Escape from the Thriller World – Chapter 29
by Little PandaVolume One: The Old Corpse in the Mountain Village
Heartbeat
Her heart raced, her cheeks flushed crimson.
Ning Lan felt thirsty, so she bought two bottles of soda, one for Shen Qingyou and one for herself.
Shen Qingyou waved her hand and said, “I’m not thirsty, keep it for yourself.”
Ning Lan handed the soda to her and said, “Officer Shen, why be so polite with me? We’re the most loyal teammates.”
Ning Lan deliberately stretched out the word “teammates,” seemingly reminding herself that her relationship with Shen Qingyou should remain within bounds, avoiding any other thoughts.
Shen Qingyou understood her meaning and responded, “Did I give you permission to keep calling me Officer Shen? Just call me Qingyou from now on.”
Shen Qingyou was being tsundere.
A woman’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea [meaning: a woman’s heart is difficult to fathom].
Ning Lan smiled, inserted a straw into the glass bottle of soda, clinked bottles with her, and said, “Qingyou, sounds good to me.”
Just as they finished speaking, a customer selecting soda nearby accidentally knocked some bottles off the shelf onto the ground.
The glass bottles shattered with a crash, the sharp sound breaking the silence.
Seeing that Ning Lan was about to slip on a puddle behind her, Shen Qingyou pulled her and said softly, “There’s broken glass and water on the ground, be careful not to step on it.”
There was a wall behind Shen Qingyou, and Ning Lan ended up pressed against her body.
Their lips accidentally touched, the contact light as a feather’s brush, like an electric current passing through.
Ning Lan instantly pulled away and said, “I didn’t mean to kiss you…”
While Ning Lan desperately tried to hide her flustered emotions, Shen Qingyou touched her own lips and said in a voice smooth as jade [traditional Chinese phrase describing a gentle, refined quality], “Ning Lan, could it be that you like me? Your heart is beating so fast.”
Shen Qingyou teased her deliberately, and Ning Lan moved her lips to say, “I do not, don’t talk nonsense.”
Only then did Ning Lan fully realize their lips had just touched, her heart was racing, and her cheeks were flushed red.
No, how could she possibly like Shen Qingyou?
It must be her imagination.
The cashier at the front, hearing something shatter, quickly came over with a broom in hand.
She grumbled, “Who is it? Which one of you is so careless and blind?”
“I’m sorry, my hand slipped, and…” the customer replied with embarrassment, not knowing how to respond.
She was a new middle school student wearing a bob cut, carrying a Little Mermaid backpack, and wearing a red scarf [hΓ³ng lΗng jΔ«n, symbol of the Young Pioneers of China (they promote socialist values and patriotism)].
It was a holiday, and she had come out to wander around and visit the convenience store during her free time.
Due to her insufficient height, she couldn’t reach the soda bottles on the upper shelf, which led to the bottles falling and breaking…
She hemmed and hawed for a while before admitting that she had broken something.
The cashier ignored her explanation and, putting her hands on her hips, said, “I’ve seen plenty of scammers like you bumping porcelain [modern slang for deliberate accidents to extort money]. You’ll pay full price!”
“It was just an accident, it’s not as bad as you’re making it sound…” she said in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.
“Where are your parents? Didn’t they come with you? Such a young child already learning to lie!” the cashier continued to berate her.
Clearly frightened by the cashier’s confrontational attitude, bean-sized tears fell from her eyes as she said, “Auntie, I’m not lying, it’s all true… They! These two sisters can vouch for me.”
She pointed at them standing nearby, and Ning Lan walked over and nodded, saying, “She really did it by accident. It’s just the cost of one soda bottle, let’s split the payment.”
Ning Lan took out a Hong Kong dollar bill from her wallet and handed it to the cashier, who finally calmed down and swept up the debris.
The cashier gave the middle school girl a side-eye and said, “Kids these days are so poorly behaved. You’re lucky you met some kind people today.”
After Ning Lan paid, the cashier stopped harassing her.
The girl thanked them through her tears, insisting innocently that she wasn’t that kind of child.
“Today we witnessed it and could vouch for you, but others might have just ignored it. People can be suspicious these days, so it’s natural she would think that way. Just be more careful in the future.” She lowered her gaze, avoiding Shen Qingyou’s eyes, and walked straight toward the door.
“Thank you, sisters,” she said softly, watching their figures.
After leaving the convenience store one after another, they didn’t continue their previous conversation. Shen Qingyou noticed that Ning Lan seemed lost in thought.
Perhaps the mention of her childhood memories had stirred something in her.
Seeing the hungry-looking black cat in her backpack, Shen Qingyou suggested feeding it a can first.
They walked to the convenience store’s planter box [raised platform for plants], and Shen Qingyou took the cat from her arms. The black cat nuzzled against her chest.
Even a black cat likes to snuggle with a pretty sister.
Ning Lan’s lips curved up as she said, “It’s very attached to you.”
“Although I’m a bit allergic to cat fur, I still really like cats,” Shen Qingyou said while petting its fluffy head, and the black cat nuzzled her palm.
Ning Lan bent down to peel open the metal lid of the can. The little cat first lowered its head to sniff tentatively, then began eating heartily.
The black cat finished the entire can of fish, and Ning Lan threw the empty can into a nearby trash bin.
After feeding the cat, they headed toward Harbor City in Kowloon. Ning Lan put the black cat back in her backpack, where it poked its head out to watch the bustling street.
“The hair salon Xu Sanduo mentioned is just ahead,” Ning Lan pointed while looking at the game navigation route on her phone screen.
The phone navigation was still announcing: “Turn at the intersection 150 meters ahead. Approaching final destination. Hell Game Navigation broadcast ending.”
Ning Lan pressed the end button and put her phone in her pocket.
They paused at the entrance of Gu Lin’s Hair Salon.
The shop wasn’t large, about 80 square meters, split into two floors – the ground floor was the storefront, and the upper floor was their living space.
Since the salon’s business hours ran late, they had renovated the upper floor into a rest area, where they could sleep when work ran too late into the night.
The salon had just been completely renovated, with the signboard deliberately designed in a trendy 1970s neon style.
“1970s Hong Kong has its own unique charm. It must feel even better at night,” Ning Lan paused for a few seconds and remarked.
Shen Qingyou narrowed her eyes and said, “With this Hong Kong style, it would be even more amazing with a song playing from a cassette player.”
Then, they pushed open the door and entered.
A pungent paint smell hit them, and Ning Lan instinctively covered her nose and mouth.
In an inconspicuous corner of the storefront sat some unused paint, and the owner, Gu Lin, was an elderly balding man wearing a black apron.
Gu Lin ran this hair salon alone. The previous little brothers [referring to junior workers] he hired couldn’t last more than a few days, unable to endure the hardships of the trade, and they all quit.
Young people couldn’t handle the difficulties of society and customers’ attitudes, and Gu Lin understood them.
He didn’t take the apprentices’ departures to heart.
Gu Lin glanced at the hiring notice he had posted at the entrance – after more than half a month, no one had applied, so he simply decided to run the business alone.
Gu Lin’s wife worked as a kitchen helper at a dai pai dong [dΓ i pΓ‘i dΓ ng, open-air food stall] in Causeway Bay [popular district in Hong Kong]. She usually worked until morning, and after Gu Lin made her breakfast, he would open the salon for business.
He often asked his wife to give up that work and help him run the hair salon business, but she would shake her head and say, “I can’t stay idle, I just want to do what I want to do.”
The salon had just opened for the day, and he had cut the hair of a few neighbors.
He hadn’t had time to clean up the messy items in the shop, and the used paint cans were still in the corner.
He showed an embarrassed smile and said, “Sorry, the shop’s renovation was just completed recently, I forgot to put away the paint.”
As he spoke, Gu Lin went to put the paint can in a storage room partitioned by wooden boards at the back.
The decoration style was early 1970s vintage, with old posters of popular stars from that era hanging on the walls.
Gu Lin came out from the storage room and greeted them, “Would you ladies like a haircut or wash? First-time customers get an 11.2% discount.”
Gu Lin was clearly a savvy businessman.
Ning Lan fanned her hand and said, “No need, boss. We came to ask you about the Tong Lau…”
Upon hearing “Tong Lau,” Gu Lin’s scissors fell to the ground with a clatter, and he stared at the mirror in front of him, saying, “You… why are you asking about that? I don’t want to remember that failed work anymore.”
Gu Lin had an artistic temperament about him, and for him, the Tong Lau was a structure he had designed with his life’s work and talent.
“Mr. Gu, please listen to us, we came to investigate the floor plans of the Tong Lau…” Ning Lan spoke hesitantly.
Gu Lin closed his eyes and roared at them to get out, pushing them outside before shutting the door.
The unfinished building project had greatly impacted him. The initial occupancy rate was as low as 25%, and real estate developers shook their heads, saying it was unsellable property, with prices dropping several times.
Afterward, someone named Wei Jinbao bought it at a low price, and the Tong Lau’s occupancy rate increased dramatically to 80%, but it still left a bitter taste in his mouth.
“Please leave, I don’t want to talk about the Tong Lau,” Gu Lin said with a sigh.
“We’ll come back again, Mr. Gu!” Ning Lan quickly added.
Just as they were at a loss about what to do next.
The middle school girl they met at the convenience store waved to them and said, “Both sisters? What a coincidence! Are you here to get your hair cut at our place? Come in!”
She pulled them both by their hands, inviting them inside, casually tossing her backpack onto a chair in the shop while sipping the soda she was holding.
Gu Lin’s face turned ashen as he said, “Why did you come back in? I said I’m not in the mood to recall those old memories.”
“Dad, why are you being so fierce to these sisters?” Gu Zhenzhu said as she pulled them to sit down.
Neither of them had expected to accidentally meet Gu Lin’s daughter, Gu Zhenzhu [meaning: precious pearl].
Was Zhenzhu a child of Gu Lin’s later years? She appeared to be around 15 years old.
Gu Lin asked her, ” Zhenzhu, why are you coming back so late?”
She pouted and said, “I just went to the convenience store to buy something and had a little incident, thankfully these sisters helped me out…”
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