spring dream

Chapter 9

009

The Heya Teahouse in Shilan Street is still open, and there are still many guests.On both sides of the long street, square tables were set up one after another, parasols were set up, and they formed two curved dragons, preparing for the temple fair from the first day to the seventh day.

A few scattered people were busy, and they were all familiar faces here. When they saw Xiao Er and Fang Mingli, they nodded their heads in greeting.

The police car was parked at the entrance of Zhalan Street. It took more than 30 minutes to get to the police station, but now it only took more than ten minutes, and the journey was smooth.

Xiao Er kept looking out of the window, and the city and street scenes quickly passed by in his eyes. He blinked very slowly, breathed very slowly, and moved very lightly. Fang Mingli could hardly feel that the co-pilot was still sitting alone.

There are only a few police officers left in the police station who are still sticking to their posts. Most of them are sorting out the case materials that have piled up in the past year and sorting them into the warehouse.Seeing Fang Mingli, they shouted "Team Fang" in unison, then bowed their heads and continued with the trivial and tedious work on hand.

When Fang Mingli walked into the office, the landline rang. He picked it up. It was an old friend from the police force.This person was shot in the abdomen while performing official duties. After recovering from his injuries, he retired to the second line. Now he is working as an archivist of the Shuozhou Public Security Bureau.

He said "um" twice, nodded, sighed again, and hung up the phone.

Xiao Er sat in the swivel chair in front of the desk, put his arms on the armrests, leaned back against the back of the chair, looking for a solid place.After lighting a cigarette and taking two puffs, my body was still cold and my face was pale, as if I had hypoglycemia.

Fang Mingli didn't know whether he should relay the content of the phone call, he was hesitating when he saw Xiao Er lowered his eyes and smiled, and shook the cigarette in his hand: "Tell me, there's nothing I can't accept."

The green plants on the window sill grow towards the sun, full of green vine leaves, and full of greenery.Fang Mingli likes to grow some flowers and plants. On the table, on the ground, in the corner of the coffee table, there are dozens of pots, big and small, evergreen in all seasons, full of vigorous vitality.

Only Xiao Er was the only one that withered.

"I've already shown them Wen Qi's photos, and they all said they didn't have any impression." Fang Mingli leaned against the table, with one arm around his chest, and a cigarette in his mouth, just to refresh himself. "A few criminals want to give I commuted my sentence and confessed to my accomplices who were hiding in other provincial capitals, and it will take some time to find them. If there is a big festival, the news will be slow to come back, and it may be delayed until the next year."

In fact, the two of them knew better than anyone else that the driver was gone, and the most important clue was gone. It was originally a needle in a haystack, but now it was even more difficult.And the moment Xiao Er learned the truth, the breath that had sustained him for six years finally broke.

"Don't be discouraged." Fang Mingli exhaled white smoke, stretched out his hand to pat Xiao E's shoulder, and squeezed it twice, as if he wanted to squeeze the man's soul back into his body, "As long as there is still a glimmer of hope, don't give up."

Fang Mingli briefly explained to Xiao E the whole process of the Shuozhou police's arrest of human traffickers, all of which were useless.But he felt that if he didn't say something to distract Xiao Er at this time, and let him continue to slump like this, maybe he really wouldn't be able to cheer up again.

The second half of the cigarette was burnt out on Xiaoer's fingertips. His mouth was bitter and he had no desire/desire to smoke again.I crushed the cigarette into the ashtray on the table, and when I got up, my footsteps were a little vain, and it was only when I walked to the door that I felt a little bit more real.

Putting his hand on the handle, he turned his head and said calmly, "Thank you, Uncle Fang."

Standing in the warm sun, with the uncleaned snow on both sides of the road in his vision, shining bright spots, Xiao Er squatted on the side of the curb for a while, thinking for a long time, and when he looked up again, he suddenly felt a little confused and went home direction.

The phone kept vibrating in his pocket, he took it out to have a look, sometimes it was Lu Xiaozhao, sometimes it was Sister Fang.

Lu Ran's company had a holiday in advance, and when he got off work at noon, he went to Caishikou to buy some melons, fruits and fresh vegetables, and returned to Xiao's house with two big bags of ingredients.

Before he went into the kitchen to put things on the sink, Lu Xiaozhao's special ring rang, so he put the bag on the stone table next to the red plum tree, took out his phone and swipe the screen to answer.

"Brother." The opera could be faintly heard on the phone, Lu Xiaozhao covered the receiver and picked up the sound with his hand, "Master Xiao went to the boxing gym."

Lu Ran was a little surprised: "The boxing gym is still open today?"

Lu Xiaozhao said anxiously: "I called the manager of the boxing gym, and he said that Master Xiao specially ordered their strongest boxer to practice boxing with him. It sounds like something is not right, and I am a little worried."

Lu Ran smiled: "What is there to worry about? It's not the first time I've been back. I've been practicing for three or four years. When did I see him come back with injuries?"

Lu Xiaozhao pursed his lips, and recounted everything that happened in the morning to Lu Ran. The two sides paused for a few seconds, and Lu Ran said, "I'll go to the boxing gym."

A small road from Shengyang Hutong crosses the residential area and walks eastward for three kilometers. There is an inconspicuous signboard in the middle of a row of shops along the street.On the left is a beauty salon, and on the right is foreign trade clothing. It closes early and opens late, and the business is flat. They are all waiting for the government to demolish and renovate.

Inside the dilapidated glass door under the signboard, straight up the dark corridor, the space on the second floor is much wider, and the decoration has become grand and luxurious.

Lu Ran walked into the boxing gym, the room was brightly lit, a few solid red pillars stood in the center of the black and white checkered floor tiles, and a person was lying on his stomach inside the red and white rope.The strong man took off his gloves, glanced at Lu Ran, waved his hands and sighed: "I can't practice, Master Xiao's fists are like cotton balls, he just wants to be beaten."

Lu Ran raised the rope and leaned in, squatting beside Xiao E, turned him over, his skin was full of scars, blue and swollen: "You can really do it."

"It's none of my business." The strong man picked up the white paper at his feet and pointed to the black words on it, "As soon as we met, he stuffed me with a 'life and death agreement', and then transferred me 8000 yuan to let me punch with all my strength. , if I quit, I should be the one lying here."

Lu Ran didn't help Xiao E either, the man was still panting, with the residual heat from his body exuding.After his breathing slowed down, he asked: "Why, who said that this life is not yours and has no right to end it, so what are you doing now?"

"Uncomfortable." Xiao Er squeezed out a gloomy smile at Lu Ran, and put his fist on his chest, "Try a little more to neutralize the pain, and it will make you feel better."

"Crazy." Lu Ran straightened his brown windbreaker and sat cross-legged by Xiao Er's hand, looking out of the bright glass window. The branches of locust trees divided the blue sky into several pieces, and the scenery of each piece was different: "I bought A bunch of dishes are ready to show their talents, but you interrupted me, I have nothing to eat at noon, and the family of four will be hungry until night."

"Don't worry." Xiao Er borrowed strength from Lu Ran's arm, straightened his upper body with a painful expression, arched his back and chest, and let out a long breath, "Your brother has a really good appetite. He ate my breakfast and didn't eat lunch. Not hungry either."

Lu Ran said with a "tsk": "The old man is about to cry, the grandson doesn't care about him."

Xiao Er turned his head to look at him, couldn't hold back, his shoulders trembled while laughing.

The two of them sat together for more than ten minutes. Lu Ran couldn't stand the pain in his coccyx from the floor diaphragm, and regardless of whether Xiao E's mood was clearer, he picked him up, put on his sweater and raised his head towards the strong man. Walking to the door, "Honestly pass the New Year, where you want to go, what you want to do in the future, I will not stop, I will accompany you to toss together."

"It's so good." Xiao E's body was always crooked, one arm was pulled by Lu Ran, and he almost didn't bite the cigarette, "Then go out with me to relax in a few days."

"How long?"

"A week? A month? Half a year?"

"Where am I so fake?"

Xiao Er snorted, and said disdainfully: "An old man is doing wedding planning, and it makes people laugh when he talks about it. Hurry up and resign to be the boss of 'Heya', saving half an hour from having to call your brother , how good it is to see it under Shuan’s eyelids.”

"Don't be ridiculous." Lu Ran swayed slowly on the main road side by side with him, "I'm not expected to be a boss."

Xiao Er didn't answer, and the noisy voices around him gradually amplified.After a long time, Lu Ran suddenly grabbed him and asked solemnly, "What do you mean?"

"I want to leave here." Xiao Er turned his eyes away, stared at the fluffy circle of light at the end of his field of vision, and said calmly, "I have to find Wen Qi."

"That's not necessary..."

"Until death is found."