Christmas had arrived.
Everywhere was quiet. The snow fell heavier and heavier, its once-light demeanor becoming thick. Flakes drifted down profusely, quickly spreading a thin layer on the ground. Su Baixue walked to the alley entrance holding an umbrella, looking left and right.
No one.
No one came back either.
Go home, she told herself.
Disappointed, she turned her head and saw a discarded bag of takeout containers on the snowy ground in the shadows. The white printed characters on the plastic were of poor quality, and grease leaked from the bag opening. Without a second thought, Su Baixue stepped forward, bent down, and picked up the trash.
Not far from the alley entrance was a trash bin. She lifted her foot and thought about walking over to throw away the trash.
On the third floor, Li Guizhi's door was open. Xiao Qin was inside repairing the faucet, and Li Guizhi was handing him tools. She patted her waist and watched the snowflakes gently flutter outside the window.
The lights in the dim stairwell were all off, waiting for the next passerby to awaken them.
The yellow moon hidden behind dark clouds cast pale spots from the night sky.
Transparent snowflakes melted on the filthy trash can lid, leaving winding, dirty traces.
On this silent night, Su Baixue saw a person—someone collapsed beside the trash bin.
*
After leaving the crowd, Su Cui ran quickly into the small woods.
It was just a guess, but perhaps this familiar-looking car accident had stirred up scars hidden deep in Su Cui's heart. She urgently wanted to catch the real culprit before he escaped...
No one was in the woods, but Su Cui saw footprints on the damp grass—messy and dense, showing that their owner had been running fast.
Following the direction of the footprints, she ran out of the woods and happened to see a tall, thin middle-aged man get into a taxi with a panicked expression. He closed the door immediately, waved his arm in the back seat urging something, and the taxi sped off instantly without even turning on the meter.
Su Cui's leg muscles bulged.
She shot to the roadside like an arrow, but the taxi was already gone!
Su Cui thought she could catch up by running, but she didn't want to see herself on tomorrow's headlines running like a wild beast. She noted the taxi's license plate and decided to give up.
She wanted to give up.
A black car came from behind Su Cui, trying to pick up a fare.
Black cars—vehicles that haven't gone through any procedures with the transportation管理部门, don't have operating licenses, but provide paid services, engaging in illegal operations.
In City A, though banned, such cars weren't few.
Maybe because it was late, the black car driver saw Su Cui, an elderly woman nearby, rolled down the window, honked twice, and called out, "Elder sister, need a ride? There are no buses at this hour. Where are you going? Why aren't you home yet?"
Su Cui: "..."
If Su Cui hadn't become an old woman with super strength and a golden finger, she wouldn't consider taking a black car late at night. Even if the driver seemed nice and enthusiastic, she didn't want to risk it.
She valued her life and had to be responsible for it. Late at night, if she were taken to some deserted place and killed, no one would find her in time. Regular vehicles offered some guarantee.
Ah, but now she was an old woman with strong self-protection abilities.
Haha.
Forget giving up! Chase!
Su Cui immediately opened the door and quickly got into the car. She said to the driver, "Master! I remember there are quite a few red lights on this road ahead, right?" During the day, Su Cui had walked the roads around the square; this was her vague impression.
"You bet! So many red lights! All the way ahead, red lights all the way, hahaha." The driver laughed. "Where are you going?"
Su Cui's eyes darted. "Just drive! Drive straight ahead! I'm chasing a taxi that just left. You see, I'm old, and I left my ID in the taxi. I have an early morning flight tomorrow! I can't wait—it's a real headache! There are few cars now; I hope I can catch up at a red light!"
"Really? You can't lose your ID! Got it!" The driver stepped on the gas and sped forward.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Su Cui stared ahead intently. After passing two red lights, she finally saw the familiar taxi at the third red light. The license plate matched what she had memorized, and she immediately confirmed it. She pointed at the taxi and said, "That one! License plate XX886."
"It's a bit far. I can't just let you out on the road. I'll chase a bit further and see if I can catch up," the black car driver said.
"Good!"
Inside the taxi with license plate XX886.
The tall, thin middle-aged man looked extremely restless, constantly checking his phone screen. He tried to dial out several times but put it down, nervously tapping his knee.
The taxi driver noticed his condition and asked, "You look unwell. Are you feeling sick?"
"I'm fine!" the thin man barked.
The driver's face darkened. The thin man knew his reaction was too strong and said irritably, "Just drive your car. You'll get your money. I'll give you an extra thousand on top of what I said! Just drive..." Seeing the red light ahead hadn't changed for a long time, he cursed, "This damn place has way too many red lights! Can't you just run the red light?!"
The taxi driver didn't respond.
As it turned out, after this red light, the next one came again, as if they were stuck in a cycle.
The thin man checked the time and urged impatiently, "Just run all the red lights from now on. I'll give you two thousand for each one you run!"
The taxi driver still didn't move.
The thin man snapped, "Can't you understand human language? I told you to hurry up! There's hardly anyone on the road!"
"I won't do it!" the taxi driver said gruffly. "I've been a driver for over twenty years. Last year, I was named an excellent driver in my company! Why would I run red lights? Not only would I lose points, but it would also affect my evaluation this year. Besides, I have children. If I caused an accident, I couldn't afford it."
The driver was starting to regret it. He had been greedy, wanting to make some extra money, but he also had fears and boundaries.