Grandpa Liu's corpse was taken away in the middle of the night, and as dawn broke, three soldiers and a security officer arrived under the guise of disinfecting the house, using it as a pretext to loot.
After failing to find any items of value, they perfunctorily sprinkled a few handfuls of disinfectant powder and started to exploit the nearby residents.
In the shantytown, those who had gone out to work had just gotten up, and many were still unaware of Grandpa Liu's death.
The accompanying security officer made a show of taking notes, his words laced with threats.
Since there were no external injuries on Grandpa Liu's body, and no real excuse to arrest anyone, they made their way to the house of the person who had reported the incident the night before, Wei Tianyang.
The four burst through the curtain directly into the house, nearly colliding with Wei Tianyang who was just about to step out.
"Was it you who reported the incident last night?" the security officer asked.
"Yes, it was me." Wei Tianyang nodded.
Seeing that he was just a 15-year-old boy, the security officer ignored him and headed straight for the inner room.
Wei Tianyang quickly moved to block the officer's path, saying, "Wait, my mother hasn't gotten up yet."
No sooner had he finished speaking than the security officer's brows rose and he said harshly, "Are you trying to obstruct my evidence gathering? Are you hiding something?!"
The three soldiers also cocked their automatic rifles and closed in on Wei Tianyang.
"There are only my mother and sister inside, and they haven't gotten up yet. Please wait a moment," he repeated.
Hearing the words "mother" and "sister," the security officer and soldiers sneered and pushed past Wei Tianyang, insisting on entering.
He retreated to the edge of the door and called out, "Mom, the officers are here. Hurry and get up."
"Everyone inside, come out immediately!" barked the soldiers.
At that moment, his mother appeared at the entrance, wearing a thin layer of clothing, with the young girl hiding behind her.
The look in the security officer's eyes changed when he saw the mother; his lips curled slightly, and he said, "You, come with us."
As he spoke, he reached out to grab his mother's arm.
Without thinking, Wei Tianyang instinctively grabbed the officer's wrist with his right hand.
Almost at the same moment, three AK74s were aimed at his head.
"Wait! I'll go with you! Don't shoot!" his mother cried out in panic.
She rushed forward to shield Wei Tianyang, presenting herself to the barrels of the guns.
The young girl also timidly added, "He hasn't done anything wrong!"
The soldiers jammed the gun barrels into the mother's chest, shoving hard enough to make her stagger backward.
Wei Tianyang supported his mother, his mind racing with thoughts.
He let go of the security officer's wrist, who was furiously reaching for his handcuffs.
At this tense moment, he suddenly said, "Wait a minute!"
The group saw him take off his backpack and pull out a green banknote from a compartment.
It was a 10 Langke banknote.
"Coming to collect a corpse in the dead of night is hard work. Things have been uneasy lately, so please excuse the inconvenience," said Wei Tianyang with a forced smile, offering the banknote.
The security officer's expression relaxed a bit, and the soldiers all slowly lowered their guns. He snatched the banknote, then grabbed Wei Tianyang's backpack and emptied it out, turning it upside down.
A blue-covered notebook, a ballpoint pen, two packets of tissues, and a bottle of mineral water tumbled out onto the ground. These were all he carried with him when he left home.
The security officer searched the inner pocket once more, finding no other banknotes, then glared at Wei Tianyang and asked, "Got any more?"
Wei Tianyang shook his head.
"You can earn Langke? It's not stolen, is it?" the officer questioned again.
"I work for Tiantai Pharmaceutical," Wei Tianyang replied calmly, glancing at his mother.
His mother closed her eyes, her face showing a bitter expression.
The security officer hesitated for a moment upon hearing Tiantai Pharmaceutical and narrowed his eyes, assessing Wei Tianyang.
Tiantai Pharmaceutical's position in the conservative territory of Chicken Snake Country was exceptional; their funding of the conservative government and provision of military expenses was no longer a secret.
"Tiantai... If you dare to deceive me, I'll take away your whole family! Understand?" the security officer said.
"Or how about you give me a lift? I'm actually on my way to them right now," Wei Tianyang said.
The officers holstered their weapons and left the house one by one. The security officer pocketed the bills and gave him a fierce glare before exiting through the curtain.
Wei Tianyang packed his things, put them back in his bag, and was about to leave when his mother grabbed his arm.
"Yang..." his mother murmured.
He knew what she wanted to say, and he also knew that this secret wouldn't be kept for much longer.
It was actually a relief to have it exposed now.
"I will become your sun," Wei Tianyang said with a smile.
He looked at the little girl and said, "When I'm not around, help out with some chores."
With that, he shouldered his bag and quickly left.
The sun had completely risen, and the mist had begun to dissipate as he stood at the mouth of the mud slope, exhaling a breath of warm air.
Although he had lost 10 Langke, it pained his heart, but there was nothing he could do—misfortunes were unavoidable and it was not easy being a good person...
He was well aware of the behavior of Chicken Snake Country's security bureau. If Grandpa Liu had any external injuries, the security officer would definitely arbitrarily arrest someone and pin a murder charge on them to extort money.
Moreover, if he hadn't lost those 10 Langke, they would have taken his mother. Wei Tianyang couldn't bear to think about the filthy things they might do to her in detention.
A country like this had no future.
Wei Tianyang thought that once Tiantai Pharmaceutical paid the final payment, he would also take her to Yin Country and consider it adopting a foster sister.
As the weather turned chilly, he turned up the collar of his coat. After walking for about half an hour, he finally arrived at the street corner across from Sushi Delivery Logistics Company.
From a distance, he saw a stylish black SUV parked by the street, with Ruan Yu leaning against the car door smoking.
"Wei Tianyang, why are you late?" Ruan Yu waved at him.
He ran over, and Ruan Yu opened the car door, but a Yin person emerged from inside.
"Hey! Wei!" the Yin person greeted him.
Wei Tianyang was briefly taken aback, but Ruan Yu quickly urged him into the car.
Upon closing the door, the SUV started up.
"This is Hans, he was the one in charge of administering the experimental drug injection to you," Ruan Yu introduced.
"Hello! 12... Wei! I was wearing a mask at the time, so it's normal you didn't recognize me," Hans said with a smile.
"Hello... I hope the new drug you're developing will be successful soon..." Wei Tianyang replied perfunctorily.
"Of course! Lots of people are counting on this stuff to make them rich! Ha ha ha ha!" Hans laughed.
Ruan Yu frowned in displeasure, and Hans's laughter immediately subdued.
Silently, the black SUV drove through a large part of the city and arrived at the abandoned tech park in the southern suburbs.
Wei Tianyang looked through the window and saw familiar sights.
The first time he was brought here, he thought he had fallen into a trap.
After all, the place was in such disrepair, it seemed impossible to connect it to a giant international pharmaceutical company like Tiantai Pharmaceutical.
The car drove into the underground parking garage of the nine-story unfinished building. Blue lights lit up on the walls of the passage in response, and the car drove all the way down to the elevator entrance before stopping.
The three exited the car, and Ruan Yu used her iris to unlock the elevator, pressing both the 2 and 6 buttons simultaneously.
Wei Tianyang had once asked Ruan Yu why such caution was necessary, but her answers were hardly convincing.
It was of course necessary to keep the formulas and effects of the drugs confidential, especially since Tiantai Pharmaceutical's new drug was still in development.
But such secrecy still seemed somewhat abnormal.