「Several days later.」
Fiery sunlight streamed down from the sky. The mid-March weather was mild.
Most passersby wore light jackets or fleece-lined sweatshirts.
The lid of a steamer basket at a breakfast stall was lifted, releasing a plume of hot steam. A hurried commuter bought just two steamed buns before rushing toward the platform.
Watching them squeeze onto crowded trams and buses, several unemployed, middle-aged men squatted by the roadside, their faces haggard and full of envy.
They once considered such a crowded, bustling life to be a torment, but now, it was something they desperately longed for.
Just then, a spring breeze rustled the ginkgo trees in the greenery strip, whose branches were slowly sprouting new leaves.
The haggard, envious men lowered their heads again, scrolling through job postings on their smartwatches or scanning group chats for notices about temporary, daily-wage odd jobs.
