“Brother Bing, you were too violent…” Xiaoxiao and Xiao Bing were having dinner in a restaurant. They had been to the police station for what just happened. Yezi had to call the police to bail them out.

Though Xiao Bing and Yezi had a reason for beating him, what Xiao Bing did to him could be defined as “brutal”. After all, he broke one of his arms. The police could have arrested him for intentional assault. But most importantly, he pushed a stick into the man’s ass…

Xiao Bing was speaking while gobbling up his food. “I hate men like him most. What they do best is taking advantages of girls on a bus. It’s a pity that we wasted a lot of time on him. Now we only have time for two shops.”

“I’m not worried about that. You must not be this brutal anymore. You can just hand him to the police after beating him up. Here, things don’t function like the army. That is unless you are rich and powerful.”

Xiao Bing put down his chopsticks and wiped his mouth with his hand. “I know now. Enjoy your meal. I will have a smoke outside.”

Xiao Bing walked close to the door and put a cigarette in his mouth. Su Peiya’s voice and face appeared in his mind as smoke swirled in front of him.

Though he never loved her as a woman, his heart nearly broke when Su Peiya died. The pain he felt was no less than the loss of a lover. It was hard to find true love, but a friend like Su Peiya was even rarer.

“What are you thinking about?” Xiaoxiao appeared behind him.

“Your sister,” Xiao Bing answered huskily. Had there not been any smoke, one could see the melancholy in his eyes.

“Do you know this, Xiaoxiao? I want to find out the truth and avenge your sister. It is what I desire most now.”

“That’s exactly what I want as well… But…” Su Xiaoxiao sighed. “I have been thinking about it recently. I have cursed you a million times in my mind. But that won’t bring my sister back… She is gone. We should move on and become better people for her.”

Xiao Bing cast her a surprised look. He could hardly believe that these words came out of Xiaoxiao’s lips. Persistently, she said word by word, “I don’t want you to live in guilt and anguish but I hope you can avenge her if an opportunity presents itself. We must know who did it.”

“I will find out the truth. You have my word!”

They went to two stores in the afternoon. They took a rough look at the layout of the stores, which were good but not enough to satisfy them. When it got dark outside, the two decided to shop for groceries and cook at home.

“I’ll cook for you tonight. Lamian is not the only thing I learned from your sister. I can also make fried dishes and stews.”

“I’ll know if it’s true after tasting it,” Xiaoxiao replied indifferently.

“You don’t believe me… What would you like to eat? Name it and I’ll cook for you.”

They walked into the market while speaking. Xiaoxiao approached an old lady’s stall. The old lady put on a warm smile when she saw her. “Xiaoxiao, I haven’t seen you in a couple of days. Is he your boyfriend?”

Xiaoxiao blushed. “What are you saying? I’m too young for that kind of thing,” she answered shyly.

The old woman sized Xiao Bing up and grinned. “I can tell that he’s quite a man. How old are you? If I remember correctly, you are a college student now. Few college girls can remain pure like you these days. God knows how crowded the hotels are on the weekends! It’s normal for you to have a boyfriend.”

Xiaoxiao’s heartbeat quickened. “Nonsense. Brother Bing, is there anything you want? I always come here to buy meat and vegetables.”

“Okay, let’s see.” Xiao Bing picked up some vegetables and paid for them. The old lady was still murmuring after they left. “He truly is a good lad. Seems like she has made the right judgment.”

Xiao Bing laughed after they had walked for some distance. “Did you hear that? She was complimenting me.”

Xiaoxiao scoffed. “Don’t you know how old she is? Her vision isn’t that clear.”

Xiao Bing was upset. “You don’t think I’m handsome?”

“Not really… But at least it’s better than some…”

“…”

The two of them then bought some meat and a fish. Xiao Bing carried them all. They walked out of the market and headed back home.

“Xiaoxiao, if you are prepared to look for a partner, what will he be like?”

“I don’t know. Certainly not like you.”

“…” “Xiaoxiao, do you realize how harsh your words are?”

“No. I only treat you this way…”

“…”

Though Xiaoxiao seemed cold, she enjoyed their bickering very much.

“Are you angry? Why aren’t you walking anymore?”

“No. I just saw someone I know.” Xiao Bing pointed at a place not far away. Xiaoxiao followed his gaze and saw Zhang Gui and Yingzi on the street with their hands joined together. Yingzi put on light makeup today, instead of her usual heavy makeup. She looked a far cry from the whore she used to look like. Now she looked like a good wife to Zhang Gui.

“You know that woman?” Xiaoxiao asked.

“No. But I know that man.”

“…”

“That man is the husband of the new owner of the building next to our Noodle House. The woman beside him should a whore. Looks like he’s cheating on his wife again.”

“Whore?” Xiaoxiao sized up the affectionate couple and shook her head, “She doesn’t look like one to me.”

“Really? Why?”

Xiaoxiao made an analysis. “I don’t know much about whores. But as a woman, I can tell that her smile comes from the bottom of her heart. To be honest, that man looks neither handsome nor rich. Though he has a restaurant, I’m sure that she really loves him, and this man loves her… Could there be true love between a man and a whore?”

Xiao Bing could not help laughing after hearing her analysis. “You are making some sense. Why don’t you study psychology from now on?”

Xiaoxiao shook her head. “It is easy to get stressed out when studying psychology. I might go crazy if I have a weak mind.”

“You look like a little manic to me now, hahaha!”

Su Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him.

When they reached home, Xiao Bing began cooking in the kitchen with Xiaoxiao helping him. Suddenly, his phone rang as he was holding a big spoon. “It must be Yezi. Answer the call. I’ll take over,” Xiaoxiao said.

“Okay.” Xiao Bing went to the living room after answering the call.

“Hey, Brother Bing. What are you doing?”

“Cooking. You want to come over?”

“Really? Are you sure that it’s not Xiaoxiao that is cooking for you?”

Xiao Bing grinned, “How can I impress her with my skills if I don’t show it to her?”

“Then I would love to have a taste. But I’m afraid Xiaoxiao won’t be happy about it.”

“She definitely wants you to be here,” Xiao Bing said. “Though she looks cold, she has a warm heart. She’s a very kind person.”

“Well, have you felt the warmth of her heart?”

“Don’t think too much. Are you coming or not? I’ll make more if you are.”

“Haha, just kidding. I’d better not to come… because the food is already prepared here. I just want to know if you found any suitable location.”

“There are two that we can do with but we are not entirely satisfied.”

“We can’t make do when it comes to business. The expansion can wait a couple of days. But we must try our best to make it perfect.”

“I could have paid a visit to two other stores if I did not go to the police station. But we can continue tomorrow.”

“Alright. Tell me if you need help.”

Xiao Bing chuckled. His voice suddenly turned soft as he said, “Yezi…”

“What?”

“Are you missing me…” Xiao Bing did not expect his heart to thump after saying this. He was looking forward to the answer. Many women had asked him the same question before, but he had always found it childish. He never thought that he would be this nervous and eager in front of a girl.

Before he could hear the answer, he heard a scream from the kitchen. Startled, he said in a hurry, “I’ll call you later. I’ll go and check on Xiaoxiao.”

He ended the call and rushed into the kitchen. He found Xiaoxiao standing there with her hands clasped. She was frowning and there were tears in her eyes. When he held her hands, he realized there was a blister on it. Looking at her watering eyes, he could not help blaming himself. “It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have picked up that call.”

“It has nothing to do with you. I cook all the time. I wasn’t being careful enough…”

Xiao Bing lowered his head and began to suck on her wound. He even gently licked the blister. Watching him do all of these, Xiaoxiao suddenly felt like it didn’t hurt that much. She kept staring at him, not knowing that she was already drowning in his gentleness.