Chapter 9 Chapter 1 Sad Coffee Shop (2)

"I'm sorry, I left work early, but the traffic jam was terrible today. It was a catastrophe after the typhoon. I couldn't move an inch. I'm really sorry. Is Hai'an here yet? Um, Jill?" "No." The woman named Jill moved some seats and let the new companion sit beside her. "Oh, what a pity. Could it be that the itinerary has been changed?" "The only thing to do is wait." Jill threw down the cigarette butt that was burning to the end.She never smoked a cigarette. "I really don't know where Hai'an is now. Hey, Xiaoye!"

Xiaoye wore a pair of heat-resistant gloves, and brought out a huge casserole with oil foam sizzling on the edge of the pot.Marty smelled something like three cups of chicken mixed with soy sauce and basil.There is also a slender bottle under Xiaoye's armpit, which seems to be a drink such as wine. "Hey, Suyuan, you're late. Are you hungry? You eat first. Cane, can you eat some too?" Xiaoye arranged the food neatly. Now Marty knows that the girl who was sleeping on her stomach is called Jill, the square-faced man is called Teng Tiao, the new girl is called Suyuan, and the person they are waiting for is Haian.But what kind of combination this group of people is is curious.Said to be classmates or friends, it seems that the age gap is too far.Relatives are also unlikely.Jier has a slender and handsome face, while Rattan is round and thick. Suyuan has a typical oriental woman's face, with a pair of round eyes on a slightly too short face.Xiaoye looks like a handsome boy who came out of Renoir's oil painting.He approached Su Yuan coquettishly, and Su Yuan simply took his arm like a sister, teasingly brushing Xiao Ye's short hair on her forehead.

"Why? The store is so deserted today?" "Naturally, why do guests come?" Jill was chewing the chicken, frowning and swallowing a glass of wine, "I told Xiaoye earlier, if the store wants to have business, it must first have good coffee. The second is to have good music, and the third is to have good scenery, which is Hai’an. Since Hai’an is not there, why do people come?” "Hey, look clearly, our Xiaoye also has a box office." The man named Teng Tiao said with a smile, while shaking his thumb at the three girls near the door. "Wow." Jill swallowed a mouthful of boiling water, "This chicken is so spicy."

Attracted by the laughter at the table, the three girls looked at this side together, their eyes were too young to show any charm, only straightforward enthusiasm, all poured into Xiaoye. The smell of the food on their table was so enticing that Marty couldn't help thinking that, except for a little cold appetizer at noon, it can be said that he hadn't eaten a grain of rice all day.She waved Xiao Ye. "Xiaoye, please give me the menu to order." "Ah, we don't sell meals." Marty immediately deflated, embarrassment added to hunger.Xiaoye stared at her and thought about it seriously.

"How about this, are you hungry? Let me serve some of our food for you to eat, okay? I made it myself." "No, I'm not very hungry, just asking. It's really not necessary." Xiaoye shrugged and returned to her seat.Marty fell into the abyss of hunger and the desperate situation of emotional loneliness.In fact, she knew very well that there was a table of dinner waiting for her at the other end of Taipei.It was the dark place that oppressed her, the place people generally call home. Her husband followed the company to the country called Bolivia in South America two years ago, and built a great dam in the mountains. Since then, the house has become a castle abandoned by the owner.But he left behind a pair of loyal gatekeepers, that is, Marty's parents-in-law.They guarded the castle faithfully day and night, and were very concerned about the queen's chastity.

Back then, when Marty insisted not to live with his in-laws, the husband painstakingly built their residence on the top floor of their in-laws' house, and thus began a life of mutual acquaintance.The parents-in-law have a pair of their keys, and they can open their door at any time to enter. Sometimes they come to watch TV, sometimes they come to clean their toilet, and sometimes they come to spread out their leather clothes hidden in the top of the cabinet and expose them to the sun on the balcony. Sometimes I do nothing, just curl up on the sofa quietly like two owls. After the husband went abroad, the parents-in-law quickly adapted to the new situation.The mother-in-law said that it is difficult to cook a meal for one person anyway, so it is better for the three of them to start a business together.So, every night, the parents-in-law came to Marty's dining room with cooked dishes.The mother-in-law's northern dishes are quite wonderful, but all the dishes are either sour or spicy. The father-in-law also serves a plate of crushed raw garlic with each meal, which is said to be antibacterial and healthy.The garlic father-in-law took the bus to Dihua Street to buy garlic at the beginning of each month. The garlic was huge and fat, and the aggressive spicy flavor often made Marty lose his appetite.Marty resigned and stayed at home, the in-laws didn't say anything, they just automatically extended the daily dinner to lunch and breakfast.Force Marty to normalize her life with the patience and stubbornness of an old man.

When Marty stayed at home for a long time, they felt very distressed, thinking that this daughter-in-law was different from ordinary people; when Marty went out for a long time, they were also very troubled, vaguely feeling that they had not helped their son to control his daughter-in-law well.It was too late when Marty came home, so they waited stubbornly and hungry, and said with a sleepy expression: "Why don't you call if you don't go home for dinner?" When they came back to eat, they would say in a nonchalant tone: "It's not that there is no food at home. Are you coming back?" After eating, Marty cleaned the dishes as usual, and the parents-in-law wandered around the house comfortably. Dee's personal belongings are turned into a detective-like observation.At ten o'clock sharp, the parents-in-law helped each other go downstairs and went home, and locked the door for Marty from the outside by the way.More and more, Marty felt that this was no longer her home, but a large door in the in-laws' house that had to be entered and exited with a key.Strictly speaking, the house does belong to the in-laws.The husband occasionally returns to China and lives in the guest room of his parents-in-law's house. In fact, Marty has become a tenant named daughter-in-law who eats and lives for nothing.

The dining atmosphere at the next table was warm, and Jill was snatching a beautiful mushroom from the rattan bowl with a provocative expression.Cane didn't care, he picked up other dishes and ate them.The feeling conveyed here is not about the ambiguity between a man and a woman, but a friendship that transcends gender boundaries.Marty felt envious, a friendship she had never experienced before.A new thought floated in her mind, and she waved to Xiaoye again. "Xiaoye, do you sell cigarettes here?" "Well, we don't sell them." After exchanging regretful glances with Marty, Xiaoye changed her lively expression.

"Green and white Y, do you smoke?" "Well, that's fine." Marty didn't know what a green and white Y was. Xiaoye quickly took out a pack of white and green cigarettes from his pocket and handed it to Marty. With the other hand, he took out a cheap lighter from a supermarket. "Here, here you are." "How much? I'll buy it from you." "No, no, it's for you." Xiaoye waved her hands again and again. "How can that be? I'll buy it from you." "How about it, why don't you give me back a pack of green and white Y next time?" Xiaoye raised one corner of her mouth to show a nice smile, turned and left.

Marty lit a cigarette. The smell of the smoke was not as pungent as expected, but it smelled of cool mint. The three girls near the door saw Marty's special treatment, and coquettishly asked Xiaoye to light their cigarettes.While playing, the door suddenly opened.Seeing someone coming, everyone was quiet.