He was once a popular idol, the prince charming in the hearts of countless young girls, the affectionate Zhong Tianqi in the TV series "My Lucky Star."
But now, he has become a suspect in a murder case, locked up in a cold prison. His past halo has long faded, leaving only endless darkness and remorse.
Old Wang has recently become obsessed with "inner strength" courses.
It started when the company organized a "corporate culture" training session. The main speaker was a so-called spiritual mentor, who spoke eloquently on the stage: “People with inner strength should have a positive attitude, embrace change, not be afraid of challenges, and dare to take responsibility...”
Old John, a retired firefighter, habitually sat on the porch of his small cabin at the foot of the mountains in the evening, gazing at the distant peaks. Today, the sky was an unusually deep red; it wasn't the sunset glow, but a wildfire. Since that "redirected" fire, he had been watching like this every day, a nameless feeling always weighing on his heart.
Autumn in Los Angeles, even the air is burning.
The wildfires are like runaway wild horses, ravaging the edge of the city. On television news, the smoke billows, the flames lick at the hillsides, a scene of the apocalypse.
Old Wang paced back and forth in front of the express station, constantly rubbing his hands together, sweat beading on his forehead. This was the third time this week he had come here, all for two boxes of yogurt.
Two weeks ago, his wife, Xiao Li, a housewife who was keen on making friends online, suddenly told him that she needed to send two boxes of yogurt to a "friend from afar." "He's been very caring to me," Xiao Li explained, "He even taught me how to post food videos on short-video platforms last time."
Old Wang works in a cannery, which sounds a bit ridiculous, right? But he really is in a cannery, and his daily job is to put miniature sections of railroad track into specially made cans.
When he first entered the factory, he thought it was a joke played by some immature kid. Miniature railroad tracks? What use could they possibly be other than as a springboard for mice? On the first day, he couldn't help but laugh out loud at his colleagues on the assembly line, which earned him a scolding from the foreman, who said he was disrupting production order and deducted his pay for the day. From then on, Old Wang dared not laugh again.
Wang Meilin's fingers trembled slightly as she typed the express delivery tracking number into her phone. Two boxes of yogurt, or rather, "special supply" yogurt worth 125,000 yuan, were about to fly thousands of miles to her "boyfriend," a man she had never met.
Old Wang was once again sitting on an empty waiting chair in the hospital, he was used to it. Ever since the notice "Imported drugs withdrawn from public hospitals" was posted, the place had become eerily quiet. In the past, it was crowded with anxious patients and their families, the air thick with the smell of disinfectant and unease, but now, only the cold wind whistling in the corners and Old Wang's heavy breathing could be heard.
"Brother Wang, the feed mix for the cranes has been adjusted today. Could you take a look at whether this batch of corn kernels meets the 'Golden Crane' standard?"
Old Li's mobile phone number ends in seven zeros. Not many people know about this. In the small city, he was just an ordinary worker, taking the bus, eating in the cafeteria, and watching TV at home in the evening. Until one day, a strange phone call broke his peaceful life.