That Dog's Bearing

Chapter 23 - That Dog's Bearing

"Sir, our shop's event has ended already."

Upon hearing the female manager's words, Chen Yu turned to look at the long jump indicator drawn on the floor nearby and asked, "Isn't it still there?"

"I'm sorry, but the event has been canceled already."

"Why haven't you removed it, then?"

"We haven't had the time to do so."

"Oh, but why are you telling me all this?"

"Sir, I'm sure you know why…"

"I don't know."

"Sir, our shop earns very little. Please…" Originally, the female manager had wanted to say the words "have some humanity," but after giving the matter some thought, she felt that it wasn't wise for a service provider like herself to speak such words. Instead, she switched to "…dine normally."

Meanwhile, noticing the female manager pestering Chen Yu incessantly, Principal Pang grew dissatisfied. He smacked the table before him and demanded, "What is wrong with you, young lady? Instead of serving customers, why are you spouting a bunch of nonsense to children? Do you all know each other?"

"Nope! We don't know each other!" Chen Yu said, crossing his hands.

Likewise crossing her hands, Chen Erke said, "We don't know each other!"

Chen Sanke said, "We…don't know each other."

Upon getting reprimanded, the female manager turned to look at Principal Pang and immediately found his appearance familiar. She then asked Principal Pang, "Sir…are you dining with this bunch?"

"That's right! Wait…" Principal Pang's expression twisted when he processed the female manager's words. "What do you mean by 'this bunch'? What is the meaning of this?"

After the female manager evaluated Principal Pang's attire and took a few more glances at the four Chen siblings, she forced a smile on her face as she received the restaurant's menu from the waitress beside her. She then passed the menu to Principal Pang and said respectfully, "Sir, please take your time ordering. Our shop is currently holding a promotion, with a 15% discount on all dishes. Aside from this, our restaurant has no other promotion."

When speaking the last sentence, the female manager had deliberately strengthened her tone.

"How baffling…" Principal Pang frowned as he accepted the offered menu. He then gestured for everyone to take a seat and said, "All I'm going to order is your restaurant's special braised pork. Mr. Chen, you order the rest. No need to be courteous with me."

"Principal Pang, I think it's best if you make the order."

"No, no, you do it. I insist."

After exchanging a series of polite gestures and seeing that things were going nowhere, Mr. Chen finally flipped the menu open and ordered one of the cheaper dishes available.

"Mrs. Chen, it's your turn to order."

"Teachers, you two should order first."

During the friendly exchanges between the adults at the table, the menu eventually landed in Chen Yu's hand.

Upon receiving the menu, Chen Yu opened it without hesitation, and under everyone's shocked gaze, he started rapidly calling out dishes one after another. "Braised pork knuckles, stewed pig intestines, stir-fried shrimp, pan-fried dumplings, deep-fried ribbonfish, twice-cooked pork, glazed pork belly…

"Fried liver slices, stir-fried liver with spring onions, deep-fried tripe, Di San Xian…

"New Zealand bull kelp salad, Kung Pao bullfrog, cinnamon chicken wings, marinated notoginseng… Oh, right. There's no notoginseng. Well, I guess that's it."

Upon hearing Chen Yu's list of dishes, everyone else at the table was rendered speechless.

After some time, Mother Chen snapped out of her daze and hurriedly snatched the menu away, then glared at Chen Yu. She turned to Principal Pang and said apologetically, "Prin-Principal Pang, I'm truly sorry for this. He's still young and immature. Let's not let him order."

Principal Pang naturally knew that Chen Yu was currently expressing his dissatisfaction with the forceful "home visit." Chuckling, Principal Pang waved his hand and said, "If Student Chen Yu likes to eat these things, let him have them. Waitress! Record his order."

When the female manager heard the list of familiar dishes, she could not help but hesitate. In the end, however, she held her tongue.

After both the female manager and the waitress left, Principal Pang loosened his tie a little as he glanced at Chen Yu and asked, "Student Chen Yu, are you acquainted with the manager of this place?"

"Nope," Chen Yu answered and shook his head without hesitation.

"Oh." Deciding not to comment on Chen Yu's reply, Principal Pang smiled and asked, "Did you order enough? If it's not enough, you can order more."

"It's enough."

"Waitress, bring some drinks for the four children to whet their appetites!" Principal Pang said to a nearby waitress. He then turned to Father and Mother Chen and asked, "Do you two drink?"

"Let's not. We're already making you spend a lot of money, Principal."

"It's fine. It's all for the children," Principal Pang said, placing emphasis on the word "children" for Chen Yu to hear.

Chen Yu: "…"

"In that case, we won't have any alcohol today. I'll need to drive later, so I can't drink, either," Principal Pang said. And seeing as Chen Yu had "ruthlessly" taken advantage of his kind offer, he instantly felt that he had gained the upper hand in negotiations. Hence, he immediately decided to segue into the topic and said, "Mr. Chen, since the food has yet to be served, let's use this opportunity to discuss proper matters."

"Please speak."

Father and Mother Chen immediately sat up straight upon hearing Principal Pang's words.

"Did Chen Yu cause some kind of trouble for you?"

"No, no. Nothing of the sort," Principal Pang said while waving his hand. He then glanced at Niu Lanshan and Chen Yu's form teacher before explaining, "It's like this: yesterday, after school, Student Chen Yu must've been in a hurry to return home. As a result, he ran very quickly, and his actions were noticed by our school's PE teacher, which is Teacher Niu here."

After giving Niu Lanshan a smile and a nod, Mother Chen suddenly turned to look at Chen Yu before saying thoughtlessly, "Did he knock over something? Principal Pang, I know about this matter. Chen Yu told me that a dog had chased him yesterday. He might've been in a panic and did not pay attention to his surroundings. I don't think he did it on purpose."

"…" When Niu Lanshan heard Mother Chen's words, his smiling face suddenly twisted.

"It was a mad dog!" Chen Erke added joyfully.

"…" Now, not only did Niu Lanshan's expression become distorted, but it even showed signs of crumbling.

Complicated feelings filled Chen Yu's heart when he heard his mother's and little sister's words.

"This… This is…" Principal Pang similarly found himself at a loss for words to rebut Mother Chen and Chen Erke, his mouth opening and closing repeatedly. After some time had passed, he snapped out of his daze and stuttered, "This… Let's not go into the details of this matter. In-In any case, after Teacher Niu came and consulted with me about the matter, we determined that Student Chen Yu is extremely suited for sports. This is also the reason for our sudden visit today."

"Sports? Talent?" Father Chen could not help doubting Principal Pang's words. "Principal Pang, are you perhaps mistaken? My son has never shown himself to possess any talent in sports."

"No, no, no. This is because the two of you have been too careless as his parents," Principal Pang said as he wagged his right index finger. "Student Chen Yu is extremely talented in sports. According to Teacher Niu, even Student Chen Yu's current sprinting speed can get him into the top three of our entire province. If we let him undergo special training, he will achieve even better results. This is an extremely outstanding talent."

"Maybe Chen Yu managed to perform better than usual back then because he was being chased by a dog," Mother Chen suggested hesitantly.

Niu Lanshan: "…"

"It was a mad dog!" Chen Erke added once more. "A mad dog is much fiercer than an ordinary dog! My brother must've been very scared back then!"

"Right." Mother Chen nodded in agreement with her daughter's words. "I've seen on television that people are prone to unleashing their hidden potential in dangerous situations. Chen Yu might not be as talented as you think, Principal Pang."

After hearing Mother Chen's words, Niu Lanshan could not take it any longer. He abruptly stood up from his seat, then massaged his face with his trembling hands as he stammered, "Prin-Principal… Ev-Everyone… Ex-Excuse me for a moment…"

After saying so, Niu Lanshan lumbered away from the table like a lifeless zombie and disappeared into a corner of the restaurant.

"Is something wrong with Teacher Niu?" Mother Chen asked as she looked at Principal Pang.

"May-Maybe he's feeling uncomfortable," Principal Pang replied while covering his plump face.

As for Chen Yu, he quietly lowered his head.