The note worked, and within a short time, Jiang Keyang gave Chen Ling to me. Many years later, when I saw Chen Ling again, I almost didn't recognize her. In the photo, she was still as pure and elegant as ever, but reality was different. The Chen Ling in the photo was a product of the photographer's retouching skills. The real Chen Ling carried the scent of cigarettes and alcohol, was heavily made up, and wore a silk silver dress.
Perhaps my appearance hadn't changed much, as Chen Ling saw me as soon as she entered. She grinned and said, "Old classmate, you're doing well."
Hearing Chen Ling say this, the black-haired dog looked embarrassed. "Boss Tang, I didn't know Chen Ling was your classmate."
I didn't say much, just looked at Chen Ling and felt my heart ache.
Ke Yingying said, "We're taking this girl away today."
"Mr. Ke, this... this isn't according to the rules, is it? Xiao Ling still owes us over two million yuan?"
"Black Hair, have you not seen my methods?"
Seeing Ke Yingying say this with a forced smile, the black-haired dog, Gerard, trembled. "Mr. Ke, no, please, we're all friends. The path of the martial world is narrow, we'll meet again. How about this, without the interest, it's still over a million?"
"Old Ke, don't make it difficult for him. Settle the debt for two million."
Old Ke flashed me a fawning smile. "You're truly righteous. Alright, I'll listen to you." Then, Ke Yingying turned, and when she faced the black-haired dog, her expression changed. The speed of this change of expression rivaled Sichuan opera face-changing.
"Let's go, stop loitering here, time to get to work."
...
After Ke Yingying and Gerard left, Chen Ling dramatically threw herself onto the sofa, sprawling out. She glanced at me sideways and asked, "Got any cigarettes?"
"No!"
"You don't even smoke, and you come to a pleasure house."
"Didn't I come for you?"
"How come I didn't know I had this much charm? Two million, and you didn't even blink. What kind of business are you in?"
"Fraud!"
"Tch~"
Chen Ling scoffed and then sat up, pouring herself a drink. She then looked at the label on the bottle and asked with a smile, "How much did this cost?"
"About 888!"
"Not bad. It's a supermarket's 69 dry red. Selling it to rich people like you for 888 isn't too much of a rip-off."
"Let's go!"
"Go where?"
"Change your clothes, shed your disguise, and I'll take you for a good meal."
...
A little while later, I saw Chen Ling again. Her heavy makeup was gone, and her skin condition was quite good, except for the dark circles under her eyes. She wore jeans and a t-shirt, and had swapped her sky-high heels for sneakers.
Honestly, Chen Ling looked better than me. She didn't look like she was almost thirty, more like a twenty-five or twenty-six-year-old student who had just graduated.
"Where are we going?"
"Let's go!"
Chen Ling followed me out, looked around, and asked in surprise, "Which of these luxury cars is yours?"
"I don't have anything like that."
"Someone who can produce two million, and doesn't even have a luxury car?"
I hailed a taxi and said, "Let's go, a fraudster shouldn't be too ostentatious."
"That's true!"
...
I took Chen Ling to the food street in front of the ghost market. There was a Northeastern Chinese restaurant there that was quite authentic. I brought Chen Ling in and ordered a plate of Guobaorou, pickled cabbage with white meat, braised eggplant with catfish, and pig-killing stew.
The restaurant sold clear, pure grain baijiu by the cup for ten yuan a cup. I bought two cups and then asked for an empty cup, pouring out half of one.
Seeing my actions, Chen Ling gave me a look of disdain. "You're embarrassing the Northeastern people."
I chuckled. "I took emergency leave from my wife today, not leave for drinking, so I don't dare to drink too much."
"When did you get married?"
"Last year!"
"Do you have any children?"
"We adopted one."
"Are you sick?"
Speaking of this, I got upset. It's just adopting a child, why does everyone think I'm sick?
"You're the one who's sick! I invited you to dinner, so just eat, why all the nonsense?"
Chen Ling chuckled. "You hit a nerve, didn't you? Let me change the topic. You paid two million for me to escape hardship. Are you planning to make me a mistress or a surrogate?"
I smiled. "Don't you know me?"
My meaning was clear: you were sent to deal with me, don't you know me? Unexpectedly, Chen Ling looked surprised and retorted, "Should I know you?"
You don't intend to say, or you're simply a tool. It doesn't matter. My understanding of the scheme is different now. Knowing that this is a setup, I believe I can protect Chen Ling within this scheme.
"What are your plans for the future?" I changed the subject.
"I have to ask you that. I was bought by you, so I should follow your orders, right?"
"Then I'll tell you about my situation."
What I told Chen Ling was about my psychological journey after being buried. For me, the biggest challenge was how to go against human nature. With my abilities, I could have killed Tang Yi and saved my own life, but I didn't. When faced with a test of humanity, I saw a crossroads, and at the crossroads, I saw Chen Ah Sir directing traffic.
Heaven knows why I saw Chen Ah Sir, but I always felt that somehow, he made me understand a truth. The key to defying human nature is love. In reality, Chen Ah Sir wasn't that great, nor was he a kind person. But what happened that day stimulated him. He slapped his daughter and regretted it.
So, when he saw someone stealing, he wanted to rush forward and be a hero. He never did this to uphold justice, but for love. He wanted to prove to his daughter that he was a hero, not a coward.
All disaster stems from paternal love. Perhaps it was because I subconsciously perceived this at the time, that the love between father and daughter can transcend human nature, that I then regarded Tang Yi as my own daughter. That's why I could shout at Li Jiu in the hallucination, "Even tigers don't eat their cubs." These things changed my fate, and allowed both Tang Yi and I to live.
...
Chen Ling listened, silent, tears in her eyes.
"Tell me about yourself."
"What is there to say about me? Look at me now."
"The day you left, I stood in the school hallway and saw your reluctance, your unwillingness to leave school. At that moment, I really wanted to help you. I had a huge argument with the dean of students, and my parents were called. That was all I could do. What happened afterward?"
"That day, I was very sad. I called my aunt and wanted to go back to school."
"You have an aunt."
"Yes, she lives in the county town. After she received the news, she came. At first, she was quite affectionate. But when she learned that the house was rented, she became cold. This woman stalled me for a few days and then left, taking the few hundred yuan I had left."
"How can someone be like that?"
"What happened later? I met Brother Yang. He was a thief."
...
I knew Chen Ling had been to prison for theft. This Brother Yang she mentioned was the one who introduced her to the "business." At that time, Chen Ling was pushed to the brink by public opinion and was further wounded by her dark-hearted aunt. She quickly ran out of options. During that period, Chen Ling contemplated suicide, but ultimately lacked the courage. So, driven by extreme hunger, she decided to steal food.
That night, Chen Ling came to a small shop that was already closed. The door had a shiny padlock. She picked up her tools to pry it open. Just then, a large hand stopped her. She trembled with fear, but the other party smiled gently.
"Steal the wind, not the moon; steal the rain, not the snow!"
This was the first thing Brother Yang said to her. The moonlight was bright that day, not suitable for stealing.
Chen Ling nodded, but her stomach rumbled uncontrollably. She bit her lip, and Brother Yang smiled. "Hungry?"
"Mm!"
"Let's go, we're going to eat."
There was a bakery by the road. Brother Yang bought Chen Ling two large Russian loaves. Chen Ling devoured them ravenously. Brother Yang smiled, turned, and walked away.
"Why are you following me?"
"I have nowhere else to go."
"Your home?"
"My rent is due."
Brother Yang frowned. After listening to Chen Ling's ordeal, he cursed, "Damn it."
Then, Brother Yang went home with Chen Ling, packed her clothes, and took Chen Ling to a rented room. The room was very small, with just a bed and a tiny kitchen where one couldn't turn around. It didn't even have a bathroom, but Chen Ling found the room warm and comforting.
A single man brought a young girl home. Anyone with sense knew what would happen. Chen Ling had mentally prepared herself, but that night, Brother Yang laid out a floor mat and said, pointing to it, "You sleep down here, I'll sleep up here. From today on, you are my servant. Servants are not qualified to sleep in the same bed as their masters."
Chen Ling didn't know what Brother Yang did for a living, but he was always busy. Chen Ling was like a maid, cooking for him and washing his socks. Other than that, she just sat in the room. She didn't want to go outside; she was utterly disappointed with people outside. She loved this small nest. It might be worthless, but to her, it was paradise.
Until one day, Brother Yang returned and asked Chen Ling, "Want to go stealing?"
"Yes!"