Song Ci was quite familiar with the map of the old city district in Dado. Ten minutes later, the two of them arrived at a shabby noodle shop.

Xu's Beef Noodle Shop.

The boss was tall and thin, with a white towel hanging around his neck. When he saw Song Ci, he smiled and greeted him, "You're here."

"I brought a friend."

Song Ci greeted the boss with a smile and said, "Two large bowls, with extra meat, eggs, and dried tofu."

He lowered his voice and said, "I've been living here for over twenty years, and this noodle shop has been open for over twenty years. They have plenty of beef and the taste is authentic. It hasn't raised its prices in twenty years."

It was difficult to find such a run-down shop in Dado, let alone in the city.

In the city, every inch of land was valuable, and all you could see were brand new signs and franchise stores. The food was centrally prepared and could be heated up in a minute. The pace of this era was getting faster and faster, and not many people would sit in an old shop waiting for the chef to hand-pull the noodles for ten minutes. People preferred fast food, mechanized preparation, industrial assembly lines, and cleanliness.

"I like this place."

Gu Shen said seriously.

In this shop, he saw the side of the city that had been overshadowed by the passage of time.

After coming to Dado, the reason why he was used to running alone in the night in the alleys was because he liked the lingering atmosphere of this huge mechanical city.

Talents were the key components of a city.

These intertwined alleys and lanes were the only places in this cold city that slowed down.

Sitting here, Gu Shen felt his mood calm down...

"Seriously, why did you run?" Song Ci raised an eyebrow curiously and asked, "The reasons you gave before were lousy. Even if you were lying to me, you should come up with a decent excuse."

"I just made a deal with someone in the Huazhi Building, and I'm afraid he'll go back on his word." Gu Shen said, "Whether he's looking for me or not, I'll run first."

After hearing this, Song Ci was taken aback for a moment, then couldn't help but laugh. "Then you should run. There are no good people in that building. They may look refined, but in reality, they are ruthless characters who won't leave any bones behind... People who make deals with them often don't end well."

"I'm fine actually. I made a good deal with that person." Gu Shen smiled and said, "It's possible that he really sent a team to find me, but it's too late for him to regret now."

"Oh..." Song Ci became interested after hearing this. He ordered two bottles of green soda and handed one to Gu Shen. "Tell me more?"

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"There's not much of a story, just that." Gu Shen shook his head and said, "But the people in that building are all wealthy and don't care about gains and losses... It's more likely that he has already forgotten about this."

He then asked, "What about you? Why did you run?"

"I told the truth before." Song Ci said seriously, "They were chasing me, so I ran. There's no special reason."

Gu Shen disdainfully raised his middle finger. "Tch."

"If I have to come up with a reason... it's probably because some important person wants to see me, and I don't want to see her right now, so I can only choose to run away." Song Ci scratched his head and smiled bitterly, "But as you know, running away is always a temporary solution. Dado is not that big, where else can I run? At most, I can run to the next alley and eat a bowl of noodles. We'll still have to meet in the future."

"Important person, huh? How important?" Gu Shen changed the topic with a smile and said, "It's our first meeting, so don't exaggerate too much."

Song Ci ran away with him and treated him to a meal. Originally, Gu Shen planned to part ways with him after the run, but after chatting for a few sentences, he didn't expect Song Ci to be so easygoing.

They chatted casually on the way and became quite familiar with each other.

Speaking of which, Gu Shen and Song Ci had similar backgrounds. They were both orphans, but one was in Qinghe and the other was in Dado, and they relied on their own efforts to make a living.

Perhaps it was this similarity that made Gu Shen feel a strange feeling in his heart.

Perhaps... Song Ci could become his friend?

He didn't want to pry into Song Ci's secrets, nor did he want to inquire about information from this person who could potentially become his friend.

"Important person, really important."

Song Ci narrowed his eyes, propped up his chin, and stared at Gu Shen seriously. "Do you want to hear about it?"

"Not interested."

Gu Shen waved his hand and smiled, "I said I just made a big deal with Cui Zhongcheng. Do you believe me?"

"You're just talking nonsense." Song Ci looked at Gu Shen helplessly and said, "If you're going to brag, at least make it sound believable. Everyone in Dado knows that Cui Zhongcheng is someone who never makes a losing deal. The person who can trick him hasn't been born yet."

Gu Shen chuckled awkwardly and said, "Sorry, sorry, I didn't brag well. It's mainly because I just arrived in Dado and I'm ignorant. I only know about Cui Zhongcheng."

Song Ci sighed and said, "Alright, I don't know what to say to you... The noodles are here, let's eat!"

The boss brought two bowls of noodles and smiled as he put them down. "Crow, you said last time that you would bring Xiao Lu to eat noodles together. Hasn't she come back yet?"

Crow?Gu Shen raised an eyebrow, was this Song Ci's nickname?

He noticed that when the name "Little Lu" was mentioned, a hint of melancholy flashed across Song Ci's eyes, but it disappeared in an instant.

Song Ci accepted the noodles, and with a bright smile, he said, "Next time, next time. Little Lu is too busy, I'll eat more on her behalf!"

The boss turned and left, sighing softly with a low voice, "I haven't seen Little Lu for several years... I wonder how she's doing..."

"Interesting," Gu Shen observed, leaning in closer, he asked curiously, "Brother Crow, may I ask, who is Little Lu?"

"Childhood sweetheart, beautiful and kind-hearted."

Song Ci raised an eyebrow smugly, blowing on the hot noodles, deliberately raising his voice.

Then he quietly raised a finger, signaling Gu Shen to keep quiet.

Song Ci lowered his voice somewhat awkwardly, "I've had a crush on her for a long time, but we haven't seen each other for a while... We grew up together in this area, but then she left the city. Every time I come to this noodle shop, the boss always asks me when Little Lu is coming back. Once, when I was drunk, I boasted that Little Lu was my girlfriend and that I would bring her back to the city next year."

Gu Shen looked at him in surprise.

"Next year and the next... there are so many next years..." Song Ci covered his forehead with a somewhat tearful look, "I kind of regret boasting about it now... What if she really comes back?"

"What's there to fear, just confess if you like her!" Gu Shen blurted out the first two words, noticing the sudden change in Song Ci's expression, he quickly lowered his voice, "Since you're childhood sweethearts, just go ahead and pursue her."

"..."

Song Ci let out a long sigh, gulping down a whole bottle, and wiped his mouth forcefully.

The bitter liquor went down his throat, causing a pang in his heart.

He was beginning to find that Gu Shen, whom he had met by chance, was becoming more and more pleasing to his eyes, "I'd rather she didn't come back to the city... Should I tell the boss that we've broken up?"

"Don't," Gu Shen couldn't help but laugh, "What's the matter? Don't you like her anymore?"

"It's complicated, I can't explain it in a few words." Song Ci opened his mouth, wanting to say something but stopped, he smiled bitterly, "And... Crow is a nickname, don't mention it, it's unlucky."

"You know, I'm an orphan... Mmm, delicious!" He took a big bite of noodles and mumbled, "I grew up eating from different households, kind neighbors would occasionally take me in and send me food every day, but one day they stopped sending me food. Someone said I was a jinx, that I had killed my parents and now I was going to kill those who fed me, whoever took me in would be unlucky... Later, I don't know who started calling me Crow, and it slowly spread, everyone started calling me Crow."

Crow, implying an ominous person.

"But... a name is just a title, I cried countless times over this when I was a child, but now I don't care." Song Ci finished a whole bowl of noodles in a few bites, burped contentedly, and laughed, "Children who grow up being pointed at tend to be stronger, they don't care about rumors and right and wrong. As long as you can fill your stomach, that's all that matters."

After a pause, Song Ci sneakily glanced at the boss at the shop entrance, and added to Gu Shen, "Actually, Old Xu is a very good person, but habits are a scary thing, everyone calls me Crow, and it's become so habitual that calling me Song Ci feels awkward..."

He scratched his head again, "If one day I come here to eat noodles and he doesn't call me Crow, he must have Alzheimer's."

Looking at Song Ci's gentle expression mixed with a touch of nostalgia, Gu Shen was taken aback.

Song Ci laughed awkwardly, "Why are you looking at me like that? Are you conquered by my tolerance and magnanimity?"

Gu Shen was silent for a moment, he slightly backed away.

Across the table, he took another look at Song Ci from head to toe.

The sharply shaved head, the fierce face, the flamboyant shirt, and those flip-flops filled with dirt in the worn-out gaps.

If he had to summarize this tough guy's image in two words.

The most appropriate would probably be: sloppy.

"Who would have thought..."

Gu Shen clicked his tongue, remarking with a complex expression, "Before I met you, I never thought there would be a person who, beneath this rugged and fierce exterior, hides such a delicate and gentle heart."

"Flattery, flattery..."

Song Ci laughed modestly, then his face changed, he looked distressed, "Damn... I drank too much, I need to pee."

Gu Shen began to doubt his judgment of people.

Could this Brother Song not stay serious for more than three seconds?

Song Ci looked apologetic, pointing at the bottle of wine, "Brother Little Gu, we hit it off today, let's drink another three hundred rounds... But you'll have to wait for me, I need to use the restroom."

Gu Shen waved his hand helplessly.

The man, as if pardoned, clutched his crotch and ran off in a most undignified manner.

And then...

He never came back.