When Zhou Rui called, he said he wanted to meet me tomorrow but didn’t specify the details.
I felt a bit uneasy. Could he be coming to confront me because I had told Xiong Jiu about what I saw in his face?
Before I could ask what it was about, he simply said he’d take my “I’m free” as confirmation and hung up. I didn’t feel like calling back to ask further.
After closing the shop door, I went to sleep. As for the paper ashes left by Chengguo and Bai Jing, I left them for the street cleaners in the morning. I wasn’t going to touch anything that might bring bad luck.
Early the next morning, after breakfast, I opened the shop. If business didn’t pick up in the next few days, I’d seriously have to consider switching trades again.
Opening the door, I couldn’t muster much enthusiasm. Bored,
