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墨書 Inktalez
Song Jiu quietly slipped away from the crowd and returned to the Cafeteria without a word.
Inside the cafeteria, only a few scattered diners were present. Judging by their attire, they seemed to be from other service roles—seven or eight men and women chatting and laughing together. Chef Jia was stationed in the kitchen, intently focused on a book without a cover. When Song Jiu pushed the door open, she merely lifted her eyelids slightly.
Standing in the center of the hall, Song Jiu paused for a moment, then remembered that A Hai and the others had already been sent back by him. Just as he was about to turn and leave, he was called over by a group of men and women sitting nearby.
"Hey, you're new here, right?" A girl with a face full of acne waved her hand and called out, "Come sit with us for a bit."
"No thanks, you all eat," Song Jiu replied with a slight smile, declining their invitation. He had already bottled up a lot of frustration from being poked and prodded by Scarface Bald earlier; he didn't want to risk these few troublemakers taking pleasure in his discomfort.
"We're just asking you to sit for a while, not to eat," the Pockmarked Girl clearly didn’t understand what it meant to be turned down. She tugged at her large hoop earrings, looking somewhat displeased. "Why are you being so rude?"
Song Jiu could only take a deep breath, trying hard to suppress his rising anger. He lamented inwardly: After three years, why hadn’t these fools been completely weeded out?
"Sister Jia, what's wrong with your server?" The Pockmarked Girl directed her complaint toward Chef Jia when Song Jiu ignored her. "We're just trying to make a friend; it's not like we're going to eat him." The few others at the table snickered quietly, seemingly enjoying the spectacle.
"I'm sorry, everyone, but I really have something to do. Maybe next time," Song Jiu said with growing impatience, eager to distance himself from this troublesome place. He also found it strange that Xiao Zhu and the others showed such respect toward Chef Jia; how could these little troublemakers be so bold? Were they somehow related?
As if answering Song Jiu's unspoken question, Chef Jia finally lifted her face from her book. She adjusted her hair that had been flattened by her chef's hat and pointed coldly at the table of men and women. "Finish eating and get lost; don’t bother me."
The group fell silent instantly, even those who had been laughing quickly closed their mouths. The Pockmarked Girl's face turned red as she shot an angry glare at Song Jiu before turning away in silence.
Song Jiu let out a sigh of relief and caught Chef Jia glancing at him from the corner of his eye. He hurriedly explained, "I’m not eating; I'm leaving now."
"Who said you could leave? Stay here; I have something to say to you." Chef Jia closed her book and walked into the kitchen. A short while later, she emerged holding an enamel mug and sat directly across from Song Jiu without even looking at the group.
"What’s going on?" Song Jiu felt quite flustered now, worried about what this ice queen cook might be planning next.
"That question should be directed at you," Chef Jia said, her tone neither warm nor cold, as she pushed the enamel jar toward him. "Weren't you supposed to be looking for your friends? Why do you look so pale?"
Song Jiu's gaze held a hint of surprise; the jar contained what Scarface Bald and his group had urged him to steal.
"What kind of wine is this?" Song Jiu asked, lifting the jar to his nose. It didn't smell like white liquor; it had a golden sheen and a hint of sweetness.
"Plum Wine, brewed by me. Give it a taste," Chef Jia replied with a slight smile, not addressing his clumsy attempt to change the subject.
Song Jiu didn't hesitate. He raised the enamel jar to his lips, tasting it lightly. The initial flavor was slightly sour, followed by a wave of sweetness, with almost no alcoholic taste.
"It's sour and sweet," Song Jiu said, smacking his lips in appreciation. "It's quite good."
"I made it with rice wine; the alcohol content is low. It can satisfy cravings without causing any trouble," Chef Jia said, pleased with his compliment as she replaced the lid. "But it's not for you; take this to them."
"Ah?" Song Jiu exclaimed in surprise, his hand frozen in mid-air.
"What? You don't want something given for free?" Chef Jia looked at him with a teasing smile. "Do you want to play the thief?"
"No, no, that's not it." Song Jiu's mind raced as he tried to recall where things had gone wrong. How did Chef Jia know?
"Stop guessing. There are many people doing errands for them, not just you," Chef Jia said, unexpectedly offering Song Jiu a smile. "Didn't I say to come to me if there were any problems? Did you think I was just saying that?"
"I..." Song Jiu was at a loss for words, unable to respond. His opinion of this woman shifted again, and he felt an inexplicable sense of unease.
"Alright, if you don't know what to say, just let it go; no need to force it," Chef Jia said as she stood up, her demeanor turning cold once more. "You thought I was being unreasonable by sending a child to feed pigs? From now on, those pigs are your responsibility. If one or two pieces of meat go missing, I'll chop off one of your fingers." With that unyielding command left hanging in the air and leaving Song Jiu in shock, she ignored him and walked back to the kitchen area as if nothing had happened, picking up that unbound book and resuming her reading.
Song Jiu sat at the table in a daze for a while, his gaze toward Chef Jia growing increasingly complex. He wanted to ask several questions, but the words stuck in his throat. There were too many uncertainties clouding his mind, and he found it hard to articulate them. After pondering for a moment, he decided it would be best to return to the shed and calm down, sorting through the strange events of the past couple of days.
A Hai and Buddy were idly passing the time, tinkering with weapons during their midday break. When Song Jiu returned, he found them both sweating profusely as they fumbled around.
"What are you doing?" Song Jiu glanced around and noticed that the floor, which had been tidied up last night, was now a complete mess, littered with wood scraps and rusty metal pieces.
"This!" A Hai grinned widely and proudly tossed something toward him.
Song Jiu caught the object and examined it. A smile broke through his previously troubled expression; these two had some decent skills. They had crafted a short dagger from wood and metal scraps. Although it looked rather crude, the blade was surprisingly sharp—definitely effective for slitting throats.
"Where did you get this metal?" Song Jiu asked as he touched the rusty iron sheet wrapped around the wooden handle, puzzled.
"From that basin we used to feed the pigs this morning," A Hai said proudly, lifting his shirt in a show-off manner. "It was enough."
Without hesitation, Song Jiu gave him a light smack on the head and scolded, "Are you stupid? If that basin is broken, how am I supposed to feed the pigs?"
A Hai rubbed his head and stammered, " Brother Jiu, are you really planning to feed pigs here from now on?"
"Seriously?" Song Jiu sighed deeply. He placed the enamel mug on the windowsill and called the two over. "First of all, I didn't ask you two to mess around like this; just behave yourselves. Second, even if you're going to make something, there's no need to go through all this trouble. With the effort you put into tearing up that metal sheet, why not just take apart the blade slot of the cleaver directly?"
"Oh right! How did I forget about that?" A Hai smacked his forehead, looking enlightened. "I thought something was missing."
"Missing your brain," Song Jiu shot them an annoyed glare and waved for silence before continuing, "Let's put this aside for now; I have something serious to discuss."
"What is it?"
“Xiao Zhu is dead.”
“Ah.”
“I saw it with my own eyes, just half an hour ago.” Song Jiu frowned, thinking for a moment before dropping another bombshell: “It must have been Luo Yu and her group.”
“What?” The duo of Exclamations raised their voices an octave higher.
“Don’t shout.” Song Jiu leaned out to check the window, confirming that no one was around before lowering his voice to recount what had happened.
“Could it have been someone else?” A Hai asked, puzzled. “Didn’t Luo and the others go to the other side?”
“That’s hard to say, but that knife—I took a close look at it; it was our Steel Saw Blade.” Song Jiu gestured to their team’s signature weapon, stating firmly, “You’ve all seen Ziqian’s lathe skills; I wouldn’t mistake it.”
A Hai and his companion exchanged glances, feeling a bit dizzy.
“Let’s not worry about Luo Yu for now. Xiao Zhu is dead; it won’t affect us.” Song Jiu sighed, trying to reassure his two followers. He continued, “The real issue now is that Ziqian is missing.”
“…”
“Last night, Xiao Zhu left with Ziqian. Given Ziqian’s personality, even if he wasn’t causing trouble, he wouldn’t just sit quietly. At the very least, he would find a chance to come to the cafeteria. But I didn’t see him at noon. When I went looking for him, the guards said Xiao Zhu took the team to clear out zombies in the nearby mountains. So, I suspect…”
“Qian'er Brother went out with that guy,” A Hai finally connected the dots.
“Very likely.” Song Jiu nodded. “If that’s the case, then Xiao Zhu’s death makes sense. Perhaps Ziqian was involved and coordinated with Luo Yu from the inside.”
A Hai and the others were not lacking in imagination; with a little calculation, they understood what Song Jiu was hinting at. Although it was merely speculation, it aligned with their logic.
"Qian'er Brother is impressive; just one day in and he has already taken down a key player," A Hai said, showing some excitement. Jiao Ziqian and Luo Yu had scored first, which made him feel a bit restless.
"Don't get too happy; this is just our wild guess, and the specifics are still unclear." Song Jiu couldn't share in the excitement. If the reality was indeed as he suspected, then Luo Yu wouldn't gain much from it either. After all, their plan did not include this aspect, and there was no way Jiao Ziqian could contact Luo Yu, who was heading to the riverbank, under such sudden circumstances. The most likely scenario was that Xiao Zhu's team had gone to the riverbank, which coincidentally clashed with Luo Yu's group. How the two sides ended up in conflict remained unknown, but it seemed that Xiao Zhu's side had suffered a complete defeat in the end.
If that were the case, another question arose: how did Xiao Zhu's group happen to go to the opposite bank?
Song Jiu took a sip from his enamel mug and said, "I'll check the situation tonight. You two should stop hanging around here; go talk to the people over by the square and see if they've seen our boss around here. Don't be too obvious—just wander around and look for anything unusual."
The two young men stared intently at the mug in his hand, seemingly oblivious to Song Jiu's instructions.
"Stop staring; it's not for you two," Song Jiu shot them a glare before pocketing the mug and leaving the shed.
As Song Jiu passed by the cafeteria, he ran into a few of the Pockmarked Girls. They were sitting by a group sculpture, chatting and laughing. When they spotted Song Jiu approaching, they immediately stood up to block his path. It was afternoon, and the sunlight wasn't as glaring as at noon; more people had gathered in the square. However, there weren't many groups like theirs with seven or eight members. The people strolling nearby noticed the commotion and stopped to point and whisper among themselves as if they were watching a show.
Song Jiu hadn't expected these girls to be so idle that they would specifically wait for him in the square. He felt a mix of amusement and confusion: were they planning to confront him?
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