Chương 31: Lin Zhou: "Brother Zhou, yes, it's still me."

It wasn't a push, it was a block.

The movements were small but precise, indicating she had practiced.

She stood up from the chair.

He stood up for a moment, his knees touched the table leg, and his body swayed.

Then she bent down.

Vomited.

He vomited violently.

The sleeves of her dark gray hoodie almost touched the floor. She supported herself on her knee with one hand and held onto the corner of the table with the other.

Her short hair slipped out from behind her ears, obscuring her face.

All eyes in the store turned to them.

The woman peeling garlic, two middle school students eating fried noodles at the next table, and Old Ma standing behind the grill.

All eyes were on Lin Zhou.

A young man sat next to a woman who had vomited all over the floor, holding a half-empty glass of beer in his hand.

Their eyes were saying the same thing: Your girlfriend is throwing up like this and you're still drinking?

Lin Zhou put down his beer glass.

He made a shrugging gesture to everyone in the store. He spread both hands out, palms facing up.

"I don't know her."

The comments section was filled with laughter.

You don't know her.

"Three-Second King: I don't know her. Everyone in the store: Keep making things up."

"He shrugged, the locksmith king shrugged in front of the whole store."

"This is the weakest excuse we can come up with today."

Old Ma walked out from behind the oven.

Another dark brown oil stain appeared on his apron, probably from freshly applied sauce. He stood in front of the table, glancing down at the puddle on the floor for a few seconds. Then he looked up at Lin Zhou.

"Young man," he said, "tell your girlfriend to drink less. She's throwing up like that—" He paused.

"--Can."

Lin Zhou opened his mouth.

I want to say she's not my girlfriend.

But when Old Ma's gaze and the gazes of everyone in the store pressed down on him, he swallowed his words.

He lowered his head and reached out to support Su Wan's shoulder.

Su Wan's hoodie sleeve brushed against the ground and got a little dusty.

He helped her back to the chair and let her lean against the plastic backrest.

"Officer Su," he said, bending down and lowering his voice.

"How about we call it a day?"

Su Wan leaned back in her chair.

Her head was tilted back, her short hair was all loose, revealing her smooth forehead.

Her eyes were half-open, and her eye sockets were red, whether from drinking or crying, it was hard to tell. Her lips moved slightly.

"You dislike me too?"

The sound was very soft.

The voice was completely different from when he slammed the table and shouted, "I'm only twenty-four!"

It was light and airy, like a tissue that floated down from the table.

Lin Zhou squatted down.

He looked at Su Wan, who was sitting in a chair, at eye level.

"No. I don't mind."

Su Wan's eyes darted around.

Her eyes moved from Lin Zhou's left cheek to his right, then back again. His breath smelled of beer, mixed with a hint of cumin. She spoke again in that light, airy voice.

"You don't look down on me—why do you call me Officer Su?"

She sniffed.

"Don't you call me Su Wan? My mom always calls me Wanwan."

Lin Zhou squatted on the ground.

Smoke from the barbecue restaurant drifted over from the grill and rose between him and Su Wan.

Old Ma had already come over with a mop, the mop handle resting on the table leg. He was waiting for Lin Zhou to help Su Wan away.

Everyone in the store was still watching. The woman peeling garlic was still clutching that clove in her hand, the skin already completely removed.

Lin Zhou's Adam's apple bobbed.

He glanced at Su Wan, who was leaning back in her chair with her eyes half-open, her short hair all disheveled.

The tiny mole on her ear was almost invisible under the light.

Her face was flushed, her ears were flushed, and her neck was flushed.

"... Wanwan?"

Su Wan hummed in agreement.

Then she fell forward.

His head nestled between Lin Zhou's shoulder and collarbone. The hood of his dark gray hoodie brushed against his chin.

She collapsed onto him.

Fell asleep.

His breathing was deep and labored, one breath at a time, his chest rising and falling slowly with each breath.

Lin Zhou squatted on the ground, his hands dangling in mid-air.

He was still holding the half-empty glass of beer he hadn't put down earlier in one hand.

He looked down at Su Wan, who was leaning on his shoulder—her hair was messy.

The mole on his ear was next to the collar of his down jacket.

Her eyelashes were long, and when her eyes were closed, they fell onto her lower eyelids, casting a small shadow.

His breath blew on his collarbone, warm, one breath at a time.

Old Ma, holding a mop, looked at them.

The woman peeling garlic watched them.

Everyone in the store was watching them.

The chat was quiet for about three seconds.

Then it exploded.

"She's asleep."

"Wanwan. That's what he called her. She just hummed in response and fell asleep."

Su Wan: When you call me Wanwan, I go to sleep. It's like a computer being turned off.

"The locksmith was squatting on the ground, Su Wan leaning on his shoulder, holding a half-empty glass of beer. What should he do? He didn't know what to do."

"He patted Su Wan on the shoulder today, Su Wan touched his cup, Su Wan asked him if he was just being polite, Su Wan threw up and he still helped her up, and now Su Wan has fallen asleep on his shoulder."

"Three-Second King: I want to unlock it. I don't want to deal with this. But his shoulders didn't move."

He squatted on the ground, motionless, afraid of waking her.

The smoke from the charcoal fire at the barbecue restaurant was still rising.

Old Ma had already finished mopping the floor; the mop was leaning against an unobstructed corner, the cloth still dripping water.

The woman peeling the garlic finally lowered her head and put the clove of garlic in her hand into the bowl.

The shop returned to normal, except for Lin Zhou, who was still squatting on the ground.

He looked down at Su Wan, who was leaning on his shoulder.

His short hair brushed against the collar of his down jacket, his breathing was even, and his eyelashes rested quietly on his lower eyelids.

I slept like my computer was off.

Can you wake her up?

He thought about it and decided not to call out.

If he wakes up and vomits again, Old Ma will have to mop the floor again.

Lin Zhou placed the half-glass of beer he was holding on the table.

With his hands freed, he pulled Su Wan closer to him.

Her shoulder rested on his collarbone, her breath blowing against his collar.

"I guess this is a good thing."

He looked down at the top of Su Wan's head and muttered to himself.

"At least don't act crazy after drinking."

The comments section started summarizing for him.

"Indeed. Her drunkenness is when she's asleep; that's the mildest kind."

"Su Wan: Drink five bottles, slam the table once, vomit once, cry once, tell you to call me Wanwan, and then turn off the phone. Is that what you call good drinking manners? Locksmith King, isn't your standard for good drinking manners too low?"

"It's much better than getting drunk and causing trouble. Last time my friend got drunk and started singing in the street, we couldn't stop him."

"At least she's asleep. If she's asleep, she won't cause any more trouble."

"But she hasn't said where she lives. She's sleeping on your shoulder, how are you going to get her away tonight?"

"The Locksmith King is thinking. His expression... he's thinking."

Lin Zhou was indeed thinking about how to get rid of her.

She didn't say where she lived.

He didn't know where she lived.

She was taken to the police station, where the two male police officers who had taken her statement that morning were on duty. There was no one to take care of her.

Even if you put her in a taxi, given her condition, the driver might not accept.

If you leave her alone at the barbecue restaurant, Old Ma will be closing up shop.

He took out his phone.

The time displayed on the screen is almost eight o'clock.

Old Zhou should still be at the Municipal Bureau.

He dialed the number.

It rang about four times before being answered.

"Brother Zhou."

Lin Zhou pulled Su Wan closer to his shoulder, and her head slid down a little, which he held steady with his shoulder.

"Su Wan is drunk."

Prefer urban novels? Click to enter your personal book library!