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【ding dong】

[Host has completed identity loading]

The current world is set in "The Ordinary Glory".

[The host's missing memories have recovered by 3%. We hope for continued progress.]

The system notification in his mind gradually faded away, and Su Ning opened his eyes.

The first thing I noticed was the smell of disinfectant, followed by the feel of the hard bed beneath me.

He sat up and found himself lying in a rented room of less than ten square meters...

The walls were yellowed, the floor was cement, and the only furniture was a bed, a wardrobe, and a folding table.

"This time the starting point is quite low," he muttered to himself.

I walked up to the mirror and saw that I looked to be about twenty-three or twenty-four years old. I was wearing a faded T-shirt and jeans, my hair was a little messy, but my eyes were bright.

Aside from lacking the aura of a big boss, I don't feel that his appearance has changed much; he still captivates countless young girls.

Then a flood of unfamiliar memories rushed in:

Su Ning is from Jiujiang, Jiangxi Province. After graduating from high school, he came to Shanghai to work.

I currently work as a night shift cashier at a 24-hour convenience store in Pudong New Area. My monthly salary is 3800 yuan, and accommodation is provided, but meals are not.

I live in this partitioned room with a monthly rent of 800.

“Convenience store…” Su Ning picked up her work clothes from the bedside table. The logo of “Haolin Convenience Store” was embroidered on them. “Thank goodness it’s not Convenience Store No. 444, otherwise I would have suspected that this was ‘The Ferryman’.”

I checked the person's belongings: an old Huawei smartphone, an ID card, a bank card (with a balance of 1273.5 yuan), and several convenience store coupons in the wallet.

Opening my phone, I found only a dozen or so contacts in my address book, most of whom were labeled with titles like "Sister Wang (store manager)," "Brother Li (colleague)," or "landlord."

The WeChat chat history is also very simple. The most recent message was sent by the store manager yesterday: "Xiao Su, you're working the night shift tonight. Remember to be on time."

Working hours are from 10 pm to 6 am.

It's 3 PM now, and there are still seven hours before I start work.

Suning opened the map on his phone and located himself in the Sanlin area of ​​Pudong, about two kilometers away from the convenience store.

He then searched for information related to "The Ordinary Glory"...

This is a workplace drama about an investment company, with the main characters being investment manager Sun Yiqiu and others.

"So this time I'm not the main character, not even a supporting character, just a background character." He smiled wryly. "Is the system making me start from the very bottom?"

Since there was still time, he decided to familiarize himself with the environment first.

Stepping out of the rented room, the scene outside was typical of a Shanghai urban village...

Narrow alleyways, densely packed self-built buildings, clotheslines hanging with all sorts of garments, and the air filled with the smells of cooking oil and dampness.

There's a breakfast stall at the entrance of the alley, run by a woman in her fifties.

"Xiao Su, aren't you at work today?" The older woman actually recognized him.

"I work the night shift," Su Ning replied naturally. "Auntie, I'd like some fried rice."

"okay!"

While waiting, he continued to observe his surroundings.

This urban village is mostly inhabited by migrant workers, including construction workers, delivery drivers, cleaning ladies, and convenience store employees like him.

The fried rice is ready, eight yuan.

Suning ate while sitting on a simple plastic stool. The food was so-so, but the portion was generous.

"Xiao Su, have you paid your rent this month?" the older woman asked as she tidied up. "I saw the landlord looking for you yesterday."

"Not yet, I'll pay it when I get paid tomorrow."

“Sigh, everything is expensive in Shanghai.” The woman shook her head. “My son also wanted to come here to work, but I told him not to. Although he earns less by farming at home, he doesn’t have to pay such high rent.”

Suning didn't respond, quickly finished his meal, and scanned the code to pay.

"Auntie, are there any libraries or bookstores around here?"

"The library?" The woman thought for a moment. "There's a community library near the subway station, but it's very small. Do you want to read a book?"

"Well, I want to take a look."

"It's good for young people to read more books." The woman pointed in a direction, "Go straight ahead, turn right after two intersections, and you'll get there."

The community library is indeed small, just two rooms, with a small collection of books, but it is very quiet.

Suning spent the afternoon inside, mainly reading financial magazines and newspapers.

He needs to understand the economic situation of this world, which is largely similar to his original world, but with some differences in details.

For example, if this were 2018, I would feel like I had traveled to the future.

Of course, this alternate world doesn't have "Tiangong Automotive," "Daning Capital," or "Guangguai Luli Film and Television Company."

"So it's a complete restart," he thought.

At 6 p.m., he ate dinner at a fast food restaurant outside the library and then returned to his rented room.

At 9:30 p.m., he changed into his convenience store uniform, a blue polo shirt with the store's name embroidered on the chest.

The clothes are a bit old, but they are very clean.

At 9:50, he walked to the "Good Neighbor Convenience Store".

This is a typical community convenience store, about 80 square meters, with shelves full of goods, and at the back there are refrigerated drink cabinets and oden stations.

One colleague was already handing over shifts at the store.

"Xiao Su is here." The speaker was Brother Li, the cashier on the day shift, who was in his forties and a local from Shanghai. "You're alone tonight. Sister Wang said Xiao Liu took the day off."

"Just one person?" Su Ning looked around the shop. "Can you manage?"

"There are fewer people on the night shift, so it should be fine. Just be careful, there might be some drunk people coming in the early morning." After explaining the work, Brother Li handed him the key to the cash register. "I've counted the cash box, you can check it."

Suning carefully counted the cash and confirmed that everything was correct.

"Okay, I'm off then." Brother Li patted him on the shoulder. "Call me if you need anything, even though I might be asleep."

"Okay, take care, Brother Li."

At 10 p.m. sharp, Suning officially started operations.

The night shift is indeed quiet; in the first two hours, only seven or eight customers came, mostly buying cigarettes, water, or instant noodles.

He quickly became familiar with the POS system, scanning, collecting payments, and giving change with practiced ease.

In his spare time, he organizes the shelves, restocks, and checks expiration dates—these are all part of his work process.

At one o'clock in the morning, a special guest arrived.

He was a man in a suit, around thirty years old, carrying a briefcase, with a shrewd and pretentious look on his face.

He walked around the store and finally picked up a bottle of mineral water and a box of cookies.

When paying the bill, the man glanced at Suning's employee badge and said, "Xiao Su, right? Working so late, you must be tired."

“It’s just work.” Suning scanned the code. “It’s twelve yuan and fifty cents in total.”

The man paid but didn't leave immediately. Instead, he stood by the counter eating cookies: "Are you from out of town?"

"From Jiangxi."

How long have you been in Shanghai?

"More than half a year."

"Have you thought about changing jobs?" the man suddenly asked. "There's no future in being a convenience store cashier."

Su Ning glanced at him: "I haven't found anyone better yet."

"I work in sales." The man took out a business card from his briefcase. "Our company often holds a training course. If you're interested, you can come and listen. You're so young, you should definitely take a chance."

Suning took the business card, a thought flashing through his mind...

This tactic is all too familiar; isn't it just a Southern-style pyramid scheme? They often fool naive young people.

"Wu Liangxin? Manager Wu is getting off work so late?"

"The project is on a tight schedule," Wu Liangxin explained with a smug smile, thinking that Su Ning was genuinely interested in recruiting him. "Overtime is the norm in our industry. But it's better than yours, at least the salary is higher."

“Every industry has its hardships.”

Wu Liangxin nodded, finished his biscuit, and threw the wrapper into the trash can: "Xiao Su, I see you're quite diligent in your work. If you're interested, you can try applying for administrative or support positions at our company. Although the salary won't be very high, it offers better career prospects than working at a convenience store."

Su Ning knew exactly what Wu Liangxin was planning. "Thank you, Manager Wu. I'm not considering changing jobs for the time being."

"My email address is on your business card. Send me your resume when you've decided." Wu Liangxin finished his water. "I'm off. I have to go to work tomorrow."

"Walk slowly."

Watching Wu Liangxin's departing figure, Su Ning threw the business card directly into the trash can.

……

The time between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. is the hardest to get through, as you're both sleepy and bored.

Suning refreshed itself by organizing its goods, arranging the shelves neatly, and removing all expired food products.

At 4:10, two drunk young men arrived, walking unsteadily.

"Boss, give me...give me two packs of Zhonghua cigarettes!" A blond-haired man slammed his hand on the counter.

"Please show your ID card," Su Ning said calmly.

"What ID card? You need an ID card to buy cigarettes?" the blond-haired man glared.

"The law stipulates that you need to show your ID card to verify your age when buying cigarettes," Su Ning pointed to the notice posted on the wall.

"I'm an adult! Do I look like a minor to you?"

"Please show your ID card, otherwise I cannot sell it," Su Ning insisted.

Another red-haired guy came over: "Brother, can you make an exception for us? We come here often."

“Rules are rules.” Suning remained unmoved. “Why don’t you buy something else? We have bottled water and drinks.”

The two drunk men cursed and swore, but didn't cause any trouble. In the end, they bought a bottle of Coke and left.

Suning breathed a sigh of relief; the worst thing about working the night shift was encountering a drunkard causing trouble.

At 5:30, the sky began to lighten.

Early risers, sanitation workers, and elderly people doing morning exercises entered the store one after another to buy breakfast and newspapers.

At six o'clock sharp, the colleagues from the day shift came to take over.

"Xiao Su, were you alright last night?" Brother Li asked.

"It's alright, everything is normal." Su Ning handed over the shift, counted the cash, and found that the accounts were in perfect order.

"Okay, go back and rest."

Stepping out of the convenience store, the morning air was very fresh.

Suning took a deep breath and felt that although this new world started from a very low point, it was very real.

Back in his rented room, he lay on the bed, but didn't go to sleep immediately.

At that moment, he suddenly remembered the system notification: "3% of the host's missing memories have been restored."

Therefore, 97% of the memories have not been recovered.

What is hidden in those memories?
he does not know.

But one thing is certain: every time you travel through time, it's not easy.

I believe that convenience store cashiers are just the beginning, and I also believe that the system will not make useless arrangements.

……

Recently, a strange elderly couple suddenly appeared at the convenience store. They didn't buy anything, but just kept staring at Su Ning's face, which made Su Ning feel a little uneasy.

This is the third night that the elderly couple has shown up. It's a little past ten o'clock, and there aren't many customers in the convenience store.

Suning was arranging the skewers for oden when she looked up and saw two people standing outside the glass door...

He was around sixty years old, well-dressed, and exuded a strong aura; he was clearly a seasoned leader.

He was still staring at Suning through the glass, making Suning look like a monkey in a circus.

That kind of gaze really made Suning uncomfortable. It wasn't the way a customer looks at a salesperson; it was more like... scrutiny, or rather, probing.

At first, Su Ning thought they were there to cause trouble, but after the two people pushed the door open and came in, they just stood by the shelf, didn't buy anything, and continued to watch him.

"Do you two need anything?" Su Ning asked.

The old woman approached, her voice trembling slightly: "Young man, are you... are you called Su Ning?"

Su Ning was taken aback: "How did you know?"

"Are you from Jiangxi?" the old gentleman next to me asked, his voice also filled with excitement.

“Yes.” Su Ning pointed to the employee information board on the wall behind her. “My health certificate and employee ID are on there. You can see them yourselves.”

The old woman didn't even look at the ID; her eyes were fixed on Su Ning's face: "So alike...so alike...Old Su, look at these eyebrows and eyes, they're exactly the same as when you were young."

The old man leaned closer to look, his eyes reddening: "Child, do you...do you have a birthmark behind your left ear? It's red, like a small leaf?"

Su Ning was startled; he naturally knew there was a small red birthmark behind his left ear.

In reality, the parents said it was a "blessing," something they were born with, and they realized that a plot orchestrated by the system had occurred.

"How did you know?" he asked, feigning wariness.

The old woman suddenly grabbed his hand: "Child, we are your biological parents!"

Su Ning subconsciously pulled his hand back: "Gentlemen, this joke isn't funny. I'm just an employee, I have no money. You've picked the wrong person to scam."

"It's not a scam!" The old man waved his hands anxiously. "Twenty-two years ago, our nanny disappeared with our one-month-old son. We've been searching for her all these years, until last month when the police said they found a kidnapped child in Jiangxi. The age and appearance matched, so we came here..."

"Wait a minute," Su Ning interrupted them, "You're saying I was abducted?"

“Yes! That nanny, her surname is Wang, her name is Wang Xiuying, she is your adoptive mother, right?” the old woman said. “We checked, she used to work as a nanny in our family, but then she ran away with the child and never showed up again.”

Wang Xiuying is indeed the name of my mother in this world, but she is my adoptive mother?
But Su Ning still didn't believe it: "There are many people in this world with the same name. Please leave, don't disturb my work."

“We can do DNA testing!” The old man took out a document from his bag. “This is a missing person notice issued by the police. Look, it has our information and your information on it.”

Su Ning glanced at the document; it did indeed contain his photo, name, place of origin, and information about the elderly couple…

Su Jianguo and Li Xiuqin reside in a high-end residential community in Jing'an District, Shanghai.

"Where did you get this photo?" he asked, pointing to his own ID photo on the document.

“It was provided by the police station in your adoptive mother's hometown.” Li Xiuqin wiped away her tears. “Child, we know this is sudden and you can't accept it right now. But we really are your biological parents…”

"I'm calling the police." Su Ning picked up her phone immediately. "No matter who you are, harassing my work in the middle of the night is already affecting my normal business operations."

"Don't call the police!" Su Jianguo pressed his hand down. "Let's go, let's go... We'll come back tomorrow, and we'll talk again after you get off work."

The two left the convenience store, looking back every few steps.

Su Ning stared at their retreating figures, her mind in turmoil.

Biological parents? Abducted?

He searched for the original owner's memories—his mother, Wang Xiuying, a rural woman from Jiangxi who never married and raised him alone.

He asked who his father was, and his mother always said, "He's dead."

My family was poor, so I started working right after graduating from high school.

If my mother really is a human trafficker...

He shook his head and continued working, but he couldn't calm his mind.

……

The elderly couple came again the following evening, this time with a man in a police uniform.

"Mr. Su, hello." The police officer showed his badge. "I am Officer Zhang from the Municipal Anti-Trafficking Office. There is a high probability that these two, Su Jianguo and Li Xiuqin, are your biological parents. We suggest you have a DNA paternity test done."

Su Ning looked at the police officer, then at the expectant elderly couple: "Officer Zhang, what exactly is going on?"

"Simply put, twenty-two years ago, Wang Xiuying, the nanny of Su Jianguo's family, disappeared with their son who was less than a year old," Officer Zhang explained. "A case was filed at the time, but there were no leads. Last month, Jiangxi police compared information in the anti-trafficking database and found that your adoptive mother Wang Xiuying's DNA matched the biological sample of the suspect extracted back then. Upon further investigation, your age and date of birth also matched those of the abducted child."

"So... my mother really was a human trafficker?"

"It's basically confirmed." Officer Zhang nodded. "Wang Xiuying was taken into custody by Jiangxi police yesterday. She admitted that when she was working as a nanny in Shanghai, she mistakenly took away her employer's child."

Suning's mind was buzzing.

He took out his phone and dialed his mother's number, the number of the woman he had called "Mom" for over twenty years.

The phone rang three times before an unfamiliar male voice answered: "Hello, who is this?"

"I'm looking for Wang Xiuying."

"Who are you to her?"

“I am her son, Su Ning.”

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone: "Are you Su Ning? Perfect, we're from the Jiujiang City Public Security Bureau. Wang Xiuying is suspected of child trafficking and has been criminally detained. We need to verify some information with you. When can you come back?"

"Officer, I'm currently working in Shanghai and can't go back for the time being."

"Then you should cooperate with the investigation locally," the police officer said. "The Shanghai police should have already contacted you. We will handle this case according to the law. You can consult a lawyer if you have any questions."

After hanging up the phone, Su Ning was completely stunned.

Su Jianguo and Li Xiuqin watched him cautiously.

“Child…” Li Xiuqin wanted to take his hand again, but held back. “We know it’s hard for you to accept. The person who raised you for more than 20 years has suddenly become… But that’s the truth. Wang Xiuying has already confessed. She worked as a nanny in my house for three months back then. She saw how cute you were and was momentarily blinded by greed. She took you away while we were away on a business trip.”

Su Jianguo added, "When we came back, we found that the child was gone, and the nanny was gone too, so we immediately called the police. But there were few surveillance cameras back then, and she took you back to a rural area in Jiangxi, where she hid for more than 20 years..."

Officer Zhang sighed: "Mr. Su, I know this is a huge blow to you. But facts are facts. Now you have two options: one is to settle it privately; the other is to go through legal procedures, and the court will arrange a paternity test to confirm the relationship."

Suning leaned against the checkout counter. Having traveled through so many worlds and experienced so many things, he had never encountered anything like this before. It was just too damn absurd.

"I want to be alone," he said.

“Okay, okay, we won’t bother you.” Li Xiuqin quickly said, “Child, here is our contact information. Contact us anytime you’ve thought it through.”

The couple left their phone number and followed Officer Zhang.

The convenience store has returned to quiet, but Suning's mind is far from at peace.

He recalled his mother, the rural woman who always scrimped and saved to support his studies, the woman who would cook a table full of dishes every time he came home, the woman he had called "Mom" for over twenty years.

She turned out to be a human trafficker.

She stole someone else's child.

And what about him? Who is he?
Is he Su Ning, a poor boy from rural Jiangxi, or a young master from a wealthy family in Shanghai?
No, even if his biological parents are found, he will no longer be the young master.

Twenty-two years have shaped him into a different person, not to mention that he is a time traveler.

After get off work, Suning didn't go back to his rented apartment, but sat on the steps outside the convenience store for a long time.

As dawn approached, he dialed the phone number Su Jianguo had left behind.

"It's me, Su Ning."

"Son! You've thought it through?" Su Jianguo's voice was very excited.

"I'd like to meet with you first and have a proper talk."

"Okay! Okay! Where are you? We'll come pick you up!"

Half an hour later, a black Maybach pulled up in front of the convenience store.

Su Jianguo and Li Xiuqin got out of the car. This time they were dressed more formally, and it was clear that they had dressed up carefully.

"Child, haven't you had breakfast yet? Let's find a place to eat and chat." Li Xiuqin's eyes reddened again, but this time they were tears of joy.

The three of them went to a nearby tea restaurant and asked for a private room.

After we sat down, the atmosphere became a little awkward.

Finally, Su Ning spoke first: "Could you tell me more about what happened back then?"

Su Jianguo took out an old photo album from his bag, opened the first page, and saw a picture of a baby.

“This photo was taken when you were a month old.” His voice choked with emotion. “Look, your eyebrows and eyes still look just like yours now.”

The baby in the photo is chubby and fair-skinned, wearing a little red outfit, and has a smile that makes his eyes crinkle.

“You were born on March 15, 1995,” Li Xiuqin said. “That day was the fourth day of the second lunar month, and it was raining. I had a difficult labor, and it took me more than ten hours to give birth to you. Your father was pacing anxiously outside the delivery room…”

She recounted in detail the anticipation during her pregnancy, the hardships of childbirth, and the joy after her child was born.

“We named you Su Ming, the ‘Ming’ of ‘tomorrow,’ meaning a bright future,” Su Jianguo said. “I never expected…”

He paused, then continued, "Wang Xiuying came through an introduction. She said she was from Anhui, her husband had died, and she was working away from home. She was efficient and patient with children, so we hired her as a live-in nanny. Who knew..."

"When did she take me away?" Su Ning asked.

“When you were ten months old,” Li Xiuqin said, wiping away tears. “That day, we were both going on business trips. I was going to Beijing for a three-day meeting, and your father was going to Shenzhen to discuss a project. We originally wanted to take you with us, but Wang Xiuying said that it wasn’t good for the baby to travel so far, and that she could take care of him. So we… we left without worry.”

“When we came back, the house was empty. The child was gone, and Wang Xiuying was gone too. She took all her things.” Su Jianguo clenched his fist. “We called the police, posted missing person notices, and put up ads in the newspaper. We tried everything we could think of. But it was like she had vanished into thin air. There was no news at all.”

Su Ning listened in silence, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

"Do you hate her?" he suddenly asked.

The couple exchanged a glance.

"I hated her," Su Jianguo confessed. "Especially in the first few years, I wanted to tear her to pieces. But later... I missed you more. As long as you can live, live healthily, nothing else matters."

"She's been arrested now, how do you feel about that?"

“It’s complicated,” Li Xiuqin said. “She broke the law and should be punished. But after all, she raised you for over twenty years. And judging from your appearance, she must have treated you well.”

Su Ning nodded: "She was very good to me. My family was poor, but she never let me go hungry. The tuition fees for my school were all saved up by her farming and doing odd jobs."

The private room fell silent again.

Finally, Su Ning said, "I want to do a DNA test. It's not that I don't trust you, it's that I need solid evidence to accept this fact myself."

“Okay! Okay! We’ll go tomorrow!” Su Jianguo immediately agreed.

“Also,” Su Ning paused, “even if the test results come out and confirm the relationship, I will need time to adjust. After all, it’s been twenty-two years. I can’t immediately start calling you Mom and Dad, nor can I immediately move in with you.”

“We understand! We understand!” Li Xiuqin nodded repeatedly. “As long as you acknowledge us and are willing to associate with us, we will be satisfied.”

"Besides, about my adoptive mother..." Su Ning said with difficulty, "Although she is guilty, she has raised me for so many years. I hope the law can give her a fair trial, but I also hope... that some leeway can be left for her."

Su Jianguo and Li Xiuqin fell silent.

After a long silence, Su Jianguo said, "We will issue a letter of understanding. Although we cannot completely forgive you, we can ask the court to give you a lighter sentence for your sake."

"Thank you," Su Ning said sincerely.

After the meal, the couple offered to take him home, but Su Ning refused.

"I'll go back to where I live and wait for the test results."

"Okay, it's all up to you."

When they parted, Li Xiuqin finally couldn't help but give Su Ning a gentle hug.

The hug was light and short, but it was filled with a mother's love that had lasted for twenty-two years.

"By the way! After I disappeared, did you have any more children?"

"This……"

"That's normal! I don't blame you."

Suning stood there, watching the Maybach drive away.

His identity changed, the world changed, and the poor boy transformed into a rich young master.

...(End of chapter)