The white rose I picked up cried and said she liked me.

On the bed in the other room, Xu Nian also remained awake for a long time.

He hugged his knees against the bed, his back to the window.

The sound of rain outside the window was incessant, and every time thunder rumbled, the sleepiness he had finally managed to muster vanished.

Xu Nian scratched her hair in frustration, glanced at the time, and saw it was already 2 a.m.

I have to start work in a few hours. If I can't fall asleep, I'm afraid I won't be able to endure such a long period of high-intensity work the next day.

He forcefully plugged his ears, trying to block out the noise from outside the window.

In a daze, Xu Nian seemed to hear a knock on the door.

"A stream?"

The door was pushed open a crack, and Xu Xi walked in with her hair disheveled. Her pajamas were soaked with cold sweat and clung tightly to her body.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Xu Nian stood up nervously and touched Xu Xi's forehead.

The body temperature appears to be normal.

Xu Xi shook her head: "Brother, can I sleep with you? I'm so scared..."

Xu Nian breathed a sigh of relief; thankfully, she wasn't sick.

Perhaps the little one has just experienced something terrible and is feeling insecure.

He nodded and gave up half of the bed.

Lying on Xu Nian's bed, smelling the unique scent of Xu Nian in the blankets, Xu Xi's unease instantly vanished.

"Go to sleep, it's already two o'clock."

Xu Nian tidied up Xu Xi's messy hair and patted her head.

Xu Xi nodded and closed her eyes.

Xu Nian sat down on the other side of the bed and looked out the window.

I wonder when this thunderstorm will stop.

He prayed that the night sky would clear up soon so that he could sleep peacefully.

Half an hour passed in agony. The sound of rain did not lessen, but a pair of smooth little hands hugged Xu Nian's waist.

Xu Nian looked down and saw the stray kitten he had taken home hugging him, breathing evenly and purring softly.

"Mommy, wake up, don't leave the stream... okay..."

Xu Nian bent down, gently hugged the kitten, and softly patted its back.

"Sleep peacefully, don't be afraid."

The kitten gently rubbed its soft face against his chest, tickling him.

Unconsciously, Xu Nian listened to the rhythmic snoring and gradually felt a sense of peace.

His eyelids began to droop, and the long-lost drowsiness finally returned.

Outside, the wind was still howling, and lightning was flashing and thunder was roaring.

The two people inside the room embraced tightly, and gradually drifted off to sleep.

......

"Good morning, brother."

Upon seeing Xu Nian, Qi Yu felt as if he had come back to life.

Xu Nian wasn't there yesterday, and his partner worked very slowly. Later, he couldn't handle the pressure and ran away halfway through, leaving Xu Nian to basically finish the entire line by himself.

It was pure torture.

"morning."

Xu Nian responded with a smile, and the two sat on the steps, resting and waiting for work to begin.

With ten minutes left before work, Xu Hu walked towards their resting place.

"Good morning, Tiger."

Xu Nian greeted him.

Xu Hu nodded.

"Xu Nian, come here for a moment."

Xu Nian didn't understand, but she still followed Xu Hu.

Qi Yu thought they were going to be assigned work, so he followed along.

Arriving at a secluded corner, Xu Hu looked at Xu Nian and asked in a deep voice.

Did you bring your ID card today?

Xu Nian's expression changed drastically in an instant.

The fact that they called him in separately means there must have been a problem with his ID card.

Xu Hu took out a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and put it in his mouth.

"Don't worry, they couldn't find your information when they were registering for taxes. It might be because the copy was blurry. I'll take it to them and register it again."

Xu Nian fell silent.

"Brother Tiger, Brother Xu probably forgot to bring it today. Can we register tomorrow?"

Qi Yu chimed in from the side.

"That works too. It's just that the finance department needs to submit last month's report in a few days. Just don't forget tomorrow. I keep putting it off and the finance department keeps urging me."

Faced with these two people who had helped her, Xu Nian decided not to deceive them with lies.

"Brother Tiger, that ID card is fake."

Both of them were shocked by these words.

Xu Hu was a man of the world; he exhaled a puff of smoke, coughed twice, and regained his composure.

"What did you do wrong? Why did you do it?"

He had already guessed that Xu Nian was a wanted criminal who needed to forge an identity to evade capture.

Xu Nian shook her head and handed over her real ID card.

"Brother Tiger, this one is real."

Xu Hu took the certificate and examined it for a while.

"Xu Nian, male, from Shenyang, this year..."

"What?! You're seventeen and underage?"

Xu Nian nodded.

Qi Yu was so shocked that he couldn't speak.

He looked Xu Nian up and down. Her skin was dark and rough, and she had a weathered look. She had inexhaustible strength when she worked. She didn't look like a minor at all.

He preferred to believe that Xu Nian was indeed a wanted criminal.

The key point is that he called Xu Nian "brother" for a long time...

Is your partner younger than you?

Xu Hu choked and coughed uncontrollably. He threw the cigarette butt on the ground and stomped on it.

Even though he was mentally prepared and had some suspicions, he never expected that Xu Nian was a minor.

"I'm sorry, Tiger, Qi Yu, I will pay back the money I owe you. It was nice to meet you."

Xu Nian put her ID card in her pocket and turned to leave.

This wasn't the first time his fake documents had been exposed.

If all else fails, I can just find another job.

However, Xu Nian was indeed reluctant to part with Xu Hu and Qi Yu.

This was the only friendship he made in his lonely life.

"Come back? Where are you going?"

Xu Hu grabbed Xu Nian and pressed her down.

"You haven't done anything wrong, why would I send you to jail?"

Xu Nian was puzzled. She had already revealed her identity, so why was Xu Hu still keeping her alive?

"Do you still want to work for me?"

Xu Nian nodded: "If I'm capable, I'd like to stay."

Although the work here is tiring, the pay is relatively high.

The key point is that Tiger has never mistreated him.

If she could continue working, Xu Nian would definitely be willing to continue.

Xu Hu frowned and pondered for a while.

"You're a minor... the higher-ups definitely won't accept you. If you just report it like this, the tax bureau will come down and investigate in no time."

"However, it's not like there's no way."

He made a phone call, and a short while later, a bread truck pulled up.

"Tiger, are you sure you didn't use it for online loans?"

"Get out of here, with your credit score, you won't get a single loan."

Xu Hu waved the ID card in his hand at Xu Nian.

"This certificate is real, it belongs to my friend. I'm using his to cover for you for two months, and you can register your own certificate when you turn 18."

"Thank you, Tiger Brother!!!"

Xu Nian was moved to tears.

He remembered this kindness.

Qi Yu also breathed a deep sigh of relief; he also really didn't want Xu Nian to leave.

Xu Hu laughed and patted Xu Nian on the shoulder.

"Don't be so polite with me. We're short-staffed for the Beijing line today, so you two will fill in."

"good!"