Mi Cai seemed a bit hesitant about the idea of crashing into Xiaopangdun’s go-kart. After a while, she said to me, “That doesn’t seem right. His car is so small; Xiaopang will be upset if it gets broken!”
I immediately encouraged her, saying, “What’s there to worry about? Who at this plaza playing with go-karts hasn’t been crashed into?”
Mi Cai remained hesitant.
I started suggesting another idea, “Just pretend it was an accident. We have unexpected traffic accidents even when driving real cars, right?”
“Okay then.”
After saying that, Mi Cai pushed the joystick forward and crashed straight into Xiaopangdun’s car, flipping it over several times.
Xiaopangdun immediately got angry, picked up his overturned car from the ground, and ran toward Mi Cai. I immediately got up and fled the scene, then stood about ten meters away watching with schadenfreude.
After all, Xiaopangdun was still a child who didn’t understand chivalry, cursing while randomly slapping at Mi Cai. Mi Cai kept apologizing awkwardly, but Xiaopangdun continued to press on.
I started getting annoyed and, throwing away the cigarette in my hand, walked toward Xiaopangdun. I grabbed him, moved him aside, and said sternly, “Little kid, she already apologized to you. Aren’t you being too much?”
Xiaopangdun was indeed frightened by me and, with tears in his eyes, said, “You’re bullying me…”
“We’re just having fun out here. What’s the big deal about crashing your car? Haven’t you crashed into others’ cars before?” I replied with a stern face.
Mi Cai couldn’t stand it anymore, patting me and saying, “Don’t be so harsh. he’s just a child.”
Seeing Mi Cai defending him, Xiaopangdun immediately gained courage and shouted at me, “Hmph… Your car is just a bit bigger. You’re bullying me and crashing my little car. If you’re so brave, race me and see whose car is faster! My car is the fastest!”
“Little brat, if that’s what you want, we’ll race!” I said while glancing at Xiaopangdun’s car. It was just an ordinary toy bought from a street stall, with a motor speed definitely not exceeding 20,000 RPM. My car, although larger, had a motor speed of 30,000 RPM. I was confident I could easily beat him.
Xiaopangdun shouted at me again, “What if you lose?”
“Whatever you say, I’ll do it!” I confidently threw out the words.
Mi Cai pulled me aside and whispered, “Zhaoyang, don’t be so competitive with a little kid. You’ll lose face if you lose!”
I gave Mi Cai a reassuring look with complete unconcern.
Xiaopangdun thought for a moment and then looked at the McDonald’s across the plaza, saying, “If you lose, you have to treat me to chicken wings at McDonald’s. Is that okay?”
“No problem. Come on, kid, let’s have a good race.”
We agreed that whoever reached the fountain railing first would win. Soon, both of us lined up our cars. Mi Cai acted as the referee and counted down from three, two, one. Then the two cars sped off. Unexpectedly, Xiaopangdun’s car quickly took a big lead over mine.
I exclaimed, “Wow… did you drug your car? It’s so awesome!”
Xiaopangdun looked at me triumphantly, and in the blink of an eye, his car had already reached the fountain railing. I had actually lost.
Xiaopangdun happily picked up his car, and I snatched his car from his hand, took it apart, and discovered it was a Tamiya commemorative four-wheel drive car with a motor speed reaching 50,000 RPM.
I was so embarrassed that I felt like hiding at my grandmother’s house. In silence, I returned the four-wheel drive car to Xiaopangdun.
Mi Cai looked at me with a half-smile and said, “I told you not to argue with a kid. Now you’ve embarrassed yourself!”
Xiaopangdun immediately united with Mi Cai, hands on his waist, proudly shouting at me, “What about what you said just now? Does it still count?”
Mi Cai also chimed in, “Zhaoyang, you won’t go back on your word with such a little kid, will you?”
“Winner takes all. I admit defeat. It’s just McDonald’s, I’ll treat you both.”
…
The three of us arrived at the McDonald’s store. Mi Cai and Xiaopangdun sat back and enjoyed the meal while I squeezed through the crowd to order for them. It took a long time before I finally got the food ordered.
I carried the food to the table and sat down next to Mi Cai. Xiaopangdun, hungry and impatient, reached out to grab the food but was stopped by Mi Cai. She helped him hold the chicken leg by its base with a napkin and handed it to him, saying, “A little boy should mind his manners and hygiene while eating!”
Xiaopangdun nodded and took the chicken leg from Mi Cai’s hand. Mi Cai and I exchanged a glance, then looked at Xiaopangdun again. We noticed his clothes were quite old, and he was wearing a faded children’s digital watch on his hand. It seemed his family wasn’t well-off. He probably didn’t often eat at McDonald’s, which was a fast food place for middle-income families.
Mi Cai and I were only drinking juice and had no desire to eat, while Xiaopangdun kept eating with great focus.
I finally asked him, “Xiaopang, what’s your name?”
“Wei Xiao,” Xiaopangdun replied and continued eating.
I nodded and said, “Wei Xiao, meaning smiling, what a nice name!”
Mi Cai sighed and said, “You’re called Zhaoyang, which sounds like ‘morning sun’; he’s called Wei Xiao, meaning smiling. Together, they sound so bright and cheerful!”
Upon hearing Mi Cai’s words, I realized that was indeed the case. I looked at Wei Xiao again, but he didn’t seem to care at all and continued eating intently. Halfway through his meal, he suddenly stopped, called a waiter, and packed all the uneaten food into a plastic bag. This action surprised both Mi Cai and me.
Before we could ask him, he had already picked up the plastic bag and left the seat, telling us, “I have to go home now. My grandpa is waiting for me.”
Of course, Mi Cai and I didn’t force him to stay but reminded him not to play around on his way back.
Wei Xiao nodded. After thinking for a moment, he turned to me and said, “Your name is Zhaoyang, right?”
“What? Want to remember my name so that next time when we race cars, you can specifically target me, the soft target, huh?” I said with dissatisfaction, glancing at Wei Xiao.
Wei Xiao grinned and said, “Then are you going to race with me again tomorrow? If you lose, you still have to treat me to McDonald’s. No, tomorrow we’ll go to KFC.”
I sighed to Mi Cai and said, “Look at this. These kids these days are something else. Barely out of diapers and already openly trying to get free meals.”
Mi Cai smiled. I then said to Wei Xiao, “Little brat, do you think my meals are that easy to get for free? What if you lose tomorrow?”
Wei Xiao confidently said, “I won’t lose. My dad bought me the best car.”
“Alright, that’s the spirit! Tomorrow I’ll show you what it means to meet your match! Listen well, tomorrow at the same time, we’ll meet at the plaza. If you lose, you have to treat me and this young lady to KFC. How about that?”
After thinking for a moment, Wei Xiao said, “Okay… But I won’t lose!”
“I hope you don’t lose… Good luck!” I said with a contemptuous smile.
Wei Xiao “humphed” and didn’t say anything else. He walked out with one hand holding the McDonald’s bag and the other holding the four-wheel drive car.
Watching his retreating figure, Mi Cai and I exchanged a smile. Because of this chance encounter, our afternoon was anything but boring.
After sitting for a while longer, I stood up and said to Mi Cai, “Shall we go too?”
“Where to?”
I smiled and said, “Come with me to the toy store to buy a 100,000 RPM motor. I’m going to modify my car!”
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