“Xia Tian, why aren’t you burning incense?” Sister Lin asked me after finishing her incense offering.
The saying goes that men should kneel only for gold beneath their knees. Bowing is enough for offering prayers. Some students even perform a full three kowtows and nine prostrations. If the actual deity was standing before me, I might understand such reverence. But for this br0ken st0ne statue? Seriously, what’s worth worshiping here?
I was momentarily stunned, then smiled and said, “I’ll go now!”
I lit three sticks of incense and made a show of it. After all, this thing doesn’t work anyway.
“Alright, let’s go out and have some fun!” Sister Lin happily exclaimed once I was done.
Though Mount Wangfeng had great scenery, there wasn’t much to do. After all, I’m no scholar or poet with a passion for wandering through mountains and rivers.
Sister Lin and Mei’er walked ahead, hand in hand, with Sister Lin occasionally exclaiming in amazement while Mei’er giggled. I, the only man here, helplessly chewed on a piece of wild grass, watching the two beautiful women in front of me.
“Sister Lin, it’s getting late. Let’s head down for lunch,” I suggested after checking the time—it was almost 1:00 PM, and I was starting to feel a bit hungry.
Sister Lin glanced back at me, seemingly thinking about something, and then said, “Let’s stay a bit longer on the mountain before we head down.”
Knowing that arguing with Sister Lin would be futile, I gave up. But I really was getting hungry. At that moment, I noticed a young man sitting on the steps nearby with a box of instant noodles, a pack of bottled water, and two thermos flasks.
“Hey, bro, how much for the instant noodles?” I asked, smiling at him. I knew the usual price, but things in tourist areas tend to be overpriced, so it was better to ask.
The guy glanced at me and casually replied, “Ten yuan per cup…”
Damn! That’s a rip-off. Ten yuan for a cup of instant noodles? That’s triple the usual price!
“Isn’t that a bit too expensive? They’re only three or four yuan down below, but you’re charging ten? That’s a huge difference,” I complained weakly.
The guy got defensive, “What? I hauled these up the mountain with my own sweat and effort! You think that’s easy?”
Forget it, I decided against the instant noodles. Although I was hungry, it wasn’t too bad. The real issue was just the emptiness of following two beautiful women around.
“Alright, give me a bottle of water then,” I said. Even if the price was marked up threefold, water would still be reasonable at three yuan. I was genuinely thirsty, so spending an extra two yuan didn’t bother me much.
I took the water he handed me and began drinking. As I did, the guy suddenly said, “That’ll be five yuan for the water!”
“Phfftt!” His words made me spit out the water I had just drunk.
“Hurry up and pay! You’ve already opened it. Don’t think about running off without paying,” he said, frowning and glaring at me.
“Heh, heh… I wouldn’t do that,” I chuckled nervously. Screwing the cap back on, I tried to negotiate, “Look, I’ve only taken two sips—less than one-fifth of the bottle. How about I give you one yuan?”
“Not happening…” Before he could finish his sentence, I tossed the water and a one-yuan coin at him, turned around, and sprinted off.
I ran so fast that the guy knew he couldn’t catch me. He had no choice but to sit back down, muttering, “What kind of people are these?!”
This tourist spot is such a scam—five yuan for a bottle of water! I’m never coming back to a place like this again!
“Where did you rush off to, running like that?” Sister Lin asked curiously as I hurried back.
I smiled, “Oh, nothing. Just a minor thing.”
“Mei’er said she’s hungry. Let’s head down to eat,” Sister Lin said after glancing at Mei’er.
“Alright, let’s go!” I was overjoyed to hear that, finally, we could leave this dreadful place!
Sister Lin walked ahead while Mei’er suddenly came over and linked arms with me. I was momentarily stunned by the gesture, and before I could react, she said, “Actually, Mei’er isn’t really hungry.”
“Then why did you say that to Sister Lin?” Could it be that Sister Lin was the one who was actually hungry and used this as an excuse?
Mei’er giggled, “Mei’er knew that Xia Tian was hungry, so she told Sister Lin to come down for your sake!”
“Mei’er, you’re the best!” I said, giving her a peck on the cheek.
Mei’er blushed at my sudden affection. Just as I was about to go in for another kiss, Sister Lin’s voice interrupted, “How long are you two going to keep flirting? Let’s head down already! I’m hungry too!”
“Got it!” I replied helplessly. Mei’er quickly let go of my arm and ran over to Sister Lin.
Lin Mengxin, you always seem to show up at the most inconvenient times! Damn it!
As we walked, a burly man suddenly blocked my path and asked, “Bro, have you seen a tall guy with a sleazy face around?”
I was confused for a moment, “What’s going on?”
“The jerk bought water from my buddy and ran off without paying!” the man cursed.
Upon hearing this, I instantly knew the “sleazy guy” was me. But seriously, I did pay! Wasn’t one yuan still money?
“Damn, that’s low! If I see him, I’ll let you know!” I said, putting on a righteous expression. The man nodded in approval, and I took the chance to slip away quickly.
There were plenty of restaurants near the foot of the mountain, but there were also a lot of food stalls, which were much cheaper. A lot of people preferred them for that reason.
Sure, you could say that food by the roadside isn’t hygienic, but I think except for home-cooked meals, nothing is really that clean. Besides, out of sight, out of mind—I don’t dwell on it.
Seeing Sister Lin continue walking, I quickly said, “Sister, let’s just eat here. Restaurants are too expensive.”
Sister Lin thought for a moment, “Alright, let’s eat here.”
With her approval, we found a spot, sat down, and ordered a few random dishes to start eating.
Even though the food wasn’t exactly cheap, it was still better than the surrounding restaurants.
As I was eating, I suddenly heard a shout from the distance, “Catch the thief! Catch the thief!”
People around us heard it, but no one offered to help. After a glance, they all went back to their meals.
I continued eating, minding my own business.
“Catch the thief!” The voice came again. I looked up at the person who was robbed—a woman with long hair wearing a sun hat. I couldn’t tell if she was a beauty, but she had an elegant air about her.
Since she seemed like a beauty, I figured I might as well help her out.
What was ridiculous was that people weren’t just ignoring the thief—they were stepping aside to clear a path for him! If you didn’t know better, you’d think they were in on it.
I quickly caught up to the thief, kicked him down, and said, “Damn it! Doing strenuous exercise right after a meal is bad for you, you know that?”
“Big brother, please spare me! I won’t dare do it again!” The thief pleaded pitifully as he handed the wallet back to me. I took the wallet and stood up. I wasn’t a law-abiding hero or anything, and the thief hadn’t done me any harm. We’re all just trying to survive, so there was no need to make things difficult for him.
Just as I stood up, someone grabbed me by the neck, and a loud voice shouted, “Hand over the wallet!”
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