The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

Spring plowing, summer planting, autumn harvest, winter storage—day after day, year after year.

The saplings sprouted lush green buds, and their shadows grew longer and longer on the ground.

Flowers bloomed again and again, and the crisp peaches on the trees were happily eaten by wild monkeys in the mountains for ten years.

A sharp creaking sound startled the wild monkey that was perched on a tree branch eating peaches.

With a whoosh, it leaped from the tree branch and dashed towards the mountains.

A perfectly round peach, swaying in the tree branch, fell to the ground with a thud.

It rolled and tumbled to a half-open iron gate.

"Take big strides and never look back."

The prison guard pointed to the threshold on the ground.

A man with a buzz cut, wearing a red short-sleeved shirt and black shorts, nodded stiffly.

He strode across the rusty threshold.

The heavy iron gate creaked shut slowly.

The man raised his right hand and placed it in front of his forehead to shield his eyes from the glaring light.

A whistle caught his attention.

"You're getting old."

"You too, Tiger."

Xu Hu leaned against the car door, sighing as he looked at the man in front of him.

"I never thought I'd see you again, kid."

Xu Nian smiled wryly.

"I never thought I'd see the light of day again."

Xu Hu took out a cigarette, put one in his mouth, and tossed one to Xu Nian.

"I've quit, Tiger."

Xu Nian returned the cigarette to Xu Hu.

Xu Hu curled his lip.

"Oh ho, you got ten years in jail, and they even got you to quit smoking."

Xu Nian chuckled self-deprecatingly and turned her gaze to the car behind Xu Hu.

"You bought a car, Tiger."

Xu Hu raised an eyebrow smugly.

"How's it going? I just mentioned it."

"Cool!"

Xu Nian praised.

Xu Hu laughed heartily, opened the car door, and invited Xu Nian to get in.

"Thank you so much, Brother Tiger, for coming all this way to pick me up."

"Don't mention it. Have a drink with me sometime. I'll keep your early departure a secret for you."

"Definitely, definitely."

Xu Nian smiled and agreed.

"Where to?"

Xu Hu fastened his seatbelt and put on a very rhythmic piece of music.

Xu Nian pondered for a moment.

"Go to the Municipal Public Security Bureau."

"You little brat, you just got out, and you want to go back in, huh?"

Xu Hu said sarcastically.

Xu Nian smiled gently.

A few years ago, the entire black market in Yuncheng was eradicated in a crackdown on organized crime.

Ye Long, and his youngest son, were both sent to prison.

It is said that a deputy police chief and a deputy mayor were also found to be their protectors and were also put in silver bracelets.

During the operation, the police found evidence that Ye Long had paid someone to take the blame for his youngest son.

That's why Xu Nian was able to get rid of the label of murderer.

However, he also served a full ten years in prison for smuggling and harboring criminals.

He saw on the prison television that the officer leading the investigation was surnamed Zhang.

Without a doubt, it's Zhang Feng.

Zhang Feng absolved him of guilt that was not his, and gave him a second life.

So the first thing he did after being released from prison was to visit Zhang Feng and thank him properly.

The car drove away from the suburbs and sped along the overpass.

Xu Nian looked out the window.

What came into view were rows of unfamiliar high-rise buildings.

The buildings are arranged in a staggered pattern, and the huge glass curtain walls reflect light under the sun.

Ten years have passed; the world has changed dramatically.

The once muddy tidal flats are now lined with high-rise buildings.

"Look at these buildings, they're all newly built in recent years."

Xu Hu pointed at the tall buildings and clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Ever since that vice mayor who embezzled a few small sums of money was brought down, Yuncheng has been developing incredibly fast."

"Two new urban areas have been built, a subway line has been opened, and two more train stations have been added."

"Good."

Xu Nian placed her hand on the car window and stared blankly at the scenery outside.

He could no longer recognize where the bustling roads led.

The familiar scenes had vanished from his memory like fleeting clouds.

He felt as if he had stepped into a new city.

This place is filled with extravagant and decadent glamour.

Perhaps sensing his sadness, Xu Hu laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't even mention you, I have to use GPS when I go out now, otherwise I can't find my way at all."

"That kid Qi Yu, last time he came back, he almost couldn't find his way out of the high-speed rail station. It cracked me up."

"Qi Yu?"

Xu Nian's eyes flickered.

He hadn't heard those familiar names for ten years.

"Yeah, that kid's got a screw loose. He's perfectly fine in Yuncheng, why did he go to Shancheng to do some volunteer teaching?"

Xu Hu smiled helplessly.

"The last time I saw him, his skin was so dark. People who knew him would know he went to teach, but people who didn't would think he went to Africa to mine coal."

Xu Nian smiled along with her.

Then, as if remembering something, a trace of sadness appeared in his eyes.

"Brother Tiger, do you know... how Xu Xi is doing these days?"

Has that girl recovered?

Has he achieved a brilliant life?

"Her."

Xu Hu clicked his tongue a few times.

He tossed Xu Nian a cell phone.

"I can't explain it clearly, you should ask him."

"What is this?"

Xu Nian stared at the screen at an interface that resembled a chat application, completely bewildered.

"This is AI, a new thing in recent years. It knows everything from astronomy to geography. You can find any person with a bit of fame on it."

Xu Nian nodded and typed "Xu Xi" on the screen.

Soon, a string of messages appeared in the chat box.

Xu Xi, female, born in Yuncheng, is the founder and executive director of Sinian Group, whose businesses cover a wide range of fields including cross-border e-commerce, catering, real estate, finance, construction, and pharmaceuticals.

In [year], Sinian Group built its own integrated logistics, warehousing and distribution service system. By [year], the number of service points nationwide had exceeded 30, providing millions of jobs.

In [year], the total domestic merchandise transaction volume of Sinian Mall reached 4.5 trillion RMB, exceeding that of Taobao by 312% during the same period.

In [year], the total transaction volume of exported goods on Sinian Mall reached 10.05 trillion RMB, accounting for 78.83% of the total cross-border e-commerce exports in China, making outstanding contributions to promoting the globalization of domestic goods.

In [year], Xu Xi became the youngest inductee into the World Retail Hall of Fame.

In [year], Xu Xi was ranked 9th on Fortune magazine's important list.

In [year], Xu Xi received the People's Enterprise Social Responsibility Award for Person of the Year...

......

A dazzling array of honors and awards filled the man's eyes, leaving him overwhelmed.

His eyes were wide open, and the corners of his mouth trembled slightly.

Is this really the Xu Xiyao he knows?

The article concludes by providing him with the answer.

It was a photo of a beautiful girl meeting with a foreign leader.

The girl in the photo is Xu Xi.

"How much money does she earn in a year now?"

Xu Nian murmured.

Xu Hu smiled gently.

"I can't describe it, you can't imagine it."