Chapter 2

At the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, in a small alley of the city of Yangcheng, the stifling air seemed to stagnate between the closely packed, densely built tenement buildings. Accompanied by the creaking sounds of air conditioner units, it urged the passersby to hurry home.

Of course, the night snack stall at the front of the alley, which only opened at night, was still bustling with activity. In addition to the migrant workers living in the urban village behind, who were eating skewers, drinking, and boasting, there was also a table of college students who were already flushed and excited from drinking.

"Come on, Yanzi, let's have another bottle," a burly, Northern-accented boy said, picking up a bottle of beer and slinging his arm around the shoulders of the boy sitting next to him, who had a scholarly and delicate appearance.

"Uh, no... not... not now, Lao Lei, I... I'm a bit full... I'll drink later..." The scholarly boy looked at the bottle of wine pushed towards him by a giggling girl beside him, burped, and then slurred.

His tolerance for alcohol was poor to begin with, and he couldn't compare to Lao Lei, a typical Northern man.

"Yanzi, look at our Shiyun and Jiuer. They've been drinking a lot too, right? They haven't changed a bit. You've only had a little and you're already saying you can't go on. How are the younger girls going to look at you?" Lao Lei teased.

However, being a friend and not a mortal enemy, Lao Lei only teased him and didn't force him. Instead, he took a big gulp of his own beer, wiped his mouth, and set down a bottle that was now more than half empty.

"It's not that I can't, I just want to take a break before drinking more," the scholarly boy, being young, couldn't resist the challenge. He scratched his head and hesitated with the bottle in his hand.

"Since you can still go, then drink! Yan, you're the MVP today. Your sniper skills made the whole internet cafe tremble. We wouldn't have won without you!" A tall, thin boy sitting opposite him cheered, "How can the MVP not drink? Drink, drink, drink!"

The two girls who had accompanied them to the internet cafe competition were also quite excited from the alcohol, especially the girl named Shiyun sitting next to Yan. She clapped her hands and cheered, "Brother Yanzi, drink, drink, drink!"

"Fanhe, are you trying to sabotage your teammates?" Yan smiled bitterly and pointed at the tall, thin boy.

His head was a bit fuzzy now, in the joy of the great comeback win, under the urging of the girls' clear voices, and with the subtle influence of hormones. Yan finally put aside his concerns about getting drunk, stood up, raised his bottle, and called out boldly, "Alright, I'll drink!"

"Great!" Everyone cheered, even the shy Jiuer clapped her hands and laughed.

"Yanzi, you're a man!" Lao Lei gave him a thumbs up, opened another bottle of beer, and clinked it with Yan's, "Come on, I'll drink with you!"

"Brother Yanzi is awesome!" Shiyun looked at Yan with shining eyes, cheering and raising her arms, her ample chest gently trembling, making the other boys at the table unable to look away.

...

Meanwhile, in another corner of Yangcheng, on the old dormitory building of Xinfeng Garment Factory, a few female workers were leaning on the railing, laughing and pointing at some male workers from an electronics factory passing by.

But in the same building, in a closed dormitory room, a thin, haggard woman was sobbing, clutching a crumpled photo. The photo showed a simple-looking working couple, the man's face scratched up, while the woman's face, though worn, still showed a hint of purity and beauty.

Beside her, a baby lay in a dirty blanket, hungry and whimpering, its little feet moving weakly.

However, the woman showed no reaction, lost in her own sorrow. Occasionally, when she looked up, a hint of struggle flashed across her pale face.

...

As night deepened, the number of passersby in the alley decreased significantly. The only ones left were the tired, well-dressed white-collar workers returning from overtime. More windows in the tenement buildings lit up silently.

At the night snack stall, the students were also mostly drunk. Lao Lei, his face flushed, looked at his watch and said, "It's not early. Let's stop here today! If we go back any later, the dorm will be closed."

After all, they were still students, and the dormitory building closed at 11:30 PM. If they didn't go back, they would have to sleep on the street. At Lao Lei's suggestion, everyone gradually stood up, chatting and laughing.

"Waitress, the bill!" Lao Lei said in a mock Cantonese accent, pulling out his thick wallet and waving to the busy waiter.

A round-faced, slightly plump boy shyly glanced at Shiyun, who was stretching and chatting with another girl, and her ample chest. He moved over, not to Shiyun, but to Yan, who was still dazed, and patted his shoulder, whispering, "Yanzi, we're going back!"

Yan's body swayed, and as his head slipped off his hand, he regained a bit of consciousness, forcing himself to sit up straight. His eyes, a bit blurry, looked ahead, and he slurred, "What, what..."

Shiyun, amused, leaned over, her hair falling and a sweet fragrance wafting, and said loudly, "Brother Yanzi, we're going back!"

The sweet scent of Shiyun's hair and the close proximity made the plump boy's face turn red. He awkwardly pulled back his head, but his eyes couldn't help but linger on Shiyun's well-covered chest.

Fortunately, everyone was a bit drunk, and his blushing went unnoticed.

Lao Lei, having paid the bill, saw Yan still sitting there dazed and asked with a smile, "Yanzi, are you okay? If you're drunk, Jiangyuan and I will help you back."

Jiangyuan, the plump boy, quickly nodded and reached out to support Yan, saying, "Yanzi, let me help you!"

Yan, still a bit dazed, shook his head, trying to clear his mind. His eyes, like those of a cross-eyed chicken, struggled to focus on Jiangyuan's round face.

Yan wobbled to his feet, patted himself off, pushed away Jiangyuan's hand, and grinned foolishly, "No... no need, I... I'm not drunk! I can... I can still... drink!"

"See!" To prove he wasn't drunk, he took a few wobbly steps.

"Then let's go! Jiangyuan, keep an eye on Yanzi," Lao Lei, who had drunk the most but felt nothing, waved his hand and called everyone to head back to school.

The walk back to school was a quiet, secluded night path. They had chosen to eat here because the internet cafe where they had won the competition was nearby. After the victory, everyone was so excited that they found a snack stall to celebrate without thinking about going back to school.

But it was fine. Although everyone was a bit drunk, walking back together, chatting and laughing, made the journey safe and enjoyable.

"Brother Leizhentian, how much did the night snack cost? Let's split it!" Jiuer, who had been waiting for a chance to speak, finally got her moment. She weakly spoke and pulled out her purple wallet.

She had been invited by Shiyun and wasn't very familiar with the others.

"No, no, it's no big deal. I'll treat you all!" Lao Lei, whose real name was Leizhentian, waved his hand and laughed.

The tall, thin boy, known as "Fanhe," looked a bit uneasy and coughed, "Sister Jiuer, our Leizhentian is a rich man! He doesn't need you to pay for a night snack."

Shiyun, holding Jiuer's hand, giggled, "Come on, Jiuer, put your wallet away. Brother Lei isn't short of money!"

"Then, thank you, Brother Leizhentian! And thank you, Brother Fanghexu," Jiuer put away her wallet, thanked Leizhentian, and gave Fanghexu a light smile.

Jiangyuan secretly glanced at Shiyun, who was walking hand in hand with Jiuer. Her every smile and frown was like a blooming flower, and her red cheeks exuded an irresistible charm. This made his already dizzy head surge with a wave of excitement.

He had long forgotten the task Lao Lei had given him and even took a few quick steps forward to get closer to Shiyun. He puffed out his slightly plump chest, glanced at Shiyun, and said loudly, "Right, even if we split the bill, it should be the boys who pay, not the girls!"

"What do you mean, not the girls? Ah Yuan, you're talking nonsense!" Another boy from the neighboring dorm, but also part of their team, heard the flaw in Jiangyuan's drunken words and teased him.

"Ah? This... I didn't mean that..." Jiangyuan blushed and tried to defend himself.

"Hehe, Brother Jiangyuan, I didn't expect you to talk like that!" Shiyun playfully stuck out her tongue and teased him.

Jiangyuan, blushing, scratched his head, and didn't know how to respond to Shiyun's words.

Everyone laughed, but no one noticed that Yan, who had been walking unsteadily and dizzily at the back, had just tripped over a brick on the side of the road. His legs gave out, and he stumbled to the side.

"Thud..." Yan fell into a pile of garbage by the roadside, landing on a stack of garbage bags.

Perhaps everyone's heads were a bit fuzzy, or Yan was walking slowly and had fallen a few meters behind, or their laughter had drowned out the sound behind them. No one noticed Yan's predicament, and no one saw his figure buried in the garbage pile where the streetlights didn't reach. They continued chatting and laughing as they walked back to school.

Yan, after the fall, felt dizzy and the alcohol hit him hard. Even as he tried to get up, his legs slipped, and he fell back down.

This time, Yan really couldn't get up. His head was fuzzy, and his mind kept sending signals to "lie down, rest a bit, and then get up."

The soft "ground" felt like a comfortable bed...

Gradually, his last bit of consciousness gave up the struggle, and he laid his head on the soft garbage bag and fell asleep...

...

After an unknown amount of time, on a deserted street, a bicycle wobbled over. When the shadow of the bicycle merged with the alley's darkness, the creaking sound stopped.

A thin woman got off the bicycle, perhaps from the long and tiring ride, she panted heavily, her hands trembling as she opened her bag and carefully took out a baby wrapped in a clean towel, having already changed from a dirty blanket.

Though it was hard to see, the small bundle was moving, as if making a final struggle against fate.

Her eyes, hidden in the shadows of the night, shimmered with tears and the last bit of hesitation and struggle.

But she steeled her heart, placed the baby, who was still kicking its little feet and making "um um" sounds, into the pile of garbage, and turned away, choking back sobs and crying hoarsely, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I... I can't raise you. It's not my fault. If you blame anyone, blame... blame that bastard..."

She turned and left, leaving the baby, who was still trying to wave its soft little hands, to a new life without a past or "burden." After all, she was still young...

Behind her, the garbage pile moved, and a drunk, unfortunate man rolled over, revealing a still somewhat handsome face. He rubbed his nose and continued to sleep soundly.

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