3_Unexpected Disaster

A calamity descended

Perhaps because it was still early, there weren't many vehicles on the road, and there were plenty of cars parked in front of the houses, indicating it was a residential area.

Many houses were wooden, although the styles varied, most were single-family homes with garages and lawns, separated by wooden fences, several houses had American flags flying on their roofs. Yes, it was definitely the United States. Judging by the surroundings, it wasn't a slum, but certainly not an affluent area either; the wealthy wouldn't allow a drifter like him to camp nearby.

There were no tall buildings or towering chimneys in sight, indicating it was far from industrial areas. Therefore, the nearby area was likely a middle-class residential zone on the outskirts of the city.

Yang Liensheng made some basic judgments based on the surroundings as he walked. In a completely new environment, especially one so different from the one he had lived in for nearly 30 years, he felt a sense of unease. If his memory served him right, the social security in the United States wasn't great; they didn't joke around with guns here. If someone pulled a gun on him, it would be disastrous; he had never experienced such a thing in his previous 20+ years.

The gas station was about 500-600 meters from where he lived, just a few minutes' walk away. Surveying the surroundings, he noticed the gas station was a Chevron, with four double-sided fuel pumps, no cars were refueling at the moment, and no one was outside. Inside the gas station, there was an auto repair shop and a convenience store. He didn't see a restroom sign, probably inside the convenience store. The convenience store's door had an "open" sign hanging, signaling he could use the restroom.

As Yang Liensheng walked, he quietly familiarized himself with the language. His English was fluent; luckily, his brain was still quite agile, so he didn't need to translate from Chinese to English before speaking. As a former high school graduate with only basic English skills, if he had to relearn English, it would likely be tragic, and he might starve soon. Besides English, he could also speak Chinese, although his tone was a bit off; he might need to practice to restore it to native proficiency.

Arriving at the convenience store's entrance, Yang Liensheng pushed the door open, a bell rang, and a white, middle-aged man stood behind the cash register, glancing up at the TV, sporting a thick beard that was beginning to turn white.

"Hi, can I use the restroom?"

Yang Liensheng greeted; the white man pointed towards a corner without taking his eyes off the TV, probably watching a movie or TV show.

"Thanks."

Yang Liensheng entered the restroom, took care of personal matters, washed his face, looked in the mirror, seeing a lean young Chinese man with messy short hair, probably hadn't cut it in a month or two. His appearance matched the one on his driver's license, so his identity was fine. He changed into fresh clothes from his backpack, looking a bit more refreshed.

After organizing his backpack, as he reached the restroom's door, he suddenly stopped, gently pushing it ajar, peering through a small crack.

A masked individual was pointing a gun at the convenience store's elderly clerk, demanding money from the cash register. Too intense; he had never witnessed a robbery right after crossing over.

The robber was African American, with a messy bunch of small braids, holding a black handgun of unknown make. Yang Liensheng's legs felt weak; this was his first time witnessing such a scene. Luckily, he hadn't been noticed; hiding should be fine. This was no time to play the hero; it was too dangerous.

The elderly clerk raised his left hand, opened the cash register with his right, placed the money on the counter, the robber grabbed the cash, stuffed it into his pocket, then pointed the gun at the clerk, backed out, pushed the door open, ran towards a nearby motorcycle, hopped on, and swiftly rode away.

"Are you okay? Do you need to call the police?" Watching the robber leave, Yang Liensheng slowly opened the door, walking towards the clerk.

"Damn! Of course not, I've just been robbed." The clerk spat, grabbed the phone, dialing 911. "I need to report a robbery; my convenience store was just robbed... 1106 Fairpark Avenue, inside the gas station's convenience store... It was a young black man, wearing a brown hoodie, jeans, he had a gun, rode a motorcycle north. I'm safe now. Yes, I'll wait for the police to arrive at the store."

Hanging up, the clerk frowned at Yang Liensheng. "Do you need anything else?"

"No! No! I'll leave now. Thank you for letting me use the restroom. Goodbye." Yang Liensheng hurriedly pushed open the door and left. When the police arrived, it would likely cause trouble; he still didn't understand his background and past experiences, questioning by the police would surely lead to problems.

Walking away from the gas station for a while, he remembered he had forgotten to check the map and newspaper in the convenience store; he still wasn't sure where he was.

"Stupid me, where else can I go to check?" Glancing around, he saw residential homes everywhere, a few hundred meters to the north was a building with a red cross sign, probably a hospital, the most distinctive institution nearby. The trouble was, to get to the hospital, he had to pass by the gas station he had just left; he didn't know if the police had arrived yet. If he was unlucky and ran into the police directly, it would be a big problem.

After much deliberation, Yang Liensheng decided to go to the hospital; there would likely be more people there to ask for information. Everything had happened so suddenly; he not only forgot to confirm the area and date but also didn't buy water or food. He hadn't eaten anything since waking up this morning, so he planned to buy something on the way back to the gas station if the police hadn't arrived.

Turning back towards the gas station, he heard a siren, a police car passed by him, entering the gas station. Yang Liensheng glanced at the badge on the car door, Pulaski County Police Department, unfamiliar; it likely wasn't one of the 51 states; he would check later.

Yang Liensheng slightly lowered his head, walking towards the city center hospital from outside the gas station, but as Murphy's Law would have it...

"Hey, stop, Pulaski County Police."

"Oh no." Yang Liensheng halted, turning to face the police officer who had just emerged from the convenience store.

"Take off your hat." The policeman's right hand rested on the gun holster, gesturing with his left. Yang Liensheng removed the hood of his hoodie, revealing his Asian face, visibly easing the policeman, who loosened his grip on the gun.

"Sorry, brother, just needed to confirm if you were the robber earlier. Did you see a black man on a motorcycle? Wearing a brown hoodie?"

"I didn't see him, I was just passing by. Anything else?"

"Okay, no problem." The policeman waved his hand, turned back to the patrol car, using the radio to report back to headquarters.

Watching the police officer, Yang Liensheng felt there shouldn't be any issues, so he turned back towards the convenience store. Since there was no trouble, there was no need to go far to the hospital; he could just inquire inside the convenience store.