23: Chapter 23 Zhao Kai's "Abnormal" Observations

The locust tree leaves in the Old neighborhood were curled from the heat, and the sound of cicadas, wrapped in the scent of braised food, drifted over from the alley entrance. Chen Jie crouched in front of Wang Lei's braised food stall, holding a piece of rusty sheet metal—it was the drip tray from under the freezer. The jagged edge was dripping murky water, which mixed with the grease from the braised food to form small oil slicks on the concrete ground.

"I'm telling you, this broken freezer should have been replaced ages ago." Chen Jie stuffed a piece of rubber into the jagged opening, his calloused fingertips brushing against the rust on the metal. "If it keeps leaking like this, Auntie Wang's tabby cat is going to make a home under your stall."

Wang Lei was sprinkling sesame seeds over a braised pork knuckle, grease splattering onto his blue cloth apron. "Replace it? Are you going to pay for it? This freezer has been with me for three years, and other than leaking a bit of water, it has no issues—hey, why does Zhao Kai keep staring at your backpack?"

When Chen Jie looked up, Zhao Kai was crouching under the locust tree, his phone camera pointed at his canvas backpack. His fingers were swiping across the screen, and his brows were furrowed like paper soaked in rain. This behavior was abnormal—usually, at this time, he would be holding his phone up to photograph the braised food for his social media, not obsessing over a grease-stained backpack.

"What are you taking pictures of?" Chen Jie pushed the drip tray back under the freezer; the "clanging" sound of the metal colliding startled the sparrows in the locust tree. "My bag is even older than your phone. What's there to take pictures of?"

Zhao Kai didn't look up, suddenly blurting out, "Yesterday, your bag still smelled like the coal smoke from the train, so why does it only smell like pine needles today?" He shoved his phone in front of Chen Jie, the screen showing a magnified corner of the backpack. "And this worn-out spot—yesterday, the cotton threads were clearly exposed, so why does it look like it's been patched up by something now?"

Chen Jie's heart skipped a beat. Last night, he had indeed rubbed the backpack with the jade stone—the smell of coal smoke from the train was too strong, and he was afraid of bringing it into Grandma Zhang's house, so he had wrapped the jade stone in a cloth and wiped it back and forth. He hadn't expected that a rough-around-the-edges guy like Zhao Kai would actually notice these details.

"It was smoked by the herbal sachet I brought from the mountains." Chen Jie bent down to pick up the braising spoon that had fallen on the ground, deliberately bumping Zhao Kai's phone with his fingertip. "It's a pity you aren't a detective with those eyes of yours—oh right, is Grandma Zhang's radio fixed yet?"

"Don't change the subject." Zhao Kai stuffed his phone into his pocket and suddenly leaned in to sniff. "You have a strange smell on you too. It's not machine oil, and it's not braised food; it's a bit like the smell of the water in the stream at Suiyu Slope." He suddenly lowered his voice. "Is that jade stone still playing tricks? Yesterday on the train, did the chamois leather you used to wipe medicine on that old lady glow?"

Chen Jie's fingers, gripping the braising spoon, tightened abruptly. Zhao Kai's reaction was too abnormal—in the past, even if he saw the jade stone performing miracles, he would only curse "freaky" and never pursue the root of the matter like this. Could it be that the incident on the train had made him suspicious? Or was the Spiritual Qi of this jade stone something even others could gradually perceive?

"Are you suffering from heatstroke?" Chen Jie patted his forehead. "I'll take you to the Community Hospital this afternoon to get it checked out—Wang Lei, give me two jin of braised pork knuckle."

While Wang Lei was wrapping the pork knuckle in a lotus leaf, Zhao Kai crouched back under the locust tree, his eyes fixed intently on Chen Jie's backpack. Sunlight shone through the leaves onto the canvas, revealing a vaguely protruding outline inside—it was the jade stone, currently emitting a faint blue light through the fabric, like stream water warmed by the shade of trees.

Chen Jie suddenly remembered that at the campsite, Zhao Kai had cursed the jade stone as a "piece of junk," yet was so shocked he gasped when the smoke was absorbed; at Old Zhou's place, he claimed he wanted to sell the jade stone for a new phone, but his eyes were fixed on the miracle of the double-stone Water purification. This kid seemed careless, but he was as clear-headed as a mirror inside; he just used to be too lazy to think deeply, but now his interest was probably hooked by the series of strange events on the train.

"Let's go, we're going to Grandma Zhang's house." Chen Jie carried the lotus-leaf-wrapped package and walked into the alley, deliberately swinging the backpack strap against Zhao Kai's arm. "If you dawdle any longer, she'll come to urge us—oh right, I wiped your water-damaged phone with water that had been soaked with the jade stone; it might turn on now."

Zhao Kai was indeed distracted, fumbling to pull out his phone. The moment the screen lit up, he let out an "Eh"—not only could it turn on, but the cracks from before had even faded, as if something had filled them in. He looked up at Chen Jie's backpack, his eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and excitement, just like when he had discovered years ago that Chen Jie could fix radios.

Chen Jie sighed inwardly. He was afraid he couldn't dodge Zhao Kai's abnormal observations. This jade stone was like a stone thrown into water; even if he wanted to suppress the ripples on the surface, there would always be a ring of waves quietly spreading out, to be seen by the person who cared the most.

The tabby cat at the alley entrance suddenly darted out and rubbed against Chen Jie's trouser leg. When he looked down, he saw dark green powder on the cat's paws—it was the jade stone powder given by that woman last time, which had leaked out of the bag at some point. The tabby cat suddenly paused while licking its paws, its ears pricked straight up, and it sniffed in the direction of the backpack, a "purr" sound emanating from its throat, just like the spiritual hedgehog he had encountered at Suiyu Slope.

Zhao Kai's phone suddenly "ding-donged," a social media notification. Chen Jie glanced at it and saw a magnified photo of the backpack on the screen, with the caption: "This bag has something to it." He laughed and kicked Zhao Kai, but he knew clearly in his heart—some secrets are like a half-repaired radio; even if you temporarily cover the casing, the gears inside will eventually turn on their own, letting others hear the sound.