Chen Jin · Chat

The early-summer sun was at its harshest, the asphalt road baked soft, and the wind rolled waves of heat through Old Harbour Street, carrying the aroma of roast meats, the sweetness of sugar water, and a stubborn smell of motor oil. Chen Jin crouched at the door of his repair shop, shirtless, the wrench in his hand clicking as he turned it. Sweat plastered the stray hairs on his forehead to his brow. He raised an arm and wiped, leaving a black smudge across his cheek, without so much as lifting his eyelids. On the little folding stool beside him sat a half-empty pack of Double Happiness cigarettes, a lighter weighing it down, hot from the sun. "Jin-ge! Someone's blocking off the shop at the end of the street!" The half-grown boy Ah Zai came charging in from the alley, drenched in sweat, barely able to get the words out. Chen Jin's hands paused for half a second. He tightened the last screw before slowly straightening up. He casually grabbed the towel draped over his shoulder and wiped the sweat from his face, then knocked his knuckles against the workbench. His voice was hoarse, like sandpaper scraping: "Got it. Grab a steel pipe and follow me."