Chapter 129: Straddling Two Boats

There were not many people in their translation group. Excluding those who had to stay behind for overtime, only three guys, including Lu Qing, were able to come along. There were exactly six of them, and after a half-hour bus ride, they arrived at the City God Temple.

The area around the City God Temple was still defined by older architecture. Near the temple itself, the buildings largely retained the style of a century or two ago, while the street at the outermost edge of the square had a strange, hybrid aesthetic that was neither traditional nor Western. The food court was situated to the west of the temple, housed in an old-fashioned, two-story building with a cloistered layout. It featured a series of interconnected courtyards and covered a considerable area.

"In the early days, the area near the temple was sealed off and used as a government warehouse for supplies," someone explained. "After the reforms, the government moved the warehouse and returned the land to the temple, which then underwent renovations. You can tell by the hanging beams and the color of the wall paint. Once it was restored, it became a small commodities market. Later, after a commercial center was built and all the street vendors were relocated there, this place turned into the food court you see today."

The section they were in was designated for snacks; the further inside one went, the more upscale the offerings became, with price points that the average person could hardly afford.

The six of them found a large square table and ordered two portions of every local specialty on the menu. With so many people, ordering a variety meant they could share and sample more delicacies.

Lu Qing, visiting for the first time, was quite enthusiastic about the food. He pointed to the roast duck on the table and asked why it came with a red braising sauce.

"That is how we serve roast duck here. It might not be as tender or juicy as the kind back in your hometown, but with this red sauce, the flavor is something you definitely won't find anywhere else. Want to try some?"

They had ordered two portions of the roast duck, but the servings were small, leaving each of the six with only two or three pieces. They also ordered shredded dried tofu, duck blood vermicelli soup, potstickers, and beef soup with sesame flatbread—in total, no fewer than fifteen or sixteen dishes. For the ones with smaller portions, they ordered two or three servings. After eating a bite or two of everything, they all felt stuffed. However, Qin Qing and the others teased Lu Qing, mentioning other snacks that were also good and asking if he wanted more. Lu Qing patted his bulging stomach, tried to suck it in for a long while, and eventually had to shake his head, admitting he could not eat another bite.

"Let's go. There’s an arcade that just opened at the entrance of the night market. They have dance machines. Shall we go play?"

After eating, some exercise was definitely in order, and for young people, these arcades were the biggest draw.

Although it was called an arcade, it was quite spacious, filled with all sorts of game machines, including four dance machines. In the center, on the largest platform, two teenagers were dancing. They wore tank tops and wide-leg trousers, sporting the trendiest hairstyles of the moment, their faces set in cool, detached expressions.

The others were unfazed and cheered for the two boys, while Chen Xin watched the people around her with undisguised interest. When she was at C University, she rarely visited such places. The young men and women who frequented the cafes she knew were either pure students or young white-collar workers, and their attire was completely different from the crowd at this night market.

They were all young, after all, and naturally interested in these games. After watching for a while, they split up to find the games that caught their eyes.

Chen Xin wasn't interested in playing, but she enjoyed watching others.

"I won't play either. I'm not very athletic, so playing these is just throwing money away," Gou Xiangru said. She used to have no choice but to accompany Qin Qing, but with Chen Xin by her side this time, she was determined not to make a fool of herself.

"That's fine, you two just watch."

The arcade was crowded and noisy. Chen Xin spotted a small bar in the corner and went to buy six cups of iced cola for when the others got tired and came over to drink.

Seeing Chen Xin buy six cups without hesitation, Gou Xiangru curled her lips slightly. "Do you know what people are saying about you?"

"Let them say what they want. Whether I have money or not has nothing to do with them."

Chen Xin was well aware of the gossip; she simply didn't care. To put it plainly, she was only there for a short-term exchange program. Aside from the time she spent with Qin Qing and the others, most people would be leaving around the middle of July. They would go home, travel, or stay busy with their advisors, rarely appearing on campus.

The two huddled in the corner, chatting idly, when suddenly Gou Xiangru fell silent, staring fixedly in one direction.

"What's wrong?" Chen Xin looked where she was looking but saw nothing unusual.

"Wait here, I'm going to find Qin Qing."

Gou Xiangru set down her drink and, with a serious expression, squeezed into the crowd. Within two minutes, she returned with Qin Qing. The three of them huddled behind the bar, partially obscured by a tall schefflera plant; unless someone looked closely, they wouldn't even be noticed.

"Look at that woman. Is that the teaching assistant you were talking about?"

"Who?" Qin Qing took a sip of her iced cola and tilted her head to look. "Oh, who is that man with her?"

Qin Qing wanted to stand up for a better look, but Gou Xiangru grabbed her. "Are you crazy? If you stand up, they’ll see you immediately. But didn't you say she was dating someone from your hometown? This man looks pretty intimate with her, too."

"Who are you two talking about?" Chen Xin looked for a long time, but there were so many couples in the arcade that she couldn't tell who they meant.

"Those two over there. See? The one in the blue dress by the coin pusher."

Chen Xin stood up and hid behind the schefflera to look. Sure enough, she saw a man and a woman playing the coin pusher, laughing and chatting. The girl would look up at the man while she played, her expression as sweet as honey.

"You two wait here. I'll go check it out." Convinced the pair didn't recognize her, Chen Xin wandered over. Her outfit was much like that of any other young person, perhaps even more plain. By only watching and not playing, she easily gave the impression of a girl who was short on cash.

She circled halfway around and finally reached the coin pusher. Besides her, two middle-school-aged girls were standing nearby.

The coin pusher was of the type that moved on both sides. After inserting a coin and pressing the button, the moving arm would push the piles of game tokens, and the tokens that fell into the chute were the winnings. The goal was to win as many as possible with the fewest coins. However, these arcade machines were rigged; unless one was exceptionally lucky, it was impossible to win money.

The two middle-schoolers played five or six coins before giving up, hand-in-hand, to play something else. The young couple across from her still had about thirty tokens left in a pile. The young woman tossed two and lost, then looked up at the man with a pitiful expression. The man patted her head, signaling her not to worry and to keep tossing.

Chen Xin rolled her eyes internally. This method of coaxing wouldn't even work on a primary school student these days, yet the man acted as if he were quite the big shot. The arcade had a one-to-one exchange rate, but if you exchanged for fifty at once, you got five free. Looking at the pile of tokens and the way the girl tossed them one by one, they probably hadn't exchanged more than a hundred.