76: Chapter 75 Door-to-Door Service

"Isn't this Brother Changsheng? When did you get back?"

Just as Li Changsheng was happily explaining, a familiar voice came from the courtyard entrance.

Turning his head, he saw a man who looked to be nearly thirty years old, with short, somewhat greasy hair plastered to his forehead, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans.

However, Li Changsheng knew that this person was actually only twenty-five; he just hadn't expected the kid to look so old now.

This man was a playmate Li Changsheng had met in his hometown during school holidays when they were kids; his name was Gao Qiang, also known as Qiang Zi.

Actually, few people his age stayed behind in the village; Li Changsheng hadn't seen him in years, as he was always in a rush during Lunar New Year visits and left before he could say hello.

"Qiang Zi, I've been back for a few days now. I quit my job and got a little injured, so I'm recuperating at home."

Li Changsheng smiled and pointed to his leg, then pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, drew one out, and handed it over.

The cigarettes had been prepared for him by the little old lady. He didn't smoke himself, but the elderly woman said that even if he didn't smoke, offering them to others was a way to build connections.

Although Li Changsheng wasn't fond of smoking culture, it was true that when smokers stood together, simply exchanging cigarettes or borrowing a lighter could instantly start a conversation.

For men, there were a few places to build connections: the restroom, the dinner table, the smoking room, the club...

Hearing this, Gao Qiang took the cigarette and nodded with a smile. Just as he was about to say more, he suddenly started looking Li Changsheng up and down.

"Wait, hold on!"

With that, Gao Qiang pulled a phone out of his pocket, seemingly comparing something carefully.

"Brother Changsheng, have you been a streamer lately? Look, doesn't this streamer look exactly like you?"

Then Gao Qiang handed over a screenshot of his livestream. Li Changsheng was speechless; it wasn't just a resemblance—it was him.

"Ahem, that's me. Since I quit my job, I figured I couldn't just sit around and do nothing, so I started streaming to earn a little extra cash." Li Changsheng didn't hide it.

The other man seemed to be questioning it, but in reality, he was certain it was him.

"I've been working on a livestream about renovating an old house recently, and I was looking around at other people's styles when I happened upon you. Brother Changsheng, you're freaking amazing! I saw people in the bullet chat saying you're the hero from today's WeChat news who killed a criminal with your bare hands!"

Gao Qiang seemed quite excited. He had only just come up with the idea of becoming a streamer, and here his childhood playmate was already a big-time streamer.

He had watched Li Changsheng's stream yesterday; at its Peak, it reached a million popularity, with tens of thousands in gifts sent every hour.

"Changsheng, you actually killed a criminal with your bare hands?"

Hearing this, the little old lady nearby stopped her practice and walked over, looking at Li Changsheng's right leg with a worried and thoughtful expression.

The group of elderly folks practicing nearby also pricked up their ears to listen closely.

"No, they probably have the wrong person. Grandma, you know me; I've barely even killed a chicken. How could I dare to kill a person?"

Li Changsheng immediately started talking nonsense, while constantly winking at Gao Qiang.

"Right, right, Grandma. Brother Changsheng is such a gentle person; how could he possibly kill someone? I must have seen it wrong. It was my mistake, there's no such thing."

As a childhood playmate, Gao Qiang was very observant and quick-witted.

After much persuasion, they finally managed to temporarily dispel the little old lady's suspicions, though the other elderly folks were quite disappointed to hear it.

"By the way, Qiang Zi, you haven't always been streaming, right? What were you busy with before?"

Seeing that Gao Qiang looked quite weathered, Li Changsheng was curious. Since they hadn't seen each other in a long time, it was natural to ask about each other's lives—not out of competition, but pure curiosity.

"Oh, I've been running around with construction teams. Construction is happening everywhere, and the profits were decent a few years back. I'm a bit of a jack-of-all-trades—I do exterior and interior walls, and I know a bit about electrical and plumbing. So I made a fair amount, about ten thousand yuan a month."

Gao Qiang laughed, very happy and even a bit proud.

After all, earning ten thousand yuan a month in the countryside is indeed quite good.

"Oh, and I'm married. I'll introduce you sometime. My wife already gave me a daughter; she's five this year. But if you come to my house, you'll have to make up for the wedding gift money you missed!"

As soon as Gao Qiang mentioned his wife and daughter, the smile on his face grew even wider, and the weathered look on his face seemed to melt away.

"Alright, once my leg is fully healed, I'll go. I'll have to crash there for a meal."

Li Changsheng nodded with a smile. Gao Qiang was honest and kind, the type of friend you could stay close with for a lifetime—very grounded and hardworking.

Gao Qiang had married at twenty. Li Changsheng hadn't been able to attend at the time, but he hadn't expected that after marrying at the start of the year, he'd have a child by the end of it.

One could only say that marrying and having children at his age wasn't uncommon in the countryside; he'd even heard of kids raised in rural areas whose parents met when they were sixteen, and as soon as they reached the legal age, they'd get their marriage certificates.

Sometimes the children were even born beforehand.

This was a common phenomenon in the country: the more urban and developed the area, the less young people wanted to marry.

In rural areas, due to limited horizons and not thinking about buying apartments in the city, people tended to marry and have children early.

The two chatted for a while longer, and Li Changsheng also shared some details about his previous work.

After seeing Gao Qiang off, Li Changsheng hadn't even had a chance to settle back in.

Three people in police uniforms stood at the courtyard entrance, holding documents and looking back and forth at Li Changsheng's gate.

Seeing the police arrive, Li Changsheng hadn't reacted yet, but the group of elderly folks were already scanning back and forth between him and the officers, their ears pricked up.

"Excuse me, is this Li Changsheng's home?"

The leading officer, a somewhat lean and capable-looking middle-aged man, looked at the documents in his hand and scanned the people in the courtyard while asking loudly.

"Yes, it is. Excuse me, Officer, is there something you need with our Changsheng?"

The little old lady had unconsciously stepped in front of Li Changsheng, her thin but firm body acting as a shield.

Li Changsheng was a bit suspicious; he hadn't seemingly done anything locally, had he?

Could there be something else from the Shenzhen side that needed questioning?

"You must be Mr. Li Changsheng. Oh, Grandma, we're not here to cause trouble for Mr. Li. We just have some matters to discuss with him. Rest assured, it's a good thing!"

The officer's gaze fell on Li Changsheng, the youngest person there, and then he looked somewhat helplessly at the little old lady who was blocking his way again.

"Grandma, it's okay. I'll just sit here and talk with him. They're the police; they certainly won't trouble a good person."

Seeing this, Li Changsheng was both amused and deeply moved, and he hurriedly comforted her.

The little old lady had just been momentarily flustered by worry; realizing that their attitude wasn't that of dealing with a suspect, she sensibly stepped aside.

But like the other elderly folks, she kept her ears pricked to listen.

"We're from the Wuhan Municipal Bureau. I am Officer Zhao Jun, and the reason we're here is..."