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墨書 Inktalez
Ziya followed Lao Ran to a place he referred to as home. The dark staircase was devoid of any light, and it seemed as if the entire floor had been abandoned. After walking for a while, a faint glimmer of light appeared. This was an old-style tenement building, with a long corridor running through the middle and residents' rooms on either side. The narrow hallway was cluttered with various stoves and other miscellaneous items.
However, Ziya also noticed a large sign on the weathered wall that read "Eviction," indicating that this building was likely deemed unsafe and was within an area designated for urban redevelopment.
The dim lighting in the corridor could only be described as ghostly, with soot-stained stoves lining the way. The scene reminded Ziya of the rural home of her adoptive parents from the 70s and 80s, making her feel as if she had returned to her past.
As they approached a stove that was still burning, a strong scent of traditional Chinese medicine wafted from a corner of the corridor. Lao Ran continued to knock on a door, while Ziya sensed that the air was thick with a faint smell of liquefied gas. The dark walls obscured any details of the bricks, and she felt certain that this crumbling floor could be swept away by a strong wind at any moment.
When the door opened, it revealed two rooms connected by a single entrance. Lao Ran stepped inside, but there was no one there. Ziya looked around at the sparse furnishings. A worn-out sewing machine sat by the window, while a double bed and a single bed took up most of the space in the less than eighty-square-meter room. The back room was shrouded in darkness; she guessed it must be Lao Ran and his wife's bedroom.
The empty room offered no signs of life, yet Lao Ran spoke to himself, saying, "Mother, I'm back! I brought you something nice!" Hearing his call sent chills down Ziya's spine, but she remained silent, quietly sitting on a dusty stool.
Lao Ran busied himself at the door, bringing the medicine jar from the stove into the room and preparing herbal concoctions with meticulous care. It was clear he was a devoted son. After some time, he finally settled down and noticed Ziya sitting in the corner—she was the girl who had promised to help him find his family.
Lao Ran began to share his story about working at the News Agency. He had been diligent during his time there, always fearful of offending anyone, taking on all sorts of office tasks to avoid trouble. His goal was to secure a stable position within the agency, but ironically, his efforts only led to further disdain from others.
After several years at the News Agency without incident, everything changed following an interview with a man involved in a legal case against someone closely connected to Zhang, the Chief Editor of the agency—a connection Lao Ran had been unaware of. He brought back what he thought were solid findings from this interview and even dreamed that night about achieving great success as an office clerk.
However, when he returned to work the next day, he sensed from his colleagues' glances that layoffs were imminent. Despite feeling that he had done nothing significant in life, he had always treated his job with utmost seriousness and believed he would not be among those laid off.
Like Aunt Li, Lao Ran was considered an old-timer at the News Agency. His family lived in poverty; however, in reality, no one cared about individual circumstances—when layoffs occurred, they happened without explanation or justification. This wasn't a charity; it was survival of the fittest in modern society.
Yet Lao Ran refused to accept retirement quietly. He knelt before his boss, pleading for mercy; however, his boss did not clearly indicate who would be let go and insisted that Lao Ran do his job well or face consequences. Defeated by ridicule from assistant Liu, Lao Ran left his boss's office feeling despondent. Everyone at the News Agency knew about his difficult home situation: his wife was unemployed and stayed home; his elderly mother suffered from various ailments; and he had a fourteen-year-old daughter. When Lao Ran told his wife about what had happened at work, she remained silent.
Of course, the layoffs and the list were all subjects of speculation among everyone; no one knew the truth of the matter except for Nana Secretary, who was most aware of the real situation regarding the layoffs.
Lao Ran's last interview took place on a winter day. He had no idea that his final interview subject was a relative of the Cleaner from floors 13 to 16 of the News Agency.
The Cleaner on those floors was named Duan Xiuying. She was bold and daring, having previously worked on construction sites. Later, someone introduced her to this job. Although the pay here was not as high as on the construction site, at least she wouldn't have to work under the sun. Duan Xiuying's sister had once worked as a laborer on a construction site but went missing after an accident. Naturally, her husband sought out the site manager for answers, but the manager brushed him off completely. In the end, it was the manager's brother-in-law who settled things privately with the family. However, soon after, the family felt something was amiss and decided to take them all to court.
Lao Ran learned about this from a colleague. Thinking about how Boss publicly criticized him for not doing good work for the News Agency or reporting good news, he secretly went to interview those involved. However, when he excitedly brought back his news report and asked the editor to publish it, he was met with rejection. He also received a call from Boss's secretary, Liu, asking him to come to Boss's office.
Boss pushed a thick envelope across the table towards him and said in a cold tone, "This is your salary for three months; your contract has been terminated early..."
Lao Ran knew that pleading and sweet-talking would do no good. Trembling, he pointed at Boss and said, "There's still a year left on my contract; you owe me compensation for my losses. I'm going to sue you."
Boss dismissed him with a sneer, saying, "Go ahead and sue... Have you gone mad? You think you can swindle my money." He then pressed a button to call his secretary to push Lao Ran out of his office.
That night, Lao Ran returned home very late, but when he got back, there was no one there—his mother, wife, and child were all missing. Lao Ran searched frantically...
"Didn't you call the police?" Ziya asked in confusion, tears glistening in her eyes as she sympathized with Lao Ran. He slowly stood up, still maintaining that dazed expression. As the saying goes, he looked like a humble servant in life and remained so even in death; it was truly laughable.
"Do you want me to help you find your family?" Ziya gently asked as she wiped away her tears.
Lao Ran nodded and slowly turned to leave, his figure gradually disappearing from Ziya's sight. She hurriedly followed but found no trace of him.
At that moment, the floor shook slightly, startling Ziya out of her stupor. She quickly ran toward the exit.
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