Meeting Chen Yulan! (2)

"Hey, cousin, I asked what happened that day?" Chen Yulan gently shook Zhang Wei, her eyes reflecting a mix of curiosity and complexity, as if unraveling a long-buried mystery.

Zhang Wei momentarily drifted into his memories, his smile faint but tinged with a touch of melancholy. "It's just as you said, there was a robbery."

"Huh? Then you...how are you..." Chen Yulan's words trailed off, and she couldn't bring herself to utter the question that lingered unspoken.

Zhang Wei, understanding her unspoken inquiry, didn't take offense. "It's nothing. I managed to escape during the robbery and ran away."

Chen Yulan fell into a contemplative silence, her mind racing with questions. 'Escaped and ran away? How many years had it been?' she wondered.

"Why didn't you come back?" Her confusion was evident in her question.

Zhang Wei shook his head, bitterness creeping into his tone. "No mother, no father, there was nothing left for me to belong to there."