Butcher Fulang’s Noodle Shop - Chapter 51
This man spoke freely just to show off. After he finished speaking, he looked around proudly, but everyone remained silent except for the red lanterns hanging under the eaves and branches, swaying in the wind. The faint red light looked a bit desolate.
Aunt Liu also had a guess. Her lips trembled, and she could hardly stand still. She relied on Ye Du to hold her up to avoid falling.
“Don’t…don’t tell An Ge’er…”
Aunt Liu said anxiously, but the man opposite her didn’t answer. He looked past her and behind her, feeling a little at a loss.
Song Shi’an was standing behind the threshold, his face pale, and his dark eyes looking at them blankly.
Aunt Liu panicked, and Ye Du hurriedly said: “Boss, don’t think too much. Brother Xu has his own destiny, and nothing will happen to him. Don’t listen to this nonsense!”
Other men also chimed in, saying: “Well, you Nie Laoba, you are the bastard floating in the water. Don’t accuse my brother unjustly!”
“If anyone falls into the river, it won’t be him!”
Several people working with the couple surrounded Nie Laoba, clenching their fists to hit him. Nie Laoba was so frightened he didn’t dare to say anything anymore. He didn’t even dare to ask for the wages for a day’s work and hunched his shoulders, slipping away.
Aunt Liu shed tears silently. An Ge’er’s life had been so hard since he was a child. He finally had a few good days, but why… the hemp ropes which tied his luck was breaking now.
She wanted to open the door of Song Shi’an’s room and go in to comfort An Ge’er, but the door didn’t move at all. It turned out Song Shi’an had locked the room from inside.
“An Ge’er… don’t do anything stupid…”
Song Shi’an hummed and said, “I’ll take a break… Auntie, I still have a baby.”
Aunt Liu then staggered south, walking out of the house, thinking to herself, yes, An Ge’er was pregnant. If someone had a child, they had someone to rely on, and they wouldn’t do anything stupid.
.
This night was so difficult, it was like a story that suddenly had a tragic ending. He had already seen the word ‘end’, heard the music playing, and knew that everything was doomed, but he was still so sad that he could only hope for a miracle.
He knew that Aunt Liu and his cousin had not left, and Ye Du and several men from the shop were also staying to watch. Many ears were pricked up to listen to what was going on in his room, fearing that he would not be able to withstand the excitement and they would rush in to save him.
The tears could only flow quietly, and he couldn’t stop them even if he wanted to.
He recalled the first time he met Xu Zhongyue, the heroic figure of the man butchering pigs; when they got married, he saw his eager footsteps running towards him through the red veil; the figure who always stood in front of him to protect him; the moment of joy when he knew he was pregnant.
Song Shi’an’s beautiful face turned pale, and he was almost out of breath, his heart ached like stabbed by a knife.
Xu Zhongyue was so young and strong; how could he die?
Song Shi’an didn’t even know when he fell asleep.
In the dream, he had a very sweet sleep. He looked at the sun setting on the window paper, and there was a slight movement at the door outside. He got up and went to the ground to open the door for the man.
The door opened with a click, and the man smiled at him, with a snowflake on his eyebrows.
While helping the man pick off the snowflakes, he complained: “How long have I been out? I just came back now; I really don’t know how to come home!”
The man grinned and held him in his arms. Song Shi’an was content to lean on the man’s solid chest but thought he didn’t hold him tightly enough.
The man suddenly smiled sadly. The smile was very wrong. Song Shi’an felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar. He suddenly remembered everything.
When he opened his eyes, he realized that the child in his belly was also very anxious. The little body was tumbling back and forth, which made his heart ache.
Ah, everything was a dream.
He covered his face, tears pouring out from between his fingers. The little baby stretched out his hand and pressed a palm print on his belly, gently, as if to comfort his mother.
He put his hand on the bulge of his belly, pressed it against the child’s hand, and said word for word: “Don’t worry about me, I’m fine.”
He wiped away his tears, found some powder that he hadn’t used all year round, and pressed it against the red face. Eyelids and corners of the eyes, he put on new clothes and opened the door.
.
Aunt Liu and Ye Du were standing outside the door, wanting to knock but not daring to knock.
He said in a muffled voice: “I’m hungry.”
Aunt Liu knew that he hadn’t eaten. Just in one night, his face had lost a lot of weight, so she hurriedly made a large bowl of pork noodles and added two more eggs.
Song Shi’an sat obediently at the table, took the noodle bowl, lowered his head, and ate it with big mouthfuls.
Even if he had no appetite, even if he felt like vomiting, he would continue eating without changing his expression.
“I’m fine. Brother Xu may have been tripped up by something. Let’s just wait for him to come back at home.”
After that, he returned to normal as expected. He should eat and drink just like usual.
.
On the Lantern Festival on the 15th day of the first lunar month, after buying sesame-filled glutinous rice balls, he also went out and bought two rabbit lanterns for his cousin, Liu Yu and Liu Lu to play with.
“It’s time for the restaurant to open tomorrow.” Song Shi’an said to a group of men, “You guys eat glutinous rice balls tonight and then go home. We’ll see you in the store tomorrow.”
Seeing that he was so calm, Ye Du was even more worried that something was wrong with him. Aafter enjoying the food for a long time, he said slowly: “Boss, none of us can be late tomorrow!”
Song Shi’an nodded.
As soon as the Chinese New Year was over, the restaurant reopened as expected, and business was three times better than before. Everyone was so busy that they didn’t even have time to move or think too much.
After Zhang Nanming heard about Xu Zhongyue, he made a special trip to Yuezhou City to ask his brother for help.
Zhang Nanyan had no clue for a while and sent people to inquire around.
After the beginning of spring, the weather was getting hotter day by day, and Song Shi’an could hardly wear jacket. The news about Xu Zhongyue spread everywhere. No one couldn’t say that he was dead, but the neighbors felt that he was in danger.
Otherwise, if there was a wife at home who was about to give birth, why wouldn’t he go home quickly?