Ever since that day, after I yelled at Long-ge, we’d barely spoken. A few more days passed, and life went on like usual.

Old Han couldn’t stay idle at home. I heard she’d started playing basketball again lately. Back when we were in middle school together, she loved it. She’d pull up her hood and roam around looking for courts. She’d been pretty popular at school too. Every time she played, girls would sneak over to watch, and some would even hand her bottled water.

Old Han wasn’t home today. She was probably out playing ball.

Old Chu was still sleeping all day, every day. Her room didn’t get much sunlight. She hadn’t gone out once this whole week. Her skin had already been pale to begin with, but now it looked almost sickly, white as a ghost.

Sometimes when I got up in the morning, I’d see her staring gloomily at the coffee table... What did that coffee table ever do to her?

It was another early morning. I couldn’t be bothered to cook, so I splashed some water on my face and went downstairs to buy malatang.

There wasn’t a single breakfast place within several blocks of my home. On top of that, I was lazy and didn’t like cooking. That was basically how I got close to Xiao Xiu in the first place. Someone who eats malatang first thing in the morning tends to leave an impression.

I threw on my down jacket and headed straight for Xiao Xiu’s shop.

So early in the morning, the place was empty. Xiao Xiu was in the kitchen washing vegetables. She looked up, saw me come in, smiled, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“You shouldn’t keep eating malatang for breakfast,” she said. “It’s not good for you.”

I found a table and sat down. “Three orders to go,” I said casually. “You’re close by, so I’m supporting your business.”

Xiao Xiu smiled. “I don’t need you supporting my business. Eat something better in the morning. You’re still growing.”

I said, “Sis, I’m already twenty. How am I still growing? Sideways?”

Xiao Xiu burst into giggles and went back to working in the kitchen.

I waited around, bored out of my mind. Before long, she brought out four steaming bowls of malatang and packed them into plastic food bags, tying the tops up tight.

I looked at the bags and saw there wasn’t a drop of chili oil in them. I gave Xiao Xiu a helpless look. She smiled sweetly and said, “Spicy food’s bad for digestion in the morning!”

I shook my head, chatted with her a bit more, then left with three bags of malatang in hand. On the way home, I passed the alley where I’d been surrounded by more than thirty people before. I glanced inside and sighed.

When I got home, Old Han still wasn’t back, and Long-ge’s door was still shut tight. I had just stepped into the living room and hadn’t even sat down yet when Old Chu opened her door. She looked like she’d just woken up. She sniffed blearily, then looked at me in confusion.

I lifted the three bags and smiled. “Clear broth. No spice. Go help me call Long-ge out. Time to eat.”

Old Chu nodded calmly and walked toward Long-ge’s room. I went into the kitchen and found four bowls in the cabinet. Three were the same size, and one was much smaller, barely enough to hold a big scoop of rice... but there was nothing I could do. My place had never had this many people before.

Holding the small bowl, I sighed and figured I’d use that one myself.

Old Chu was in Long-ge’s room. The two of them were quiet as hell. I had no idea whether Old Chu had actually called her or not.

I set the bowls on the coffee table when my phone rang. I picked it up and saw Old Han’s name. I answered, “Hello?”

Old Han gave a bitter laugh on the other end but didn’t say anything. I could vaguely hear a little girl muttering too. I asked, “What’s up? Live-streaming yourself harassing little girls?”

Old Han was panting, like she’d been walking for a long time. After catching her breath for a bit, she cursed, “Fuck you... Is there enough food at your place?”

I asked, “For what?”

Still panting, she said, “Xiao Yao wants to come.”

I froze for a second, thought about it, then said, “Yeah, there’s enough. Just come. But I’m out of rice, so we’ll make do with malatang for now.”

Old Han caught her breath again. “That works. We’ll be at your place in about ten minutes... Xiao Yao, you’re a big girl now. Can you walk by yourself? I swear my legs are about to break...”

A faint little huff came from the other end, followed by a rustling sound. Old Han let out a breath, sounding relieved.

“That’s better... You’re a big girl, why are you still asking to be carried? What if other kids see? How embarrassing... Old Lu, get some real dishes later. I think I’m dying here...”

I agreed right away and hung up.

Xiao Yao was Old Han’s little sister, a third grader this year. She was ridiculously cute and always liked wearing little dresses. When she smiled, she looked just like a loli straight out of an anime.

Old Han and I had grown up together. Xiao Yao had always liked sticking to me. She seemed to dislike Old Han a little. Whenever she got the chance, she’d tell me to be her big brother instead, that she didn’t want Old Han. It always left Old Han looking helpless.

Thinking back on all that, I couldn’t help smiling. It was going to be lively today. Another little girl was coming over.

Old Chu dragged Long-ge out expressionlessly. Long-ge looked like she’d just woken up. Her face was full of irritation. She clicked her tongue, glanced at me, then looked away.

The two of them sat down on the sofa together. Old Chu stared at the malatang without blinking. Long-ge seemed lost in thought, turning her head to look out the window.

I thought for a moment, then put my down jacket back on. I still had a little over twenty yuan in my wallet. I said to them, “You two eat first. Old Han’s little sister is coming later, so I’m heading downstairs to buy one more portion.”

Old Chu said nothing. Long-ge didn’t say anything either. She wasn’t polite about it, just grabbed the chopsticks and started slurping.

I sighed and went out again. Xiao Xiu’s shop was only five minutes from my place. I walked straight down the road, and as soon as I reached the corner, I saw her shop. Then I suddenly felt something was off.

A huge crowd had gathered there, all pointing and whispering.

My heart skipped for no reason. I hurried over, shoved through the crowd in a few quick moves, and looked inside.

The shop was a complete mess. Every wooden table leg had been smashed off, and broken plastic chair pieces were scattered everywhere.

Xiao Xiu sat in the middle of the shop with red eyes, quietly sobbing as she swept up the chair fragments with a broom.

I stood at the entrance for a moment, then stepped inside. Xiao Xiu lifted her reddened eyes. When she saw it was me, she lowered her head again.

I asked, “What happened?”

Xiao Xiu didn’t answer. She just kept silently sweeping at a table leg.

I said nothing either. My face darkened as I watched her sweep for a while in silence. That table leg was too big. No matter how she tried, she couldn’t sweep it into the dustpan. As she kept trying, her shoulders suddenly began to tremble. She couldn’t hold it in anymore. Tears slipped down like beads from a broken string.

I looked at her. She covered her face with the crook of her arm and started sobbing in grievance.

I was about to ask again when an older woman in the crowd sighed and slapped her palm.

“I was just passing by,” she said. “Who knows what kind of grudge it was this early in the morning! That bunch of punks came in with iron rods and started smashing the place... Lord, it was just...”

I stayed quiet for a moment, then asked her, “Did they have dyed hair? Yellow, blue, green, all kinds?”

The woman was still eager to talk. “Of course. Don’t kids these days all do their hair like that? That bunch was scary. You think they were gangsters?”

“Before they left, they said something about this being a lesson for getting mixed up with some White Dragon’s friend or whatever... I’m telling you, they were definitely gangsters. Why didn’t anyone call the police?”

The onlookers all stayed silent. Arms folded, they clicked their tongues and looked around the malatang shop. Xiao Xiu sat on the floor with red eyes, sniffling, then reached for the broom again to sweep the broken pieces on the ground.

I muttered, “Bastards.”

Xiao Xiu tried hard to suppress her sobs. Her eyes were red as she murmured, “It’s okay... It’s okay, they only broke the tables... It’s not that much money. I can just clean it up...”

With everyone staring at her, she couldn’t hold back anymore. Tears streamed down again, and she just kept sweeping the floor without saying a word.

I stood there watching for a while, then lowered my head and started picking up the plastic fragments too.

Once the crowd saw there was nothing left to watch, they scattered like birds and beasts. I could still vaguely hear them describing what they’d just seen. Someone had swung a stick and smashed a table with one crack, then turned and shoved that young girl to the ground. They sounded excited, like they’d just finished watching an American action movie.

After sweeping for a while, Xiao Xiu started sobbing again. I stood beside her and helped clean up. She seemed a little scared and asked, “Could it be... could it be because I didn’t pay some protection fee? How do you even pay that? If I don’t, what if they come again...?”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. This is a society under the rule of law now. Very harmonious. None of that messy stuff. They won’t come again. Don’t worry.”

Her voice had gone hoarse from crying. “How do you know...?”

I comforted her. “Because I used to be a bad student. I know their tricks. Don’t be scared. If money’s tight, I can front you some. Help you save a bit on chair costs.”

Xiao Xiu’s eyes were still red. She stared at the dustpan for a while. “No need. It’s not that much money. I run a shop, after all. I can afford it.”

I glanced around the store. The damaged stuff was worth at least four or five hundred.

I remembered joking with Xiao Xiu once. In the middle of laughing, she’d mentioned her daily earnings. She said she worked herself half to death all day and still made less than a hundred yuan. She might as well switch careers and become a beggar.

There wasn’t much left to clean up in the shop. Xiao Xiu sighed and said she’d close for the day soon, so I should head back first. I nodded and turned to leave.

After walking twenty-something steps, I turned around for no reason. Xiao Xiu was standing at the shop entrance, watching me go. When she saw me look back, she hesitantly raised a hand and gave a small, awkward wave.

On the way home, I passed that corner again and nearly ran straight into a girl. I looked closely. It was Long-ge.

She looked at me in surprise. After a while, she said, “I thought you got lost. Where’d you go? Learning to make malatang?”

I suddenly laughed and pointed behind me. “Learn what? The shop got smashed!”

Long-ge froze, then craned her neck to look past me. “What happened?”

Seeing that shocked look on her face, I said with a grin,

“Why don’t you guess what happened? Because our mighty Long-ge’s friends from the streets went to that shop and bought three portions of malatang. Thanks to Long-ge, her friends gave her plenty of face and smashed the whole place up!”

Long-ge stood there stunned for a long while, looking at me with an unreadable expression.

I gave a dry little laugh, brushed past her shoulder, and walked straight toward home. In a lazy voice, I said, “Eat? Eat my fucking ass. You can all fucking starve. Every last one of you can fucking starve to death. Don’t live at all!!”

“Are you fucking done yet... Lu!!”

I hadn’t even taken two steps before Long-ge’s roar exploded behind me.