A man who was jogging early in the morning passed by. He walked up a few meters away and examined the almost gleaming "corpse" on the ground. He wanted to walk away but was also curious, so he ran to the box, rummaged through it, and pulled out a branch. He poked the person on the ground from a distance, and suddenly the person sat up abruptly. The jogger was startled and threw down the branch, running away into the distance.
Zhao Qiang stared blankly at the world before him. He knew nothing; his mind was completely blank, with no information recorded. He didn't even know who he was, let alone remember those women. If someone told him that one plus one equals three, he wouldn't think it was a mistake.
There's no way around it; every part of the body has been rebooted, and even the cells throughout the body have undergone a near-instantaneous metabolism, regenerating after death. Now it's the brain's turn. This is equivalent to formatting and reinstalling the subsystem. Previous data is lost, and whether it can be recovered using professional software is an unknown.
Volume 2 [423] The Free Meal
The fried dough stick stall had no name. All people knew was that Chen Ma was a beautiful woman and had a beautiful daughter named Chen Xinxin. Because both mother and daughter were beautiful, the fried dough stick stall did exceptionally well. Most of the people who came to eat breakfast were men. Everyone understood the principle of same sex repelling each other, so very few women came to eat breakfast there, probably for fear of being outshone by the mother and daughter.
"Xin Xin, where have you been so early in the morning? Hurry up and help me get the fried dough sticks." Chen** commented on his daughter.
Little Chili, who had just returned from delivering fried dough sticks to Meng Jiangbo, stuck out her tongue and said in a very obedient voice, "Mom, didn't I deliver fried dough sticks to someone else? Here, let me help you."
"Hey beautiful, pick out five fried dough sticks and a bowl of soy milk, sweet, please." A man called out from afar.
Chen Xinxin said, "Five fried dough sticks and a bowl of sweet soy milk, here you go." She used wooden tongs to pick out five fried dough sticks and put them on a plate. Then she scooped out a bowl of soy milk, added two spoonfuls of sugar, and delivered it to an empty seat. The man sat down and said, "Xinxin, you've become even more beautiful overnight. I'll introduce you to someone another day."
"Thank you, Uncle, but I'm still too young to date," Chen Xinxin said, her elegant demeanor completely at odds with her previous image.
Someone nearby called out, "Hey pretty girl, hurry up and give me another bowl of tofu pudding, and scoop out more gravy!"
Chen Xinxin was so busy she barely had time to breathe, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. She couldn't keep up with her bulky winter coat anymore, so she unzipped it and took it off. As she pulled the sleeves off behind her back, all the men around the fried dough stick stall stared at her chest. So full! It looked like her clothes were about to burst. This was only a seventeen or eighteen-year-old girl. I wonder what she would be like in a few more years.
Slurp, someone sucked up the soy milk that had dripped to the corner of their mouth, wiped it off, and continued eating. They just watched for a while to satisfy their eyeballs. If they actually dared to lay a hand on her, Chen's mother would definitely throw hot oil in their face. Someone had done an experiment on this. Don't be fooled by Chen's mother's kind demeanor. When it comes to the reputation and safety of mother and daughter, she would absolutely disregard all consequences.
After seeing her daughter, Chen's mother came to see her mother. Although she had a seventeen or eighteen-year-old daughter, she did not look old at all. She looked to be in her early thirties at most. She resembled Liu Yiyi somewhat, but was more mature and had a more charming demeanor. After all, she was a woman who had given birth, which was something Liu Yiyi could not compare to.
The mother and daughter have been selling fried dough sticks here for several years, relying on each other for survival. Thanks to the help of the men in the neighborhood, the business has always been good and enough to cover their living expenses. However, selling fried dough sticks requires getting up early every day, and Chen Xinxin has secretly complained countless times. Since she was old enough to understand, she has never had a good night's sleep in the morning, and wind and rain cannot stop her from doing so.
Zhao Qiang arrived at the fried dough stick stall without anyone noticing. He was drooling, not because he had any thoughts about the mother and daughter. At this moment, Zhao Qiang didn't have any complicated thoughts. He just needed to replenish his energy as a conditioned reflex, and hot, oily fried dough sticks became the best choice. Zhao Qiang's eyes, which had regained their luster, were fixed on the oil pan.
Feeling someone was watching, Chen's mother looked up and sized up Zhao Qiang. He was a very young boy, no more than ten years old, judging from his youthful face. However, he was very tall, like an adult. Chen's mother asked, "Little friend, would you like some fried dough sticks?" Calling Zhao Qiang "little friend" was perfectly appropriate for someone of Chen's age.
Zhao Qiang nodded mechanically, and Chen's mother asked, "How many do you want?"
Zhao Qiang pointed to a pile of fried dough sticks that had already been fried, about fifty or so. Chen's mother smiled. Since she opened her stall, no one had ever eaten so many fried dough sticks at once, unless they were taken away. She picked out five fried dough sticks and handed them to Zhao Qiang, saying, "Eat these first. If you're not full, we'll talk about it later. Go find a seat over there. We have soy milk and tofu pudding. Take whatever you like."
When Chen Xinxin returned from delivering tofu pudding to a customer, she only caught a glimpse of Zhao Qiang's back. His clothes and pants looked familiar, so Chen Xinxin curiously followed him. Just then, Zhao Qiang turned around and sat down in an empty seat. Chen Xinxin recognized him and paused, "Is it you?" Why did she ask that? Zhao Qiang's clothes were exactly the same as the old man Chen Xinxin had seen before, but his appearance had changed drastically. Before, he was an old and frail man; now he looked youthful and energetic.
Zhao Qiang didn't answer, but just pointed to the tofu pudding bucket. Chen Xinxin, puzzled, scooped a bowl of tofu pudding and brought it to Zhao Qiang. She sat down opposite him and whispered, "Old man, I recognize you! What are you up to? I thought you looked old when you delivered the fried dough sticks. How come you're suddenly so young again? What kind of trick are you playing? Tell me, are you a demon? Let me tell you, there are a lot of men here, and the yang energy is strong. Be careful, or we might kill you!"
"What is a fairy?" Zhao Qiang asked seriously, because eating was particularly awkward for him without teeth, and speaking was also difficult. However, new teeth were emerging from his gums, and perhaps new ones would grow in soon.
Chen Xinxin thought for a moment, "Uh, 'fairy' means not a normal person."
Zhao Qiang suddenly pointed at Chen Xinxin and said, "You're a vixen."
Chen Xinxin was so angry that she almost threw the tofu pudding at Zhao Qiang's head. Zhao Qiang then said, "You are prettier and more attractive than them."
Chen Xinxin chuckled, "Sweet talk, I didn't expect you to be so sweet-talking despite your silly appearance. Eat your fried dough sticks."
Zhao Qiang devoured five fried dough sticks in a few bites, then slurped down a mouthful of tofu pudding. Although he wasn't full, Zhao Qiang didn't care. He stood up to leave when Chen Xinxin called out, "Hey, come this way, the bill collection is here."
Zhao Qiang took two steps forward and asked, "What is an account?"
Chen Xinxin was so angry that she could no longer pretend to be a lady in front of her mother: "Are you stupid? You don't pay for the meal, do you think we're some kind of rich man?"
"I have no money." Zhao Qiang said without blushing, though he didn't even know what blushing meant.
Chen Xinxin grabbed the coal tongs and shouted, "What? You're trying to dine and dash if you don't have money? Do you think we're easy to bully?!" The men around her were also indignant and seemed ready to tear Zhao Qiang to pieces.
Chen's mother glared at Chen Xinxin, and Chen Xinxin immediately wilted, threw the fire tongs on the ground, and obediently went to the oil pan to scoop out the fried dough sticks. Chen's mother kindly asked Zhao Qiang, "Child, how old are you?"
Zhao Qiang shook his head: "I don't know."
"What's your name?"
"have no idea."
Where do you live?
"have no idea."
Do you have any money on you?
"I don't know what money is."
Chen's mother sighed. "Alas, he's a fool." Chen Xinxin said from the side, "Hey, so your name is Buzhi? Since you don't have money to pay the bill and don't know where your home is, then stay and help. We should at least make up for our losses."
Zhao Qiang was hesitating about where to strike when Chen Xinxin's words gave him some inspiration, "Okay."
So Zhao Qiang stood in Chen Xinxin's place. The environment next to the oil pan was terrible, and a girl with good skin like Chen Xinxin didn't want to stay there. She gave Zhao Qiang a few simple instructions: once the oil on one side turned golden brown, he should flip it over immediately, and once both sides were colored, it was ready to be taken off the heat. Zhao Qiang didn't need Chen Xinxin to remind him a second time; he was already working skillfully on it.
It was already the peak time for breakfast. Chen's mother turned the fire up to its highest setting, and the hot oil was bubbling. In no time, a pot of fried dough sticks would be ready. If the person scooping the oil out of the pot was slow, the oil would easily burn. However, Zhao Qiang used two long chopsticks to quickly flip the oil in the pot, and not a single fried dough stick was overcooked. When they came out of the pot, they were all the same color. Chen's mother was quite amazed. If she hadn't been scooping oil out of the pot for more than ten years, she probably wouldn't have been able to do this.
With an extra person to help, Chen Xinxin became much more relaxed, chatting with the guests in a gentle tone, completely unlike her previous fierce manner. However, Zhao Qiang ignored her completely, focusing only on his oil pan.
"Miss, give us twenty fried dough sticks and five bowls of soy milk, the darkest milky kind, please." The group of customers spoke with a frivolous tone, especially the word "milk," which carried an extremely lewd undertone. Their eyes lingered on Chen Xinxin's chest, clearly their real intention was not the milk itself, but her breasts. Chen Xinxin, having been active, was already warm, so she had unbuttoned one button at the neckline, revealing a deep cleavage that was incredibly alluring, the snow-white flesh beside it making one want to touch it.
"What a load of crap!" Chen Xinxin muttered, but still went to pick up the fried dough sticks and scoop up the soy milk. The young men had faint tattoos on their arms, and you could tell at a glance they weren't good people. You couldn't mess with a small place like a fried dough stick stall.
"Pfft!" A man with a small scorpion tattooed on the right side of his neck suddenly spat out his soy milk on the ground and cursed, "What kind of milk is this? It has no taste at all! Sister Bu, come here!"
Chen Xinxin walked over and said, "Sir, what are you trying to do? This is soy milk, not dairy. Please understand that, okay?"
The scorpion man chuckled: "Girl, let me tell you straight, I, Ran, am here to cause trouble. What are you going to do about it?"
At this moment, Chen's mother also realized that the other party had ill intentions, so she immediately stopped making fried dough sticks, wiped her hands and ran over, "Sir, I'm sorry, my daughter is young and doesn't know any better. Please forgive her if she has done anything wrong."
The scorpion-like man kicked over the makeshift table, spilling the fried dough sticks and soy milk. He pointed at the Chen mother and daughter and said, "Stop talking nonsense! I'm not going to beat around the bush with you. Get out of here today! You're not allowed to run a fried dough stick stall here anymore!"
Chen's mother glanced at another fried dough stick stall across the street, which was deserted. She asked, "Did the fried dough stick stall across the street send you here to cause trouble?"
The scorpion man, taking advantage of the mother and daughter's lack of support, said arrogantly, "So what if they are? If they know what's good for them, they'd better pack up and get out of here right now! Otherwise, you'll regret it!"
The diners eating at the fried dough stick stall originally planned to stand up for the Chen mother and daughter in hopes of winning their favor. However, seeing the scorpion man and his gang approaching menacingly, and vaguely seeing weapons tucked into their waistbands, they all picked up their fried dough sticks and ran away. Being favored by beautiful women was certainly a good thing, but their lives were more important.
Chen's mother said, "We operate our businesses normally and don't interfere with each other. No one has the right to kick us out."
The scorpion man said, "Really? Brothers, let's get started. Don't let our customers down; they've already paid."
Chen Xinxin grabbed the fire tongs again, saying, "Anyone who dares to touch it, I'll whip them."
The scorpion man stepped forward without fear. Suddenly, his hand swiftly reached out and grabbed Chen Xinxin's weapon. With a pull, Chen Xinxin stumbled, and the fire tongs involuntarily slipped from her hand. The scorpion man chuckled, "You're only good for playing with a cannon. You're no good at fighting."
Volume 2 [424] Employment
Chen Xinxin was furious. She ran to the oil pan and reached out to lift it, shouting, "I'll pour oil on you all to death!"
To Chen Xinxin's surprise, the oil pan had been heated for so long. Although the pan had handles on both sides for easy lifting, the temperature on top was very high. Chen Xinxin cried out and jumped up, covering her ears and hopping around on the ground. The scorpion man and the others laughed heartily.
One of his accomplices said, "Boss, stop wasting time talking to those women. Let's get this over with and get out of here. We don't have time to linger."
"Smash it!" The scorpion man decisively gave the order, and his henchmen rolled up their sleeves, picked up chairs, and slammed them on the table.
Suddenly, the scorpion man's eyes lit up. It was a liquid reflecting the rising sunlight. Then, it felt like his face had been branded with a hot iron. He closed his eyes and screamed in pain, "It's burning me! It's burning me!"
Chen Xinxin was dumbfounded. She had only intended to scare the five people by lifting the oil pot, and it would have been fine if she hadn't. But she hadn't expected that the five people who had been standing foolishly by the pot, only knowing how to scoop out fried dough sticks, would disregard the heat of the oil and lift it up, pouring the scalding hot oil all over them! Instantly, their skin became red and swollen, and they ran away, naturally to the hospital for their burns. They didn't want to smash up the stall now; their own lives were more important.
Chen's mother trembled with fear. "What should we do? Will they retaliate?" Although Chen's mother had scooped up hot oil with a spoon to scare people before, she had never actually poured it on them.
Chen Xinxin said, "Mom, what are you afraid of? Let me say it's good that they were scalded! They deserved to die from the heat!"
Chen's mother complained to Zhao Qiang, "Oh dear, little boy, you've really gotten us into big trouble. You'd better leave now, or you'll be dead when they come back."
When Zhao Qiang heard that they were telling him to leave, he didn't stand on ceremony and left after putting down the oil pan. Ah Xinxin's eyes darted around, and she said to her mother, "Mom, I'll go take a look. If they come back to retaliate, we should run away as soon as possible."
As Chen's mother hurriedly packed up her stall, two stools and a table had already been smashed. Those damned bastards, she thought, "I wish they'd all be dead." Putting down the junk she was carrying, Chen's mother instructed her daughter, "Don't run around. You'd better behave these next few days. We won't be setting up our stall tomorrow; let's lay low for a while."
Chen Xinxin gave a perfunctory reply and chased after Zhao Qiang. Soon she saw Zhao Qiang strolling aimlessly through the street, his leisurely demeanor as if he hadn't just splashed hot oil on her. Chen Xinxin called out, "Hey, I don't know, wait a minute."
Zhao Qiang stopped and waited for Chen Xinxin to catch up. Chen Xinxin asked, "Where are you going?"
Zhao Qiang shook his head. He had no recollection of the place at the moment, so he had no idea where to go.
Chen Xinxin said, "I see you're a bit silly and homeless. I wonder how skilled you are?" Chen Xinxin knew the weight of that pot. In Zhao Qiang's hands, it was like a toy. Moreover, when he poured the oil, he did it cleanly and neatly, without splashing any on himself. Chen Xinxin, who was also somewhat of a gangster, knew that this person must be skilled.
"What is skill?" Zhao Qiang asked seriously.
Chen Xinxin almost rolled her eyes: "You don't understand anything."
Zhao Qiang nodded, and Chen Xinxin said, "How about this, do you see that lamppost over there?"
Zhao Qiang nodded: "I saw it."
Chen Xinxin said, "Go over there and slap it."
Zhao Qiang didn't know what Chen Xinxin was planning, but since she had given him fried dough sticks, she was theoretically a good person, so Zhao Qiang did as she asked. He slapped the lamppost, a metal pole with a diameter of over thirty centimeters, which was planted in the concrete ground. The pole actually shook and made a buzzing sound when Zhao Qiang slapped it! Zhao Qiang's slap was stronger than that of an ordinary person!
Chen Xinxin stepped forward with delight and touched Zhao Qiang's chest muscles. "Wow, you're pretty strong. You'll have to follow me from now on."
Zhao Qiang nodded: "Is food provided?"
Chen Xinxin generously replied, "Fried dough sticks, all you can eat."
Zhao Qiang said, "Let's do it."
Chen Xinxin said, "Come on, I'll take you somewhere to wait first. You'll come out with me tonight. Your job is to protect me from being bullied. If anyone bullies me, you have to beat them up. Do you understand?"
Zhao Qiang said, "I understand, but I'm hungry."
Chen Xinxin slapped her head and said, "My God, you just ate five fried dough sticks! Don't tell me you're a glutton. Let's go find a place to settle down first, and then I'll go home and steal some fried dough sticks for you. Luckily, there were a lot left over this morning, otherwise I really wouldn't be able to handle you."
This was an urban village awaiting redevelopment, with old and low houses. Chen Xinxin went into a bungalow, and Zhao Qiang followed her in. A giggling female voice came from inside: "Oh, you've found me a man. I was exhausted last night and can't do anything today. But this man is not bad. He's muscular and fair-skinned. I can't help myself."
Zhao Qiang adjusted to the light in the room and saw the furnishings: a bed, two tables, and a few stools. One table was a dining table, and the other was a dressing table with a row of cheap cosmetics on it. A girl named Yu was lying on the bed, her upper body half exposed. Her transparent nightgown could not hide her two breasts, but it was a pity that such a good figure was wasted. Zhao Qiang did not even glance at her.
Chen Xinxin scolded, "Zhao Ling, are you crazy about men? I just hired a bodyguard. Let him stay here for a day, and I'll show him the nightlife tonight. If he's good enough, he can stay; if not, send him home."
Zhao Ling chuckled: "Bodyguard? How did you even come up with that idea! You must be the rich guy you just hooked up with."
Chen Xinxin said, "Am I that easy? I'm a virgin!"
Zhao Ling laughed and cursed, "Get lost! Am I not a virgin anymore? But what good is that? I might as well have someone get rid of me and make some money to spend."
Chen Xinxin said, "I'm not going to talk nonsense with you anymore. I'm going home to steal some fried dough sticks. You keep an eye on him for me. He's not very bright, so don't bully him."
Zhao Ling said, "Don't worry, at most I'll seduce him into bed. Men don't lose out in these kinds of things."
Chen Xinxin went out, and judging from the direction she left, she was probably also in this village, and likely a tenant in this village. Zhao Qiang sat on the stool, looking very serious. Suddenly, Zhao Ling lifted a corner of the blanket and beckoned to Zhao Qiang: "Come here, little brother, it's cold under the bed. Come on up and warm yourself up. I won't eat you. Come on."