Chapter Fifty-Six: Turning of the Tide

Chapter Fifty-Six: A Change of Fortune

As a police patrol car sped past on the roadside, the fat man hurriedly lowered his head and slipped into a nearby alley. He was still wearing the jacket Chen Xiao had lent him that day, collar turned up high to shield his face, head down, moving swiftly along the narrow path.

Each time a police car roared by, his heart would pound in terror. Earlier, in a shop by the street, he had glimpsed the news on TV: the prison riot in K City had become the explosive headline of the day! Hundreds of inmates had broken out together; every electronic lock and surveillance device in the prison had inexplicably failed, and the guards, caught off guard, had been utterly overwhelmed.

According to the news, the authorities were treating the matter with utmost seriousness. The entire police force of K City had been mobilized; every officer’s leave had been canceled, and they were working around the clock to hunt down the escaped convicts. Thus far, as the news report had just said, most of the escapees had been recaptured, and a few violent criminals who had tried to resist had been shot dead!

That broadcast had left his knees weak: if he were caught, he was finished! With such a heavy crime, prison was a certainty—if not execution, then life behind bars for sure!

For the past two days, police cars were everywhere. Every time he saw one, his legs nearly gave out.

The fat man did wish he could flee far away, but... he had no money!

The cash Chen Xiao had given him that day, all told, was barely two hundred yuan—after all, Chen Xiao was hardly a man of means, and couldn’t have carried much cash on him.

He wandered along the deserted backstreets for quite some time: he dared not stay at any inn, and there was no way to leave K City by official routes. Police had surely locked down the bus and train stations and airport; he’d even heard that checkpoints had been set up on all roads out of the city.

If he was to run, he’d need help from the local underworld... and, above all, money!

He felt his pocket: just over a hundred yuan left. That morning, he’d bought a dozen steamed buns at a breakfast stall and wolfed them down in one sitting—how had things gotten so expensive? Even a big meat bun was a whole yuan...

Looking up, he saw an ATM outside a bank on the roadside.

As luck would have it, in the midst of his despair and confusion, his eyes suddenly lit up!

There, right in front of the ATM, lay a black wallet!

That wallet seemed to leap into his sight with a “whoosh,” and in that moment, the world faded away—nothing existed but that wallet!

His heart began to race. He stared for a long moment, stunned, before coming to his senses.

Bodhisattva, bless me!

Casting furtive, shifty glances all around, he saw that no one had noticed the object on the ground. He jogged over, feigning nonchalance, stepped on the wallet, looked about to make sure no one was watching, then crouched as if to tie his shoe and snatched the wallet up.

The feel of the leather wallet in his hand brought a surge of bliss—his legs nearly buckled with happiness.

Heart pounding, he silently prayed for divine favor and opened the wallet...

His mouth fell open, frozen in shock.

There was not a single bill inside! Only a bank card, and a few random membership cards for gyms or restaurants.

At twenty-six, he was still a virgin—how unfair was life...

Unwilling to give up, he rummaged through the wallet again, and from another compartment, fished out an ID card.

He swallowed hard, glancing around. The street was quiet, few passersby in sight, and no one seemed interested in a fat man by the curb.

Sweat slicked his palm as he clutched the ID card in one hand and the wallet in the other, eyes fixed on the bank card inside.

Desperate times call for desperate measures! he sighed inwardly, stood up, and slid the bank card into the ATM, nervously holding the ID card—he knew that many people set their ATM PINs to their own birthdays, and the birthday was right there on the ID card. With trembling fingers, he slowly entered a string of numbers...

The screen flashed—

Huh? It worked!

His heart nearly leapt from his chest. Throat dry, he quickly punched in a withdrawal amount, swallowed, and waited for the machine to dispense cash...

Beep!

Just as he was about to faint from excitement, the machine flashed a message: Machine Error!

“Damn it!” he cursed, furious, nearly raising a fist to smash it.

He’d finally found a wallet, guessed the bank card’s password correctly...

He forced himself to calm down and pressed the “return card” button—damn it, he’d just have to find another ATM.

But the screen continued to display: Machine Error, Please See Teller...

He was on the verge of tears!

There was money just within reach, but he couldn’t get to it!

Driven mad by days of fear and frustration, he couldn’t hold his emotions in any longer. He slammed his palm down hard on the ATM, gripping the machine with both hands, eyes red as he growled, “Damn it! Money! Money! Spit out the money, damn you!”

Gripped by agitation, he failed to notice the searing heat radiating from the ATM under his hands...

Beeeeeeep—

A long tone sounded. He froze, and before he could react, the “Machine Error” message vanished! The normal withdrawal screen reappeared.

With a few clunks, the cash dispenser slid open, and a stack of bills spilled out in a flurry...

He stared, wide-eyed, scarcely daring to believe it was real! Only when he saw the countdown timer on the screen did he hurriedly grab the wad of cash and stuff it into his coat, swallowing hard and glancing warily around as he turned to run—

Beep—

The ATM behind him beeped again, and the dispenser spewed out another stack of bills!

“Huh... huh??” He hesitated, nerves jangling, but instinctively snatched up the money.

Before he could tuck the cash away, the machine beeped again, and another pile of bills tumbled out...

“No way! More?”

Tears of joy welled up in his eyes as he grabbed the money, turning to run at last...

But only two steps away, the ATM: “Beeeeep—”

He stopped dead, turned, and saw yet another stack of crisp bills in the dispenser!

His eyes were about to pop from their sockets!

Hallucination! This has to be a hallucination!

But... the stack of bright red notes in the dispenser looked so warm and inviting!

He dashed back and seized them in his fist. The portrait of the national leader on the bills smiled kindly up at him...

At last, tears of happiness rolled down his cheeks.

Heaven had finally opened its eyes.

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