PCJ – Chapter 170 Sending a Bicycle

“Boom!” A burst of fire suddenly flared up at the fried dough stall.

“Ah!” Zhang Jiaohua exclaimed in fright.

“What happened?” Zhang Manyin was also startled by Zhang Jiaohua’s reaction.

Zhang Jiaohua then realized that what he saw wasn’t real; it was his imagination. Rubbing his eyes, everything at the fried dough stall was normal. Golden fried dough sticks were in the iron cage. This was something Zhang Jiaohua had never experienced before. He scratched his head, not knowing what was going on.

“What exactly happened?” Zhang Manyin asked anxiously.

“I must have seen it wrong. I thought I saw the fried dough stall catch fire,” Zhang Jiaohua said sheepishly.

“Oh, you scared me. I thought something really happened,” Zhang Manyin laughed.

The door to Luo Yongming’s house was open, and Luo Yongming was napping on a recliner.

“Grandpa Luo,” Zhang Jiaohua called out from the doorway.

As people age, they tend to nap more but sleep lightly. Luo Yongming woke up immediately upon hearing the call. Seeing the grandfather and grandson at the door, he stood up warmly, “Jiaohua, Old Zhang, such rare visitors. Come in, please have a seat. I’ll get you some water.”

Luo Yongming was delighted; he wished for people to come and chat with him. But everyone had their own affairs. Who else could enjoy a leisurely life like him, a retired cadre?

“We came to town to buy seeds today and thought we’d visit you, Grandpa Luo. I brought you a piece of cured wild boar meat,” Zhang Jiaohua took the wild boar meat out of a burlap sack.

“You didn’t need to bring anything just to visit. If you do this, I won’t dare let you come to my house in the future,” Luo Yongming laughed.

“This wild boar meat is from a boar we hunted last year in the mountains, not worth much. Us rural folks don’t have much of value to give, as long as you don’t mind,” Zhang Manyin smiled.

“Old Zhang, what are you talking about? This wild boar meat is something money can’t buy. I haven’t even thanked you for the big leg of meat you brought last time, and now you’re giving me more. Alright, I’ll accept it. Don’t be in a hurry to leave today, stay for a meal. I’ll call Changjun and have him join us for dinner, then he can give you a ride back,” Luo Yongming put the cured meat in the kitchen.

“Old Luo, no need to trouble yourself with a meal. We’re about to enter a busy farming period, and there’s a lot to do at home. Tonight, we need to start germinating the seeds. If we miss the farming season, this year’s harvest will be gone,” Zhang Manyin felt uneasy in Luo Yongming’s spotless house, always fearing he’d dirty something.

Zhang Jiaohua, however, was still thinking about the scene he saw earlier. Why did he see it wrong? He clearly saw a ball of fire engulf the fried dough stall, but it was a mistake. The scene was too real, making his heart still race.

“No matter how busy, you still have to eat. Besides, if Changjun gives you a ride back later, it won’t delay your work. Jiaohua, what happened today? You seem down,” Luo Yongming asked curiously.

“It was strange. I clearly saw the fried dough stall below get engulfed by a ball of fire, but it was a mistake,” Zhang Jiaohua scratched his head again.

“So that’s it. You kids have vivid imaginations, it’s normal to have hallucinations sometimes. But now that you mention it, I should remind Old Xiao to be careful. His stall often has open flames and a lot of oil. If he’s not careful, it could lead to a disaster,” Luo Yongming had long noticed the potential danger at Old Xiao’s stall but hadn’t mentioned it due to their long-standing neighborly relationship. Old Xiao’s fried dough stall was well-known, and he was usually very careful.

With one call, Luo Changjun arrived immediately. His jeep parked right at the door.

Luo Changjun entered and warmly greeted Zhang Jiaohua and Zhang Manyin, “Uncle Zhang, Jiaohua, you’re here. My dad often talks about you, saying Jiaohua hasn’t come to town to hang out for a long time.”

“Uncle Luo, I brought you some protective talismans. You’re a policeman, often dealing with bad guys. These talismans can keep you safe,” Zhang Jiaohua took out the talismans.

Although Luo Changjun didn’t believe a piece of yellow paper could protect him, he happily accepted them, “I’ll keep them with me. Lately, I’ve been dealing with some desperate criminals. Since the economic reforms, everything revolves around money. People will do anything for money. Theft and robbery cases are frequent. Uncle Zhang, Jiaohua, be careful when you come to town.”

“Isn’t it because you police aren’t doing your job well?” Luo Yongming said disapprovingly.

“Father, you can’t blame the police. Compared to previous years, the crime rate has increased several times, but our staff hasn’t increased correspondingly. There’s even talk of cutting staff. More officials, fewer workers; how can efficiency be high?” Luo Changjun felt aggrieved.

“Let’s not talk about that. Old Zhang, you need to be more vigilant in the future,” Luo Yongming didn’t want to argue with his son in front of their guests.

“We just encountered three ruffians at the dumpling shop. They didn’t look like good people,” Zhang Jiaohua recounted the dumpling shop incident, though he left out the part about Jinhu’s mischief.

“Really? They didn’t do anything to you, did they?” Luo Changjun’s expression turned serious.

“No, they were just unlucky today,” Zhang Jiaohua described the scene, making Luo Yongming and his son widen their eyes.

“They must be having the worst luck,” Luo Changjun couldn’t help but laugh.

After eating, Zhang Manyin and Zhang Jiaohua prepared to leave. Luo Yongming brought out a well-maintained Forever brand heavy-duty bicycle, “Changjun, give your Uncle Zhang and Jiaohua a ride and take this bike with you. It’ll be convenient for Jiaohua to come to town in the future.”

“No, no, we can’t accept such an expensive bicycle. Besides, Jiaohua is too small to ride it,” Zhang Manyin quickly refused.

“Why not? The kids next door, who are about the same size as Jiaohua, can ride. If he can’t reach the seat, he can use the triangle frame. Even if he can’t ride it now, he’ll be able to when he grows taller,” Luo Yongming insisted on giving the bike.

Luo Changjun quickly tied the bike to the top of the jeep.

As Zhang Jiaohua got into the jeep, he couldn’t help but glance at the fried dough stall again, and was startled once more.