Age of Legends

Chapter 5 Like a Minion

The sun rose as usual that day, and the basketball court of Yude High School was still filled with energetic students at noon. As soon as noon arrived, the restaurants on both sides of the street outside the school were occupied by swarms of students.

Zhang Chen saw his favorite stir-fry restaurant back then. It was a two-story building from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The ancient buildings at that time were not like the renovated antique streets of later generations, with wooden columns made of reinforced concrete, uniform shop signs, and souvenirs from the Yiwu Small Commodities Market. At most, there was a cultural and creative ice cream at the back.

But then again, it's really unsightly if it's not repaired and protected now. There are rotten wooden pillars, dusty cloud-patterned windows, and wooden partition walls in the restaurant that are covered with oil smoke.

Then take a look at the prices of dishes posted on the wall.

"Shredded pork with green pepper... 7 pieces. Cucumber and pork slices... 6 pieces. Sausage fried rice... 3 pieces. Mapo tofu... 5 pieces..."

At that moment, Zhang Chen wanted to cry. Damn, in the future, workers in remote areas have to pay 15 yuan for a bowl of beef noodles!

This was an era when two people could eat as much as they wanted with a stir-fried dish costing just ten yuan, and could eat their fill with twenty yuan.

I remember that this restaurant was definitely the Michelin ceiling among students. Every dish was delicious. Of course, maybe it was because the people I loved, missed, and unforgettable people had all met here briefly, so the food here is particularly refreshing when I recall it.

When Zhang Chen came back one year after work, the place had already been demolished and rebuilt, and the restaurants had moved away, so he could no longer recall the past.

Now, he and Wang Shuowei walked in and sat down to order food. "Let's have the fish-flavored eggplant, Kung Pao chicken, garlic spare ribs, and black pepper steak rice (yes, there is)!"

Zhang Chen simply put all the food he had craved for on the plate one by one.

As for Wang Shuowei, every time Zhang Chen ordered a dish from the menu, he would say, "Oh, this is good!" "Okay, Zhang Chen!" "Garlic spare ribs, beautiful, I've wanted to eat it for a long time!" "Black pepper steak rice, wow!"

Just like a supporting actor, they can perform crosstalk as a pair.

But to be honest, the good thing about him is that he keeps creating emotional value for you. Maybe this is why people with the right frequency can become good friends.

During the whole process, people at the nearby tables cast surprised looks at them. Several people who were wearing Adidas and Nike and usually came from wealthy families and often stayed at the stir-fry restaurant looked at them with sparkling eyes, secretly amazed at their considerable financial resources!

As the dishes were served, Wang Shuowei was also hungry. He picked up his chopsticks and couldn't wait to pick up the dishes. Then he asked, "It's so sumptuous. Zhang Chen, what do you think? Do you want to treat us?"

"It's my treat, enjoy your meal! You can make up for the barbecue you owe me next time."

"How come I owe you..."

Zhang Chen smiled and subconsciously wanted to take the phone on the table, but then he reached into his trouser pocket and pinched it. He lowered his head and took out two one-dollar bills and one five-dollar bill, seven yuan in total.

Wang Shuowei, who still had something in his mouth, stared at him.

Zhang Chen suddenly remembered that this was all his assets. Huang Huifen gave him seven dollars every day, for lunch and dinner respectively!
Under Zhang Chen's gaze, Wang Shuowei began to take money out of his pocket and took out thirty yuan. He really had much more money!

"How much is this meal?"

"Let me do the math. Seven plus seven, plus twelve, plus twelve, thirty-eight. That's enough for this meal."

Wang Shuowei didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "But we still have a meal tonight, and maybe we need to buy some water during the meal! My daily living expenses are only 20 yuan. Damn, you have no money, why are you pretending to be rich!"

Zhang Chen also said helplessly, "If you had just reminded me of our current economic situation, I wouldn't have ordered so much. What did you just say? You made me feel so proud!"

Seeing the two people retrieving money from their trouser pockets in a disheveled manner, many students in the restaurant who had been paying attention to them burst into laughter. Some who had been jealous of the two people ordering food just now sneered at them now. What are they pretending to be?

Tight, embarrassing.

It’s the appearance of Zhang Chen in front of him.

Suddenly, attention was drawn to the other end of the street. Shen Nuoyi and Zheng Xue were walking on the left side of the street. Shen Nuoyi, who was wearing a red bow hairpin on her head, was really eye-catching. There were some groups of boys on the side of the road. When they saw the two passing by, they suddenly stopped chatting and secretly glanced at her from the side.

After all, she was also a celebrity in the school. Not long after she entered the school as a freshman in high school, news came out that several seniors liked Shen Nuoyi. Some of them confessed their feelings but were rejected, which was known to the whole school. It was not surprising, as she had always been like this in elementary school, junior high school and high school.

Some of the celebrities in school are very popular, always surrounded by many friends, while some people are just looked at from afar, and are difficult to approach, or feel that they are not in the same world and stay away from them.

Shen Nuoyi belongs to the latter of these two.

She has quite a few friends in real life, but most of the time she doesn't like to hang out with people at school. Zheng Xue is the person she interacts closest to at school.

In fact, Zheng Xue is quite smart and quirky looking, and she and Shen Nuoyi complement each other quite well.

Zhang Chen thought for a moment, then suddenly walked out of the restaurant and came up to Shen Nuoyi and Zheng Xue.

The two girls stopped walking.

"Wow, Zhang Chen, what are you doing? Why are you acting crazy all of a sudden?" Zheng Xue said. "I don't have enough money for dinner, can you lend me some?" Zhang Chen looked at Shen Nuo and asked.

Zheng Xue looked at Zhang Chen in surprise, thinking, Zhang Chen, how dare you do that? Don't boys care about their reputation? They are afraid that girls will think they are poor and look down on them. Especially in key middle schools like Yude High School, there are many students studying in government agencies and wealthy families around, and the competition between students is very serious.

Zhang Chen stared at Shen Nuoyi and asked, asking her to borrow money not only because she happened to pass by, but also for a test.

He was not sure whether the incident on Shen Nuoyi’s birthday was the trigger for the two of them not to communicate with each other.

Being able to borrow money from Shen Nuoyi may not mean that she has no grudges against him. But when he repays the money later, he can give her a small gift to express his gratitude, so as to eliminate the impact of the trouble he caused her that day.

The red butterfly hairpin on Shen Nuo's head was very eye-catching. She looked at him with clear eyes. Before she could say anything, Zheng Xue spoke first, "Make an excuse! You didn't bring enough money for dinner, don't you know how to count it? We don't have any, let's go!"

Having said that, Zheng Xue took Shen Nuoyi's hand and walked away.

Shen Nuoyi did not hesitate, but just glanced at Zhang Chen one last time.

Looking at the two people's backs, Zhang Chen's mouth opened and closed in silence.

He finally walked back helplessly, facing Wang Shuowei, who was in a state of confusion about the whole situation.

He could not care less if he ranked last or second to last in the exam, but he had a strong sense of self-esteem in some ways.

For example, now, in a high school where the trend of comparison prevails, because they don’t have enough money for food, they ask Shen Nuoyi and others to borrow money. The key is that they haven’t borrowed it yet!

Damn your pride.

In Wang Shuowei's opinion.

This year, I’m less than eighteen.

In the restaurant with Zhang Chen. Standing like a minion.

……

Sitting down at the table again and looking at the sumptuous meal on the table, Wang Shuowei looked listless, but Zhang Chen had an idea in his mind. It seemed that after this incident, Shen Nuoyi didn't like him very much.

She was my childhood playmate and my childhood goddess. It was a beautiful feeling, but this kind of feeling may not stand the test of time.

Zhang Chen didn't want to cause regrets due to some misunderstandings.

But maybe regret is just regret. People will not regret what they have gained, but will only be bothered by what they have lost.

It is precisely because the loss is irreparable that you will remember the moments you once had for a long time.

Maybe there has been a rift in the relationship with former good friends for a long time, and maybe one day we will all go our separate ways. Sometimes, forcing yourself to make up for it will only delay the time of separation a little.

It may not be a bad thing that my fate with Shen Nuoyi ends here.

Wang Shuowei was still yelling at the other side, "What are you thinking? Even if I, Wang Shuowei, starve to death and have no food to eat, I will never go to those two women to borrow money...!"

The end of his words was cut off in the air as his eyes gradually solidified.

Because Zhang Chen's position was a bit unlucky, when he reacted, a figure appeared from his right.

Pa. A hand placed fifty yuan on the table.

Even though this palm was not the slamming of the table that established Qiao Feng's status in the martial arts world, nor was it the change of dynasty that was signaled by the smashing of three hundred axes and cups, its power was still quite good.

The group of boys under the sycamore tree in front, the people in the shops and restaurants on both sides of the street looked up, and all eyes were cast over.

Maybe he has caught a cold recently. Shen Nuoyi's somewhat magnetic voice came from the left, "Only fifty. If you don't have more, remember to return it to me."

After Shen Nuo took the photo of the fifty yuan, he turned around and walked down the stairs amid the suspicious gazes of the people around the restaurant, and returned to Zheng Xue who was making faces at them.

The black hair swayed under the red hairpin, and the blue and white striped school uniform seemed a little bloated, but one could vaguely feel the lightness and slimness within it.

Only Zhang Chen and Wang Shuowei were left standing there, staring at each other.

(End of this chapter)