3 PM."

---

2:30 pm the next day.

The area under the bridge pier was even more lively than last time. Old tires were neatly stacked to form the edge of the track, and colorful balloons were tied to the barriers, which were being blown about by the draft.

Ash crouched by the track, using a wrench to give the yellow-haired boy's pink Will-O-Wisp a final check.

He had a wrench tucked into his waistband and a lollipop in his mouth, which Xiaoyu had given him to tell him to smoke less.

With his tattooed arm leaning against his black motorcycle, the tattooed legs had already started a live stream. He lowered his voice and spoke rapidly into the phone: "Guys, today Huang Mao and Li Hao are having their second match. If you win, you keep the car; if you lose, you return it."

Green Hair and Pink Hair squatted on the old tires, each holding a hand-painted flag.

Qi Liuhai sat on a folding chair, holding Wangcai. Shen Qing and Shen Na stood side by side next to a folding table, on which sat a hand-drip coffee pot and disposable paper cups.

The roar of engines could be heard from the entrance of the venue.

Li Hao's fluorescent purple ghost fire car turned in from the end of the dirt road. All the stickers on the car body were torn off and replaced with a matte black paint job. The wheel hub lights were also changed from purple to red.

Li Bin followed behind him, straddling a black ghost fire, the two blue dragons on his arms gleaming with a murky yellow light in the sunlight.

Bai Jie stepped out of the pink BMW MINI, her chestnut-colored wavy hair tied in a low ponytail, and she wore no makeup.

She walked to the edge of the track, not approaching Lin Ye, but standing quietly next to Li Bin and Li Hao. She nodded slightly to Lin Ye, saying, "I'm just here to be a witness."

The blond-haired guy hopped on the pink ghost bike, turned to look at Li Hao, and said, "Last time you lost and left your car behind. This time you lost, and your brother has to leave his car behind too. You dare?"

Li Hao twisted the accelerator: "You dare! You were lucky last time!"

Xiao Zhi squatted by the track and whispered to Xiao Yu, "I modified that car—I ground the engine cylinder head, replaced the air filter with a high-flow one, and installed ceramic brake pads. If he wins, I'll take half the credit. If he loses, it's none of my business."

"Does your brother know?"

"I know. Like I said, modifying cars is a business, racing is a competition, they're two different things."

Just then, footsteps sounded again at the entrance of the venue.

Wang Xiaoying and Chen Man walked in side by side.

Wang Xiaoying wore a beige T-shirt and dark gray yoga pants, with her hair tied in a high ponytail; Chen Man wore a light blue cotton-linen shirt and khaki shorts, and her eyes behind her frameless glasses were surprisingly bright.

They stood under the bridge pier, looking up at the beams of light filtering through the steel frame overhead, at the racetrack made of discarded tires, and at the balloons on the roadblocks.

The blond-haired man jumped off the will-o'-the-wisp and ran over, shouting, "Sister Wang! Sister Chen Man! What brings you here!"

Chen Man pushed up her glasses, a hint of excitement in her voice: "When I used to sell phones at a mobile phone store, I dreamed of coming here at least once. Today I can finally come."

Wang Xiaoying nodded in agreement: "I've only seen it on live streams before. I finished all the paperwork today, so I have some free time."

The tattooed man stepped off the black ghost fire and patted each of them on the shoulder: "Welcome to the Mars Caravan's home turf."

Ash, with his fluorescent green rooster-like hair, held the wrench high above his head.

All eyes under the bridge pier were focused on his thin, bony wrist, which was covered in engine oil.

The blond-haired man's thumb rested on the accelerator button, his knuckles turning slightly white.

Li Hao twisted the accelerator, and the red wheel hub lights turned into a dazzling arc of light on the starting line.

The wrench was suddenly swung downwards.

Lin Ye leaned against a pile of old tires under the bridge pier, crossed his legs, and swung his canvas shoes around a couple of times.

He took the cigarette out of his mouth and flicked off the ash.

"If you don't want to wait, then get out."

Li Bin stood opposite him, the blue dragon on his arm twisting slightly with the twitching of his jaw muscles, and the gold chain around his neck reflecting a murky yellow light in the dim light under the bridge pier.

The guys behind him, wearing tight pants and loafers, took a half step forward at the same time, only to be pinned back to their spots by Lin Ye's gaze.

"My brother's car"

"Your brother's car is on the racetrack."

Lin Ye interrupted him, put the cigarette back in his mouth, and pointed his thumb toward the race track.

On the track, Huang Mao's pink ghost fire was pressing the accelerator button at the entrance point of the first hairpin bend.

The pink will-o'-the-wisp tires screeched sharply on the concrete, and the wheel hub lights drew a perfect crescent-shaped arc of light at the apex of the bend.

The cornering angle was even more tricky than last time, and the car body was less than five centimeters away from the edge of the pile of old tires.

"Hold!"

With his tattooed arm, he lay on the road barrier beside the track, his fists clenched, the koi fish on his arm taut with every scale stretched taut.

Her tongue piercing flashed between her lips several times before she managed to squeeze out a complete sentence: "After this girl went back last time, she practiced by watching videos on Xiao Zhi's phone for a whole month! She got up at six every morning to practice! She practiced until her fingers cramped! Now she can do that hairpin bend with her eyes closed!"

Ash crouched by the track, a wrench in his hand, his fluorescent green rooster-like hair bobbing in rhythm with the yellow-haired guy's cornering.

Xiaoyu next to him took the lollipop out of her mouth, her gray ponytail swaying gently in the breeze, her eyes wide open.

"She eased off the throttle for half a second before entering the corner."

Xiao Zhi's voice was very low, as if he were commentating on an F1 race.

"Leaning out for half a second is to adjust the car's center of gravity, allowing the rear wheels to gain more grip at the apex of the corner. Professional drivers use this trick in the rain, but she dares to use it on dry ground."

Li Hao's matte black Ghost Fire was pulled two car lengths ahead at the first bend.

He gritted his teeth, twisted the accelerator to its limit, and the modified fuel engine roared like tearing silk, spewing out a cloud of black smoke that hadn't been completely burned.

The red wheel hub light strip was frantically closing in on the straight, but the yellow-haired guy's pink ghost fire was already prepared at the entrance point of the second S-shaped continuous bend. First, it cut the edge of the roadblock at the right apex of the bend, and then immediately reversed the steering wheel to cut into the pile of old tires at the left apex of the bend.

The rear of the car swayed slightly at the exit of the corner, and the wheel hub lights sparked a small string of sparks.

Then the pink will-o'-the-wisp shot out like a wild horse.

"Four cars were pulled apart in a row on the bend!"

Flower Legs was live-streaming on her phone, the camera following the pink streak of light; her voice was already slurred.

"Did you guys see that?! That series of corners! She's using a pro driver's line! Outside, inside, outside! She cuts the apex of every corner exactly the same!"

Green Hair and Pink Hair squatted on the old tires, each holding a hand-painted flag.

They jumped up at the same time, waving their little flags like propellers, and shouted in unison the words that made Li Bin's face turn ashen: "Sister Yellow Hair is awesome! The Mars Team will win!"