Chapter 1

"Damn, this weather is awful."

Cheng Wen stubbed out his cigarette in the filthy, black ashtray, unscrewed the cap of his bottled water, and casually closed the betting website page.

He had a buzz cut, wore a tank top and floral shorts, and was of medium build. Though not particularly muscular, his arms and chest were covered in gaudy, colorful Azure Dragon tattoos.

His face, full of橫肉, was set with a pair of fierce, domineering, slanted eyes—he loved using these eyes to look down on others, watching them obediently avert their gaze.

Unemployed, a local thug, a hoodlum, a villain; these were Cheng Wen's labels. Theft, robbery, extortion; these were his main occupations.

"Bro, bro! Open up!"

The dilapidated door of the rented room was pounded on, and his brother Cheng Wu's voice rang out from outside.

"What the hell are you yelling for!"

Cheng Wen cursed as he stood up and yanked open the door. Cheng Wu, who looked almost exactly like him, rushed in, slammed the door shut, and shoved a piece of paper in Cheng Wen's face, shaking it. "Look."

"Look at your ass."

Cheng Wen snatched the paper, frowning as he scanned it.

Missing Person Notice: Fang Erzhu, male, 21 years old, local to Yin City, 1.72 meters tall, 60 kilograms, short hair, suffers from mild intellectual disability. Went missing on the afternoon of June 23rd in the south of the city.

Was wearing a black t-shirt, gray sweatpants, and blue sneakers when he went missing. Family has not yet found him.

If anyone has seen this person, please contact the family. A reward of 100,000 cash will be given in person!

Contact phone number: 188*****

June 30, 2019.

Cheng Wen looked up at Cheng Wu and said, "One hundred thousand?"

"One hundred thousand." Cheng Wu's expression was excited. He pointed to the man's photo on the missing person notice and said, "How about we give them a call and see? Just give them some random address, say we saw this idiot's tracks, maybe we can get a thousand or so to spend."

Unfortunately, the missing young man's eyes were crooked and his mouth was slanted, bearing no resemblance to Cheng Wen and Cheng Wu. Otherwise, pretending to be the missing person would have yielded even more.

"Alright."

Cheng Wen nodded, sat down in his chair, and took out his phone to dial the phone number on the missing person notice.

Beep, beep, beep.

The phone rang for a long time without being answered. Just as Cheng Wen and Cheng Wu were cursing non-stop and about to hang up, the call connected.

"Hello! Who is it!"

The voice on the other end of the line was an extremely loud old woman's voice. Cheng Wen and Cheng Wu were both overjoyed.

When it came to scams, elderly women were the best targets.

Moreover, the other party's voice was loud and dull, indicating that she was hard of hearing, possibly even mentally slow.

Cheng Wen glanced sideways, and Cheng Wu immediately understood, closing the window and turning off the old, big-screen television set sitting on a wooden crate in the living room.

Cheng Wen cleared his throat and shouted into the phone, "Hello? Grandma, I have news about Fang Erzhu!"

"Ah?" The old woman's voice paused, then she cried out excitedly, "Erzhu? Erzhu! Where are you? Grandma has been looking for you so hard..."

Her voice was already choked with sobs at the end of her sentence. Anyone with a shred of conscience would feel pity, but Cheng Wen and Cheng Wu only exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with joy.

"Grandma,"

Cheng Wen shouted, "We saw Erzhu on the street and took him home, gave him a bath, and fed him. He was very tired from walking around all day, and he's asleep now."

The old woman quickly said, "Yes! This child just likes to sleep. Let him continue sleeping, don't wake him up."

Cheng Wen drawled, "Grandma, I saw on the missing person notice that there's a reward of one hundred thousand yuan..."

"Yes, yes, Erzhu is such a pitiful child. He lost his father and mother when he was young, and even when he gets lost, only this old woman is looking for him. I even had to take out my coffin money to ask people to look for him... Ah, thank heavens, he's finally been found."

Cheng Wen was even more delighted. There was no one else in the other party's family besides the old woman, making it even easier to take advantage of.

He immediately made up his mind and said, "Grandma, we have to stay at home and keep an eye on Erzhu so he doesn't run around. Why don't you bring the money to our house? Our address is..."

Cheng Wen recited the address, and after confirming that the old woman had written it down on paper, he hung up the phone.

One hundred thousand yuan was enough for a risk for thugs like Cheng Wen and Cheng Wu.

If the old woman was willing to "cooperate," then everything would be fine.

If she didn't "cooperate," they could rob the money and run away on the spot.

The two anxiously waited in the rented room, from afternoon to dusk, until late at night, not even bothering to eat.

Cheng Wen waited in the room, while Cheng Wu went downstairs to wait for the old woman to arrive on the street. The two smoked several packs of cigarettes, and the soles of their shoes were covered with cigarette butts and ashes.

"Damn, this old hag isn't coming, is she?"

Cheng Wu looked at the moon hanging high in the night sky, felt the coolness of the night breeze, and waved his hand to swat away a mosquito on his hairy arm.

Just as he was complaining, an elderly woman slowly walked from the corner of the street.

The old woman was short, hunched over, dressed plainly, with a full head of white hair and slow steps. She tightly clutched a bulging cloth bag in her hand.

The old woman walked past the street corner, raised her head, and slowly looked at the street signs on the side of the road. Cheng Wu, overjoyed, quickly greeted her, constantly exchanging pleasantries while reaching for the cloth bag.

Unfortunately, the old woman hugged the bag to her chest, her eyelids drooping, and kept calling out her grandson's name.

Fearing that there were too many people on the street, Cheng Wu quickly helped the old woman into a deep alley and slowly climbed up the uneven cement steps of the old residential building.

"Grandma, let me help you carry it." Cheng Wu tried to take the cloth bag. As he reached for it, he smelled a stale odor of old clothes.

An old person's smell.

"No need." The old woman turned to the side, protecting the cloth bag, her dim eyes somewhat vigilant.

"Grandma, let me help you carry it!"

The old woman shouted loudly in the stairwell, "No need, I want to find my grandson!"

Her voice was as loud as it was on the phone. Fearing that other residents in the building would hear the noise, Cheng Wu stopped talking, thinking of making plans after entering the rented room.

He didn't speak, but the old woman slowly climbed the stairs, constantly muttering, "My grandson, my grandson, Grandma is here to pick you up, Grandma is here to pick you up..."

"Tsk."

Cheng Wu clicked his tongue, annoyed that she was walking too slowly. After looking around, he said softly, "Grandma, how about I carry you on my back? That way it'll be faster."

"...Alright." The old woman turned around, a faint smile squeezing onto her pale face as she slowly nodded.

Cheng Wu turned around, squatted on the ground, and raised his hands behind him. "Come on, get on."

"Okay."

Behind Cheng Wu's back, where he couldn't see, the old woman tilted her head back and opened her mouth, her mouth expanding to an extreme, an extreme, illuminated by the dim yellow light of the stairwell, like a torn and gaping shadow play.