I woke up in a sandpit in the desert, my mind a mess. I found a patch of dried, splattered blood on my clothes, but I couldn't remember whose blood it was or how it got there.

I struggled to climb out of the sandpit, shaking the sand off my body. I looked down at the clothes I was wearing, feeling a little strange about the Northwestern ethnic style. I couldn't remember when I had put them on.

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I didn't dwell too much on these external things. Surrounded by the desert, I looked around, feeling a bit lost.

This feeling of confusion didn't last long. Suddenly, a "flash of inspiration" hit my head, and countless thoughts surged in. I instantly remembered what I was supposed to do.

I patted the back of my head and smiled wryly. For a moment, I even suspected that I had Alzheimer's disease, lamenting how I could forget something so important.

The desert was vast, and every direction, east, west, north, and south, looked the same.

In front of me, a dirt mound marked the beginning of an ancient trade route, with undulating sand dunes on one side.

Subconsciously, I remembered that if I followed this trade route south and then east, I would find a dried-up ancient riverbed. Following the riverbed east, I would soon find a village, and then…

This route was very clear in my mind. Every section of the road, every landmark, every sand dune was vividly imprinted in my memory, as if I had walked it before.

No use thinking too much. It was getting late, so I should get out of this desert first.

I readjusted my clothes and shoes and set off on the path I remembered.

…

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A month after leaving the desert.

I stumbled all the way to Tianjing and went to the address of the company I had started with my college classmate, Liu Wei. But the place had changed hands, and Liu Wei and the company were no longer there.

After asking around, I learned that not long after I left a year ago, my company with Liu Wei had been acquired by a large domestic IT company, and the company's address had moved with the acquisition.

After getting the new address, I went looking for it.

It wasn't far from the old address, just a ten-minute walk.

This IT company was one of the top three in the country. The company's building was luxurious and imposing, with more than twenty floors, which looked even more advanced than the building we rented when we started our company. My company with Liu Wei should have been incorporated into this IT company as a department.

It was said that this building was directly purchased by the company, which showed its financial strength. I thought Liu Wei must have sold the company for a good price.

I walked straight towards the main entrance of the building but was stopped by a formally dressed young security guard. The young security guard was aggressive and asked, "Who are you? Who are you looking for? Do you have an appointment?"

This young security guard had an arrogant attitude, probably because he relied on being part of a big company, which gave him confidence. It might also be because I was too young and dressed plainly, which made him mistakenly think I was a door-to-door salesman, and he was disgusted.

I smiled and asked the young security guard, "Hello, is Liu Wei here?"

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The young security guard glanced at me suspiciously, sized me up, and asked, "Which Liu Wei?"

"The boss of the Huangye company that was acquired a year ago, Liu Wei. About my age, balding a bit."

"Hmm…" The security guard was silent for a moment, then nodded, indicating that there was indeed such a person. "Who are you? What do you want to see Director Liu for? Do you have an appointment?"

"Oh, I'm his partner, Zhao Chenguang. I don't have an appointment, but please tell him that Liu Wei knows me."

Perhaps the security guard had seen too many people trying to get in by claiming connections. He gave me a disgusted look and said, "Without an appointment, it doesn't matter if you know the chairman. If you really want to come in, there's a way. Call Director Liu and have him come down to pick you up."

This security guard was indeed used to being arrogant. His eyes were practically in the sky when he spoke.

"Hiss…"

Call Liu Wei?

I didn't even know how long my phone number had been out of service, and Liu Wei's phone number was stored in my old phone, which I lost. I couldn't find Liu Wei's phone number anymore.

"Is there any other way? Or, could you make a call for me to contact Liu Wei?"

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The security guard waved his hand dismissively and said to me, "If everyone was like you, coming here and saying they knew someone, asking me to make a call, who would pay for my phone bill? What if someone was just messing with me? If I offend a leader, I'll lose my job."

What the security guard said made sense. I didn't want to make things difficult for him anymore, so I said to him, "Then how about this? Tell me what time Director Liu gets off work, and I'll wait here."

"Alright, the company gets off work at five o'clock. You can wait here, just don't block the main entrance."

I was both angry and amused. Looking at the security guard's attitude, if I wanted to get through this door today, I could only rely on myself.

Unfortunately, after disappearing for a year, I was alone, penniless, and had hitchhiked all the way from the western desert to get here. In order to find Liu Wei as soon as possible, I had only gone home to change into a clean set of clothes before coming straight here.

I thought everything would go smoothly, but who would have thought there would be more twists and turns?