Chapter 3

Since then, the old woman began to avoid Wei Qian, spreading rumors that he was a murderer. However, she no longer dared to insult him in front of him, nor did she throw garbage at their doorstep again

Wei Qian has always harbored animosity towards his biological parents. Children initially learn how to interact with others in the world through their relationships with their parents, making it difficult for him not to harbor resentment towards society. His compassion is more limited than the spring rains in the north, and the reason he occasionally regards that little one with a different perspective is that he has observed the child.

Little did he know that the small creature did not let his buns go without a trace; he stuffed the buns into his belly in just a few bites, and then, along with the person, he relentlessly chased after the buns.

During the days of waiting for the results, Wei Qian did not waste his precious holiday. During the day, he went to set up a stall with Ma Zi and San Pang, selling adult videotapes, and in the evening, he found a job at a billiard hall, earning ten yuan a day as a security fee.

Wei Qian's overheated mind and cold heart finally pushed him to a critical point. He lowered his eyes, staring at the foul-smelling garbage at his doorstep, with veins bulging on his arms. His features resembled those of his mother, yet were far from her elegance. The hatred and gloom that enveloped him year-round had almost become his natural disposition, strikingly handsome yet oppressively gloomy.

The little boy who came back did not know what had happened and was watching from the side

He even picked up a few small branches, tied them together, and swept the ground

The house belonging to Wei Qian originally belonged to his maternal grandfather, who was the father of his deceased mother. His grandfather was driven to death by his mother, and thus the house reverted to Wei Qian's mother. Now that she has also passed away, it has finally come into his possession, having been in the family for a considerable number of years

But today is different

Then he curled up at the door like an unwanted puppy, and thus he slept there all night.

It seemed that Wei Qian's gaze was too menacing, causing the little brat to visibly shiver. With a pair of bright, round eyes, he looked at Wei Qian, and a line of canned soup accidentally dribbled down from the corner of his mouth. He immediately, in a state of panic, reached out to catch it and licked his hand clean.

The old tenement building, a typical urban shantytown, has a garbage dump downstairs, which is messy. The quality and economic capability of the neighbors are generally below average, and many of the residents here are not very friendly

Wei Qian feared that "Dog Ghost Xiong" would suffer a lingering death, so he kindly struck it several more times with a brick until the dog's head was smashed to pieces. Only then did he breathe heavily and throw down the brick, wiping the dog blood from his hands on the wall.

The little boy was startled and instinctively took a step back

Later, Wei Qian understood that the poor can only make things difficult for other poor people, and they will only make things difficult for them; otherwise, what else can they do?

Wei Qian believes he should be happy, yet he is not. It feels as though two large stones are blocking his heart; one stone represents the substantial expenses of attending high school, while the other stone symbolizes the anguish he endures in silence, despite being good and outstanding.

Yet at this moment, he realized he could not contain himself, even his eyelids were twitching incessantly He is, after all, not truly an adult

No matter which way it is, it is an escape; it is a reflection of how others have treated him poorly. It is only when one can no longer endure that they choose to escape. Wei Qian understands that feeling, and he even feels a sense of shared suffering.

Without any warning, Wei Qian suddenly turned around, picked up a large stone from the ground, and with a loud "bang," smashed it against the window of the old lady across the street. The shattered glass fell to the ground with a clatter, and a piercing scream came from inside the house

At first, Wei Qian was too lazy to argue with her; as a grown man taking care of a child, he was already burdened with enough worries each day and had no interest in dealing with such trivial matters

On that day, Wei Qian's high school entrance examination results were released. He performed well, scoring twenty points higher than the admission line of the best high school in the city, ranking among the top ten in the district. In other families, parents would likely treat others to celebrate, but Wei Qian's family did not have the means to do so. Therefore, for dinner, they did not buy steamed buns but instead purchased a bag of meat buns, which could be considered a celebration.

Wei Qian turned around in astonishment, thinking to himself that this was a serious matter, as it was a buy one get one free offer

For instance, the elderly woman living across the hall is rather unfriendly. Every time she sees Wei Qian, she starts rolling her eyes from a distance, and then slams the door as if she has seen something unclean. Sometimes, she even deliberately throws her trash at his doorstep

Wei Qian completed his intimidation, with a loud "bang," he slammed his own door in front of the little boy, locking him outside. The little boy wandered alone outside for a while, and finally, he bent down to pick up the scattered trash left at Wei Qian's doorstep, tidied it up, and threw it away

When Wei Qian passed by, if he was in a good mood, he would occasionally toss a bun to that little rascal

The little rascal leaned against the corner, cautiously opening his big eyes to watch him

His outstanding results in the high school entrance examination have pulled his upper body into another world, while his lower body remains submerged in the boundless swamp, allowing him to glimpse the vastness of the world, yet he is unable to break free from his inherent identity and class.

As he passed by, he casually tossed a meat bun to the little boy next to the garbage heap, amusing himself with the thought: this is like throwing a meat bun at a dog, once thrown, it does not return.

Wei Qian silently carried the trash for two steps, but suddenly no longer wanted to do so. He abruptly threw the trash in his hand at the doorstep across the street and turned to the boy, roaring loudly: "What the hell are you looking at?!"

Yet, it is precisely these sporadic acts of kindness from him that have unexpectedly brought about trouble

Wei Qian took a deep breath, trying hard to suppress the surge of anger within him. As an "adult," he did not want to lose his composure in front of the young one

Wei Qian said fiercely: "Little bastard!"

Even if he is a purebred social scum and petty thug like San Pang and Ma Zi, he would not suffer like this

The little fellow, seeing his terrifying gaze, thought he was going to snatch his can, and immediately became alert, clutching the can tightly. He stood up, backed against the corner of the wall, and struck a heroic pose as if he were determined to defend his territory at all costs

Without saying a word, Wei Qian turned around and took a kitchen knife from his home. He kicked her door, directly breaking the lock, leaving only a metal chain hanging precariously. The young man wielded the knife and struck the door with all his might, his face pale and his eyes bloodshot, resembling a psychotic killer, which frightened the cursing old woman to tears.

His mother is a whore, he is just a bastard raised by a whore. In principle, the old lady's insult is not entirely wrong.

Only then did he have the opportunity to look up and scrutinize the little brat that had caused him unnecessary trouble, but this little ingrate had actually taken advantage of the moment he was distracted to snatch away the can of food, clutching it in its arms and devouring it greedily

The fierce scolding of the old woman echoed in the room, and it was evident that the other party did not take this young lad seriously.

Wei Qian immediately felt disheartened, thinking to himself what was the point of competing with such a trivial matter

He has not done anything wrong; even according to traditional standards, he is more outstanding than anyone else. Why is it that only he lives so difficultly

The young boy is wandering outside. Wei Qian speculates that either he has a guardian who is abusing him, prompting him to run away, or he has been abducted since childhood and has finally managed to escape

Of course, even though they share the same suffering, Wei Qian only occasionally feels pity for the small things when he is in a good mood; most of the time, he maintains his indifferent and acerbic heart quite well

He was already feeling blocked in his heart, and when he was followed impatiently, he turned back several times to curse fiercely at the person behind him, even pushing a little boy, causing the child to stumble and fall. He even pretended to strike, yet the other party surprisingly persisted in following him all the way to their home

He discovered that the little cub he encountered that day seemed to have made a home in a garbage-filled alley, and every time Wei Qian stepped out of the door, he could see it searching for its dinner among the piles of trash

He discovered that the little boy had all his arms and legs intact, his body showed no disabilities, and his intelligence was not only normal but possibly even higher than that of ordinary children. Although his appearance was unremarkable, his pair of eyes was dark and bright, indicating that he was likely not lacking in any regard. If he truly was an orphan with no one to care for him, he would likely be sent to a social welfare institution. Given his age and condition, he would undoubtedly be sought after for adoption.

The young Wei Qian silently crouched down, picking up and throwing away the fruit peels and rotten leaves at the entrance of his home, bit by bit

Furthermore, why should the poor make things difficult for other poor people

Like a little stray cat, whoever feeds it a piece of sausage, it will recognize as its own.

Wei Qian: "You old fool, listen to me. I used to let things slide because of your age, considering you have only a few years left to live. But if you dare to provoke me again, I will wipe out your entire family!"

It seems that being submissive to the weak and aggressive towards the strong is inherent in human nature

He tried hard to ignore those, thus finding himself in a very strange state—his mind was hot, while his heart and chest felt cool

He spat on the ground in boredom and turned to leave

Righteousness and selfishness, warmth and unfriendliness, coexist in this residential area of poverty and backwardness without contradiction, creating a strangely harmonious existence

At that time, Young Master Wei's terrifying appearance, resembling a vengeful ghost, frightened the old woman to tears, yet it failed to scare the little boy, who persistently lingered at his doorstep.

Wei Qian's unnameable anger surged even more, wishing to stomp this little brat's head down and make him lick his own shoes, to his heart's content