I am a master in India

Chapter 56 Slumdog Millionaire
"Ron, even though you've been in Mumbai for almost two years, you don't know the real Mumbai."

“The real Bombay?”

“One hundred percent authentic!” Anand assured him. “If you haven’t been to the slums, you haven’t been to Bombay.”

"But I used to live on the edge of the slums, you know, and I've been to your house."

"Are you talking about that place? The place where you lived is gone."

Ron turned around. The apartment building that once stood there was now a ruin. The market downstairs was gone, and only the piles of disposable ceramic milk tea cups on the roadside proved that this place was once bustling.

"What happened?" He stared at the scene in front of him in amazement.

"It collapsed during the rainy season. Didn't your little maid tell you? I ran into her last time when she was in a hurry passing by here."

"Wait, who is the maid you are talking about?" Mary, who was following behind him, stared at Ron.

"Um, Nia, she has been taking care of my daily life. She is very young, only in her teens." Ron explained guiltily.

"So you like young ones?"

"No, I think you misunderstood. It's not what you think."

"Lena will be interested in this news." Mary gave him a look that indicated she was looking forward to the show.

"Oh my God, you all know how I behaved at first that night, and you even laughed at me for being a greenhorn." Ron suddenly shut up.

He glanced to the side and saw Anand listening with great interest. After noticing Ron's look, he immediately stepped forward to lead the way.

"We're here! The slums of Grant District are just ahead."

The land seemed quite contradictory, consisting of two distinct sections: on the left side of the road were the ruins of Ron's former apartment building and the slum where Anand lived.

On the right is a modern, large, air-conditioned commercial building with shops from the first to the third floors selling jewelry, silk fabrics, carpets, and exquisite handicrafts.

They are separated by only a street. There is no electricity, running water or bathroom facilities in the slums. On the other side, there are neon lights, colorful fountains and sports cars coming and going.

It was extremely awkward, but everyone took it in stride.

"Today's lunch is not at my house, it's at another place. So, let's go straight there."

Ron took a look from a distance and saw that Anand's old house had changed a lot. Not only had it been renovated, but several new houses had also been built next to it.

"The city hall doesn't care? I mean, they've long claimed to curb the expansion of slums. Your house."

"It's okay, Ron." Anand shook his head nonchalantly. "No one cares. At least no one cares for a few years."

He was certain, and very happy that Ron had noticed the changes in his house, his tone full of pride.

"Be careful next time, especially Miss Mary, watch your step."

The slum here stretches over 40,000 square meters and contains 7,000 simple huts. Near the entrance is an open-air latrine, hidden behind tall grass and with reed mats as walls.

The toilet stank, almost overwhelming all other odors, like feces left in the sun for a long time, then suddenly peeled off.

Ron felt suffocated, suffocated to the point of vomiting. He suppressed the urge to vomit and glanced at Mary, who was pale.

"You'll get used to it." Anand's smile dimmed. This was the first time Ron saw something like pessimism and suspicion in his smile.

"Look, you two," he said, his smile becoming stiff and awkward, "look at how people live here."

After passing the toilets and entering the first alley lined with small houses, there were gusts of wind blowing from the curved coast at the edge of the slums.

The air was hot and humid, but the sea breeze blew away the nauseating stench of the toilet, replacing it with the scent of spices, cooking smoke, and tea leaves.

A closer look at the huts reveals how rudimentary they are. Plastic sheeting, cardboard, and thin bamboo poles serve as building materials, with hanging reed mats serving as walls, spread across the bare earth.

Because the rainy season had just ended, many alleyways were still a bit muddy. Rainwater debris piled up against the reed mat walls. Someone was clearing it away, but it was slow. Anand led Ron and the others through narrow alleys littered with rags and plastic. Word of the foreigners' arrival spread through the slums.

A large group of children surrounded Ron and Mary. They stood very close to them but did not reach out to touch them.

Ron was carrying two bottles of whiskey, and Mary was carrying some small things like candies and pencils.

They came to attend the party and were suddenly surrounded by so many children. Both of them were a little overwhelmed.

The children were mainly curious about Mary; foreign women rarely came to the slums. Many of the children had never seen a foreign woman here in their entire lives.

Their eyes were wide, their pupils almost overflowing with surprise and excitement. When Ron and the others approached, the children suddenly burst into nervous laughter, or shouted and danced in a random and impromptu manner.

People came out of each cabin and stood at the door. First there were dozens of people, then hundreds. The dense crowd of faces made Ron and Mary tense.

It was not until a tall and thin old man walked out of the crowd and waved a short wooden stick covered with copper in his hand that the crowd gradually dispersed.

"Taji Ali, our leader." Anand eagerly introduced the old man in front of him to Ron and the others.

He had silver hair and a beard, and wore a white shirt, white pants, and sandals. He didn't look like someone from the slums at all. Instead, his resolute face reminded Ron of another person, Prak Hart Khan.

Yes, they have similar temperaments, calmness, wisdom, and shining eyes.

"Anand said you would come." He looked at Ron with a hint of surprise.

"He is my friend. He asked me to come, so I came."

"Yes! We are friends!" Anand announced loudly and proudly, and that bright smile returned to his face again.

"Okay, you are our guests, and the slum welcomes you." A warm smile appeared on Taji Ali's wrinkled face.

This seemed to be a signal, and the people who were still gathered here also smiled.

"Anand and the others have prepared lunch for you. It's not here, it's in the Sky Village."

"Sky Village?" Ron asked curiously.

"Yes, you go ahead. I'm too old to go."

Taj Ali had come over as if just to say hello, and now he was gone again.

"Let's go, Ron. And Miss Mary, the party is about to begin." Anand led the way excitedly.

"Ron, they seem to welcome you. They've prepared a special lunch party for you?" Mary asked in a low voice from behind.

"This is going to be a great lunch!" Anand looked back from the front. "I'm on an empty stomach and looking forward to a big meal. The food is delicious, and you eat so much that people will think you are pregnant."

"Good," Mary glanced at Ron, "your partner is really persuasive."

"He's always been like this." Ron shrugged resignedly.

Anand puffed out his chest with pride and shook his head from side to side with joy.

"By the way, where is the Sky Village?"

"I also want to know."

"You'd never guess it, but I bet you'd love it there."

In fact, the Sky Village is not in the slums. It is outside, right on the other side of the slums.

When they arrived at its foot, Ron and Mary opened their mouths in surprise.

(End of this chapter)