Year 1979: Eating meat with my wife and children

Hou San was carrying a kitchen knife, while A Zhe and Wang Er Kui's father were holding wooden sticks. They ran over quickly after seeing Li Xiangdong and the other man from afar.

"Brother Dong, are you alright?"

"Dongzi, we searched everywhere but couldn't find you two! It scared me to death!"

"Er Kui, let your father take a look."

Hou San, A Zhe, and Wang Er Kui's father circled around Li Xiangdong and his companion. Seeing that their clothes were only a little dirty and they were unharmed, they were relieved.

"Hou San, keep that cleaver away from me!"

Li Xiangdong stood still, watching Hou San, who was holding a kitchen knife, circling around him. He was afraid that Hou San would accidentally hurt him.

"Don't worry, Brother Dong, I know what I'm doing."

"You son of a bitch, put the cleaver away right now!"

Hou San held the knife handle in his hand, his shoulders slanted and his hips swaying, looking even more like a thug than Qin Liu.

Passersby kept their distance after seeing this, and Li Xiangdong was worried that the police would be called in again.

Hou San obediently put the cleaver into the cloth bag he was carrying, and then reached into his back pocket and pulled out a steamed bun. "Brother Dong, are you hungry? This steamed bun has some pickled vegetables inside. I got it especially for you. Eat it quickly."

"Thank you, Hou San."

Seeing his own people, Li Xiangdong relaxed and indeed felt hungry.

But when he saw the black finger marks on the steamed bun, and then remembered that the bun had been taken out of Hou San's back pocket, he lost his desire to eat it.

He was puzzled. Why did he have to put it in his pants pocket when he could have put it in his satchel?

Li Xiangdong took the steamed bun and handed it to Wang Erkui, saying, "Brother Erkui, you can have this. I can hold on for a little longer."

Wang Erkui didn't think much of it. Farmers who toil in the fields wouldn't be so particular. White flour steamed buns were a delicacy for him; he only ate them a few times a year.

He swallowed hard, took the steamed bun, and took a big bite. As he ate, he thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Brother Dong! This steamed bun made from wheat flour is really delicious!"

"No need to thank me. Without you leading the way, I wouldn't have been able to avoid Qin Liu and his gang."

After Li Xiangdong finished playing the good guy, he turned to Wang Erkui's father and asked, "Uncle Wang, are there any restaurants nearby?"

"Yes, but why are we going to a restaurant?"

"Of course we're going to eat, Uncle Wang. It's not enough to just let my brother Er Kui have one steamed bun. Besides, you two have helped us so much, I certainly can't let you go home hungry."

Li Xiangdong rubbed his stomach and handed the cricket box to A Zhe to carry. He felt a little weak and needed to eat something quickly.

Wang Erkui's father walked ahead with a smile, leading the way. He glanced back at Li Xiangdong and the other two, thinking that people from big cities were indeed impressive.

He not only paid double the price for the four crickets, but now he's also taking them to a state-run restaurant for a meal.

The reason was that his son couldn't get enough to eat with just one steamed bun. This wasn't some middleman buying crickets; he was clearly a living saint from out of town!

A-Zhe, who was walking behind, was carrying a cricket box for Wang Er-Kui. Hearing the chirping of insects coming from inside the box, he asked, "Dongzi, where did you get this box? It's not full of crickets, is it?"

"I found it, I'll tell you later."

Li Xiangdong thought to himself, "Qin Liu and his gang are quite capable. The cricket box they made is very exquisite, like a miniature version of a medicine cabinet in a Chinese medicine shop. It's much more convenient than the bamboo tubes I made."

The state-run restaurant was located on the main road of the county town.

Wang Erkui's father stood at the door, not daring to step inside. Only after Li Xiangdong went in first did he follow him in.

Li Xiangdong looked at Hou San and A Zhe, who came in after him, and asked, "Are you two hungry?"

"We're starving, Dong-ge! A-Zhe and I didn't even have time to eat. We came out to find you after putting the cricket back."

When Ah Zhe heard Hou San's words, he nodded. He looked at the small wooden sign hanging on the wall and said, "Dongzi, let's each have a bowl of noodles. We need to hurry back after we finish eating."

"Row."

Li Xiangdong walked to the counter and said to the sales clerk who was sewing shoe soles, "We want seven bowls of noodles."

He turned to Wang Erkui and his father and asked, "Are two bowls of noodles enough for you and Erkui each?"

Wang Erkui nodded with a simple smile, but his father said with heartache, "You can't eat it all, you can't eat it all, how can you take so much? One bowl each is enough for us."

Li Xiangdong waved his hand, "It's alright, Uncle Wang, we've already eaten our fill."

"Oh dear, I really can't eat that much."

At this point, the sales clerk said impatiently, "How many bowls of noodles do you want? Can you give me a hint?"

"7 bowls."

Li Xiangdong made the final decision, then turned and left.

"You haven't paid or given the ticket yet!"

Hou San took out his money.

Damn it, look how arrogant you are! In two years, you'll all be laid off!

The noodles were made quickly, but I still had to carry them myself.

Li Xiangdong and his group were all starving. No one spoke; they all kept their heads down and slurped down their noodles.

After finishing a large bowl of noodles, Li Xiangdong let out a satisfied burp. He wiped his mouth, walked to the counter, and asked the shop assistant, "Do you have pens and paper?"

The sales clerk didn't move, just glanced at him and uttered two words, "No."

'Snapped'

Li Xiangdong took out a small bill, slapped it on the counter, and asked again, "Do you have a pen and paper?"

"I just remembered, I have a pen and paper."

The sales clerk smiled, got up, grabbed the small bills from the counter, put them in his pocket, turned around, took out a pen, and tore off an unused piece of paper from the ledger.

Li Xiangdong took the paper and pen, leaned over the counter, and quickly wrote a few lines.

"I'll use the inkpad again."

"Okay, I'll get it for you right away."

After spending the money, the difference was indeed noticeable.

Li Xiangdong turned to Wang Erkui, who was still drinking noodle soup, and asked, "Brother Erkui, are you full?"

After finishing the last mouthful of noodle soup, Wang Erkui looked up and replied, "I'm full, Dong-ge."

"As long as you're full."

Li Xiangdong nodded and beckoned to Wang Erkui, signaling him to come over.

Wang Erkui got up and went to Li Xiangdong's side, asking in a low voice, "What's wrong, Brother Dong?"

Li Xiangdong smiled and said softly, "Brother Er Kui, I'd like to ask you for a favor. Please prove that the watch was a gift from you."

Upon hearing this, Wang Erkui thumped his chest loudly, "I can vouch for you, Brother Dong. If anyone asks you, tell them to come find me."

Li Xiangdong pointed to the piece of paper on the counter, "No need for that. This is a note I just wrote. You can just put your fingerprint on it."

He needs an explanation to answer his family's questions about how he can bring back a watch after only a few days away.

Wang Erkui always knows how to take everything into account, so he certainly can't be bad!