Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
Eternal Companionship of Sun and Moon
墨書 Inktalez
"Lin Yue, why did you kill?"
No matter how the police interrogated me, I kept my head down and said nothing.
In the past, Su Yang took care of me while I carried a basin. We cried and shouted all day long, barely managing to fill our stomachs. The Old Beggars bullied me, and to protect me, he had his ribs broken and was covered in blood. Later, when we entered the orphanage, Su Yang continued to protect me. When someone wanted to adopt him, he had only one request: they had to take me too. Like each other's shadows, we could not be separated. Until that day when the director took him into a room, I waited by the door all night, but he never came out again.
Su Yang was a little beggar, and I was the tiny beggar he picked up. When I was found, I was already freezing and on the verge of death. The Old Beggars all said I wouldn't survive and urged Su Yang to abandon me. He held onto me tightly, refusing to let go even in death. The Old Beggars softened their hearts; you contributed a bit, I contributed a bit, and together we made a pot of Rice Soup. The little beggar clumsily fed the kitten in his arms. Miraculously, he managed to keep me alive. He named me "Lin Yue," meaning "Bright Moon in the Woods." From then on, Su Yang took me everywhere with him.
When I was little, he carried me on his back; when I could walk, he held my hand while I carried the basin. He would knock while I howled. After a whole day of crying and shouting, my throat would be sore, yet we still couldn't get much food. Su Yang always said, "Lin Yue eats first; brother doesn't like dry buns. Back then, our family was rich; I didn't even like chicken legs." At that time, I was foolishly drooling and asked blankly, "Brother, what is a chicken leg?"
"A chicken leg is what that uncle ate in front of the station yesterday. Didn't brother pick some meat off the bone for you?"
"Wow, Yue Yue remembers, the chicken leg was so delicious, more fragrant than anything Yue Yue has ever eaten."
I gulped down saliva, trying to savor the lingering taste of the meat.
"Brother is amazing, even chicken legs aren't his favorite. He must have been a celestial being in the past; only a celestial being could have such a good life."
Su Yang patted my head, turning his face as a glimmer of light passed under his chin.
He wiped his hand carelessly and hugged me, saying, " Yue Yue believes in brother. One day, brother will make sure you live a good life, a life where you can eat chicken legs every day."
I can't remember how I responded or what I was thinking at that moment.
---
"Lin Yue, why did you kill Director Liu?"
"I... I didn't. I don't know how I ended up in the director's room. I didn't kill him, I didn't—"
officer Chen placed a stack of photos on the table in front of me and tapped them forcefully with his finger.
"Take a good look. Is the person in these photos you?"
The woman in the photos wore the same white dress as me, her long black hair cascading down her back. The expression on her identical face was one I had never worn before.
It was indeed me, no doubt about it.
The white Nike sneakers on my feet were still the ones Su Yang had picked up at the hospital.
There was a black stain on the heel that wouldn't come off no matter how hard I tried to clean it.
I remembered Su Yang saying back then, "It's a shame to lose such good shoes. I wanted to keep them for you to wear to school. If they don't clean up well, when brother earns money, I'll buy you a new pair."
I cherished those shoes; they were the best I had ever seen and I had never dared to wear them.
Even if they turned to ash, I wouldn't mistake them for anything else.
I nodded and said, "It's me."
officer Chen nodded and pointed at several other photos, asking, "What about these?"
My pupils dilated and my fingertips trembled.
In the photos, the woman raised a kit officer Chen knife menacingly and swung it toward Director Liu.
I wanted to say that wasn't me, but that familiar face made it impossible to deny.
officer Chen tapped his fingers on the table again. "What? Do you recognize it?"
The other officer behind the interrogation table shouted, "Lin Yue, confess and you’ll be treated leniently; resist and it will be severe. When we arrived at the director's office, the kit officer Chen knife in your hand was still dripping with blood. If it wasn't you, then who else could it be?"
"I... it's really not me... I don't know... I..."
My head throbbed painfully as I lowered it against the table, repeatedly banging it in an attempt to alleviate the pain.
Seeing this, officer Chen quickly raised his hand to stop the other officer from continuing to provoke me.
"Tap... tap... tap..."
The crisp sound of leather shoes echoed clearly in the silent interrogation room.
officer Chen stepped in front of me and softly asked, "Lin Yue, you were abandoned at the welfare home shortly after you were born. Who took you in, cared for you, and looked after you? Do you remember?"
"It was... it was Su Yang. Su Yang rescued me from a trash can and saved my life with a pot of Rice Soup."
Ignoring the restraints on my hands, I waved my arms and loudly denied it.
"Su Yang saved me; it has always been Su Yang."
"Lin Yue, why did you kill Director Liu?"
"I—I didn’t! I don’t know how I ended up in the director's office! I didn’t kill him—no—"
officer Chen placed a stack of photographs on the table in front of me and tapped them forcefully.
"Take a good look. Is that you in the photos?"
The woman in the photographs wore the same white dress as I did, her long black hair cascading down her back. The expression on her face was one I had never seen before, but it was undeniably me.
The white Nike sneakers on my feet were also those that Su Yang had found for me at the hospital. There was a black stain on the heel that wouldn’t come off no matter how hard I tried to clean it.
I remembered Su Yang saying back then, "It’s a shame to throw away such good shoes. I want to keep them for you to wear to school. If they don’t clean up well, once I earn some money, I'll buy you a new pair."
I cherished them dearly; they were the best shoes I had ever seen growing up, and I had never been able to bring myself to wear them.
Even if they turned to ashes, I wouldn’t mistake them.
I nodded. "It was me."
officer Chen nodded and pointed to a few other photos, asking, "What about these?"
My pupils dilated, and my fingertips trembled.
In the photos, a woman raised a kit officer Chen knife menacingly, swinging it toward Director Liu.
I wanted to say that it wasn't me, but that familiar face made it impossible to deny.
officer Chen's fingers tapped on the table again. "What? Do you recognize her?"
Another officer behind the interrogation table shouted, "Lin Yue, confess and you’ll be treated leniently; resist and you’ll face severe consequences. When we arrived at the director's room, the knife in your hand was still dripping blood. If it wasn't you, then who could it be?"
"I... it really wasn't me... I don't know... I..."
My head throbbed painfully as I lowered it onto the table, repeatedly banging it in an attempt to ease the pain.
Seeing this, officer Chen quickly raised his hand to stop the other officer from provoking me further.
The sound of polished shoes echoed crisply in the silent interrogation room.
officer Chen stepped in front of me and softly asked, "Lin Yue, you were abandoned at the welfare home shortly after birth. Who took you in, cared for you, and looked after you? Do you remember?"
"It was... it was Su Yang. Su Yang picked me up from a trash can and saved me with a pot of Rice Soup."
Ignoring the restraints on my hands, I waved them vigorously and shouted, "It was Su Yang who saved me; it has always been Su Yang."
"Okay, okay, relax, Lin Yue. Let's think back together."
"What did you do on the day Director Liu had his incident?"
Noticing my agitation, officer Chen shifted to guide me through my memories of that day.
I furrowed my brow and unconsciously picked at the hangnails on my fingers.
That day, I remembered going to school early for class. After school in the afternoon, I hurried to a small restaurant on the street next to the welfare home.
I worked part-time there to earn some living expenses.
Dinner service was particularly busy that day; I accidentally broke a plate, and a customer pointed at me angrily. Thankfully, the owner came to my rescue.
The owner of the restaurant is a plump auntie, always smiling and warm-hearted. She has taken great care of us children at the orphanage, often bringing us food. She is just like the mother I imagined.
Every time the owner visits the orphanage, Su Yang disappears, and when he returns, there’s always an extra chicken leg in his lunchbox. I wish I could have more chicken legs too. But whenever I bring it up, Su Yang gets angry and scolds me.
"Lin Yue, get away from me! If I see you going to find the director, I'll break your legs." After scolding me, he tosses a chicken leg into my bowl and ruffles my hair. "Eat up. From now on, you can have all the chicken legs. I’m not lying to you; one day I’ll make sure you live a life where you won’t even want to eat chicken legs."
"I believe you, brother."
From that day on, whenever there were chicken legs, he would save them for me. I always believed that Su Yang would keep his promise and help me live a good life.
But as I started school, I gradually understood that life was tough. For orphans like us to have a better life, we either needed to be adopted or work hard in our studies. Many people had once wanted to adopt Su Yang. He had only one request: to adopt me along with him. Those people only wanted a son and didn’t need a daughter, so nothing ever came of it. In the orphanage, younger children are more likely to be adopted; boys are always more popular than girls.
"During the day you're at school, and after school you're working at the restaurant. When do you get back to the orphanage? Didn’t Su Yang come with you?"
officer Chen is really a good police officer; he is very patient and never interrupts me. The other officer is different; I suspect he has a short temper. He starts banging on the table and shouting again.
"Lin Yue, you're lying! We’ve investigated this; people at the orphanage confirmed that you never went to school or worked at any restaurant. And about Su Yang—we checked, and there hasn’t been anyone by that name in the orphanage's records for the past three years."
"Confess honestly, resist strictly. Lin Yue, do not challenge the law; hurry up and tell the truth."
"I am not lying, officer Chen. Everything I said is true. Su Yang and I are not in the welfare institution's records."
officer Chen nodded. "I believe you. Lin Yue is a good child and wouldn't lie. Why do you say you aren't in the records?"
I paused for a moment and began to tell officer Chen the story of Su Yang and me.
We didn't grow up in the welfare institution; we ended up there by accident. Su Yang is an orphan, and I was abandoned as a baby—he found me in a trash bin.
By the time we were three or four years old, I was already begging on the streets with him. In our childhood, two cold buns could last us three days.
As we grew older, it became harder to find enough to eat. Su Yang took me everywhere, barely managing to keep hunger at bay.
The old beggars saw that we were growing up and feared we would take their food, so they always chased us away. But Kun City was only so big, and the beggars had long divided their territories.
We moved carefully from place to place but were still noticed and cornered in an alley behind the train station.
Su Yang shielded me behind him, his gaze as cold as ice.
"Kid, this area around the train station belongs to my Brother Scar. Have you paid your respects to Brother Scar before begging here?"
"Who knows where this clueless kid came from? If you're smart, hurry up and pay tribute to Brother Scar."
"This kid looks like a tough one; let's just beat him up and toss him out."
A middle-aged man with a face full of scars rubbed his dirty chest, lifting his scarred eyelids to glance at us.
"Alright, we're all elders here; what's the point of making things difficult for a child?"
As soon as the man called Brother Scar spoke, the surrounding beggars fell silent.
"Kid, the train station is my territory. Without my permission, no one can beg here."
"Since it's your first offense, leave your money and that little girl behind, then get lost."
Brother Scar's eyes roamed over me inch by inch, cold and sticky as they traced down my small legs.
I trembled all over, gripping Su Yang tightly as I shrank behind him.
Su Yang held my hand and stepped forward slightly to block Brother Scar's gaze.
He pulled out all the money from his pocket and placed it on the ground. " Brother Scar, we didn't know the rules. This is all I have, a tribute to you. You have a big heart; please let us go."
Brother Scar grinned, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "You're smart enough. The girl stays; you can leave."
" Brother Scar," Su Yang pleaded, pulling me down to kneel. "Please have mercy. My sister is only six years old; she's just a child."
Brother Scar spat out a yellow phlegm and cursed, "Don't push your luck. I like them young. Hurry up and get lost, or I'll keep both of you."
He waved his hand, signaling the beggars to come forward and drag Su Yang away.
Su Yang knelt on the ground, fists clenched, teeth gritted in desperation. " Brother Scar, I'll do anything you want; please let my sister go."
Brother Scar waved his hand impatiently, and the beggars rushed in, kicking and punching.
Su Yang shielded me with her body, enduring the blows in silence, refusing to let go no matter how hard they hit. The rain of fists and feet fell relentlessly, and Su Yang bit her lip until blood trickled out.
I cried out for Brother Scar, begged the beggars, pleaded with Su Yang to ignore me.
I don't know how long it lasted until a patrol officer passed by. The beggars fled in a panic, and we were finally saved.
After that incident, we didn't dare to go near the train station for a long time.
Su Yang was injured all over and took half a year to recover.
"Didn't you report it to the police?" officer Chen asked in confusion.
I chuckled softly. " officer Chen, we were just two kids. What good would reporting do? Who would care about two beggars?"
"I would," officer Chen replied firmly. "If you reported it, I would handle it according to the law—"
"Arrest Brother Scar and his gang for half a month, and then what?" I interrupted, seeing officer Chen nod. I smirked.
"Then they would come out even more crazed for revenge. The officers wouldn't know whether to look for us in the sewers or in some filthy ditch."
"So you went to the orphanage?"
officer Chen paid no mind to my sarcasm and only cared about our next steps. I shrugged and continued the story. officer Chen wasn't wrong; the reason we didn't go to the welfare home was that Brother Scar and his gang had been caught.
The two patrol officers were just as diligent and responsible as officer Chen. After Brother Scar and his crew were taken in, Su Yang settled me down near the train station. We spent a period of time in relative safety. At first, we were cautious, but life near the train station was surprisingly good. Every day, we could scrounge up a few warm meals, and sometimes, if luck was on our side, we could even find a meat pie at McDonald's.
In the early hours when no one was around, we could even take a shower in the public restroom. Gradually, we forgot about the dangers lurking around us—until one day.
As I stepped into the public restroom, a sharp pain shot through my neck, and I lost consciousness.
When I woke up again, my hands and feet were bound, and my eyes were covered with a black cloth; I couldn't see anything. I shouted, "Where are you, Su Yang? Help me, Su Yang—"
A familiar voice replied, "Oh, you're awake. Your brother isn't here, but Brother Scar is still alive."
My blood ran cold, and I felt as if I had fallen into an ice pit. I moved my feet to kneel down and clasped my hands together, begging for mercy. "Please, Brother Scar, let me go. Please…"
A heavy blow from behind knocked me to the ground. "How dare you beg? If it weren't for you siblings, would we have had to suffer in there?"
"Your brother was so arrogant; now that his precious little sister is in our hands, let's see how arrogant he can be."
"The kid is running around like a mad dog, searching for that girl. Tsk tsk, how pathetic, he's so anxious he might just spit blood."
"Good, let him get us locked up. That little bastard should have been killed back then."
"What's the rush? Let that little bastard run for a few days. Once Brother Scar vents his anger on that girl, we'll send them both back home together."
"Hahaha, by the time Brother Scar is done, that girl might not even be alive."
"Who knows, once Brother Scar is satisfied, maybe we brothers can have a taste too."
The beggars laughed shamelessly, their crude words unbearable to hear.
Brother Scar quietly approached, grabbed me, and tossed me into the room.
I hit the corner of the bed and let out a muffled groan from the pain.
The soft sensation beneath me made me hold my breath, biting my lip tightly.
Brother Scar ripped off the blindfold and pinched my chin, forcing me to look up at him.
"You've been doing well these days; your little face has some meat on it now, all rosy and even prettier."
I tried to turn my head away, attempting to break free, but he held me tightly.
"Your temper is quite fierce; too bad Brother Scar likes to tame wild horses."
After saying that, he leaned in closer, trying to kiss me.
I bit down hard on his hand.
Brother Scar slapped me so hard my ears rang, and blood trickled from the corner of my mouth.
He gripped my chin, forcing my mouth open; his rough fingers brushed against my lips, staining them red.
Brother Scar grinned as he put his finger in his mouth. "So sweet."
He grabbed my feet and dragged me beneath him.
With a few swift motions, he broke the ropes binding my hands and feet and pressed down on me.
I used all my strength to kick and hit him, even biting down with my teeth, but I couldn't break free no matter what.
Brother Scar's eyes were bloodshot, breathing heavy and becoming more frantic.
Each struggle was met with violent force; I gradually lost strength, feeling both pain and urgency before blacking out.
Comment 0 Comment Count