SFTD -Chapter 143 A Drop of Blood (Part 8)

“XiXi, what does ‘chicken (gold) Wu hiding feet (jiao)’ mean?”

The little girl looked at Lu Xi in confusion. Her curiosity was growing stronger by the day—whenever she heard something she didn’t understand, she had to ask. But as soon as the words came out, Lu Xi’s face flushed slightly.

“Uh… I’m hungry. Sister XiXi’s brain isn’t very good right now. That phrase is hard to explain in one sentence. Let’s think about what to eat first!”

That immediately diverted the little girl’s attention. Ever since returning to the country, choosing what to eat every day had become her happiest “trouble.”

Seeing Zhou Luoluo looking so conflicted, Xu Biao became interested and quickly walked over.

“I know you’re Charlotte—and your Chinese name is Zhou Luoluo. I even know your room has a ‘starry sea’ theme.”

The little girl looked at the chubby man in front of her. Although she couldn’t fully understand what he said, she could roughly guess it.

“Who are you?”

“He’s called Xu Biao,” said Zhou Xi. “You can call him Uncle Xu.”

The little girl frowned and tilted her head with clear distaste.

“Too hard to remember. I’ll just call you ‘Xuxu’.”

The mixed Chinese-English nickname made Xu Biao understand instantly—and he was immediately offended.

“No way! ‘Xuxu’ sounds awful! You have to properly bribe me. I know all the best food and fun places in Dongnan City. Your Zhou Zhou brother and XiXi sister have been abroad too long—they’re not as familiar as I am.”

“Come on, call me ‘brother’ again!”

Lu Xi knew the little girl struggled with long Chinese sentences, so she translated it for her. After hearing it, Zhou Luoluo nodded as if she understood.

“Okay then… I’ll call you Xuxu brother. My tongue can’t tell the difference between flat and retroflex sounds. Zhou Zhou, tell him not to make things hard for me.”

Zhou Hai patted Xu Biao.

“Stop talking nonsense. Find a place to eat. Luoluo is hungry.”

Xu Biao sighed.

“Alright, Xuxu brother it is… for now! Since we are in Mocheng City, I suggest we go to Qixing Street. It’s a traditional-style street with snacks from all over. We can eat from one end to the other—you’ll definitely get stuffed.”

Zhou Hai knew Xu Biao was an expert in this area, so he asked for everyone’s opinion. Since no one objected, he tossed the car keys to Xu Biao.

“I’ll go change clothes. Wait for me.”

He quickly headed upstairs.

The little girl tugged at Xu Biao’s jacket.

“Xuxu, what good food is there?”

Lu Xi also leaned in curiously. She hadn’t been back in the country for long either, and Mocheng City felt very different from her memories.

“Yeah, Xu brother, tell us!”

Xu Biao immediately launched into an enthusiastic explanation.

When Zhou Hai came downstairs later, he saw Xu Biao gesturing wildly while talking, with two girls listening intently and practically drooling. He was puzzled—could Luoluo even understand Xu Biao’s broken English?

He walked over.

Hearing footsteps, Zhou Luoluo immediately jumped up.

“Zhou Zhou, let’s go! I’m hungry!”

Zhou Hai almost laughed. Her Chinese was improving too fast.

“Let’s go.”

Half an hour later, the four of them arrived at Qixing Street.

Although it was winter and the weather was cold, the street was packed with people. A huge archway stood at the entrance, and the first stall—iron plate squid—already had a long queue.

“Luoluo, want this?”

She looked at it and shook her head reluctantly.

“I’ve tried it. Let’s look at others first, or my stomach won’t have room.”

The others laughed and continued walking along the street—stinky tofu, spicy pork knuckles, duck necks, scallops with vermicelli—she tried them all.

Finally, they stopped in front of a brightly lit shop.

The sign read: “Huoponiang” (Fire Lady Hotpot).

Qixing Street

Huoponiang Hotpot Restaurant

Lu Xi looked puzzled.

“Fire Lady? What kind of place is this?”

The little girl immediately pulled Xu Biao over.

“Xuxu, she’s asking you.”

Xu Biao waved his arms excitedly.

“This is the main event of the night! This shop is famous—even celebrities visiting Mocheng City always come here. The taste is beyond description.”

Zhou Hai nudged him.

“Just explain properly.”

Xu Biao nodded and leaned down.

“You know hotpot? It’s basically a place where all kinds of hotpots gather. You queue until your legs go numb!”

“Let’s see our luck—if there aren’t too many people, we’ll wait. We’re already half full anyway.”

They agreed and entered the shop.

Inside, the hall was crowded. Xu Biao waved at them from afar.

“I got a number! Only two tables ahead!”

Soon, they were seated.

Xu Biao took the menu and began ordering without hesitation: sliced clams, shrimp, oysters, duck intestines, Mongolian lamb…

Everyone ate while chatting in a mix of Chinese and English. The little girl grew especially fond of Xu Biao’s enthusiastic eating style and kept stealing whatever he ordered. The oysters disappeared almost entirely in their “battle.”

Xu Biao complained bitterly to Zhou Hai:

“Bro, control her! She’s a kid—why is she eating oysters? That’s for men’s nourishment!”

Zhou Hai said nothing, only kept serving food to Lu Xi.

Xu Biao narrowed his eyes.

“Something’s off. When you two disappeared earlier while we were queuing… it felt suspicious. You two got something going on?”

Zhou Hai ignored him.

After dinner, they strolled around before returning to the hot spring hotel.

Even as he lay down, Xu Biao still wasn’t satisfied.

“Seriously… you and Lu Xi… something happened today, right?”