As night falls, the street lights light up one by one.
Soft light shines through the walnut trees on the street, illuminating the surrounding low buildings.
It is mainly a small building with two or three floors. It has a small garden in front of the door, surrounded by a half-person-high white wooden fence, and planted with various flowers and plants. It is small and exquisite.
This neighborhood is located on the west side of the city's central city, and is called "Hyacinth Street" because of the large number of white hyacinths planted in the flower beds on both sides of the street.
It is March, which happens to be the flowering season of hyacinths. The white flowers fill the field of view, with a pleasant fragrance and full of petty bourgeoisie sentiment.
Most of the residents here are middle class, mainly grassroots officials, petty nobles and small company owners. Although this class is not considered wealthy, they still have some money on hand and have requirements for quality of life. The housing prices here are moderate and the environment is good, so it became their best choice.
Under the street lights, a girl walked quietly, her slender white hands gently brushing the hyacinths, and came to a small building.
Light came from the side window on the first floor, and the sound of frying and a woman's loud voice came from the room.
"Don't just stand still, bring the plate over and put something on it!"
"Oh my god, why did you put down so much salad dressing? Do you want to bankrupt me?"
"Are you done peeling the potatoes? What, they're only half peeled. You must have been a rich girl who didn't do housework in your last life. Give me the stuff quickly. If you wait until you finish peeling it, we won't be able to eat potatoes until next month!"
Listening to the familiar voice, the girl smiled slightly, opened the door gently, and walked in.
"Xue Fei, you're back."
A tall and thin woman came out of the kitchen and quickly stepped forward to help the girl get the bag.
"Well, I just came back from cram school." The girl nodded.
This girl with a quiet temperament is Su Xuefei, who just met Chen Xing in the orphanage.
She, her mother, and three aunts lived in the house.
After a while, the food was all on the table. Su Muzhu, who had made dinner, came out of the kitchen, took off her apron and threw it aside, then sat down with her hands on the dining table.
She looked a little tired, and instead of hugging her daughter who came home with a smile as usual, she drank her beer without even looking at her daughter.
"Mom, what's wrong with you? Are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?" Su Xuefei did not sit down to eat, but walked to Su Muchu's side and asked with concern.
Su Muchu turned to look at her daughter, snorted coldly, and continued drinking, looking sulky.
Su Xuefei didn't know why her mother was suddenly angry and stood there helplessly. She has been introverted since she was a child and is not good at talking. She bursts into tears when she feels anxious.
The tall and thin woman on the side couldn't stand it. She stood up and said, "Sister Su, why are you having trouble with the child?"
Another short and fat woman also advised her, "Sister Su, Xue Fei only comes back once a week. It's rare that she comes home, so don't embarrass her."
"Yes, Sister Su, Xue Fei is not easy either..."
The third woman with pockmarks on her face also echoed, and Su Muchu's eyes widened, "Is it all reversed?"
She put her hand on her hips, pointed at their noses with the other, and shouted loudly, "Three useless old hens, if you could lay eggs, why would I be so worried!"
The three women suddenly looked ashamed and lowered their heads, not daring to answer the question.
Seeing the sisters' reactions, Su Muzhu seemed to feel that she had gone too far, so she softened her tone and said, "Okay, okay, it's getting late, let's eat quickly." Then she glared at her daughter again, "Come back early next time you have a break. Don't hang around outside all day long, I don't even have time to say a few words to you."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll definitely come back early next time and have a nice talk with my mother." Su Xuefei nodded obediently.
After this small episode, the family sat down and soon returned to the previous atmosphere, enjoying themselves.
But the good times didn't last long. Halfway through dinner, a piece of news suddenly came on the TV.
"After internal deliberations within the Giant Lizard City Government, the Principality Council voted and decided to levy a special war tax next month. All personnel of appropriate age and who have not joined the military must pay an additional 0.7% of their personal income every month..."
When she heard that taxes were going to be increased, Su Muchu started to sigh again.
No matter how dull Su Xuefei was, she knew what her mother was worried about. She activated her black watch and dialed her living expenses, "Mom, this month's money."
Su Muzhu beamed with joy and activated the black watch. When she saw the numbers on the screen, her face dropped again and she complained, "It's still two hundred gold coins. Your owl is quite stingy."
"Mom!" Su Xuefei was a little unhappy when her boyfriend was called, and she stamped her feet hard.
"Am I wrong? Look at other people's financial backers, at least 5,000 gold coins a month. This Ricardo is better, two hundred gold coins a month is unbeatable. I used to think he was handsome and capable, and thought he was a good man, but the result is An iron cock, no, an iron owl."
Su Muchu chattered and scolded the other party.
"Mom, he has been very good to us!" Su Xuefei raised her voice, "Renting such a good house for us to live in and paying us back every month, you can't say that to him!"
Su Muchu raised her voice and said, "What do you know? If you work in our industry, you are eating youth food! You can't make money when you are young, but you will know how miserable it will be when you get older!"
Seeing her mother's excitement, Su Xuefei did not argue anymore, lowered her head and said nothing. At this time, Su Muchu seemed to suddenly think of something, and the expression on her face changed instantly, and she was filled with a smile, "By the way, Xuefei, do you know who I saw on TV recently?"
"Who?" Su Xuefei asked subconsciously.
"Chen Xing, do you still remember the young man who came to live with us when we were in Crow City? He is not a simple man now. He is already a commander-in-chief, much more powerful than that owl!" Su Muchu said flatteringly, "You If you see him, you have to get closer to him, he was so generous back then!"
"Mom!" Su Xuefei was so angry that her lips turned white, and she stood up with a bang, "Since I have followed Jiatu, I can no longer act erratically, otherwise what is the difference between me and those shameless women!"
"In our line of work, what else do you need to be shameless? As long as you have money," Su Muchu said.
"Mom!" Su Xuefei was angry and anxious, tears welling up in her eyes.
"Oh, my darling, why don't you understand..." Su Muzhu stood up and put her arms around her daughter's shoulders, feeling a little distressed, but also a little resentful, "I'm doing this all for your own good!"
Su Xuefei said nothing and kept crying.
Seeing this, Su Muchu also started crying, "Oh, why is my life so miserable!"
"Looking for a man, but the man is gone, doing business, the business is gone, I have been exhausted for half my life, and I burned everything in one night, what evil have I done in my life?"
Su Muchu's crying became louder and louder, and the three old Liuyings also wiped away their tears.
"Mom..." Su Xuefei hugged her mother. She has known her mother's hardships since she was a child. A fire in Crow City burned everything, and everything started from scratch.
"Xue Fei, your three aunts are old and can no longer receive business. We will be counting on you for the rest of our lives."
"Mom, it's okay. I will go to White Tower College to study in a few months. Jiatu has found a tutor. When he graduates, he will be able to find a good job and provide for you and your aunts in old age." Su Xuefei comforted her. .
"If he really wants to send you to study, isn't he afraid that your wings will get stiff and fly away?" Su Muzhu didn't believe it. In this Goulan tile house, she was used to seeing men being unkind and unjust.
"Jiatu is not that kind of person. He is really good to me."
"He's really good to you so he can give you this little money? With his status, it's not even a drop in the bucket."
"Jiatu has always been an honest official, and he doesn't do any chores. He usually only earns salary."
"Hey, what's good about a poor scholar? If you ask me, it's better to go find that Chen Xing. He's so smart..."
"You didn't look down on him back then."
"It's different now. If you follow him..."
"Mom!" Su Xuefei stamped her feet hard.
"Okay, okay, I won't say it anymore, I won't say it anymore."
The family sat down to eat again.
"Tuk tuk tuk..."
After finishing the meal and putting away the dishes, there was a sudden knock on the door outside.
"It should be door-to-door sales." The tall and thin woman said as she got up to open the door. She came back soon, "What a strange guy."
As she spoke, she threw a black business card on the dining table, "I just gave him a business card and ran away without saying a word. This is too strange."
"Could he be a liar?" The short, fat woman picked up the business card. There was a dragon head printed on it, but there was no other information.
"How can a liar not speak up?" said the tall and thin woman.
However, when Su Xuefei saw the black business card, her face suddenly turned pale and her body trembled slightly.
Since everyone was clearing away the dishes, they didn't notice the change in her expression.
"I'm going for a walk." She got up and said,
"Be careful and safe." Su Muzhu warned, but she didn't pay special attention. This is a satellite signal coverage area and a high-end residential area, so security is very high.
Su Xuefei hurried out of the door, looking around as she walked.
"Oh, what a coincidence. Isn't this our Miss Su Xuefei? She's fine..."
A frivolous voice came from the dark corner, and two men, one tall and one short, came out.
"What do you want to do!" Su Xuefei's face turned pale, she clenched her fists and looked at the two of them nervously.
"What do you want to do?" The tall and thin man sneered, like a dangerous hyena, "You want to demolish the bridge after crossing the river, there is no such reason, right?"
"Miss Su Xuefei, you can't do this to us!" The short man came closer.
Su Xuefei couldn't help but retreat and shouted, "I've already given you money!"
"I gave it, but it's still not enough..." The tall, thin man said in a gloomy tone, "Little girl, do you think it's easy to go to the Black Death Continent and bring someone back?"
"Thirty thousand gold coins are only enough for travel expenses. When we come back, we have to pay atonement and re-register our identity. We paid a lot of money in advance."
"That's not what you said before!" Su Xuefei shouted.
"Keep your voice down!" The tall and thin man looked around with a ruthless look on his face, "You don't want your man to know either, right?"
"If Owl knows that you use his money to help another man, I think you know the consequences better than us."
The tall and thin man sneered, "One is the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, and the other is the chief of staff of the military. If the two of them fight, I don't know who will survive..."
"No!" Su Xuefei covered her mouth, her big eyes full of fear.
"Don't worry, Miss Su Xuefei, we are all fools. If there is no need, who would dare to provoke them? They are all big shots in Ambergris River." The tall and thin man put on a kind-hearted look, "You As long as we make up the remaining money, we promise to keep it secret.”
"You, how much more do you want?" Su Xuefei asked fearfully.
The tall and thin man held out two fingers and said, "Give me another 20,000 gold coins, and we'll be settled."
"You!" Su Xuefei's face turned pale, and the other lion opened her mouth, her anger suddenly overshadowing her fear.
"Don't be angry, Miss Su Xuefei, your man has plenty of money, so 20,000 gold coins is enough to get rid of it." The tall and thin man persuaded.
Although Su Xuefei was shaking with anger, she finally agreed under the other party's coercion and inducement.
After Su Xuefei left, the short man's fierce expression immediately dropped, revealing a look of fear.
"Brother Long, will something happen if we do this?" The short man was obviously very frightened, "Her two men are really ruthless people. If they find out, we will be ten It’s not enough to lose your head.”
"Just rest assured, that stupid woman won't tell you even if she dies." The tall and thin man was full of confidence, "Just think, when two tigers fight, one of them will be injured, and we are not the ones who are afraid. "
"When she gives the remaining money, let's run away to the outer continent. No one can find us." The short man said.
"That's not possible, this stupid woman is our cash cow!" The tall and thin man said with a sinister look on his face, "As long as we catch her weak spot, we won't have to worry about our prosperity for the rest of our lives, hahaha!"
At the end of the sentence, the tall and thin man couldn't help laughing.
"Brother Long is wise!"
On the other side, Su Xuefei, who returned home, locked herself in the room, huddled in the corner, folded her arms, and trembled all over.
Why did she get involved with this ruffian named "Brother Long"? The story started four years ago.
After the fire in Crow City, Chen Xing escorted their mother and daughter all the way to Monitor Lizard City, and then said goodbye to her.
Not long after, she saw Chen Xing's wanted notice on the LCD billboard on the street.
She was worried, but after all, she was just a little girl with nothing, and could do nothing but be anxious.
It wasn't until half a year later that she learned from a court clerk that Chen Xing had committed a crime and killed the heir apparent of a wealthy family, and was exiled to the Black Death Continent.
She began to look up relevant information about the Black Death Continent on the Internet, and learned that almost no people who were exiled there could survive, so she became even more worried.
She was worried that she would never see the kind mercenary man again.
Later, she was introduced to Ricardo and became the owl's canary.
Now that she has money, she looks for people everywhere to get Chen Xing back from the Black Death Continent.
She asked all the people she knew well, but no one had the ability in this area.
Everyone told her that no one could do it unless the Red Dragon Grand Duke himself spoke.
Later, through the introduction of a low-level official, she met the small leader of a large gang in the underground world of Monitor Lizard City, that is, this "Brother Long".
Brother Long told her that their gang often recruited people from the Black Death Continent, and also said that several of his brothers came back from the Black Death Continent.
As long as you give him 30,000 gold coins, he can fish people out of the Black Death Continent.
Obviously, this is a very low-end scam. If the other party really has the ability to lure people back from the Black Death Continent, let alone 30,000 gold coins, even with 3 million gold coins, there are many wealthy families who are willing to pay to lure their own unattractive descendants.
It's a pity that she is just a child who has no experience in the world. She has not even finished high school. She is like a lamb in this Shura field that eats people but does not spit out bones.
Su Xuefei, who had no way to ask for help, chose to believe Brother Long, and gave most of the money Ricardo gave her every month to Brother Long, begging him to save Chen Xing.
Until a few months ago, Chen Xing suddenly appeared on TV, and Brother Long said that he was the one who brought Chen Xing back.
Then he started to make up new lies, saying that Chen Xing came back and paid a lot of money in advance, and continued to squeeze and extort Su Xuefei.
Although this matter seems simple, Su Xuefei only needs to tell anyone from Ricardo or Chen Xingzhong, Brother Long and even the underground gang behind him will be dealt a devastating blow.
However, she is an extremely introverted person who keeps her feelings deep in her heart.
Just like her last life, she left Chen Xing in order not to drag him down. Because she feels that she is just a toy that has been played with by young masters and abandoned, and is not worth their efforts for a lifetime.
She simply felt that people like Chen Xing would one day become big shots and could not become a burden to him.
If she didn't say anything, Chen Xingcai would mistakenly think that she was vain and unwilling to suffer with him.
Little did he know that a wandering warbler living in a post town would have a future. There is a man who is willing to support himself and provide long-term meal tickets, and he will laugh even in his dreams.
Just as now, she was worried that Ricardo would collapse if he knew she spent money on other men.
She is always worried about others, but rarely takes care of herself.
