Reborn veteran, lying flat since high school

In the sweltering summer of 1999, East Lake was still East Lake, and Daming Lake was still Daming Lake.

The duck pedal boats have just become popular, and although they don't even have a sunshade, all the tourists are lining up to buy them.

Ordinary people are quite tolerant of any leisure and entertainment activities and are easily satisfied.

Tang Yisheng and his two companions originally planned to play for an hour and then leave, but with such a long queue, they felt it would be a waste to only play for an hour.

Fortunately, Fatty and Wang Min caught the nouveau riche, and Tang Yisheng waved his hand and said, "Add an hour!"

The two boys each sat on one side, and when the metal pedal boat was first started, it was so hot it felt like it could spark. Little Wang Min sat there enjoying herself.

Enjoy the feeling of being pushed back and the scenery passing by in the atmosphere of surging waves.

After two hours of this, Tang Yisheng's thighs were sore and his tail was chafed and a little sore.

The fat man was even less likely to have any strength left.

It had already lost its breath twice in less than an hour, and finally, after much resistance, it managed to push its way back to the shore.

I checked the time, and it was another fifteen minutes over.

Making up the difference in money is a minor issue.

But the duck boat had no sunshade. Fatty and Tang Yisheng were sweating profusely for half the journey and enjoying the warm breeze for the other half. Only after returning to shore did they realize that their backs were covered in salt and alkali.

Is this considered paying money to suffer?

Yet everyone was happy to do it, even the fat man who was exhausted showed signs of regaining his energy after walking a few steps back ashore.

Young is so good.

Of course.

Perhaps it's also related to the fact that we'll soon be able to enjoy barbecue and meat.

So the three of them continued to lead the way, walking across Quancheng Square. As the sun set, they arrived at Chaoshan Street, where the shops on both sides were already lit up, and many stalls along the roadside had erected bamboo poles with large incandescent light bulbs on them.

Tang Yisheng found a barbecue stall that looked very popular.

During peak hours, small, square tables with low legs are set up on the curb, at the entrance of alleys, and in the small open spaces in front of other shops.

Several small stools were stacked on each table.

The three plunged into the crowd, and Wang Min's slender figure became a significant advantage at that moment.

Since she was a girl, she moved around smoothly and easily, and soon found an empty seat.

The fat man unfolded the stool, sat down, and imitated the adults by raising his arms and shouting.

If you're lucky, you'll then be greeted by an older woman wandering through the crowd.

"Three people? Write down what you want to eat, and call me when you're done."

The woman glanced at the table number, wrote it down twice, and put down the laminated menu and banknotes.

Someone called out loudly from not far away, and the people went to make arrangements again.

There was absolutely no impoliteness or disrespect intended; that's how the service is at roadside barbecue stalls.

Back then, the reason Tang Yisheng and Fatty received such treatment at Zhang Xu's barbecue stall was not only because of their friendship of over ten years, but also because they always spent a considerable amount of money...

Thinking about consumption.

Tang Yisheng suddenly realized that he didn't seem to have enough money in his pocket.

Without a smartphone and QR code payment, getting a meal is really inconvenient.

Tang Yisheng sighed inwardly, then subtly squeezed his pocket.

Fortunately, I had a bank card.

There's money in my card.

I remember there was a China Construction Bank ATM at the south end of Chaoshan Street.

"You guys keep it lit, I'm going to the restroom."

"Wait a minute, Lao Tang, order first before you leave."

The fat guy is hogging the menu with great interest.

But Tang Yisheng's sudden remark startled him.

With Tang Yisheng present, he felt more at ease ordering; what if he ordered too much and overeaten?

At this time, the fat man was still young, and without Tang Yisheng as his playmate, he felt like he had lost his backbone.

Especially in situations where money is spent on food and drinks.

He was so reluctant to part with Tang Yisheng.

"Are you going to order or not? If not, give it to me!"

Wang Min reached out to grab the menu.

She's become quite experienced at arguing with the fat guy, and she knows exactly how to handle him.

Sure enough, the fat man's attention returned, and he buried himself in browsing.

"Yes, I'll definitely order. Let's get the sesame paste first..."

Tang Yisheng weaved his way out of the crowd and strolled around the south end of the street.

What bad luck!

The ATM was just for show.

When the bank closes for the day, it closes for the day too, as if the electricity has been shut off.

How can this be done?

Tang Yisheng was momentarily at a loss.

I suddenly miss the convenient days before my rebirth when I could both scan QR codes and swipe my phone.

Having spent so much time in that kind of environment, Tang Yisheng found it difficult to adapt to the primitive, early stages of the internet.

Occasionally, I get used to personalities that don't align with mine.

For example, nowadays, people go out with money in their pockets, but they are not vigilant about how much money they have or whether it is enough.

I can easily become reserved.

Fortunately, prices are reasonable enough these days. If we don't overspend, we should be able to hold on... right?

Tang Yisheng returned and sat down, outwardly calm but inwardly calculating.

"Have you ordered? What did you order?"

Tang Yisheng pulled the sealed menu in front of him and looked at it while asking questions.

Students who run street food stalls are characterized by their loud and boastful talk, but when it comes to actually doing it, they are quite conservative.

They don't even dare to order 20 skewers of lamb, and the heart tubes and kidneys are also ordered in groups of 10.

A plate of edible oysters and a serving of cold tofu skin salad.

That's it?

Tang Yisheng subconsciously glanced at the prices behind the dishes.

Lamb skewers for 12 cents, heart tubes for 10 cents, small red kidneys for 10 cents... I felt much more at ease.

At a barbecue stall where the price is measured in cents, if you have 27.6 yuan in your pocket, you can be considered a big shot, right?

"Why did you order five chicken wing tips?"

Having gained a better understanding, Tang Yisheng's eyes and tone changed.

"The wing tips here come in strings of two, so five strings make ten."

Wang Min explained.

After the turn of the millennium, serving a pair of chicken wing tips as a skewer was the default configuration for barbecue restaurants. Is it still the norm to serve them individually now?

Three cents for two chicken wings on a skewer, and you only ordered five? Who do you think you are?

Tang Yisheng immediately and generously doubled the number of skewers.

"Boss, another draft beer for me, and two bottles of Sprite for them."

"Old Tang, you...you're drinking!"

The fat man was startled.

"What's wrong? I'm already eighteen."

"How about I have some too?"

The fat man smirked and said with great interest.

"Get lost."

The skewers were served one after another, and each person was given a small plate with chili powder, cumin and salt.

Take a bite of smoked lamb, then sip half a mouthful of ice-cold Baotu Spring beer.

Tang Yisheng squinted his eyes comfortably.

This is life.

This is what it means to enjoy life.

London is really a terrible place; the food is awful, and the accommodations are awful too.

Nothing beats the freedom and comfort of home.

The two people on the other side, one big and one small, were not paying attention to Tang Yisheng.

There's a saying: if you're not enthusiastic about eating skewers, you've got something wrong with your brain.

If someone is treating you to a meal, you should definitely eat first as a sign of respect.

Especially when everyone's scrambling to eat, every skewer tastes even better when you put it in your mouth.

Wang Min had a string of small red skewers in her left hand and a handful of lamb skewers in her right. Two straight gray streaks were rubbed off the corners of her mouth by the skewers.

It looks tiny, but it eats the skewers with an unusually bold and unrestrained manner.

Tang Yisheng had never seen Wang Min act like this before, nor did he know that Lawyer Wang was also a skewer connoisseur.

What's really noticeable is her habit of dipping her food in chili powder every time she eats it.

Moreover, after eating three or five skewers, I immediately started sweating from the spiciness.

Sha sha de.

This little girl must have never eaten this before, right?