The woman nodded, then turned slightly to the side and said, "Yes, there is. Turn left when you leave the complex and go into the first alley on your right. There's an old locksmith there named Yu. You can just call him Master Yu. He changed the locks on our house. He can also fix pipes and install windows. I heard he's been doing this in the area for thirty or forty years. People in this area always go to him if they have any problems with this."

"That's it. Thank you."

"Don't be polite, it's just neighbors." The woman said, and stumbled. The man beside her quickly supported her and said seriously, "Walk properly. What if you fall?"

Although his tone was serious, his expression did not seem to be blaming, but more worried.

"It's okay." The woman chuckled, held the other person's hand tightly, and shook it gently.

Looking at this scene, Qiao Yan thought of what Xie Quan said last night. This couple really seemed like nice people...

As soon as I thought of Xie Quan, people came.

"Good morning!" A strong voice sounded. As soon as she heard it, she knew that he must have had a good sleep last night, Qiao Yan thought angrily.

"morning."

"Xiao Xie, good morning."

"Good morning, Xiao Xie."

"Thank you, brother~"

The narrow staircase is particularly busy during this time of year.

Xie Quan hurried down to walk with Qiao Yan, asking her if she slept well last night and if she would have trouble sleeping on her first day moving in.

Qiao Yan only said a little bit, that she had not yet gotten used to the new environment, and did not mention anything else.

As they were talking, the message alert on her cell phone rang. Qiao Yan took it out and saw that it was Aunt Liu who replied to her. She also saw that the person who introduced her was Master Yu.

Xie Quan was beside her and glanced at the message above. He couldn't help but ask her if something was broken at home?

Qiao Yan shook her head and repeated her words about replacing the rusty lock.

"Then I'll take you there later." Xie Quan adjusted his black sports bag and said, "The first store I worked part-time at is right over there, on the way."

"That's great." Before Qiao Yan could answer, the woman spoke first: "This way you don't have to walk, it saves energy."

Qiao Yan thought about it and nodded in agreement.

Although it is said that you can judge a person by his appearance but not by his heart, the neighbors she knows now do not seem like bad people to her. She now suspects that the black shadow she saw last night was not an illusion.

After leaving the building, the family of three left first, and Qiao Yan followed Xie Quan to pick up his bicycle, which was parked in the iron boron shed to the right of the residential building. It was a blue and white bicycle, not brand new, but well maintained.

"Come on, get in the car." Xie Quan said, and Qiao Yan straddled the back seat, raised her calves, and grabbed the bottom edge of the cushion with both hands.

Xie Quan rode his bike very steadily, and was able to find time to chat with her: "The whole family basically goes out at this time. Mr. Zhang drives his daughter to kindergarten first, then takes Mrs. Zhang to the vegetable market, and finally drives to work himself."

"I wish I could buy two cars someday." As he said this, he became envious.

"There will be." Qiao Yan responded, thinking about the family of three in her mind. Whether it was from what others said or what she saw today, they were indeed a happy and harmonious family. So what was the crying last night?

Isn't it Mrs. Zhang who's crying? Is there anyone else in their family?

"Are there only three people in their family?"

Xie Quan nodded: "Yes, the Zhang family is a model of a happy family in our community."

"That's really strange..." Qiao Yan murmured.

"What?" Xie Quan was paying attention to the turn and didn't hear clearly, so he asked again.

"It's okay, I just said that it was nice."

Master Yu is a middle-aged man with not much hair. He is very thin and dressed casually. His exposed hands are covered with calluses. He looks much older than his age, and his ten fingers are stained brown-gray.

Xie Quan helped Qiao Yan talk about changing the locks. Master Yu nodded without saying a word and took Qiao Yan to look at the locks. Qiao Yan finally chose the latest model he introduced, which had double protection and so on.

Xie Quan watched as he did, then nodded and whispered that he had the same lock at home and it was easy to use.

Qiao Yan glanced at him and said, "Don't you want to work part-time?"

"There's still time. Go out of this alley and turn right. It's the first bakery. If you want to buy bread, come over. I have an employee discount."

So Xie Quan followed Qiao Yan and watched her choose a lock, pay a deposit, and make an appointment with Master Yu to come to her house at two o'clock in the afternoon.

"Thank you." Before leaving, she thanked him again and asked, "Where can I find the latest news about our community?"

Xie Quan thought for a moment before he understood what she was asking. "Oh, you mean the bulletin board, right? It's on the wall on the left side of the residential building. All the big and small things are posted there."

Xie Quan went to work, and Qiao Yan walked back by herself.

I didn't notice it when I was sitting on Xie Quan's bike, but now that I'm walking back, I realize that this area is quite quiet. It shouldn't be so deserted at this time with people going to work, school, or buying groceries.

But when I think about what Xie Quan said about Mr. Zhang driving the children to school and Mrs. Zhang to the vegetable market, it seems that the vegetable market, kindergarten and school are not nearby. In this way, the deserted place here seems to be explained.

Qiao Yan looked back and saw that Xie Quan had disappeared. People riding bicycles are always faster than walking.

Master Yu moved a bamboo chair to the door of the store and sat down with his back to her, fanning himself softly with a palm-leaf fan. The sound of the morning news on the radio was indistinct.

There is also a stall selling crispy candies and a photo studio in this alley, but they are not open yet and all you can see are their dirty signs.

There were still few people on the road outside. Occasionally a few pedestrians or a bicycle would pass by, and the bustle would soon return to silence.

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