Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  “Sister Xuxu, I’ll send you home.” Qi Lei took off his huge white coat in a hurry and hastily followed after Xuxu.

  When they neared the door, Xuxu pushed him backward and said, “It’s alright, you should rest early. You’ve been working hard the whole day.”


  But Qi Lei insisted. “I’ll just send you to the entrance of your area.”


  Xuxu didn’t reject him again. The wind was rather strong at night, so she hurriedly placed the hood of her coat over her head.

  She stuffed her hands in the pockets of her coat and walked ahead of Qi Lei.

  There were many foreigners in the area, and many roadside stalls were open for business in the evening. However, when the stall owners closed their stalls, their rubbish would be strewn everywhere.

  A strong gust of wind would scatter the rubbish everywhere.

  It was almost nine in the evening, and some stalls were still open.

  They walked past a stall selling dumplings, and the delicious smell wafted to Xuxu’s nostrils. Xuxu halted her footsteps and greedily stared at the pot of delicious-looking dumplings as the steam rose from the pot. Her stomach began to grumble.

  Qi Lei saw Xuxu staring at the pot. He was rather amused, and so he asked, “Sister Xuxu, do you still feel like eating dumplings?”


  Xuxu grinned. “I’ll treat you to supper.”


  She walked to the stall and said to the owner. “Give me two bowls.”


  Then she saw the rows of food displayed as well. She added, “Give me some beancurd and a tea leaf egg as well.”


  “Sure,” the stall owner responded cheerily.

  The corners of Qi Lei’s mouth twitched. “Sister Xuxu, are you sure you can finish everything?”


  They just ate dinner earlier at seven p.m.

  Xuxu turned to glance at Qi Lei, and instead, asked, “Do you want to eat anything else?”


  Qi Lei shook his head profusely. “I’m not hungry.”


  He might even have difficulty swallowing a dumpling.

  The stall owner had set up a tent-like temporary shack on the pavement using some plastic covers. He had squeezed three tables inside. Although it was cramped, it was cozy and warm.

  The lamp post cast a dim light around them while there were two lamps providing light inside the tent.

  Xuxu & Qi Lei walked into the tent. There was a couple sitting at one of the tables.

  They took the table beside theirs.

  The stall owner shortly came to them with two steaming bowls of dumplings, and Xuxu could hardly wait to tuck in.

  She scooped some soup with a spoon. She blew at it before sipping it.

  “Boss, give us three bowls.”


  The voices belonged to a group of men, and their presence alerted Xuxu. Everyone glanced outside.

  Three huge and burly men stood at the stall. They proceeded into the shack after ordering.

  Xuxu sat facing the entrance of the shack.

  She caught a glimpse of their appearance when she looked up. They all had brightly dyed hair with cigarettes in their hands. They looked like hooligans as they sauntered haughtily.

  Xuxu didn’t like the smell of cigarettes, and somehow it intensified after her pregnancy.

  When the men entered the room, smoke shortly filled the space. When they walked nearer to them, she felt nauseous, and she immediately covered her mouth and nose. She frowned before turning her head away from them to avoid the smoke.

  She had an obvious look of dislike on her face.

  She attracted the attention of one of the three burly men. He suddenly stopped and bent his head to glare at her menacingly. “What’s wrong? Are you looking down on me?”