Chapter 101: Egg

Frost Street.

Zhao Yi, soaked by the fog, pushed open his door, placed the flag with the words "Resume Work" on it by the wall, and sat down exhaustedly.

"Back?" Uncle Zhao stood by the table wearing an apron, kneading dough while looking at him, asking with some worry, "How was it? What did the factory say?"

"Can't resume work... just gave us some money."

Zhao Yi gulped down a drink of water, slapped the coins from his pocket onto the table, and cursed,

"Can't resume work, what's the use of just taking this money? How many days can it last?"

"No, I have to go again tomorrow. As long as they don't let us resume work, I'll go make a scene every day!"

Uncle Zhao looked at him for a long time and sighed deeply. "Xiao Yi... if the factory is really determined to stop working, what's the use of you making a scene? If you provoke them, be careful not to get into trouble."

"If I provoke him, does he dare to touch me?" Zhao Yi widened his eyes. "If he dares to touch me, I'll fight him to the death!"

"Fight, fight, fight, what are you going to fight them with?"

Uncle Zhao snorted coldly and slapped a large piece of dough onto the wooden board with a bang. "Day after day, you don't do anything serious, you only know how to stare at others with your neck stiff. What's the use? When you learn to bow your head, I won't have to worry so much! Do you think this world is so easy to live in?"

Zhao Yi clearly felt that Uncle Zhao was angry. He wanted to argue, but ultimately kept his mouth shut.

The room suddenly fell silent.

The two stood in a stalemate for a long time. Uncle Zhao shook his head and continued kneading the dough.

"If you can't go to the steel mill, so be it. At least we have this breakfast stall. Although I can't make big money, supporting you is no problem."

Hearing this, Zhao Yi's expression changed. His fists under the table clenched tightly...

After a long time, he stood up without a word and walked into the room.

"Where are you going?" Uncle Zhao asked.

"To sleep!"

"Why are you shouting at your father!"

Bang—!

As the door closed, Uncle Zhao cursed the little brat and continued kneading the dough with his head down, his movements even more forceful.

The fog surged, and the sky outside gradually darkened. Uncle Zhao wiped the sweat from his forehead, walked to the table, and lit the kerosene lamp. The orange light dyed a corner of the breakfast shop, casting his slightly hunched shadow on the mottled wall.

Outside the door, a figure in a black trench coat stopped in the fog.

"Uncle Zhao, still busy?" Chen Ling saw the breakfast shop's light was still on, opened the door a crack, and asked.

"Ah Ling, come in and sit." Uncle Zhao smiled when he saw Chen Ling. "The cook at the elementary school at the end of the street ran away, and no one is making breakfast, so they placed a big order with me... I've got my hands full."

"No, I still have to patrol."

"Patrolling so late?" Uncle Zhao was startled. "Did something happen?"

Chen Ling hesitated for a moment. "No... anyway, it's best not to go out recently. It might not be safe outside."

"Okay, okay." Uncle Zhao nodded repeatedly.

"Rest early, Uncle Zhao, don't stay up too late."

"You got it." The smile on Uncle Zhao's face became even brighter. He seemed to think of something and sighed helplessly, "If our kid could be half as sensible as you, I'd be satisfied..."

Chen Ling smiled, closed the shop door for him, and disappeared into the night fog with a kerosene lamp.

The night passed without incident.

……

Early the next morning, the door was pushed open slowly. Zhao Yi walked out of the room with red eyes, as if he hadn't slept well.

He opened his mouth to say something, but seeing the figure in the shop, he silently closed his mouth... Somehow, Uncle Zhao had fallen asleep on the table, light snoring echoing in the room, and outside the glass door was the misty fog.

On the table in front of him, hundreds of packed buns were neatly arranged in six large bags. That was the result of his hard work all night.

Zhao Yi frowned at the buns, then looked at the figure sleeping on the table. His black hair could no longer hide the gray strands, which looked like they were covered in broken snow, and his brow was full of exhaustion.

"At your age, you have to push yourself like this..." Zhao Yi muttered, his eyes full of complexity.

His gaze swept across the cramped and old breakfast shop and finally landed on the flag leaning in the corner. The complexity in his eyes gradually turned into determination...

He took a deep breath, lightened his steps, took a cotton coat from the room to cover Uncle Zhao, then walked to the door, shouldered the large flag, pushed open the shop door, and walked into the thick fog with big strides.

The banner of "Resuming Work" swayed in the fog, the young man's wild face unyielding.

He walked alone through the silent streets, heading north, until the neighborhoods and signs of life faded behind him. After a long trek, that massive, hulking shape crouching in the mist gradually appeared before his eyes.

He stopped in front of the steel mill's main gate.

Perhaps it was the thick fog, perhaps it was the early hour, or perhaps it was because yesterday’s meager pittance had sent everyone else packing; for now, he was the only one at the gate of the steel mill...

He jammed the flagpole into the mud at his feet, gathered all his strength, and shouted at the factory buildings shrouded in the mist:

"Where is everyone?! Get out here!"

"We want to resume work!!"

"I said it yesterday! If you don't let us resume work, I'll come here to make trouble every single day!"

"If we don't resume work, nobody gets a good life! Get out here!"

"I want to resume work!!"

Zhao Yi’s shouts echoed in the fog, ignored and unanswered... but he kept calling out tirelessly, as if his throat were made of iron.

Zhao Yi wasn't stupid; he knew the problem didn't lie with this factory, but within Aurora City. But what could he do? A kid from Frost Street in District 3, he had no way to reach Aurora City. To him, shouting here was the only way he could rebel against his fate.

Zhao Yi’s cries continued incessantly. Just then, the unmanned iron gate suddenly let out a harsh screech and slowly swung outward...

Creeeak—

Zhao Yi froze.

Maybe it was the wind, or maybe the gate hadn't been locked at all... Zhao Yi didn't overthink it. Gritting his teeth, he pulled the flag from the ground, hoisted it onto his shoulder, and strode through the gate, heading straight for the workshop.

"Meng Shi!! Get out here!!"

Zhao Yi kicked open the workshop door, ready to confront Meng Shi face-to-face, but the next moment, he stood rooted to the spot.

Inside the multi-story workshop, a massive shadow loomed over several mountain-like machines, looking like a centipede with ten thousand legs... and right beneath this centipede, within its shadow, one could see things that looked like insect eggs, trembling slightly...