When Zhou Di woke up, he saw the two children already awake, slowly nibbling on steamed buns. Smiling, he patted their heads gently and said:
"Good boys, you stay here while I go out to check on things."
Zhou Di climbed the stairs quietly, his ears straining for any sounds from outside. There was nothing but silence. He cautiously unlatched the door and peeked out through the small crack. Seeing no one, he paused and listened carefully again, but still nothing. Gathering his courage, he opened the door fully and stepped out of their secret room. Finding the door already open, Zhou Di proceeded quietly down the corridor, finding no signs of anyone. The rooms on either side had their doors wide open too. He proceeded cautiously, knowing this floor had once served as a warehouse for the Cultural Relics Bureau. Reaching the staircase along the wall, he climbed up cautiously, every creak of the stairs making his heart pound. The stillness was unsettling. He avoided going outside but headed to the second floor instead, pressing close to the wall. Peering through a window overlooking the street, he saw Wasoku soldiers patrolling below. Armed with guns, they moved from house to house, conducting searches. Occasionally, distant gunfire shattered the tense silence. Zhou Di withdrew from the window, retreating into a room to fetch a water pot. He filled it with water, grabbed a cup and quickly returned to the hiding place. Closing the door firmly behind him, he fastened the hooks securely and returned to the secret room. Zhou Di knew it was safest to stay hidden as it was only a matter of time before the Wasoku soldiers began searching here soon or later. The two children gazed at him with lost, uncertain expressions. Zhou Di didn't know what to say or do to reassure them so he simply sat down, picked up a steamed bun and began eating in silence.
They had no idea how long they had stayed hidden inside. Zhou Di decided to investigate the situation on the other side of the corridor. Crawling carefully across, he knew this corridor was slightly longer. Of course, he also knew where it led, a small shop tucked away in a secluded alley. He wasn't sure what this shop was used to be before but now it served as a grocery store. Zhang Tianming and he once had sneaked in and stole some fruits to eat when they worked at the bureau.
He slowly crawled toward the exit, which featured a staircase similar to the one on the other side. The staircase was narrow too. He carefully unlatched the hook and pushed open a small hidden door. The door, built into a brick merchandise counter. It was cleverly disguised to look like part of the wall, rendering it invisible from the outside. Peering out, Zhou Di saw overturned baskets on the ground, fruits and vegetables scattered all over the floor. He listened intently but heard nothing. So he crawled out from the hidden door, he stayed low behind the counter, cautiously peering out. The shop's main door stood wide open. Outside, the scene was grim. A woman in tattered clothes lay dead on the street, her lower body exposed. Not far away, a lifeless body of a girl, barely a year old, rested in the dust. The alley was eerily quiet with no signs of life. Zhou Di knew this street was no ordinary street but a short, narrow alley. He crept to the doorway and hid behind the door panel, scanning his surroundings. There was no one but across the alley, the body of a man lay sprawled on the ground. Zhou Di dared not venture outside. Instead, he turned back, ascending the stairs carefully. The upper floor with a few rooms, once used as living quarters, was now in disarray. Zhou Di looked outside through the window again, only to see the empty street below, scattered with the corpses. The Wasoku soldiers continued their house-to-house searches in the distance. Leaving the window, Zhou Di searched the rooms and found a set of boy's clothes roughly the size of Yang Zichun's. He then went downstairs, found a small bag and filled it with some fruit. Returning to the hiding place, he handed the clothes to Yang Zichun and said:
"Zichun, good boy, let's change your clothes first. Your current outfit is too noticeable." As Zhou Di helped Yang Zichun change the clothes, he continued, "Listen carefully! Until we find your parents, you can't use your real name anymore, do you understand? My name is Zhou Di. As you know, I worked for your father before and now I am his friend. From now on, it is better for you to use my last name and your new name will be Zhou Chun. I'm your father. His name is Zhou Jieliang, my nephew and now he is your older cousin. Jieliang, his name is Zhou Chun, my son and your cousin. You are older than him so you need to take care of him. Do you understand? Zichun, do you understand?"
Both children nodded understandingly. Yang Zichun replied:
"Pa, my name is Chun'er. Pa, can I eat the fruit?"
Zhou Di smiled, patted his head happily and handed the two children apples.
The three of them spent their days in the secret room, eating and sleeping. Even they lost track of how long they had stayed hiding inside. Zhou Di decided to go out and check what was going on outside again. He quietly opened a small crack again but closed it as quickly as possible when he was startled by the sound of footsteps and unfamiliar language outside. He quickly secured the hook and didn't dare to move, froze, realizing that the Cultural Relics Bureau had likely been taken over by the Wasoku people. Fearing the worst, he didn't dare to investigate further and quickly crawled in the opposite direction, peeking out from behind the counter. There were no bodies in sight, but he heard an announcement over a loudspeaker:
An Yuanxi, the Commander-in-chief of Yucheng city, has issued a statement to all citizens in Yucheng: In order to maintain the safety and unity of Yucheng, all citizens aged 15 and above must register and obtain a Citizen ID in their respective jurisdictions. Additionally, all commercial activities are required to resume normal operations starting tomorrow.
Zhou Di cautiously peered outside again, looking through the crack in the door. He saw some ordinary people nervously walking down the street, along with a group of Wasoku soldiers marching past. After a moment, he returned to the hiding place with some fruits and addressed to Zhou Jieliang:
"Jieliang, I'm going out again. You two need to stay here. If I haven't come back by nightfall, take care of Chun'er. Wait until it's quiet at night, and then you can come out and take Chun'er to Zhouzhuang village. Let him stay with my grandparents. Please remember, you have to leave the city under cover of darkness. Do you know the way to Zhouzhuang?" When Zhou Jieliang nodded, Zhou Di continued, "Good, Chun'er, you know who you are, right? You know who your father is, don't you? Don't tell anyone no matter what happens. If I don't come back, just follow Jieliang to Zhouzhuang village and wait for your father coming back there. Do you understand?
Yang Zichun hesitated for a moment and asked softly:
"Do you think my dad will come back?"
"Trust me, he will definitely come back."
"Uncle, no, pa, I understand. I won't disgrace my father."
"You are a good boy but stay here for now. I'm going out. Oh, don't go out from this way because there are Wasoku soldiers upstairs over there."
Zhou Di stepped out of the door, moving cautiously toward the direction of the Cultural Relics Bureau. He noticed that there were sentries standing outside the entrance, indicating that the Wasoku had indeed taken over the bureau. He then made his way to his own home, only to find the door wide open and the interior ransacked. Not disturbing anything, he went straight to his room. It had already been rummaged through the room with clothes and bedding thrown all over the place. He moved the overturned bed aside and uncovered a hidden brick, revealing a small hole. He retrieved a cloth bag from the hole, opened it to find a bankbook and a watch inside. He felt a wave of relief. After wrapping them up again, he carefully put them back and replaced the brick to its place before going to the workshop. In the workshop, the materials and machines were intact but the prototype of a recent decoration he had just carved was missing. Without touching anything, he left the room and went to the jurisdiction's office. Outside, a crowd of people had gathered. Everyone was frightened, stealing glances at the Wasoku soldiers stationed around the area. No one spoke. Inside, three desks were processing paperwork. Zhou Di joined the queue quietly, keeping to himself and not engaging with anyone. Although it was very slow to work, everyone maintained in good order. When it was his turn, the clerk asked:
"Name?"
"Zhou Di."
"Occupation?"
"I'm a craftsman."
"Home address?"
"No.2, Lane 6, Wanhong Street."
"Any other address?"
"I also have a shop at No. 58, Zhongshan Street."
"Married or not?"
"Yes."
"Wife's name?"
"Ding Chunhua."
"Same address as yours?"
"No, she lives in the countryside, in Zhouzhuang village."
"How many children?"
"I have one child at the moment and another one on the way."
"The child's name?"
"Zhou Chun, a boy, 8 years old."
"Living in Zhouzhuang village?"
"No, he lives with me. He is starting to learn crafts from me."
"What's your craft?"
"Jade carving. Excuse me, I also have an apprentice so should I need to register him as well?"
"Apprentice? What's his name?"
"Zhou Jieliang, a boy. Now he lives with me but his family is in Zhouzhuang village, my hometown."
"How old is he?"
"11 years old."
The clerk handed Zhou Di the second completed form and said:
"Go over there for a photograph."
After having his photo taken, Zhou Di approached another clerk, who stamped the form and said:
"Come back next Monday with 10 silver yuan to collect your Citizen ID. Keep this form with you no matter where you go. Don't lose it because it will be subject to inspection at any time."
"Thank you. By the way, can I leave the city now?"
"Yes, but you have to take this form with you."
Zhou Di returned home again, retrieved the cloth bag from the crevice in the bricks, locked the shop door and quickly made his way back to the house at No. 2, Lane 6, Wanhong Street, where the secret room was. He wasn't sure whether there was someone still living there, but he wanted to occupy this house with the secret room just in case. When he arrived, he let the children come out of the hiding place and said:
"This is our home from now on. Let's clean up and tidy the room first. We will head to Zhouzhuang village tomorrow."
After tidying up the house, Zhou Di decided to close down the grocery store and make it their permanent home. Then he posted a notice on the shop door saying:
"Returning to hometown and temporarily closure for two days."
He then went to the bus station to inquire about buses to Zhouzhuang village, and fortunately, there were available ones. He also borrowed a bicycle and quickly headed outside the city. On his way out, he came across a checkpoint and showed his form to the soldiers. One of them asked him:
"Why are you leaving the city?"
"I'm a craftsman. I had an appointment with a client in the village ahead. I was supposed to deliver the goods two days ago but I couldn't finish it on time. Now that I have this form, I need to explain the delay to my client and aske for two more days to complete the job."
The translation was relayed to the Wasoku soldier, who waved Zhou Di through. Zhou Di quickly made his way towards the villa on the mountain. The dilapidated building still stood as it had before. He rushed inside and checked the hiding place, which was still buried with the stone colonnade remained collapsed and the ceiling fallen down. He felt a sense of relief but then noticed that his bicycle was missing. It seemed someone had been here recently, which raised his suspicions and made him nervous again. Who had been here? The Wasoku people? Or the refugees? He carefully inspected the area around the stone colonnade, confirming that nothing had been moved. He muttered to himself: It looks like I'll need to come here often to check.
Anxiously, Zhou Di left the villa and returned to the city.