Upon seeing this touching scene from the kitchen, Lili, who had just finished preparing the dinner, gently placed her hand on her chest and shouted softly, âKids, itâs time for dinner now.â
While she was speaking, tears welled up in her eyes.
Beside her, Lavin hugged the shoulders of his lover and looked at his children. They could see a gentle and gratifying expression etched in that resolute face as well.
The dinner was composed of roasted beef pies, fresh fruit, and vegetable salad, sautĂŠed squid and corn broth. Even though there were only a few dishes, all of them looked very delicious. After they placed the food on the table, an enticing aroma drifted and soon attracted the kids who no longer had any intention of continuing to play their card games towards the dining table.
Since it was a dinner party, after seeing his kids and their young friends seated on the table, Lavin, who was sitting on the hostâs chair, closed his eyes and began to lead the prayers before dinner. âWeâre thankful for the food that is scarce for us⌠Iâm happy to serve the people, Amen!â
As always, Zhang Lisheng began to chow down on the food. By the time everyone had repeated âAmenâ, he had already finished half a piece of the pie.
âItâs really delicious, mom!â The young man praised with a mouthful of grease. âIâd always remember the pie you make every time I eat outside. Even a three-star Michelin chef will not be able to make such a delicious taste!â
âOh baby, eat more if you love it so much. Even though we can say that Riley is the one who did the pie this time since she was the one who made the filling, Iâm still happy hearing you said so!â Lili, who knew very well about her sonâs appetite, smiled happily and could not help but fork the pie in her place to Zhang Lishengâs plate that was already filled with food. âIâm watching out for my weight now so Iâm just gonna eat salad at night.â
âOh Lili, it looks like your son who doesnât believe in the âLordâ can really eat a lot!â When Lucas, who was sitting by the side, saw the number of beef pies in Zhang Lishengâs plate, which was about three to four times more than his own portion, he blurted out right away.
This sentence involved the issue of oneâs religious beliefs, and though it was still considered polite among the Americans, Rachel, who was sitting by his side, had already quickly whispered to him, âLucasâŚâ
âNo, no, no, Rachel! I mean nothing ill on what I said. In fact, I only started to believe in the omnipotent God after Iâve immigrated to this country,â Lucas, who knew that he had said the wrong words, quickly shook his head and explained. âNot to mention that this young man and I both have an Asian face and that weâre from the same race, so it kinda feels very amiableâŚâ
âMr. Lucas, Iâm Chinese and youâre a Central Asian. Weâre not from the same race,â Zhang Lisheng shrugged and interjected his words.
âOh, it doesnât matter if weâre from the same race, weâre both American now!â
âNo, Mr. Lucas, no matter which race you identify yourself as, Iâm still a Chinese,â Zhang Lishengâs tone sounded casual but decisive.
âIn that case, I really donât understand anymoreâŚâ
âLucas, this is someone elseâs family business. It doesnât matter if we donât understand it.â When Rachel heard her boyfriendâs conflicted words, she, who was by the side, quickly whispered again. âWhy donât you talk about the inside news about the foreign world that youâve heard from your comrade friends who are still serving the country? Itâs the hottest topic now you know.â
âOh dear, I really donât wish to mention these terrible things, but since youâve requested it, so be it,â Lucas sighed and began to talk in a tone that was filled with vicissitude. âSpeaking of which, Iâve already retired for almost a year from the military, but I still keep imagining myself being in the army, and how I had to carry 40 pounds of equipment every day, marching 10 kilometers and then cross the entire sea channel. That time, I often felt as though I would collapse in the next second, but I still persisted with determination and tenacityâŚâ
His English pronunciation was not standard, but there was a hint of indescribable magnetism and exotic charm in it. Recalling his hard life in the army, his brows knitted unconsciously and right away, an unwitting manâs charm drifted out of him inadvertently, causing Rachel to grip his hand right away.
âLook at me, Iâm lamenting again.â Sensing the temperature of his girlfriendâs palm, Lucas shook his head and smile, as he returned the hold of her girlfriendâs palm before continuing, âA person who has not been on the front line before will find it hard to understand the strong friendship that can be produced when they think about two men holding an M4 rifle in their hands with their backs pressed against each other as they put their lives in each otherâs hands. After I retire, those comrades of mine who are still in service will always come to New York to find me for a drink to have a chat and relax their tensed emotions every time during their vacation. As weâre chatting, weâd sometimes inevitably mention some sensitive and confidential topics; for instance, the natives on Shrimp B1 Island which is only less than one hundred nautical miles away actually have the habit of cannibalism. The reason they attacked the human gathering place was to get enough rationsâŚâ
âPstt⌠Cough coughâŚâ Upon hearing this, Zhang Lisheng, who was drinking a can of iced Coke, almost squirted the Coke out of his mouth. âSorry, Mr. Lucas. W-Who told you that the natives on Shrimp B1 Island are cannibals? This is too absurd!â
âThereâs nothing absurd about this, young man. Iâve said that those who told me about this are my comrades. Theyâve recently been temporarily transferred to the garrison troops on Shrimp B1 IslandâŚâ Lucas replied as though this was true.
Rachel, who was by his side, had long heard about the general life trajectory of Zhang Lisheng in recent years from Lili before, so she could not help but whisper to her boyfriend in shock, âLucas, the one you told me yesterday was not Shrimp B1 Island but Japanâs capital, Tokyo insteadâŚâ
âOh dear, Iâve heard more than one inside news. The Tokyo Massacre is terrible, but itâs far from us. The indigenous people on Shrimp B1 Island are only a short distance away from usâŚâ Lucas sighed and explained to his girlfriend.
Zhang Lisheng interrupted the Central Asian man with a smile. âMr. Lucas, youâre right. The Shrimp B1 Island is indeed only a strait away from New York, but itâs precisely because of this that tens of thousands of US people have set foot on that island before. Many people have even lived there for a while. Everyone knows that there are both good and bad natives, just like us humans. Some are kinds while some are cruel, but I can guarantee that there are no cannibals among them.â
âYoung man, youâve gone through too little things, so thatâs why youâd say such arbitrary words,â Lucas replied with an unchanged expressionm âLiving on Shrimp B1 Island before doesnât mean that you understand the natives there very wellâŚâ
âIâm a biologist, Mr. Lucas. The reason I go to Shrimp B1 Island is that the US government commissioned me to study the composition of the biosphere on the island and one of these is the study about the food chain there. For this reason, I understand the food of those natives very well.â Zhang Lisheng shrugged.
âYou are a biologist? Wow, youâre really young,â Lucas was stunned and studied Zhang Lisheng again. Still maintaining a calm expression, he said, âYoung man, perhaps your biological knowledge is far above me, but sometimes, the truth is not so simple. For example this time, to retaliate against the attack on the human gathering place by the Shrimp B1 Islandâs natives, the government used an ace spy from the CIA to incite a civil war between the natives. The reason that this ace spy could win the nativesâ trust was that he had personally eaten human meat before.â
Upon hearing such absurd and outrageous tales, Zhang Lishengâs mouth gaped open, not knowing what to say. Without warning, he burst out laughing. âOh, Mr. Lucas, I suddenly realized that youâre a hilarious person. You really can become a writer you know. The story of how the government used an ace spy from the CIA to incite a civil war between the natives to retaliate against the attack on the human gathering place and that the ace spy could win the nativesâ trust was because he had personally eaten human meat before was completely too imaginative! Thank you for beautifying me so much. Then again, Iâm neither a CIA intelligence officer nor have I eaten human meat before. Actually, the reason those natives would believe in me is that I look almost identical with the god status on their tribal totem pole. If I had known that someone would regard me like a cannibal because of this, Iâd not have asked the white house to keep the news of me getting the Medal of Honor as a secret.â
âOh, my Lord! Getting a Medal of Honor personally from the President is one of my ultimate dreams after joining the army. Did you really get it, brother?â Randy, who was by the side, asked in shock.
Zhang Lisheng nodded with a silent smile. Michelle, sitting diagonally opposite to the young man, said with a strange expression, âHe has indeed obtained the Medal of Honor. There is a list of honors on the White House website, and when I first saw this news, I thought he has used his connections and made a lot of âpolitical contributionsâ to buy it.â
âMichelle, do you really think I can âbuyâ the Medal of Honor through donations?â Zhang Lisheng asked. âThanks, I canât believe that Iâm actually such an âinfluentialâ person in your mind.â
When the young man was talking, for the first time during dinner time, Lucas whispered and asked his girlfriend, âMy dear, who exactly is Liliâs son?â
âThe founder of the LS Group, a doctorate graduate from Stanfordâs biology course who presides over the universityâs biological laboratory on Shrimp B1 Island. Now, it looks like he seems to have got a Medal of Honor too. Thatâs all I know,â Rachel answered weakly.
âA-Are you kidding me?â Lucasâs eyes widened.
âOf course not!â
âUh ohâŚâ Upon hearing Rachelâs affirmative answer, Lucas lowered his head and calmed down for a few seconds, before complaining a little, âMy dear, you know such a big shot person, so why have you never mentioned it to me before?â
âItâs none of our business. besides, Lili doesnât wish to reveal Lishengâs achievements to too many people.â
âOh, even though Iâve obtained US citizenship, Iâm afraid Iâll still never understand what a true US person thinks. If a mother in Puerto Rico can give birth to such an amazing child, she would definitely make this news known in the entire city.â
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