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The city management, fierce as wolves and tigers, was chasing closely behind. Summer Wind, holding a knife, was running for his life in front. Since childhood, Summer Wind had a foundation in Kung Fu. Although blood was still gushing from the back of his head, his speed was unmatched by those cowardly city managers. Those good-for-nothings were full of vices; they were utterly useless for physical labor.
Just as Summer Wind reached the side of Xin Yi's car, the door suddenly swung open and slammed towards him. Summer Wind guessed he had encountered a good Samaritan. At that moment, his Kung Fu training kicked in; he pushed against the oncoming door with both hands, leaned back, and slid forward into a bridge position, smoothly slipping under the door of Xin Yi's vehicle. Fortunately, Xin Yi's car was an SUV, which was high enough to allow him to slide underneath. After getting past, Summer Wind thought that since this person liked to help others, he would let him truly be a hero, so he opened the car door and jumped inside.
To his surprise, it turned out they were acquaintances. After hearing Summer Wind recount what happened, Xin Yi decided to help this upright young man. However, he had killed someone, and that person was recognized as a law enforcement officer by the government. If it were someone with connections and power, it might not be a big deal. The key issue was that Summer Wind was just a small vendor living at the bottom of society. This matter could easily escalate to significant proportions; it was certain to attract attention and could lead to him being hunted down like a chicken scared by a monkey. The only way to survive was to run—run as far as possible. Therefore, Xin Yi said to Summer Wind, "What are you planning to do next? With that city manager dead, you'll immediately become a wanted criminal with nowhere to hide."
"Dead? No way, just... the thigh," Summer Wind replied after pausing at Xin Yi's words. Although he was extremely angry at the time, he hadn't lost his rationality. He knew that in the Heavenly Pride Nation where capital punishment still existed, killing someone meant paying with one's life. Thus, his stabs were aimed only at the city manager's thigh; although there was quite a bit of blood loss, it wouldn't be life-threatening. Of course, if he didn't get medical attention in time, he could die from excessive bleeding. However, during his escape, he had already seen someone helping him into a car.
"Oh," Xin Yi sighed in relief. As long as the person wasn't dead, it wasn't too serious; at least hiding wouldn't be too difficult. However, those city managers had definitely seen his license plate number. It seemed he needed to think of a way to distance himself from this matter; otherwise, the police would trace it back to him sooner or later. After some thought, Xin Yi turned the car into a narrow alley and stopped before saying to Summer Wind, "Summer Wind, the police will definitely investigate this matter; you need to find a place to hide."
"I..." Summer Wind hesitated and didn't know what to say. He had never left Longchuan in his life and had no relatives. Moreover, his paralyzed father lay at home; while it wouldn't matter much if he left himself, what would happen to his father? Would he let him starve? So for a moment, he didn't know what to say.
Seeing Summer Wind's troubled expression and guessing he might have some difficulties to share, Xin Yi sincerely said, "Summer Wind, is there something troubling you? If you trust me, tell me about it so I can see how I can help you."
Summer Wind hesitated again but finally sighed and said, "Thank you! I think I can handle it myself." After saying that, he pushed open the car door and ran deeper into the alley. Xin Yi shook his head; Summer Wind's stubborn personality made him reluctant to accept help easily. However, solving this issue on his own wouldn't be easy either. Since they had crossed paths, he decided to help him out because upright young men with good Kung Fu like Summer Wind were rare in society; it would be a shame for him to ruin his future over this incident.
So Xin Yi also opened the car door and got out while heading in the direction where Summer Wind had run off. He took out his phone and dialed Qin Dali's number...
In just a few minutes, Xin Yi spotted Summer Wind running ahead of him. Though Summer Wind was fast due to his Kung Fu background and physical strength, it seemed he hadn't learned lightness skills; thus Xin Yi found it easy to keep up with him at a leisurely pace while maintaining about a hundred meters distance behind.
Summer Wind's mind was chaotic at that moment; when he acted impulsively earlier, he hadn't considered much—he just wanted to vent his anger and teach that city manager a lesson. It wasn't until Xin Yi mentioned it that he realized the seriousness of the situation: the police would soon find out that he had injured that city manager. He didn't care about himself; going to jail meant free meals for him. But the biggest problem was his paralyzed father—what would happen if he wasn't around to take care of him? Since childhood, it had always been just him and his father; there were no relatives or friends who could look after him.
So now all Summer Wind wanted was to hurry home and prepare for their escape together until things calmed down before returning later. His home was located in an old town area of Longchuan City’s West District—a slum where houses built decades ago stood crumbling under years of wear and tear. Many roofs were overgrown with wild grass while moss covered exposed walls. In recent years, residents with some means had gradually moved into new districts; now most houses were rented out to migrant workers while only a few original residents remained—like Summer Wind’s family—struggling through tough times. With more migrant workers arriving daily came an increase in illegal constructions and makeshift shelters making an already crowded area even more congested. The rising population density led to an overwhelming amount of waste production; existing sewage systems could no longer meet current demands due to poor planning and years of neglect resulting in foul-smelling sewage flowing freely through residential areas—especially after rain when entire neighborhoods turned into large garbage dumps filled with refuse and waste threatening various diseases' outbreaks.
Summer Wind had lived in this chaotic environment for twenty-two years. In the earlier years, when his father was still able to work, he often mentioned wanting to move out of this slum and find a better place for Summer Wind. However, when Summer Wind turned fifteen, a sudden disaster turned their hopes to ashes. Xia Dongrong, Summer Wind's father, was operating a dump truck at a construction site when a loader fell from above, crashing directly onto the cab of his truck. The loader's arm pierced through the metal roof of the cab and deeply embedded itself in his back. After emergency treatment, he managed to survive, but his spine was severely damaged, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. From then on, he could only lie in bed or sit in a wheelchair, relying entirely on Summer Wind for care.
That year, Summer Wind had just graduated from middle school. For the sake of his father's health, he had to give up the opportunity to continue his studies and found an apprenticeship at a deli. He worked as an apprentice while earning some money and taking care of his father. Summer Wind was a clever young man and quickly mastered the art of making deli meats from his mentor. His mentor's signature dish was Lantern Beef. He worked at the deli for seven years and became a true master himself. Moreover, he incorporated techniques from his father's teachings into the Swordsmanship of slicing beef, elevating the essence of Lantern Beef to new heights and gaining high recognition locally. However, three months ago, after his mentor passed away, his mentor's son feared that Summer Wind would take over the family business and dismissed him. Although Summer Wind could have opened his own shop to compete with his mentor's son, he chose not to do so. Instead, he set up a stall at the night market but soon found himself chased away by aggressive city management like a stray dog. Today, another incident occurred.
Summer Wind had already run back to the area of Old Town, weaving through narrow alleys until he finally reached the outside of his small yard. It was a dilapidated little courtyard with three low-roofed houses surrounded by walls. The stone walls were old and covered in thick moss, with some parts having collapsed, giving it an appearance reminiscent of a rundown mountain shrine often seen in movies.
Summer Wind pushed open the slightly ajar gate and hurried into the yard, calling out, "Dad! Dad!"
"Cough cough... Xiaofeng, why are you back so early?" A weak voice came from inside.
Summer Wind dashed across the yard into the house and asked, "Dad, it's getting dark; turn on the lights."
"Ah, it's not that I don't want to turn on the lights; I don't know which circuit has gone wrong again—the lights won't turn on at all," the weak voice replied. "There should still be some candles in the cupboard; feel around and light one up. By the way, Xiaofeng, why are you back so early today? Did you forget something? Or did city management chase you back again?"
"City management chased me; I poked one," Summer Wind said. "Dad, we need to pack up and run!"
"I knew this would happen sooner or later with you setting up at the night market," the weak voice said. "But where can we run to? We have no relatives outside; your old man can't move well either. Ah, Xiaofeng, you should hurry and run; I can't move anymore and don't want to run..."
"No! We're going together," Summer Wind replied firmly.
"Ah, my child, where can you take me? If we both try to run, neither of us will escape," Xia Dongrong said. "Listen to me; you hurry and go; I have my ways."
"No! Hurry up; I'll carry you," Summer Wind urged. "If we delay any longer, it will be too late!"
"Alas..." Xia Dongrong sighed again. He was quite clear about his son's personality; once he had made up his mind about something, it would not change easily. However, being a burden to him as a disabled person would surely drag him down. The thought of causing his son to be captured because of himself was simply not worth it. Living this half-life was already suffering, and it would be better to die sooner so that his son could walk away freely. With this thought, an idea quickly took shape in Xia Dongrong's mind.
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