Chapter 5

Although there were fewer of them, Jiang Shuangshuang had no intention of leaving this area.

Where were thieves most numerous?

The bus station and the train station were absolutely swarming with them. Almost every day, passengers lost their belongings; it was likely that within just a few minutes of arriving, several thieves could be spotted.

But that place was far too dangerous.

There were definitely gangs working together, all familiar with one another. Catching one could lead to uncovering a whole network.

Moreover, it was outside her comfort zone.

In this area, she had quite a bit of contact with the police. She had traveled countless times along the hidden paths to the police station. If she ever encountered something she couldn’t handle, running was the best option—running all the way to the station to hide. Who would dare harm her when the police were protecting her?

Catching thieves and earning rewards was a good thing.

But risking her life for a reward was not her nature.

Therefore, the next day, Jiang Shuangshuang planned to continue wandering the usual spot.

It was best to encounter some “lucky ones,” but if not, she could at least pick up some coal slag.

Early in the morning, Jiang Shuangshuang left empty-handed.

Behind her followed a half-grown boy carrying two baskets and holding two pairs of pliers.

The boy yawned as he walked, his body swaying unsteadily, but he still managed to keep pace with his second sister, not falling behind.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to fall behind; he just didn’t dare.

The second sister had beaten up their cousins, and she hadn’t spared him either, her own younger brother.

The only difference was that she had shown him some respect by not hitting his face.

At first, he was quite angry and aggrieved from being beaten, but when he saw his cousins sporting swollen pig-faced bruises for over half a month, his frustration vanished, replaced by a bit of relief.

As they walked, Jiang Xiaozhou raised his head and took a deep sniff. His eyes widened instantly. “Sister, that’s the smell of steamed buns!”

That was the only downside to where they lived.

The main road passed by a state-run restaurant, and every time they walked by, the aroma was irresistible.

Unfortunately, they could only smell it and not eat it, which made their mouths water terribly.

He was about to lick his lips when he saw the second sister heading toward the state-run restaurant.

Wait, what?!

Was the second sister going to treat him to white steamed buns?!

Jiang Xiaozhou was wide awake now and hurried after her.

But when they reached the door, he felt too shy to step inside and just stood there peeking around eagerly.

There were three large steamed buns!

One was being eaten by the second sister, and the other two were wrapped in greaseproof paper.

Even if he couldn’t get a whole bun, surely he could have at least half?

When the second sister came out, Jiang Xiaozhou instinctively reached out, “Mine, mine.”

But Jiang Shuangshuang dodged aside, passing by him.

Jiang Xiaozhou was stunned and quickly chased after her. “Sister, I want to eat too.”

“If you want it, buy it yourself,” Jiang Shuangshuang said, continuing to nibble.

They had already eaten one meal before leaving.

It was corn porridge, which barely half-filled their stomachs.

Add a bun about the size of a grown man’s fist, and that was just right.

The remaining two buns would be for lunch and dinner.

Perfect!

Though she could spare one for Mother Xu; it wasn’t just about freeloading all the time—they had to let Mother Xu enjoy a bit too. That brought some comfort.

“I have no money,” Jiang Xiaozhou anxiously tried to tug her sleeve but immediately pulled back, afraid. “Sister, sister, hungry, hungry, hungry.”

Jiang Shuangshuang remained unmoved, glancing at him. “Let’s see how you perform first.”

What performance?

Naturally, picking up coal slag.

Half an hour east of the residential compound ran a railway track.

Occasionally, coal freight trains passed by.

A slight vibration would cause some coal slag to fall; if timing and luck were right, one could gather almost half a basketful.

Jiang Shuangshuang never had good luck.

She wasn’t always there, but whenever she arrived, the green train had either already passed or not yet come, and the rocky ground near the tracks had been thoroughly picked clean. Finding even a few pieces was considered lucky.

But she never expected to find much.

Finding any was a pleasant surprise; not finding any, she considered it a day of play.

As she arrived that day, she noticed many more people near the tracks than usual.

Previously, most were middle-aged children or elderly folks.

She waved in a certain direction, and soon a little girl carrying her younger sister ran over. “Sister Shuangshuang.”

Jiang Shuangshuang asked, “Why are there so many people today?”

The girl’s voice was clear, “I heard two trains will come soon. Many people heard the news and came to pick coal slag. Sister Shuangshuang, wait a bit longer; don’t leave early.”

“All right,” Jiang Shuangshuang said, breaking off a small piece of bun and handing it over.

The little girl’s eyes lit up. After wiping her hands on her clothes a few times, she reached out to take it. “Thank you, Sister Shuangshuang.”

“Thanks for the tip too,” Jiang Shuangshuang waved her off. “Go on and be busy.”

Jiang Xiaozhou looked enviously and quickly joined in picking coal slag.

Whether it was luck or not, he actually found a small piece in a corner crack near the track. He didn’t even bother using the pliers and just grabbed it with his hand, clutching it as he ran over to his second sister.

“Sister! Sister! Look!”

It was a tiny piece, about the size of a fingernail.

Jiang Shuangshuang pinched off a similarly sized piece of bun and handed it to him. “Here.”

It was just a tiny bit; no need to chew, just a little press and it swallowed down.

Before tasting it, he craved it; after tasting, he craved it even more.

Jiang Xiaozhou whimpered, “Sis, sister, can you give me a little more?”

“I’m not your mother. Why should I always give in to your demands?”

Jiang Xiaozhou pouted, “But Mom doesn’t always give in to me either.”

“...” Jiang Shuangshuang paused, tilting her head thoughtfully—it seemed true.

Mother Xu certainly wasn’t a doting mother. Even though Father Jiang had passed early, and she had to raise three children alone, she still disciplined them and never spoiled them.

But maybe Heaven wanted to add some hardship to her life.

Her three children turned out increasingly troublesome.

She wasn’t eager to deal with this troublesome boy in front of her. “Go play somewhere else.”

“Sis!” Jiang Xiaozhou twisted his waist and acted coquettishly, about to throw a tantrum, but the second sister glared at him, and he immediately grabbed his pliers and went toward the tracks.

It seemed pouting wouldn’t work; he had to rely on hard work.

But today there were many people, almost crawling on the ground searching, and he couldn’t find a second small piece.

Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a black spot nearby and lunged toward it, but he was a little slow; just as he was about to reach it, someone else’s pliers clamped down first.

He cried out, “Hey! I saw it first!”

The tall, thin man was taken aback.

Jiang Xiaozhou shrank his neck.

Usually, whoever picks it up owns it.

Claims like “If I saw it first, you have to give it to me” were unreasonable.

Jiang Xiaozhou knew he was being unreasonable; otherwise, why would he look so guilty when the other person stayed silent?

Thinking of turning to run, the man suddenly said, “Fine, it’s yours.”

He waved his pliers, dropping the coal slag into Jiang Xiaozhou’s basket.

The boy’s eyes widened in surprise, then, emboldened, he said, “Brother, could you give me a little more? I’ve been looking for a long time and this is all I have. My second sister will definitely beat me when I get home...”

No matter how pitiful his tone, it couldn’t hide the shamelessness in his words.

Gu Gaofei looked at him and was reminded of his own younger brother.

When he left years ago, he was about this height. He hadn’t seen him in years and didn’t know how he was doing now. Without much hesitation, he let the boy have the few pieces of coal slag he found, his face kind. “This should be enough, right?”

“Thanks, brother!” Jiang Xiaozhou thanked him loudly.

He didn’t cause any more trouble and turned to run.

He hurried behind a pile of stones, staring at the lanky man for several minutes before eagerly running to his second sister. “Sister! Sister! I saw a thief!”

Jiang Shuangshuang didn’t stop her task, continuing to twist grass into rope.

She did have a waistband rope in her hand.

But it was borrowed from home temporarily. If it snapped or broke, Mother Xu would be furious.

So she had gathered a lot of grass and, using a secret family recipe, made a tougher rope. If she caught a thief later, she could tie him up directly with the grass rope and drag him away by one end.

Of course, she could buy ropes.

The supply and marketing cooperative had plenty of ropes far better than her homemade ones.

But she was poor, so handmade was better.

“Sister, did you hear me?” Jiang Xiaozhou was anxious and excited. He whispered how he got the coal slag in his basket, then added, “That man is really strange. He comes to pick coal slag and gives it away? And he keeps staring at others, his mind isn’t on picking coal slag at all.”

If it were him, no one could beg on their knees and he wouldn’t give up what he found.

Of course, he would make an exception for his sister.

If it were her, he would kneel and offer her everything he found.

Looking again at the man just now.

He gave away what he found, even more than once.

Jiang Xiaozhou didn’t think anyone would be that kind-hearted.

Anyone who came to pick coal slag was from a struggling family, taking whatever they could. Who would happily run to the tracks every day otherwise?

Yet this man didn’t care at all and just gave it away.

So he made up his mind to hide behind a stone pillar and quietly watch, wanting to figure out the man’s situation.

Sure enough!

The man’s mind was clearly not on picking coal slag. From time to time, he stared suspiciously at people around him. His furtive demeanor clearly showed he wasn’t a good person!

“Jiang Xiaozhou.”

“Eh?”

Jiang Shuangshuang gave him a cold glance. “Who told you to beg others?”

“...” Jiang Xiaozhou shrank back, ignoring whether his sister would hit him, tugged her clothes, and said, “You have to look, that man really looks suspicious!”

Jiang Shuangshuang looked.

To be honest, the man was indeed acting suspiciously.

Whether or not he was a thief, the man’s main reason for coming to the tracks was definitely not to pick coal slag.

He paid close attention to the people around.

Normally, when picking coal slag, one wouldn’t fixate on one spot; if nothing was found there, they would move on.

But this man wasn’t like that. He seemed to linger in a fixed area, pacing back and forth.

He used the excuse of turning over stones to secretly observe those around him.

“So? Suspicious, right?” Jiang Xiaozhou was very excited. He knew how his second sister made money, even more than their mother did. “I found out first. If you really get the reward, you have to share some with me.”

Jiang Shuangshuang glanced at him. “Wait and see. We’ll settle this when we get back.”

“...” Jiang Xiaozhou frowned.

Jiang Shuangshuang tossed him the grass rope. “Stay here.”

Then she grabbed a pair of pliers and went toward the man. Approaching, she bent down and started turning over stones.

Compared to the man, Jiang Shuangshuang’s movements were more practiced and natural. She deliberately avoided walking the same path as him but kept a constant eye on him.

About five minutes later,

She saw the man reach a middle-aged man, secretly slip his hand into the man’s basket, and when he pulled back, he held an object wrapped in oiled cloth.

Jiang Shuangshuang didn’t hesitate. She stepped forward and suddenly kicked the man’s knee from behind.

The man grimaced and dodged sideways. She bent her elbow and struck his chest.

It was an unexpected blow, nearly knocking the man over. Jiang Shuangshuang quickly turned, kicked his lower back, and as he fell forward, she pressed her knee against his back and locked his wrists with both hands, leaving no chance to escape.

Her movements were smooth and precise.

She lowered her head and grinned brightly. “Hey, caught red-handed.”

The stolen oiled cloth package fell to the ground. A child nearby picked it up, big eyes shining with admiration. “Sister Shuangshuang, you’re amazing!”

Not only him, but the children who often came here had seen this many times.

One by one, they applauded and jumped, even more excited than the person who caught the thief.

How could they not be excited?

If it weren’t for Sister Shuangshuang, this area would be quite chaotic.

Not only thieves, but also some big adults liked to bully the children, always snatching the coal slag they picked because they were bigger.

It was Sister Shuangshuang who chased these bullies away, so they didn’t have to fear being robbed.

The scene instantly grew lively.

The captured Gu Gaofei’s face flushed deep red. He tried to turn over, but didn’t know how the person on his back managed it—any slight movement caused sharp pain as if his joints were breaking.

He could only blush and shout, “It’s a misunderstanding! I’m not a thief!”

“Caught red-handed and you still deny it!” Jiang Xiaozhou ran over, grabbed the oiled cloth from the child, and was about to open it when a tall man approached and pressed down on his hand.

“Comrade, how about handing the thief over to me? I’ll take him to the police station. The freight train will arrive soon; don’t let this delay your coal picking.”

Jiang Shuangshuang looked up.

The tall man wore a patched coarse coat but had a resolute and handsome face, making people take a second look.

But no matter how good-looking he was, the reward wouldn’t be handed over!

“No need.” Jiang Shuangshuang was adept at tying knots.

She wrapped the waist rope around the thief several times. During the scuffle, she noticed the thief’s moves were skillful and strong. If she hadn’t been a woman, he might have been harder to subdue.

So she tied him up tighter to prevent any escape.

“Comrade, you’re mistaken. I really am not a thief. If you don’t believe me...” Gu Gaofei wanted to explain but suddenly fell silent, resigned to being tightly bound.

Jiang Shuangshuang ignored him, holding the other end of the rope and heading toward the police station.

They walked, but someone followed behind.

Jiang Xiaozhou glanced back after a few steps and, as they approached the alley corner, suspiciously asked, “Why are you following us?”

The follower was the tall man who had spoken earlier.

Seeing others pass through the alley, his eyes flickered. “I'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.