Super Zoo-Chapter 726 - 713 Valet Parking
When Lin Mu wasn't sick, he was actually quite an outstanding guy. Not only could he act, but he also knew how to socialize. A Toyota van with a Xiangjiang local license plate was parked at the airport entrance. Film crews often use these vans; they're spacious, can carry people and props, and can even be used for quick makeup or... car escapades...
Once they were in the van, Lin Mu took the driver's seat, Suming sat shotgun, and Hou Longtao and his wife took the back seat. Click, click, click, the four of them buckled up. Lin Mu started the engine and drove slowly along the airport ring road, departing from the airport.
The source of this c𝓸ntent is freewebnøvel.coɱ.
The four people, three old classmates who hadn't seen each other for a while, were all in good spirits. They chatted about their experiences in Xiangjiang, and Song Lulu, visiting for the first time, was extremely interested and curious about this bustling metropolis often depicted in movies and TV. She joined in the conversation a few times, and the atmosphere in the car was pretty good.
Suming glanced back through the rearview mirror after getting in the car. Hou Longtao had taken off his sunglasses, but his posture was a bit strange, constantly looking out of the window, facing the front of the car with half his face.
During a turn, Suming caught a glimpse and noticed there was some bruising around Hou's left eye, as if he'd been punched.
What happened, did he get beat up in Xiangjiang? Suming's eyes narrowed slightly, ready to ask, but before he could speak, Lin Mu interrupted and deflected the conversation.
Twice in a row, Lin Mu intentionally or unintentionally changed the subject. Suming might be slow, but he wasn't stupid; he got the message after glancing at Lin Mu and seeing his smirk; he understood about seventy to eighty percent of it.
It was very likely that Hou Longtao's black eye had something to do with Song Lulu... They'd just gotten married, and were they already playing at domestic violence?
No matter how close their relationship, Hou Longtao's private life wasn't really Suming's place to comment. Whether beaten by one's wife or beating one's wife, neither was within his jurisdiction. He adhered to the principle of 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil'...
During the last gathering, Song Lulu had always shown a strong sense of defensiveness, acting cold and aloof, and later left early because of a disagreement about drinking, creating an awkward situation. This time, the small gathering turned out quite nicely as the topic shifted back to Xiangjiang's local customs, and they all enjoyed a cheerful chat along the way.
Lin Mu, acting in Xiangjiang, was somewhat of a celebrity. Song Lulu couldn't stop expressing her gratitude to Lin Mu for taking her to the film set to watch them shoot, and she reminisced about the jewelry store he introduced her to a few days prior, where she got a discount... Throughout the conversation, her tone was filled with admiration for Lin Mu.
"No need to thank me. If you're going to thank anyone, thank Monkey," Lin Mu, who liked to flirt with women, but certainly not just any woman, particularly not his roommates' girls, chuckled from the front seat, "Monkey had told me ahead of time that you like watching filming and shopping, asked me to take you around. Since I was free, why not? But the money for shopping came from Monkey's pocket."
Hou Longtao, back in the dorm days, wasn't much of a talker, but he definitely wasn't the straightforward type. Full of sly mischief, yet in front of Song Lulu, he acted as meek as a kitten and chuckled.
Song Lulu shot Hou Longtao a disdainful glance, part complaint, part coquettish, and snorted, "The little money he makes from his private cinema isn't even enough to cover my rent, what's it good for buying? Saying it's his money is just funny, it's really my money."
Suming and Lin Mu were speechless. Monkey, after all, was once known as the top dog on campus, boasting encyclopedic knowledge of films, the kind who could instantly reel off the code numbers of any film given an actor's name and costume. How did he end up with Song Lulu? Was this the case of every dog having its day, or had he simply lost his sight?
The streets of Xiangjiang were relatively narrow, and compared to the mainland's four or even five-lane roads, which were practically nonexistent, even dual lane roads were rare. Most thoroughfares were single lane, and with so many vehicles, cars followed one after another. Thankfully, since everyone adhered to traffic rules, there was little jockeying for position, making the flow relatively smooth.
They soon reached Causeway Bay, and from afar, they could see the 'Bone Pot' hotpot restaurant Lin Mu spoke of.
'Bone Pot' hotpot in Xiangjiang was quite famous. In the movie 'Triad..' directed by Du Qifeng, Leung Ka-Fai played the character Big D, who, commanding and impatient, talks on his phone atop a hill—calling each elder of the gang and saying, 'No time to talk now, see you at Bone Pot tonight,' referring to this very hotpot place.
At first listen, the phrase "having backbone" seems to have nothing to do with hotpot; however, upon closer reflection, one can appreciate the connection.
Xiangjiang folks place the utmost importance on the soup base, and the "Having Backbone" hotpot restaurant is also best known for its soup base. The long-simmered pork bone soup base is fresh, smooth, tender, and white, with the essence of fresh pork bones, sweet corn, and prime radishes boiled for eight hours.
The signature soup base is made from simmering large bones, hence the name "Having Backbone".
However, perhaps due to that movie, and the fact that "Having Backbone" hotpot is truly good value for money, quite a few so-called figures from the underworld frequent this hotpot restaurant.
Song Lulu sat in the car, pointing at a few scruffy-looking young men standing at the entrance of the hotpot restaurant, and said, "Aren't those guys like the ones from the movies, the young and dangerous?"
"Young and Dangerous, sort of; these guys are bona fide gang members," Lin Mu chuckled.
"What?!" Song Lulu was startled and hesitated, "They're blocking the entrance. Are they here to cause trouble for this restaurant? Maybe we shouldn't eat here."
"Don't listen to his nonsense; it's fine, they won't bother us," Suming said with a smile.
Parking in Xiangjiang is very competitive due to the scarcity of space. It often takes a long time to find a spot, forcing one to walk quite a distance. This has given rise to a valet parking service where customers can drive to the entrance of a restaurant and simply hand over the keys to a valet, who will park the car for them. When customers are done, the valet brings the car back.
These "hoodlums" are the ones who do the valet parking.
What Lin Mu said wasn't entirely untrue; Xiangjiang has a gang culture, and prior to the handover, the valet parking industry was completely monopolized by "gangs" with connections. Even after, these relations persisted. To be able to manage the parking service for a bustling establishment like "Having Backbone", one must have some serious clout, so those parking attendants might very well be members of a major gang.
The roadside was fully lined with parked cars. As Lin Mu drove by the entrance of "Having Backbone" in his Toyota van without stopping, he spotted an empty spot about twenty meters ahead. He stepped on the gas slightly, sped up the Toyota, and then came to a stop beside the car in front of the empty space, beginning to reverse into it.
Just as he turned the wheel, with the car still backing up, a roaring sound of an engine came from behind. A red Maserati sports car forced its way in from behind, squeezing into the empty spot nearly brushing the rear of the Toyota.
Everyone in the car was startled as Lin Mu quickly slammed on the brakes, coming to a stop just inches away from the Maserati. His face darkened with anger, he rolled down the window, stuck his head out and yelled at the Maserati behind him, "What are you stealing the spot for, got a death wish or something?"
Suming also frowned slightly. The Toyota was already lined up with the spot and about to back in when the Maserati rudely cut in from behind, blatantly taking advantage by using a better car and superior skill to bully others.
After Lin Mu shouted, the door of the Maserati slowly rose, one of the "Having Backbone" parking attendants walked out, looked disdainfully at the Toyota emblem on the back of the commercial van, and then arrogantly flipped Lin Mu the bird, saying in not-so-standard Mandarin, "What's up, mainland loser? Get lost back to the mainland, or I'll torch your car if you say one more word!"
Meanwhile, the other group of parking attendants waiting at the entrance of "Having Backbone" hotpot also turned their attention this way, noticing the situation unfolding here.
