The voice sounded urgent, as if someone was shouting right beside her ear.
Lin Qiao’er abruptly raised her head and looked around.
But there was clearly no one speaking in the room.
Where did that voice come from?
Lin Qiao’er’s heart pounded fiercely, and the sweat in her palms had soaked the hem of her clothes.
She didn’t know what was happening, but she had a vague sense of foreboding.
The day her mother had slipped and fallen into the water while washing clothes, she had felt the same way.
Listening more carefully, the voice was gone now.
Could it be that she was too tired and had started hearing things?
At night, Lin Qiao’er turned over, and the rickety wooden bed creaked and groaned.
She lay on her back, staring at the pitch-black roof beams overhead, her mind a tangled mess.
Just as Lin Qiao’er was drifting into a hazy sleep, a sudden bloated feeling in her lower abdomen made her need to use the toilet.
The room was so dark she couldn’t see her own hand in front of her face. Groping around, she climbed out of bed, slipped on her shoes, and felt her way along the wall toward the door.
The toilet was outside, requiring her to cross the courtyard.
Just as she reached the doorway of the main hall, she suddenly heard voices coming from the east room.
It was Uncle and Aunt.
Feng Xingmei’s voice was sharp and shrill, clearly audible even through the door. “I really don’t know what you’re thinking. That human trafficker is only offering a hundred yuan. If we marry that little wench off, we could get a bride price of one or two hundred yuan.”
Lin Qiao’er’s heart clenched violently, as if gripped by an invisible hand.
So Aunt really wanted to sell her off!
Lin Defei lowered his voice. “Don’t forget, the house we’re living in belongs to Second Brother. What if she wants it back? Where would we sleep?”
Of the two Lin brothers, Lin Deli had followed the village’s barefoot doctor in his youth, studying medicine for over a decade. With his pulse-reading skills, he earned enough money not only to marry a beautiful wife but also to build a new house in the village, making many villagers envious.
Lin Defei, on the other hand, had no particular talents and had always lived in the old mud-brick house, with a family of four crammed into a single room.
After Lin Deli and his wife passed away, Uncle’s family moved into the new house Lin Deli had built and took in Lin Qiao’er.
Lin Defei fell silent for a moment. “If Xiuyu gets into university, she’ll need some money to rely on. With Qiao’er gone, her job could go to Dazhu. It pays thirty yuan a month—better than farming the fields. It’ll also help him marry a wife in the future.”
Like a thunderclap out of a clear sky.
The uncle she thought cared for her the most was actually plotting to sell her to human traffickers.
She had worked like an ox for her uncle’s family for years, handing over every penny she earned without keeping any for herself. Even during holidays, she never got to eat a single piece of meat.
Could her parents’ deaths be related to them?
Lin Qiao’er stood rooted by the wall, feeling as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over her. Every hair on her body stood on end. Accidentally, she kicked a small stone, making a noise.
The voices in the east room abruptly stopped.
She trembled violently, her teeth chattering, but she didn’t dare make a sound, not even breathing loudly.
Just then, the voice spoke again.
Suisui: “Oh my goodness! Run! Get out of here! Go to Shanghai, find my daddy.”
Lin Qiao’er’s heart tightened, and she instinctively touched her belly.
Was this voice her child?
Go to Shanghai to find the child’s father?
But she didn’t even know who the child’s father was.
She held her breath, waiting for the child to continue speaking, but the voice fell silent again.
Could it be that the child would warn her whenever she was in danger?
It must be her parents in heaven, unable to bear seeing her mistreated, sending a little angel to protect her.
This child, she must give birth to it safely.
To have this child, she could only marry the child’s father and register their marriage.
Shanghai was so far away; just the train ticket alone would cost dozens of yuan.
It was all her own fault for being so foolish—she hadn’t kept any private savings for herself and had handed everything over.
Now, in urgent need of money, she didn’t have a single penny to her name.
She didn’t even know where Shanghai was, only that it would take days and nights on the train and required some kind of introduction letter.
She needed to get money first, then figure out how to obtain the introduction letter.
Just as she was thinking this, she heard footsteps coming from the east room, passing through the main hall, and heading her way.
Lin Qiao’er’s heart leaped into her throat.
The footsteps paused outside the side room door. Lin Qiao’er took a deep breath, rubbed her eyes, and pushed open the door.
She came face to face with Lin Defei.
Lin Defei stood at the doorway of the side room, a seemingly kind smile on his face.
With a square face, large ears, thick eyebrows, and full lips, he looked honest and sincere when he smiled.
But now, looking at that face, Lin Qiao’er felt nothing but disgust.
By the moonlight, Lin Qiao’er caught sight of the large stick Lin Defei was hiding behind his back.
Lin Qiao’er swallowed hard. If Lin Defei discovered she had overheard the couple’s conversation, her uncle would surely knock her out with that stick, stuff her into a sack, and sell her to traffickers.
No.
She had to stay calm.
Lin Qiao’er, you must stay calm!!
She deliberately rubbed her eyes, her voice soft and nasal, as if just waking up. “Uncle, what are you doing here so late at night?”
Lin Defei didn’t answer. His eyes, sharp in the darkness, stared at her, scrutinizing her up and down.
Lin Qiao’er felt deeply uncomfortable under his gaze but forced herself to endure it, looking at Lin Defei with a confused expression, as if still half-asleep.
Lin Defei didn’t notice anything unusual about Lin Qiao’er. He scratched his head and said, “Had a bit too much rice wine tonight, needed to relieve myself.”
Lin Qiao’er’s heart pounded like a drum, her heartbeat magnified endlessly in her nervousness.
Lin Qiao’er rubbed her eyes again. “Uncle, I’m going back to sleep.”
“Go on, go on.” Lin Defei waved his hand.
Lin Qiao’er lowered her head and walked past him. Once she climbed onto her wooden plank bed, she pulled the quilt over her head and curled into a ball.
Only then did she dare to let her tears fall.
She buried her face in the pillow, crying so hard her whole body shook, but she didn’t dare make a single sound.
She had to leave this place, go to Shanghai!
As soon as day broke, Lin Qiao’er headed to the village chief’s house.
Hunched over, head down, she walked quickly.
Up ahead, several village women were walking toward her, chatting about local gossip as they went.
“Did you hear? Jianye got into a university in Shanghai. His mother’s been telling everyone.”
“Yeah, look at how smug she is.”
“Jianye is one of the first college students from our village. Of course he’s precious.”
Lin Qiao’er paused in her steps. Jianye got into a university in Shanghai?
Could she travel to Shanghai with Jianye then?
She’d heard there were many pickpockets and traffickers on trains.
Traveling together would be safer.
Thinking this, Lin Qiao’er’s tense mood from the entire night eased slightly.
Lin Qiao’er changed direction and headed toward Cheng Jianye’s house.
Cheng Jianye’s house was at the west end of the village, under the old locust tree.
She had been there many times and could find her way even with her eyes closed.
Jianye was one of the few people in the village who treated her well.
After her parents passed away one after the other, the villagers considered her unlucky, having “cursed” her parents to death. Even other children refused to play with her.
The other kids would throw stones at her.
It was Cheng Jianye who scared off those brats with a stick.
Cheng Jianye’s family was poor, raised by his widowed mother.
A child without a father was easily bullied.
Cheng Jianye was proud and didn’t play with other kids.
That’s why he ended up playing with Lin Qiao’er.
Thinking of Cheng Jianye, a rare warmth flickered in Lin Qiao’er’s heart.
The door wasn’t locked.
She knocked three times and waited a moment before the door creaked open a crack.
Cheng Jianye peeked out with half his face, his hair messy, his eyes not fully open. When he saw her, he froze for a second, his voice sounding a bit awkward.
“Qiao’er? So early… why are you here?”