Trafford’s Trading Club

"Lunch? Oh... I've ordered this. Let me see what's available nearby. Okay, okay, I'll look for something to eat when I'm hungry, that's it! Didn't you make an appointment with someone today? I understand. Know it."

Tao Xiaman turned off the phone and continued her pace.

pace in this city.

As a photography enthusiast, it is rare to have such a vacation, so how can she not play with her SLR.

Time cannot preserve time, but photos can.

Moreover, she also felt that she had been in a bad mood recently... and felt inexplicably irritable. She knew her reasons clearly.

A hobby is an activity that is a good way to take your mind off things.

The camera turned around buildings and passers-by. Sitting on an ordinary bus, she compared the city in her memory with the city today.

Things have changed and people have changed, which can probably describe her mood at this time.

When the sightseeing tour bus called out the name of a station, Tao Xiaman got off the bus. But when she paused at this place and looked at the name on the street sign, she hesitated unexpectedly.

Jihua Road.

Somehow...are we back to this place again?

Tao Xiaman shook his head.

She lives here.

once.

Here, she is really revisiting her old place, right?

Tao Xiaman somehow started her own pace again, but on this old road, the number of times she mentioned her SLR could almost be described as a handful.

Although it is a place that I remember, it is now unrecognizable and a large number of new buildings have appeared. But there are very few places where she can regain her memories.

Tao Xiaman stopped in front of a noodle shop.

Dad, I want to eat noodles with lots of toppings.

Sliced ​​noodles are sliced ​​noodles, and noodles with toppings are noodles with toppings. Where can you eat them like this?

No matter what, I want it! OK!

OK OK.

A hearty laugh.

Tao Xiaman recalled the conversation that happened here a long, long time ago. She seemed to see a scene of a little girl hurriedly dragging her father in... a scene that she would occasionally think of, but shouldn't think of.

Tao Xiaman suddenly felt that he was right when he said that he was in love with a scene. But even so, she didn't think about going in. At least at this moment, her feet felt like they were being pulled by something. This makes it difficult for her to take another step forward.

Maybe it would be good to take a photo, she thought, silently grabbing the lens of the camera.

"Aren't you going to go in?"

Such a voice suddenly appeared behind her. Tao Xiaman turned around and saw only a young man in casual clothes who was younger than her, like a college student, about twenty years old.

The facade of this noodle shop is a bit small, with just an ordinary door. Tao Xiaman never thought that such an ancient noodle shop could still survive to this day... What I really want to say is that she blocked the way for others to enter.

"Sorry." Tao Xiaman said apologetically and took a step away.

The young man just nodded, smiled slightly and walked into the noodle shop. When the young man walked in, Tao Xiaman took steps forward for some reason, as if something was moving towards her.

She also walked into the noodle shop and heard the conversation between the young man and the noodle shop owner... Tao Xiaman still had some impression of the owner's appearance, but his hair was already full of white.

"Brother, you're here again! As usual?"

"Yes, please, boss."

"Okay! Please sit down for a moment, it will be ready soon!" The white-haired boss responded angrily, and then shouted towards the kitchen: "One bowl of topping noodles, one bowl of shaved noodles! Topping noodles Toppings include shaved noodles, all packaged!”

So the young man found a stool and sat down.

Tao Xiaman watched this scene with interest.

She rarely saw such a quiet young man: while waiting for the time, he did not play with his mobile phone like the general public, but took out a small book, opened it and started reading.

There are also bookmarks on the books, which is a habit only people who read often have.

"Why put the toppings on the noodles? Wouldn't that make the noodles taste less delicious?"

She sat down in front of the young man.

This is a public cafeteria, where you can sit wherever you want. But the business of this old noodle shop is not very good. It should be lunch time now, but there are only three tables of customers.

The one this young man is sitting on is already one of them.

"Is there any question?" The young man raised his head slightly, as if he didn't care about this abrupt question.

Tao Xiaman shook his head: "No problem, it's just that I rarely see people eating like this, so I'm curious. Oh, I'm sorry, I was abrupt. Hello, my name is Tao Xiaman, and I am... a photography enthusiast."

"Hello." The young man nodded.

This is the time to introduce yourself, right?

But what makes Tao Xiaman interesting is that this young man's simple hello seems to be much better than a self-introduction.

What should I say?

Just right.

This was Tao Xiaman's only feeling when he recalled it later.

She asked: "Do you... come here often?"

The young man nodded: "Recently."

She asked: "Live here?"

The young man shook his head and said, "I don't live here."

So Tao Xiaman smiled and said, "I don't live here but I came here to buy food. It seems that I really like the taste here."

The young man also smiled in response: "I actually bought it for someone. Well... I recently met a friend. He often forgets to eat because of work. I'm afraid that his body won't be able to bear it."

Tao Xiaman nodded: "He is so lucky to have you as a friend."

The young man didn't say anything, but slightly opened the corner of his mouth. At this time, the owner of the noodle shop came over with two boxes, "Okay, little brother, your noodles!"

The young man simply paid the money and stood up. He suddenly glanced at Tao Xiaman and said softly: "No matter whether the toppings taste good or not, my friend will always finish it."

She just felt strange.

…

Until the end of this short conversation, Tao Xiaman still didn't know the name of this young man... Of course, this was not a magical encounter.

Because she already has a fiancé who loves her and whom she also loves deeply.

She just felt that such an encounter was like an episode: a quiet song in the metropolis.

"Hey...girl, do you want to eat something?"

But the owner of the noodle shop is still standing here.

Tao Xiaman, who was already sitting here, was embarrassed to say that he didn't want to eat.

She lowered her head and thought for a while, looking at the chopstick barrel on the table, "Give me a bowl of noodles, and then pay for the toppings on the noodles."

"Okay!"

…

After leaving the noodle shop, Tao Xiaman passed by the place where he once lived. She had the urge to go up and take a look, but when passers-by walked by on the street, her urge was aroused.

The momentary impulse faded away after being frightened, leaving only a trace of indifferent melancholy.

She looked up one last time, took a deep breath, and walked towards the exit of the street.

That meal of shaved noodles with toppings still tasted good, but it might be the last time she tasted it.

Because she didn't know if this noodle shop would still be there when she still had the chance to pass by.

Interestingly, when she was about to leave this old street, Tao Xiaman met an acquaintance: a classmate of hers in elementary school... her deskmate.

Looking at the past from a distance, the thin man at that time has become a little fat now. It seems that he must have married early. Tao Xiaman looked at this old classmate holding his four or five-year-old child and buying ice cream from a small shop. The stalls passed by.

The old classmate did not recognize her, and she just watched silently as she held her son like this and finally disappeared around the corner.

Tao Xiaman thought that maybe she should go up and say a few words of greetings, but some memories from her childhood were like shackles, locking up the nostalgia she had just managed to condense in that old noodle shop.

Some injuries may last a lifetime.

Time will eventually erase all traces of this old street, and at the same time, it will also erase her memory.

She hoped so.

Tao Xiaman's return to his hometown has ended here.

…

But Tao Xiaman never thought that she would encounter some unexpected things today.

"Are you Tao Xiaman?"

She met a very tall man downstairs in her house, wearing sunglasses and tattoos, who called himself Qiangzi. (To be continued.)

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