"You old hag, are you looking for death? You scratched my car, do you want to die?" The driver cursed as he inspected the scratches on the back of his car, and there were indeed two very obvious ones.
Zhao Qiang thought to himself, "Aren't Beijingers supposed to be very civilized? How come there's such a guy? Is he from out of town?"
The old woman repeatedly bowed, saying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I really didn't mean it."
The driver suddenly stepped forward and kicked over the old woman's work table, scattering the kettle and tea set all over the floor. Several tea sets shattered, and freshly boiled water spilled everywhere. The driver yelled, "What good is 'sorry'? Give me the money!"
The old woman obeyed immediately, pulling out money from her pocket, but it was all small change, amounting to only a few dozen yuan. The driver snatched it away, threw it on the ground, and cursed, "You think you can get rid of me with just a few yuan? You're dreaming! How many times have I warned you? You still illegally set up a stall! Including the cost of the scratched car and the fine, give me five hundred yuan in total."
The old woman's face turned deathly pale: "I don't have that much money."
With a crash, the driver kicked over another table: "No money? If you don't have money, hand over your house and you'll have money. Are you just going to stay in this godforsaken place and wait to die? If it weren't for you old geezers, this whole area would have been relocated long ago. Damn it, why don't you just go die?"
Zhao Qiang stretched out his leg to stop the driver from kicking him further: "Comrade, it's wrong for the old lady to set up a stall illegally, but she's already so old and life isn't easy for her, so please let her off the hook."
Zhao Qiang's accent was unpleasant to hear. The driver looked him up and down and asked, "Mind your own business?"
Zhao Qiang smiled wryly: "I guess so. How about I pay for the old lady and you stop?"
The driver held out his hand, and Zhao Qiang pulled five bills from his backpack and placed them in his hand. The driver cursed the old woman, "You old hag, you're lucky. If you dare to set up a stall on the street again, I'll smash your house up."
The old woman didn't say anything. If she didn't set up her stall, she probably wouldn't even be able to earn a living. But if she said she had no money, the driver would probably force her to move again. So she didn't know what to say and could only silently squat down to pick up the tea set that had been kicked over and broken.
The scratch wouldn't even cost five hundred yuan. The driver made a great deal, got back into his car, and drove off. Zhao Qiang watched him leave. Actually, the car hadn't gone very far before stopping at a villa in the center of the city.
"Young man, I can't repay your five hundred yuan." The old woman said sadly, her hand trembling as she clutched a broken piece of a teapot.
Zhao Qiang shook his head: "No need, Grandma, consider this my payment for the tea."
The old woman said, "This tea is too expensive. I don't know how to thank you enough."
Zhao Qiang said, "Grandma, you should find a different place to run your tea stall in the future, otherwise I'm afraid he'll keep bothering you."
The old woman sighed: "I don't have the strength to carry it far. Besides, if he keeps bothering me, he won't care where I set up my stall."
Zhao Qiang asked, "Is it because of the relocation?"
The old woman nodded: "The demolition compensation offered by the neighborhood committee is too low. Once we move out, we won't even have enough money to buy a new house, let alone renovate it. Moving means losing our home. Who would dare to move?" Beijing's housing prices are naturally a spectacle. If the compensation is not enough to buy a new house, moving means losing one's home for some elderly people.
Zhao Qiang asked doubtfully, "Was this compensation payment not reviewed?"
The old woman sighed, "I heard that the compensation was initially very high, but after being skimmed off layer by layer, there's hardly anything left. Plus, the neighborhood committee takes a cut, so what we actually get is just a little bit. The driver we just saw was Liu Fang, who's in charge of this area's demolition at the neighborhood committee. I heard that a few days ago, he even broke Old Zhang's head because he couldn't convince him to cooperate."
"Is the villa inside his home?" Zhao Qiang asked.
The old woman said, "Yes, I heard that the villa was compensated with nearly ten million yuan. We weren't so lucky."
The old woman attributed all of this to good fortune, but is it really good fortune? What's so difficult about someone pulling strings behind the scenes to compensate hundreds of millions, as long as you dare to do it? Liu Fang's audacity only extends to a few million, so his house is only worth that much.
While talking, Zhao Qiang helped the old lady tidy up her tea stall. Now that it was all organized, Zhao Qiang took out a hundred yuan and put it in the old lady's hand. "Grandma, this is for my tea."
The old lady hurriedly stuffed the money into Zhao Qiang's hand: "How can this be? We don't even know each other. You've already paid five hundred yuan for my compensation, and you even said it was for tea. I don't know how to repay you. How dare I ask you for more tea money?"
Zhao Qiang said, "Take it, Grandma. It's not easy for you to do business at your age. We young people have plenty of strength and it's easier for us to make money than for you. I'm happy to be able to help you."
The old woman held the hundred-yuan note and muttered, "What a good person, what a good person."
In fact, Zhao Qiang had seen many enthusiastic faces along the way. This incident didn't represent the entirety of Beijing, but it did dampen his spirits. Zhao Qiang walked out of the alley and checked the time; it was already lunchtime. He looked around and saw a roast duck restaurant ahead. Although it wasn't named Quanjude, it must have its own unique features, since there were many luxury cars parked in front of the restaurant. Since it had gained the approval of these wealthy people, the taste couldn't be bad.
Zhao Qiang strolled in. Luckily, it was only the beginning of lunchtime; otherwise, he might not have been able to get a seat. The restaurant had tables set up for all meals, but no private rooms. A waiter led Zhao Qiang to a corner, as he wouldn't take up much space by himself, leaving room for guests who had brought friends or family.
"Sir, please order." The waitress handed the menu to Zhao Qiang. Zhao Qiang didn't take it and said, "Just bring me whatever you think is special. I have a big appetite, so I'm not worried about not being able to finish it. As for drinks, two bottles of ice-cold beer will do."
The waiter smiled and said, "Sir, are you sure you want to serve any of our signature dishes? We don't encourage waste here."
The service here seems very considerate, and Zhao Qiang's previous frustration in the alley has vanished: "If you can't finish it, you can pack it up. Please feel free to serve the food."
The waiter gave a sly smile, his eyes carrying a hint of ambiguity, and said, "Then I won't be polite."
Zhao Qiang quickly understood why the waiter said "you're welcome." Two dishes were served, both whole roasted ducks, each with a different flavor. Even so, an average person couldn't finish a whole duck. But Zhao Qiang was sitting at the table, and his stomach was a bottomless pit, storing up excess energy. So it didn't matter how much he ate; it would quickly be digested into fat. Zhao Qiang devoured the ducks, and soon only bones remained.
The young waitress thought Zhao Qiang would cry while looking at the two plates of roast duck, but when she finished her work on the other side and turned around, she was shocked to see Zhao Qiang sitting by a pile of bones, waiting anxiously for the food to be served. Actually, the young waitress had only ordered two roast ducks for Zhao Qiang, which she thought would be enough for him, but she didn't expect to encounter such a big eater. He finished them all in no time and still seemed not to be full.
The young waitress approached Zhao Qiang and couldn't help but ask, "Sir, did you really eat them all?"
Zhao Qiang said, "What? You think I would hide the duck meat? Heh, I don't have that kind of hobby."
The young waitress said, "Then I'll have the kitchen continue serving you your food."
Zhao Qiang said, "I can't wait, the taste is indeed very good."
The young waitress left with a smile; encountering such a big eater was a small interlude in her workday. Before long, four dishes and a soup were laid out in front of Zhao Qiang—now that was the real specialty, right? He thought to himself, "The young waitress must have tricked me into eating those two roast ducks." He sipped his ice-cold beer and ate the stir-fried vegetables.
After the young waitress finished serving another group of customers, she turned to look at Zhao Qiang. The four dishes and soup were almost empty, but Zhao Qiang was still eating leisurely, showing no signs of being full. The waitress became increasingly interested in Zhao Qiang, so she came over and asked, "Sir, would you like more food?"
Zhao Qiang said, "Let's have two more of the roast ducks we had before, and then we'll continue serving any other specialty dishes."
The young waitress was even more surprised. "Sir, are you sure?"
Zhao Qiang said, "Yes, you should know that I am not used to Tibetan duck meat, so you can serve the dish without worry."
The young waitress went to the front desk to order the food. Before long, all the waiters in the restaurant were looking at Zhao Qiang with strange eyes. Intentionally or unintentionally, everyone crowded into this corner, probably to see Zhao Qiang, the big-bellied man. Zhao Qiang didn't mind and continued to eat his food leisurely. Before long, four sliced roast ducks were placed on the table, crowding the area in front of Zhao Qiang and even taking up a large part of the seat at the next table.
More and more people were eating, and people started to sit down in the corner where Zhao Qiang was sitting. Two girls had just come in next to him and sat opposite him. The girl next to Zhao Qiang looked like she had just crawled out of a flour bin, and she was wearing heavy makeup. The girl sitting opposite Zhao Qiang was quite different. She was wearing a small bellyband and hot pants, which made people's hearts flutter. However, her breasts were really not that impressive. They were so small that it was almost impossible to tell whether she was male or female. Zhao Qiang didn't bother to look at her and just focused on his roast duck.
The duck at this roast duck restaurant was supposed to be delicious, but perhaps because it was so busy, the kitchen was a bit overcooked, and the ducks weren't roasted very tender. Zhao Qiang tried to pick up a duck bone with his chopsticks and gnaw on the meat, but he broke the chopsticks in the process. Helpless, Zhao Qiang resorted to using his hands, holding a duck leg in one hand and a wine glass in the other. Now that's what you call eating meat in big bites and drinking wine in big bowls. Zhao Qiang thought he was eating very freely, and he didn't care what others thought.
"What the hell? How did we end up with a beggar like this?" the heavily made-up girl sitting next to Zhao Qiang cursed.
The girl across from me said, "Let's change seats. I'm afraid I'll throw up everything I ate. What bad luck."
The heavily made-up girl waved her hand: "Waiter, could you please change our seats?"
Volume 2 [546] Entangled
[546] Entangled
There's probably only one person in the whole restaurant who eats roast duck the way Zhao Qiang does. Everyone else wraps the duck meat in rice cakes, dips it in sweet sauce, and savors it in small bites, then uses the remaining duck bones to make soup. But Zhao Qiang's way of eating it, like a Japanese devil gnawing on a chicken leg, is truly eye-catching.
The waiter came over and said with a smile to the two girls, "Hello, is there anything I can help you with?"
The heavily made-up girl pointed at Zhao Qiang and said, "What are you doing? You're letting beggars in, are you not going to let us eat?"
The waiter said, "Excuse me, ma'am, he is also one of our guests."
The girl in the bellyband said, "Guests like you are ruining our appetite. Let's move to another seat."
The waiter glanced around the restaurant and said, "Excuse me, ladies, the restaurant is full. Could you please squeeze in a little? I'm so sorry, it's peak dining time right now, so please understand."
The heavily made-up girl suddenly stood up: "What's there to forgive? I feel nauseous just looking at him. Let's go, I'm not eating."
Zhao Qiang was eating with gusto, and he didn't care that the two girls disliked him. What else could he do but argue with them?
The girl in the bellyband remained seated and said, "Why should we leave? Call your manager over and have this beggar get rid of him, or you'll regret it." The waiter, realizing these two girls were no pushovers, dared not offend them and could only go back to inform the manager to handle the situation.
The restaurant manager was a woman in her mid-thirties; her mature figure was quite pleasing to the eye in her uniform. She bowed slightly to the two girls and said, "Excuse me, ladies? Did you want to see me?"
The girl in the bellyband pointed at Zhao Qiang and said, "Chase him away, he's affecting our meal."
The manager glanced at Zhao Qiang and said awkwardly, "This isn't a Western restaurant, and we don't have any rules about how to eat here. Please bear with us."
Seeing that the woman in the bellyband was about to lose her temper, Zhao Qiang didn't want to make things difficult for the manager. Besides, his way of eating was indeed unrefined and a disgrace to intellectuals. So he threw down the duck bone, wiped his hands, and said, "Sorry, I'll be more careful."
The manager gave Zhao Qiang a grateful look: "Thank you, sir. We'll give you a complimentary fruit platter later."
Zhao Qiang made an apology, and only then did the two girls stop. At this time, their dishes were served, and everyone started eating. To Zhao Qiang's surprise, the two girls who had called him a beggar ate even more unrefinedly than he had. Of course, they didn't gnaw on the duck bones, nor could they eat the sliced duck meat, but they drank the soup as if they were taking a bath in a soup basin, splashing everywhere, leaving a few drops on Zhao Qiang's clothes. But they seemed not to notice and continued to splash around in the soup, completely lacking any elegance or grace of girls.
Zhao Qiang wiped the soup splattered on his arms and clothes with a napkin. He kindly reminded the two men, "Gentlemen, you've spilled soup all over me. I've been trying to be mindful of my image, could you please be more considerate?"
The girl in the bellyband rolled her eyes at Zhao Qiang: "What gives you the right? If you don't like eating here, then leave."
Zhao Qiang said, "But why didn't you leave when I was gnawing on the duck bones?"
The girl in the bellyband got angry, slammed the soup spoon on the table, put her hands on her hips, and said, "Say it again, I'll eat however I want!" This is a typical case of "the magistrate is allowed to set fires, but the common people are not allowed to light lamps."
The restaurant manager rushed over when she saw the commotion. She looked at Zhao Qiang for help, and Zhao Qiang said, "This time it's really not my fault. Look, there are still soup stains on my clothes. I was just trying to remind them to be careful when drinking soup."
The restaurant manager said to the two girls, "You see, the young man just now accepted your suggestion very politely and humbly. Since that's the case, why don't you also accept his opinion? We are all destined to sit together and eat together. We may not meet again in the next life. It's not good to quarrel. It will hurt your harmony and health."
A heavily made-up girl, pulling a girl in a bellyband, walked out, saying, "Get someone to smash this shop up."
The restaurant manager's expression changed, and she chased after the two girls, saying, "Gentlemen, don't be angry. Let's talk this out. It's not worth getting so angry over a meal; it'll only harm your health."
Zhao Qiang sighed. There are arrogant people everywhere. He didn't know if he was too easy to bully, or if he was just too careless wherever he went. In any case, he'd better stay away from people like that in the future. Thinking this, Zhao Qiang got up to pay the bill. Was there any point in eating anymore?
The cashier at the front desk quickly processed Zhao Qiang's checkout. She had clearly seen the situation and knew that if Zhao Qiang left, the fight wouldn't start. Zhao Qiang took his change and walked out of the store. The two girls stopped vandalizing the store, but they followed Zhao Qiang out after paying their bills. If Zhao Qiang went east, they went east; if Zhao Qiang went west, they went west.
Zhao Qiang was a little annoyed. Even eating roast duck had caused trouble. It seemed that this trip to Beijing would not be peaceful. However, he had already been very tolerant. If it had been a few years ago, they might have started a fight. They still wouldn't let him go despite his low profile. They were really asking for trouble.
Zhao Qiang looked up at the sky and saw that raindrops were falling. Seeing that the two girls were still chasing after him, Zhao Qiang chuckled and continued walking at a leisurely pace. The two girls had made a phone call earlier, probably looking for someone, but help couldn't arrive immediately. They wanted to keep an eye on Zhao Qiang to make sure he didn't disappear.
The raindrops were falling harder and harder. Zhao Qiang and the two girls were empty-handed and had no umbrellas. However, Zhao Qiang could summon some energy to form an invisible umbrella, which he kept close to his body. This made it look like they were being soaked in the rain, but in reality, they were not wet at all. However, the two girls behind him were not so lucky. The girl wearing a bellyband was wearing very little clothing, and the rain soaked through her completely. Her pointed breasts were exposed to passersby, which she couldn't accept even if she was open-minded. She could only cover them with her hands. The girl with heavy makeup was in even worse shape. Her face was covered in bruises and white marks, and her long hair was soaked and stuck to her face.
Zhao Qiang couldn't help but laugh when he looked back. His previous anger had almost disappeared. Especially when he saw the girl in the bellyband crossing her arms and dodging around, and the girl in heavy makeup touching her face as if she was about to cry, looking bewildered and annoyed, Zhao Qiang felt extremely happy. Serves them right. If you keep being so arrogant, you'll be struck by lightning.
The three walked on, one in front of the other. The two girls were quite determined; the more dashing Zhao Qiang was, the angrier they became, and the less likely they were to give up the chase. They wished they could pin him to the ground and stomp on him. Zhao Qiang deliberately took secluded paths. As the rain intensified, puddles appeared on the ground. Zhao Qiang stepped into a hole; the ground had sunk into a deep pit, filled with water level with the ground. However, the anti-gravity device activated the instant Zhao Qiang stepped into the hole.
Zhao Qiang strode across the water, then quickened his pace. The two girls chasing behind him, worried that Zhao Qiang would get lost, also quickened their pace. When they reached the puddle, they assumed that Zhao Qiang would be fine since he was wading across the water, so they stepped into the puddle almost simultaneously. Their front feet immediately lost their balance, and they both fell into the puddle with a splash.
"Ah, ah!" The two women in the puddle struggled and cried for help, their heads submerged and eventually their hands disappearing from sight. It seemed the water was quite deep. Zhao Qiang turned back and walked to the edge of the puddle. Just then, the woman in the bellyband popped her head out. Zhao Qiang grabbed her hair and pulled her up, dragging her out of the puddle. He released her hair, reached into the water, and felt around a few times. He grabbed the arm of the woman in heavy makeup, and with another pull, she was also pulled up.
It was only then that Zhao Qiang realized that the area had been completely dug up during the sewer renovations. He didn't know which unlucky kid had taken the road sign, and since the construction workers couldn't possibly stay there during the rain, this led to the previous 'tragedy'.
Wow, the girl in the bellyband was lying on the ground vomiting a mouthful of dirty water. The girl in heavy makeup was in even worse shape; she had probably choked on some water and was now unconscious. Zhao Qiang touched her heart; thankfully, she was alright. Since that was the case, Zhao Qiang ignored them and stood up to leave.
The girl in the bellyband suddenly knelt on the ground and said, "You...you mustn't go!"
Zhao Qiang said, "What else do you want?" Judging from the girl's posture, Zhao Qiang mistakenly thought that she was going to apologize to him, but there was no need to kneel down to apologize.
The girl in the bellyband was so full from drinking water that she could barely stand. She said, "Holy crap, I... I don't understand, how come your clothes are dry?" It turned out that even at a time like this, she still had the mind to observe Zhao Qiang's clothes.
Zhao Qiang looked up at the sky and said, "It's probably because even the heavens think I'm a good person, so I've been blessed by the heavens, while you two have suffered. So I'd like to offer you two a piece of advice: what goes around comes around, so be careful of retribution."
The girl in the bellyband turned purple with anger, though it was also possible she was terrified after falling into the water. She said, "Retribution my foot! You're in trouble now, I'll make sure you pay!"
Zhao Qiang ignored her threats and left. Just as he disappeared from the woman's sight, several luxury cars arrived. Seeing two girls lying on the ground, the ocarinas got out of the cars in the rain. The girl in the ocarinas yelled, "Damn it, why did it take you so long? Get us to the hospital right now!"
Someone even asked, "Where's the guy who bullied you? I'm going to settle the score with him."
The girl in the bellyband cursed, "Fine, my ass! Take care of us first! They've all disappeared before you show up. Are you all dead?"
Having gotten rid of the trouble, Zhao Qiang then gave the two arrogant girls a beating, which made him feel much better. There wasn't much to see in the rain, so he returned to the hotel. He first checked his QQ messages, but there were still no messages. Zhao Qiang wasn't in a hurry anymore, so he lay on the bed and began to think about some improvements to the technological equipment.
This time, Zhao Qiang brought some 'G' materials with him. This was in case the other party had any malicious intentions and Zhao Qiang could manufacture weapons and equipment at any time. Considering that Beijing is the capital, Zhao Qiang could not act as arrogantly as he did in a small city. Otherwise, he would anger the country and it would not benefit him. He might end up in a foreign country. Therefore, Zhao Qiang decided to change his identity so that he could cover up any outrageous things he did.