Revenge

Amanda’s coughing subsided in the face of Aaron Gu's sarcasm. "What are you doing here?" she blurted out.
Aaron Gu looked at her coldly and asked: "What? Is this your shop? Em?"
He was obviously very unhappy, and there was a chill in his tone.
But Amanda had never been afraid of Aaron Gu. She was never afraid of him when she was alive, and she will not be afraid of
him after she died, either...
Died...
Oh, yeah, Amanda had died. So Aaron was not here for her; and sitting across him was not Amanda but the teenager girl, Mia,
who had been fucking with him last night and this morning; and Aaron Gu was as cold and ruthless as he always had been, not
even to his little girlfriend.
Night closed in; outside the peaceful snack bar was a noisy and bustling world they all came from; everything was still the same
as yesterday, as years ago; Aaron Gu was sitting across her ordering his sweet jelly; but he was not that young sunshine boy
any more and she was not Amanda; he could never see her face again, even if he wanted...
Amanda smiled self-mockingly, lowered her head again, and continued to sip at her bowl of spicy beancurd jelly.
"Enjoy." The chef served the bowl in person and greeted Aaron Gu politely.
Aaron Gu stirred his spoon in his bowl but he seemed reluctant to eat the jelly.
Amanda felt a bit satisfied as she almost finished the bowl; Aaron Gu said out of blue as if he was asking her or someone else: “
Does the spicy beancurd jelly really so delicious?”
Amanda looked up at him. Aaron Gu stared at her bowl, a layer of red chili oil sticking on the smooth wall of her bowl; his brow
slightly furrowed; he was obviously asking her.
Amanda chuckled and said, "Everyone has his or her own taste. Like you, you might never like spicy beancurd jelly in your life,
just like you hate women who cry in bed."
Her voice was not loud, but Aaron Gu could hear it clearly. Finally, he lifted his eyes to look at her and the corner of his lips was
raised: "I remember the Art school was in another direction. You came so far to eat a bowl of beancurd jelly. Well, you have a
bunch of time, don’t you? Get expelled?”

He seemed to be gloating with not a trace of sympathy to be detected. Was he expecting her affirmative answer? Did he long to
see her in pain?
But expelled? No! President still needed her; he even gave her twenty thousand dollars so that she could act as a pleaser to
Aaron Gu...
Aaron Gu was a coin tree, her patron...her welfare of the rest of her life may hinge on him...
Mia, Mia, entertain him, please him, he would give you the money you most needed. He would save your mother’s life. Amanda
thought a lot within seconds about Mia, about the reality but when it came to the response, she was as ruthless and ironic as she
would have always been: “Mr. Gu! I am living the full of my life! I just feel like it today; none of you business at all.”
Then she took the money out of her bag and put it on the table, imitating Aaron Gu, raising her lips and saying, "Thank you, Mr.
Gu, for you mercy and kindness last night. This bowl of sweet jelly is on me! Enjoy!”
Mia was tall and slim; she looked down upon Aaron Gu as she stood up and before he could react, she strode out of the snack
bar.
Aaron Gu didn't react long after she left. He stayed where he was after she left, feeling nothing about her generosity of buying
the jelly for him.
Aaron Gu took a spoonful of beancurd jelly and drank it. It was so sweet that his tongue felt a bit bitter on the tip.
The boss came to clean up the table after Amanda left. After a long time staring at the small bottle of chili oil, Aaron Gu stretched
out his hand to open the lid and scoop out a large tablespoon of red pepper and oil and put them in the bowl; then he moved on
to the bottle of vinegar and poured half bottle of it into his bowl. He stirred the bowl and blended the crimson of the chilli with
black of the vinegar...
"Red in black, spicy in sour, fresh and delicious, Amanda-exclusive spicy-sour beancurd jelly!"
That woman's voice echoed in his ears. Aaron Gu frowned and tasted a sip of that very ferocious-looking beancurd jelly. He
coughed vigorously and pulled the tissue on the table as his face glowed red. The chef was laughing at him saying: “Slow down,
dear guest...Not everyone can stand that spicy taste."
The man in suit and tie sat on the roadside stall eating beancurd jelly and was choking on the spicy pepper? It would have hit the
headline of the newspaper. Other female guests craned their necks to look at him and some took out the cell phone to creepshot

him; some even exclaimed: “Ya, Mr. Gu...who had been a lecturer in our school; he was so handsome; and he loves spicy
beancurd jelly...whoa!”
"Oh my god, he is so cute! Aaron Gu who gave up on his bright future and stepped into the filthy business circles..."
“But why?”
"Don’t know either..."
Gossips were everywhere. But no one could tell which one was real and which was wrong.
It was so hot that Aaron Gu could not even speak after a long period of time; she was right; everyone had his or her own taste
and it was not easy to change.
"Aman, you are doing this on purpose..."
"Aaron Gu, you are so stingy. It is just a mouthful of beancurd jelly. And I am feeding you with my mouth! How are you handling
it? Hot, isn’t it?! Hahaha!”
Hot, wasn’t it obvious enough? She knew that he could not bear any spicy food at all, yet she was making fun of him, all the time.
And their first night in the hotel room, where she was purring like a little kitty under him and she seemed so happy and playful all
the time, even though it was her virgin night and he had been a bit over recklessly at the strong desire.
The moment she held him trembling, she bit his ear and cried piteously, "A, I miss you. I came from thousands of miles away to
see you. I have to leave early tomorrow morning. So I need you to stay with me tonight...”
It was a crazy night; they were both enjoying it a lot; Seeing her off after finishing their routine beancurd jelly breakfast, he was
warned. “Aaron Gu, next time you forget to wear the ring! I will throw a whole bowl of spicy beancurd jelly on your head!”
She was so confident and arrogant as if he was one of her possession; she added: “Well, I would put the ring on other guys if
you don’t wanna wear it. Handsome guys are lining up for me. I am Ms. Charming and boys are swooned over me. Aaron Gu,
are you afraid?”
Amanda never knew the word “low-profile” and she seemed to want the world to know that she was in love. And Aaron Gu was
not afraid at all, although they were in a long distance relationship. Amanda was his, and they had made love like crazy; so she
was his, body and soul, and he was hers wholeheartedly.

His ringtone disrupted his mind-wandering. Aaron picked up the phone; the man on the other side yelled: "Aaron, Lisa Qin
followed you here. Where are you, so noisy! Are you in the wet market? Come have a drink with me! And remember to bring
your wife-to-be..."