What? You're a notorious bandit? What a coincidence, me too!

As dawn broke, a small village was still filled with the earthy smell of rain.

An old woman, carrying a bamboo basket, was busy working in the vegetable garden behind the house.

At the edge of the field, a two-year-old boy, naked from the waist down and wearing only a vest, was squatting on the edge of the field, picking up small stones to play with.

"Grandma, look."

The little boy would occasionally show the things he had picked up to the old woman.

The old woman kept working, only occasionally looking up to give a perfunctory smile in response.

Her son and daughter-in-law have both gone to work in Dongguan, leaving her alone at home with the child and a mountain of farm work to do. Just thinking about it makes her feel exhausted.

She looked at the lush green cabbages growing all over the ground; if she didn't pick them soon, they would get too old.

After working diligently for more than half an hour, she was sweating profusely. She touched the water bottle next to her and found it was completely empty.

She slowly straightened up, patted her waist a few times, and felt a surge of warmth in her heart when she saw her grandson still squatting there playing.

Luckily, her grandson is well-behaved and sensible, otherwise she would be in a lot of trouble.

The old woman called out to her grandson, "Little grandson, you play over there, don't run around. Grandma's going back to get a bottle of water."

"Okay!"

The boy answered crisply, without even raising his head, and continued squatting on the ground, picking at the stones.

The old woman turned around with relief and walked home.

She was thinking to herself that she would pick another basket of bok choy and dig up some sweet potatoes to sell in town, and then buy some clothes for her grandson.

Little did she know that just as she left, a three-wheeled vehicle pulled up at the edge of the road, and a middle-aged man, not very tall, got out.

Seeing that no one was around, he looked at the boy squatting on the ground, suddenly covered the child's mouth, shoved him into the car, and drove away.

When the old woman returned from fetching water, she looked at the ridge of the field with a smile, but her grandson was nowhere to be seen.

"Son, son, don't hide, Grandma has seen you."

The old woman thought her grandson was playing hide-and-seek with her, so she searched the fields but couldn't find a single person.

"This kid, he was just saying he was well-behaved, how come he's so disobedient? I told him not to run around everywhere."

The old woman grumbled, but still put down her vegetable basket and started looking around. She searched three or four times, but still couldn't find anyone.

She suddenly felt a sense of panic.

"Little grandson, where have you been hiding? Don't scare your grandma, come out now!"

But the only response she received from the fields was the chirping of insects; nothing else.

…………

The three-wheeled vehicle travels along the village road.

A skinny man was driving, glancing back every now and then.

In the back seat, a middle-aged man was holding a little boy. After the boy finished eating one candy, he peeled another one and put it into the boy's mouth.

Suddenly the boy started crying loudly, and the man immediately covered the boy's mouth tightly with his hand to prevent him from making too much noise.

The three-wheeled vehicle drove all the way to a secluded courtyard, where the two of them finally relaxed a little.

After settling the boy in, the middle-aged man smoked a cigarette, took out his phone, and sent a text message: "Aunt Mei, dragon spine back, about two jin."

…………

Inside a low-rent apartment in a rural area.

A decadent atmosphere permeated the air.

The curtains were half-drawn, making the room dimly lit. Only a bed and a table were visible, but they were in a mess.

There were crumpled pieces of paper scattered on the floor, the ashtray on the table was full of cigarette butts, and clothes were carelessly discarded on the bed.

The creaking and swaying of the bed indicated how vigorous the person's movements were.

A woman around fifty years old, with a slightly plump, round face, had a flushed face.

A man in his thirties pinches the woman's flabby waist, trying to keep himself from getting distracted.

But seeing how unpleasant the other person looked, he gradually lost interest and became tired.

The woman noticed this and then became dissatisfied.

She casually wiped the clothes a few times, then slowly put on her faded floral shirt, pulled up her dark trousers, and tugged at her wrinkled collar.

He pulled three red banknotes out of his pocket and tossed them onto the bed.

The man, panting, frowned and muttered, "You promised five hundred, but you only gave me three hundred. I'm short two hundred."

The woman bent down to put on her shoes, glanced back at him, and said in a harsh and domineering tone, "You have no idea what kind of work you do. Giving you three hundred is already being generous."

The man was helpless. He had been working as both a craftsman and a sycophant all night, and he was disgusted with himself.

This old bastard even withheld his own wages; there's no law at all.

"No, I didn't ask you for more money, everything is fine, you have to give me the money."

The man reluctantly got out of bed, trying to stop the woman, but after a whole night of struggling, he had no strength left, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground with a thud.

The woman glanced at him, pulled another bill from her pocket and threw it on the ground, picked up the cloth bag from the corner of the wall, and left.

The man reluctantly picked up the money, put it under the tablecloth, and looked down at the sly-looking man.

I should have known better than to take this job. He's a complete lunatic; he tormented me all night.

The woman left the low-rent housing, walked a long way, and ordered a bowl of wonton noodles from a stall.

At that moment, she heard a buzzing sound coming from the bag, and took it out to take a look.

"Dragon's spine, about two pounds."

Her face betrayed no emotion. After a moment's thought, she replied, "Five quarters, Chicken Eye Yellow Sand."

After sending the message, the woman finished her wonton noodles, picked up her bag, and left.

She took the bus back to her rented house in the village, changed the SIM card in her broken phone, and made a call:

"We have a two-year-old child, and the parents are working away from home and can't afford to raise him. We're looking for a stable family to marry into, like the one you mentioned last time..."

"Yes, we need to give them a nutrition allowance, 15,000 yuan..."

"Okay, sure..."

After the conversation, the woman stretched and lay on the bed, seemingly lost in thought.

…………

On the train.

Lin Chang'an stood at the connecting point between the carriages, watching the mountain scenery rushing past the window, smoking a cigarette.

Trains during this period were great; you could smoke, and they even thoughtfully had ashtrays hanging on the walls.

The carriage was filled with the sounds of vendors hawking their wares and creating a noisy atmosphere.

Guo Xiaowu, with a cigarette dangling from his lips, leaned against the carriage, looking at Lin Chang'an as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

"Speak your mind, or shut up," Lin Chang'an said.

Guo Xiaowu exhaled a smoke ring: "Chang'an, I feel like I'm recognizing you less and less lately."

"Why don't you recognize me?"

I can't quite put my finger on it, but I feel like you are still you, yet you are not you.

Guo Xiaowu scratched his head, unsure how to describe it: "You seem like a stranger to me, and sometimes, when I see you, I feel inexplicably afraid."

Lin Chang'an smiled, flicked off his cigarette ash, and patted Guo Xiaowu on the shoulder.

People always change.

"That's true."

Guo Xiaowu nodded, then said somewhat awkwardly, "Chang'an, I didn't actually come out with you this time just to go sightseeing."

"I know," Lin Chang'an said.

"You know?"

"You insisted on coming with me to such a far place, I knew it..." Lin Chang'an said with a smile.

Guo Xiaowu blushed slightly, as if his secret had been exposed.

"Chang'an, don't laugh at me. From now on, I'm sticking with you, and I'll follow you."

Guo Xiaowu said without a care in the world, "I've been thinking about it lately. I'm not getting any younger. If I keep messing around, I won't be able to get a wife."

My mom died young, my dad doesn't care about anything, and my brother has been missing for years. We'll all be counting on me from now on.

Lin Chang'an looked at Guo Xiaowu, clearly seeing that his recent troubles had had a significant impact on the young man.

He smiled. "Alright, let's not talk about that. The fact that you're allowed to come along this time..."

Upon hearing this, Guo Xiaowu's face lit up with joy.