Chapter 290 - 126: The "Wild Dog" Thread (Part 1)

Chapter 290: Chapter 126: The "Wild Dog" Thread (Part 1)

He wanted to test his theory, but when he looked up, he was surrounded by strange faces. They came from all over the country, from neighboring provinces and cities. Even the cigarette packs discarded on the ground were brands he’d never seen. Where was he supposed to find the staff from all those years ago?

In truth, he couldn’t even remember their faces himself.

That one glance was enough to stun Zhang Shutong all over again. ’Is this really the same dock?’

Stepping off the boat, he was met with a series of channels separated by iron railings. The crowd moved in an orderly fashion along the channels toward a massive stone gate, or perhaps an archway. It was constructed entirely of bluestone, with a coiling dragon carved into the pillar on each side. Across the center, three magnificent, golden words were displayed: "Yanlong Island Port."

Zhang Shutong’s jaw dropped in surprise, because he even spotted a line of small text below it: "Calligraphy by Gu Jianhong." ’Qiumian, your dad is quite the show-off,’ Zhang Shutong thought. ’He used to just leave his name at school, and now he’s gone and put his official stamp on the island’s entrance.’

Everything had changed into something he didn’t recognize.

The single bus route had become two. Zhang Shutong even saw a taxi. ’Whoa, there are taxis now? Are you kidding me?’

The thought that all of this might have something to do with him captivated him. He stood there, taking in all the changes, until someone bumped into him from behind, nearly knocking him off his feet.

’I’m so frail these days,’ Zhang Shutong thought, stepping aside. Du Kang ran down and clapped him on the shoulder.

"Nothing much to see. It’s all for show."

"Oh." Zhang Shutong nodded, then remembered to ask, "Should we get a cab?"

"No need," Du Kang said casually. "I already booked a ride from a group chat. It’ll be here any second."

’A ride-hail!’

’Listen to that. What a new, modern term. If this had existed eight years ago, I wouldn’t have had to race around on a motorcycle in the snow.’ Just as Zhang Shutong was sighing at the thought, an old man on a three-wheeler pulled up in front of them.

"You the ones who called?"

"Yeah, that’s us."

"Alright then, hop in."

’This is a ride-hail?’

Dazedly, Zhang Shutong let Du Kang pull him into the vehicle. They were now sitting face-to-face in the back of the three-wheeler. It had a cover, or rather, a small cabin, complete with little glass windows. Du Kang gave an awkward laugh.

"It’s not that I’m being cheap, buddy. It’s just that there are only a few taxis on the island. We’d have to wait who knows how long, and you can’t be exposed to the wind..."

"It’s fine. I’m not that delicate," Zhang Shutong said, shaking his head.

Du Kang relaxed. He had already taken out a cigarette, but then put it back.

"Forgot you can’t be around smoke..."

Zhang Shutong told him to go ahead and smoke if he wanted to, not to mind him. After all, he’d suffered plenty from Song’s smoke back in the day.

But Du Kang still didn’t light up. Zhang Shutong couldn’t be bothered to persuade him further and turned to look at the small island through the little glass window.

To his disappointment, the streets hadn’t changed much.

The single-story buildings, with storefronts in the front and residences in the back, were all still the same. Zhang Shutong found a sliver of familiarity in them.

The winter streets looked a little bleak. The branches of the roadside trees were bare and dry, but at least it wasn’t snowing.

He still wanted to figure out why he was here and what had happened over the past few years. Zhang Shutong opened his WeChat chat history. Fortunately, the contact info for that editor was gone. ’Looks like I didn’t end up holed up at home as a translator after all,’ he thought. He scrolled back and forth. The contacts for Du Kang, Ruoping, and Qingyi were all there, but he couldn’t find that female upperclassman. ’Guess I didn’t end up ruining her life.’

Unbelievably, Zhang Shutong was getting motion sick from a three-wheeler.

He forced himself to stop thinking, leaning back against the seat and closing his eyes to rest. The seat was incredibly uncomfortable; the back and the seat formed a perfect right angle. The vibrations from the vehicle’s floor traveled up through his body, and he felt nauseous again. Zhang Shutong slid open the window for a breath of fresh air and happened to see a four-story building. It had to be the tallest building on the entire island—Peiyi Mall.

’Wait, where are we going now? A funeral home?’

’Speaking of which, how is Lu Qinglian? Was she the one who saved me? What about eight years later?’

Zhang Shutong glanced at Du Kang and saw him laughing and chatting with the old driver. ’If Lu Qinglian were dead, he would never be acting like this.’

He then remembered that he had been pulled onto the vehicle by Du Kang in a daze. He quickly asked what they were doing next. Du Kang looked at him strangely.

"Didn’t we agree to get something to eat at the mall?"

"Oh, the fever must have fried my brain..."

"I can tell."

The two men stared out the window, swaying left and right with the occasional jolt. They rode the rest of the way in silence.

They got out at the mall entrance. Du Kang handed the driver a ten-yuan bill and waved his hand magnanimously.

"Keep the change. Drive safe."

"Alrighty."

The old man rode off with a flourish.

Zhang Shutong followed Du Kang into the mall. Holding onto the escalator railing, he looked up at the directory sign. It was still the same old layout: supermarket on the first floor, clothes on the second, restaurants on the third, movies on the fourth... ’When did they add a movie theater?’

He vaguely remembered Gu Qiuyan mentioning that her dad was going to build a movie theater. This must be it.

’But wasn’t the plan back then to build a whole commercial plaza?’ This mall, though redecorated and much more fashionable than it was eight years ago, was still a far cry from a proper commercial hub.

They quickly reached the third floor. Du Kang was the first to walk into a restaurant, and Zhang Shutong froze for a moment, staring at the sign above the entrance.

There was no other reason for it; the restaurant’s name was—

Impression of a Southern Home.

’Wait, could this be the little Lake Fish Restaurant from the commercial street? After eight years, it had actually transformed into a high-end restaurant inside the mall.’