Against the Current Hong Kong 1979

After finishing his meal, Zhang Shuai'an began to read the newspaper.

As expected, the Ming Pao supplement published his article "Shattered Void," and it even published two chapters at once. There was also a 500-word recommendation from Jin Yong.

However, we'll have to wait for reader feedback and professional reviews to see how the next installment turns out.

Jin Yong had given him an advance of one thousand yuan in royalties, and the remaining royalties would be settled at the end of the month. Fortunately, there were only a few days left.

"I'll go downstairs to find Ah Hong."

Zhang Shuai'an rolled up the newspaper in his hand, stood up, and said to He Jiatong, "You can watch TV here."

"Ah, okay." He Jiatong was taken aback at first, then teased with a half-smile, "Go for it, Brother An! Ah Hong is a good girl, and she's pretty too. Win her over as soon as possible!"

Zhang Shuai'an just chuckled softly and didn't respond.

After leaving the house, he went directly to the Zhong family's small clothing store in Chungking Mansions.

This shop is quite small and only sells women's clothing, so business is only so-so, barely enough to support the family's basic needs.

Zhang Shuai'an also roughly understood why Chung's mother supported Chung Chu-hung in running for Miss Hong Kong; ordinary families really don't have many opportunities to defy fate.

The shop was deserted; not a single customer was seen for half a day. Mr. Zhong was reading the newspaper in the shop.

"Uncle Zhong," Zhang Shuai'an called out to him.

Upon hearing the call, Mr. Chung immediately looked up and, seeing that it was Zhang Shuai'an, his eyes lit up: "Hey, Anzai, it's you! Weren't you filming at Shaw Brothers?"

Zhang Shuai'an replied with a smile, "I just happened to be off today, and the first episode I filmed tonight will be broadcast."

Mr. Chung expressed his heartfelt gratitude: "Really? That's wonderful! You're going to be a big star!" He then suggested, "Are you free tonight? Why don't you come over for dinner?"

"Won't this bother you?" That was exactly what Zhang Shuai'an was after.

"What's the big deal?" Mr. Zhong chuckled and said in a relaxed tone, "We've thought things through about you and Ah Hong. We won't interfere too much. As long as you young people are happy, that's all that matters."

Zhang Shuai'an nodded: "Thank you very much, Uncle Zhong and Aunt Zhong. I thought you would look down on me because I'm from the mainland."

"I'm from Boluo, Guangdong, and I originally came from the mainland," Mr. Zhong explained with a smile. "Anyway, come over for dinner tonight, and I'll have my wife cook some good dishes. How about we have a little drink together?"

"Okay." Zhang Shuai'an looked quite obedient and submissive. "I'll do whatever Uncle says."

Then, he casually asked, "Where's Ah Hong? Why isn't she helping out at the shop?"

"She went out to take some photos this morning," Mr. Zhong explained casually. "There's some kind of hand cream she uses. She paid him three thousand dollars to take some photos."

As they were talking, Chung Chu-hung came running over and called out from afar, "Dad, I'm back. It's my turn to watch the shop... Oh, what are you doing here?"

Before he could finish speaking, he saw Zhang Shuai'an.

"Anzai came here to see you," Mr. Zhong said with a smile. "You just finished filming GG, you must be tired. You don't need to look after the shop anymore. Why don't you take Anzai home for some tea and a chat? I specially invited Anzai to stay for dinner tonight."

Chung Chu-hung's face flushed slightly, and then she said, "Then I need to go buy some groceries; we don't have enough at home."

"When your mother comes back later, I'll tell her to go buy it," Mr. Zhong said.

After considering for a moment, Chung Chu-hung said, "I'll go buy it; I have time anyway."

As she turned to leave, she turned back to Zhang Shuai'an and said, "What are you standing there for? Come with me to buy groceries and help me carry my things."

"No problem." Zhang Shuai'an smiled and waved goodbye to Mr. Zhong.

Mr. Zhong watched the two figures walk away, stroked his chin, smiled unconsciously, and then looked down at his newspaper.

After leaving Chungking Mansions, Cherie Chung went to the bike shed and pushed out a bicycle: "You can ride a bicycle, right?"

"Yes, I will," Zhang Shuai'an said with a smile.

"Then you ride, I'll sit in the back." Chung Chu-hung pushed the bicycle in front of Zhang Shuai-an. "Although there are vegetable stalls nearby, they don't have what I want to buy. We'll have to go to a vegetable market further away. You ride, I'll give you directions."

Zhang Shuai'an was already tall, so he easily stepped onto the car. He turned to Zhong Chuhong and said, "Get on, and remember to hold on to my waist, or you'll be thrown off."

"hey-hey!"

Chung Chu-hung smiled playfully, sat sideways in the back seat, and casually hugged Zhang Shuai-an's waist.

When she hugged him, she felt how hard he was.

"You have abs?" Chung Chu-hung tilted her head to look at Zhang Shuai-an.

Zhang Shuai'an suddenly pushed off, and the bicycle shot forward. Chung Chu-hung was caught off guard, and her entire upper body crashed into Zhang Shuai'an's back.

It's a bit soft.

This girl actually has some assets.

A wicked smile crept across Zhang Shuai'an's face.

"What are you doing!" Chung Chu-hung probably realized Zhang Shuai-an's intentions and glared at him angrily, "Don't do that again."

Zhang Shuai'an immediately feigned ignorance: "What?"

"You know perfectly well why you're asking. Let's go!" Chung Chu-hung didn't dwell on the topic. "Just walk straight down the street, and turn left at the traffic light in five minutes..."

Following Chung Chu-hung's instructions, Zhang Shuai-an pedaled his bicycle swiftly through the streets.

Handsome men and beautiful women speeding down the street are somewhat reminiscent of the classic scene in the movie "Ai Mi Mi" where the male lead rides a bicycle with the female lead on the back.

After riding for about half an hour, we finally arrived at the vegetable market that Chung Chu-hung had mentioned, which was surprisingly not far from the seaside.

"How did we end up at the beach?" Zhang Shuai'an stopped, his long legs bracing themselves on the ground.

Chung Chu-hung jumped down and said to Cheung Shuai-an, "Didn't you keep nagging me to treat you to abalone and lobster?"

"Ah, did I say that?" Zhang Shuai'an was stunned for a moment, looking at Chung Chu-hung with a puzzled expression.

Chung Chor-hung glared at him: "Now you're pretending? I asked you for leave... On the day we became boyfriends, your only request was to eat abalone."

Zhang Shuai'an snapped out of his daze: "You mean this abalone?"

"No, then what are you thinking?" Chung Chu-hung frowned, glaring angrily at Zhang Shuai-an.

"That's exactly what I meant." Zhang Shuai'an nodded, then casually asked, "What else did you think?"

Chung Chu-hung failed to notice the unusual expression on Zhang Shuai-an's face and could only conclude that she was overthinking it.

Once inside the market, Chung Chu-hung took Zhang Shuai-an to pick out abalone and lobster.

Before dinner, Zhang Shuai'an went back to He Jiatong and told her that he had eaten at Chung Chu-hung's house.

When Aunt He returned home and started cooking, she didn't see Zhang Shuai'an and couldn't help but ask, "Where's Anzai? Why can't I see him?"

"He went downstairs to the Zhong family's house," He Jiatong replied. "He said Ah Hong's father had extended a warm invitation, and he couldn't refuse."

"The Zhong family downstairs?" Aunt He's gossip-loving nature immediately ignited: "Anzai... could he be dating Ah Hong, the eldest daughter of the Zhong family downstairs?"

Li Shuisheng, who rarely returned early, was looking at the newspaper when he asked with some doubt, "You didn't know?"

He Jiatong casually replied, "I felt like the two of them hit it off last time."

"Last time?" Aunt He felt like she had missed a lot of important plot developments. As a major gossip producer for Chungking Mansions, she actually didn't know: "What do you mean, 'last time'? What happened?"

He Jiatong then remembered that when Chung Chu-hung came to find Cheung Sau-on pretending to be her boyfriend last time, Aunt He was not at home, so she did not know about it.

So he told Aunt He what had happened.

"They really are a perfect match, a match made in heaven." Aunt He couldn't help but nod. "I remember Ah Hong once participated in the Miss Hong Kong pageant, and she was fourth place, which isn't a disgrace to Anzai. How far has their relationship progressed?"

He Jiatong casually remarked, "I don't know how far things have progressed, but anyway, Brother An said Ah Hong treated him to abalone!"

"What are you eating?" Aunt He was immediately taken aback. "Young people these days are so open-minded. How can they even talk about something like this?"

He Jiatong looked completely bewildered. How did treating someone to abalone become a topic of liberalization?