Speed and Love

Jiang Mu's picky eating habits hadn't improved much even as she grew older, especially when it came to vegetables. Green peppers, crown daisies, celery, and carrots were all vegetables she absolutely refused to touch. She also wouldn't eat lamb or goose meat, couldn't spit out watermelon seeds, found grapes too troublesome to eat, felt her throat itch after eating kiwis, and would only eat crisp apples—mealy apples were completely unpalatable to her.

She had been scolded by Jiang Yinghan countless times about this since childhood. As she grew older, Jiang Yinghan no longer forced her so harshly to eat those hard-to-swallow foods, but would often say: "Who would dare marry you? You refuse to eat this and won't touch that—how could anyone live with you?"

Jiang Mu had never thought about such distant matters. She always replied nonchalantly: "Then I just won't get married. Wouldn't it be nice if I lived with you forever?"

But when she said these words, she never imagined that one day her mother would be the one to marry first and leave her behind.

Jiang Mu finished her bowl of rice quickly but didn't eat much of the dishes. She only picked at the potatoes in the stew. By the time she put down her chopsticks, the others had barely started eating.

Seeing she was done, Jin Chao stood up and went into the inner room, soon returning with a bag that he handed to her: "See if this fits you."

Jiang Mu took the bag and opened it to find a high school uniform. She took out the clothes—a dark red and white striped top with the school emblem embroidered on the chest. The uniform was spotless and carried a faint scent of laundry detergent, looking as good as new.

Xiao Yang chimed in: "This is really my master's treasured possession. I thought he was planning to attend a class reunion. I almost put it in the washing machine with his work clothes."

Smelling the fresh laundry scent, Jiang Mu said: "It's fine, it's very clean."

Xiao Yang replied: "Of course it's clean—my master hand-washed it separately."

Jiang Mu paused slightly and looked at Jin Chao, who was holding a beer with one hand, his expression indifferent.

San Lai laughed: "No wonder! I saw the uniform hanging outside a couple days ago and thought he was feeling nostalgic, ready to try it on. He scolded me, saying I'm covered in chicken feathers and should keep my hands off his things. So it was meant as a gift."

Then San Lai turned his smiling eyes to Jiang Mu and said: "Take good care of this uniform. You Jiu never got the chance to wear it himself—this is the only one. Forgot to tell you, I also graduated from that high school. By seniority, you should call me Senior San Lai."

Before Jiang Mu could respond, Jin Chao spoke up: "Head back early after you finish eating."

Jiang Mu neatly folded the uniform back into the bag, looked up at Jin Chao and asked: "Can I finish my homework here before going back?"

She couldn't discern any emotion from Jin Chao's eyes—this was the biggest difference she felt since meeting him again.

The old Jin Chao had bright eyes. Through those windows, she could sense the colorful person within—whether passionate or dejected, his emotions had always been vivid. But now, the light in his eyes had vanished. No matter when she looked at him, his gaze remained perpetually muted, as if all his experiences were hidden beneath those dark pupils—unwavering and impenetrable.

Jin Chao simply returned her gaze, disheartened and indifferent, while Jiang Mu didn't flinch away. The two seemed locked in a silent standoff.Xiao Yang and Tie Gongji couldn't quite grasp the situation, thinking Jiang Mu was You Jiu's younger sister. Now it seemed You Jiu wasn't too willing to let her stay, so they didn't dare speak up. Only San Lai wore a mocking smile as he quietly drank by himself.

After a while, Jin Chao broke the silence with a casual tone, "Go call and let them know."

Jiang Mu nodded, stood up, and walked toward the repair shop. San Lai then lightened the mood, "The cats in my shop eat more than she does."

Jin Chao tilted his head to glance at her slender frame, his eyes darkening slightly.

Jiang Mu made a call to Jin Qiang, telling her she was doing homework at Jin Chao's shop. Jin Qiang asked why she had gone to Jin Chao's place. She explained that school had ended early, she was hungry, and had come over for a meal. Jin Qiang didn't press further.

Since arriving in Tonggang, her days had been limited to school and that house. Today, Jiang Mu wanted to return later. It wasn't that Zhao Meijuan treated her poorly—in fact, she wasn't sure what Zhao Meijuan's attitude toward her really was. It couldn't be called warm, but it wasn't unwelcoming either; she'd still boil water for her baths. Her ambiguous demeanor left Jiang Mu uncertain how to interact with her.

More often than not, watching Zhao Meijuan, Jin Qiang, and Jin Xin together, she felt they were the real family.

For so many years, her mother had raised her alone while her father had already started a new family. That image had only existed in her mind before, but now it frequently unfolded before her eyes—vivid and real, making her feel out of place.

On the other hand, the future her mother was heading toward filled her with despondency, worry, and anxiety.

She wondered how Jin Chao had faced all this in the past? How did he cope with Jin Qiang building a family with another woman, with his once-familiar family drifting away? Did he feel uncomfortable? Did he ever feel as disheartened as she did now?

She had no way of finding out, only wanting to escape briefly. Sitting in the messy break room doing her homework, occasionally looking up through the glass to see Jin Chao and the others drinking and chatting by the shop entrance, filled her heart with a sense of lively warmth. At least, in this unfamiliar place, it lessened her feeling of rootless loneliness.

They drank until almost nine o'clock. After cleaning up, Tie Gongji left, while Xiao Yang stayed with Jin Chao in the repair shop to finish up some tasks. They didn't disturb Jiang Mu in the break room; through the glass window, they could see her head bowed in concentration, occasionally flipping through test papers.

Around ten o'clock, San Lai tapped twice on the glass from outside. Jiang Mu looked up at the sound and saw San Lai holding two "Cute More" ice creams, raising them as he called out, "Come out for a cold treat, don't study yourself silly."

Jiang Mu put down her pen, opened the door, and stepped out. San Lai handed her the ice cream in his right hand, saying, "There's only one chocolate flavor—it's for you."

Surprised, Jiang Mu asked, "How did you know I like chocolate?"

"You Jiu told me to get it."

Jiang Mu turned to look for Jin Chao but noticed he wasn't in the repair shop. She couldn't help asking, "Where is he?"

San Lai replied casually, "Probably busy in the back. Want to come check out my shop?"

Jiang Mu didn't refuse. She unwrapped the ice cream and followed San Lai to the neighboring pet shop. As soon as the door opened, the cats and dogs went wild, making all sorts of strange noises together. Jiang Mu watched as San Lai paused mid-step, raised his arm high, and waved it gracefully like a conductor.The key point was that his attire and demeanor were far from elegant, and he was even wearing a pair of blue-and-white slippers, making the whole scene look particularly like a charlatan.

Surprisingly, his trick worked perfectly—the pet shop fell completely silent, and all the little creatures stopped barking.

Jiang Mu asked in astonishment, "How did you do that?"

San Lai turned around, placed a hand over his heart, and said to her, "As a king, jungling is an essential skill."

"...You've been playing too many games, haven't you?"

San Lai chuckled and replied, "Times are tough in the industry these days. What else is there to do but play games to pass the boring, lonely days? Take a look around."

Jiang Mu walked over to a glass display case. The shop had quite a few common cat breeds—several British Shorthairs, blue-and-whites, and American Shorthairs—but all the cats inside were sprawled out lazily, looking utterly burnt out. No matter how she pressed against the glass to tease them, they showed little interest in responding.

She finished the Cornetto in her hand, and San Lai waved her over from inside: "Come take a look here."

Jiang Mu saw a small enclosure inside. She walked over quickly and peeked in to find a Golden Retriever lying there—the very "Miss Xishi" they had been discussing during their meal.

In front of Xishi were four tiny puppies nursing. Strangely, even though the mother was a Golden Retriever, the puppies were a mix of colors—spotted, gray, and even one pure black one.

Perhaps because its appearance was too unusual, the pure black puppy kept getting pushed aside by its siblings. The Golden Retriever mother also seemed to have little patience for it. The little black dog tried several times to reach its mother, but its tiny legs were too wobbly, causing it to stumble and tumble onto its back—a sight both pitiful and amusing.

Jiang Mu pointed at the little black puppy and asked, "Why isn’t its mother taking care of it?"

San Lai glanced over and said, "People can’t even treat everyone equally, let alone dogs. This black one stopped breathing right after it was born. Xishi even carried it to the shop entrance and dropped it there. I picked it up and managed to revive it."

Jiang Mu crouched down to look at it. "How pitiful."

San Lai bent over, scooped up the little black puppy, and Xishi merely gave a lazy glance, showing no protective instinct. Seeing Jiang Mu’s interest, San Lai handed the puppy to her: "Here, you can hold it."

Jiang Mu carefully took the little black puppy, cradling it in her palms. She had never held a newborn puppy only two days old before, and touching this tiny creature melted her heart. The little black puppy’s body was soft and delicate, and as soon as it made contact with Jiang Mu, its head began nuzzling and sniffing around her—utterly adorable. The ticklish sensation made Jiang Mu curl her lips into a smile as she gently lowered her head to nuzzle it back.

She remembered something and said to San Lai, "When I was little, I also came across a small black dog in my neighborhood. It followed me all the way home, but my mom wouldn’t let me keep it."

Jiang Mu only shared half of the story—the other half was that she and Jin Chao had gotten themselves filthy while playing and brought the stray dog home. When Jiang Yinghan saw them, she was furious and made them get rid of the dog.Jiang Mu tearfully tugged at Jin Chao, who couldn't decide the puppy's fate either. He claimed he was taking Mumu downstairs to release the puppy, but instead found a cardboard box and hid the puppy under a bridge behind the residential complex. Every day after school, the two would mysteriously buy sausages from a convenience store and rush to feed the puppy, even giving it a name—Shandian (Lightning). At the time, they both thought the name was incredibly cool, but they only managed to feed it for a few days before the puppy disappeared, and they never saw it again.

San Lai suddenly laughed and said, "Want to keep it? I'll give it to you."

Although Jiang Mu had always liked small animals, she had never seriously kept one. Back in middle school, she had mentioned it to Jiang Yinghan, but her mother flatly refused. Jiang Yinghan was an extremely meticulous woman who wouldn't allow pet hair or odors in the house, so keeping a pet was never within her consideration.

Now, living in Jin Qiang's home, Jiang Mu felt like an outsider in some ways—how could she bring a pet back? She said to San Lai, "Thank you, but I have nowhere to keep it."

Then she gently returned the little black puppy to its mother. A strange thing happened: as soon as Jiang Mu set the puppy down, it stumbled and crawled back toward her, astonishing even San Lai.

Jiang Mu extended a finger toward it, and the little creature immediately rested its head on her fingertip. The soft touch reached deep into her heart, stirring her compassion.

Two knocks sounded on the glass door of the pet shop. They turned simultaneously to see Jin Chao, who had already packed Jiang Mu's things into her backpack. Holding the backpack, he stood at the shop entrance and said to her, "Let's go."

San Lai suddenly bent down and whispered to Jiang Mu from the side, "If you really want to keep it, there might be a way—talk to You Jiu."

Jiang Mu glanced up at San Lai, who winked at her with a smile.

When Jiang Mu left the pet shop, she noticed the rolling shutter of the auto repair shop had been pulled down. Jin Chao placed her backpack on a vehicle and drove her back.

During the ride, Jiang Mu glanced at Jin Chao several times, unsure how to broach the subject. Before she could gather her thoughts, they had already arrived at Jin Qiang's neighborhood.

Jin Chao drove into the complex, parked near the building, turned off the engine, and said, "You've been staring at me the whole way. Spit it out."

Jiang Mu approached the topic indirectly: "I saw the golden retriever's puppies at San Lai's shop earlier."

"Mm."

"They're quite cute."

"..." Silence.

"One of the little black puppies—San Lai said it was born lifeless and he revived it. For some reason, Xishi doesn't seem to like it much."

"..." More silence.

Seeing Jin Chao's lack of reaction, Jiang Mu muttered to herself, "Don't you think it's pitiful?"

Jin Chao suddenly spoke up: "He spins a random tale and you're moved for half the day? Why not ask San Lai how he revived it—mouth-to-mouth resuscitation?"

Jiang Mu hadn't considered that question. Jin Chao turned to her and said calmly, "Want to keep it?"

His immediate insight into her thoughts made Jiang Mu hesitant to meet his gaze. She nodded and asked softly, "Is it okay?"Jin Chao opened the car door and got out, with Jiang Mu following suit. Standing on opposite sides of the vehicle beneath a withered tree, Jin Chao lit a cigarette under the chilly moonlight, his silhouette appearing somewhat aloof. His voice carried across the distance as he said, "Of those four puppies, two decent ones were already reserved. The other two unsellable ones—he’s giving you one, just so you’d ask me to keep it at my place. That way, someone else shares the costs for dog food and grooming. Are you really that naive?"

Jiang Mu froze for a moment, never having expected such a scheme. She slung her backpack over her shoulder and picked up her school uniform bag.

Jin Chao seemed to have no intention of going upstairs. Instead, he tossed his house keys to her over the car. Jiang Mu caught them and asked, "When should I return them?"

Taking a drag from his cigarette, he replied, "I won’t be back for a while. Keep them for now."

Jiang Mu nodded and had only taken a few steps when she suddenly turned back and asked, "What if… I cover all the dog food and grooming expenses, and it stays with you temporarily? Would that work?"

Jin Chao tilted his head and let out a derisive laugh before turning back to her, his expression suddenly serious. "And after you graduate? Are you planning to take the dog with you or abandon it?"

Jiang Mu didn’t answer, because even she hadn’t figured out where she would go after the college entrance exams.

Jin Chao then added slowly, "Since you’ll have to leave eventually, I’d advise you not to keep it. Getting attached will only complicate things."

Jiang Mu stood rooted to the spot, her entire body burning—not because of the dog, but because of Jin Chao’s words. Was this what he truly thought?

Since they had gone their separate ways years ago, why maintain unnecessary ties?

Since they weren’t actually siblings, why stay in contact?

Too much contact, too much attachment—what a hassle.

Jiang Mu’s expression cooled, and she gave up her insistence, merely uttering a soft, "Mm."

Without looking back, she turned and strode toward the building, a heavy weight settling in her chest. Jin Chao called out from behind her, "Hey."

Jiang Mu halted and spun around, shouting at him, "Don’t I have a name? Why do you always call me ‘Hey’? My name isn’t ‘Hey’."

Through the dim light of the night, Jin Chao saw her flushed face and smirked in amusement. "Getting this worked up over not getting to keep a dog? Is that mangy mutt really that precious to you?"

Jiang Mu retorted firmly, "It’s not a mangy mutt. It’s a poor creature unwanted by both its parents."

Jin Chao’s expression gradually hardened until it was completely devoid of warmth. Jiang Mu felt an oppressive, suffocating tension. She avoided his gaze, eager to escape the scene, but before entering the building, she paused. She knew her words had touched upon the most sensitive part of their relationship. Not daring to look at him, she murmured weakly, "I’m not disappointed in you. If I were, it would only be for one reason—you cut off contact with me."

Jiang Mu’s figure vanished into the building entrance, but Jin Chao remained there for a long time. Deep furrows gathered between his brows. Over the years, he had grown accustomed to the disappointment in the eyes of those around him. Almost everyone from his past who saw him now couldn’t hide their scorn, pity, or disappointment. He had long become numb to it all.

He never expected someone to tell him they weren’t disappointed in him—or that her disappointment had nothing to do with his current circumstances.A bitter smile tugged at Jin Chao's lips as he took a deep drag of his cigarette, inhaling all the unspeakable memories of the past like smoke into his lungs, the bitterness swirling in his chest.

It was a long while before he finally got back in the car and drove off. San Lai was still sprawled in the recliner by the shop entrance, playing games. When he saw Jin Chao return, he shot him a casual glance and said, "Took you long enough?"

Jin Chao ignored him, walked over, and tossed him a cigarette. "When will that dog be weaned?"

San Lai chuckled, immediately quitting his game and straightening up. "One little dog and you're already showing your true colors. How do you manage to repay kindness for injustice? And that little girl actually talked you into it with just a few words—color me shocked."

Jin Chao shot him an impatient glare. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

San Lai tucked the cigarette behind his ear and kicked a stool over to him. Jin Chao sat down a few steps away, his long legs casually bent.

He heard San Lai say, "I really am so bored I'm farting out of my ass. Back then, when they left you to die, if it were me, I definitely wouldn't be so magnanimous."

Jin Chao lowered his head, scrolling through his phone, and said nothing. San Lai continued, "I never expected that legendary little girl of yours to be so damn fine—petite nose, small mouth, and those sparkling eyes. No wonder you've been hung up on her all this time. She's not even related to you. If I were you, I'd make a move on her just to piss off her mom. Who isn't a hero on Mount Liang? If you can't bring yourself to do it, I'll handle it for you."

Jin Chao's gaze remained fixed on the blueprint on his phone, zooming in on a corner to inspect it. His tone was casual but carried a chill. "Try laying a finger on her and see what happens."

San Lai threw his head back in the recliner and laughed exaggeratedly. "Fuck, you're actually serious? Do I look like an idiot? Turn her into one of us and lose a potential customer for membership cards? Once the black dog is weaned, I'll personally deliver it to you. Want to top up five thousand first and get a premium VIP?"

"Go cool off somewhere else."

"..."