Deed of Sale

The sun sank in the west, its setting rays like molten gold.

The lake seemed to merge with the sky, impossibly beautiful.

After a bustling day, the wharf and market had fallen completely quiet. The boatmen, vendors, porters, laborers, and others who made their living at the Yangcheng Dian wharf had all gone their separate ways.

A vast array of houseboats lay moored at the wharf. Some were joined bow to stern, others pressed cabin to cabin, forming a floating village pieced together from countless boats.

They were the indigenous people of Yangcheng Dian, the Dan people, who had lived off this vast lake for over a hundred years.

For generations, the Dan people had lived aboard boats, fished for a living, and never farmed the land.

Fishing, gathering pearls and oysters, and harvesting water chestnuts and lotus roots made up their daily lives.

In one corner of the vast floating village, an enticing aroma rose with wisps of cooking smoke.

This was Xiao Ya's family boat.

She was bent over, her bottom sticking up as she simmered fish soup.

The bighead carp had been caught at noon, and the tofu had been specially bought in town. Most importantly, there was lard in the pot.

The carp had first been fried golden brown on both sides in lard, then simmered with the tofu. The milky-white fish soup was rich and tempting, its fragrance filling the air.

The aroma made Xiao Ya so hungry she could hardly bear it. No matter how often she swallowed, her mouth kept watering.

Yet her little face was full of solemn concentration, and she showed no intention of sneaking a taste.

Although the young master had said there was no need to bring him meals, they could not simply do nothing. The Dan people valued kindness and loyalty above all else; otherwise, those ten taels of silver would burn their hands, and their hearts would not be at ease.

"Xiao Ya, simmering fish, are you?"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk... Smells wonderful. You even put lard in it."

"That young master from the city sure is generous. Looks like your family made quite a bit this time."

"..."

People nearby were drawn by the rich aroma of fish and called out greetings, their eyes full of envy and jealousy.

Usually, they could not bear to use even coarse salt in their cooking, much less something as precious as lard.

Xiao Ya answered them as she patiently tended the fish soup.

"By the way, Xiao Ya, where's your father?"

"My daddy was called away by Lord Gou."

The moment Xiao Ya finished speaking, the people around her fell silent.

An indescribably complicated look came over their faces. They all lowered their heads and returned to what they were doing, saying nothing more to her.

Xiao Ya did not understand and glanced around in puzzlement.

Lord Gou was a bad man.

She knew that.

A little girl who used to play with her often had been called away by Lord Gou one night, and Xiao Ya had never seen her again.

She had asked her daddy and the others, but none of them would tell her where the girl had gone.

It was as though a living, breathing person had suddenly vanished from the world.

Everyone in Yangcheng Dian was afraid of Lord Gou.

She was no exception.

It was not just because Lord Gou was ugly, but also because the way he looked at her made her very uncomfortable.

"Only ugly people are bad. Good people are good-looking, so the young master must be a good person."

At the thought, Xiao Ya giggled dreamily.

"Where's Li Jiu's boat? Where's his daughter?"

Several men in short black jackets had suddenly arrived at the wharf. They were the Shore Patrolmen who managed the wharf, and members of the Canglang Gang.

Their arrival shattered the peace and tranquility of the wharf in an instant.

The Dan people on the boats were like a colony of rabbits confronted by a wild beast. They all hid in their cabins, not daring to show themselves.

But someone did answer, a fawning expression on his face and ingratiation in his eyes.

"There, Li Jiu's boat is over there."

The Shore Patrolmen followed the direction the Xumin pointed, jumped down from the wharf, and crossed several houseboats. Then they saw Xiao Ya squatting at the bow, tending the fire.

Hearing them, Xiao Ya looked up, revealing an innocent, uncomprehending little face.

"You're Li Jiu's daughter?"

The Shore Patrolmen looked at Xiao Ya with lewd, undisguised stares.

Xiao Ya had seen that look before. It was exactly the same as Lord Gou's.

"Yes."

Xiao Ya rose to her feet in fear and answered, a timid look in her eyes.

"Come with us."

One of the Shore Bosses spoke with a smile.

"I... I'm not going with you."

Xiao Ya did not want to go with them. He still had to watch the fish soup and wait for Daddy to come back.

"I'm afraid you have to. Your father's waiting for you there."

The Shore Boss's tone was mocking.

"My father? My daddy asked me to come?"

Hearing this, Xiao Ya seemed to grow a little less wary.

"Of course it was your father. He's at our Loyalty and Righteousness Hall, and... Lord Gou is there too," the Shore Boss said, his gaze full of meaning.

"All right, I'll go with you."

Hearing that her daddy was there, Xiao Ya agreed without hesitation.

"Good. Come with us, then."

"Wait, I have to put out the fire in the stove first, or the fish soup will boil dry."

After Xiao Ya was taken away, one of the patrolmen who had stayed behind ducked into the reed shelter. A splash followed, and rings of ripples spread across the water beneath the boat.

From beginning to end, not a single person emerged from the surrounding cabins. Only pairs of numb, indifferent eyes watched from the shadows of the night.

Inside the Loyalty and Righteousness Hall on shore,

Xiao Ya was brought in by several Shore Patrolmen.

It was her first time entering such a large, beautiful house, and her face was full of nervousness and timidity.

At the sight of Xiao Ya, Lord Gou, seated in a grand armchair, straightened up. His eyes were like those of a hungry wolf spotting prey, full of greed and wicked desire.

"Where's my daddy?"

Xiao Ya mustered her courage and looked all around, but saw no sign of her daddy. She cautiously asked the question.

"Your father has already sold you to me. This is the deed of sale he pressed his own thumbprint on. From now on, you belong to me."

In the candlelight, the scarred face of Lord Gou looked utterly hideous and terrifying.

Those words struck Xiao Ya like a bolt of lightning, leaving her standing there in a daze.

She could not read and could not understand the writing on the deed, but she knew her daddy would never sell her.

"Impossible, impossible! Daddy wouldn't sell Xiao Ya. You must be lying to me! Where's my daddy? Where is he?"

Xiao Ya suddenly became distraught. Shaking her head fiercely, she dashed to the side, trying to find her daddy somewhere in the house.

But how could her small, frail frame match the strength of grown men? The Shore Patrolmen on either side subdued her in an instant.

"Daddy... Daddy..."

Xiao Ya cried out in anguish, tears rolling down like beads from a broken string. She struggled with all her limbs, her eyes filled with grief.

But Lord Gou, sitting upright in his armchair, did not find her cries noisy. Instead, an expression of utter enjoyment appeared on his face.

He loved seeing little girls like this.

Struggling, suffering, crying, despairing.

The more they did so, the more he enjoyed it.

It was like plucking a delicate flower bud with force before it had even bloomed, throwing it to the ground, and trampling it mercilessly.

Until the delicate flower had been crushed to pieces and ground into the filthy earth, its original form no longer recognizable.

The feeling was utterly irresistible, a pleasure he never tired of.

Xiao Ya struggled and cried with all her might, but like a little flower caught in a crack between stones, she could not break free, until her gaze fell on the floor.

A pool of dark red blood that had not yet dried.

A bad feeling suddenly welled up in her heart, and a surge of strength rose from deep within her. She sank her teeth hard into a Shore Boss's wrist.

The Shore Boss cried out in pain and released his grip on her. Seizing the chance, Xiao Ya broke free and followed the trail extending from the pool of blood, bursting through a small closed door at her left.

"Daddy..."

When she saw the corpse lying motionless in a pool of blood in the little room, Xiao Ya seemed to lose all strength. She collapsed to her knees with a heart-rending wail.

The Shore Boss whose wrist had been bitten wanted to take the others and drag Xiao Ya out, but Lord Gou stopped him. At a signal from his eyes, the Shore Patrolmen all withdrew from the room.

The main doors closed,

leaving only Lord Gou and Xiao Ya in the hall.

Watching Xiao Ya sprawled over her daddy, sobbing so hard she could barely catch her breath, Lord Gou pulled a whip for taming wild horses from behind his back.

His already ugly, vicious face,

illuminated by the candlelight,

grew even more hideously twisted.