Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

  There were two world renowned products in Germany: one was cars, and the other was beer. Cars were somewhat controversial, but Germany was, no doubt, the king of beer––not necessarily because of the quality of beer, but more so the culture and tradition that surrounded the beer. According to traffic laws in Germany, drinking a small amount of beer was not considered to impair one’s driving––a law that was near impossible to find in other countries.

  The beer that Zhang Zian was drinking was not the best that he had ever tasted; however, he was in an atmosphere where everyone was drinking and watching a game, so even the mediocre beer tasted good.

  He took a big sip of beer and the smiles on the customers around him suddenly seemed friendlier. It was as if they were treating him as one of their own.

  “After your beer, you’ve gotta try the pork knuckle roast. You won’t be disappointed!” a brandy-nosed customer laughed heartily.

  Zhang Zian saw the roasted pork knuckle and was slightly startled. In order for people to serve themselves, the knuckle came with a knife. The knife was not laid flat on the table like it would be with a regular meal, but was instead stuck in the middle of the pork knuckle and was standing upright. It reminded him of the bold ways the outlaws in Water Marsh ate and drank.

  Apart from a thin layer of juice on the plate, there was only a piece of pork knuckle with its bone, about the size of a grown man’s fist, and two round balls of mashed potato. There was also a small cup of sauce for seasoning.

  After slicing the pork knuckle with the knife, the aroma of hot pork made Zhang Zian’s mouth water involuntarily. He put a piece of meat into his mouth with a fork. It was so tender and delicious and it almost melted in his mouth right away. His earlier concern that the meat might be too greasy turned out to be unnecessary.

  With one mouthful of roasted pork knuckle, one big sip of beer, and one taste of the chewy, mashed potato, Zhang Zian understood why this restaurant was able to attract so many customers with such simple dishes. The pork knuckle was its so-called specialty.

  “Have another glass!” the brandy-nosed customer urged him after Zhang Zian finished his beer.

  “No, no. Not this time,” Zhang Zian declined firmly. Although the German laws on drinking and driving were not that strict, he was not a German who could drink beer as a soft drink. He would not be able to drive if he had one more drink.

  Zhang Zian usually ate a lot. This portion of roasted pork knuckle didn’t look that big, but it was impossible to finish. The beer was also quite filling, so he was already very full.

  He ordered a few other things for take out for the elfins.

  He proceeded to check out, and the brandy-nosed customer was paying at the same time. They left the restaurant one after the other.

  “Son, we haven’t had enough to drink here. Would you like some more drink at my place?” the brandy-nosed customer asked, longing for more.

  “No, thanks. I have other things to do,” Zhang Zian declined him politely.

  “Come on, be my guest.” The brandy-nosed customer held onto Zhang Zian’s shoulder as if he knew him well.

  Zhang Zian wondered silently, Are all Germans so hospitable? This man is old… Could he be a homosexual? Maybe he will get me drunk, and I’ll wake up tomorrow morning with an aching butt…


  After he had this thought, he was suddenly on high alert. It was as if Richard had gotten into his mind and everybody seemed gay to him…


  “No, I really have things to do. I’m here to look for someone…” he said, trying to escape from the man.

  “Looking for someone?” The brandy-nosed man sniffed his nose and spoke with a half-serious smile, “Aren’t you the one that Reina wanted to introduce me to––the man looking for the aquarium? If so, you don’t need to look any further.”　　”


  What?

  Zhang Zian was astonished, then asked in doubt, “You are…?”


  “Do you think that I invite any stranger from the street into my house?” the brandy-nosed man asked with alcohol on his breath. “Of course I recognized you. I’m Reina’s father, but you can just call me Karl. You are Jeff Zhang from China, correct? I heard that you are a fellow businessman and that you own a pet shop in China.”


  Zhang Zian thought, Reina was right about her father––he is odd-tempered. The man had to a play a purposeful joke instead of just saying that he recognized me.

  But could this be too much of a coincidence? Too much so that Zhang Zian could not believe that the person he had been looking for happened to be eating in the same restaurant.

  “Yes, nice to meet you,” he said. “But how did you recognize me?”


  “Isn’t it simple?” Karl laughed. “This is a small town with very few foreign tourists; this is the best restaurant in town; and, more importantly, I’ve seen your pictures. Where is Famous?”


  “In the car,” Zhang Zian said, pointing to his car.

  “I’ll get my car and you can follow me.” Karl waved his hand, then got into a rough looking pick-up truck.

  Zhang Zian returned to his own car, then shared the take-out food he ordered with the elfins.

  “Who’s that man?” Richard asked as he landed on Zhang Zian’s shoulder. “A new gay friend? He’s a bit old, but he should still be strong. I can’t believe you have such a strong taste!”


  “Strong your a**! That’s the man we are looking for. He owns an aquarium nearby and we are going for a visit.” Zhang Zian followed behind Karl’s truck. At first, he was worried if it was safe for Karl to drive, as he had a lot to drink at the restaurant, but he soon realized that he was being overly concerned. Karl was driving very steadily––one could not even tell that he had been drinking.

  There were a lot of cars in German towns, but the traffic was in order. What were considered luxury cars in China, such as a Mercedes or a BMW, could be seen everywhere in Germany.

  Just as Karl said, they were in a small town. Within a few minutes, they had arrived at a parking lot at the edge of town.

  Karl waved at him from a distance, then walked into a two-story building next to the parking lot, which looked like a large warehouse.

  Zhang Zian got out of the car with Famous and the elfins followed them.

  After entering the building, Zhang Zian realized that it was not a large warehouse, but actually a massive aquarium.

  Reina’s father’s aquarium was dark, like many of the big aquariums in China. The first thing one noticed when they walked in was the darkness. The only lights were in the two rows of aquarium display tanks, which was meant to simulate the dark environment of the underwater world.

  What caught Zhang Zian’s attention the most, however, were not the beautiful, swimming fish around him, but a tall, young man wearing glasses near the entrance. He looked very nerdy––the typical image of a nerd in American movies.

  The young man almost stuck his entire head into the computer in front of him. His eyes were fixated on the screen and his hands were typing, quickly and loudly, on the keyboard. He didn’t even notice that Karl and Zhang Zian had come inside.

  “This is Paul, the expert who tests our water quality,” Karl said, introducing him to Zhang Zian. “If you would like to build a serious aquarium instead of harvesting a pile of stinky dead fish, then you need a serious expert like Paul––or you could just become one yourself.”