Chapter 74

Chapter 74

A child bride? Seriously?

The term wasn’t new to them, but like Lin Tingyue, they hadn’t expected such a thing to still exist in this day and age.

Fu Qiao was even more shocked, though Shi Feizhou looked utterly bewildered—was he really clueless?

Even if he didn’t know, he was still an accomplice!

"The girl hiding behind Shi Feizhou was bought by his parents over twenty years ago from a fellow villager. From the moment she arrived at the Shi household, she was put to work. If she disobeyed, she’d be beaten to a pulp and denied food."

"Despite all her suffering, she still had to take care of Shi Feizhou, her so-called husband… Jesus, she’s just a kid herself."

Everyone turned their gaze to the girl behind Shi Feizhou. Her hair was disheveled, obscuring her face. Under the scrutiny of so many eyes, she seemed terrified, shrinking further behind Shi Feizhou, her fingers digging into his sleeve.

Those couldn’t be a young girl’s hands—they were too rough, with prominent knuckles and numerous scars.

Considering Lin Tingyue’s earlier words, who knew how many old wounds still marked her body?

Shouldn’t someone call the cops? Fu Qiao thought.

Just as Fu Qiao was calling 911, Shi Feizhou also ducked away to make a call.

The girl hiding behind him stuck to him like glue.

"What? You sent Sister Lian to find me… Mom, Dad, are you trying to mess things up? I was just about to go on a date with the girl I like, and then Sister Lian shows up… Marriage? How can I marry her? Wasn’t she just a child fostered with us by relatives?"

Upon hearing that Shi Feizhou was on a date with a girl he liked, his parents immediately thought a college student would surely be a better match than Sister Lian, an uneducated child bride.

They quickly told Shi Feizhou they’d gotten it all wrong. After hanging up, they called Sister Lian.

Sister Lian had come to the city alone to find Shi Feizhou. Worried she might get lost or be unable to contact anyone, his parents had bought her a phone—though it was just a cheap flip phone.

When the phone rang, her bottled-up shame finally boiled over.

Though she didn’t fully understand what was happening, everything she’d seen since arriving here had turned her world upside down.

This wasn’t how life was supposed to be—what she’d known in the village wasn’t all there was.

But if she didn’t marry Shi Feizhou, she’d get the beating of her life.

Hands shaking, Sister Lian picked up.

The same voice that had spoken gently to Shi Feizhou now started screaming curses at her.

"Useless girl, why did you take so long to answer?"

"She must be itching for a beating. A good whipping when she’s home will teach her."

"Enough. Sister Lian, come home first. We’ll talk about marriage later."

At Pan Zhu’s words, Sister Lian faltered. "We’re not getting married anymore?"

Pan Zhu barked impatiently, "No, not anymore. Feizhou is still in school—it’s not the right time. Just come back."

After hanging up, Sister Lian stood there, stunned. No marriage? Was it her fault?

Shi Feizhou leaned in and said, "Sister Lian, let me take you to the station."

Sister Lian asked in confusion, "Feizhou, your mother-in-law won’t let me marry you anymore. Did I do something wrong?"

Already irritated, Shi Feizhou scowled and replied, "Sister Lian, stop playing along with their games. We’re family—it’d be wrong to marry."

But ever since she was little, Pan Zhu and Shi Qing had told her she would grow up to marry Shi Feizhou. Once, when she went out to gather firewood, a man kindly helped her. When she returned home, she was beaten for being shameless—accused of trying to seduce someone else despite being promised to the Shis.

They beat her mercilessly and forced her to kneel in the ancestral hall for a full day and night without food or water.

If she didn’t marry Shi Feizhou, would the punishment be even worse?

Sister Lian was terrified.

Suddenly, someone took her hand and pulled her into an embrace.

Fu Qiao slipped an arm around Sister Lian’s shoulders and glared at Shi Feizhou. "Go home? I’ve already called the police. How is this legal—do you even realize that?"

Shi Feizhou looked baffled. "How is this illegal?"

But then it dawned on him—Fu Qiao must still be angry. She liked him so much; maybe she was even jealous.

Thinking this, Shi Feizhou switched to a sugary tone to coax Fu Qiao. "Once I drop Sister Lian off at the station, I’ll come back for our date. Fu Qiao, don’t throw a tantrum."

"Huh?"

Even now, Shi Feizhou was still thinking about their date.

The audacity.

Fu Qiao wished she could go back in time and slap the sense back into her past self for ever falling for him.

"Yikes… hard to say. Maybe you should make a date with a jail cell instead?"

Fu Qiao snorted. Sister Lian looked at her in confusion, and Fu Qiao patted her shoulder reassuringly. "Easy now, the police will be here soon."

The cops arrived quickly. After getting the story, they decided to bring Sister Lian and Shi Feizhou to the station. Fu Qiao came along too.

Song Hezhu glanced around at the group whose eyes lit up with curiosity and said, "Should we go check it out too?"

"Sure."

"What about the barbecue?"

"We can have barbecue anytime."

"Yeah, boss, it’ll keep."

Song Hezhu chuckled and waved her hand. Everyone piled into two cars and followed the squad car to the station.

It was Sister Lian’s first time in a big city—and her first time in a police station. She was shaking like a leaf. A female officer patiently comforted her for a long time and brought her hot water before she finally calmed down enough to spill everything she’d endured over the years.

As soon as the officer stepped outside, she snapped, "What the actual hell? Child bride? Pretty words for slave labor! Beaten until there wasn’t a patch of skin untouched on her body—how could they do that to a child?"

The male officer who had assisted in the questioning looked equally grim. "First, bring Pan Zhu and Shi Qing in. And let’s look into her birth parents."

"Right."

The female officer returned to the room and noticed Sister Lian was hungry. Figuring she could use a meal, she took her to the cafeteria, located to the right of the station. As soon as they stepped outside, Fu Qiao was on them in seconds. "Officer, what’s the word?"

Officer Meng Xuan recognized her as the person who had called the police and said, "The investigation is ongoing. Sister Lian’s hungry—I’ll take her to get some food."

At this point, Meng Xuan softly asked Sister Lian, "Do you have any other names?"

Sister Lian shook her head.

"The parents who sold her never gave her a name, and neither did Pan Zhu and Shi Qing, who bought her. One day, they suddenly realized they needed a way to call the girl they ordered around—otherwise, it’d be like shouting at a dog with no name. Their eyes fell on the lotus flowers in the pond in front of their house, and so she became Sister Lian."

"Sniff... The lotus blooms pure from the mud. Sister Lian will have a better life too!"

Meng Xuan gave Sister Lian’s hair a comforting stroke. "Don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of this."

Sister Lian asked, "Can I still go back?"

"God, no! That village still trades baby girls to this day. Some even buy girls from other villages as child brides. Some even steal babies from hospitals!"

Meng Xuan’s gaze hardened. She made a phone call before accompanying Sister Lian to the cafeteria for a meal.

…

A week later, Sister Lian’s case was resolved.

Lin Tingyue saw it on TV—a report on police raiding a village’s human trafficking ring, with all the victims rescued.

However, since these women had grown up in the village without education, they were illiterate and severely disconnected from society. Some didn’t even have a stable identity. The police planned to send them to a shelter school.

The school would provide education, food, and shelter until they could support themselves.

At the end of the report was the school’s contact information—for donors who wanted to help directly.

Thrifty Lin Tingyue gave up a third of her nest egg.

Bai Yaxin teased, "Since when is Tingyue so generous?"

Lin Tingyue replied earnestly, "When it counts, you step up."

Lin Tingyue truly loved money. When she was still a cubicle drone, all she dreamed of was hitting the jackpot—so she could fire her boss and travel the world.

Beyond money, though, she also hoped to make the world a little better.

"Everyone’s pitching in to fix things. The world will surely get better and better!"

Bai Yaxin gently touched Lin Tingyue’s cheek. Aside from Lin Tingyue, they had all donated generously.

…

The day Sister Lian arrived at the shelter school, the sky was cloudless, and the autumn sun, no longer harsh, bathed her in warmth.

As the school gates slowly opened, Sister Lian suddenly noticed a painted lotus pond on the outer wall.

The woman greeting her noticed her gaze and explained, "The students painted these. Now that it’s autumn, we plan to replace them with ginkgo leaves. Feel free to help us paint."

Sister Lian shrank back. "What if I can’t paint?"

"You won’t know till you try!" The staff member took her hand—her touch as warm as the sunlight—and continued, "This place is a fresh start. Welcome to the beginning of your brand-new life."

Everything was different now.

The curses ringing in Sister Lotus' ears were cut short by the supervisor's remark.

Sunlight danced on the lotus blossoms, their petals glittering like scattered diamonds, May Sister Lotus find her new beginning.

...

On the weekend, Lin Tingyue was going to attend her high school reunion.

Fan Qing had been in the same class as Lin Tingyue in high school. Originally, Fan Qing hadn't planned to go, but upon hearing that Lin Tingyue would be there, she decided to join.

The scandal about Lin Tingyue being an impostor heiress had spread everywhere. She didn't need to think hard to know someone had ill intentions.

She needed to watch out for Lin Tingyue.

When Lin Tingyue and Fan Qing pushed open the door to the private room, the lively chatter inside came to an abrupt halt as everyone turned to look at them.

Their high school nemesis was the first to launch an attack at Lin Tingyue: "Lin Tingyue, I thought you weren’t coming? Bet that stings, doesn't it—being a fake heiress among real ones?"

Fan Qing rolled her eyes. "After all this time, you still haven't learned to shut your mouth."

Cao Nami’s smile stiffened. As Fan Qing and Lin Tingyue took their seats, she added, "Oh, how could I ever compare to you, Fan Qing? Now that you’ve returned to the Feng family, are you planning to go back?"

"I’m happy staying with my mom. What’s it to you?"

"You—!"

"Oh please, Qing Qing could never measure up! Here there are only a dozen people, yet they've managed to ship dozens of ships!"

Wait, HOW many??