"With all due respect, I ordered the food and had it delivered to your seat. While washing his hands in the restroom at the Gator Bar, Mr. Drinkward said, "After all, we both have a lot to talk about." ”

"I don't think so. Ah Xiu said. He dried his hands with a paper towel and threw it into the trash.

"You need a job, no matter what kind of world you're in, wizarding or Muggle world, it's the same, and that's what's weird," Drinkward said, "people don't hire people with criminal records." People like you make people feel uncomfortable. ”

"What, what are you talking about?wizard?muggles?" Ashu didn't understand, but he didn't dwell on it, and continued, "I have a job waiting for me, a good job. ”

"At the Muscle Gym?"

"Pretty much. Ah Xiu said.

"You're not going to get that job. Robbie is dead. Without him, the muscular gym would not exist. ”

"You're a liar. ”

"Of course, and a good liar, the best you'll ever see. I'm afraid I'm not lying to you this time, though. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a folded newspaper, and handed it to Ah Xiu. In the seventh edition. Go back to the bar first, you can sit down and read the newspaper. ”

Ah Xiu pushed open the door and walked back to the bar. The room was filled with smoke and the air turned blue. Ah Xiu couldn't help but laugh because he heard a very old children's rhyme.

"Two tigers, two tigers,

"Run fast, run fast,

"One without ears and one without a tail.....

"Run fast, run fast....."

Ah Xiu sat down at the table and set the newspaper aside. "This is my first official dinner as a free man, and I'll finish it and watch the seventh edition of the news you said. ”

The hamburger tastes better than the one in prison, and the Mexican spicy beef tastes good. But he felt that in a few months, it would not be the best beef he had in the state.

Laura is the best at making Mexican spicy beef. She used lean meat, black kidney beans, diced carrots, about a bottle of dark beer, and thinly sliced fresh peppers. She would boil the beef for a while, then add red wine, lemon juice and a pinch of fresh dill, and finally sprinkle it with paprika.

More than once, Ashu asked her to show him exactly how, and he carefully watched her every step, from slicing onions to sprinkling them into a pot with olive oil. He even wrote down recipes to keep track of the amount of each ingredient. One weekend, when Laura was out of town on an errand, he made a Mexican spicy beef. It tastes good, but it's not as delicious as Laura's cooking.

The headline on the seventh page of the newspaper. This was the first time Ashu had read a report about his wife's death. , the article says she is 27 years old, and Robbie, 39 years old. The two were riding in Robbie's car, which suddenly swerved on the interstate and crashed into a 32-wheeler truck. The truck knocked Robbie's car tumbling off the road.

Rescuers rescued Robbie and Laura from the crashed car, but by the time they arrived at the hospital, they were already dead.

Ah Xiu folded the newspaper again and pushed it back from the table to Drinkward. The latter was gobbling up a bloody steak that didn't seem to have been cooked at all.

"Here you go, take it back. Ah Xiu said.

It was Robbie who drove. Although the newspaper did not mention it, he must have been drunk. Ashu finds herself fantasizing about Laura's horrified expression as she sees Robbie too drunk to drive. The scene unfolded in his consciousness and he couldn't control it: Laura yelled at Robbie to pull over. Then the car slammed into the truck, and the steering wheel began to lose control......

…… The car was parked next to the road, and broken glass spilled all over the ground. Under the illumination of the headlights, it looks like flickering ice cubes or diamonds. Blood spilled on the pavement like rubies. The bodies of the two were pulled out of the crashed car or lying gracefully on the pavement......

"How?" asked Drinkward. He finished the steak like a hungry man, munching on french fries and filling them into his mouth with a fork.

"You're right," Ashu admitted, "I don't have a job. ”

Ah Xiu pulled a 25-cent coin out of his pocket, face up. He tossed the coin high, and as it left his hand, he twisted his fingers, causing it to shake and at first glance look like it was spinning. He caught the coin and clasped it upside down on the back of his hand.

"Guess. Ah Xiu said.

"Why?" asked Drinkward.

"I don't want to work for someone who is less lucky than me, guess which side is up. ”

"Positive. Drinkward said.

"Sorry for the mistake. Ah Xiu didn't bother to look at it, and said directly, "It's the back." I did my tricks when I tossed a coin. ”

"The games that cheat are the easiest to beat. Drinkward shook his finger at Asho, "Let's see the results." ”

Ah Xiu glanced down, and it was really positive.

"I must have missed it when I threw it. He was a little confused.

"Cheating failed," Drinkward said with a smile, "and I'm the luckiest guy." He looked up, "Luck comes and goes as fast as it comes." Madman Sweeney, come and have a drink with us?"

"Peach-flavored liqueur with cola, no ice. A voice behind Ah Xiu said.

"I'll go talk to the bartender. Drinkward said as he stood up and squeezed through the crowd towards the bar.

"Why don't you ask me what I want to drink?" Ah Xiu called out to him.

"I know what you're drinking. Drinkward said as he squeezed to the bar. Celine Dion on the jukebox began to sing the song "My Heart Is Eternal" again.

The guy who ordered peach mulled wine and coke sat down next to Ah Xiu. He had a short ginger beard and wore a denim jacket with shiny patches, and inside the jacket was a dirty white T-shirt with a line of words printed on it:

You can't eat it, you can't drink it, you can't smoke it, you can't suck it—it!

He also wore a baseball cap with a line printed on it:

The only woman I've ever loved is another man's wife...... My mother!

He used his dirty thumb nails to uncover a box of soft-packaged Haocai brand cigarettes, pulled out a cigarette, and handed one to Ah Xiu. Ah Xiu almost subconsciously took it - he didn't smoke, but in prison, cigarettes were a pretty good trade-in - and then realized that he had been released from prison. He shook his head in refusal.

"So, you're working for our one?" asked the bearded man. Ah Xiu felt that he was not very conscious, but he was not drunk either.

"Pretty much. Ashu said, "What do you do?"

The beard lit a cigarette. "I'm an Irish leprechaun. He laughs.

Ah Xiu didn't laugh. "Really?" he asked, "then you should drink an Irish Guinness stout, right?"

"Stereotypes. You have to learn to think outside the box. "There's more to Ireland than just Guinness. ”

"You don't speak with an Irish accent. ”

"I've been here for a long time. ”

"So, your family is from Ireland?"

"I told you, I'm a dwarf elf. We certainly didn't come from damn Moscow. ”

"I guess not. ”

At this time, Drinkward returned, and his large, claw-like hands easily held three glasses of wine. "The peach liqueur with cola is yours, the madman Sweeney, mine is whiskey. This cup is for you, Ah Xiu. ”

"What kind of wine is this?"

"Taste it. ”

The color of the wine is dark golden yellow. Ah Xiu took a small sip, and his tongue tasted a strange sweet and sour taste. He could tell the smell of alcohol inside, as well as some kind of weird mixture. The smell reminded him of moonshine in prison, in garbage bags made from rotten fruit, bread, sugar and water. But this wine feels sweeter and tastes more quirky.

"All right," said Ashu, "I've tasted it." What's the name of this wine?"

"Mead. Drinkward told him, "Wine made from honey." There are some things that are useful for both the body and the mind, which can enlighten the mind, so that Muggles --- embarrassed, ordinary people, and turn on special abilities. ”

Ah Xiu took another sip. Yes, he thought he recognized the taste of honey, but it was only one of many. "Tastes a bit like a marinade. He said, "Sweet and sour vinaigrette." ”

"The potions smell so strange, some of them are a disaster, and I've heard that multi-flavored beans are made from different herbs....", Drinkward agreed, "I don't like multi-flavored beans." ”

"Then why do you still let me drink it?" Ah Xiu gave up his doubts about the "multi-flavored beans" and asked directly.

Drinkward stared at Ashu with his eyes as black as the night sky. Ah Xiu felt as if there was a black hole hidden in it, ready to devour everything, and Ah Xiu couldn't tell if it was an illusion or not. "I'll give you honey to drink, because it's tradition. And now, we have to use all the traditions. Drink this glass of wine and the contract between us is finalized. ”

"We haven't made a contract yet. ”

"Of course we did. You work for me now. You're in charge of protecting me, you're driving me around, you're running errands for me. In an emergency – only in an emergency – you are also responsible for beating up those who deserve to be beaten. In the time of my tragic death, you were responsible for keeping a wake for me. In return, I can make sure that all your needs are fully met. ”

"He's lying to you. The madman Sweeney suddenly said, rubbing his beard, "He's a liar." ”

"Damn, of course I'm a liar. "That's why I need someone to take care of me and protect my interests." ”

The song on the jukebox is over, the bar is quiet, and all conversation is temporarily suspended.

"I was told that only 20 minutes after the hour or 20 minutes before the hour would everyone shut their mouths at the same time. Ah Xiu said.

Sweeney gestured to the clock hanging in the middle of a pile of crocodile heads above the bar. The time above is exactly 23:20.

"See?" said Ashu, "Hell, I wonder why this is happening. ”

"I know why," said Drinkward, "finish your mead first." ”

Ah Xiu drank the rest of the honey wine in one gulp. "Just add some ice. He complained.

"It's the same with that," said Drinkward, "it's terrible." ”

"That's right. The madman Sweeney followed, "Please forgive me for leaving for a moment, gentlemen. I was in a panic and needed convenience urgently. He got up and hurried away. This guy is surprisingly tall, almost seven feet.

A waitress wiped down their table and took the empty glasses. Drinkward told her to give each of them another drink from the previous round, and that Asho's mead was filled with ice.

"All in all," said Drinkward, "that's what I want you to do. ”

"Do you know what I want to get?" Ashu asked.

"Nothing makes me happier than knowing your request. ”

The waitress brought their wine. Ah Xiu took a sip of mead wine with ice. But the ice didn't work, it only accentuated the sourness of the wine, and it allowed the flavor to linger in the mouth for longer after drinking. Anyway, Ah Xiu comforted himself, at least it didn't taste like much alcohol. He didn't want to get drunk, at least not yet.

He took a deep breath.

"Okay. "For me, the last three years have been the most important period of my life. All of a sudden, my life was completely different and worse. Now I have a few things to take care of: I want to rush home to Laura's funeral, I want to say goodbye to her, and I have to deal with what she left behind. If you insist on hiring me, I'd like to start with £500 a week. He was blind to the number, but there was no change in Drinkward's eyes. "If the cooperation is pleasant, I hope to increase my salary to £1,000 a week within six months. ”

He stopped. This is the most he has spoken in years. "You said you might need to beat someone. If someone wants to hurt you, I'm going to hurt them. But I'm never going to hurt anyone for fun or profit. I don't want to go back to prison again, once is enough. ”

"You're not going back. Delinward assured.

"No, it won't. Ashu muttered, taking a sip of the rest of the honey wine. I don't know if it was the power of the mead that made his tongue come alive - but it was just a thought somewhere deep in his head. Words poured out of his mouth like a broken fire hydrant spraying water in the summer, and he couldn't control his tongue even if he tried to. "I don't like you, Mr. Drinkward, whatever your real name is, we're not friends. I don't know how you slipped off that plane without me spotting you, or how you followed me here. But I'm desperate right now. When I'm done with you, I'm going to leave you. If you me off, I'll leave you too. Until then, okay, I'll work for you. ”

"Very well," said Drinkward, "so the contract between us is settled." The two sides reached an agreement. ”