Chapter 4: Iron Slag Street

  The scorching sun beat down on the city, the autumnal heat wave was unbearable. Liu Handong pointed to a messy cluster of houses in the distance and said: "Let's find a place to take a break." After finishing speaking, he lifted his foot and walked away.

  Xiao Fan followed closely behind him, like a gentle little cat.

  This is the southeast corner of Koka City, which was a rural area ten years ago. In recent years, with the expansion of urban areas and the rapid development of real estate industry, farmland has turned into residential quarters, and original villages have become chaotic and dirty urban villages. Everywhere are rental houses and barber shops, streetlights are covered with wild advertisements, and overhead wires are tangled like a mess.

  Liu Handong urgently needed a place to rest, charge his phone, and change the dressing on his wound. The hot weather made it easy for the wound to become infected, so he had to take care of it.

  The sign by the road reads "Tiegang Street", with many workshops producing anti-theft doors and windows on both sides of the street. The sound of electric saws is constant, welding sparks flash, the smell of paint is overwhelming, women from the hair salon squat at the entrance brushing their teeth and washing their faces, balconies above are drying clothes of all colors, sewage flows out of the public toilet, naked children and mangy dogs run wildly all over the street.

  There are rental house advertisements everywhere on the street, Liu Handong chose one with the cheapest price tag. He walked into a lane by the road and saw an iron gate with a door plate number nailed on both sides, Tiehua Street 108, and also a rental permit issued by the police station. Under the sunshade in the yard was a mahjong table, four middle-aged women were playing cards, and a bespectacled student-like short fat man was negotiating, he wanted to rent a room with internet access. The landlady sat at the south wind mouth of the card table, with a cigarette in her mouth, shuffling cards while saying: "200 yuan per month, it's the lowest price."

  "Does it include water and electricity? Is the internet China Netcom or China Telecom? Can this address receive express delivery?"

  The landlady slapped out a contract and said disdainfully, "Two hundred, you're still mumbling what, willing to rent then rent, if it's too expensive then go take another look."

  The student fell silent for a moment and said I rent.

  The landlady handed him a key, looked at Liu Handong and Xiao Fan, with a hint of puzzlement in her eyes. Liu Handong was 1.82 meters tall, with a robust build and sharp facial features, while Xiao Fan was less than 1.6 meters tall, petite and delicate. The contrast between the two was striking, but the landlady seemed more interested in the mahjong game, asking casually: "Renting a house?"

  "Rent." Liu Handong said.

  "How much rent per month?" The landlady handed over a card.

  "Rent the cheapest one." Liu Handong didn't have much money on him.

  "After the stick is opened, it's gone, give money, give money." Mrs. Bao won a big game and was in a great mood, collecting money while saying: "The cheapest one is on the top floor, nine square meters, with water and electricity, eighty yuan per month for you."

  "Rented." Liu Handong didn't hesitate.

  The landlady pulled out a key from her waist and handed it to him. The key had a piece of adhesive tape with numbers written on it, which was the room number.

  "My ID card is lost..." Liu Handong said.

  "No ID required, pay three deposit one." The landlady took a handful of change and counted it out one by one with her saliva.

  "We can't rent for that long." Liu Handong said, actually he had too little money on him, after paying three hundred and two yuan for four months' house rent, he didn't even have money to eat.

  "The lowest rent is one month, pay one deposit and one month in advance, 160 yuan per month." The landlady didn't even blink.

  Liu Handong was at a loss, took out 350 yuan and handed it over to the landlady, which was all the money he had on him.

  The landlady found three 10 yuan notes for him and they continued playing mahjong.

  This house was originally a two-story building on rural homestead land, but later added two more floors, divided into twenty-odd rooms, without toilets, and tap water in the yard. Liu Handong's rented room is on the top floor, with only simple furniture inside, a bamboo mat spread on the bed, stains on the towel quilt, newspaper pasted on the wall, an old poster of F4 smiling at them.

  Liu Handong's stomach was growling, and he asked Xiao Fan: "Have you eaten?"

  Xiao Fan shook her head.

  "Let's go eat." Liu Handong said.

  There are many small restaurants on Tiehua Street, most of which are dirty and greasy. The tables and chairs are placed outside, the chefs smoke and stir-fry, flies fly around, and garbage is everywhere. Liu Handong doesn't care about this, but now prices are skyrocketing, thirty yuan isn't enough to enter a restaurant, so he can only go to a noodle stall.

  Found a rice noodle and liangpi stall, Liu Handong ordered a large bowl of rice noodles with two shaobing, Xiaofei looked for half a day before ordering a small bowl of liangpi. When sitting down to wait for the food, the short bespectacled boy who rented the house earlier also came, ordered a bowl of rice noodles, took out a packet of Heart's Desire tissues from his backpack, and carefully wiped the chair, poured some water into the teacup, brushed it and splashed it out.

  Water splashed onto the middle of the road, wetting a pedestrian's pants. The man had a thick neck with a yellow metal chain hanging from it and walked sideways like a crab. His pant legs got wet and he suddenly became furious, walking over to slash at the glasses-wearing boy's occipital bone, shouting: "Damn your mother, can't you see?"

  The bespectacled man looked frightened and hastily apologized, taking out a tissue to help him wipe it clean. The muscular man pointed at his own Anta sports pants and said: "Brand name, can you afford to compensate me?"

  Liu Handong slapped the table and stood up, he couldn't bear the strong bullying the weak.

  "You're bullying my brother, what do you mean?" Liu Handong's eyes were sharp and fierce, his tall and majestic figure radiating an aura of evil fire. The burly man knew he was in trouble and retreated with a huff, muttering "Next time I'll keep my eyes open." He dragged Dreamy away, who was still cursing and complaining.

  "Thanks, we're still neighbors," said the bespectacled young man, glancing at Xiaofan and suddenly becoming enthusiastic. "My name is Zhu Xiaoqiang, what about you?"

  "Just call me Dong Ge, and this is my sister Xiao Fan." Liu Han Dong introduced himself. He remembered that Zhu Xiao Qiang had emphasized the need for internet connection when renting a house, so he must have a computer. Borrowing it should be no problem, because now all internet cafes require real-name registration and are connected to the police network. If Liu Han Dong's ID is shown, the police will probably arrive immediately.

  "Xiao Fan, what a poetic name!" Zhu Xiaoqiang said with a kind smile at Xiao Fan.

  Xiao Fan's clever smile made Liu Handong notice that Zhu Xiaoqiang's breathing had become rapid, Xiao Fan was just a minor loli, but her skin was crystal clear and translucent, her hair smooth and shiny, for an otaku like him, the lethal power was extremely high.

  Rice noodles and liangpi were served, the three of them hastily ate their meal. Liu Handong finished a large bowl of rice noodles clean, while Xiaofan only ate half of her liangpi, with an appetite smaller than a cat's.

  After finishing dinner and paying the bill, Liu Handong had twenty yuan left. He needed to buy some medicine, a universal mobile phone battery charger, paper and pen. There were many shops selling health products on Tiehua Street, but he couldn't find a real pharmacy. After walking very far, he finally found a private pharmacy where he bought a small bottle of medical alcohol, a bottle of iodine, a box of band-aids, and a pair of tweezers. These cost eighteen yuan, leaving him with only two yuan to buy a student notebook and a pen.

  Back in the rental house at Tiehua Street 108, Liu Handong took off his shirt, revealing a robust physique with a bronze-like complexion. Various scars on his body were shocking to behold. Xiao Fan didn't seem like an ordinary timid girl; she blinked her eyes and tilted her head, quietly gazing at Liu Handong.

  Liu Handong stood in front of the old, mottled mirror on his wardrobe, holding a bottle of alcohol and a pair of tweezers, preparing to remove the steel balls embedded in his back. However, he was somewhat unsuccessful, having tried twice without success.

  A soft small hand took the tweezers and carefully plucked out a bloody steel ball from Liu Handong's back, then cleaned the wound with alcohol and applied a band-aid.

  Liu Handong sized up the steel ball, which was larger in size and not a Wolf Dog cartridge using carbon dioxide gas. It was likely fired from a homemade gunpowder gun. Fortunately, he had thick skin and flesh; if it had hit a vital spot, it would have been enough to drink a pot of wine.

  The bullet on his back was removed, Liu Handong felt much lighter, he took out paper and pen to communicate with Xiaofan.

  "Where does your family live? What's your parents' phone number?" Liu Handong asked.

  Xiao Fan held a pen and wrote on the notebook, her handwriting was elegant and refined, just like herself. She wrote that she lived in Wenquan Town's Shangfeng Shangshui Villa, her father was in America and couldn't be contacted temporarily.

  It turned out to be the child of a wealthy family, Liu Handong suddenly realized that the hot spring town was inhabited by rich people, and the Shangfeng Shangshui villa was the most luxurious villa area in the city. Every household had a hot spring bathroom and an underground swimming pool, and they used underground heating in winter. This girl's family is wealthy, and the kidnapper must be after their money.

  "How did we lose contact? Do you have his phone number, I can help you call him. Or his email address, I can ask my colleague downstairs to send an email to your father." Liu Handong said.

  Xiao Fan wrote quickly: Dad is seriously ill and needs surgery, but the people around him are unreliable.

  Liu Handong nodded thoughtfully, damn it, this thing is quite complicated.

  "Where's your mom?" Liu Handong regretted asking this question as soon as he did, because Xiaofei's eyes turned red, and her mother was definitely no longer in this world.

  "Sorry, let's talk about something else. Do you know who kidnapped you?" Liu Handong hastily changed the subject.

  Xiao Fan shook her head.

  "Do you know that black CR-V? And the driver with a scar on his face, everyone calls him Lao Gu. He's tall and thin, might be a cop." Liu Handong said, gesturing as he spoke.

  Xiao Fan shook her head again.

  "So, do you have any other relatives? I'll send you to them. You've seen it yourself, I'm just a taxi driver with no money on me, and if things go wrong, I might even be wanted by the police, so I really can't protect you." Liu Handong said.

  Xiao Fan looked at him with tears welling up in her eyes, looking pitiful.

  "Don't come here, I almost died. Do you know how deep this trouble is? I still want my life, hurry up and tell me your family's address, I'll send you away." Liu Handong wasn't some otaku from downstairs, he was anxious to get rid of this hot potato.

  Xiao Fan bit her lip tightly and endured not crying.

  Liu Handong pulled out a crumpled pack of cigarettes from his pants pocket, lit one and stood on the balcony smoking, feeling anxious and frustrated. Xiao Fan was quite pitiful, but who would sympathize with himself? He had been unexpectedly drawn into a murder and kidnapping case. From what he currently knew, the other party had money and power, and even colluded with the police. As an ordinary person, he was powerless to resist, and might end up as a scapegoat, either shot or sentenced to death row, it was all settled, no need to argue.

  Although Xiaofan's family is wealthy, his father is seriously ill and needs surgery. He doesn't have anyone trustworthy around him, so he belongs to the weaker side. Who knows what's going on behind the scenes? Maybe they're heavily in debt despite their flashy appearance. It's better to be a lone drifter like me, coming and going freely without any worries.

  Liu Handong's mind was wandering, his brain was racing with wild thoughts, when suddenly a soft and gentle voice interrupted his train of thought. It was the tenant from downstairs, a woman in her early twenties with long hair and a charming smile, wearing a small suspender that revealed a deep cleavage.

  "Hey handsome guy, are you new here? Can you help me get my clothes, they were blown away by the wind?" The woman said with a sweet tone.

  A pink little pants was hanging on the balcony railing, the wind on Tiehua Street was really weird, everyone else's clothes were falling down, but here they were floating up. Liu Handong picked it up and threw it away, the woman caught it and said: "Thank you, my name is Xiaoli, handsome guy what's your name?"

  "My name is Da Dong." Liu Handong said perfunctorily.

  "Hey Liu, come to my place and play when you're free." Xiaoli said with a smile, greedily taking in Liu's bronze skin and clear six-pack abs.

  Xiao Li was pulled back by her giggling roommate, a whispered conversation ensued, followed by unbridled laughter. The neighbors downstairs were probably two fallen women.

  Liu Handong extinguished his cigarette and returned to the house. Xiao Fan had already left, but on the table was an open exercise book with two big words written on it: "Thank you".