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hoping to see her second brother again someday, the third sister who stayed in her hometown never wanted to hear others say that her brother might not be alive. she stubbornly topped up her second brother's phone with 50 yuan a month for ten years, hoping to receive a call from him one day.

this small northeastern city, once famous for its coal, has recently re-emerged in the public eye because a house of dozens of square meters is sold for only 20,000 yuan. one of the reasons for the extremely low housing prices is that after the resources were exhausted, locals left in droves in search of more and better development opportunities.

my second brother, who used to be doing well in his hometown, fled more resolutely due to family changes and schizophrenia. he has not contacted his family for 10 years and has become a complete mentally ill wanderer. until he appeared in the sight of volunteers again when he was wandering on nanjing road in shanghai. for a wandering mental patient, it is rare to have such a family who never leaves him.

and in unknown corners or busy city streets, there are still mentally disabled brothers and sisters wandering around, stranded in a certain place for a long time, waiting to be rescued and resettled, waiting to be found by their families.

perhaps their journey home is still long, perhaps just a street encounter away.

1. the mentally disabled homeless man collecting debts for his employer on nanjing road

▲the photo was taken by volunteers from new life for homeless people

on saturday, april 6, 2024, tourists from all over the country continued to pour out of the new world underground passage to the ground, and the flow of people on the bustling nanjing road was endless. people shopping on the street rarely noticed the homeless people who were rummaging through the trash cans to pick up empty bottles. the street fast food restaurant where several old street friends often stayed was almost full. the second brother did not sleep well last night. after picking up a hamburger for lunch in the store at noon, he sat on a chair against the wall and took a nap. at about four o'clock in the afternoon, the second brother stood up from his seat by the window facing the street and prepared to pick up the plastic cups on the dining table. at this time, two young men walked towards him.

they are volunteers of new life for the homeless, and they were doing street visits in people's square on saturday afternoon. volunteer shen yan saw the second brother sitting alone by the window. he was wearing a baseball cap, unshaven beard, and a baggy yellow jacket that hadn't been washed for a long time. on the table was a bag that looked like a fitness trainer's. he thought he looked a bit like a homeless person, so he went over to say hello.

"hello, we have eight-treasure porridge here. can i get you a can? it's free." the tall second brother immediately stood up and took it. he said politely to the shorter volunteer, "thank you! it's wahaha eight-treasure porridge. i used to work in wahaha building."

at this time, a volunteer asked him, "how long have you been in shanghai?" the second brother quickly answered: "my family is from fujian. i just came back from xiamen. i just finished a meeting. i have been in shanghai for more than a month. i will go on a business trip soon..." as he spoke, he unzipped his black briefcase and took out a red notebook to show the volunteer. "i am from the engineering company. i am collecting debts for the company." after saying this, he was ready to pack up and leave. the volunteer couldn't tell whether it was true or not, so he quickly asked again, "do you have an id card?" he said, "yes, how can i go on a business trip without an id card?"

seeing that my second brother was about to leave, a volunteer from the northeast heard that he spoke in the northeast dialect and tried to get close to him by saying, "are you from the northeast? i'm from heilongjiang."

"really? my xxx."

"then we are from the same hometown. what's your name? what's your surname?"

"ah, my name is tao jiafu, jia means family, and fu means wealthy."

at this time, the volunteer had already preliminarily determined that he was mentally abnormal, so in order not to arouse his suspicion and disgust, he secretly took a frontal photo of him during the conversation and then hurriedly left.

after returning, the volunteer quickly sent the photos and key information to the lei tingfang family search studio in guizhou. on the third day, the volunteer received a reply from officer lei: the match was successful, the name was correct, the father had passed away, the mother was still alive, and the household registration address was also available. volunteer liu shuai's hometown was not far from his second brother's hometown, and he took on the task of contacting his second brother's family with the advantage of his hometown dialect. on the fourth day, liu shuai brought good news that he had contacted his family.

second, the third sister paid for her missing brother's phone bills for ten years

▲image source: movie "cosmic exploration editorial department"

far away in the second brother's hometown, more than 1,700 kilometers away, the pain of losing their loved ones has tormented the third sister and her family for ten years.

the third sister still clearly remembers the first time her second brother ran away more than a decade ago. at that time, her second brother knew very well. after calling his classmates in beijing, he told his family that he had bought a ticket to go to beijing to develop. the third sister secretly hid the ticket. she advised him, "second brother, don't go. you see, our family has a large house of more than 100 square meters with an elevator. they raised fish and parrots for you in case you are bored. why go to beijing and suffer like that?"

the second brother didn't listen, "you can't stop me, i just want to go out and relax." in the end, he really ran away when his family wasn't paying attention. after arriving in beijing, the second brother worked as a security guard at the wahaha hotel. he worked very hard and didn't slack off at all. he usually lived in a hotel, liked to get up early, and walked to and from work. the second brother worked for a while, and after receiving his salary, he went to the morning market to buy a pair of small boots for the third sister.

the third sister still remembered this incident, and when she mentioned it to her second brother, he had not forgotten it. the third sister also remembered that when she was at home, her second brother became increasingly silent and his mind was a little unclear, but when he saw her riding a bicycle on the street, he was still worried about her safety and shouted to him: "hurry home!"

unfortunately, the good times didn’t last long. after working for a while, my second brother started to have a relapse. he would feel upset if he didn’t drink, and would look for alcohol everywhere. once he drank, he couldn’t stop, drinking from day to night. without work and drinking, his savings were soon stretched. when my second brother ordered a plate of spicy tofu, he would put his watch on the restaurant. when he ran out of money, he would call his mother to send him money.

after the family found out, they rushed to beijing to look for the second brother. when they found him, he looked like a homeless person. his id card, cell phone, and watch were all missing. after the second brother was taken back by his family, he didn't drink as much because his family was watching over him. after a short rest, he cleaned himself up and became fat. he got his id card and cell phone, and when he had some money, he fled his hometown again.

after so many times, the family gradually got used to his quiet departure and return. unexpectedly, in 2014, the year when a mining accident killed 28 miners, my second brother left home again and disappeared completely, as if he had evaporated from the face of the earth.

since then, the family has been missing their second brother day and night, but they have never given up the search. not only did they go to the police station to report the missing person, but they also took blood samples for comparison. the last time they found his whereabouts three years ago was when he violated traffic rules while walking in shenzhen, and they learned that he had applied for a temporary id card in another province. there was no news after that, and even during the epidemic, they checked the big data to see if he had been vaccinated, but there was no result.

the third sister couldn't help wondering, and wondered if her second brother was sold to a black brick kiln, beaten to death and buried? or was he sold to myanmar and had his kidneys cut? a few years ago, when her father was dying, he vaguely said, "the passbook is in the inner room. leave it for your second brother tomorrow." unfortunately, her father still died with regrets, and he didn't close his eyes when he died.

during the chinese new year and other holidays, the third sister would sometimes dream of her father and second brother at the same time. in her dream, she would ask herself: is my second brother gone too? after asking this question, she became even more desperate and couldn't stop crying in her dream until she woke up. the next day, she would be in an extremely low mood, and she would keep thinking about it and couldn't let it go.

▲image source: movie "lost and love"

despite this, over the past ten years, the third sister has been particularly averse to people saying that her second brother might be gone, as she might get angry. worried that her second brother would suddenly call home like he did before, not only did she not dare to change the home phone number, but she also stubbornly topped up her second brother's mobile phone number with 50 yuan of phone credit every month, without interruption for ten years, and the total amount exceeded 6,000 yuan, which was enough for uninterrupted calls for a month.

however, in the past ten years, the third sister has never received a call from this familiar number, not even for a second.

3. the youth of the children of the mining bureau passed by in a flash

▲image source: internet

sanmei never turned off her phone, and she never rejected calls even from scammers from other places. ten years later, she finally got the call.

when the police officer on the police station called out the name on her second brother's household registration book, and the scene she had imagined countless times really happened, the third sister's first reaction was not to suspect it was a scam call, but to be scared to death: "is my second brother going to get into trouble?"

because my second brother usually uses his nickname to outsiders, his real name is only known to his family and the police station.

when the third sister first spoke to the volunteer liu shuai on the phone, she was so excited that she thought the volunteer was her second brother whom she saw in the first two years. it was not until she received her second brother's photo that she realized he was found two days ago.

the third sister received the call at around 10 o'clock in the morning. she packed her clothes and prepared to leave for the airport immediately. to be on the safe side, the volunteer told the third sister that the next day she would go to the fast food restaurant to see if the second brother was there. if he was, the third sister would leave.

after calming down, the third sister called her eldest brother and nephew. her eldest brother cried with joy when he heard the news. he wanted to drive to shanghai to find his younger brother that afternoon, despite the inconvenience caused by the cerebral hemorrhage. the third sister did not sleep all night, worrying about her second brother leaving and recalling the past.

when my second brother’s great-grandfather was still living in the qing dynasty, this small town discovered a shiny black “stone” that was later called “black gold”. over the next hundred years, the fate of the people in the town became inextricably linked to the “stone”, with both suffering and glory, until decline and transformation.

in 1972, when the second son of the tao family was born, the modern coal mine in the small town had been in operation for nearly 20 years. it still exudes vitality and nurtures the children of the coal town, like a young miner with muscles all over his body and endless energy.

the father worked in the mining bureau and the mother worked in a pharmaceutical factory. later, they welcomed the birth of their daughter. although they had to raise three children, their dual-income family's life was still better than the rest in the planned economy era. like his playmates in the family compound, my second brother was also born in the mining bureau hospital, and then went to the affiliated school together. this city was built on coal mines. a city is a huge factory. most people's food, clothing, housing, transportation, food, clothing and daily necessities are inseparable from coal mines.

when my second brother was young, he was very smart and his grades were among the best in the school. if it weren't for the subsequent changes, he would have been able to go to a good university. unfortunately, my second brother's parents often quarreled over trivial matters, and my mother ran away from home in anger and later went through the divorce procedures. in 1988, the 16-year-old second brother was in adolescence and was extremely sensitive. influenced by his parents' divorce, he did not take the high school entrance examination after graduating from junior high school, but chose a technical school that was more difficult to enter, because technical schools could assign jobs and earn money a few years earlier. at this time, the mining bureau was at its peak of development and had reached its glorious peak. it had not yet clearly gone downhill, and graduates from schools relying on the mining bureau still had a way out.

my father often went to work in the field, and it was common for him to be away from home for ten days or half a month, so he left the three brothers at home. in the 1990s, with the spring breeze of reform, the eldest brother had already started to do business outside, leaving the second brother and the third sister to depend on each other at home. the second brother not only had to take care of himself but also had to cook for his sister. after going to technical school, he was farther away from home, but the second brother still rode a bicycle 10 kilometers after school every day to cook for his sister who had just started elementary school. the meals that a half-grown boy could cook were very limited, and he often just stewed rice, fried potato chips, made some soybean paste, and made some pickled vegetables to deal with it. once, the second brother imitated his father to make pancakes, but he didn't expect that when he threw it hard, the pancake didn't go into the pot, but flew directly onto the window glass, making his sister laugh.

the second brother has always cared about his younger sister, and the third sister also remembers it in her heart. the ordinary moments in the past are now warm memories: "i am the only younger sister of my second brother. when there is a new movie, he will watch it first and only take me to watch it if it is not inappropriate for children."

the days when the second brother took care of the younger sister were indeed very hard. the special family environment in which she grew up made her feelings for the second brother even deeper than for her parents, and she cared more about him. "i will never forget the kindness he showed me." the third sister said.

after graduating from technical school in 1991, my second brother was assigned to work as a league secretary in a glass factory. he was honest and hardworking, and was well-liked and recognized by his colleagues. my second brother grew up in a traditional northern family, and respecting his parents and elder brothers was ingrained in him. after work, my second brother would come back every month and give his salary to my father for safekeeping.

as the saying goes, people live off coal. the coal industry has 92,000 employees, 88,000 collective employees, and 350,000 family members, accounting for more than half of the total population. various factories are closely related to coal mines. but coal will eventually run out. faced with resource depletion and rising mining costs, miners began to be laid off in 1992 and seek their own way out in society. people with quick minds always find ways to get into the coal business. my eldest brother used the money he saved from the business to buy a dongfeng truck for transportation.

as the business got better and better, the family's financial situation also changed dramatically. they moved from a bungalow to a building. not only could they afford a live-in nanny, they also bought japanese-imported audio equipment and installed a bathtub in the bathroom. neighbors all said, "the wang family has made a fortune."

▲image source: movie "a moment of romance"

the second brother has always been generous, and he became even more generous after his family became rich, so he made some playful friends with brothers and sisters of different surnames. the tall and handsome second brother often rode the only two large motorcycles in the whole town, carrying girls and whizzing past in the envious eyes of everyone.

young people like to go to the karaoke bars and dance halls scattered all over the streets and alleys, and spend one dollar to get cheap entertainment from morning to night. in 1994, a crowded karaoke bar in the downtown area of ​​the city suddenly caught fire, killing more than 200 people, most of whom were under the age of 25, about the same age as my second brother, but their youth and life were forever left in the 1990s.

when the second brother was 25 or 26 years old, the performance of the unit was declining and he was facing the risk of being laid off sooner or later, so he simply left home and followed his eldest brother into business.

just like the mining bureau could not have imagined that it would go bankrupt more than a decade later, the city's former glory would fade away; just like the employees could not have imagined that several members of their family would be laid off and the good days would pass by, the second brother's family could not have imagined that the second brother, who was strong-willed and full of unlimited possibilities, would one day take a sharp turn for the worse and head towards a bleak life.

4. the lonely soul anesthetized by alcohol

▲image source: the piano in a factory

when the town was at its most prosperous, few sober people realized that resources would also be exhausted. my second brother was only thinking about playing when he was at his best, and never thought that youth would pass away quietly, and never considered when to get married and start a family.

under the constant urging of his parents, the filial second brother also started looking for a girlfriend in his thirties, and some of them were briefly together. unfortunately, the second brother didn't like the girls with stable jobs and insisted on finding one himself. because he often went to the karaoke bar to sing, the second brother had a special liking for the girls who ran the karaoke bar and they fell in love.

at first, the family disagreed, thinking that the girl was not a stable one and had no formal job. but the second brother insisted on dating despite the opposition of his family. the old couple, who wanted their son to get married quickly so that they could have grandchildren, had no choice but to give in, and the eldest brother stopped caring about him. the two dated for about a year, and the girl agreed to marry him because she saw that the second brother's family was well-off. the eldest brother knew what was going on, but he didn't say much.

after marriage, neither of them had to work properly. they would drink whenever they had nothing to do and would not come home until they were drunk. the family advised the girl to find a job, but at that time the factories in the small town were no longer prosperous, many workers were laid off, and it was not as easy to find a job as before. the girl said she wanted to do something because the eldest brother had many shops. the girl meant that she wanted the eldest brother to help them do business.

the eldest brother said clearly, "you two should quit drinking, unless you can do something without drinking." but the girl thought that the eldest brother was looking for an excuse to embarrass her, so she didn't even go home and left without saying goodbye. when the second brother came back, he thought that the eldest brother said something to anger his wife away. he was resentful but didn't dare to tell the eldest brother, and had nowhere to vent. he already knew many brothers and sisters outside, and now the second brother had more reason to drown his sorrows in alcohol. he drank until he was drunk and got deeper and deeper into it.

at that time, the second brother's father had remarried, and his mother had moved to another place. the three brothers did not want to affect the lives of the elderly, so they took care of each other and lived in a small town. the family could not accept the divorce at first, and the second brother was unwilling to explain too much, and slowly closed himself off. when working in the eldest brother's company, the workers were disobedient, and the eldest brother did not side with him, which made the second brother often feel a little aggrieved. . the consequence of drowning sorrows in alcohol is that he gets drunk and goes crazy. when he first got drunk, no one cared about him, thinking that venting would be fine. unexpectedly, it became more and more serious. not only did the second brother talk nonsense, he even ran to the roof of the public security bureau and the traffic police team to jump off the building and commit suicide, which attracted countless onlookers and caused a sensation, scaring the family.

some people said that my second brother was possessed by a demon and had an external illness. the family also invited people to see him, but it was ineffective. after learning about this, my father insisted on taking my second brother to the hospital for examination despite his resistance. as a result, he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and needed to be hospitalized. but the family was reluctant to let my second brother stay in the closed ward for treatment, fearing that he would suffer. later, my sister recalled, "i didn't know much about mental illness at that time. i regretted that i only stayed in the hospital for one month. the time was still too short and it didn't have any effect."

in fact, tragedy has happened to the family one after another over the years. first, my grandfather went crazy; my second aunt, who went to a first-class university, committed suicide by jumping into the river after retirement because of family conflicts; my second aunt's son suffered from depression in the first two or three years because his wife ran away, and then my second uncle suddenly died of a heart attack. when burning the first anniversary, my second aunt's son felt that life had no meaning and ended his life by burning charcoal.

it is impossible to know whether the second brother's mental abnormality is genetic, but it is somewhat related to his bold appearance but delicate and sensitive heart, as well as his petty character of keeping everything in his heart.

things that he usually doesn't dare to mention, once he drinks too much, the second brother would think of what he had been holding in his heart, like how his eldest brother borrowed money from his father to do business without his consent, how his wife was heartless and aborted the baby without his consent... these things accumulated over a long period of time had a huge impact on him, and might be the indirect cause of his mental abnormality.

the younger sister felt that her second brother was a man who valued friendship and loyalty, and that she would be the only one who would get hurt, otherwise he would not go crazy.

▲image source: the piano in a factory

in 2005, the largest coal mine in the town also declared bankruptcy. the city is developing rapidly, but the number of jobs it can provide is decreasing. the rate of population loss in the city is increasing year by year. the town, which was once proud of its glory, is now as desolate as it was, and can no longer retain people who want a better life.

the second brother, who grew up in a divorced family, was very reluctant to follow in his parents' footsteps, but his wife ran away anyway. without anyone's comment, he, who was very proud, felt it was a bit embarrassing.

in addition, he often got drunk, jumped off buildings, and went to a mental hospital... when he was sober, every thing made the second brother embarrassed, so he began to want to escape from this sad city.

but the second brother didn't know that he only escaped from his hometown physically, but his soul was still trapped in his body.

5. a dramatic reunion with both tears and laughter

▲the photo was taken by volunteers from new life for homeless people

compared with other mentally handicapped homeless people, my second brother is undoubtedly lucky.

he met volunteers on nanjing road and received help from guizhou police officer lei with facial recognition. what is even more precious is that his family’s unyielding search for him for many years enabled him to get off the streets and back into the arms of his family.

with the help of the city rescue station, xuhui district rescue station, and jing'an district rescue station, new life for homeless people has helped several mentally disabled homeless people reunite with their families and send them to medical treatment.

however, some mentally handicapped homeless people still have no results after many efforts due to various reasons. for example, the mentally handicapped homeless person zhao zhongqiu has been wandering for decades. sometimes he said he lived in the palace, and sometimes he said his ancestor was qin shihuang. the facial recognition could not provide effective information. there is also the homeless person sun jianfei, whose family did not accept him. there is also the homeless person wei junjie, who is an empty household and cannot contact his family... we can only pray for their good luck.

as for the mentally handicapped people who are still wandering around, they may be afraid that they will hurt themselves because of the stereotypes of mentally handicapped people; or they may think that they are crazy people who are unwanted and do not help them; or they may wander again after getting help. some lost mentally handicapped people are not wandering on the streets, but may get lost in the jingwei center or resettlement center. because they cannot explain their identities, although the relevant resettlement parties are also helping them find a home, the limited information makes it very difficult, so they can only be trapped where they are for the time being, and they don’t know that their families are still searching for them all over the world.

the next afternoon after contacting the third sister, the volunteer ran to nanjing road. the second brother not only recognized the volunteer, but also the fast food restaurant. the volunteer agreed with him, "my fellow villager, i will bring you a pair of shoes tomorrow." the second brother said, "well, you can give me another bottle of wine, for free."

the volunteer agreed without thinking and sent the photos to the third sister after leaving, hoping that her family would be relieved.

while the volunteers were going to the fast food restaurant, the third sister, nephew, and niece-in-law could not contain their excitement and took a taxi to the airport without waiting for the volunteers' notification. the eldest brother was not in good health so he was not allowed to come with them.

although the third sister was full of hope that she would be able to see her second brother when she arrived, and the volunteers also said that they would not leave, she still did not dare to give herself a surprise and made the worst plan: if she did not see him, she would let her family come back first, and she would stay and see what happened before she found him.

that night at the airport, the third sister couldn't sleep again, still worried that the person would disappear again.

it was still a little chilly in the early morning in the north. when the plane took off, the two volunteers from shanghai also set off for nanjing road.

the volunteer saw the second brother sitting alone on a chair leaning against the wall of the fast food restaurant taking a nap, so he did not disturb him and sent the photo to the second brother's contact group at home. he also told his family not to worry, as there were volunteers watching and they would not miss him.

the third sister still couldn't believe it. it was incredible. she was about to meet her second brother. she thought that every step of the flight could be faster.

after 2 hours and 40 minutes, the plane landed at pudong airport at 10:40. sanmei's friend drove to pick her up, driving very fast in the rain.

the second brother finally woke up and sat down on the left side of the door close to the mall, with his luggage still under the table.

the volunteer went over to say hello: "fellow countryman, have you eaten?"

"ah, it's okay, no, i'm not hungry."

"i'll order you a burger. he's from the same hometown as you. you two can chat first."

"i used to work in engineering, and i still have some debts to pay. i still have to collect them."

my second brother was very proactive in chatting and couldn't stop at all.

everyone ate and talked, and the volunteer kept an eye on his phone, reporting the situation in the group. seeing that the third sister said that she had parked the car at the nearby shopping mall, the volunteer said, "i have a call," and went out in the rain to meet up.

when the third sister saw the volunteers, she couldn't believe that they were so responsible and could help watch over them. she was very happy to see the photo of her second brother eating at a fast food restaurant. she felt that happiness came too suddenly and it was incredible. it was like a dream. would she be able to see her second brother in a while?

the volunteer reminded everyone not to get too excited when they met, not sure if the second brother could recognize his sister. the third sister said, "don't worry, i won't cry or wail. i'm so old and have experienced a lot, so i can still bear it psychologically."

when they arrived at the fast food restaurant, the volunteers pointed out the second brother's location to the family and asked the nephews to guard the two doors respectively in case he ran away, and let the third sister go alone to reunite with the second brother.

▲the photo was taken by volunteers from new life for homeless people

my second brother was sitting at the dining table, eating french fries and chatting with volunteers. they were talking about going back to xiamen when he suddenly felt someone hugging his neck from behind. he turned around and saw:

"who are you?"

"brother, i'm juan!"

"why do you look like this?"

"what, you don't recognize me?"

"hey, why are you so arrogant?"

"i've gained weight! did you miss me?"

“i can’t even remember!”

"come on, don't you remember that you said i had a big face? did you miss me or not?"

the third sister held her second brother's hand tightly and never let go. as she spoke, she put her hand on her second brother's face and kissed him hard twice.

this may be the funniest family recognition scene the volunteers have ever seen. seeing the second brother recognize the third sister and not reject her, the volunteers finally felt relieved. at this time, the nephew and niece also had tears in their eyes, and the volunteers couldn't help but be moved when they saw it.

the third sister had imagined all kinds of situations that would happen after they met, but when they actually met, her head was confused, as if she was dreaming, her words came out of her mouth without her words, and her feelings were indescribable.

6. the soul is imprisoned and the body goes far away

the third sister finally found her second brother. she was very happy. nothing happened to her second brother, except that a group of his teeth were broken somehow before he died. otherwise, he was in good health.

the second brother who used to be quiet has now become very talkative. he talked nonstop on the way from the fast food restaurant to the bathroom, and showed his bag to his family, "this is a bag for going to the gym. a fitness trainer gave it to me."

the family originally planned to stay and rest, but because the second brother did not have an id card and had to go to the police station to get a certificate, they were also worried that the night would be too long, so after taking a shower in the bathroom and changing all the clothes on their body, they immediately booked a flight and returned overnight. when they came, the volunteers asked the family to bring the second brother's household registration book with them and asked whether the household registration had been cancelled. the third sister said: "as long as the body is not found, his name must be on this household registration book for the rest of his life, and it is also a memorial."

before leaving for the airport, my second brother smelled alcohol from somewhere and said to his family, "let's go to the restaurant."

the second brother was very excited, and while drinking he described his experience of working in a logistics company in beijing, and his trips to guangji temple in beijing, guangzhou, shenzhen, and xiamen. but he could not clearly explain how he got to shanghai, and only said that he wandered around.

the third sister looked through the red notebook, which contained mostly real names and phone numbers, home addresses, license plate numbers, and some incomprehensible and trivial records. this was somewhat similar to the mentally handicapped female homeless person maomao who the volunteers had helped. she also kept many diaries, many of which were illogical.

when you are away from home, you give yourself an identity. even though the second brother is wandering around, he doesn't want to be seen as an idler, but as a staff member of a company. it is his job to collect debts from engineering companies.

the third sister didn’t dare to tell her second brother about their father’s death, fearing that he would be upset and also afraid that he would not go back, so she said, “brother, please help me go back and collect the debt. i don’t dare to meet him in person, fearing that he will blame me.”

in this way, with a lot of coaxing and deception, the second brother and his family returned home safely. the second brother was still wondering who was helping him look after his house and whether the parrot and fish were still alive.

when the second brother learned that "our father was gone", he went to visit his father's grave with his family. after lighting three cigarettes and three incense sticks, the second brother cried while burning paper: "dad, your old son came to see you, why didn't you wait for me!" tears could not stop falling from the face of the grown man.

in front of his father's grave, my second brother was no longer a mentally ill wanderer, but a child full of guilt.

in the years since leaving his hometown, the small town has undergone a long and arduous transformation. urban construction is changing with each passing day. the houses in the former mining subsidence areas have now become high-rise buildings. the places that were once very familiar to my second brother also feel unfamiliar.

▲pictures provided by the family members looking for their relatives

the third sister took her second brother to meet her eldest brother and mother without stopping.

the eldest brother prepared a table of food to welcome his younger brother. on the way here, the second brother said that he couldn't drink with the eldest brother, and the eldest brother beat people after drinking. the eldest brother did beat the second brother, but that was because he was too irritating. although the second brother was a "walker" in the small town at that time, many people in society were his subordinates, but he didn't dare to fight back against the eldest brother's discipline.

"that's my brother. as a younger brother, how can i hit him?" no matter how old he is, the second brother always follows the rules his father taught him when he was a child. he should eat properly, sit properly, and act like a younger brother and older brother.

the eldest brother was not in good health. when the second brother came in to greet him, the eldest brother did not move and motioned for his younger brother to sit down. after ten years, the eldest brother was already an old man with slow movements. hearing his younger brother calling him "eldest brother!", the brotherly love surged in his heart and he felt a little sad. but when he remembered that his younger brother was not around when his father passed away, he felt angry.

the eldest brother went back first after finishing his meal, and the second brother then asked for a bottle of white wine and continued drinking.

after meeting my eldest brother, the family drove to my mother's house the next day.

ever since she heard about her oldest son, mom has been very anxious and worried. on the way to shanghai, the third sister kept pace with mom, fearing that mom would be worried. she only heard about it after seeing it, otherwise mom would have been very nervous and unconvinced.

▲pictures provided by the family members looking for their relatives

accompanied by a few barking dogs, the second brother walked to the side of the mother who had been waiting for a long time under the eaves. the mother held the second brother's coat with both hands, wiped her tears and asked distressedly: "how much suffering have you suffered in the past ten years?"

the second brother wore a baseball cap and said in a nonchalant manner, "suffer a little. you are a man, standing up. you are a man, so suffer a little."

the third sister was also afraid that her mother would get excited, so she quickly said, "it's a happy thing, why are you crying?"

mom said, "i never thought i could live to see him!"

the second brother lifted the door curtain and walked into the room, hiding his silent tears with laughter.

she had just visited her father's grave on the mountain yesterday, and today she saw her mother crying. she also felt the hard work of searching for her second brother over the years and the sacrifices she had made. all kinds of complicated emotions flooded into the third sister's heart, making her feel very complicated and uncomfortable. however, she could not show it and had to make her mother laugh.

the third sister thought how great it would be if the second brother didn't have a mental illness, how happy the family would be. but the third sister could understand the second brother very well, he knew he had a mental illness, his father, mother, brother, sister, each of his relatives had their own family, only he was the eldest brother, he felt embarrassed to go to anyone's house to do anything, he didn't want to drag down his family. instead of living in sadness, it's better to go to a strange place where no one cares, mingle in the vast sea of ​​people, not think about who he is, even being a security guard is pretty energetic, pretty good.

the dishes on the table were the most delicious ones that our mother had cooked in the past ten years or so. there were pork ribs stewed with sauerkraut, steamed pork elbows, sausages, pork liver, pickled vegetables, and leek boxes. these were all my second brother's favorite dishes, and he enjoyed eating them very much.

the third sister joked with her mother, "if the second brother doesn't come back, you will fool us when you cook."

while cooking, the third sister burned her arm. besides her mother, only the second brother noticed it and asked with concern, "how did you get burned?"

7. resting with practitioners