Chapter 388: Empty Smile

"how?"

Mikael took back the bamboo knife and asked with a smile.

But he didn't get a response from Mei Yi. The latter stood there blankly for about two or three seconds, then quickly took two steps back, and finally stumbled and fell to the ground.

Mikael scratched his head and realized that he had lost control of his strength just now?

But Mei Yi was not that fragile. She gritted her teeth and took off the "noodles". The action seemed to involve the injury at the clavicle, causing the muscles on her left face to squeeze together in pain.

Knowing that he was in the wrong, Mikael threw away the bamboo knife and walked quickly to Mei Yi. He first leaned down and pushed aside the bangs on Mei Yi's forehead. There was only a slight redness and swelling, but the condition was still good. But the junction of the left side of Mei's neck and collarbone has completely changed color. The outer ring of the hit area was smoked yellow, and the inner part was covered with purple-red bloodstains.

"This is troublesome..."

Looking at Mikael's troubled face, Mei thought he was worried about his work. She covered half of her face in shame and gasped:

"Don't worry, I'm fine... I underestimated you, and I'm asking for trouble. I won't complain to my father for this. Moreover, I have to admit that your swordsmanship is excellent, at least for the position of bodyguard. Competent.”

Mikael shook his head slightly after hearing this. He reached into his pocket and took out a small green bottle and stuffed it into Mei Yi's hand.

"I'm not worried about this, but I injured my boss's daughter on my first day at work. If word spreads, I won't be able to find another job in the future. Well, it doesn't matter. Applying this stuff to the bruised area will be good for recovery. , you can apply it yourself, it’s not convenient for me to help you in that position.”

"Hmph! Who wants your help?"

Meiyi grabbed the vial, held it with two fingers, and looked at the chandelier on the ceiling. The light passes through the liquid, showing a faint green color, and three Chinese characters are written on the bottle:

"Fengyoujing? Are you sure this will work?"

Mikael had already stood up and was packing the bamboo knife and preparing to put it back on the wooden stand. When he heard Mei Yi's question, he scratched his head again:

"I don't know much about it, but I used to have two friends from China, one of whom was a medical student. They would always apply some of this stuff whether they had a headache, a cold or a bruise, so I always regarded it as Here comes the panacea.”

Mei puffed up her cheeks and looked at the green light flashing in the bottle, feeling that Mikael was deceiving her.

She opened the lid and before she could put the mouth of the bottle to her nose, she felt an indescribable smell wafting into the tip of her nose. Her brows immediately wrinkled, but the next moment they relaxed easily - along with that Along with the strange smell, there was an indescribable feeling of coolness that entered her body, which almost instantly cleared away the lingering depression in her heart.

"What a magical thing..."

Mei couldn't help but put her nose to the mouth of the bottle and sniffed it. The refreshing feeling that reached the top of the sky could only be compared to eating a whole stick of mustard in one bite.

Seeing Mei Yi inexplicably immersed in the happiness brought by Fengyoujing, Mikael didn't know how to evaluate it for a moment.

"Is he still a child after all..."

He walked to the yard and looked at the sky. Only the westernmost sky was still a little bright red. The moon had eagerly jumped out before the sun had completely set, and was now firmly hanging in the sky.

Mikael stared at the crescent moon, which was as slender as a long mark made by fingernails, and his eyes narrowed in the same arc unconsciously.

He looked at the crescent moon for a long time, and the cold air around him became a bit heavier. He couldn't help but stamp his feet and beat twice. With the amount of activity just now, it really didn't even count as a warm-up.

Guessing that it had been a while, Mei Yi had been practicing kendo since he was a child, so he didn't know anything about dealing with bruises, so he was about to turn back and go back indoors. But as soon as he turned his head, he saw a black shadow gradually occupying his entire sight.

The blue wind flowed through his fingers, but he did not catch it, but stood there blankly, letting the bamboo knife in Mei Yi's hand hit his head lightly.

"Tsk! Does this relieve your anger?"

"snort!"

Seeing that the other party didn't even resist at all, Mei Yi felt a little bored, turned around and put the wooden knife back on the wooden stand. The protective gear had been removed before.

"Let's go, I'm a little hungry, take me home quickly!"

In fact, there is no need to remind her, her stomach has been protesting for a long time. But she was embarrassed to say that she only had one piece of crepe for lunch, and Kiana ate up the rest.

Mikael tilted his head:

"Would you like to buy something to eat around here first to fill your stomach?"

Meiyi's eyes widened a little, and she felt a little moved. My stomach is still growling, and it feels really uncomfortable if I don't eat something to calm it down quickly. Of course, this is only one of the reasons. After all, given her status, she is not the kind of person who has the opportunity to visit street food spots every day.

There is a special chef hired by my father with a high salary at home. The dishes prepared are reasonably matched and the taste is impeccable. There is really no need to go out to eat randomly. After all, whether the things outside are clean or hygienic are secondary. The most important thing is that they may not be as delicious as those made by chefs.

But taste is not important.

The important thing is the kind of experience that she has fantasized about countless times in her dreams, and that most of her classmates have also experienced——

She was walking hand in hand with her parents on the dim streets, looking at the dim lights and sparse pedestrians in the distance. When she turned a corner, she suddenly smelled a strange fragrance. Then she took her parents' hands and ran into the alley to taste it. Taste the smell that hooked her soul from afar... Of course, it wouldn't be so smooth and fragrant. There must be a lot of people queuing up, right? But she was not in a hurry, and neither were her parents. The family of three was chatting and laughing in line, and the chef who cooked the food didn't yell, but just worked hard on the polished kitchen utensils.

Unfortunately, such a thing has not happened in the past sixteen years...it is not appropriate to be so arbitrary. Maybe? The reason why I have such a dream may be just my delusion, but it is definitely possible. Maybe it is the past that I have not remembered. After all, when she was very young, her father was not so busy...

Well, no way, since her mother died when she was just two years old.

But it doesn't matter, my father is still alive, right?

"Well, let's explore the road first today, and wait until next time Dad has a chance..."

Thinking of this, Mei Yi smiled slightly, nodded vigorously, and accepted Mikael's proposal.

But she herself didn't realize that the reason why she really wanted to do this was actually just her inner yearning for freedom and ordinaryness.

As for why she hastily accepted the proposal of this new driver whom she was not familiar with, perhaps it was because the other person looked about the same age as her and could be considered her same age, which to some extent echoed her feelings for her friends of the same age. eager. Or was it because of the mystery brought about by his skillful swordsmanship that was completely inconsistent with his age that she couldn't help but want to dig out more information about him?

Or maybe, it was just because of the almost suffocating loneliness that he unintentionally exuded when he was looking at the moon alone. "My wife is dead, my daughter is also dead, and now I only have to support myself." - She remembered what he said, although judging from his age and his tone of voice that was not very sad, Mei Yi only felt that He was talking nonsense, but... just looking at his back, she felt that it seemed to have really happened.

In fact, it doesn't matter. If this guy can pass his father's screening, his attitude must be fine. He has just proved his strength, so he just goes shopping with a bodyguard.

In short, no matter what, since you have decided to enjoy this "ordinary" taste, it is destined not to just "fill your stomach". Regarding this, the two of them tacitly walked out of the gym slowly. Mikael even risked his eyesight by sending a text message to Raiden Ryoma in the dark, but Mei did not stop him.

Since I plan to prepare dinner on the spot, of course I have to say hello to my family and inform the kitchen to get off work early.

"By the way, are you familiar with this street?"

Mikael briefly checked the car parked at the entrance of the gym, and after making sure that it had not been tampered with, he turned around and asked.

Meiyi shook her head. She used to come here to practice kendo in the sword hall. After practicing, she would get in the car and go home quickly. How could she stay longer?

But then she froze again, and then stared at Mikael with an evil look.

The latter touched his nose in embarrassment, but shamelessly pre-empted it and said:

"I said, my eldest lady, you are not even familiar with this street. Where should we go and eat? Are we standing here drinking from the northwest wind?"

"Stop coming! Whoever comes up with the idea will lead the way!"

Mei Yi put on her peaked cap again, leaned against the car, folded her hands in front of her chest, and turned her head away in disgust.

Mikael laughed twice, and he suddenly tugged on Meiyi's sleeves. Meiyi didn't think much, and followed his force and took two steps forward. Then he saw that Mikael had waved his hand to stop a man holding a child. old woman.

Meiyi's eyes were immediately attracted to the child and the steaming dorayaki in the child's hand.

And one step in front of her, Mikael greeted him familiarly, even too enthusiastically, which startled the old woman:

"Hello, old lady!"

"Ah...ah...hello...uh, are you okay?"

Mikael scratched his cheek with his index finger, and then pointed to the half-eaten Dorayaki that the child was protecting in his arms:

"This...where did you buy this? I'm not familiar with this place. Is there any snack street or something like that here?"

Hearing what he said, the old woman breathed a sigh of relief. The tall young man in front of her was wearing formal leather shoes and a tie. Her first reaction was that she thought she had met a salesperson or was being harassed by a bad association. .

It turns out I was just asking this...

Before she could speak, the child beside her blurted out:

"Dorayaki is on the street behind!"

"Yes, yes. You two go in the direction we came from and turn right at the second intersection. There are a lot of snacks there."

"Thank you!"

Mikael narrowed his eyes with a smile, clasped his hands in front of his chest, and bowed slightly.

The grandfather and grandson also responded with a smile.

It wasn't until they walked away that Mikael slowly turned around:

"Look, it's that simple. Let's go, my eldest lady...wait, you..."

At some point, Mei put the mask she used to cover her face back on when she got off the car.

"There's no need to be so cautious."

"It's not a matter of caution!"

Mei glanced around and slowly took off her mask.

"I just feel a little embarrassed... It stands to reason that you are also a master. Why don't you have the so-called master temperament?"

Not to mention the old woman just now, even Mei was startled by Mikael's jump. She could compare with Kiana, whom she just met today.

"Huh? Don't you like it?"

Mikael raised his eyebrows and suddenly became expressionless and calm.

Just looking at each other and catching the still light in the other's eyes through the dim light, Mei felt an invisible strange feeling permeating the darkness around her.

What exactly is that? Is it the same loneliness as before? Is it the pressure unique to masters? Or the legendary murderous aura?

Meiyi couldn't understand it, but this feeling made her very uncomfortable.

Simply, Mikael laughed again the next second:

"Okay, don't delay! Your stomach is growling again. Let's get going!"

The streetlight overhead happened to light up silently at this moment, and Meiyi could see Mikael's smile clearly.

She finally understood that the reason why the old woman was frightened just now was probably not only because of her dress and sudden enthusiasm, but also because...

It's also because this smile, although extremely bright and beautiful, is full of emptiness and hypocrisy upon closer inspection. Maybe you can't say that, but through that smile, you can't feel the slightest emotion that can be called happiness. It may not be empty or hypocritical, but it must be false.

"you……"

"Okay, let's go."

Mikael's hypocritical smile disappeared in an instant, leaving only a faint smile and a tone that was almost commanding.

"Um……"

Meiyi nodded stiffly.

The two of them followed the path pointed out by the old woman and found the street with "a lot of snacks" without any difficulty.

Everything was just as Meiyi dreamed. In fact, they only took about twenty steps forward when they smelled the mixed fragrance of countless kinds of food. As soon as she smelled this smell, Mei's stomach protested even more fiercely. She unconsciously speeded up her pace, but Mikael slowed down without a trace, falling half a body behind her.

But when Mei walked into that street, the reality was still somewhat different from her fantasy.

There are not many pedestrians on this street with "lots of snacks", just a few long shadows under the street lights.

The so-called shiny kitchen utensils are just a fantasy, it's just Mei's fantasy based on her own kitchen. The pots, molds, shovels, and kitchen knives were all covered in black oil stains, which made her regret for a moment.

There were few customers, so the stall owners naturally did not have to work hard. They were in groups of two or three, warming themselves around the stove. When they saw someone coming over again, they hurried back to their stalls and shouted loudly:

"Hey! Handsome guy! Beautiful girl! Let's see if there's anything you want to eat! We have all kinds of snacks here!"

As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I was immediately challenged by my friends and businessmen:

"Yes, yes, Duda, you do have everything there. There are corn rice balls, pineapple rice balls, strawberry rice balls, and all kinds of rice balls, but there are no plum rice balls and salt rice balls! Of course, there is also your specialty - solid rice balls!"

As soon as these words came out, half the street was enveloped in laughter.

"What does this mean?"

Mei turned her head and looked at Mikael for help.

Mikael sighed, leaned into her ear and explained in a breathy voice:

"It's probably because this guy always likes to put weird things in rice balls, but he can't even make the most basic plum rice balls and salt rice balls."

"What do you mean by solid rice balls?"

"More rice and less filling."

"puff--"

Meiyi covered her mouth and laughed.

This smile seemed to break her restraint. She put her hands behind her waist, walked in goose-step to the stall selling Taiyaki, and asked the price with a smile.

Mikael looked at this scene, and the corners of his mouth twitched upward.

Taking a deep breath, the oil smoke in the air was a bit choking, and it reminded him of some bad memories.

Yes, for Mei, she may only smell the sweetness of food, but for him, the most sensitive thing is the smell of oil smoke...

Mikael raised his head, and the tall buildings on both sides formed high walls, pinching out the slender crescent moon in the sky.

"Hey! Is the moon so beautiful?"

Meiyi patted his shoulder.

Mikael shook his head and did not answer the question. But Mei Yi’s original intention was not to ask this question. She spread her hands towards Mikael and said in a crisp voice:

"Pay!"

"ha?"

"Do you think I have money on me?"

"...Forget it, the president will reimburse you anyway."

The two of them walked around this not-so-long street several times. When they came out, Mikael was carrying two portions of takoyaki and a set of snacks in his left hand, and three flavors of taikoyaki and a set of snacks in his right hand. A classic taste of Dorayaki.

In Mei's hand, she was holding a dorayaki with taro paste filling that only had two bites left.

"Hey! Don't you want to eat something yourself?"

She chewed the remaining part of the Dorayaki like a hamster, as if she was extremely reluctant to part with it.

"I'm not hungry."

This bland answer obviously did not satisfy Mei Yi.

"Really? But you were the one who suggested putting a belly on the street, right?"

"That's true."

Mikael unconsciously showed that fake smile again.

"But when I talk about padding my belly, isn't it my lady's belly?"

Mei Yi smoothed her bangs, it seemed that was indeed the case.

"Since you don't want to eat, then put all these back in the car. I'll leave them for Dad!"

"Hmm? Me? What about you?"

After swallowing the food in her mouth, Meiyi slowly answered:

"Didn't the uncle who made Dorayaki recommend a ramen restaurant just now? It's only about 100 or 200 meters away from here. I'll go there first. Don't worry, I won't treat my driver badly. I'll treat you to ramen. What do you want to eat? I'll help you order it first."

Mikael instinctively wanted to refuse, but then nodded:

"Okay, actually... I've always wanted to try what the ramen in Changkong City tastes like."

Meiyi frowned, always feeling that there was something wrong with what Mikael said.

But when she turned her head, Mikael had already walked towards the sword hall on his own. She raised her chin and walked in the opposite direction.