Welfare Institute.
A square, abandoned courtyard.
At the very back stood some discarded, rusted equipment, lonely beneath the sky in the overgrown yard.
Scattered stones and broken bricks lay everywhere.
There were three rooms in all: one bedroom, one classroom for early education, and a hall for daily activities.
The entire Welfare Institute was easily visible at a glance.
"This place..." Ye Qingxian hesitated. "Is this where you used to live?"
"Mm." I nodded firmly.
I pointed ahead. "That's where I lived."
"I slept on a bed in the corner."
Now, whenever I closed my eyes, scenes from my time at the Welfare Institute came rushing back.
"You're so little, and you don't have a mom or dad?"
"Well, would you look at that? A little mute, too."
"Who said you could have such pretty hair? Hold her down, all of you, and cut it all off."
A burst of chaotic fighting.
Though I was already covered in wounds, I was like a rag doll that didn't know pain. My little face remained expressionless, and my slightly parted lips let out only ah-ah sounds, making me seem utterly out of place in this world.
"What are you doing?"
A shout rang out, and the scene was cut short.
"Are you unhappy?" Ye Qingxian had been watching my expression the whole time.
She could see right through even the smallest details.
"Huh? Mm, a little." I breathed out a cloud of stale air. "I was thinking about how people bullied me when I was little."
"It wasn't anything serious. They just pinned me to the ground and beat me up."
I said it as though it didn't matter, completely unaware of how serious it sounded.
It had happened so many years ago. What was the point of holding a grudge? At