The Phoenix of the Slums

The dim glow of the train container’s broken lightbulb cast flickering shadows as Li Tianming stared at the photo, his thoughts spiraling.

The woman in the picture looked delicate, dressed in an elegant cheongsam that screamed wealth. Her face, though blurred slightly with age, carried an unmistakable sadness. She clutched the baby like her life depended on it.

That baby was him.

“Not who I think I am…?” he muttered, gripping the photo tightly.

He placed the envelope on the small wooden crate he used as a nightstand and opened the worn drawer. Inside, among rusty coins and old scraps, was a folded piece of cloth—a piece of red silk embroidered with a golden phoenix. He didn’t know why he kept it. It had come with him when he was left outside the orphanage as a baby.

He now knew it wasn’t just a scrap. It was a clue.

A knock came—two sharp taps, followed by one soft. A code.

Tianming rose and opened the container door slightly.

“Xiao Hei,” he greeted.

A lanky boy with a shaved head and darting eyes slipped inside. “Bro, something’s happening in the city. Crazy stuff.”

Tianming raised an eyebrow. “What kind of crazy?”

Xiao Hei’s voice dropped. “The Li Conglomerate just had a shareholder shake-up. Rumors say the chairman collapsed during a private dinner… poisoned.”

Tianming’s heart jumped.

The Li Conglomerate—the same name etched faintly into the silk cloth he’d just uncovered. Coincidence? He didn’t believe in those.

He said nothing, mind racing, until Xiao Hei poked him.

“You okay, bro?”

“Yeah,” Tianming said, voice distant. “Go home. Lock up. Don’t talk to anyone about this.”

“You sure?”

“Do what I say.”

Xiao Hei nodded and slipped out into the night.

Tianming turned back to the photo, then the silk cloth.

The pieces were connecting.

He had spent 22 years in filth and shadows while men in skyscrapers played with power and money—his power, his legacy.

But now, someone was pulling strings in the dark… leading him back to a life he never knew.

The name “Li Tianming” had once been erased. Forgotten.

But now it was coming back—like a phoenix from the ashes.