Chapter Seventeen: A Taste for This

"Where are you going?"
Du Man reacted instinctively to the question, turning to look at Xu Fei, her expression tinged with worry.
"A few friends..."
"Friends? Is it Sun Qigong?"
Xu Fei was taken aback.
"How did you know?"
Du Man's face grew darker, and she turned away, a hint of anger in her movements as she chopped vegetables. "I heard it from Xu Qing."
Seeing her like this, Xu Fei chuckled. "That girl, is she following me?"
"She isn’t following you. After you left, Xu Qing and the others went to school too. You just didn’t notice them."
"Yes, yes, Sun Qigong did look for me."
Noticing Du Man’s tone becoming increasingly off, Xu Fei stepped forward and placed his hand gently on her shoulder.
Du Man stopped what she was doing, staring blankly. "I thought you’d changed. Why are you still hanging around with those people?"
Xu Fei saw her body trembling slightly.
He leaned in for a closer look, realizing she was crying. He quickly turned her toward him. "Why are you crying? Do you think I’m going gambling with them?"
Du Man slowly raised her head, but before she could speak—
"Xu Fei, don’t you have any shame?"
Xu Qing and Xu Yun walked in.
Xu Qing’s face was furious as she threw her school bag onto a chair and strode to the kitchen door. "We all thought you’d really changed, but it’s only been a day and you’re back with those people. Can you face your wife? Did you forget what you said in front of our parents yesterday?"
Xu Yun was now standing outside the kitchen, looking at Xu Fei through the window. On his young face, disappointment was plain to see.
"Brother, can’t you be a little more ambitious?"
Xu Qing stamped her foot in anger.
"You..."
Xu Fei gave a bitter smile, shaking his head. "How can I explain this to you? Yes, Sun Qigong did approach me. I was just about to tell your sister-in-law about it."
"You were going to tell me?"
"Yes."
"What’s there to tell? I heard everything. You agreed to meet Sun tonight, didn’t you?" Xu Qing must have overheard his conversation with Sun Qigong.
"Yes."
"Xu Fei, you... how could you?"
Xu Fei hurried to explain to Du Man, "It’s not what you think."
"Then what is it? Xu Fei, you’re just rotten!" Xu Qing pointed at her brother and cursed.
"Let me put it this way: I agreed to go out with them, but actually I want to build a good relationship with Zhang Mingyang."

"What do you mean? Why not build connections with someone else—why with a gambler?" Du Man looked at him, puzzled.
Xu Fei frowned deeply, unsure how to explain. He shook his head. "Just stay out of it. I’m doing this for the family."
"Listen to him, sister-in-law. How many times has he said that before? Now he’s saying it again!" Xu Qing, furious, pointed at Xu Fei. "I see you clearly now. If you go gambling tonight, I’ll be the first to stop recognizing you as my brother."
She ran into her room after saying this.
Xu Fei heard the sound of crying inside.
He waved to Xu Yun. "Go comfort your sister."
But Xu Yun walked to the door, saying, "Brother, if you really go gambling, I... I won’t recognize you as my brother either."
He turned and ran into the room as well.
"Ah..."
Seeing both his younger siblings react this way, Xu Fei had no choice. He turned to Du Man. "What about you?"
Du Man looked at the man before her. For some reason, she felt Xu Fei wasn’t as Xu Qing made him out to be. Yet the reality was that he was about to go gambling.
Conflicted, Du Man could only lower her head, tears streaming down her face.
Xu Fei tenderly stepped forward, wiping her tears from her cheeks before pulling her into his arms.
"Trust me. Everything I do is for this family."
Du Man nestled in Xu Fei’s embrace, murmuring softly in agreement.
"Can you not go?"
But Xu Fei gently pushed her away.
"I have to go tonight. Because I know I can win."
Du Man was utterly disappointed.
Yet, as before, she chose silence. She didn’t believe this man could win.
Since the day Xu Fei began gambling, she had never seen him bring home any winnings.
Still, she handed him the six yuan he earned today and watched him walk out the door.
Xu Qing’s curses echoed in Du Man’s ears.
She, too, collapsed onto the bed.
Xu Fei knew he had hurt his family with this decision, but he had to go through with it. Whether or not he could win, he needed to establish a connection with Zhang Mingyang.
He already had some ideas in his mind—not yet fully formed, but he believed they were workable.
Clutching the six yuan tightly, Xu Fei walked into the night wind, his heart a tangle of emotions.
Tonight might be the turning point for himself and his family.
At the end of a dim alley, Xu Fei knocked on the iron gate.
"Who’s there?"
"It’s me."

Footsteps sounded from inside, and Sun Qigong opened the courtyard gate with a grin.
"Brother, you’re finally here. If you’d waited any longer, we’d have started without you."
Xu Fei smiled and entered the yard.
Inside, three men sat around a round table.
Zhang Mingyang sat facing the door. He glanced up at Xu Fei, nodded, and said, "Fei, are you trying to avoid playing with us?"
Xu Fei took the seat with his back to the door, picked up a bowl from the table. "I haven’t eaten yet."
He scooped rice as he spoke, raising his eyebrows at Zhang Mingyang. "Brother Zhang, what are you saying? I’m just bothered by Ma San’s affair."
"Ma San? Isn’t it just five hundred yuan? Is it really such a big deal?" The speaker was Chen Da, who worked at the Bureau of Industry and Commerce, older than Xu Fei.
"Brother Chen, I’m not like you. I messed up before I even started working, so..."
"I heard you got a job at the sugar factory?" The question came from Wang Yiming, who worked at the Transportation Bureau. His father was said to be an official in Donghai City, giving him some background.
"Yes, just trying to earn a living. After all, I have three mouths to feed at home."
Zhang Mingyang pushed a dish toward Xu Fei.
"Thank you, Brother Zhang." Xu Fei smiled and took it.
"Eat up, Fei. If you have something to say, just tell us. We’re not here to watch the drama."
"Exactly."
Xu Fei waved his hand at Zhang Mingyang, swallowed a mouthful of rice, and put down his bowl. "Brother Zhang, I know we’re all good friends. If something’s wrong, how could I not help? Sun invited me this morning, and I came straight here without even eating dinner."
"Did your wife get upset with you again?"
Xu Fei glanced at Sun Qigong. "How did you know?"
"If you didn’t eat, it’s probably because you argued."
Xu Fei laughed, pointing at Sun Qigong. "Nothing gets past you, Brother Sun. Right, the woman’s asking for trouble. She found out I was meeting you guys and started acting up."
"Well, women—if you don’t keep them in line every few days, they’ll tear the roof off. Are you done eating yet?" Zhang Mingyang looked impatiently at Xu Fei.
Clearly, they were eager to start.
Xu Fei quickly gathered up his bowl and chopsticks.
"Brother Zhang, with you so anxious, I shouldn’t have bothered to eat."
Sun Qigong also picked up dishes.
Xu Fei wiped the table with a cloth, then tossed it aside.
Sun Qigong placed a cloth mat on the table.