Shan Yu turned his head to look at him as well, not answering right away.
Nor did he refuse to answer.
Chen Jian had thought he ought to feel embarrassed in this silence, or regret asking such a question, but surprisingly, he didn’t.
Because he could tell Shan Yu’s expression was very serious.
“My friend… told me,” Shan Yu was contemplating how to put it, “my partner got out.”
“The partner who scammed you in that fraud scheme?” Chen Jian asked.
“Mm.” Shan Yu looked down at the empty paper bag of sauce-flavored pancake in his hand.
“Did he do something? Did he trouble you?” Chen Jian asked again. After a moment’s hesitation, he opened the car door: “Wait for me a second.”
Shan Yu didn’t say anything, merely casting a glance at him.
Chen Jian hopped out of the car, ran into a bakery by the roadside, bought a pineapple bun with butter, and ran back into the car, handing the bag to Shan Yu: “Not full, right?”
Shan Yu took the bag: “I thought you went to buy melon seeds.”
“…What nonsense.” Chen Jian said.
The snack supermarket is half a block away from here.
Holding the pineapple bun, Shan Yu thoughtfully answered Chen Jian’s question before lowering his head to eat: “He’s my childhood friend, very familiar with my parents. After coming out, he went to my house.”
“Went to your house?” Chen Jian froze. “Where does he get the nerve?”
Shan Yu was indeed not full; the pineapple bun was finished in just a few bites.
“Who knows,” Shan Yu said. “Probably picked it up off the street after someone threw it away.”
“What?” Chen Jian didn’t catch his meaning.
“His nerve,” Shan Yu said.
“…Didn’t your parents slap him out?” Chen Jian said.
“They are very educated and reasonable people,” Shan Yu pulled out a paper tissue, slowly wiping his fingers one by one. “He was my friend, and before clearing up what kind of attitude I intend to treat him with, my parents wouldn’t…”
“He scammed you so badly!” Chen Jian said. “If I were your dad…”
“Hey, hey, hey,” Shan Yu looked at him. “Just chatting, why are you taking advantage of me like that?”
“If you were…” Chen Jian stopped halfway through his sentence again.
“If you’re not my dad, then I’m your son—so it just has to be a father-son relationship, huh?” Shan Yu asked.
“If you were my brother,” Chen Jian finally untangled himself from the father-son relationship, “I would’ve beaten him up long ago.”
Shan Yu smiled faintly, packing up the tissue and paper bag, putting them in a small trash bag: “You and Liu Wu really feel like peers on this point.”
Chen Jian took the bag from his hand and tossed it directly into the roadside trash bin through the open car window.
“Back then, they had advised me, feeling Fang Xu was unreliable.” Shan Yu adjusted his seatback slightly further back, resting his head on his arms, looking straight ahead. “But my attitude was that I didn’t need them to meddle, so they… wouldn’t use their own attitudes to interfere with my decisions either.”
“They’re that… relaxed?” Chen Jian hadn’t spent much time with his parents, and there weren’t many moments in his life that required major decisions, so he couldn’t quite understand such a loose way of getting along.
“So what if they weren’t relaxed? I wouldn’t listen anyway,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian leaned against the car door, turned sideways looking at him, feeling like Shan Yu spoke as if he were talking about someone else.
“Fang Xu and I grew up together, messed around together… how should I put it? To say I didn’t know what kind of person he was would be impossible,” Shan Yu said. “I just thought he wouldn’t scam me.”
“Turns out he scammed you big time,” Chen Jian said.
Shan Yu tilted his head and looked at him for a moment: “Mm.”
“Then why did he go to your house? To apologize for scamming you?” Chen Jian knitted his brows. Although an apology was only right, it still sounded infuriating. Was this something an apology could fix?
“Maybe to apologize for my leg, too,” Shan Yu said very casually, even wiggling his leg a bit.
“Your leg,” Chen Jian looked at his leg, “how was it injured, exactly?”
“Beaten, didn’t I tell you?” Shan Yu said.
“By whom?” Chen Jian asked. “His accomplices?”
Shan Yu didn’t speak, turning his head to look at him.
Chen Jian looked back at him too.
What, crossed the line?
Having crossed it for this long, one more sentence won’t hurt, right?
Besides, you were the one who started it.
“Mm,” Shan Yu nodded, “but I have no evidence.”
Chen Jian fell silent. It was likely retaliation for Shan Yu reporting them.
“Let’s go,” Shan Yu sat up straight, adjusted his seatback, and patted the steering wheel. “Let’s head back.”
“Do you… want to eat something first?” Chen Jian asked.
“Didn’t you stuff me with a pineapple bun just to prevent me from eating a meal?” Shan Yu said.
“That was just to line your stomach,” Chen Jian said. “Afraid you were hungry.”
“Who lines their stomach with a sauce-flavored pancake AND a pineapple bun?” Shan Yu turned his head to look at him.
“…Me,” Chen Jian said.
“Did you not get full from that boxed meal your dad bought you?” Shan Yu asked.
“I’m full enough,” Chen Jian said, touching his stomach and pressing on it lightly.
“Still room for more though,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian burst out laughing.
“Are you pretty familiar with this area?” Shan Yu started the car.
“Mm,” Chen Jian nodded.
“Where did you usually eat before?” Shan Yu asked. “Back when you were doing part-time jobs or skipping class.”
“I ate anywhere,” Chen Jian said. “Sometimes just those small eateries squatted by the roadside.”
“I can’t eat proper sit-down stuff right now anyway,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian was quiet for a moment, then pointed ahead: “Drive that way. There’s a place selling fried pancake shreds. I used to eat there a lot.”
“Alright, fried pancake shreds.” Shan Yu tapped the steering wheel.
“You two sharing one portion of fried pancake?” The owner looked at the two of them.
“Yeah,” Shan Yu nodded. “And give me a small bowl too.”
“Don’t have those,” the owner said. “All I got are big plates.”
“Then give me another big plate,” Shan Yu said.
“Plates are for serving the fried pancake,” the owner stared at him.
“Right,” Shan Yu nodded. “I want to put the fried pancake on it.”
“A single portion of fried pancake.” The owner was already getting annoyed.
“No need, boss, just fry a normal portion,” Chen Jian came over, grabbed Shan Yu’s arm, pulled him aside, and led him to a small table on the side alley of the shop, kicking a small stool toward his legs. “Sit here.”
“This service attitude,” Shan Yu sat down, “if it were back then…”
“You would’ve flipped his stall?” Chen Jian sat down beside him.
“I’d stand there and scold him, stopping only when he gives me a bowl,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian didn’t speak, lowering his head a moment later to laugh softly.
“Is that a milk tea shop across the street?” Shan Yu asked.
“Mm,” Chen Jian looked back. “You want some? Didn’t you just drink one?”
“Didn’t get to drink it,” Shan Yu said.
“Do they not take cash?” Chen Jian asked.
“Refusing cash is illegal, you know,” Shan Yu said. “Besides, I have Alipay.”
Chen Jian didn’t say anything, stood up, crossed the street to buy him a cup of milk tea, and swapped the sugar for sugar substitute as Shan Yu requested.
“You don’t use WeChat because…” Chen Jian thought for a bit, “that incident?”
“Because of a lot of things,” Shan Yu took a sip of milk tea.
“You should get a new account,” Chen Jian said. “Otherwise it’s inconvenient to reach you. You don’t reply to text messages either.”
“I don’t reply because I didn’t see it,” Shan Yu said. “Can a WeChat phone slap me across the face to make me check my messages?”
That was true enough.
“I’ll set one up when we get back,” Shan Yu said.
“Mm.” Chen Jian smiled faintly.
“Fried pancake’s ready!” The owner shouted from over there.
Chen Jian stood up and went over to bring the fried pancake.
It was a pretty large portion. If Chen Jian hadn’t eaten the boxed meal, he could’ve finished this whole big plate. Having eaten the boxed meal, he could share it with Shan Yu.
“I’ll go nearby to buy a…” He wanted to say he’d go buy a disposable takeout box.
But Shan Yu had already picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
“Just eating it like this?” Chen Jian sat down.
Shan Yu nodded.
Chen Jian had no choice but to pick up chopsticks as well, starting to pick from his own side.
“Pretty tasty,” Shan Yu stopped after taking two bites.
“Done eating?” Chen Jian looked at his side, which only had a tiny dent eaten out of it.
“Did I lose my eating privileges just by saying a word?” Shan Yu picked up the milk tea and took a sip. “Stricter than my dad.”
“Eat, eat, eat, eat,” Chen Jian said.
The owner even poked his head out to look over here, as if confirming whether the two of them were really sharing one portion.
This owner’s attitude had always been poor and miserly, but the fried pancake was genuinely delicious, which was why Chen Jian used to eat here often. This crappy little shop was frequented by working-class people who generally had large appetites—even some young girls could finish an entire portion on their own. Two grown men sharing one portion was indeed a rare sight.
Chen Jian ignored the owner when he peeked over, but Shan Yu happened to pause his chopsticks, so he turned his head as well: “Got a bowl?”
The owner pulled his head back inside.
“I’m truly amazed by you,” Chen Jian said.
“I am your boss, after all,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian glanced at him, not knowing what to say, and could only lower his head to eat in silence.
Shan Yu ate roughly half of the plate, and Chen Jian ate the rest. By the end, he was actually stuffed, but out of habit, he didn’t leave anything on the plate, so he scraped it clean.
Shan Yu watched him eat the last piece of green vegetable from the side and remarked: “Looks like the owner of Dayin isn’t doing so well.”
“Huh?” Chen Jian looked at him.
“The manager usually can’t get enough to eat at the guesthouse, right?” Shan Yu said.
“Just don’t want to waste it,” Chen Jian covered his stomach. “You… wait for me a moment.”
“Do you have a straight gut?” Shan Yu knit his brows and tsked.
“I’m not going to…” Chen Jian stood up. “I’m going to the pharmacy next door to buy a box of digestion tablets.”
“I’ll go with you,” Shan Yu stood up. “Haven’t felt having nothing on my leg in a long time. I’ll take a few steps.”
Taking a total of twenty meters’ walk.
The pharmacy clerk handed a box of digestion tablets to Chen Jian. He looked at it, then asked to swap it for the children’s version.
Stepping out of the pharmacy, Shan Yu looked at the children’s digestion tablets in his hand: “Why buy the kids’ version?”
“Kids’ tablets are crunchy,” Chen Jian popped a few out into his mouth, crunching away. “Tastes better too, a bit sweeter.”
“Let me try,” Shan Yu reached out a hand.
Chen Jian put a tablet in his hand: “You’ve never had it?”
“Why would I randomly eat digestion tablets?” Shan Yu said.
“Then why are you eating it now?” Chen Jian said.
“I ate till I’m stuffed.” Shan Yu popped the tablet into his mouth and crunched it a few times. “Really crunchy, shook my brain milk into a uniform mix. Did Chen Erhu and the others eat these all the time when they were kids?”
Chen Jian burst out laughing: “Honestly, have you ever been beaten up for talking too recklessly?”
“Nope,” Shan Yu stretched. “I only talk recklessly in front of people I can beat.”
Quite logical.
Chen Jian looked at him.
When Shan Yu raised his arms, his sleeve slid back, revealing the bracelet worn on his wrist.
The weather had cooled down recently, and everyone was wearing jackets. Chen Jian hadn’t seen Shan Yu’s wrist in a long time, nor had he paid much attention to his own wrist. Now, suddenly seeing this bracelet, he felt a somewhat indescribable sensation.
He touched the one on his own wrist. For some reason, he had never taken it off either.
It seemed like a habit, barely feeling its presence day-to-day.
Only when he noticed it did he realize he had worn it for so long.
He could no longer find a reason to take it off.
Business trips naturally involved doing procurement for the shop. This time, no one needed anything specific to buy. Shan Yu found a snack shop and bought a bunch of food, buying an especially large quantity of the small biscuits usually stocked in the café.
“You can buy these in the old town,” Chen Jian said. “No need to buy so many. Whenever we run out, Chen Erhu and the others can just ride a motorcycle to the old town to buy them.”
“Precisely because they’re the ones buying them back,” Shan Yu tsked. “Chen Erhu won’t let me eat them.”
“What?” Chen Jian froze.
“He won’t let me eat these biscuits!” Shan Yu said.
“He really…” Chen Jian paused for a long while. “Has a strong sense of ownership.”
“Why are you called Chen Yu Luo Yan,” Shan Yu said. “You should be called Chen Smoothes Things Over.”
Chen Jian burst out laughing: “Then what should we do? Should I go beat up Chen Erhu to vent my boss’s frustration?”
“Forget it,” Shan Yu paid the bill, grabbed a handful of small biscuits, and stuffed them into his pocket. “The boss buys his own and eats his own.”
When they returned to Dayin, it was still a while before dinner, and Zhao Fangfang was busy cooking.
Hu Pan, sporting a massive afro, was wrapping curlers around Sanbing’s head in the garden outside the café.
“You’re back!” She turned her head and shouted toward Chen Jian and Shan Yu.
Shan Yu couldn’t help laughing.
Hu Pan also had a red headband tied around her head—a touch of cute mixed in with her exaggerated arrogance.
“How is it?” Hu Pan shook her head.
“Pretty good,” Chen Jian said with a smile.
“Looks like a makeup brush,” Shan Yu sat in the café, pulling out a small biscuit to eat.
Hu Pan clutched a tuft of Sanbing’s hair, laughing loudly: “I think so too! It doesn’t look as much like one without the headband, but tied up, it looks super like my big powder brush.”
“Hair, hair, hair…” Sanbing’s head hurriedly moved along with her hand.
“Don’t move!” Hu Pan slapped his head.
“Am I moving!” Sanbing yelled. “You’re about to lift my head out the door!”
Chen Jian put the bought snacks into the cabinet at the bar counter, greeting Chen Erhu, who was sitting at the front desk.
“Fewer room bookings this weekend,” Chen Erhu said.
“Normal, the leaves are almost all fallen,” Chen Jian said. “It’ll be at least half a month before it snows on the mountain. Coming around this time, there’s not much to see.”
“Mm,” Chen Erhu nodded.
“If there’s nothing much going on, go rest for a bit. I can handle it here,” Chen Jian said.
“Sitting here is pretty much the same as resting.” The various injuries on Chen Erhu’s head had healed quite a bit and no longer needed bandages, but his mood was still rather low.
“Alright then,” Chen Jian said no more.
Chen Dahu’s side would probably be sentenced in the next couple of days. As the person who personally caught his own brother, Chen Erhu was bound to have some emotional fluctuations.
Chen Jian returned to the café, wanting to see how Hu Pan was handling Sanbing’s hair. Tonight she would definitely have to perm this third head, so Chen Jian needed to be mentally prepared.
“Make me a cup of coffee,” Shan Yu said.
“Instant?” Chen Jian asked.
“Just pull two shots of espresso from that machine and pour a bit of milk in, whatever,” Shan Yu said. “Not asking you to froth milk or make latte art.”
“Chen Erhu’s gonna scold you in a bit,” Chen Jian walked behind the coffee machine and began making coffee.
Shan Yu picked up his phone and scanned the QR code beside him: “Paid.”
“Five yuan is fine,” Chen Jian said. “Mine really tastes terrible, don’t know why.”
Shan Yu scanned five yuan.
Chen Jian made him a latte and placed it in front of him.
Shan Yu picked it up and took a sip.
Chen Jian looked at him, waiting for his reaction.
But he looked down at his phone, offering no evaluation whatsoever.
“How’s it taste?” Chen Jian asked.
“Tastes like coffee plus milk.” Shan Yu said.
“Tastes bad?” Chen Jian asked again.
“You said it was terrible yourself,” Shan Yu said. “It’d be a bit too fake if I said it tasted good.”
Chen Jian burst out laughing.
“Still worth the five yuan,” Shan Yu said.
Chen Jian’s phone chimed. He took it out and looked at it—there was a friend request.
When he tapped it open, he froze for two seconds before looking up at Shan Yu: “You?”
“Do you even need to ask?” Shan Yu said. “It’s so obvious.”
Fa Shan Ke Chen. (Dull and Unremarkable.)
This handle left Chen Jian in a momentary daze, as it was far too similar to the one he had once used.
Chen Jian accepted the friend request, casually sending Shan Yu an emoji, then tapped open his profile to check: “New account?”
“Mm,” Shan Yu nodded. “You’re the only friend on it.”
“I’ll push Panpan and the others’ contacts to you,” Chen Jian said.
“No rush,” Shan Yu said.
Thank you for the chapters
That “friend” is going to turn up and make trouble, isn’t he 😐