That night, Mi Cai slept in my bed, and I slept on the sofa in the living room, bidding farewell to the darkness in silence and welcoming the morning sun.

 

In the early morning, I woke up before Mi Cai, but due to the cold, I was reluctant to get up immediately and lingered on the sofa.

 

After a while, Mi Cai, fully dressed, came out of her room. It seemed that she had woken up in the middle of the night and then returned to her own room.

 

She came over to me and asked, "Aren't you getting up? It's almost eight o'clock."

 

"Why should I get up so early when I don't have to work?"

 

"Oh, then you can sleep a little longer… By the way, what do you want for breakfast? I'll go buy it later."

 

I didn't care about breakfast, instead, I asked her, "Are you free this afternoon? We agreed to race with Xiao Pudgy, and if we win, we get to eat KFC!"

 

"I should be free, today's schedule isn't too packed."

 

I looked at the date on the calendar and asked in confusion, "Isn't today the weekend? Are you going to the office?"

 

"Yes, I've been very busy lately. I have to go to Shanghai tomorrow. Zhuomei's store in Shanghai has already started preparing for operation."

 

"Oh." I responded, knowing that Mi Cai had already compromised with Mi Zhongde on Zhuomei's "first-tier city" strategy, otherwise, the Shanghai store wouldn't be preparing for operation so soon.

 

***

 

I got up while Mi Cai went to buy breakfast. When she came back, we had breakfast together, and then she went to the office.

 

I spent the whole morning tuning up the modified car to ensure that I could beat Xiao Pudgy in the afternoon and regain my lost face in front of Mi Cai.

 

Finally, the afternoon arrived, but Mi Cai didn't call me to confirm if she was free. I was worried that she had important work, so I didn't dare to disturb her and just waited anxiously.

 

It was already four in the afternoon, and it usually started to get dark after five in the winter, so I became more and more anxious, smoking several cigarettes on the sofa.

 

The phone finally rang, and I picked it up reflexively. As expected, it was Mi Cai. I was overjoyed.

 

I answered the phone and asked immediately, "Have you finished your work for today?"

 

"Um… But I can't go racing with you at the square. A friend from my study abroad days in the US has returned to China and is now at the Shanghai airport. I need to pick him up."

 

My heart sank, and after a long pause, I responded with disappointment, "Oh, then I'll go by myself."

 

"Okay, I'm hanging up now."

 

Mi Cai hung up the phone in a hurry, which made me feel even more down. The fact that she was rushing to pick up a friend from the airport in Shanghai showed that this friend must hold a special place in her heart. Moreover, this friend must have surprised her by not notifying her in advance. This made me curious about the friend's gender. If it was a woman, I could stay calm, but if it was a man…

 

I didn't want to think about it anymore, so I lit another cigarette for myself, packed up the remote control car, and left the house.

 

***

 

When I arrived at the square, Xiao Pudgy, Wei Xiao, had already arrived. He shouted from a distance, "Zhao Yang, hurry up, I've been waiting for you for a long time…"

 

I walked up to Wei Xiao, smiled, and said, "Xiao Pudgy, you're asking for trouble!"

 

"You lost to me yesterday, and you'll lose again today!"

 

"Have you ever heard of the story of the man who marked the boat to find his sword? If you stubbornly use yesterday as a reference, you'll suffer a terrible defeat today… I'm not in a good mood today, so I'll give you a chance. It's not too late to give up now."

 

Wei Xiao shouted back at me, "The car my dad bought for me is the best! I won't give up."

 

"If you don't act recklessly, you won't die. Come on." I said, taking the car out of the bag.

 

Wei Xiao looked around and then asked me, "Where's the referee sister from yesterday? Isn't she coming?"

 

"Do we need a referee to race? Just put down your car and let me beat you."

 

"Alright."

 

Wei Xiao and I set up our cars. After I counted down 3, 2, 1, we both started our cars. The effect of my modification was immediately apparent. The 100,000 rpm motor demonstrated powerful performance, leaving Wei Xiao's car far behind and reaching the finish line in an instant.

 

Wei Xiao opened his mouth wide, looking at his car and then at me. Finally, he said with a sob, "How could the car my dad gave me lose?… My car is the fastest."

 

"You little fool, do you know about car modification? Can your 50,000 rpm motor compete with my 100,000 rpm one?"

 

After hearing my explanation, Wei Xiao still sobbed and muttered, "It can't lose. Dad said this is the fastest car."

 

"Silly boy, there's no such thing as the fastest car in the world, only faster cars. Your dad lied to you!"

 

Wei Xiao immediately burst into tears, kicked me, and said, "You're a liar, my dad wouldn't lie to me, he's my idol!"

 

"Hey! Are you deliberately trying to cheat me, trying to deny your loss?" I frowned.

 

Just as I finished speaking, Wei Xiao ran to the fountain railing, picked up his car, and started running towards the exit of the square.

 

"Damn, you little slippery…"

 

I cursed and immediately chased after Wei Xiao. He was a little chubby boy, and there was no way he could outrun me. I caught him in a few steps.

 

While struggling, Wei Xiao cried, "You cheated, your car can't beat mine.""Bullshit, have you ever seen a racer who doesn't modify their car?… Damn, why am I even explaining this to a kid like you? Hurry up and take your uncle to KFC, don't start being dishonest at such a young age, it's bad character!"

 

Under my pressure, Wei Xiao finally stopped struggling. Still with a whining tone, he said to me, "I don't have money to treat you to KFC."

 

"Are you kidding me? You had the nerve to challenge me to a race yesterday without any money?"

 

Wei Xiao was frightened by me. After a long pause, he stuttered, "I thought I would win…"

 

"I thought I was Warren Buffet… Give me a reasonable explanation, or I'll take your car as collateral."

 

Upon hearing that I wanted to use his car as collateral, Wei Xiao panicked and started to struggle again. He pleaded with me in tears, "Please don't take my car, it's a birthday gift from my dad. He's dead now, he won't be able to give me any more gifts…"

 

I was taken aback, then I let go of Wei Xiao. I looked at him for a long time. He was still wearing the same worn-out clothes from yesterday. His pants couldn't even cover his shoes, obviously, he had been wearing them for a long time and they no longer fit his height.

 

I wasn't sure if I had heard his words clearly, so I asked doubtfully, "Did you just say your dad is dead?"

 

Wei Xiao nodded and said, "He died of illness."

 

A sense of guilt filled my heart. I realized that I had unknowingly disrespected a child's reverence for his deceased father.

 

After a while, I asked Wei Xiao, "What about your mom?"

 

Wei Xiao was silent for a long time, then said resentfully, "She ran off with a bad man."

 

My heart suddenly felt as heavy as lead. I couldn't speak for a long time. This was another poor child being toyed with by fate. I finally remembered the scene from yesterday when he was taking a packed McDonald's meal home for his grandfather. Perhaps he just wanted to share the joy of eating KFC with his grandfather one more time.

 

Finally, I patted Wei Xiao on the head and said softly, "Let's go, I'll take you to KFC."

 

"I don't have money, please let me go, big brother." Wei Xiao said, instinctively taking a step back.

 

"Who wants your money, I'll treat you." I smiled and said.

 

Wei Xiao was still wary of me, apparently scared by me. To ease his wariness, I took out a hundred yuan from my wallet and handed it to him, saying, "You keep this money, and you can pay the bill with it later, okay?"

 

Wei Xiao thought for a moment before taking the money from my hand. He finally smiled and said to me, "Okay, I'll give you the change later!"

 

I nodded and walked with Wei Xiao towards the KFC across the street. Suddenly, my phone rang. I took it out of my pocket and saw a text message from Mi Cai. The message read: "Meet at CC's restaurant at eight tonight. I'll introduce my friends to you."

 

My mood instantly became complicated. I was more concerned about whether her friends were men or women!