Right on Target

Su Heting is a liar, and so is his father. As long as he can remember, father and son have been wandering. The first words he learned were "run" because his dad always told him to let him go. Sometimes when the police came, his father would take the lead and run away, and only after he ran far away did he remember that he still had a son.

"A grown-up like me is super unreliable." Old Su's stubble was half-shaved, and he suddenly turned around with a smile on his face, "Although Dad still loves you, but Xiao Su, don't let me be in the future." Be like Dad."

He looks talented, but he is a rascal. He usually grooms himself to look glamorous, but he actually owes a lot of debt behind his ass. He doesn't gamble, and he doesn't have any special hobbies, but he always thinks that he can achieve great things, so he never treats money as money, and is willing to spend it. When he ran out of money, he went around to borrow again, borrowing round after round, and finally turned all his friends into enemies.

They didn't have a home, and Lao Su didn't dare to stay in one place for too long. Sometimes, when Su Heting woke up in the middle of the night, he could hear Lao Su's phone ringing non-stop.

Su Heting asked: "Why don't you answer the phone?"

Lao Su wore headphones to play games, and poured a bag of potato chips into his mouth, pretending not to hear. His heart is higher than the sky, but he has no plans for life, and often plays games all night.

Su Heting didn't get a response, so he lay down on the damp quilt, stared through the window of the room, staring in a daze at the colorful night lights.

Old Su played until early in the morning, threw him 20 yuan, and said, "Go and buy two baskets of steamed stuffed buns and come back with leeks and eggs. I'll sleep for a while, remember to call me when you come back, don't steal it by yourself."

Old Su always said "Oh", not intentionally, it seems to be a habit, he has been like this since he was a teenager, it seems that speaking like this can make people agree to all his requests.

Su Heting jumped out of bed, put on his shoes, and hesitated whether to carry his coat or not. No one would tell him to add clothes to the cold weather, he had to make his own judgment. In the end, he put on his coat, picked up the money Old Su gave him, and went out to buy buns.

Outside the door is the old residential area. A lot of plastic sheds have been pulled between the sloppy floors to keep out the rain. It looks like a mess, like bushes growing wildly.

Su Heting jumped down the steps in two steps, it was still dark. He felt cold, so he put on his coat. The coat was thin and small, exposing his thin wrists, which couldn't block the cold and damp wind. He put his hands in his pockets, waded through the puddles, and walked out of the alley.

"Xiao Su," a passing milkman on a bicycle saw Su Heting, braked suddenly, put down one leg, slid all the way to Su Heting, and asked, "Is your father at home? I have to ask him, when is he going to pay back the money? "

Su Heting moved his toes and said, "...soon."

The milkman said: "Don't say it's too soon, it's almost every time, give me an exact time!"

Su Heting stepped on a stone on the sole of his shoe, which made him flustered. He clenched his fingers tightly in his pocket, as if he had made a mistake, and he didn't know when Old Su would pay back the money. Many people passing by on the road cast their eyes on him. After a while, he took out the twenty yuan from his pocket and handed it to the milkman.

The milkman bent down, took the twenty yuan from Su Heting's hand, and said, "Don't blame uncle, the money I borrowed from your father was not idle money, and it was affection without charging interest. He said at the beginning that he would only borrow it for a week to deal with emergencies." , now I owe a few months, and blocked my phone. I have never seen such a thick-skinned person like him, he is really not a thing. You," he stretched out his hand and pulled Su Heting's thin coat, "thin If this happens, he doesn't care! Hey, get in the car and go home for dinner with uncle."

Su Heting said: "No need—"

The milkman had picked him up, put him on the back of his bicycle, and said, "Let's go!"

The bicycle "clanged" and rushed forward.

The home of the milkman is not far away, and it takes two minutes to drive there. His wife was making breakfast for the child. As soon as the car bell rang, the child ran to the door and kept shouting, "Dad! Dad!"

His wife brought out the meal and said, "Stop howling, it's making a lot of noise!"

The milkman parked his bicycle, lifted Su Heting off, and said, "There are little guests."

Su Heting checked his pocket, looked at his wife, and after a while, stretched out his hand again and said, "...Hello, Auntie."

His wife unbuttoned her apron, raised her eyebrows, and smiled: "Xiao Su, is your father going out?"

The milkman said, "It doesn't matter if his father goes out or not. Xiao Su, come here, wash your hands and eat."

His wife tucked the apron back into the cupboard and gave the milkman a look when she turned. She went into the kitchen, slammed the bowls and chopsticks loudly, came out with the bowl after a while, and said with a smile, "Xiao Su, sit down."

Su Heting felt some emotions in those eyes, which made him feel like he was sitting on pins and needles. He said "thank you" and settled himself like a small wooden sculpture in his seat.

Milkman said: "This milk is hot, drink it while it's hot."

Su Heting raised his hand, just touching the cup.

The milkman's wife suddenly reached out, took the cup away, put it in front of her son, and said, "Don't push people to eat like this, it's too hot. Come on, Xiao Su, drink water first? The water is lukewarm."

Su Heting shrank his fingers.

The milkman ate half of it and asked, "Is your father free to do today?"

His wife put on a fake smile: "What can his father do? I introduced him to a job a few days ago, and he disliked the low wages, so he didn't like it."

The milkman said: "One must be down-to-earth and not always aim too high. He keeps saying that he wants to make a fortune, and any boss who sees his talent and wants to invest in him, but it turns out to be a lie."

His wife poured the milk in the cup to her son and said, "That's not as good as you. You can borrow money everywhere. Xiaosu, people should be self-aware, right? You can't always think about the sky." Dropping pies is nothing. Like your uncle said, you have to be down-to-earth. When you come home after eating, talk to your dad, let him find a decent job, and pay back the money. I think, in addition to self-knowledge, a person must also have a sense of shame. Do you understand what shame is? It's just..."

She spoke with a smile, even in a soft voice, she told Su Heting what shame was, and she also told Su Heting what cheekiness was.

Su Heting sat across the table, as if in shackles, a little sinner who came to listen to the teaching. He lowered his eyes and tried to force a smile a few times, but it was too difficult. He hadn't learned how to pretend, and he had already begun to understand how to be embarrassed.

While the milkman's wife was talking, the children kept making noises. He was a few years younger than Su Heting. He stepped on the table and knocked the bowl with a spoon. The hot milk splashed out and spilled on Su Heting's body again and again.

After a meal, Su Heting said goodbye to the milkman. He stepped out the door, and heard the milkman's wife say: "Are you doing charity? Do you really think of yourself as a rich man? After helping the big ones, then helping the young ones, and waiting for their father and son to thank you? You see, who of them seems to have a face? !"

Su Heting went down the steps.

His wife faced the door and said loudly: "Xiao Su, next time you don't have any food, remember to wait at the entrance of the alley. There are hundreds of families living here, so you won't be hungry!"

The cold wind was harsh, but Su Heting felt his face was burning. With all his strength, he ran out of the alley, across the street, and rushed into the house in the slightly bright morning light. Old Su was lying on the bed, fast asleep.

Su Heting was out of breath, he said: "Hello."

Old Su didn't respond.

Su Heting rushed over, punched him twice, and shouted: "Hey!"

Old Su woke up with a start, thinking that the debtor was coming, he got up and saw that it was Su Heting, he was relieved again. He asked, "Where's the bun?"

Su Heting said, "Why don't you go to work?"

Old Su fell back on the bed, opened his arms in big characters, and said, "I'm at work. We can move when people see my plan." He turned his head, looked at Su Heting, and smiled again, as if he was not worried , "What kind of big house do you want to live in by then? Dad can buy it for you."

Su Heting suddenly took off his coat and threw it at Old Su.

Old Su caught the coat and asked, "What are you doing?"

Su Heting's eyes turned red for a moment, and he said, "Liar!"

They are drifting like duckweed, every time, Lao Su would say this to Su Heting. He regards himself as a genius, obsessed with the success many years ago, and still refuses to bow to reality.

He blinked and said, "Yeah, I'm a big liar, you're a little liar."

Su Heting said: "Repay the money."

Old Su propped his head up and said, "Repay it. If you earn it, you will definitely pay it back. But if you haven't earned it yet, don't rush Dad, Dad... I am also very anxious."

He turned over and faced the wall.

There was no light on in the room and there was a damp musty smell. Lao Su's expensive suit was hung on the wall, and the computer was still on. After a while, Old Su turned his head back again, showed a vague smile to Su Heting in the dark, and said, "Don't be angry, dad will take you to work, okay?"

He got up, put on the suit and tie, and led Su Heting to the nearby game hall.

Old Su asked Su Heting to sit on the bench and play billiards with someone for a hundred yuan. He called in the afternoon and earned 500 yuan. He gave the money to Su Heting and said, "Let's go play."

He squatted down, resting his chin, his eyes similar to Su Heting's were full of pride, as if looking forward to regaining his confidence in front of his son.

Su Heting pushed the money to Lao Su and said, "Repay the money."

"Oh," Lao Su poked his cheek with his finger, "I know, I'll pay it back. The five hundred yuan is for you, so you can spend it as you like, okay?"

Su Heting's cheeks were bulging, he looked down at the five hundred yuan, and remembered what the milkman's wife said, as well as the milk stains on his coat.

Old Su withdrew his finger, pushed the corner of his mouth up, and said, "Be happy."

Su Heting asked in a low voice: "...will you really pay it back?"

Old Su said: "Well, I swear."

Old Su held Su Heting and played games for a while. Su Heting sat on the stool, his feet could barely touch the ground. He often sits beside Lao Su, watching Lao Su play games or make statistics. Occasionally, Lao Su would hand over all the difficult levels to him. He had a special focus on it, but no one had told him what that meant.

Lao Su was impatient and ran away in the middle of the game. He's playing billiards well and is going to win a few more. Su Heting sat alone in front of the game console, watching him chat and laugh happily with others.

Around ten o'clock, it was dark outside and it began to rain. There are more and more people in the game hall, and there is smoke everywhere. Su Heting was hungry, and heard the sound of "bang" when Lao Su kicked off the ball.

The people around applauded, but then, there was another "bang". This time the "bang" was louder than the impact of billiard balls, it was the sound of bullets exploding the game console.

There were screams in the game hall, and the crowd was crowded when panicked, pushing Su Heting into a corner. He shouted "Dad" among the shadows, and a few minutes later, his father was knocked to the ground with a gun butt.

Old Su vomited blood, and his teeth were knocked out. He had so many creditors that he couldn't even remember who they were. He fell on the ground, one hand was pulled up, and when he heard the word "repay the money", he could still laugh, using his usual words: "I recently—"

The other party punched him, pulled his hair again, and said: "It's only natural to pay back the debt. You thought well, slapped your **** and ran away, leaving us with millions of bad debts."

Old Su had a nosebleed. He didn't have a hand to wipe it off, so he could only pump it hard twice. His eyes drifted wildly, towards Su Heting's direction, and then drifted away, saying: "How can I say this? It's all expedient. Got a new one, why don't you take it away? Sell it to the light track area."

The other party squatted down, pulled out the dagger, patted his cheek with the blade, and said, "Who doesn't know that the things you make are worthless now? Times have changed, and you are no longer used in the light track area, and no one wants your things. .”

Old Su's nosebleeds dripped to the ground, and he said, "How come, the system can't replace people, I'm always better than them, when I meet someone who knows..."

The other party said: "Don't say anything."

Su Heting was picked up and dragged to the front. Holding the five hundred yuan in his hand, he still didn't understand the seriousness of the matter, his eyes were like a frightened little animal.

The other party folded two of Lao Su's fingers, and amidst Lao Su's pain, he said slowly: "I heard that your son solved the problem set by the system."

Old Su was in so much pain that he couldn't speak, gasping for breath, he hastily denied: "How old is he? I solved it, I solved it all!"

The other party said: "Really? Then he is useless, and he is still a drag bottle. I will solve it for you."

The muzzle of the gun was on Su Heting's head, and the sound of loading was clear, making Old Su yell. He didn't know whether it was pain or fear, and said, "Wait!"

He looked at Su Heting, his eyes were shining with tears.

Su Heting had never seen Old Su cry, he took out the five hundred yuan from his pocket, and quickly handed it to the other party.

The other party said: "Five hundred yuan is not enough, I need you to come and pay it back."

Old Su choked up: "Don't do this."

The other party said: "Otherwise, what should I do? Can you cut off all the fingers of your right hand and give them to me? If you can, the account will be forgotten, and I can use these fingers to apologize to the customer. If you can't, I will take you The son paid back the money."

Old Su said: "I can!"

The other party handed over the knife, pointed to the **** of Old Su's right hand, and said, "Come on, let's start with this one."

Old Su held the knife and cut it ruthlessly. That pain was so painful that he burst into tears, and blood splashed on his face.

The other party said: "It's enough for a man, let's have another one."

Su Heting's hands holding the money trembled, he threw away the money, took two steps forward, and was picked up. He yelled, "Dad!"

Old Su gritted his teeth and pointed the tip of the knife at his index finger. He slammed hard—the knife was hanging in the air, and he cried out from his throat, the blood from his nose mixed with the blood on his hands. After a few minutes, he suddenly let go of the knife and cried loudly: "I'll give it back to you, I Find a way to return it to you!"

The other party said, "I've said it before. I'll leave after you cut it, or your son will be gone. Are you afraid of pain? That's fine, I'll help you."

He picked up the knife, aimed at Old Su's index finger, and cut it off with one stroke. Old Su yelled again, making Su Heting tremble all over.

The other party said, "There are three more."

Old Su clasped his hands and shook his head desperately. He opened his mouth, sweat and tears streaming down his face, and then he said, "Take it away."

This sentence was like a curse, which made him miserable. He closed his eyes, not daring to look at Su Heting, his forehead hit the ground heavily, his voice trembling.

"...take my son away."

The rain in late autumn fell on the ground one by one, and soon puddles formed on the ground. Su Heting was the finger that was cut off by Lao Su. When he was drenched in the rain, he heard Lao Su crying behind him.