Flying Cloud City, Shangyu Prefecture, Tongzhou Province …
In the evening, all the streetlights in Anping City were lit. All the hotels and restaurants in the city started to do business. In a hotel called Wishful Winery in Vermilion Bird Avenue, a waiter with a white towel over his shoulder was also trying his best to attract guests on the street.
"Alas, please come in. Our prices are reasonable. We don't cheat either the old or the young. We have all kinds of drinks and delicacies …"
Originally, Flying Cloud City was a large city in Shangyu County with a population of over 4 million. However, in the catastrophe of bloody figures two years ago, more than ten counties in Tong Province were affected. Shangyu County was the hardest hit area of the catastrophe. Flying Cloud City also suffered a great loss in the catastrophe. The entire Flying Cloud City and dozens of towns outside the city were almost reduced to ruins. Of the over 4 million people in Flying Cloud City, only less than 400,000 survived in the end.
Over two years had passed. The catastrophe of bloody figures in Shangyu Prefecture of Tongzhou Province had basically been pacified. At least no traces of bloody figures could be seen in cities and suburbs anymore. Even if there were some bloody figures, it was said that they had escaped into deep mountains and forests and were being chased by bounty criminal hunters who valued money more than their lives. However, the catastrophe of bloody figures could barely heal Flying Cloud City in a short period of time.
Although the reconstruction of Flying Cloud City was in progress over the past 2 years, traces of the catastrophe of bloody figures could still be seen everywhere in this city. Some city walls had not been completely repaired. Some prosperous places and residential areas were still in ruins. After clearing away the ruins on both sides of some streets, there were large areas of vacant land. As a result, many vacant places in the city had been covered with weeds after 2 years.
However, this was not the biggest impact. The biggest impact on Flying Cloud City was that the population in the city decreased greatly. Although many people in Taixia Country had resettled in Flying Cloud City under the stimulation of some favorable official policies over the past 2 years, the population of Flying Cloud City was less than 1 million, less than 1/4 of that of a few years ago. As a result, this once prosperous city became a bit depressed.
Now that the holy war was going on, in this desolate city that had experienced the disaster of bloody figures, it was already very lucky for them to have a job and be able to eat their fill.
Therefore, the waiter at the entrance of the Ruyi Hotel worked even harder to serve the customers.
"Today, our shop will introduce a special dish, Wishful Eight Treasures. Customers who spend six silver coins or more will be given a jar of our homemade sour plum wine …"
While the waiter was shouting, a tired figure slowly walked out from the deserted alley next to the Ruyi Hotel. When the figure passed by the street lamp, the light from the street lamp illuminated his travel-worn face. The waiter's eyes lit up when he saw the figure walking over. He hurriedly stepped forward with a smile, flung the towel on his shoulder, and started to pat the dust off the customer's trousers and body.
"Sir, I haven't seen you for a long time. You look like you haven't eaten yet, right? Come, please come in …" The waiter warmly greeted the guest and led him into the restaurant.
The man looked up at the waiter and was slightly surprised. "You still remember me?"
"Of course I don't. Didn't you come to this restaurant one month ago?" The waiter revealed a sincere smile. "You even asked me some questions at that time. After that, you tipped me with a gold coin. You're the first distinguished guest that tipped me with a gold coin since I became a waiter. I still keep that gold coin. How could I forget you …"
As the waiter spoke, he politely led the visitor to a table by the street on the first floor of the restaurant. "Look, you said you liked to sit by the street. I still remember that you sat at this table!"
The guest replied with a faint smile, "Just give me some drinks and dishes …"
"Okay, sir, please wait for a second, I will serve them to you right away …"
Of course, it was Zhang Tie who came to the winery for the second time.
Over 1 month ago, Zhang Tie had come to Flying Cloud City for the whereabouts of his and Ma Aiyun's kid. Over the past one month, Zhang Tie had almost traveled over Shangyu Prefecture and those prefectures and cities which had been ravaged by bloody figures. He met numerous survivors and tried his best to collect useful clues. He even had Golden Roc Bank and the Building of Brightness in Tongzhou Province issue a huge reward for him. However, he still didn't get any result after over 1 month.
Zhang Tie didn't know how the kid looked like; however, if the kid was his son, he must have sensed it the moment he saw him. Driven by this belief, Zhang Tie kept searching for him outside for over 1 month.
Yesterday, after taking a round in Tongzhou Province, Zhang Tie returned to Flying Cloud City due to his concern. Today, Zhang Tie spent the whole day looking for him inside and outside Flying Cloud City; however, he got no clue at all …
Too many people were killed in Flying Cloud City that day. Additionally, Flying Cloud City was set on fire by bloody figures. As a result, the entire city was almost emptied. Many people didn't even leave any trace in this world. The place where Zhang Taixuan settled the kid was in the south of Flying Cloud City, which had been completely ruined. It was a residential area where most people were killed. It was definitely more difficult to find a kid than finding a needle in a haystack.
After taking a look there, Zhang Tie found that the ruins in that residential area had been cleared out. However, the weeds were as high as 1 m. When the night came, some phosphorescent lights were flying over the weeds, which looked pretty terrifying. Almost nobody lived in the surroundings. Feiyang City was preparing to build a barracks of city guards in that place …
After a short while, the waiter had served Zhang Tie 5 dishes and a flagon of spirit. Sitting beside the window, Zhang Tie watched the sparse crowds on the roadside and ate food in a daze. At the same time, he was imagining that a teenager who looked like Ma Aiyun and could be related to him by blood would suddenly appear in the crowd …
Zhang Tie only had 1 more month to find Ma Aiyun's kid. If he couldn't find him in this period, Zhang Tie could only return to Fire-Dragon Bounty Territory.
After over 1 month's search, although Zhang Tie didn't want to face that possibility, he knew that the kid of Ma Aiyun and him might have been killed in the turmoil caused by bloody figures 3 years ago.
After having a mouthful of sour plum liquor, Zhang Tie felt sweet; however, only he knew how bitter it was when it entered his stomach...
(To be continued.)
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