0024 Night Rose-C.TLAY, Night.24 Ruan Mei was woken up by the noise. The iron gate of the yard was banging loudly, like a hammer hammering at the nerves in her brain.
This situation made her think for a moment that she was back to more than a year ago, when loan sharks came to her house to collect debts, her doorstep was doused with foul-smelling filth, and she walked on the street in fear.
It's not usury. She has already paid back the money. It's not usury.
Ruan Mei repeated it in her mind over and over again as she quickly put on her sports bra and T-shirt and walked out. She did not walk out of the store directly, but lifted the door curtain to take a look at the iron gate.
She was stunned at first sight. There were four or five men in blue uniforms outside the iron gate.
It's the urban management.
She walked down the stairs in flip-flops and across the stone path. As she got closer, she found that two of them were wearing public security uniforms, but with different armbands.
In just a few steps, she even fantasized that the police helped her catch the missing Huang Mingyan?
But this idea quickly burst like a phantom bubble in the sun. A city management officer standing in the front showed his law enforcement badge to identify himself and asked her, "You are the owner of this store, right?"
Ruan Mei didn't open the door for them. She nodded cautiously through the carved iron pillars: "It's me."
"Someone reported that your shop has illegal residents. Open the door. We need to go in and check it out."
"Rose Slave" is a studio-style store converted from a residential house, but the initial decoration design did not include a living area. At that time, Ruan Mei still had a roof to shelter her head.
Later, she had to move out of her original apartment. In order to save money on rent, Ruan Mei changed the direction of the renovation. She kept the original bedroom part of the house, only renovated the bedroom and bathroom, and then moved into the store.
Gong Xin had reminded her that this was a "three-in-one" venue* and could easily be targeted by law enforcement agencies. Such stores needed to have certain fire-fighting facilities and escape routes, and could not use gas or open flames.
In addition, only one person can be on duty or stay overnight in the store.
What’s funny is that the reason she was reported was that there was “multiple accommodation” in the store.
Many people? When were there many people? The only time recently was when Chen Shanye stayed over!
Ruan Mei was so angry that she was shaking and gritting her teeth. She didn't know who nearby had seen Chen Shanye staying overnight at her place.
Law enforcement officers could not find any signs of multiple people living in the store, but they did find that there was only one exit, no fire escape route, and the fire-fighting facilities were not up to standard, so no one was allowed to live in the store.
Ruan Mei was ordered to move out within a certain period of time. The store was not allowed to operate until the rectification was completed. Even the electricity was cut off and the electrical box was sealed with a pale white seal.
The law enforcement officers did not stay for too long as they were rushing to the next store. The "three-in-one" stores in this area were common and they usually turned a blind eye to them. However, recently there were orders from above to conduct strict investigations and rectifications, and several departments jointly enforced the law, and the inspections were much stricter than usual.
The house was deserted and Ruan Mei slumped on the sofa. There was no electricity and she couldn't turn on the air conditioner. The stagnant air in the room made her sweat profusely in a short while.
Although it was not the loan sharks who came to cause trouble, she felt the helplessness of being on the verge of losing her place to stay.
It is not easy for her to find a new place to live temporarily. She does not have the budget to rent an apartment with an elevator nearby, but even the old apartments with stairs in this business district are not cheap. She has to pay a large sum of money for a deposit of two months and one month in rent.
If you want to save money, you can only look for a house in a place with less convenient transportation or even in a village in the city. It is not easy to find a house. Commuting, cost-effectiveness of rent, etc. are all factors that need to be considered.
If it weren't for Gong Xin's help, she would not have been able to rent this place at a low price. The rents of surrounding shops had skyrocketed. Fortunately, Gong Xin never asked her for more money.
As she thought about it, she couldn't help but complain, who on earth was it that reported her?
Was it the old lady next door? Because she had once complained about the old lady's dog barking and causing excessive disturbance?
Is it the lady who owns the small shop at the end of the alley? Because the stinky old man in the shop keeps looking at her with lustful eyes?
Or is it some neighbor who always looks at her store with tinted glasses and always thinks it is a pornographic place?
Is there a hole in the roof? Why is water dripping on her face?
Are the drops of water that roll down my cheeks from the corners of my eyes poisoned? Why do they taste so bitter when they flow into the corners of my mouth?
Is it true that Ruan Mei is unable to do anything well as Lin Bina said?
An adult's collapse only takes a moment and comes unexpectedly.
The McDonald's special combo I bought after waiting in line for an hour was knocked over as soon as I walked out the door. I was so hungry that I wanted to make a bowl of noodles, but the hot water was not hot enough and the noodles were still hard after soaking for a long time. I suddenly woke up in the middle of the night but couldn't fall asleep again... Any trivial thing at any time can turn the many pains in my heart into raindrops that flow from the corners of my eyes.
The saddest thing is when you want to say everything but can't say anything.
The last time she broke down, she vented all her tears and grievances to a stranger, and this time when she broke down, the person who flashed through her mind was also that person, the one who could cover her ears.
She ran back to the room, grabbed her cell phone and called Chen Shanye.
She cried like a fool, bitter tears and salty sweat all pooling together as she yelled into the phone, "Chen Shanye, someone is messing with me!"
Chen Shanye immediately pulled his suitcase towards a less crowded place, suppressing his palpitations and asking, "Don't cry first. Tell me what's wrong? What happened?"
Ruan Mei confided to Chen Shanye about how she had been reported and the store had been forced to have its power cut off. Her words of grievance washed away the moisture in her eyes, and her tears gradually stopped.
"Who is so dissatisfied with me? I think the old lady next door is the most suspicious. Maybe she saw you leaving that morning! She has always disliked my store!" Ruan Mei hit the pillow hard, and an indignant "bang" reached Chen Shanye's ears.
Chen Shanye breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this. He was so worried that something might happen to her that even his palms were wet.
He comforted the livid Ruan Mei: "I'm coming to see you now. Please pack a few sets of clothes and daily necessities. How about staying in a hotel for the next few days? We can look for a house slowly."
Chen Shanye was not very willing to let Ruan Mei go to where he lived. The environment and the people were too complicated. It didn't matter to him as a single man living there, but he was reluctant to let Ruan Mei suffer.
"No, don't come..." Ruan Mei wiped away the remaining tears and walked out of the bedroom, sniffing her nose. She listened to Chen Shanye's quiet voice, and her turbulent emotions were calmed down a little: "You are going back to your hometown today, so don't come. I can find a chain hotel to stay for a few days. Anyway, I can't do business these days, so I'll just look for more houses..."
"I can go home next week." Chen Shanye was already pulling his suitcase towards the other side of the platform. The broadcast announced that a train would arrive in one minute.
"No, Chen Shanye, you have to go back to do serious things..."
Ruan Mei walked straight out of the store, leaned against the window glass, took out a cigarette and lit it. The air was filled with the smell of grass mixed with soil, and the cigarette flickered a spark in the shallow sunlight at the end of May.
Chen Shanye was already at the subway station. Ruan Mei could hear the train arrival announcement from his side. The ding-dong sound of the platform door alarms and the noisy and chaotic footsteps filled her ears.
The man didn't say anything else. Even when the screen door closed and the subway left the station, Chen Shanye still didn't say anything.
Ruan Mei exhaled the hot smoke in her mouth into the sunlight, wanting to say to him one last time, "Be careful on the road."
"List……"
"Ruan Mei."
The two people's voices collided in the crackling sound of radio waves, and Chen Shanye spoke faster than her.
"Pack your things and follow me."
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