Xiang walked north out of the gate of Hedong City No. 1 Prison, his face haggard and his hair unkempt.

"Boom!" the door slammed shut, and there was a screeching sound in the rust between the iron rings.

There was no turning back to the north. If he could, he would not want to look back in his life.

He looked up at the sky, and the long white line formed by the tracking clouds seemed to cut a hole in the clear blue sky, which was the product of the mixture of the exhaust fumes from the aircraft as it passed through the clouds and the atmosphere, but it looked so beautiful.

It was the first time in three years that he had breathed the outside air, and for the first time he felt the preciousness of freedom.

Located on the outskirts of Hedong City, Hedong No. 1 Prison is the city's only virgin land: wide asphalt roads, dilapidated bungalows, roaring trucks, and the noisy chirping of cicadas from the plane trees overhead.

For decades, the city's jungle of steel has stretched out in all directions, but excavators and bulldozers have not been able to reach this territory.

At noon, the sun does not hesitate to transfer heat to the earth, reflecting through the asphalt pavement to form a huge "oven", which is the standard temperature in Hedong City in the height of summer.

Hiding in the shade of a tree to the north, groping in the pocket of his shabby jacket, he suddenly froze again, one hand hanging in the air. After hesitating for half a minute, he seemed to regain his memory again: no job, no home, and even no wife and children.

The city where I have lived for 12 years is both familiar and unfamiliar.

Xiangbei thought of the friends he had made when he was a reporter in the past, calling each other brothers and sisters all day long, but now they are like encountering a plague, and they are afraid to avoid them.

Let's go to a hotel.

He thought of the New Town Hotel, where he had stayed for a few weeks about three years ago. In one of the most pivotal reports of his career, the hotel almost became his second office.

Take a taxi north to this hotel, take out your ID and check in.

"Sir, I must have seen you. The front desk agent handed him his ID and key card. As he turned north to leave, someone called out to him.

"You're ......" turned north, and the other party looked like he was in his twenties, wearing rimless nearsighted glasses and wearing a navy blue suit uniform.

I looked north at the badge on my suit: Jin Yu, lobby manager.

"You may have forgotten about me a long time ago, but I have an impression of you. Just after looking at your registered name, it is even more certain. ”

"Oh?

"You stayed here about three years ago and stayed for half a month. The man in the suit hurriedly explained.

"That's true. Xiangbei tried to remember the intersection with the other party, but he didn't have any clue.

"At that time, I was still the front desk customer service of the hotel," perhaps because he rarely communicated with guests like this, and the man seemed a little shy, "Three years later, although your appearance has changed a lot, I can still recognize you." Now I'm still working in this hotel, but in a different position, and now I finally have my own nameplate. ”

The man's face was proud.

Xiang Bei had some impressions, there was indeed such a young man at that time, he was very enthusiastic, fair-looking, a little thin, and always treated his guests with a humble appearance.

Now, many years later, this young man has finally come out.

"I have some impressions, I remember you were in your early twenties at the time, I didn't expect you to still work here. ”

"Yes, I was 24 years old and had just started working...... By the way, the luggage you entrusted me with was still in the hotel......" As if remembering something, the man quickly turned around and opened the small door behind the front desk, and took out a small box from inside.

"My luggage?" said north, with some doubts.

"Yes, you may have forgotten. You were in a hurry, saying you were leaving your luggage here first and coming back in a few days. But it never appeared. There have been a few times when the hotel cleaned up the clutter, and I felt that these things were important to you, so I kept them for you. Now you're finally here. ”

"Oh, I remember. I really didn't expect it to be so long, you remember, thank you so much. ”

Looking back on Xiang Bei, an inexplicable emotion suddenly swelled in his heart - someone would actually guard a worthless broken box for three years.

It's like the plot of a movie.

He said a simple thank you, returned to his room, opened the suitcase, a voice recorder, a newspaper clipping, and a certificate of honor...... Seeing this, he seemed to return to those years that seemed to him to be the most beautiful and glorious years.

In 2006, Xiang Bei graduated from the Chinese Department of a key university in Beijing, returned to his hometown, Hedong City, the capital of Beijiang Province, and was admitted to Beijiang Evening News to become a reporter running politics and literature.

The so-called political culture, which is not only political culture, but also connects with the core departments of the Hedong Municipal Government.

In the past 8 years, the 34-year-old Xiang Bei has grown from an intern who is not familiar with the world to a business backbone, and his career and life are going well. Two years ago, Xiang Bei got his wish to get a son. If there are no accidents, he will run for the position of deputy editor-in-chief of the newspaper, raise the child to adulthood, and study abroad...... Everything seemed to be in his planning.

At that time, the Internet and mobile Internet had not yet emerged, and traditional media such as newspapers and television stations still monopolized the industry and had a high social status. Being able to work in a newspaper is the dream of every college student majoring in journalism and Chinese.

What's more, Bac Giang Evening News is a provincial-level metropolitan newspaper in Bac Giang Province, affiliated to Bac Giang Daily Group, which has a significant influence in the province and has a huge readership in the country, so its status cannot be underestimated.

There are three deputy editors-in-chief in the editor-in-chief office of Beijiang Evening News: Yu Chongming, Chen Lu, and Qu Changguo. Together, the trio make a very interesting combination.

Yu Chongming is 48 years old, the oldest of the three, and is the executive deputy editor-in-chief. Maybe it's because of the many years of honing in the workplace, Yu Chongming is cautious in doing things, not seeking merit but seeking no fault, if there is hope, sitting in the position of vice president before retirement can be regarded as a safe landing.

42-year-old Chen Lu is a typical southern woman's character, although she is nearly middle-aged, she still looks like a bird, she talks as if she has added candied fruit, and she does things like talking, never forcing others, no matter what others say, she always hangs that mantra in her mouth - "It's okay...... It's all ......."

The 38-year-old Qu Changguo was the latest to join the company, and he ranked at the bottom according to his job title and qualifications. In a small circle within the system like Beijiang Evening News, seniority is everyone's default unspoken rule, and Qu Changguo's "rise" is also regarded as a dark horse. In a sense, this is also related to the shrewd character of Qu Changguo's southerners: speaking directly, doing things competently, and daring to do things.

Speaking of the relationship between Qu Changguo and Xiangbei, there is still a relationship. Both of them have studied in the same university and the same major, belong to the alumni of the lineage, Qu Changguo University for several sessions, and is Xiangbei's senior brother. The two can be described as teachers and friends.