In Jiangcheng City in August, the asphalt road surface was softened by the poisonous sun, and the air was filled with a pungent smell of asphalt mixed with car exhaust fumes. The heat wave distorted the distant scenery into wavy shapes.
Chen An was sitting astride a second-hand electric car whose outer shell was tied three times with transparent tape. Sweat poured down the collar of his cheap yellow sun protection clothing. He wiped the sweat from his eyes and stared at the countdown on the phone screen.
"Ding! Your order has timed out, and the system will automatically deduct fifty yuan as liquidated damages. Since you have accumulated three negative reviews this month, a performance bonus of three hundred yuan will be deducted."
A cold mechanical female voice came out from the broken speaker, like a blunt knife pulling hard on Chen An's heart.
