Chapter 24

"Mom, I want this! I want some!"

Such excitement and novel treats were rare, so the adults did not begrudge the fifty cents. Even just to try something new, they all bought a bowl.

"Give me a bowl too. Fill it up a little more!"

"I'll have a bowl too!"

The ten children from the orphanage clustered around the stall to help out as well. The other four children, who had difficulty moving around, were brought to the square by the old director. The film crew was busy setting up the screen, so the old director left the four children with Grandma Sun, a neighbor sitting in front and chatting.

Grandma Sun wore an apron, with an unfinished shoe sole resting on her knees. Smiling kindly, she said in a gentle voice, "Don't worry. Leave these four children to me and go do what you need to do. I'll take care of them."

The four children, unable to see, speak, or move about easily, huddled together and trembled as they used their hearing to picture the liveliness around them.

Ever since they had been abducted by human traffickers, they had lived every day in terror, beaten and starved. They had long forgotten how normal children were supposed to live and play. Even the vain hope they had initially clung to—that their parents would find them, that kind-hearted people would save them—had gradually faded beneath the long, brutal torment of reality.

Until that day, when the traffickers took them out to beg on the streets as usual, and a group of police officers suddenly surrounded them and arrested the traffickers. They had been saved.

The police sent the four of them and two other victims to a guesthouse. There, they bathed in hot water for the first time, changed into clean clothes, and ate their fill. They were no longer punched, kicked, and cursed by the traffickers for bringing back too little money, nor did anyone dislike them for being filthy and reeking.

The officers at the police station were especially patient when questioning them. Though all they could do was nod or shake their heads, they could not say anything else. The aunties at the guesthouse were especially gentle, helping them brush their teeth and wash their faces every morning.

The two older boys rescued with them often said things they could not understand at all, but they never laughed at them. They had even bought them a tape recorder and toys.

The director sent them to a school for children with disabilities, letting them learn that even if they could not see or speak, they could still learn to read.

The four children had gone missing when they were very young. In their memories, they had barely attended school, nor could they remember what it felt like to be cherished in their parents' arms. But they treasured their current lives dearly.

They had learned that human touch did not bring only pain. They had learned that the noise of a crowd could fill one's heart. No longer were they part of the background, ignored and passed by amid the endless flow of people and traffic. They could take part in it too, truly feel this liveliness.

The four children pressed close together, pricking up their ears and listening hard to the sounds around them. Then, without knowing when it happened, their hands suddenly grew heavy as someone placed something round into them.

"Eat up! When my relatives came to visit me from the countryside, they specially brought me these plums. They're really sweet." A warm voice full of kindness and laughter said, "Don't worry, go ahead and eat. I'll keep watch for you. If there are any worms, I'll tell you."

The four children froze at once.

Author's Note:

I discussed it with my editor, and this story will go VIP this Sunday, the day after tomorrow. A big chapter will be released on the day it goes VIP. I hope everyone will continue to support it!

Chapter 24

By the time Tao Yan and Huo Baichuan arrived at People's Square, the movie had just begun.

On a midsummer night, the streetlamps in the square gave off a dim yellow glow. The light was not very bright, leaving the people seated before the big screen in vague shadows.

The snack stalls, with barely any customers left, stood lazily by the roadside. Children ran around the square in little groups of three or five.

Neighbors gathered together on small stools, mending shoe soles, winding yarn, and sewing on buttons as they chatted in low voices, their eyes occasionally turning toward the big screen.

An ancient black-and-white film was playing on the screen. In the dusty gray footage, smoke and flames filled the air as soldiers hid in the trenches and covered the villagers' retreat. The old actors' crisp, proper lines came through the cheap speakers, accompanied now and then by a piercing crackle. The sound quality was clearly poor. Huo Baichuan glanced at it a few times, then showed off to Tao Yan. "It's Tunnel Warfare. I watched it when I was little."

Tao Yan shot Huo Baichuan a glance but did not hurry to watch the movie. Instead, he first walked over to the Tiger-Tooth Potatoes and liangfen stalls set up by the volunteer aunties.

Both huge buckets of liangfen had sold out completely. Only the dregs at the bottom of the last bucket remained, and Aunt Tao did not want to sell them anymore, so she simply scooped them out for the orphanage children to eat.

More than ten children sat on the ground holding bowls of liangfen, spoons in hand as they shared it. The monthly outdoor movie was the day they looked forward to most. Although the film crew showed the same old movies they had played countless times before, the children, who rarely had access to visual media, still watched with rapt attention.

"You two are finally back! Here, these were saved for you." Aunt Tao took two bowls covered with mesh food covers from beneath the stall. They were filled to the brim with liangfen, topped with a thick layer of diced fruit, crushed peanuts, and raisins. Golden honey gleamed warmly under the lights, making the bowls look even more crystal-clear and appetizing.

Aunt Zhao had also fried up a big bowl of Tiger-Tooth Potatoes and sprinkled on chili powder and cumin. "You didn't eat dinner, did you? Did you make the deal?"

The two of them had already eaten several bowls of Osmanthus-Stuffed Lotus Root at a roadside stall with two female classmates while assembling the computer. They accepted the liangfen and Tiger-Tooth Potatoes, smiling as they thanked them. "We made the deal. We ate dinner too. Thank you for saving food for us."

"There's a saying: teenage boys can eat their fathers poor. Kids your age get hungry easily. Even if you've eaten, you'll be crying hungry again in less than two hours. Finish these two bowls." As Aunt Tao spoke, she smiled happily. "You two have no idea how popular this liangfen and Tiger-Tooth Potatoes were. We prepared two huge buckets of liangfen, and nearly all of it sold out. Everyone thought it was delicious."