C2 Encountering an Old Friend in a Foreign Country

When Liu Mang got out of the car and looked around at the unfamiliar environment, he couldn't help but sigh. He'd had a bad start, two romantic encounters, and they'd both turned out to be tragic.

One of them was a thief who took away all her belongings with a word of thanks. It was not easy to meet another one, yet she insisted on treating him like a pervert.

Liu Mang looked at the address on the note and couldn't help but shake his head with a bitter smile. Now that he was penniless, how was he going to find her? The sky was about to turn dark. Was he really going to sleep on the streets tonight? More importantly, he didn't know the way. Even if he wanted to walk over and find it, he didn't know which way he should go.

Suddenly, Liu Mang stopped in front of a secondhand cellular phone recycling shop, and laughed. He could have sold his cellular phone first and bought another one after he found Old Tian.

Since his old man trusted Old Tian so much, he wouldn't be stingy enough to let him starve to death. After making up his mind, Liu Mang immediately reached into his pocket, but when his hand reached into his pocket, he was dumbfounded.

At this moment, his pocket was already empty, and there was no sign of his phone. Liu Mang couldn't help wondering. He had been on the train for more than thirty hours, and in order to pass the time of day, his cell phone had run out of battery, so he had kept it in his pocket and hadn't noticed it at all.

However, after he got off the train, Liu Mang still remembered that his phone was still in his pocket. Could it be the pickpocket on the bus? When he thought of this, Liu Mang couldn't help but think of the pickpocket pushing him.

"What a generous gesture." Liu Mang sighed. When the pickpocket had pushed him, Liu Mang had wondered why he had only used a little strength. Now it seemed that he had other intentions.

Now that he was out of cell phones, of course he couldn't continue to sell them cheaply. Liu Mang was at a loss for words as he watched the street lights on the side of the road flicker one after the other, and he started cursing himself for being so stubborn. His parents' phone numbers had always been in the phone directory, and it was now impossible for him to make a phone call and ask for help.

Liu Mang rubbed his forehead in frustration. He felt like crying, but no tears would come. Suddenly, Liu Mang's eyes lit up, and he fell into deep thought as he looked at the ring on his ring finger. A figure appeared in his mind.

"Forget it. Forget it. Now that it has come to this, even if you don't dislike me, how can your family accept me? In that case, let's just break it off." Liu Mang shook his head with a bitter smile. He gently took the ring off his finger.

After wandering around in front of a gold and silver recycling shop for a long time, Liu Mang put the ring to his lips and thought about it for a while. In the end, he made up his mind and stepped into the shop.

Ten minutes later, Liu Mang came out of the gold and silver shop with a dozen or so brightly colored bills in his hand. His face was filled with a mixture of helplessness and self-mockery, as if something in his life had suddenly shattered.

Liu Mang wiped his face hard with his hand, and the corners of his mouth curled up into an ugly smile. There were many things that could not be made up in a short time, and they would be thrown into chaos.

When he had calmed down, Liu Mang did not wait for the bus. Instead, he hailed a cab and drove off, leaving behind only a faint melancholy that lingered.

Liu Mang was naturally gay, especially after his illness, when the doctor kept insisting that his mood should not fluctuate too much. Gradually, Liu Mang became a synonym for happiness in the eyes of outsiders, as if he never knew what vexation was, and could laugh it off no matter what it was.

"Hey, big brother, did you get in the wrong place?" The cab stopped in an old alley, and Liu Mang couldn't help but question it again as he looked out of the window at the deserted surroundings.

It was not that Liu Mang looked down on this shabby environment, but he really didn't dare to imagine that there was such a dilapidated alley in such a bustling area in the center of the city.

"Young man, this is the garden of the rich and powerful. It can't be wrong. I have been driving a taxi for more than 20 years. I can find any street in Yang Cheng with my eyes closed." The taxi driver patted on the chest and said with an unquestionable tone.

"Oh... Thank you." After confirming that the address was correct, Liu Mang didn't say anything else. After paying the taxi driver, he got off the taxi decisively.

After they got out of the car, Liu Mang could not help but sigh. It seemed that everything had to be seen to be true. The name of the garden of the rich was undoubtedly a perfect address, but the reality of the scene made him feel a little speechless.

The alley was only about a meter wide, and the houses on either side were speckled with age. A few streetlamps hung limply in the air, glowing faintly, looking down on the alley without a sound.

It was dinner time at the moment. The faint fragrance of dishes was overflowing from the open doors of many houses. They intertwined with each other and made people's appetites rise.

Although the street environment was somewhat dilapidated, the alley was very clean. Liu Mang gradually walked deeper into the alley according to the address written on the slip of paper.

After walking a distance, Liu Mang finally stopped in front of a house. After he carefully confirmed the address was correct, a faint smile spread silently from the corner of his mouth.

The house was a threestory compound, a little out of place among the rest of the residential buildings, a little out of place, a little out of place on the street.

Liu Mang reached out his hand to touch his hair. After shaking his shoulders, he prepared to knock on the door. After all, he had finally found this place with great difficulty. There was no reason for him to stand outside like a fool, was there? Besides, he hadn't eaten any normal food for two days. At this moment, his stomach had already started to complain.

"Who are you looking for?" A vigorous voice came from behind him.

Liu Mang couldn't help but turn around and look around. After making sure that there was no one else around, he nodded slightly and smiled, "I'm here to look for a friend. May I know who you are?" After he spoke, Liu Mang started to size up the person before him.

It was a man of about fifty years of age, and although it was late spring and early summer now, the temperature had risen considerably, especially in a place like the city of sheep, where the temperature had risen to more than twenty degrees, the man was still wearing a thick military coat, as if he was very afraid of the cold.

"You are Shi Shi's friend?" The man narrowed his eyes and stared at Liu Mang as he asked in confusion.

"Shi Shi? Uh... I am not Shi Shi's friend. I am here to look for Old Tian." Liu Mang paused for a moment when he heard this, but he quickly adjusted his state of mind and answered solemnly.

"I wonder who asked you to look for him? Can you tell me?" The man's expression instantly turned serious, and his eyes flashed with a bright light, as if they were even more dazzling than the dim yellow streetlights.

"My father's surname is Liu. He told me that he and Old Tian are old friends, and told me to come look for him after I arrive at Yang Cheng. He said that he would provide me with a lot of help in my journey." Liu Mang didn't hide anything and told his father the truth.

When the man heard the young man in front of him say that his father was surnamed Liu, he couldn't help but tremble. There was a hint of bitterness in his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure and didn't speak. He took out a set of keys and opened the door of the small courtyard.

"Come in and talk to me. You can call me Oda later. How is your father doing?" the man who called himself Oda asked casually as he led the way.

"How are you, Uncle Tian? This old man is in good health. Sorry to bother you. I am Liu Mang. I'm afraid I will have to trouble you in the coming days." While Liu Mang was measuring the scenery in the yard, he introduced himself. However, he didn't mention his slightly feminine name. He just said his nickname.

"That's good." Tian turned to look at Liu Mang. Suddenly, he seemed to be muttering to himself: "Now that you've come all the way here, you don't have to be so polite. You can just treat this place as your own home. Besides, I'm Tian, and you're Liu Mang. This is fate."

"Fated" was a word that made people fantasize, but when he heard an old man say it was fated, Liu Mang was a little speechless. He wasn't bent, okay? Besides, even if it was fate, his taste wouldn't be so heavy.

On the way, Liu Mang told him what he had come for, and when he entered the room, Old Tian said regretfully as he poured tea: "Although I'd like to go with you to the Yang Cheng, as you can see, I'm not much stronger than you are. What a pity."

"Cough, cough..." Liu Mang had just taken a sip of his tea when he heard Old Tian's words. He immediately choked. He had just opened his mouth to ask for help, but Old Tian had refused him so decisively. It seemed that he had to rely on himself for the next few days.

"What's wrong with you?" Seeing that Liu Mang was having such a hard time drinking water, Lao Tian immediately became worried. It seemed that this young man was really quite sick.

"It's all right, Uncle Tian. I don't need you to worry about me. Although I'm a little weak, I'm still young. It's just that I got my wallet stolen by a pickpocket on a train, and then I lost my cell phone on the bus." Liu Mang didn't know how close Tian was to his father. Now that they were under the roof, he had to find a place to live.

Looking at Liu Mang's cautious manner, Old Tian suddenly laughed. As a man of spirit, he could naturally see that Liu Mang had misunderstood the meaning of his words, and quickly explained, "Don't think too much about it. This will be your home from now on, and you can stay here as long as you want."

"Really? Then I'll have to trouble you in the future." Having settled the accommodation, Liu Mang immediately felt relieved. As for seeking a doctor for medicine, although there was no one to accompany him, he could take his time.

"That's what I should do." Seeing how happy Liu Mang was, Old Tian shook his head speechlessly. Suddenly, he seemed to have remembered something and hurriedly said, "Sit down first. I'll introduce you to someone."

"Um." Liu Mang nodded his head indifferently. He didn't take Old Tian's words to heart. His eyes started to wander around the room curiously.

The interior was simple and unadorned, more to Liu Mang's taste, especially the black bamboo near the door, which attracted his attention. Unconsciously, he walked toward the door.

"Hello, auntie." Suddenly, Liu Mang felt a hand patting his shoulder from behind. He guessed that it was Lao Tian's wife and quickly turned around to greet her.

However, he had just turned his head around when Liu Mang immediately wished he could slap himself. How was this auntie in front of him? She was clearly a cold and moving beauty.