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墨書 Inktalez
Ye Chenfeng listened to Li Xin's story, finding it eerily similar to domestic abuse.
Several times, he wanted to interrupt Li Xin, reminding her that she could report it and take her parents to court. However, Li Xin showed no signs of stopping; instead, she continued speaking as if recounting her own experiences.
In this family, the Second Son was less favored by his parents due to his mental disability. The Third Son had died, and fortunately, after the Fourth Daughter, there was another child they liked named Xiao Wu.
Xiao Wu was bright and clever, the apple of their parents' eye.
The Second Son and the Fourth Daughter were like thorns in their parents' sides.
If they could have easily discarded them, their parents might have done just that, choosing only to raise the beloved Xiao Wu.
Despite his disability, the Second Son was hardworking. He would travel far to a place called Meiyao in the county to collect coal scraps, carrying them back home in a basket for cooking.
He could distinguish between different types of coal—identifying which was good, which produced a lot of smoke, and which was fire-resistant.
When their parents saw the coal the Second Son brought back, their expressions softened slightly, and they even managed a small smile.
Yet even so, beatings were inevitable.
It would either be the Fourth Daughter or the Second Son who bore the brunt of their parents' anger.
Whenever their parents fought, their mother would unleash her fury on these unfortunate children.
No matter if it was midnight or just as the kids had fallen asleep.
Whenever she needed something, she would indiscriminately grab one of the children (except for Xiao Wu), slapping them or using a belt—these were her methods of venting. The treatment of the Fourth Daughter was harsh, but what she did to the Second Son was even more brutal.
There was a Persimmon Tree in front of their house.
When the season arrived, the Persimmon Tree was laden with fruit, its bright red hue making it a beautiful sight. There were several marks on the tree, and the only thing that could leave such marks was wire.
The Fourth Daughter witnessed her Second Brother being tied to the Persimmon Tree by their Biological Mother with a thick wire. She whipped him mercilessly with a strip as thick as her thumb, and she cried—her heart felt like it was going to break.
Only their Biological Mother could drive a mentally challenged child to such despair.
Once, she picked up a vegetable peeler and cut her own tongue, leaving it bleeding, while her mother acted as if she hadn’t seen anything.
Not long after that incident, the Fourth Daughter faced misfortune again.
Her parents were arguing once more, and her mother dragged her out of the warm bed, slapping her left and right. Finally, the Fourth Daughter exploded with anger. She furiously questioned her mother, “On what grounds? Are you really our biological mother? I haven’t done anything wrong; why do you hit me whenever you want and scold me at will?”
Ye Chenfeng watched Li Xin tell the story, tears welling up in his eyes as he hurriedly handed her a tissue for comfort. “This is such a heartbreaking story; maybe you shouldn’t continue.”
“Why not? In that wicked feudal era, where boys were favored over girls, children were merely burdens to adults. Do you understand? Children are their private property; they can keep them or dispose of them at will. I just don’t understand—if they chose to give birth, why do they resent them?”
“Perhaps they have their own difficulties.”
“Difficulties? Do you know? That home is like a den of demons. The children in that house live in constant fear every day; even when they sleep, they worry about being suddenly dragged out and beaten.”
Ye Chenfeng stood up again; he couldn’t remember how many glasses of water he had handed to Li Xin by now.
Li Xin took a small sip, still lost in the story she was telling.
That night, the Fourth Daughter escaped from the beating and ran out alone, hiding in the dark, cold rapeseed field filled with blooming golden flowers. She hid there all night, her small body trembling from the cold; she was afraid of the dark and many terrifying things.
"What's next?"
She saw a woman.
A woman dressed entirely in white, unlike anything modern.
The woman smiled at her, and that smile was warm; it was the first time she had ever seen such a beautiful smile since she was born.
Ye Chenfeng felt nervous. The Fourth Daughter wouldn't go with this woman, would she?
Li Xin continued, "The woman floated over, like a wisp of smoke, and whispered something in the Fourth Daughter's ear."
"What did she say?"
Li Xin set down her cup, tears still wet on her cheeks. She forced a smile and stood up. "I have to go."
Ye Chenfeng checked the time; it was one in the morning.
"Should I walk you home?"
"My home... but do you really want to walk me?"
"It's not safe for a woman to be out alone at this hour. It's better if I accompany you," Ye Chenfeng said sincerely, already standing up and making his way to the door to let Li Xin out before following her.
A car, that same little white car, was parked where Ye Chenfeng could see it.
"They've come to pick me up; you should just go," Li Xin said flatly, not looking back as she walked toward the car.
Ye Chenfeng watched as Li Xin got into the car, but he still couldn't see who the driver was as the vehicle pulled away.
Turning around, he locked the door behind him. A faint sound of footsteps startled Ye Chenfeng, causing him to jump and instinctively turn around, dropping his keychain on the ground.
"What are you doing here?"
"I noticed you hadn't come back, so I came to check on you."
Ye Chenfeng walked over and put his arm around Ding Li's shoulder. "It's late and foggy; you shouldn't have come. I know how to get back."
"Yeah."
Ye Chenfeng and Ding Li returned home and each took a moment to wash up before heading to bed.
Ding Li quickly fell asleep.
Ye Chenfeng's mind was filled with the focused expression on Li Xin's face as she told her story. When she reached the emotional parts, her tears flowed, and she looked so heart-wrenching.
What is wrong with me?
Ye Chenfeng turned over and wrapped his arms around the sleeping Ding Li.
Li Xin must be one of those children from that family. Is she the Fourth Daughter? Or is she the eldest sister? The eldest sister doesn't seem likely; she resembles the Fourth Daughter more.
Only someone who has suffered deeply would tell such a story with such passion and emotion.
It must be the Fourth Daughter.
Assuming that the Fourth Daughter did not die like her Brother Three, then Li Xin—
No, she is not like that.
Now suppose that Li Xin has a purpose in telling me this story. What does she want to convey, or perhaps what is she hinting at?
In a daze, Ye Chenfeng fell asleep.
Suddenly, he felt cold and instinctively leaned closer to Ding Li. As he did, he was stunned; it didn’t feel like he was on a bed but rather on the ground.
Surrounding Ye Chenfeng was cold, hard earth, and a sweet, cloying scent filled the air.
This sweet scent was familiar to Ye Chenfeng; it was the fragrance of rapeseed flowers, wasn’t it?
Am I dreaming?
Ye Chenfeng got up, his hands covered in mud. It was dark and quiet around him, with faint sounds of chickens crowing and dogs barking in the distance.
What happened to me? Have I entered some kind of preordained illusion?
Ye Chenfeng felt this illusion was familiar; it was the story told by Li Xin.
Damn!
How did I end up in the story narrated by Li Xin?
Ye Chenfeng desperately tried to wake up, shaking his head vigorously. But when he opened his eyes, he found himself still in that field of rapeseed flowers.
The sky was dimly lit.
The chirping of birds broke the silence of the space.
Ye Chenfeng got up from the ground, his body damp with dew that had soaked his hair and clothes.
Wait, how did I end up in a girl's body?
Ye Chenfeng was stunned, feeling as if he had been struck by lightning. He was in a girl’s body, wearing torn pants, barefoot, and looking disheveled. He looked just like a beggar. What on earth was happening!
In the distance, a farmer carrying a hoe saw him and asked in surprise, "Fourth Daughter, what are you doing in the vegetable field so early?"
"I... cough cough... I..." Ye Chenfeng thought to himself, oh my god, my voice is also feminine. No matter how much I cough, it still sounds like a girl’s voice.
"If your Tiger Mom finds out you slept here last night, you'd better watch out," Farmer Uncle kindly reminded him before shouldering his hoe and leaving.
Ye Chenfeng wandered aimlessly through the dew.
In his current view, everything looked fresh and unfamiliar. In the vegetable garden, there were garlic sprouts, radishes, cabbages, and a pile of manure specifically for garbage. It was called a manure pile because it smelled distinctly of pig dung, unlike the trash in big cities.
Ye Chenfeng walked along a narrow path between the fields.
There were many wild grasses by the roadside; as he stepped on them, their color became even greener.
In the bamboo forest nearby, there was a house.
A faint white path led to the entrance of that home.
He didn't know where he should go, and now his identity was the Fourth Daughter.
Where was the Fourth Daughter's home? He had no way of knowing.
Ye Chenfeng stopped in his tracks, hesitating between two paths.
One path led to the door of another farmhouse not far away, flanked by a row of water winter melon trees, leading into the depths of a Mao Bamboo forest.
The path before him seemed to be closer.
Ye Chenfeng's stomach growled, his insides roaring with hunger, making strange gurgling sounds.
From the nearest shaded path came a burly man who looked quite sturdy.
The man had a scar on his lip. Upon seeing Ye Chenfeng, he raised his thick eyebrows in disdain and said, "Fourth Daughter, what are you doing standing here so early in the morning?"
"I..."
"If your Tiger Mom sees you standing here, you'd better watch out."
"Who are you?" Ye Chenfeng regretted asking as soon as the words left his mouth.
To his surprise, the seemingly unimpressive man turned back with a smile and said, "Have you been knocked silly by Tiger Mom? You don't even recognize your Yang Erge?"
Yang Erge.
Ye Chenfeng watched Yang Erge walk away, then quickly chased after him and asked, "Where is my home?"
Yang Erge looked at Ye Chenfeng as if he were a fool, his eyes filled with questions. The words that came out were even more hurtful: "Your family has fools, your Second Brother is a fool, and now you've become a fool too. Isn't that just your family?"
Ye Chenfeng followed Yang Erge's finger, which pointed to the second small path—the one flanked by the Water Winter Melon trees.
The rural path resembled a spider web, crisscrossing in all directions.
Ye Chenfeng walked along the route indicated by Yang Erge.
Beside the path was a large vegetable garden.
There were all kinds of vegetables, their leaves glistening with dew. A wisp of smoke curled up from a rooftop, and suddenly Ye Chenfeng felt his eyes welling up; instinctively, he reached up to touch them—tears!
I’m not crying; where did these tears come from?
Ye Chenfeng was unsure of what to do next or what would happen. He cautiously moved forward, entering the shaded path, and saw what was supposedly home.
Mud brick walls, a thatched roof, and a door woven from reeds.
On a stone slab at the entrance sat a tall, gaunt man.
The man looked up at him, his face filled with anger. "Why didn't you die out there?"
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