He was all alone and had nowhere to go. He had been injured for so long and no one from 14K had come looking for him. His desire to return to 14K had faded. He only thought that once he recovered, he would repay Scribe Hui and Sister Fen daughter, then go and get revenge on that bastard named Handkerchief Qing, and then go back to 14K to beat up those bastards who didn't come to him and those cops who threw him into the sea.
Seeing his pitiful state and lack of lodging, Sister Fen set up a single bed in the back room of the general store, which served as a place for Nine-Tattooed Dragon to stay overnight.
It was from the moment Nine-Tattooed Dragon started living in the shop that Scribe Hui became extremely annoyed with this good-for-nothing.
"Secretary Song said you've recovered most of your injuries. Starting this morning, come with me to collect vegetables and then cross the harbor to deliver them to the Hong Kong Island barracks!" When Scribe Hui saw Nine-Tattooed Dragon yawning as he opened the door, he immediately stepped into the general store first. He carefully checked the lock on the wooden door leading to the second floor and, finding it intact, turned back with relief, pretending to inspect the goods in the store before speaking.
Nine-Tattooed Dragon looked down at his foot, which was still on a single crutch. He was so used to hearing the name "Secretary Song" that he was practically calloused. Whether it was Sister Fen, young Wu Xiu'er, or the Scribe Hui in front of him, they all talked about Secretary Song all the time. He was just curious how Secretary Song knew that his foot injury was mostly healed since he had never even met him. He could only lightly touch the ground with his foot now, and without the crutch, he couldn't even walk a little faster. "Secretary Song? He's never even met me, how does he know that my injury is mostly healed?"
Scribe Hui was taken aback. Of course, Song Tianyao didn't know; it was Master Hui who had told Song Tianyao. However, Scribe Hui stubbornly said, "Of course, I mentioned that you're as strong as an ox, so Secretary Song guessed that you might be mostly recovered."
"I can go with you, Brother Hui, but I can't load or unload the truck right now. My legs are too weak. You haven't told me who hit you yet. I'll help you get revenge." Nine-Tattooed Dragon didn't care at all about Scribe Hui's recent tendency to deliberately find fault with his words. In his eyes, Scribe Hui had already saved his life and was his savior. He didn't care if Master Hui criticized him or even scolded him. Besides, Scribe Hui only said some nonsensical and sarcastic things. When it came to taking care of him, such as fetching water, changing clothes, and changing medicine, he never complained. He even bought meat and vegetables for him every day to improve his meals.
Hearing that Nine-Tattooed Dragon didn't refuse, the Scribe Hui nodded in satisfaction. "You don't need to load or unload. The farmers will load the vegetables onto the truck themselves. You just sit in the truck, and if you see any old women from the countryside arguing with me again, and their sons or grandsons want to beat me up, you're responsible for stepping in and scaring them away."
"No way, you even fight with country grandmas... Are people fighting over vegetables in Hong Kong now?" Nine-Tattooed Dragon wiped the sleep from the corner of his eye, wanting to say that Scribe Hui even quarrels with country grandmas, but he stopped himself halfway through his sentence: "Okay, Brother Hui, but I'm a martial artist, I don't fight with old women like grandmas. I'll only help you if a man attacks you."
"Let's go, get in the car." Scribe Hui called to Nine-Tattooed Dragon and led him out the door.
Nine-Tattooed Dragon didn't rush out. Instead, he walked to the entrance of the stairs leading to the second floor and called out, "Sister Fen, Brother Hui asked me to help deliver the vegetables. I'll help you and Xiu'er go eel fishing when I get back..."
"Bang!" Hearing that Nine-Tattooed Dragon had even run to the stairwell to inform Sister Fen and her daughter, Scribe Hui kicked Nine-Tattooed Dragon in the butt. "Get out of here! You bastard! Fishing for eels! Sister Fen doesn't know better than to buy them herself! If you catch a pound of eels, you'll eat half a pot of rice for lunch, that's five people's worth of food! If this keeps up, you'll bankrupt Jinshan!"
Nine-Tattooed Dragon rubbed his backside, chuckled dismissively, and followed Scribe Hui out of the shop, saying, "It's because I eat so much that I want to go eel fishing. Speaking of food, Brother Hui, is there breakfast included when you deliver the dishes?"
"Eat shit! You're such a foodie!"
Before Song Tianyao even opened his eyes after waking up, his arm instinctively reached out to embrace Meng Wanqing, who had slept next to him the night before, but he found nothing. After opening his eyes and realizing that the bedside was empty, Song Tianyao sat up in bed, lifted the curtains and looked outside. It was bright daylight. He then looked at the alarm clock by the bed; it was just 7:20.
Smelling the aroma of breakfast, Song Tianyao got out of bed, put on his pajamas folded beside the bed, and walked out of the bedroom. He found Meng Wanqing, dressed neatly and working efficiently in the kitchen. Song Tianyao yawned as he walked to the kitchen door and found that Meng Wanqing had prepared a very lavish breakfast. A small pot of porridge was simmering on the gas stove, and a steamer basket was steaming on the burner next to it. At that moment, Meng Wanqing was wearing a blue floral apron and wrapping wontons on the cutting board.
"It seems you were lying to me last night when you begged for forgiveness. Otherwise, how would you have had the energy to get up so early to buy groceries? Aren't you tired?" Song Tianyao asked as he washed his hands by the tap.
Meng Wanqing turned to look at Song Tianyao, who was smiling at her. When she turned to look at him, Song Tianyao deliberately winked and emphasized the words he had used to beg for forgiveness last night. Meng Wanqing turned back to wrapping wontons, saying, "Breakfast will be ready when you come back after washing up."
Song Tianyao dried his hands, rolled up his sleeves, walked to Meng Wanqing's side, and picked up a wonton wrapper from the cutting board. He put in the filling, skillfully wrapped a wonton, and placed it on the cutting board. "Not bad, right? I'm not born into a rich family. When we lived in the Squatter Area, my parents went out to work, and I was responsible for making all three meals a day. Of course, I can make breakfast too."
"When I'm by your side, you don't need to do it." Meng Wanqing smiled as she looked at the wontons Song Tianyao had placed in front of her. "This is something a woman should do."
"Wouldn't it be better for the two of us to make breakfast together and eat it together?" Song Tianyao asked. "Why make so much breakfast?"
Meng Wanqing leaned slightly closer to Song Tianyao, gently snuggling against him. This was one of the few ways she could express intimacy. Watching Song Tianyao make breakfast with her, her eyes sparkled with joy, and her soft voice carried a hint of happiness:
"These are for you to cook as a late-night snack when you get hungry while reading late at night. I'll put them in a well-ventilated spot by the window later, otherwise they'll spoil by tomorrow morning. I've also prepared the soup base for the wontons; remember to add it when you cook them."