Food Desert

Unbeknownst to him, it was already eleven-thirty at night, and the next day was fast approaching.

After bidding each other goodnight, Luo Ye scrolled through his chat history and realized he had exchanged hundreds of messages with his senior sister that evening.

Looking at these messages, Luo Ye felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction welling up inside him.

Soon, Luo Ye fell asleep.

During his seven-day holiday, he had planned to add extra chapters to his novel, as everyone else was on vacation and would have time to relax with a book.

But now, his heart was entirely focused on Fairy Senior Sister, leaving him no mind for his novel. However, he couldn't completely neglect it, so he decided to stick to the minimum daily word count.

For Luo Ye, whose typing speed was that of an eighteen-year-old who had been single for eighteen years, a baseline of four to six thousand characters was a piece of cake.

Soon, Luo Ye fell asleep.

The next morning, he opened his eyes on the large bed in the hotel room and began to wash up with a bewildered expression.

Looking at himself in the mirror, Luo Ye asked himself the ultimate questions.

Where am I?

What am I doing?

Oh, right. I'm in Hangcheng, because Senior Sister's home is in this city.

After washing up, Luo Ye decided to visit some of Hangcheng's more famous attractions.

Although the city wasn't very large and didn't have many places to visit, it was a very interesting city.

This was because the city had a lot of internet celebrities, and on some popular pedestrian streets, you could see influencers holding phone stands and live-streaming every few steps.

As a result, this city was a breeding ground for handsome men and beautiful women.

Luo Ye went out for breakfast and then prepared to start writing for the day.

He would write in the morning and sightsee in the afternoon.

However, the first thing he did after waking up was to send a good morning message to Fairy Senior Sister.

Su Baizhou replied with a picture.

The picture showed the window of a high-speed train, indicating that Su Baizhou was already on her way home.

Luo Ye would not go to the train station to pick her up.

He felt it would be inappropriate to cling to a member of the opposite sex like that, even if it was the girl he liked.

Moreover, Senior Sister didn't know he was in Hangcheng. If he went to the station to pick her up, it would likely be unwelcome.

It was enough that he was there when Senior Sister needed him.

So, the question was, what should he eat today in this culinary desert?

Luo Ye began searching online for Hangcheng's famous foods and eventually landed on something he had never heard of before.

Longjing... hotpot?

Interesting, very interesting.

Do they have cola hotpot? Baijiu hotpot?

Luo Ye finished writing his daily update in the morning and headed straight to the hotpot restaurant that served Longjing.

Meanwhile, Su Baizhou had already arrived home.

About fifteen kilometers from the center of Hangcheng, there was a residential complex that, while not particularly high-end, looked quite beautiful.

Su Baizhou returned to her doorstep with practiced ease.

Looking at the door in front of her, she hesitated for a moment before inserting her key into the lock.

But soon, she froze, because the key wouldn't open her own door.

She became confused and called her mother on her phone, but the call didn't go through.

Did they change the locks at home?

At this moment, the neighbor from across the hall heard the commotion outside. An old woman opened her door, saw Su Baizhou, and smiled kindly, saying, "Oh, Zhouzhou's back. Would you like to come over to Grandma's for a bit?"

Grandma Liu had a very good personality and had watched Su Baizhou grow up, so Su Baizhou felt a sense of closeness towards her.

Su Baizhou went to Grandma Liu's home.

Although it was a holiday, Grandma Liu's children were not home. There was only her granddaughter, about four years old, eating snacks in the room.

Su Baizhou sat on the sofa, and Grandma Liu poured her a cup of tea before saying, "Zhouzhou, your parents' relationship has been getting worse and worse lately. Last month, after you started school, your father came home late after drinking. Your mother wasn't feeling well and didn't hear him knocking when she was asleep... So your father kicked the door open. Tell me, why do they have to live like this when they're family?"

Hearing this, Su Baizhou's expression turned worried, and she couldn't help but ask, "Grandma Liu, where's my mom?"

Grandma Liu glanced at Su Baizhou, then sighed, her gaze towards Su Baizhou filled with pity. She said softly, "After your father kicked the door open, he woke your mother up. If I hadn't heard the noise and come out to mediate, he would have already laid hands on her. The next day, your uncle took your mother away. Recently, they seem to be going through a divorce."

Upon hearing this, Su Baizhou's expression showed no surprise.

Divorce. She felt her mother should have divorced that man long ago.

But her mother wasn't in good health, and if she divorced, she would probably have to live alone from now on, which was why she had been hesitating.

Even if she were to divorce, she would wait until Su Baizhou graduated and had time to take care of her.

But she didn't want to burden her daughter, so she had been holding on.

And now, she couldn't hold on any longer.

Su Baizhou sat on the sofa, lost in thought.

As soon as she got home, she had to face so many things, and now she couldn't even return to her own home.

Suddenly, there was a commotion outside the door. Grandma Liu looked through the peephole and saw a man, drunk as a skunk, sitting at the door and knocking.

"It's your father."

Now he spent his days drinking, and Su Baizhou's mother wasn't around, so he often forgot his keys.

"Bitch, open the door for me!"

Su Changqing shouted, kicking and punching the door in front of him.

Hearing the insults directed at her mother, Su Baizhou stood up from the sofa. She walked out quickly, opened the door, grabbed the man's arm, and swung her other hand, hitting him hard across the face.

"Watch your mouth," Su Baizhou stared at him coldly.

Su Changqing clutched his face, sobering up a little.

He looked at the girl in front of him, his expression contorting, and said angrily, "Bastard, you're a bitch just like your mother."

From behind, Grandma Liu also said angrily, "How can you talk about your own daughter like that?"

"How I raise her is none of your business."

Saying that, Su Changqing swung his arm and slapped Su Baizhou across the face.

Slap.

A clear handprint appeared on her peerlessly beautiful face.

Su Baizhou's eyes dimmed, and the last shred of hope she had for her father vanished...

When did this man become like this?

Was it because her mother was beautiful?

Was it because her mother's suitors were all better than him?

Was it because he had accomplished nothing in his life, while his mother could live a life of wealth and status by lowering her dignity just a little?

But her mother had never lowered her dignity...

Su Changqing, having slapped his own daughter, was now completely sober. He looked at his palm, a hint of regret appearing on his face.

"Zhouzhou, I..."

"Enough."

Su Baizhou spoke, her tone utterly cold.

She glanced gratefully at Grandma Liu behind her, then turned and left without another word.

She didn't want to say another word to this failed father.

After leaving the complex, Su Baizhou sat on the steps at the entrance.

Looking at the place where she had grown up, she now felt a sense of unfamiliarity.

She didn't know why, but right now she felt a little... No...

Not just a little, she now desperately, desperately wanted to go back to school.

She wanted to see... someone... in the school.