Chew Slowly Chapter 12

Chapter 12

The industrial development zone of Pingzhou Port is home to countless factories, large and small, including the hardware mold factory where Xu Qiaochuan works. A few years ago, when the economy was booming and business was good, Xin’an Hardware expanded its factory area to nearly 35,000 square meters, making it a well-known name in the local machinery manufacturing industry.

Chen Zongqian was familiar with the area, having frequently visited for business last year, and quickly found the location using navigation.

“We’re here.” Xu Qiaochuan saw the factory sign through the dark glass as the car gradually slowed down. He shifted his focus from the distance back to his reflection in the window. His expression was cold, and Xu Qiaochuan himself didn’t understand why he often wore such a distant look.

Smiling was exhausting, and talking was also exhausting.

The “thank you” was stiff. Xu Qiaochuan felt like a bad person, pretending to be polite when he had already received so much help, but he truly didn’t know what to say to Chen Zongqian.

“It’s nothing.” Chen Zongqian drove steadily, glancing in the rearview mirror to see Xu Qiaochuan with his head bowed, looking somewhat glum. People often say there’s a three-year generation gap; his age difference with Xu Qiaochuan was significant, spanning more than one gap. Xu Qiaochuan was sensitive, and Chen Zongqian couldn’t fully guess everything on his mind.

When Chen Zongqian was Xu Qiaochuan’s age, life was smooth; he hadn’t experienced upheaval or accidents, and he didn’t have to worry about various concerns. Their circumstances were different, and while Chen Zongqian couldn’t truly empathize, a heavy weight settled in his heart.

Passing through a stretch of lush greenery led to the main gate of Xin’an Hardware. Unregistered visitors needed to report in, which Chen Zongqian found troublesome, so he simply parked the car in an empty space near a nearby water tower. Xu Qiaochuan got out, carrying only a backpack—the extent of his belongings for the trip home and back. He waited quietly by the car. Chen Zongqian saw him in this state—very well-behaved, still essentially a student.

Chen Zongqian saw Xu Qiaochuan’s lips twitch, knowing he was about to receive another “thank you,” so he spoke first: “Let’s go, I’ll walk you in.”

Xu Qiaochuan surprisingly didn’t decline the offer. He walked with Chen Zongqian along the shade of the trees. Since they weren’t in a hurry to get into the factory, both walked slowly. Chen Zongqian asked, “How long have you been working here?”

“Not long, I worked at the factory for two weeks,” Xu Qiaochuan answered truthfully. “Then I took half a month of leave.”

Taking leave would affect performance. Xu Qiaochuan had essentially worked for free for two weeks, and he was a new apprentice. Chen Zongqian thought more deeply; his situation upon returning likely wouldn’t be great.

“The supervisor said it’s fine. At most, this month’s salary will be a bit less, but the pay will increase after I become a permanent employee.” Xu Qiaochuan watched his shadow and Chen Zongqian’s shadow seem to merge together.

The factory card swiped open the turnstile at the entrance. Student workers were most numerous in July and August, and the security guard assumed Xu Qiaochuan was one of them. Seeing him stop at the machine and bring another person in—someone dressed smartly, completely unlike a worker—the guard sat up straight and called out to Xu Qiaochuan.

“He’s my older brother, here to see me,” Xu Qiaochuan said after glancing at Chen Zongqian.

They did look somewhat alike. The security guard lowered the turnstile and urged the two of them inside.

Along the way, Chen Zongqian initiated conversation, asking him about the factory.

“The bottom two floors of one building are a gymnasium, and the third floor has a reading room… there are two basketball courts where you can play.” Half of this information came from the people at the school job fair, and the other half he overheard from co-workers chatting. Xu Qiaochuan described it from memory. He hadn’t been there long, only remembering the paths to the dormitory, the cafeteria, and the workshop. Unable to show Chen Zongqian around, his description was very vague.

He usually didn’t pay much attention to his surroundings, and he was surprisingly ignorant about the place where he was supposed to live and work. Xu Qiaochuan felt a sense of embarrassment.

Chen Zongqian smiled and didn’t press him further, saying gently, “Alright, it’s still early for dinner. Let’s go put your things in the dorm first.”

Xu Qiaochuan nodded repeatedly. His dormitory wasn’t far, just past the cafeteria, separated from the working factory area by an iron fence. The machines roared incessantly, and the pungent smell of machine oil was strong. Chen Zongqian took a moment to adjust, feeling a throbbing in his temples that made him feel heavy and uneasy.

“Do you have night shifts?”

“Yes, two shifts, rotating weekly.” Xu Qiaochuan had rotated once. After work, he was so exhausted he could fall asleep instantly, and when he woke up, life continued as usual.

The dormitory building he lived in was newly built last year, with bright windows and white walls; the conditions were decent. Chen Zongqian followed him up to the fifth and a half floor, where the person in front of him stopped. He lived in a small room partitioned off the hallway.

This small room held two beds, which theoretically could sleep four people, but the space was so tiny that even two people felt cramped. So, the top bunks were used for storage, and the bottom bunks for sleeping. Xu Qiaochuan’s other roommate was at work and not in the dorm. Chen Zongqian couldn’t imagine how crowded it would be when he returned.

“Are there no other rooms? This one is too small,” Chen Zongqian stood at the doorway without entering, watching Xu Qiaochuan quickly put his things away.

Xu Qiaochuan sorted his clothes. He had few belongings, and his roommate also had very little. He thought everything was quite good: “There are, but there are fewer people here.”

“Is your roommate okay?” He hoped it wasn’t like the situation at school.

Xu Qiaochuan finished tidying everything: “He’s fine. He’s a computer science student working a summer job. He’ll go back to school next month. He’s very smart.”

“He’s a university student, then.” Chen Zongqian smiled. “He’s about your age; you should have things to talk about.”

Xu Qiaochuan let out a sound of acknowledgment and turned to see Chen Zongqian taking off his glasses. A sliver of light reflected off the lens and the gold rim flashed across his nose bridge, instantly disappearing on his cheek. The lock clicked shut with a crisp sound, and for a moment, he was so startled he forgot everything.

“But you don’t know what to say to me, kid.” Chen Zongqian tucked his glasses into his pocket, teasing him with a brief laugh. Seeing his stunned expression, he reached out and patted Xu Qiaochuan’s shoulder, finally snapping him back to reality.

What should he say? He truly didn’t know what to say. As he hesitated, footsteps sounded from downstairs. Chen Zongqian turned his head and saw a middle-aged man in dark blue work clothes ascending the stairs. The man glanced at Chen Zongqian, then frowned upon seeing Xu Qiaochuan beside him.

Xu Qiaochuan recognized the person and immediately called out, “Master.”

“Finished with family matters? You didn’t even let me know you were back.” Zhou Cheng was a bit surprised. He then looked at Chen Zongqian, who looked somewhat similar to Xu Qiaochuan but whose demeanor and clothing were completely different, and his voice softened.

Zhou Cheng was responsible for supervising a batch of apprentices in the workshop. Once they were trained into skilled workers, his job was mostly done. Xu Qiaochuan had taken a long leave, which made him particularly concerned, wondering if the young man could still handle the work.

“I’m done. I’ll be back to work tomorrow.” Xu Qiaochuan replied. Zhou Cheng didn’t say anything more and quickly went upstairs.

As they were about to descend the stairs, Chen Zongqian suddenly felt a gaze on him. He abruptly looked up and saw a flash of dark blue sliding away through the gaps in the intersecting stairwell.

Chen Zongqian couldn’t quite understand. Although Zhou Cheng was supposed to guide him in his work for a while, why did returning to the factory need to be reported to his “Master”? Feeling suspicious, Chen Zongqian didn’t hide it and simply asked.

Xu Qiaochuan genuinely hadn’t thought about messaging Zhou Cheng. He considered it for a moment and said, “Maybe because someone died in my family, he was worried about running into me and feeling unlucky.”

After all, Zhou Cheng had indeed been surprised to see him but hadn’t said much and left quickly. Work was busy; his job required him to stay close to the machine, installing tools, loading and unloading workpieces, delivering materials, and adding cutting fluid and slide oil to the machine. Xu Qiaochuan wasn’t close with people, and busy with these tasks, he had even less time for communication. His impression of Zhou Cheng wasn’t deep.

He had informed Zhou Cheng before taking leave, and the man had been easier to talk to than he expected, but there had been no other interaction besides that.

“What is it?” Xu Qiaochuan wondered why Chen Zongqian suddenly asked about Zhou Cheng, reviewing their interaction but finding nothing special.

Chen Zongqian felt the gaze that had fallen on them was uncomfortable. He looked up and said, “Nothing. Let’s go, we’ll go have dinner.”