Chapter Forty-Five: Is this little rascal Lin Ze?

Page (1/3)

“Huh? Lin, what’s up?”
Lin Ze nudged Xiao Qian aside, then placed a one-hundred yuan bill on the bar.
“Help me order a ride-hailing car—from the Bowl & Bowl Dishes across the street to the Jiuchu Mountain ticket office. Also, get me three cups of milk tea: two with less ice and one at room temperature, delivered to the ticket office, too.”
“Oh... okay!” The staff member immediately agreed, but as Lin Ze was about to leave, he glanced at the large bill in his hand and realized, “Wait, Lin, this is too much.”
“Keep the rest for you two to have a drink.”
Guoguo was already wearing sneakers, so there was no need to buy her a pair.
When they had entered earlier, Lin Ze had glanced at the layout map by the entrance and already scouted a few exits.
Just a few steps away from the shoe store was an emergency exit.
But now, a staff member was standing right in front of that emergency exit.
As the three of them approached, the staff member spread his arms, reaching for the little girl.
“Running off? Your mother is all you have left, do you understand? You—”
He only got halfway through his line before suddenly finding something in his arms.
Looking down, he saw it was two pairs of shoes.
“Take these back for us, thanks.”
Lin Ze patted him on the shoulder and, together with the two sisters, dashed out through the emergency exit.
The emergency passage led to a bicycle shed nearby. After circling around, they arrived at the entrance of Bowl & Bowl Dishes.
It was still early in the morning and there was nothing much going on.
Zhao Funing and Pei Xue, husband and wife, sat at the entrance enjoying the cool air.
“Eh?”
Zhao Funing suddenly stood up.
Guoguo? Why was Guoguo here?
Lin Ze saw Zhao Funing and Pei Xue sitting by the entrance and instantly grinned.
His expression hardened, his eyes fierce.
“What are you staring at? Keep looking and I’ll gouge your eyes out!”
Zhao Funing: “?”
“Wait…”
Just then, the car arrived. Lin Ze yanked open the door. “Hello, is this the ride to Jiuchu Mountain? My friend ordered it for me.”
“Yes, that’s right,” the driver replied.
Lin Ze took the front passenger seat.
Su Zitan and the little girl sat in the back.
After getting in, Lin Ze rolled down the window, waved his phone at Zhao Funing, and pointed at him fiercely.
“Still staring!”
Zhao Funing watched the car drive away, completely speechless.

Page (2/3)

The two were silent for a moment.
“That little rascal just now must have been Lin Ze, right?” Zhao Funing said expressionlessly.
“Hahaha…” Pei Xue burst out laughing. “Oh, Lin Ze’s still got a knack for variety shows.”
“How so?” Zhao Funing asked, puzzled.
“That was Xiao Qian, right?” Pei Xue nodded at Xiao Qian, who hadn’t gotten into the car. “The bag he’s holding is identical to our cameraman’s.”
Xiao Qian hugged the camera and watched the car depart.
He was quiet for a few seconds, then hailed a taxi himself.
Several other staff members hurried over. Seeing Xiao Qian standing there, they nearly burst out laughing.
Without a word, Xiao Qian pulled open the car door. Before getting in, he pointed at the staff running up behind him.
“What are you staring at? Keep it up and I’ll gouge your eyes out!”
“…”
“Driver, to Jiuchu Mountain ticket office, please.”
[Laughing so hard—Xiao Qian’s learned it now, too.]
[Uh oh, Xiao Qian’s been corrupted by Lin Ze.]
[Driver: Is this kid all right in the head…]
Xiao Qian arrived at the Jiuchu Mountain ticket office. Just as he got out, he saw Lin Ze and Su Zitan waiting.
“Oh, sorry, forgot about you…”
Xiao Qian opened his mouth, “No worries, it’s what I deserve.”
[Uh oh, even Xiao Qian’s talking nonsense now.]
[Just realized—the milk tea didn’t include Xiao Qian, haha.]
The three of them waited for the milk tea.
It arrived quickly—soon, the delivery guy came over.
“Mr. Lin?”
The delivery rider parked by the roadside, took four cups of milk tea from his box, and jogged over.
“Four cups?”
Lin Ze was surprised.
It seemed the two shop assistants had ordered an extra one for Xiao Qian.
[Xiao Qian’s going to cry—finally, someone remembers him.]
[Such a great kindness—he’ll have to repay it with his life.]
Lin Ze took the room-temperature one for Su Zitan and handed out the other three, all with less ice.
“All right, let’s head up the mountain,” Lin Ze said, waving the tickets. This time, he hadn’t forgotten Xiao Qian and bought four tickets.
The tickets included a sightseeing bus ride. Since it was a weekday, the mountain was quiet. The driver had been waiting for ages when Lin Ze and his group showed up.

Page (3/3)

“Come on, get in, I’ve been waiting forever,” the driver said, stubbing out his cigarette and climbing into the bus.
“Where to, folks? The Water Guanyin or Jiuchu Mountain itself?”
Lin Ze had already checked the map. There were two scenic spots: Jiuchu Mountain at the summit and Water Guanyin halfway up.
“Let’s go to Jiuchu Mountain first,” Lin Ze replied.
“Okay,” the driver responded, then floored the gas pedal. The whole bus shot forward.
“Whoa…”
The sudden acceleration nearly made Lin Ze spill his milk tea.
It was the driver’s first run of the day. He was brimming with energy, and with no other cars on the scenic roads, he drove with abandon.
The mountain road twisted and turned, living up to the name Jiuchu Mountain.
The driver knew every curve by heart and sped up, swerving left and right. The group hadn’t eaten much that morning, so the four of them soon felt queasy.
After a few sharp turns, they finally arrived at the Jiuchu Mountain scenic area.
A long wooden walkway led up the mountain—it was the only way to reach the main entrance.
“Let’s treat this like a sightseeing trip,” Lin Ze said.
The four stood at the base of the walkway, taking a moment to settle their stomachs.
“Driver, do all the drivers here drive as aggressively as you?” Lin Ze asked, trying not to gag.
“Heh, I haven’t been here long—this is pretty average,” the driver replied.
“…”
Well, at least the others would have to wait for the next bus. By the time they got off, the four of them could stroll right past without a care.
Once they’d recovered, they began the climb.
The air on the mountain was crisp and fresh—it felt like their lung capacity had improved.
Sipping milk tea, they made their way up. By the time they reached the end of the walkway, their cups were nearly empty.
…
“Where are they? Check the livestream!”
The staff who’d followed them arrived at the base of the mountain. With nobody around, they pulled out their phones to check the stream—only to see the group had already made it up the mountain.
“How’d they get there so fast? I thought it was several kilometers up?”
The staff stared in bewilderment.
“Forget it, hurry up and buy tickets!”