117: Chapter 117 Streetwalker Xiaoli

Looking at the woman beside him, he hadn't expected her to be under the control of criminals.

Cao Kun subconsciously stepped on the brakes.

The tires slid a short distance on the snow-covered road, making a slight rubbing sound.

Seeing the car stop, the woman immediately squeezed out a professional smile.

That smile seemed glued to her face, stiff and fake. She walked over quickly in high heels, the sound of her heels clicking against the ground exceptionally clear in the silent alley.

"Big brother, want to play?"

She leaned against the car window, her voice raspy with a heavy Great Northwest accent, "Cheap, two hundred for once. Five hundred for the whole night."

Cao Kun rolled down the window.

Cold wind instantly poured in, bringing snow particles hitting his face.

He smelled a mix of scents on the woman: cheap perfume, cigarette smoke, and a faint hint of mustiness.

Since the System had tasked him with rescuing this woman, along with others who were similarly imprisoned.

Cao Kun decided to get a better handle on the situation before formulating a rescue plan.

"Get in," he said.

The woman froze for a moment, seemingly not expecting business to come so quickly. She hesitated for a second.

In that second, her eyes quickly swept through the car, as if assessing its safety.

Then she pulled the door open and sat inside.

The heater in the car made her sigh comfortably.

She began to take off her coat, her movements so practiced it was heartbreaking: "Big brother, where to? There's an hourly room nearby, thirty yuan an hour. Or..." She glanced at Cao Kun, "I can go to your place, just add a hundred."

"What's your name?" Cao Kun interrupted her.

The woman's movements paused, her eyes flickering: "Just call me Xiao Li."

"Real name." Cao Kun's tone was beyond doubt; he wasn't asking, he was commanding.

"Just... just Xiao Li." She lowered her head, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her down jacket.

The cuffs of that down jacket were worn out, revealing the blackened cotton inside.

Cao Kun pulled five hundred-yuan bills from his wallet and placed them on the center console.

The brand-new red bills were particularly eye-catching in the dim car.

"Chat with me for a while, and these are yours. You don't need to do anything else."

Xiao Li looked at the five hundred yuan, then at Cao Kun, her face full of confusion.

Having been in this business for two years, she had seen all kinds of men.

There were the impatient ones, the perverts, the drunks making a scene, but she had never seen someone spend money just to chat.

She hesitated for a moment, then still tucked the money away, carefully stuffing it into the inner layer of her underwear.

That was the place she considered safest.

"What does big brother want to talk about?" she asked softly, her body unconsciously leaning toward the car door, as if ready to flee at any time.

"Where are you from? How old are you? Why do you do this?"

The questions were as direct as a knife, mercilessly stabbing at the part of her she most wanted to hide.

Xiao Li's head hung even lower, her fingers twisting the corner of her clothes.

The action of putting the money away just now had made her feel temporarily at ease, but these questions made her nervous again.

"From the Great Northwest," her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz. "Twenty-one. The family is poor, my younger brother needs money for high school, my parents are in bad health... so... so I came out to work."

"Work?" Cao Kun looked at her, his gaze piercing, "What kind of work?"

Xiao Li stopped talking, just burying her face deeper.

Silence fell in the car, only the "whooshing" sound of the heater vents.

Cao Kun didn't press her, starting the car: "Hungry? I'll take you to eat something hot."

"Huh?" Xiao Li looked up, her eyes full of confusion.

"I said, I'll take you to eat," Cao Kun repeated, his tone calm. "There's a porridge shop nearby that's open twenty-four hours."

Xiao Li opened her mouth to say something but finally just nodded.

Her stomach gave an uncooperative growl at that moment, particularly clear in the quiet car.

Her face instantly turned red.

Cao Kun pretended not to hear, turning the steering wheel, and the car drove out of the alley.

...

The porridge shop was two streets away. The storefront wasn't large, and several characters on the neon sign were missing, with only "Porridge" and "Open" still lit.

Inside, it was warm and steamy. There were four or five tables, and only an old man sat in the corner, slowly drinking porridge.

Cao Kun found a seat by the window and sat down.

Xiao Li hesitated for a moment before sitting opposite him, her down jacket wrapped tightly around her as if to shield herself.

"What do you want to eat?" Cao Kun pushed the menu over.

Xiao Li glanced at the menu, then at Cao Kun, and whispered, "Any... anything."

Cao Kun didn't force her and said to the waiter, "Two bowls of preserved egg and lean meat porridge, a basket of shrimp dumplings, a plate of green vegetables, and a pot of hot tea."

The waiter was a middle-aged woman who noted it down expressionlessly and turned to the kitchen.

While waiting, Cao Kun observed Xiao Li.

Up close, she looked even more haggard.

Her eye bags were heavy, and the foundation couldn't hide the dark circles.

Her lips were cracked, coated with cheap lipstick that was already patchy. Her hands were on the table, fingers rough, with unwashable stains under her nails.

"Where do you live?" Cao Kun asked seemingly casually, but his gaze was fixed on her reaction.

Xiao Li's shoulders stiffened imperceptibly: "Just... just nearby."

"Be specific, I might want to find you again later." Cao Kun's tone was flat, as if talking about the weather.

Xiao Li's gaze was flickering. She picked up the teacup on the table, her hand shaking slightly.

Some tea spilled out, soaking into a small dark patch on the table.

"No. 37 Lotus Lane, a rented room," she finally said, her voice so small it was almost inaudible.

Lotus Lane.

Cao Kun knew that place; it was one of the most dilapidated Urban Villages in Zhongzhou.

Tube-shaped apartment buildings built in the nineties that should have been demolished long ago, but because the property rights were complex, it had been dragged out until now.

The rent there was cheap—a single room could be rented for three hundred yuan a month—and as a result, it gathered a large number of migrant workers. Public security was chaotic, making it a key focus area for the police station.

"Living alone?"

"Yes."

"The security there isn't good, is it? A girl like you..." Cao Kun paused deliberately, observing her reaction.

"It's fine!" Xiao Li suddenly interrupted him, her tone becoming hurried. "The landlord is quite nice, and the neighbors are... also okay. Big brother, what exactly do you want? If you want to do it, then hurry up. I... I have things to do."

Her tension was too obvious.

Cao Kun noticed that when her address was mentioned, her hands clenched into fists under the table, her knuckles turning white.

That wasn't the tension of a stranger asking for an address; it was a deeper kind of fear.

As if the address itself was something terrifying.

The food arrived.

The aroma of hot porridge filled the air.

Xiao Li looked at the bowl of steaming porridge, her eyes complex.

She picked up the spoon, her hand still shaking, and scooped a spoonful of porridge into her mouth.

Then, as if a switch had been flipped, she began to wolf it down, completely disregarding her image.

Cao Kun slowly drank his porridge, watching her eat.

She ate very fast, very urgently, as if she hadn't had a decent meal in a long time.

Shrimp dumplings were eaten in one bite, and the green vegetables were cleared in a few chopsticks.

Halfway through, she suddenly stopped and looked at Cao Kun somewhat self-consciously.

"It's fine, keep eating," Cao Kun said.

Xiao Li lowered her head and continued eating, but her speed slowed down.

"Do you know someone named... Li Hao?" Cao Kun asked tentatively.

Clatter.

Xiao Li's chopsticks fell onto the table.

...