Li Youran's home is located on Anhua Street on the southern edge of Tianhai City. It is a five-story brick-concrete building built in the 1970s. It has mottled and old exterior walls, various cables in disorder, and uneven potholes all around.
The cement pavement all shows the traces of time.
Because it is located at the urban-rural fringe, the residents here are complex. Except for a small number of aborigines, most of the rooms have been rented out and have become a habitat for migrant workers, small traders, and newly graduated college students.
Li Youran walked into the entrance of the building and went down the stairs to the underground floor. Only two low-wattage incandescent lamps were still on in the long corridor. The dim light reflected the peeling gray skin on the ceiling and walls, and large areas of
Water stains and black and green mold spots.
Various sundries, including stoves, cartons, pots, empty wine bottles, and some pots and jars of unknown purpose were piled on both sides of the corridor, leaving only a passage less than one meter wide in the middle.
Naturally, the air in the basement is not that fresh, and it smells musty all year round. But as long as you live here for a while, you can easily get used to it.
Li Youran took out the key and opened the door of room B-105. This is his home in this city. The monthly rent is 400 yuan, the upper limit he can afford. He has lived here for a year and a half, that is,
The rat tribe mentioned on the Internet.
The room is not big, only 12 square meters, without any decoration, with white gray walls, cement calendered floor, and a naked light bulb hanging from the center of the roof.
The furniture is also very simple. On the left hand side of the door is a double-decker iron frame bed, with a person sleeping underneath, and two suitcases, face plates and other sundries stacked on the upper floor. Opposite the bed is a simple cloth wardrobe with a zipper in the middle.
, split a cute cartoon pig head in half.
An old-fashioned writing desk with peeling paint and a wooden chair were placed by the window. There were thermos bottles, water cups, pen holders and a few books on the table.
The window above the desk is very high, with the upper edge extending about 1 meter above the ground level. It is closed with waterproof corrugated iron and an iron fence. Thanks to this height, some sunlight can penetrate into the room for about two hours a day.
These contents constitute Li Youran's entire personal space. Although it is simple, it is clean and organized.
He threw his bag on the table, took off his coat and shoes and fell on the bed. It was so comfortable. He was really tired today.
After a while, Li Youran fell into a deep sleep.
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I don't know how long it took, but the noise in the corridor woke up Li Youran. He rubbed his eyes, took his mobile phone and saw that it was already 9 o'clock in the evening. He had a really good sleep. The residents were getting off work and closing their stalls.
The closing of the stalls is the busiest time of the day.
Li Youran felt a little hungry in his belly. He only ate one roasted sweet potato all day and it was already digested. He patted his head and said that he forgot to buy vegetables today. He couldn't make rice. He should go outside and buy something to eat on the street.
Put on an old jacket, comb your hair with your hands, and go out.
The corridor was very lively, the lights in every house were on, there was laughter, noise, and pop songs.
As soon as Li Youran walked out of the stairs, he saw a tricycle slowly approaching under the street lights.
The person pedaling was a skinny old man with gray hair and wearing gray overalls. He was hunched over and struggling to step on the pedals. A petite girl behind the car was helping to push the car.
When the old man saw Li Youran, his dim eyes flashed with joy.
"Ranzi, come here and help me." The old man shouted.
"Hey, here we come!" Li Youran agreed and ran over quickly.
These two people are Li Youran's neighbors, the old Mr. Sun and his granddaughter Sun Xiaoying, who are also from the countryside. They set up a stall on Anhua Street on weekdays and make a living by selling steamed buns and soy milk.
Old Mr. Sun and Li Youran got along very well, and they could be considered close friends. They had been neighbors for more than a year and got along very harmoniously. He was also one of Li Youran's few friends in this city.
Li Youran came to the tricycle and said to the girl:
"Sister Xiaoying, let me come."
Sun Xiaoying glanced at Li Youran gently, her eyes were as clear as mountain springs. She did not speak, and moved her body lightly, giving up her position to Li Youran.
Li Youran exerted force with both hands, and the tricycle drove quickly towards the stairs.
"Haha, the young man is still very energetic, but the girl just can't do it." Old Sun Touer said with a smile.
Li Youran also giggled. Sun Xiaoying rolled her eyes at him, picked up a bag of things from the car, turned around and ran towards the stairs. As she turned around, she threw up two thick braids with a pair of fiery red bows on the ends.
, flying in the air like an elf.
Li Youran's heart couldn't help but tremble, and he quickly calmed down.
"Boss Sun, what's loaded in the car? It's so heavy." Li Youran asked.
"I just bought a few bags of flour and a new gas tank." Mr. Sun said as he got out of the car. He stretched out his hands to grab a bag of flour and put it on his shoulders.
Li Youran saw this and quickly stopped him.
"Come on, you old man is still doing this kind of work, and you are not afraid of getting out of hand."
Li Youran picked up a bag of flour and walked quickly down the stairs.
"You kid, you are as skinny as a corn stalk, yet you dare to look down on me!" Old Sun Tou blew his beard and glared.
Li Youran walked back and forth several times and moved a few important things into Lao Suntou's room.
This is a slightly larger room, with a small single room separated by a curtain in the back, which should be Sun Xiaoying's boudoir. There is an iron-framed single bed placed against the wall in the outer room, and a multi-layered shelf beside the bed
The shelf was stuffed with all kinds of bags and sundries. In the center of the room was a large table, with a huge chopping board placed on it. There were many things on the chopping board, including basins, kitchen knives, rolling pins, sieves, gauze, everything.
There is also an old snowflake freezer by the window, which is making a humming sound.
The air is filled with the smell of dry flour mixed with fermented dough, which is a bit overwhelming, but it's easy to get used to.
"Ranzi, you haven't eaten yet. Eat something here before going back." Old Boss Sun greeted.
"No, I've just eaten." Li Youran knew that life was not easy for his grandfather and grandson, and he didn't want to add to their burden.
"Hmph! What a lie, I heard your stomach growling." A voice as sweet as wind chimes came.
Li Youran turned around and saw Sun Xiaoying, who was wearing white work clothes, frowning slightly and her little mouth slightly pouting in dissatisfaction.
"Here, wipe away your sweat." The girl handed over a wet towel.
Li Youran took the towel and wiped the sweat from his forehead and cheeks. A faint fragrance was refreshing.
"The girl is still smart, but you are just dishonest." Old Suntou laughed.
"I still have half a bottle of Erguotou here. I'll drink two cups with my old man. Girl, go heat up the remaining steamed buns and mix them with two cold dishes. Oh, by the way, heat up the wine too."
Sun Xiaoying responded, turned around and went to work. Li Youran wanted to help, but was held down by Mr. Sun, so he had to give up.
Not long after, steaming steamed buns, soy milk and two plates of exquisite cold dishes were placed on the chopping board that was half covered with tablecloth. Mr. Sun sorted out the wine bottles and cups again, and the three of them sat down on the table.
"Here, have a drink." Mr. Sun raised his glass and drank it.
Li Youran seldom drinks alcohol, but he still drinks. After one drink, the heat flows down his lower abdomen and throughout his body, making him feel warm. His stomach is really proud of himself this time, and he doesn't feel uncomfortable.
Old Boss Sun drank two cups in a row, his eyes suddenly narrowed, and the crow's feet at the corners of his eyes were piled up. The conversation box also opened up.
Mr. Sun said that business is not easy to do now. There are many snack sellers on Anhua Street. Not only foreigners, but local laid-off workers are also doing this. The competition is fierce and the buns cannot be sold out every day. I want to go for a walk into the city.
, and worried about being caught by the city management. He sighed repeatedly as he spoke.
"It's just a hard thing for me, girl. I followed the old man through thick and thin, and never had a good life. Hey, I'm sorry for her mother who died early."
Sun Xiaoying's eye circles suddenly turned red, and she tried hard not to shed tears.
"Grandpa, why are you talking about this? There is no reason." The girl said angrily, stopping Mr. Sun from continuing.
"Yes, I'm happy today, let's not talk about this. Mr. Sun, do you still have land in your hometown?" Li Youran quickly changed the subject and started talking about life and interesting things in his hometown in the countryside. This also aroused the discussion between the grandfather and grandson.
Resonating with each other, the three of them chatted with interest and enjoyed themselves for a while.
When the wine was almost finished, Xiaoying stood up and started to clear away the dishes.
"Ranzi, you are a nice guy, do you have a girlfriend?" Old Sun Boss asked drunkenly.
Li Youran shook his head.
"How can I still be in the mood to think about these things when I'm like this?"
"Don't worry, I learned something from a fortune teller back then. I see that your facial features are quite good. Although you are not very handsome, you are still good-looking. The main thing is that you are plump in heaven and have thick ears. You will definitely be prosperous in the future.
Get up." Old Boss Sun made a mysterious smile.
"Well, if I get rich, I will definitely let you and Xiaoying live a good life." Li Youran patted his chest and said.
"Hey, by the way, you are not very old anyway, so don't be in a hurry to find a wife. Women in the city are not easy to take care of. Why don't you wait for our girl for a few years? She is 16 this year. In a few years, old man, I
How about I recruit you as my grandson-in-law?" Mr. Sun said excitedly.
"Grandpa! What did you say? You really drank too much!" Sun Xiaoying's pretty face was covered with red clouds, she stamped her feet and said in anger. She glared at Li Youran again.
Li Youran was also blushing. She neither dared to agree nor object. She screamed in her heart that she was wronged and did not dare to look at Sun Xiaoying. She quickly used the Earth Escape Technique under the influence of alcohol and ran away.