Chapter 17: Mu Mu, You Don’t Need to Come Tomorrow
When Mu Mu, drenched like a wet puppy, entered the house, he bumped into Zheng An, who was carrying nutrient solution from the room. Zheng An dropped the nutrient solution in shock, not bothering to ask Mu Mu what had happened, pulling him straight to the bathroom for a hot shower.
Perhaps it was true that fools don’t get sick, or maybe Mu Mu was just exceptionally healthy. After being drenched in cold water and exposed to cold air, he didn’t even have a headache or fever, going to work at the nightclub as usual after his shower.
Zheng An watched Mu Mu leave, seemingly unchanged from his usual self. Only then did he finally feel relieved.
Looking at the closed door, he shook his head and sighed softly, squatting down to look at a small puddle of light pink nutrient solution on the brown floor. He picked up the almost empty plastic tube, complaining.
“Ai, strawberry flavor, so expensive, it’s all wasted. I should have just taken an original flavor one. It’s all because of Mu Mu, that little fool. When he gets back, he’s buying me a whole box of strawberry nutrient solution.”
Fruit-flavored nutrient solutions tasted a little better than the regular ones, but not by much. It was just a hint of industrial fruit candy that slightly lightened the sticky texture of the nutrient solution itself.
Because of this slightly improved taste, the sales of fruit-flavored nutrient solution were many times higher than regular nutrient solution.
Naturally, fruit-flavored nutrient solution was also slightly more expensive than the regular version.
The difference wasn’t huge, but it was still quite expensive for poor people like Zheng An and Mu Mu.
Zheng An could afford it occasionally; he would splurge and buy a few tubes of different fruit-flavored nutrient solutions to improve the taste.
Mu Mu, except on his birthday, rarely bought them, because he wanted to save money to buy a house of his own.
Zheng An knew that the Fat Boss had given Mu Mu a large sum of money for the delivery today, and he wanted to take advantage of the situation.
Zheng An’s calculations were flawless, but he didn’t expect Mu Mu to return as a pauper.
Mu Mu, having just gotten off the public flyer, shivered inexplicably. He paused, looking at the colorful signs and screens ahead, tugging at his cartoon short-sleeved shirt. He thought it was getting colder as the seasons changed and decided to wear a thicker long-sleeved shirt tomorrow.
After deciding on his outfit for tomorrow, Mu Mu dismissed the sudden shiver. He still felt a prickling unease, as if something bad was about to happen.
However, he wasn’t good at thinking through complex issues, and the feeling was too fleeting to cause him any real pain, so he decided to ignore it.
When Mu Mu opened the door to the staff changing room, he expected it to be empty, as it always was.
Instead, he found a room full of people, all staring at him. He was instantly drenched in cold sweat, his plump lips pressed tightly together, his delicate Adam’s apple bobbing rapidly.
Mu Mu didn’t like being stared at by a lot of people because it usually meant he was about to be bullied.
He took a step back and closed the door.
The sharp click of the door startled the men inside, who awkwardly watched the closed door and resumed what they were doing before the interruption.
One second, two seconds, three seconds, five seconds… the door remained closed. The sudden appearance of Mu Mu, like an innocent child who wandered in and saw a room full of half-dressed young men, scared him away.
An awkward and eerie silence fell over the changing room. The men seemed lost in thought; after changing into their work clothes, none of them left, as if the door could only be opened from the outside.
They sat on benches or stood in front of their lockers, none of them spoke, lost in their own thoughts.
Finally, someone couldn’t bear the strange atmosphere and muttered a curse word.
“That little fool always arrives just on time, doesn’t he? Why is he so early today? Damn! He almost scared me to death when he opened the door!”
This complaint, from an unknown source, was like water thrown into hot oil, instantly breaking the awkward silence in the changing room.
Others chimed in, their discussion naturally focusing on Mu Mu, who had left and hadn’t returned.
Meanwhile, Mu Mu was following Madame Li to her office on the third floor.
Madame Li opened the door, turning to see Mu Mu standing ten paces away, shoulders hunched, head down, as if her office was some kind of monster’s lair he dared neither look at nor enter, causing her to laugh.
But then she thought about why she called Mu Mu up; it wasn’t good news, and it was much like entering a monster’s lair. The anger she felt immediately subsided, replaced by guilt.
Madame Li clenched the doorknob, venting her frustration on the poor metal, silently cursing the person who had put her in this position—their ancestors and themselves included.
With a forced smile, Madame Li awkwardly raised a smile she considered to be perfectly friendly, “Mu Mu, what are you doing? Come in.”
Hearing his name, Mu Mu suddenly looked up at Madame Li, his clear, innocent eyes like a fawn in the woods, making Madame Li feel guilty. She cleared her throat and looked away.
Mu Mu obediently replied and stepped inside. The uneasy feeling he’d had after getting off the flyer returned; he pressed down on his chest, trying to suppress the feeling.
Madame Li didn’t like formal things. Although this room was called her office, it lacked a boss’s desk and chair.
The spacious room had three large sets of black leather sofas, with round white cushions that looked soft and cuddly.
The floor was reddish-brown, covered with a large white shaggy rug. Mu Mu couldn’t tell what material it was made of, but he thought it wasn’t as beautiful as the rug in Mr. Yan’s house.
On the rug sat a two-tiered glass coffee table. The upper and lower tiers held exquisite wine glasses and drinks Mu Mu couldn’t identify.
After sitting down, Madame Li picked up a bottle of wine from the coffee table, found two glasses, poured two shots, then, seeing Mu Mu still standing, looked at him in surprise, asking, “Sit down! What are you standing for?”
Mu Mu didn’t dare to sit down, his lips pressed together, his small hands shaking rapidly in front of him, so fast they were almost a blur.
Madame Li realized Mu Mu was genuinely afraid to sit, and she inwardly reflected on her usual image in the club.
Thirty seconds passed, with no progress.
Madame Li didn’t force Mu Mu to sit down, nor did she offer him the drink. She picked up her own glass, took a sip, letting the spicy alcohol burn its way from her throat to her stomach, before lowering her gaze and speaking.
“Mu Mu, you don’t need to come tomorrow.”