Meanwhile, in the Hibiscus Tea Room, after the police clamor upstairs for questioning, Lin Zhaoming only realized in hindsight that the young man who saved his life was nowhere to be found.
He frowned, "Where's that backwoods kid just now?"
Lin Zi Hui touched his head and looked puzzled: "Yes oh, it was just here, why is it gone?"
"It's just," Lin Zhaoming waved his hand, "Anyway, having left the card, if he wants me to return this favor, he will definitely take the initiative to find me."
In all honesty, Chen Canaan, who had slipped away behind Qiao Wen's back, hadn't really thought about asking for this big oolong favor.
After puffing and puffing and turning two corners and leaving the hustle and bustle of the place, he finally panted and slowed down, but still didn't put the person on his back down.
It was Qiaowen who reminded him, "Nan, I'll walk by myself."
Chen Canaan said, "It's fine, I'll carry you on my back, lest you walk up two steps and can't catch your breath again."
Jovian lost his smile, still breaking away from him to get off the floor.
Chen Canaan looked him up and down through the dim night light and said suspiciously, "Really nothing?"
Jovian smiled and spread his hands, "It's really nothing."
Chen Canaan was still uneasy about the left and right carefully looked at him, finally was convinced that he was not much of a problem, and could not help but sigh with emotion, "This morning I saw you hanging on to a breath, this is only a day, but even so much better, it is really magical."
Qiao Wen: "Before it was that I couldn't eat, today I woke up and drank water and ate porridge, so naturally I'm better."
Chen Canaan nodded, "That's true, I don't like to get sick since I was a kid, I just have a good appetite, as long as I'm hungry give me a bowl of pig's food and I'll eat it too."
Jovian: "......" There's no need for that comparison.
Chen Canaan said as if he remembered something, reached out and wiped his hand on his mouth, pulling off the circle of thick beard, perhaps it was too firmly stained, and he grimaced in pain to the point of sucking in a breath.
Without his beard, his young one fell into Jovian's eyes. Only then did he have a visual concept of what he looked like. The original book did not have a specific description about Chen Canaan's looks, only knowing that he should look good, after all, he was nicknamed Pretty Boy Nan.
But at this moment, Jovian was still a little surprised when he saw what he looked like.
He originally thought that even if Chen Canaan was a handsome looker, but according to the original book's ruthless doings, this handsome was bound to be on the ferocious and rough route.
However, without the beard of Chen Canaan, but the unexpected Zhouzheng handsome, coupled with today's special wear a shirt, and even quite a few points of the temperament of the handsome gentleman.
Only Qiaowen's surprise didn't last for two seconds before it was broken by a national curse from the handsome gentleman with the pinched beard, "Fuck, what kind of shit is this!"
Although Chen Canaan is a native of Hong Kong, but his father was from Beijing and Tianjin, and he was displaced here after the war, and his family still retains a northern accent, and he leaps out with a few phrases of his hometown from time to time.
Walled city and even the whole harbor city, originally from all over the world, Shanghai people get together to speak Shanghainese, Minnan people speak Minnanese, Chaoshanese is everywhere. The original Xiao Qiaowen grew up listening to his grandmother's mouthful of Wunong soft language, and spoke with a few soft voices.
Qiao Wen retracted his comment on his clear and handsome appearance and said, ''By the way, that was the killer in the teahouse just now, wasn't it. Even though you broke personnel, you also saved that boss, it's considered a good deed, so how can you say that you're in trouble? Could it be that you know that killer? Afraid of people coming to your door to find you trouble?"
Chen Canaan shook his head, "I don't recognize it."
"That's not all, you're dressed like this today, I expect that I won't recognize you if I see you in the future. Don't worry, in any case, saving people is a good thing."
"I ......" Chen Canaan touched his head to speak, he really did not recognize it, but Master Panther definitely recognized it.
Seeing his appearance, Qiao Wen tentatively asked, "Brother Nan, are you hiding something from me?"
Chen Canaan was busy holding his shoulders and shaking his head, snorting, "Of course not, how could I hide it from your fiery eyes."
Although the body is thin and weak, but perhaps because of the genes are good, not low, but with Chen Canaan than, or a small half a head shorter. At this time, although Chen Canaan is still a teenager's thin figure, but a standard northern man's big man, by him this one, Qiao Wen only feel as if he is really very small and weak.
Chen Canaan was afraid that his deed of going to be an assassin would be lost, he affectionately touched his cheek and changed the topic, "Why is your face icy cold, your body is just getting better, and the night is windy, don't catch a cold, I'll take off my clothes for you."
Probably because the original body was used to being close to him, Qiao Wen naturally didn't feel any discomfort from such a touch. His palm with thin calluses and warmth was quite comfortable against his face.
He shook his head, "It's May and I'm still feeling hot, it's just cool enough to blow."
Chen Canaan didn't take off his clothes again when he heard this, but only wrapped him in his arms and said with a smile, "You've always been afraid of the cold and not afraid of the heat, so I'll hold you and block some of the wind for you so that you don't blow too much wind."
The teenager's body was hot, and Jovian was genuinely not feeling cool as he said in amusement, "It's hot."
Because the original body always spoke with a lack of breath, the voice came across as pouty.
Chen Canaan still held him, "Why don't I feel hot?"
The two men joked and laughed, hooking shoulders as they walked slowly to the entrance of the Citadel. The neon flashes of the metropolis suddenly became a distant backdrop as they entered the alleyway, an invisible dividing line dividing the inside and outside of the city fortress into two worlds. Inside was the dark and dirty slums, while outside was the prosperous and flourishing metropolis.
It should be another blackout, originally not see the sun in the cottage in, at this moment only a little bit of barely penetrate the moonlight. A few rats from the cramped alleyway and teamed up, let out ear-piercing squeaks, see people also do not run away, can be described as arrogant to the extreme.
Although Qiaowen felt a little nauseous, but not so much as to be frightened, coupled with the fact that he had already seen this scene in plain sight in the daytime, he was exceptionally calm at the moment.
Instead, it was Chen Canaan who nervously stood forward and stamped his feet hard a few times, repelling the unknown creatures in the darkness while pulling Qiao Wen to guide him.
His taking care of him like this made Qiao Wen suddenly think of Lin Nan again. Ever since he was a child, but whenever he was in danger, he would always rush ahead of him.
I didn't think anything of it when I was young, but I didn't realize how precious that kind of friendship was until I lost it.
This world's Qiao Wen was tragic, but also lucky. At least during the years he was living in the Kowloon Walled City, he met Chen Canaan, who protected him and took care of him like a real brother.
If his life hadn't been too short, Chen Canaan in the original book probably wouldn't have taken that path of no return. Now that he had taken the place of that poor teenager, no matter what he would live out in this world in the future, he would at least pull Chen Canaan onto the right path.
The two lived in an eight-story tenement building, one on the second floor and one on the third, just above and below.
Before he even reached the door, Chen Canaan called out loudly, "Granny, we're back."
Words just fell, the second floor hallway door side from the inside open, an old crone out of his old face, softly smiled and said: "finally came back, Howie said that the body of A Wen is good, go out for a breathable, I am worried about a person will not do anything, in the home waiting for a long time, to see it is and A Nan together back, I will be relieved. "
Chen Canaan said, "That's right, with me here, absolutely nothing will happen to Wen."
Grandma Qiao smiled, "I've cooked soup, Anan, you have a bowl before you go upstairs."
Chen Canaan touched his belly: ''I just had evening tea with Xiao Qiao, and my stomach is still full, so I really can't hold it up. You Xiao Qiao drink it. I'm going up, call me if something happens."
Jovian watched him go up the stairs and walked slowly into the house.
Granny Qiao looked him up and down by candlelight: "Are you really alright? Ah Nan said that you're being treated at Uncle Hua's place and can't see the wind, so he asked me not to visit you for the time being, and these past few days have really caused me a lot of worry."
Qiao Wen sized up the grandmother in front of him, wearing an indigo blue rough old cheongsam, feet are embroidered black cloth shoes, hair with a bamboo hairpin pulled, although it is a simple to the extreme dress, the face has long been full of frost climbed all over the gullies, but it is quite a Republic of China, Miss Qianjin legacy.
Because of his original body, Qiao Wen had an instinctive closeness to her, and he helped the old man's hand through the door, "Granny, I'm fine."
Just finishing with a wave of vertigo, he couldn't help but gasp twice.
Seeing this, Granny was busy helping him to sit down on the old cloth sofa next to him, "Sit down well, Howie brought back the medicine for you, it's warming on the stove, you drink the medicine first, and then have some soup."
Jovian said, "Thank you, Granny."
Granny Qiao laughed, "Why are we grandparents and grandchildren being polite?"
Looking at the bowl of blackened Chinese medicine in his hand, Qiao Wen tilted his head back and drank it down after a little hesitation, and then there was an extra malt candy in his mouth, which Granny had stuffed in.
What had been a bitter mouth was instantly taken over by sweetness.
He curled his lips at Granny and smiled.
Granny saw him smile, also from the heart to smile open, "Yes, should smile more, all day long sad face is not good."
Qiaowen did not move to look at her, a rich girl through the war family downfall, in the son daughter-in-law husband left one after another, alone in the chaos of the slums, raising up a sick grandson, this woman can not be said to be not strong.
Qiao Wen ate the candy and drank another small bowl of silver ear soup, slowly and methodically put the bowl away, and said, "Granny, when I get better, I'll get a job, and once we make some money, we'll move to an apartment outside, and you won't have to sell dry goods anymore."
Granny looked at him lovingly and smiled, "Granny doesn't expect you to make much money, as long as your body can be well."
Qiao Wen didn't say much, only nodded and said, "Go rest, granny, don't worry about me."
"Good, Howie helped fetch two buckets of water, I boiled a pot while it's still hot, you wash up and go to bed early, if you need anything call Granny."
"Good."
There was no running water in the Kowloon Walled City during this period, there were only eight public taps and wells, and the tenants had to fetch water every day. The Qiao family, with one old man and one weak man, had basically had their home water taken over by Chen Canaan and Howie over the years.
In this environment, naturally, there is no water heater or flush toilet in the home, and the bathing place is on the balcony, a two-square-meter balcony that doubles as a kitchen and shower room.
It's a good thing that Jovian has a lot of experience in the field and isn't that preachy.
This body had been lying in Uncle Hua's black clinic for four or five days, filled with an unknown number of tonics, and had a pungent smell all over it.
Earlier in the teahouse bumped a little, Qiao Wen took off his clothes before realizing that, surprisingly, a piece of green, a touch of raw pain. What kind of body is this, but so fragile.
He sighed helplessly and took a seriously hot shower, which was really much more comfortable, but also exhausting, as if he had done heavy work.
When he returned to the room, the interior was quiet and Granny was asleep.
Jovian sat down in his wooden-framed single bed, blew out the candle flame on the table, and looked around the tiny room as he wiped his hair and took advantage of the little bit of moonlight outside the window.
Originally, it was one room, partitioned into two rooms, the grandmother slept inside and he slept outside.
Outside this room of less than ten square meters, which also doubled as a living room and dining room, apart from the bed underneath, there was only a tiny cloth sofa, a small coffee table, and a wooden cupboard, and as for the appliances, there was nothing more than a floor fan and a radio.
What little space was left was barely tolerable.
The room was cleaned up, though, so I guess the in-laws and grandchildren were both quite sophisticated people.
Jovian's hair was short, and after a few moments of blowing on the electric fan, it was almost dry.
He slumped down on the bed, the covers a clean, fresh, reassuring smell.
Probably because this body had been lying down for too long, he did not feel like sleeping for a while, and could only pillow his head and stare at the faint moonlight outside that small window.
So Qiaowen couldn't help but think of Lin Nan again, wondering if he was like himself, gone to another world, living a good or bad life?
Guess it shouldn't be too bad, after all he is the one who shines wherever he goes.
He was in a daze when a black shadow suddenly climbed up to that moonlit window, hanging like a giant big bat, blocking out most of the already dim light.
Qiao Wen instantly had a jolt, thinking that the bats in this city fortress had become elves? Why is it almost like a human being?
I didn't want to, but the "big bat" suddenly poked his head in and spoke in a lowered voice: "Xiao Qiao, are you asleep?"
Turns out it wasn't the big bat, but Canaan Chen.