Cangmang Asks the Way 1: Guardian of the Lamp

At the Nancheng bus station, Cang Lifeng and his coworkers had already gathered.

Old Zhang stood by the platform, occasionally tugging at his collar, looking somewhat uncomfortable. Da Zhou stood beside him, bragging to his buddies, "Let me tell you, I've seen the boss's brother in a photo. That look in his eyes, you can tell he's a trained fighter..."

The workers chattered excitedly about the match, some guessing how many rounds it would take for Tianci to win, others saying that today's final would definitely be exciting.

"Boss!" Old Zhang waved to Cang Lifeng, "The car is coming soon. Think about where you'll sit. There are a lot of us."

Cang Lifeng smiled and walked over, about to speak, when he caught a glimpse of Wang Lide hurrying towards him from the street corner. He was carrying a large bag of oranges, and his shirt collar had two neat creases. He was walking quickly toward them.

At this moment, Cang Xiangyang and Cang Xiaohua arrived. Cang Xiangyang stood at the edge of the crowd. His tracksuit had been washed too many times, and the color had faded unevenly, but he had folded it neatly and kept it under his pillow for several days before finally deciding to wear it today. Cang Xiaohua had her hair tied in a ponytail, with stray hairs held back with a hair clip, revealing her clean face.

Wang Lide walked up to Cang Lifeng and called out, "Lifeng."

Cang Lifeng walked over and patted his arm affectionately, saying, "Brother Wang, you're here! Why did you bring anything?"

Old Zhang leaned over and said, "Boss, I bet these oranges aren't for us." He looked at Wang Lide and asked, "Accountant Wang, don't you think so?"

Wang Lide paused for a moment, then nodded: "Um... oranges... oranges are for Tianci, in the hope of bringing him good fortune, luck, and a bountiful harvest."

"Hey, Accountant Wang is so thoughtful. Once Tianci wins, we'll peel oranges for him together," Old Zhang praised.

Cang Lifeng said gratefully, "Brother Wang, you're so kind. I thank you on behalf of Tianci."

Wang Lide smiled and said, "Lifeng, you're being too polite. Tianci is your brother, so isn't he also my brother?"

"Accountant Wang is right, Tianci is everyone's little brother," Da Zhou exclaimed. Everyone echoed his sentiments.

Looking at those warm faces, Cang Lifeng was deeply moved.

Wang Lide stood beside Cang Lifeng, looking at those sincere smiling faces, and he smiled back. But his smile looked somewhat stiff.

Cang Lifeng glanced down at his watch—9:55. The bus should be here soon.

He glanced towards the street corner; Lin Wei should be busy calling a taxi to pick someone up. He remembered Tianci's voice on the phone last night: "Brother, are you coming tomorrow?"

He said, "I'll come. I'll definitely come."

He'll definitely go. After watching the game, he'll give that kid a big hug and tell him: You're my pride.

Just then, the pager on his waist rang sharply. The sound was particularly jarring in the noisy bus stop.

Cang Lifeng looked down and saw that the screen displayed the number of the convenience store in the workers' shed area.

His heart tightened.

He knew that number all too well. Whenever there was any trouble at the construction site, it was that number that called.

His hand holding the pager paused almost imperceptibly. He looked up at the street corner—in that direction, Lin Wei should be almost at Nanjing University. He glanced at the bus stop sign again—the next bus was in three minutes.

three minutes.

He walked quickly to a public phone booth by the roadside, picked up the receiver, and dialed back.

On the other end of the phone, Old Li's panicked voice came through:

"Lifeng...something's happened...the top floor...the top floor collapsed...Xiao Zhang...Xiao Zhang is buried inside..."

Cang Lifeng's hand tightened around the receiver, and he asked urgently, "How is he? Is he still alive?"

"He's alive... He was hiding in the triangular area of ​​steel bars... but his leg was trapped... I called the police, and the fire department is on its way."

"I'll be right back."

He hung up the phone and, through the glass, saw his coworkers still chatting and laughing. Old Zhang was craning his neck to see if the truck had arrived, and Da Zhou's bald head was particularly conspicuous in the sunlight. Wang Lide stood at the edge of the crowd, still holding the bag of oranges in his hand.

Then, he looked towards the street corner further away. Lin Wei should have already met Professor Shen in that direction.

He thought of Tianci. That kid should be at the stadium by now. He recalled Tianci's question from last night: "Brother, are you coming to watch my game tomorrow?"

He said, "I will definitely come."

But now he's going to break his promise.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, his gaze was resolute. He put the receiver back on the phone, pushed open the door of the phone booth, and strode towards the bus stop.

"Boss, the car's almost here." Old Zhang waved to him.

Cang Lifeng strode over, stood in front of the group, and said urgently, "Brothers, something's happened at the construction site. The top floor collapsed, and Xiao Zhang is buried inside. I need to get back right away."

The laughter stopped abruptly.

Old Zhang dropped his cigarette on the ground. Da Zhou stood there, mouth agape, speechless.

"Oh my god, is it really true?"

"How is Xiao Zhang?"

"The construction site was fine when we came out, how did it collapse?"

"Where's Lao Li?"

……

The workers asked all sorts of questions at once.

"Don't panic, everyone, Xiao Zhang is still alive," Cang Lifeng reassured them.

Upon hearing this, everyone's tense nerves relaxed for a moment. Then, Old Zhang was the first to step forward: "Come on, boss, I'll go back with you."

"I'm going back too," Da Zhou said.

The workers all rushed over, saying they wanted to go back to the construction site.

Yes, the construction site is like their child, and Xiao Zhang is like their brother. How could they possibly watch the game with peace of mind after such a major incident?

Xiangyang stood in the crowd, his face pale. He opened his mouth, wanting to say, "I'll go too," but he didn't say it. He knew his older brother wouldn't let him go. He still wanted to take Xiaohua to watch Tianci's competition.

Standing beside Xiangyang, Xiaohua's face was ashen. She grasped Xiangyang's hand, her body trembling slightly.

Cang Lifeng looked at his younger brother and sister-in-law and quickly said, "Xiangyang, Xiaohua, you two go watch the game for your brother and cheer for Tianci."

Cang Xiangyang nodded vigorously, tears welling up in his eyes.

Cang Xiaohua couldn't help but cry. She covered her mouth to stop herself from crying out loud.

Cang Lifeng looked at her, then suddenly reached out and gently wiped the corner of her eye with his thumb. The movement was very light and quick, as if afraid of hurting her. Then he withdrew his hand, turned around, and strode towards the side of the street.

Wang Lide stood there, still holding the bag of oranges. His face was as white as paper. He knew. He knew what had happened. He knew who had done it.

He watched his fellow workers rushing towards the street, and watched Cang Lifeng's back as he ran ahead. Then, he moved too.

No one asked him why. He didn't know why himself. He only knew that the moment Cang Lifeng turned and ran towards the construction site, he had only one thought in his mind: to follow him. Even if he couldn't say anything, he had to follow him.

A group of people ran back the way they came, frantically trying to make their way back. Old Zhang was in the lead, followed closely by Da Zhou, their work shoes making a clattering sound on the concrete. Someone dropped a cigarette while running, but didn't bother to pick it up.

No one spoke. Only heavy breathing and increasingly rapid footsteps could be heard.

At the bus stop, Cang Xiangyang and Cang Xiaohua stood there blankly, watching the group of figures recede into the distance, watching their older brother's figure disappear around the street corner, their hearts churning.

A bus slowly pulled into the station.

Cang Xiangyang helped Cang Xiaohua into the car and found her a seat. Xiaohua was still crying, her head down, her shoulders heaving.

Cang Xiangyang held her hand, hesitated for a long time, and then whispered, "Xiaohua, don't... don't cry. It won't be good if Tianci sees you crying."

Xiaohua raised her sleeve to wipe her eyes and nodded.

Cang Xiangyang hesitated for a moment, then said, "If anyone asks, just say... just say that something came up at the construction site and I can't come. Don't say anything else."

Xiaohua hummed in agreement and didn't say anything more.

At the same time, Lin Wei walked out of the building at the entrance of Nancheng Garden residential complex, carrying a camera. She stopped at the entrance and hailed a taxi that happened to be passing by.

She opened the passenger door and got in, saying to the driver, "Sir, please go to Nancheng University first, then the martial arts school, and finally the city stadium."

The driver nodded, turned on the meter, and started driving.

The car drove through the streets and alleys of Nancheng and came to a steady stop in front of Nancheng University.

As Shen Moyuan walked out of the campus, he immediately saw the car parked by the roadside. Lin Wei had already gotten out of the passenger seat and respectfully opened the back door, saying, "Grandpa Shen, please get in."

Shen Moyuan said with a smile, "Reporter Lin, it's a pity you had to come and pick me up in person."

"Of course. Lifeng specifically instructed that we should pick you up, Master Zhou, and Xiao Lu to go watch the competition."

Shen Moyuan sat in the back seat, nodded, and said, "That child is very thoughtful."

Lin Wei closed the car door and was about to return to the passenger seat when she suddenly remembered something: "By the way, Grandpa Shen, where's Teacher Lu? Isn't he going?"

Shen Moyuan shook his head: "Professor Li has an urgent task assigned to him, and he can't leave. He asked me to pass on his message, wishing Tianci good luck in the competition."

Lin Wei nodded and returned to the passenger seat. The driver started the car and drove towards the martial arts school.

At the entrance of Nancheng Martial Arts School, Zhou Qingfeng, dressed in a dark blue Chinese-style jacket, walked out with steady steps.

Lin Wei got out of the car again and opened the back door: "Master Zhou, get in! Grandpa Shen is already in the back."

Zhou Qingfeng peeked out and saw Shen Moyuan sitting in the back row. The two exchanged a glance and smiled.

"Professor Shen, you've arrived too." Zhou Qingfeng got into the car and sat down.

"How could I, an old man, not come to Lifeng's match?" Shen Moyuan moved over to make room for Zhou Qingfeng.

Lin Wei closed the car door and returned to the passenger seat: "Driver, we can go now. City Gymnasium."

The taxi started moving and merged into the traffic.

Sunlight streamed in through the car window, falling on the two people in the back seat. Shen Moyuan and Zhou Qingfeng sat together, one refined and the other robust, talking in hushed tones.

Lin Wei leaned back in the passenger seat, watching the street scenes flash by outside the window. She remembered Cang Lifeng's voice on the phone last night: "Lin Wei, pick someone up for me." There was a smile in his voice; she could tell he was genuinely happy. Her younger brother was going to have a competition, and he was looking forward to this day more than anyone else.

She glanced down at the camera resting on her lap. When they got to the stadium, she wanted to take a picture of Lifeng and Tianci together—the two brothers standing side-by-side, one a hero who had risen from the construction site, the other a champion who had emerged from the ring. She had even planned the composition: sunlight streaming in from the side, illuminating their silhouettes.

A slight smile played on her lips as she thought to herself, "After taking this picture, I'll have to ask Lifeng if he's been busy at the construction site these past few days, and if he's figured out what happened with Lao Li..."

The car drove smoothly forward. The sun was shining brightly, and the sycamore leaves outside the window were already as big as a palm, glistening in the sunlight.