“Fish, internet, cafe (ga)?”
“What does that mean?”
He understood the literal meanings of “fishing” and “fishnet,” but what was a “fishing internet cafe” supposed to be?
And with that obscure word “cafe,” which seemed to mean “foot,” he was even more baffled.
Could it be a place that repaired fishing gear?
The only reason it had caught his eye was that its sign was so bright.
Yes, bright!
The characters glowed, flickering on and off, impossible to miss.
Whatever mechanism produced the effect, it was quite novel.
People kept stopping to stare in front of the shop.
A clever way to attract customers.
“What did you say?”
“I saw an unfamiliar little shop. Its sign was quite strange, and I’d never heard its name before. I can’t figure out what it means.”
“Oh? Where is it? What’s it called?”
Fan Xian was visiting the bustling capital for the first time, and he was curious about anything new and interesting.
The main thoroughfare of the capital was crowded with people, while carriages and horses moved slowly along.
Their carriage had passed the internet cafe, but hadn’t gone far. Its sign still stood out.
Teng Zijing lifted the curtain and pointed outside.
“Right there. It’s called ‘Fish, Internet, Cafe (ga).’ I don’t know what sort of business it is, but it certainly makes you curious.”
Fan Xian looked where Teng Zijing was pointing and couldn’t help laughing.
“That’s not ‘cafe (ga).’ It’s ‘cafe (ka).’”
As he laughed, Fan Xian suddenly sensed that something was wrong.
His expression froze, and his eyes went blank.
“Internet cafe?”
“Internet cafe!”
When he realized what that meant, Fan Xian shuddered and cried out,
“What!”
