In front of the family compound, there was a small house owned by a widow.

Her husband used to work at the Textile Factory No. 1.

Later, her husband fell ill and died.

She didn’t like working, so she bought some Pai Gow, Long Cards, and Mahjong, and started running a card-playing business.

Her reputation wasn’t very good.

The women in the compound disliked it when their men went there to play cards.

But it was hard to control where people went.

As Chu Xia approached the small house, she could smell the strong odor of smoke and hear the excited voices of men from inside.

The door wasn’t locked, so Chu Xia pushed it open and went in.

She hadn’t fully recovered yet, so her face looked pale and thin, which was a bit scary.

At first glance, people didn’t notice her appearance but rather thought she might be suffering from a serious illness.

The people playing cards were so engrossed in their game that they didn’t care who came in.

They only looked up to see that it wasn’t their own wife, then they looked back down and continued playing.

There were about five or six tables in the yard.

Chu Xia immediately spotted her eldest brother.

He had completely lost his timid demeanor at home; smoking and with red eyes, he stared intensely at the cards in his hand, looking every bit the part of a gambler.

If this were a large casino, he would definitely be the type who gambles recklessly and loses everything.

Chu Xia walked over and patted her brother’s shoulder. “Big Brother.”

Her brother, Luo Dage, was startled by Chu Xia’s voice, and he looked up with a frightened expression. “Chu Xia? What are you doing here?”

He quickly looked toward the door and, seeing that their mother and wife were not there, he sighed in relief.

He then said impatiently, “What are you doing here? If you need something, go find Mom.”

“Big Brother, the house.”

Chu Xia said only these few words, and Luo Dage couldn’t focus on the game anymore.

He scratched his head in frustration. “Second Sister, what exactly do you want?”

“Are you sure I should say it here?”

Chu Xia gave him a half-smile and glanced at the curious men at the tables. Luo Dage threw up his hands and stood up.

“Since there’s something, I’m done for today. Let’s settle up. You wait outside for me.”

Seeing that he would come out, Chu Xia nodded and walked outside, but she didn’t go far and stood at the door.

She then saw Widow Yang coming out with a thermos, walking gracefully with a gentle smile on her face, which was the kind of look that men liked.

Chu Xia thought to herself: No wonder her business is doing well and no one causes trouble.

Widow Yang doesn’t seem like an ordinary woman.

But that didn’t concern her.

The next moment, Chu Xia changed her mind.

Widow Yang approached Luo Dage and asked with a smile, “Luo Dage, why are you leaving so early today?”

Luo Dage instantly softened, smiling amiably as he replied, “Second Sister has something to discuss with me.”

“Then have a cup of tea before you go. It’s freshly brewed, and I’ve put tea leaves in it.”

When Luo Dage took the tea from Widow Yang’s hand, he touched her hand as he did, receiving a flirtatious glance from her.

Luo Dage drank the tea and kept his smile on his face.

Chu Xia thought: This Luo Dage is two-faced. At home, he’s timid and indecisive, but outside, he flirts with the widow.

It’s normal for more honest men to be less straightforward and harbor secrets.

But this situation was advantageous for her and provided another leverage point.

Chuxia didn’t wait long before Luo Dage came out.

The moment he stepped out of the card room, he resumed his usual timid and meek demeanor.

“Second sister, you really didn’t need to look for me. I don’t have any money.”

“Then how come you have money to gamble? Dage, do you think I’m three years old? Where’s the television?”

Luo Dage stiffened, “It’s Dad who won’t let me send it.”

Chuxia seemed indifferent, “I’m not afraid of losing. I can always go to your factory director. I’ll get the stuff back, and I might even get your house taken away!”

Luo Dage surely wanted to share a house.

The family’s 70-square-meter house was crowded, and there was barely room to turn around at night.

If the house wasn’t allocated, his wife would argue every day, and he also wanted to sleep comfortably with his wife.

His mother had said that connections were arranged, and he was sure he’d get his share.

But if Chuxia caused a scene and damaged his reputation, it would be difficult to get the allocation.

People would complain to the union about unfair treatment.

Everyone wanted a share of the house. Any leverage could force him out.

When Chuxia mentioned this, Luo Dage caved, “Alright, I’ll go home and ask Dad.”

“Wait.” Chuxia stopped him, “Dage, isn’t Yang widow’s tea nice?”

Luo Dage looked confused, “What are you talking about?”

“Isn’t it better than my blood? If Da Sao finds out you gave money to Yang widow…”

“I didn’t give her money!”

“I saw it. Do you think Da Sao will believe you or me?”

Luo Dage was almost in tears.

Whether his wife believed him or not, just the mention of his wife would cause a big scene, especially since she hated him being here and disliked Yang widow.

“Second sister! What else do you want?”

“Money. I don’t care how you get it, from Mom or elsewhere. Today, I want to see the television, the refrigerator, and your 100 yuan.”

With that, Chuxia left Luo Dage in anguish.

He had some spare money, but nowhere near 100 yuan. Her demand was quite a burden!

But if he went home to ask his mother, she would probably give him the money.

Chuxia was sure Luo Dage had money. His monthly salary was decent, and he sometimes received bonuses. Even after handing over most of his salary, he likely had some leftover.

And since Wang Yulan cared for her sons, she would occasionally give him money, which explained why Luo Dage could afford to gamble.

Whether he gave money to Yang widow or not didn’t affect Chuxia’s leverage.

She used it to get what she wanted.

100 yuan seemed like a lot, but Luo Dage could likely gather it, though it would be painful for him.

With her goal achieved, Chuxia didn’t linger outside and went home directly.

The heat outside was unbearable, and she had just bought enough groceries. It was better to stay home and study.

To her shock, she found her door locked, and Cen Huai’an wasn’t home!

Chuxia was terrified, feeling her heart race. She had never felt this anxious before.

She wasn’t scared of asking Wang Yulan for money, but now she felt her legs weaken.

She didn’t expect that in just a few days, Cen Huai’an had become so important to her.

She controlled her emotions, took deep breaths, and began asking neighbors if they had seen Cen Huai’an.

Thankfully, she received good news: he had left on his own and wasn’t taken by someone else.

Chu Xia was also panicked.

Who would lock the door when abducting a child?

Although she knew Cen Huai’an had gone out to play by himself, Chu Xia still wasn’t at ease and searched for him in the family compound.

After searching and still not finding Cen Huai’an, Chu Xia became even more anxious.

A five-year-old child couldn’t run too far, and he had promised not to leave the compound.

Without hesitation, Chu Xia asked the neighbors to help look for him.

Some people thought Chu Xia was making a big deal out of nothing.

“Chu Xia, it’s normal for kids to run around. The area is all around the textile factory and family compound, so he won’t be too far.”

“Yeah, he’ll probably come back by mealtime.”

Chu Xia shook her head. “If he were seven or eight, I wouldn’t be so worried. But he’s only five, so small. If someone tried to abduct him, he wouldn’t have the strength to struggle!”

Sister Li patted her hand, sensing Chu Xia’s fear.

Chu Xia’s hands were shaking.

“We have a lot of people looking, don’t worry. An’an is smart; he used to run around a lot and didn’t get into trouble.”

After searching the nearby compounds, Chu Xia finally heard some news from an old lady in another compound.

“I didn’t see the child you mentioned, but I did see a group of raggedy-looking street kids going behind the paper mill to pick up trash.”

Cen Huai’an was dressed cleanly, so Chu Xia thought the old lady’s information might not be about him.

But it was the only lead she had, so she decided to check behind the paper mill.

At this point, Chu Xia had lost track of how long she had been running.

Her health was poor to begin with, and she was exhausted, her legs numb.

She continued to search for Cen Huai’an purely out of determination.

Chu Xia didn’t hold out much hope, but when she actually saw Cen Huai’an among a group of rag-picking kids, she felt a mix of anger, joy, and heartache, and was utterly drained.

“Cen Huai’an!”

She sat down on a pile of paper scraps.

Behind the paper mill was a garbage dump.

In the Liangzhou Central District, the largest six factories were textile mills, but there were also many small factories, like the paper mill Chu Xia had come to, as well as the tractor factory where Luo Chuming worked, the brewery, and the steel mill.

The garbage behind the paper mill was a favorite spot for scavengers, as any unqualified paper from the mill was dumped there.

Paper came in various sizes, and scavengers ranged from adults to children, all busy picking up trash, racing to see who could collect the most.

When Cen Huai’an heard his mother’s voice, he first thought he was mistaken.

But when Chu Xia called out again, he turned and saw her sitting on the pile of paper scraps.

The ragged bag in his hand slipped, and he quickly tightened his grip, his mind blank.

After a few seconds of daze, Cen Huai’an realized that his mother knew he was scavenging and had come looking for him!

His first reaction wasn’t to worry about getting a beating but rather whether his mother would let him continue scavenging in the future.

Bang Ge nudged Cen Huai’an. “Is that really your mom?”

Cen Huai’an, holding tightly to the sack, nodded.

Bang Ge clicked his tongue, looked at Chu Xia several times, and then quickly went back to scavenging.

Such a large amount of waste paper was a rare find; he had to pick it up quickly, or it would be gone if more people showed up.

Earning money was more important than anything else!

Cen Huai’an hesitated between continuing to scavenge and going to Chu Xia.

Seeing her increasingly grim expression, he eventually dragged the sack over to her.

Seeing Cen Huai’an’s pitiful state, still unwilling to let go of the trash he had collected, most of Chu Xia’s anger faded, leaving her with a sense of deep sadness.

But she still felt some anger.

Chu Xia controlled her emotions and asked, looking at his ragged sack, “Is it heavy?”

Cen Huai’an replied, “Heavy.”

“How much can you sell this for?”

“Just a few cents.”

Cen Huai’an stole a glance at Chu Xia.

Since she didn’t scold or hit him, he felt like his heart was pounding with excitement and nervousness.

“How long have you been doing this? Did you come here to play last time as well?”