Chapter 17

Page Sixteen, Old Feng

Not just Old Feng, but everyone was surprised by the question I asked. For a moment, they all looked at me with astonishment.

Especially Xiao Hai Tang, her gaze was filled with venom, as if she was blaming me for reopening Old Feng’s old wounds.

Old Feng first looked stunned, then, as if he had made up his mind, he finished the half-smoked cigarette in one breath and threw it on the ground, crushing it with his foot.

He moved his chair and turned sideways, so we couldn’t see his left face, which was covered in burn scars.

“My past?” His voice was hoarse and calm. “Once upon a time, I was a top chef, until an accident…”

A top chef? I subconsciously looked at the right sleeve of Old Feng’s chef uniform, relieved that there was no white cloth tied around it.

“At that time, I was the head chef at a five-star hotel, with a family, wife, and daughter. Life was quite fulfilling, and I thought I could live happily ever after… But then a food poisoning incident occurred. Although the hotel took responsibility externally, it was ultimately our kitchen’s fault.”

“Only food poisoning? It wasn’t that simple, was it?”

“If it were just that, it would be a common accident. However, some victims died, and their families lost control, rushing into the back kitchen and pouring a pot of hot oil that hadn’t cooled down yet.”

“Ahh!” Ju Zi couldn’t help but let out a gasp. Xiao Hai Tang and Zhao Zhao also frowned. That scene was too cruel, almost like an ancient torture method.

“So, did those scars on your face come from that incident?”

“Yes, as the head chef, I naturally had to step forward when the families rushed in. So when they lost control and tried to grab the oil pot, I couldn’t completely avoid it, destroying my appearance and losing one eye.

Then, the hotel’s management held me accountable, and as the head chef on duty, I was fired.

I lost my left eye and my appearance was ruined. Finding work became difficult, and the savings in my home dwindled day by day. Eventually, even my wife divorced me, taking my daughter away.

My life shattered like a broken mirror, never to return to its happy and complete state. Even if I wanted to pick myself up again, reality was always cruel and despairing.

No one likes a man who is blind, disfigured, and tongue-tied. After all, I’m just a cook, and apart from cooking, I can do nothing else.

So I got this food cart, set up a street stall, and wandered through several streets before finally choosing this village entrance.”

Though it was about his own story, Old Feng spoke briefly, but it was not hard to imagine his bleak mental journey.

A person with a perfect career and family suddenly became blind, disfigured, unemployed, and separated from his wife and child, falling from the peak of life to the bottom. If he weren’t a strong-willed person, he might have already ended his own life.

But speaking of which… Old Feng really had a bad relationship with people. Even if he was disfigured, he should have found a job in the kitchen through relatives or friends. After all, Old Feng’s skills were still there, and a cook doesn’t need to look good. Yet, this top chef ended up running a street stall, and a barely profitable one at that, making one sigh with regret.

Perhaps he was already this quiet and uncommunicative before the incident.

“Uncle Feng, what caused the food poisoning?” Xiao Hai Tang asked a key question regarding the incident.

“The police investigation revealed that the problem was in the kitchen salt, which was mixed with sodium nitrite, causing the guests to be poisoned.”

“Was it a mistake at work? Or was someone trying to frame you?”

“Who knows? It’s all in the past now, revisiting these matters won’t change anything.”

Xiao Hai Tang wanted to ask more, but Old Feng clearly didn’t want to delve deeper into the past.

“I’ve come to terms with those things. Now, I just want the guests who come here to enjoy their meals.”

Speaking with a somewhat melancholic tone, Old Feng’s “coming to terms” was actually a helpless compromise.

Those who once touched happiness would not shrink in misfortune as long as they still saw hope.

Just as he was about to light his second cigarette, a few uncles wearing vests arrived. They greeted Old Feng and sat down laughing around the plastic tables and chairs, picking up menus to write down their orders.

They seemed to be regular customers of the village. If Dad didn’t have a phobia of women, this might be how he spent his free time.

Old Feng thought for a moment, put the cigarette behind his ear, and began clearing the dishes we had eaten.

“In fact, the past isn’t that important. Rather than constantly looking back, it’s better to move forward.”

Whether he was talking to us or himself, Old Feng left this sentence and returned to being the silent, frugal cook, carrying the plates back to his food cart.

What he said to us just now was more than what he had said in the last few months combined.

Settling the bill, we left. I left a spot for Old Feng in my notebook.

“Do you want to come over to my house for a bit?” I invited them as we passed by my house.

Zhao Zhao and Xiao Hai Tang lived closer to the other end of the village, while my house was closest to the village entrance. So, Xiao Hai Tang and Zhao Zhao occasionally came to my place to play games after school.

Zhao Zhao readily accepted my proposal.

“Sure!” Although school hadn’t ended, Zhao Zhao had already switched to summer vacation mode after the final exams, wanting to stay home every day reading pornographic books or playing games.

“Let’s play a bit before going back. It will improve our mood. Knowing about Old Feng’s situation makes me feel weighed down.” But his real purpose for coming to my house… playing games? It seemed he had ulterior motives.

“That works for me…” Xiao Hai Tang paused, then continued, “No, Ju Zi and I won’t go in… Uncle has already arrived home.”

“Huh? How do you know?” I was curious how Xiao Hai Tang knew my dad was home. Zhao Zhao and Ju Zi also looked puzzled at Xiao Hai Tang.

“It’s the door. Your door is fixed. It wasn’t your dad who fixed it, was it? Did you fix it yourself at noon?” Hearing her analysis, I noticed the new, undamaged door at the entrance, which was the same model as the old one, so I hadn’t noticed it immediately.

“Since the door is fixed, your keys are useless. So Uncle must be waiting for you at home. Ju Zi and I shouldn’t scare him by going in.”

She then took Ju Zi’s hand and headed toward the Chen family’s direction.

“Brother! Let’s meet another time!” Ju Zi, pulled away by Xiao Hai Tang, turned back to wave goodbye.

I was thinking about whether I should get a phone for Xiao Ju Zi during the summer break, since I couldn’t keep going through Xiao Hai Tang.

As Xiao Hai Tang predicted, my key indeed couldn’t open the door. I rang the doorbell, summoning my dad to open the door for me and Zhao Zhao.

“Son, why are you back so late? Have you eaten dinner?” My dad, in a tank top and shorts, stood by the wall at the entrance. Zhao Zhao followed me inside. “Oh, Zhao’s boy, back again?”

“Uncle, good evening. We’ve already eaten.”

“Yes, Ju Zi was taken by Xiao Hai Tang. We had a farewell party for her.”

Dad still held onto the outdated idea that “after the founding of the country, no spirits,” and refused to believe that Ju Zi had become a cat spirit. He thought I meant she was adopted by the Chen family. After two years, giving away a cat seemed wasteful to him. “Oh, then take the litter box and cat food to them another day.”

“She doesn’t need those anymore… But why are you home so early, Dad?”

“A colleague bought a car and drove me home today. He helped me take half a day off to fix the door. With him around, my commute is much easier.”

The colleague who drove Dad was the one mentioned earlier, the office otaku who preached galgames.

With a stable work schedule, Dad seemed to be in a good mood. He was now sitting on the living room sofa, holding a laptop, pretending to do some psychological therapy—playing those beautiful girl dating games.

Although Dad seemed indifferent, it was still awkward for me to see my friend’s dad doing such things. I quickly dragged Zhao Zhao upstairs.

Entering the bedroom, I threw my backpack onto the desk and pulled out two PS4 controllers from the TV cabinet, handing one to Zhao Zhao. “So, what do we play today? How about ‘Escape from the Dead’? We haven’t finished it yet.”

“Escape from the Dead” is a cooperative adventure game. Since it can’t be played alone, I hadn’t completed it yet.

But Zhao Zhao showed no interest in the game. Instead of taking the controller, he rubbed his hands together slyly and said, “Come on, Chairman, don’t you know what I’m thinking?”

“No, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I feigned ignorance, looking at him with confusion.

“Oh, stop pretending. Didn’t I say I’d give you some benefits? There’ll be plenty to see!”

Hearing his words, I felt goosebumps all over.

The image of a mountain gorilla, nearly two meters tall, speaking in a hesitant manner, reminded me of a lucha libre wrestler delivering a human bomb to your stomach, making my stomach churn and nearly causing me to vomit.

“Brother, call me brother. Please don’t speak in that tone. I nearly threw up my New Year’s Eve dinner last year.” Grabbing the nearby trash bin, I faked a few dry heaves.