Chapter 2 (part 2)
The two chatted happily.
The man was at the small round table next to them, ordering snacks, sipping wine, and watching the band perform.
Yin Guo unlike her cousin looked down at her wine and passed the time.
Her cousin’s cup is milky white, in just first glance she can say that this one was made for a lady. It’s orange with a few pieces of fruit. She smelled it curiously, the alcohol smell was not strong, she stirred it with a straw, and looked at the wine carefully.
Suddenly, she found that the man glanced at her amusingly.
As if to say: afraid of something?
Yin Guo loosened the straw and tucked the long hair beside her ears behind her ears, pretending to be stupid.
The phone vibrated, and Zheng Yi’s WeChat popped up.
It was a screenshot of the hotel and the contact number, followed by a sentence: There are not many rooms in Manhattan, and it is expensive. I got you the last one in Queens, hurry up, they only promised to stay for two hours.
Yin Guo bumped Meng Xiaotian’s arm with her elbow and showed him her phone.
“It’s awesome,” Meng Xiaotian was overjoyed and said to the man with glasses, “We’ve done it.”
“It’s very fast,” said the man with glasses in praise. “It seems that your friends are quite reliable. Where is the hotel?”
Meng Xiaotian handed the glasses man the phone.
The man with glasses shook his head and put Yin Guo’s phone under the man’s eyes: “How long until your car arrives?”
“ten minutes.”
The man said the second sentence of the night.
“That’s fast,” Meng Xiaotian put down the glass, “I’ll go to the bathroom first.”
“Let’s go together.” The man with glasses left with Meng Xiaotian.
Here, Yin Guo and the man were left.
Yin Guo kept her head down and chatted on WeChat, reporting to Zheng Yi that she had met two Chinese men, who seemed very friendly, invited them to drink, and said he would give them a ride to the hotel. Although she was moved, she was also worried about safety issues and quietly discussed with Zheng Yi, that would it be dangerous? Zheng Yi’s judgment is that the liar will not be open for business in such ghostly weather, but what about the perverts who meet the human face and beast heart?
Zheng Yi: You should be careful and learn more about it.
Yin Guo turned off the phone.
Holding the straw, she slowly stirred her glass of wine and looked at the man at the next table, who was only a step away from her.
After a while, the man sensed her gaze and looked back.
“Are you an international student?” Yin Guo asked politely, “Do you still work here?”
“Students,” the man said.
“New York University?”
The man shook his head.
Looking at the flickering in Yin Guo’s eyes, he guessed her anxiety: “Afraid that I’m a bad person?”
Yin Guo smiled embarrassedly but did not deny it.
The man took out a wallet from his arms, took out a Chinese ID card, and put it on the bar in front of her. Then, he took out a magnetic card and placed it with his ID card.
“This is my school’s magnetic card,” he pointed to the name on it. “You compare.”
Immediately, he pointed to his own face and asked her to treat the real person and the photo at will.
Usually, he doesn’t have an ID card, but it happened to be useful during the day today, and he didn’t expect it to come in handy here.
Yin Guo glanced down and saw the magnetic card first.
Georgetown University? Zheng Yi also has one, she has seen it before. He’s actually alumni of Zheng Yi?
Yin Guo remembered that Zheng Yi’s school had a great location. In the wealthy area of Washington, D.C., it was a bull school and an expensive university. This one doesn’t look fake. ID card, too.
The personal photo on the magnetic card is the same as the ID photo, and the name is the same.
Do you want to check with Zheng Yi? How to ask for evidence? Did you take pictures?
Too disrespectful to people, but forget it.
Yin Guo folded the ID card and the magnetic card together, and wanted to return them to him, the man put his hand into the inner pocket of the cold jacket again——
What else to take?
Under Yin Guo’s confused gaze, the man took out his phone, unlocked the screen, and opened the photo album. Soon, he turned the screen of his mobile phone, facing Yin Guo, it was the information page of his passport, and the name was this:
Lin Yiyang
LIN, YIYANG
…….
Present time. At the coffee beans store.
This scene of crossing the road reminded her of the night she first met.
The man with glasses brought both the siblings into the car first, packed the suitcases, and Lin Yiyang paid the bill in the bar.
Yin Guo saw through the window of the car and the two layers of glass in the bar, he drank most of the unfinished glass of wine, signed the card, put on his winter jacket and hat, and pushed out the door.
A gust of wind swept up the snow on the road, wrapping roadside cars and people in white fog, and quickly dissipating. He ran two quick steps, crossed the road, circled to the right of the car, and got into the car.
The driver asked, where are we going?
Queens, he said.
The driver was surprised, in this ghost weather, do you still need to detour?
He said, yes, take a detour.
…
“Sister?” Her cousin came back with two peripherals and was surprised to find that Lin Yiyang was gone, “He’s gone?”
“Yeah, in a hurry.” She took out her wallet and wanted to settle the bill.
There were still two berry-flavored coffee beans in her hand, and she wanted to throw them back into the burlap bag but stopped again. She’s been holding it in my hands for a long time, so don’t throw it in. What if someone picks it up and tries it? How unclean.
She had nowhere to throw it, so she stuffed two coffee beans into the small bag on the inside of her bag.
After buying coffee, she and her cousin went separately.
Meng Xiaotian then wandered around the nearby area. She went directly back to the hotel, took the cue from the room, carried a small package with her mobile phone, wallet, and key card, and went to the ballroom.
The last time she came to the United States, she signed up for the youth group of the American Nine-Ball Open.
Generally, the youth group and junior group of this kind of competition are encouraged, with bonuses, but no official world points. The registration fee for the competition plus the cost of the round trip, the bonus is not enough, so after testing the water last year, she directly signed up for the professional group this year. This year is also her first battle in her career path.
During the competition last year, she met a few friends in the youth group. This year, there is only one competition left with her in the professional group. It is a Singaporean girl named Su Wei. She also recommended this ballroom to Yin Guo, which is very affordable at $15 per afternoon.
The two meet here every day and train.
Another reason why they chose this American golf club is that they can meet many American world champions. Everyone practices ball like ordinary people and occasionally engages in small games, which is very interesting.
Before going out, Yin Guo refreshed the weather forecast, and there was a cold snap, and there would be local snowfall today.
Sure enough, when she came out of the coffee shop, it was still sunny, and it was already dark before three o’clock outside the door of the ballroom.
After she entered, in the corner of the ballroom, someone called, “Yin Guo.”
Su Wei pointed not far away with her eyes, sat quietly on the billiard chair, and watched Berry, a famous native American player who was watching her opponent play: “Yesterday you just wanted to see the real person, and today you’re here.”
After Su Wei finished speaking, she greeted Berry with a smile in English: “This is what my friend told you just now, Xiaoguo.”
Yin Guo threw the backpack on the billiard chair and said hello to Berry.
Berry looked around forty years old, very mature and enthusiastic, and came over to greet him for a long time.
Most of the players in the ballroom were men. Only Su Wei and Yin Guo were the female players who signed up for the competition this time. The two blond girls at the other table were just here to play. Su Wei is half of the mixed blood, and her height is relatively close to the people here. The two local beauties have long legs and big breasts. Among the four women in the ballroom, only Yin Guo is a small girl.
When she came for the first time, she was also asked if she had signed up for the competition in the youth group under the age of fourteen.
But after that, no one asked.
Because of her skills, although she can’t kill these regional champions and famous players in the stadium, she is definitely not worse than them.
See the real chapter on the ball table.
Moreover, there is no age difference on the pool table.
There is only an upper age limit for competition registration. If you are over 14 years old, you cannot sign up for the junior group, and if you are over 21, you cannot sign up for the youth group. This ensures the fairness of the competition.
There is no lower age limit. Meng Xiaotian’s older brother, Meng Xiaodong, started to fight in the professional group at the age of fourteen.
Today, because of afternoon tea, she came late and wanted to postpone the time to eight o’clock.
It’s a pity that the plan couldn’t keep up with the changes. By six o’clock, Berry packed up and ran over and warmly invited Su Wei and her to have dinner near Flushing. It is a gathering place of Asians and Chinese, known as New Chinatown.
Yin Guo hasn’t been there yet, it’s a bit far.
Su Wei’s boyfriend lives there. She passed by and just stayed there instead of going back. That is to say, she has to come back alone after dark, for fear of being unsafe.
“I tell you, there is a Chinese restaurant opened by my boyfriend’s house in Flushing. Sichuan cuisine and boiled beef are delicious.”
Boiled beef is really a world-renowned Chinese dish…
She was provoked by greed. She’s been here for more than a week and hasn’t eaten her hometown food yet, and her tongue is about to be wiped out by Western food. But no matter how delicious it is, You don’t have to run over so late, you can go alone tomorrow.
Seeing that she was still hesitating, Berry whispered to Su Wei.
Su Wei found a new reason to tempt her: “He said, because of the Open, there will be a party tonight, and you will meet a lot of professional team members from all over the world. You can meet them in advance.”
Hit the bullseye, you must go.
She decisively confirmed his location with Meng Xiaotian on WeChat, and by the way told Meng Xiaotian to return to the hotel early, put the club in the bucket, put it on her back, and followed the two of them.
Without taking two bites, I hurriedly paid the bill and went straight to the next destination.
The place to meet tonight is a Chinese ballroom.
The owner is Chinese, a well-known snooker player in the early years, and opened a ballroom here after retiring. The entrance to the ballroom is on the corner of the street. When the two arrived, a few people were smoking beside the trash can at the entrance. One of them knew Berry, threw the cigarette butt, and pointed to the door with a smile: “Go and watch the show.”
Berry understood, pushed open the glass door, and led them into the ballroom.
The ball tables are arranged neatly, from the door of the ballroom to the end.
Most of them are green tables, with a few blue tables on the inside, and there are about 2 meters of driving space between the tables.
On both sides of the table, was a water-brown billiard chair.
After they entered the door, they found that the billiards table was full of unfinished rounds. Everyone left, and they all crowded into the innermost blue table. The crowd was full of people, chatting enthusiastically, obviously to watch the battle.
Berry asked his friend aloud, who was fighting?
Someone came back, there was a regional champion betting on the ball, three thousand dollars.
Berry asked again, who is it?
The other person answered a name, and Berry got excited, put down his backpack and clubs with a smile, and walked into the crowd.
Judging from Berry’s performance, They should also be a well-known local player. She put her barrel on the side, and before she had time to take off the hat of the down jacket, she saw from the gap between the two men…
It’s him?
It’s just a flash, but in a place full of natives, it’s still easy to recognize a Chinese. Black hair, short hair, wearing the black hoodie that we met at noon today, with the cuffs rolled up to the elbows, with his back facing her.
Will it be wrong?
Seeing them coming, Berry smiled and pushed the two friends away so the two girls could see more clearly.
She was pushed to the front of the crowd, facing the back.
The game hasn’t started yet.
He was applying chocolate powder to the butt of his club, twisting the little blue powder and sliding it slowly and down over the butt.
“Today’s bet is capped at $5,000,” he said to the crowd of strangers onlookers in English. “I’ve only made up three thousand. If any of you want to raise for me, you’re welcome.”
It was him, it must be him, this voice was still telling her interesting stories about the down-and-out literati in the afternoon.
But now it is different. From the content to the tone, to the whole person, he is casual, saying: If he can win this game, everyone present will raise, and he will only win.
The chocolate dust in the left hand is placed on the edge of the table.
He turned his head.
His eyes stopped, on her.
…it’s really him.
Later, Yin Guo remembered that night, and always thought that this was the beginning of her and Lin Yiyang’s real acquaintance. Here, the talent in this Chinese ballroom is him, the lazy, brilliant, unfettered Chinese man who always wins and loses his opponent with an attitude that doesn’t care much and wins or loses at will.
Lin Yiyang held the club in his right hand, leaned slowly against the edge of the pool table, slowly reached out, picked up two balls from the table, and threw one to his opponent tonight, the regional champion: “Come on, Let me see your strength.”
He didn’t eat dinner at first, and his mood was not high, but now, it’s different.
