One Piece: Blue Scale Admiral

At the same time, he looked up and stared at Luo Xia with curious eyes.

He seemed to be attracted by Rorschach's exceptionally tall and slender figure.

"No rush, we have plenty of time. Besides, Brother Luo Xia and the others have big appetites, so bring out all the meat and seafood you've prepared. We're going to have a big feast."

The lark smiled and nodded at the woman.

Hearing Lark's words, Emily broke free from her embrace and ran happily to the woman, gesturing with her little hand towards her mother.

With her gesture, the woman named Margaret's smile widened.

She suddenly walked out of the barbecue stall, bowed to Luo Xia and the other two, her lips moving and her hands making gestures.

Emily walked over to her mother and, mimicking her gesture, bowed to Rorschach and the other two.

"My mom said, 'Honorable guests, thank you so much for your patronage. I will definitely grill the succulent meat perfectly. To thank you for your generosity, we can offer a 20% discount on the barbecue for a few of you today. Thank you very much.'"

"No need to be so polite, get up quickly, we're just here to eat barbecue."

Seeing the two bowing mother and daughter, Yun Que felt somewhat at a loss and quickly stepped forward to help them up.

Luo Xia stood blankly in front of the stall, feeling as if a huge rock was pressing on his heart, making it heavier than ever before.

Soon, Margaret handed the three skewers of grilled meat to Rorschach and his two companions.

"Honorable guest, please try it first. If you don't like it, please let us know," Emily obediently translated for her mother.

The lark couldn't wait to stuff the juicy meat into its mouth.

When she tasted it, her eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but say to the mother and daughter who were looking at them expectantly:

"So delicious! May I ask, is all the Water-based grilled meat in Water Seven like this? I met a guy grilling Water Seven in the Sabaody Archipelago before, and he said his hometown was also Water Seven. The grilled meat he made tasted exactly the same as yours."

Chapter 208 Margaret

Margaret looked somewhat bewildered.

But after listening to her daughter Emily's sign language translation, her expression suddenly became somewhat joyful and eager.

Margaret gestured quickly, then stepped out of her stall again and approached Lark.

Emily followed, a look of confusion on her small, doll-like face.

"My mother said that the flavor of our family's 'watery pork' is...it's something my father developed himself, and it tastes different from what other people grill. She...she also wanted to ask the distinguished guest what the man you saw in Chambord who grilled the 'watery pork' looked like. Does the guest know his name? Thank you very much."

The lark's mouth gradually opened wider as it listened, and it cried out in surprise as if it had suddenly realized something:

"Could it be... that barbecue uncle named Old Tommy is your husband, Auntie, and Emily's father? No wonder your meat tastes exactly the same, so you're family."

Upon hearing the name Tommy, Margaret's eyes instantly reddened, and tears welled up.

Her body trembled slightly as she bit her lower lip, suppressing her excitement and making gestures.

"Mom said that the man named Old Tommy was chubby, a bit old, with some gray hair, a little taller than my mom, and walked with a limp."

"Sorry, I didn't look that closely. But that old Tommy guy was indeed a bit overweight. Brother Rorschach, do you remember him?"

Upon hearing Emily's account, Lark scratched his head somewhat awkwardly and looked at Rorschach with pleading eyes.

Seeing the expectant looks in Margaret and Emily's eyes, Rorschach moved his lips and nodded.

"Yes, the old Tommy we met in the Sabaody Archipelago looks exactly like you described. Furthermore, we learned from his conversation that he has a beautiful and kind wife and a lively and adorable daughter in the lower city of Water Seven..."

Upon hearing Rorschach's words, Margaret could no longer hold back her tears, which streamed down her cheeks.

With tears streaming down her face, Margaret's expression turned urgent as she gestured again.

The little girl Emily, somewhat bewildered, tugged at her mother's trouser leg and looked up at Rorschach.

"My mom said, is Dad... doing well over there?"

Rorschach's heart skipped a beat, and he forced a slightly stiff smile, nodding. "He's doing very well in Chambord. Uncle Tommy's barbecue skills are amazing, and his barbecue stand is doing quite well. He told me he wants to earn a little more money and then go back to his hometown so that his wife and daughter can have a good life."

Margaret smiled through her tears and hugged her daughter tightly.

Great.

Tommy, that stubborn old man, didn't die in the tsunami a few years ago.

It turns out he went to the Sabaody Archipelago.

Margaret didn't know where Chambord was.

But I imagine that must be a good place without the threat of tsunamis.

Tommy is really something, saying he wants to make more money.

Many years ago, he complained that the houses in the lower town were not good, and that they would be flooded and soaked by seawater every year when the Lakulana tsunami came.

Although under Mayor Bingshan's protection, the residents of the lower city area would not be in any danger.

But Tommy still dreamed of buying a house in the uptown and moving there with her and Emily.

Ideally, it should be close to Carrera.

In that case, not only would a tsunami not threaten their family's safety, but even if some ignorant pirates attacked, the powerful Carrera Company shipwrights would protect them.

Back then, Margaret always said Tommy was too naive and was just daydreaming.

Even with his confident assurances that he would make a fortune using the new barbecue recipe he had developed, it was still impossible.

Doesn't he know how expensive houses are in the upper city?

That's something ordinary people like them in the lower city couldn't afford even if they earned their money for several lifetimes.

Margaret actually felt that there was nothing wrong with the houses in the downtown area.

At least every year after the Lakulana tsunami recedes, it leaves behind highly concentrated, high-grade sea salt on the streets and rooftops of the lower town.

Those were the happiest days for ordinary people like them.

Because they could collect high-grade sea salt and sell it to merchants in the upper city, earning a substantial amount of Beta.

However, it's great that he's alright.

God bless you.

Margaret wiped away her tears, calmed her turbulent emotions, apologized to Luo Xia and the other two, and then began to busy herself with the barbecue.

She was going to serve the three guests in front of her, who had brought her news of her husband, the most delicious grilled meat.

About half an hour later, when the customers who had finished their barbecue left satisfied, Margaret began to pack up her stall.

Today is a really lucky day.

Not only did she learn that her husband was not dead, but she also encountered a group of kind guests who ate all the ingredients she had prepared that day.

Although Margaret gave them a 30% discount as a token of her gratitude, the remaining amount was equivalent to the amount of Baileys they would normally earn in two or three days.

As she was wiping her stall, she suddenly noticed a thick stack of large-denomination Bailey banknotes in the corner of the cart.

Margaret was startled and quickly picked up the stack of baileys, turning to look in the direction the guests had left.

not good!

The guest left the money behind.

The customer must be very anxious about losing so much money.

Without a second thought, Margaret quickly gestured to her daughter, telling her to stay put, while she clutched the thick stack of peso and hurried after the guests who had left.

Margaret ran very fast.

He was panting heavily from running.

But as she ran, her steps gradually came to a stop.

Margaret's expression gradually changed from anxious to blank.

She stood frozen on the road beside the waterway, staring blankly at the winding, seemingly endless surface of water.

Images of Hibari laughing flashed through my mind, as did Luo Xia's stiff smile, and Luo Xia's silence.

Margaret looked down at the large stack of pelies she was clutching in her hand.

Suddenly, the woman, who could neither hear nor speak, seemed to understand something.

It felt like all the strength had been drained from my body.

She crouched down little by little, clutching Bailey tightly in her hands, her empty eyes gradually filled with gray despair.

Just as the scalding tears, like molten lava, were about to spill from her eyes.

Margaret saw the silver-haired, blue-eyed navy boy running back breathlessly, gesturing awkwardly at her, and then pointing to the stack of Berries he was clutching in his hand.

Margaret was taken aback, and then the gray in her eyes gradually faded.

She wiped away her tears with some embarrassment, stood up, and hurriedly handed the money she was holding to the young naval officer.

"Auntie, thank you so much. I'm so sorry, I was so focused on eating the barbecue that I forgot my money at your stall. I feel really bad for troubling you to bring it all this way. This is to express my gratitude."

Rorschach scratched his head, smiled sheepishly, and then quickly pulled out two ten-thousand-dollar bills from the large stack of high-denomination Berries and stuffed them into Margaret's hand.

Margaret refused.

Although she couldn't hear what Luo Xia was saying, she could tell from his actions that the guest wanted to thank her.

But I absolutely cannot take it myself.

She immediately tried to push the money the boy was trying to put into her hand back.

Looking up, she saw the boy in front of her just as he had come, simply smiling and waving at her before running away like a gust of wind.

Margaret pursed her lips, staring blankly at the two crumpled ten-thousand-dollar bills in her hand, when a smile slowly appeared on her face.

She took a deep breath, carefully folded the two bills, put them in her pocket, and returned to the barbecue stall along the way she had come.

From afar, Margaret saw her sensible daughter, Emily, clumsily packing up the barbecue equipment.

A look of pity crossed Margaret's eyes, and she hurriedly ran over.

She decided to tell Emily her father's story tonight, and how to be an honest and trustworthy person.

Chapter 209 A Wave of Powerful Enemies Is Approaching