Thank you for subscribing to Jinjiang Literature City's official version~ The weather in September, the beginning of summer has just ended, and the heat is still lingering. Especially in a small city like Shenzhen in the south, the earth has been scorched by the sun all day, and at night, even the soil exudes a sense of unbearable anxiety.

  "Master, go to Maogezhen."

  Jiang Xi took a deep breath and felt that even the air in Shenzhen was fragrant.

  "Alright, let's go."

  Huang Shifu stepped on the gas pedal from the train station's drop-off area and drove all the way out, but his eyes couldn't help sneaking a peek at the girl in the back seat through the rearview mirror.

  At around 16 or 17 years old, she was extremely beautiful, with a pale complexion that wasn't unhealthy, but rather like the finest white jade, her skin translucent and radiant. Her facial expression was neutral, yet just sitting there so primly and properly made her seem like a person who had stepped out of a painting - lovely and spirited.

  Maybe...

  It's just a bit strange.

  Huang Shifu had been a taxi driver for many years, and he had seen all sorts of people. There were the ugly and the beautiful, the poor and the rich, the pretty and the not-so-pretty. No matter who they were, when they went out, they would always try their best to look presentable. But this girl was an exception. She wore a white T-shirt with yellow stains, her sleeves were unevenly cut off at the cuffs, and even her ripped jeans looked like they had been rolled around in mud - all of which formed a stark contrast with her clean and pretty face.

  "Did you fall?"

  Jiang Xi leaned against the windowsill, silently gazing outside, and didn't respond to Huang Shifu's greeting.

  In her previous life, she had been to Shencheng once, but at that time, Shencheng was a huge empty city for her, a boundless sorrow. She came with hope and left in despair, until death, she did not dare to set foot in Shencheng again.

  Twelve years later, Shenzhen is not much different from twelve years ago.

  This southern small town, from start to finish, has always been leisurely and slow-paced, and even the whole city of Shenzhen is less bustling with the smoke and fire of a big city. The way people do things is full of the style of old men, as if they are out of touch with the times.

  "... didn't fall."

  Jiang Xi's voice was hoarse.

  It wasn't until a while later that Huang realized the girl was responding to his previous question, "How did it end up like this? My parents will be heartbroken when they find out."

  Jiang Xi couldn't help but think, and as soon as he did, his heart felt like an arrow: "Master, can we speed up a bit?"

  Huang Shifu let out a crisp "ah" and shifted gears, accelerating rapidly as he floored it. The taxi shot out like an arrow, slipping smoothly through the city's twinkling lights like a fish.

  Maoge Town is about an hour's drive from Shenzhen Railway Station. After paying for the train ticket and taxi fare, Jiang Xi had little money left on him.

  But this dirty money, once spent, is gone. Jiang Xi didn't care much and put the remaining few coins in his pocket, walking hastily into the alley.

  The night was deep and dark, with only dim yellow streetlights along the way. Jiang Xi's heart was like a pot of water that had been simmering, gradually boiling up over time.

  Turning a corner, a low-rise tube-shaped building suddenly came into view.

  Three-story building, standing alone in the night with no lights on downstairs. She habitually walked up to her home on the third floor, second room from the left, a 50-square-meter apartment with one bedroom and one living room, where even having meals was a squeeze.

  Even if it's just 50 square meters, it was bought by Jiang Xi's father with the money he had saved for half his life. He borrowed 300,000 yuan from relatives and friends, scraping together a total of 600,000 yuan to buy this second-hand house.

  The location is not bad, close to her current high school. If it weren't for the house being really run down, with this location, the price should be even higher.

  There is a lamp inside the door.

  Jiang Xi took a deep breath and knocked on the door with a "knock knock knock" sound.

  "Who is it? So late."

  With a murmur, the door creaked open and a strange man wearing only shorts and with bare shoulders opened it.

  Jiang Xi was taken aback, the woman behind the man poked out her head, saw a young and beautiful little girl, her face immediately fell, and she twisted the man's arm: "Well, Li Quaner, your mistress has come to your doorstep."

  Li Quaner is innocent.

  Jiang Xi was a bit stunned, "...... Who are you? And what happened to the people who originally lived here?"

  Hearing a noise at the door, he also opened the door and saw that it was Jiang Xi. He was startled: "Little Creek?"

  "Aunt Liu." Jiang Xi subconsciously grasped the old neighbor's sleeve, his lips turning white: "Where are my dad and mom?"

  She didn't dare imagine another possibility —

  Heavens, if it's true that the butterfly effect exists in this world, then Jiang Xi hopes that all misfortunes will only befall himself.

  Liu Aunt's face was filled with regret, "Little Creek, where did you go? Your dad and mom sold the house a few days ago and went to another place to look for you."

  The house has been sold?

  The woman who bought the house looked at her vigilantly: "We've paid all the money and signed the contract, it's not good to take it back."

  Jiang Xi understood that in order to sell a house so quickly, it must be at a very low price. The new owner must have made a big profit, but "as long as nothing bad happens to the person, that's all that matters."

  Liu Aunt's pitiful eyes made Jiang Xi feel uncomfortable, she knew that everyone in this area probably knew that she had been taken away by the kidnappers, and there would be no shortage of rumors and gossip, the house would have to be sold sooner or later.

  Jiang Xi borrowed a mobile phone from Liu Auntie and this time Jiang Father answered very quickly: "Hello?"

  A familiar voice, traversing the sixteen-year time barrier, directly pouring into Jiang Xi's right ear.

  Aunt Liu looked at this little girl clenching her fists with exposed fingers, and couldn't help but feel a pang in her heart for the phone, secretly sighing: What's going on here?

  "Dad, I'm back." Jiang Xi said softly, "I'm back, Dad."

  Jiang's father couldn't hide his excitement and exclaimed "Ah!" as he nodded repeatedly: "As long as you're back, it's all good."

  Jiang Mu beside him changed his tone: "Is it Xi Xi? Is it Xi Xi?"

  "Mom—"

  Before the words had fallen, Liu aunt saw that the girl who was still calm just now suddenly choked silently, tears like rain. The girl's soft and beautiful profile, as if it had been brutally struck by pain, was twisted into a dense sorrow.

  Liu aunt felt a slight sourness in her nose.

  She didn't know that this was a soul who had been trudging through hardships for many years, letting out a mournful cry for the past.

  Jiang Xi cried uncontrollably, as if those dark and hopeless past days were slowly disappearing in this cry, finally turning into a wisp of light smoke that evaporated and vanished.

  Jiang Mu on the other end of the phone also cried bitterly, and the two of them bought the nearest train ticket in the shortest time possible, rushing back overnight.

  By the time we arrived in Shanghai, it was just getting light.

  The two parties met again and had a good cry.

  Jiang's father and mother thanked Liu Aunt and Liu Uncle again and again, and were especially grateful for their hospitality to Jiang Xi. When they left, they handed over a red envelope with 1,000 yuan, but unexpectedly, Liu Aunt refused to accept it.

  She waved her hand in refusal: "We're neighbors, what's the need for such courtesy? Besides, my child has suffered so much, if I just stood by and did nothing, would I still be human? You folks are struggling too, keep it for your own use."

  Liu Aunt's gaze fell on the tightly closed door across from her, and Jiang Father and Jiang Mother simultaneously fell silent.

  Compared to the rapidly changing housing prices outside, Shanghai's housing prices have not risen much over the years. Especially in Moganshan Town, which is close to a rural town, three years ago, a house worth 600,000 yuan was sold for around 670-680,000 yuan at most. They sold it urgently and got only 400,000 yuan.

  It's easy to send something out, but it's impossible to get it back once it's gone.

  For three years, relatives and friends borrowed 300,000 yuan. Calculated at bank interest rates, the couple only repaid more than 50,000 yuan, leaving 250,000 yuan in principal unpaid. The 400,000 yuan raised was spent on finding the child through various connections, with nearly 100,000 yuan spent in just over a dozen days. After deducting external debts, there were only 50,000 yuan left.

  What can 50,000 yuan do in this world?

  Moreover, in order to find people, Jiang's father and mother both quit their jobs. Originally, their income was not high, and they were old, making it difficult for them to find new work again.

  "As long as people come back."

  Jiang's father patted Jiang Xi's shoulder. This wooden and honest man, who had been like this for his whole life, couldn't help but redden his eyes at this moment. "It's good that you're back."

  Like countless fathers in the world, Jiang's father had always been reserved in expressing his emotions, but when Jiang Xi stood before him once again, he couldn't help but burst into tears.

  "Little creek, let's live at Uncle's house first, and wait for Dad to find a new rental house before moving out."

  Jiang Xi subconsciously furrowed her brow, and Jiang Mu knew she had never liked going to Eldest Uncle's house, so she comforted her by saying: "It's only for a few days, your eldest sister's temper is like that, we'll put up with it for a few days and then move out, okay?"

  "Good."

  Jiang Xi hugged Jiang Mu's arm, shaking it like a spoiled child: "When we move into our new home, I want to eat mom's braised pork, roasted chestnuts and chicken, and also steamed shrimp..."

  The brook babbled and chirped, the joyful atmosphere infecting the two of them. Jiang's father and mother exchanged a smile without thinking, feeling relieved that it seemed their child hadn't suffered much this time.

  The house was sold quickly, and many large items were discounted with the house to the new residents. Jiang's father and mother's dowry were packed up and sent to Eldest Uncle's home, which was convenient at this time anyway.

  However--

  Jiang Mu looked at Jiang Xi with a heartache, Liu Shu's daughter was shorter than Jiang Xi, and her frame was extremely small. The same knee-length skirt, when worn by Jiang Xi, became an ultra-mini skirt. Her shoulders and sleeves were tightly stuck to her body, and she was going to her uncle's house like this, who knows if she would be ridiculed by Jiao Jiao.

  Jiang's mother couldn't bear Jiang Xi suffering any grievances, so she sent Jiang's father ahead to make arrangements and took Jiang Xi to a nearby shopping mall.

  "Go, Mom will pick out two sets of clothes for you first, my daughter is so pretty and can't be dressed poorly."

  If it were the old Jiang Xi, she would naturally agree a thousand times and even coax her mother to spend more money on other things. But she wasn't a naive high school student who didn't know what was going on; she was very clear about their family's current situation, so she shook her head and said:

  "Mom, never mind, I'll just wear what I used to."

  "No way." Jiang Mu insisted, "Mom has also opened up now. Money is just a bastard thing, no matter how much you pinch and save, it's still useless when you need it most."

  Jiang Xi couldn't argue with her, so he smiled and hugged Jiang Mu's arm: "Then, mom, don't blame your daughter for being wasteful later."

  Jiang Xi felt warmth in her heart as if there were twenty-four suns shining on her all day, making her limbs feel weak and her chest scorching hot.

  It was the end of the season, and the mall was having a clearance sale with discounts everywhere. The air conditioning was on full blast, and Jiang Xi and his mother were taking advantage of the free cooling. For a while, no one was in a hurry to leave, so they simply went up and down, browsing around.

  Jiang Xi has long legs and is naturally slender, with a good face to boot. Recently, however, she's lost so much weight that her bones are almost visible, the baby fat on her face all gone, making her look rather gaunt.

  A hundred dollars worth of fast fashion, she can also wear out a high-end feel worth tens of thousands.

  Every time she tried on clothes, there were other customers in the store who would spot them and queue up to try them on and buy them, greatly boosting the store's sales.

  Jiang Xi didn't go to the luxury goods store, and even some slightly higher-end brands were not visited. In the end, she chose two skirts, one T-shirt, and a light blue denim pants with a frayed edge. When checking out, the salesperson even gave her an employee discount and warmly invited her to come again next time.

  Four items, all together costing no more than six hundred yuan, made Jiang Xi very satisfied.

  Jiang Mu was not very satisfied.

  As a mother, she would never want to see her children grow up hastily, but rather let them develop step by step. Jiang Xi suddenly became so sensible, and Mother Jiang couldn't think of any other possibility, assuming that her daughter must have been wronged outside.

  "Mom," Jiang Xi helplessly put his arm around her and walked out: "Don't think too much about it, the daughter just didn't take a liking to him."

  She now has the mind to go shopping, and a wonderful prompt tone "ding ding dong" rings in her brain, like fireworks, one after another.

  "Xiao Yan, how did you suddenly become so popular?"

  Logically, it should have exploded when it was sent to the police station.

  Xiao Yan couldn't help but nod happily, "The parents have come to pick them up."

  Jiang Xi suddenly understood, the parents came to pick up Xiao Luobo, and this matter was settled. Some of the smaller ones should have come back to their senses by now. Her gentle and kind-hearted big sister image didn't collapse, and with the added bonus of saving her life, it wouldn't be surprising if she became an idol.

  "How much in total?"

  Jiang Xi listened to his mother's nagging with one ear while asking Xiao Qian with the other.

  Xiao Yan replied swiftly, apparently extremely satisfied with this errand: "Nine faith points, three joy points, totaling nine hundred and fifteen. Adding the previous forty-four makes it nine hundred and fifty-nine. Subtracting the three drops of Worry-Dispelling Dew that were prepaid, tripled to six hundred, leaves three hundred and fifty-nine."

  This time, seeking wealth and honor in danger

  Jiang Xi finally managed to earn himself an extra year, it was worth it.

  "There's more good news." Xiao Yan paused for dramatic effect, the words dancing in his mind like a ballet. "Your report was great, and the police took advantage of it to catch all the culprits in one fell swoop. They followed up on leads and cracked down on several dens in Gui City."

  "So?"

  "This is a great event that benefits both the country and its people, and you will gain an extra share of merit and virtue."

  Jiang Xi didn't think so, but Xiao Tian's excitement still hadn't subsided, and he only said: "According to the Bu Xin Cao host's nurturing method, after obtaining the first merit gold light, you will get a share of marrow washing liquid."

  Shampoo?

  Jiang Xi had read all sorts of girls' manga in his past life, so he immediately understood what this thing was.

  Whoa, my grass!

  Business City Chinese Network updates fastest, hurry up and come to Business City! women

  Complete works txt download, full text free, e-book, remember 77 reading books