Shu Nian’s head tilted backward following his force, and tears involuntarily welled up in her eyes from the pain.

Seeing this, Zeng Yuanxue released his hand and stood up: “Sorry, I got too excited. You’ve been sleeping for almost a day—seems like you’re adapting well to this place.”

“…”

Zeng Yuanxue asked: “Hungry, aren’t you?”

Shu Nian’s entire body stiffened as she looked up at him, giving no response.

He didn’t seem to mind and continued: “What would you like to eat?”

Noticing the cloth stuffed in her mouth, Zeng Yuanxue made an “ah” sound as if suddenly realizing something, then reached out to pull the cloth out: “I wasn’t being attentive enough. I forgot to take it out.”

The corners of his eyes crinkled as he patiently asked again: “What would you like to eat?”

Shu Nian could finally speak, but her throat was parched, seemingly still with the taste of blood. Fighting her fear, she hoarsely said: “What you’re doing is illegal.”

Zeng Yuanxue acted as if he hadn’t heard: “Would fried rice be okay?”

Her words seemed to dissolve into the air without creating the slightest stir. Shu Nian raised her voice slightly and enunciated each word: “This is kidnapping.”

“I don’t know how to make anything else.” Zeng Yuanxue continued talking to himself and smiled, “So fried rice it is.”

“I don’t want to eat!” Shu Nian finally couldn’t take it anymore, and tears fell down her face. Not daring to anger the man before her, she lowered her voice again, which trembled as she spoke, “Please let me go home… my mother is waiting for me to come home…”

Hearing this, Zeng Yuanxue nodded compliantly and stuffed the cloth back into her mouth. He was like a robot, only picking up what he wanted to hear and discarding everything else like garbage.

“Since you don’t want to eat, then don’t. Rest well.”

After speaking, he left the room and closed the door.

Her vision returned to darkness.

Shu Nian could only see faint light from beyond the heavy curtains. She couldn’t help but make whimpering sounds as she cried, constantly trying to calm herself while using that light to observe her surroundings.

It was probably a storage room.

The space wasn’t large, with several discarded pieces of furniture nearby, covered in dust. Various miscellaneous items were scattered around, placed in cardboard boxes, with things strewn about the floor, visible everywhere.

The smell was unpleasant, like the musty odor of moldy wood.

The house leaked, with a basin placed on the floor.

The basin was half full, with water dripping into it, making very clear dripping sounds that echoed in the small room.

Drip—drip—

Shu Nian’s gaze shifted slightly, not knowing why this person had brought her here. She could imagine that many terrible things she couldn’t resist might happen next.

After fear, the only emotions that overwhelmed her were sadness and despair.

Shu Nian thought she probably wouldn’t survive.

But she didn’t want to die.

This was Shu Nian’s only thought at the time.

She felt she should at least try, even though hope might be faint, perhaps within that faintness, she could find a glimmer of survival.

Zeng Yuanxue’s work schedule wasn’t long but was regular. Apart from the first day when he deliberately feigned friendliness, afterward he completely revealed his true nature.

Every day after returning from work, he seemed to be in a bad mood, his entire body radiating hostility.

He vented all his frustrations on Shu Nian.

Cursing and beating her.

There was no rape as Shu Nian had imagined, only abuse.

He seemed to harbor extreme disgust toward women.

After torturing Shu Nian, Zeng Yuanxue would wash his hands repeatedly, then wipe them over and over with a towel, as if he had touched something revolting.

But he also seemed to not want Shu Nian to die too quickly.

Zeng Yuanxue never struck her in places that could be fatal. Occasionally, when his mood was extremely bad, he would cut her body with a knife. He would often talk to her, tearing off the scabs that had formed on her wounds, listening to her painful yet restrained cries.

He would emit sounds of pleasure, asking her every day: “Little girl, do you want to die?”

But Shu Nian wondered.

Why should she die?

This world has bad people hiding in corners, these people only flourish in darkness, not daring to expose themselves to the outside world. And sooner or later, on some future day, he would face the deserved punishment for what he had done.

Good and evil will eventually be repaid, and karma goes around in circles.

This was a saying Shu Nian had always believed in.

Shu Nian also believed that the vast majority of people in this world are kind. She couldn’t let this minority of evil blind her eyes, thereby ignoring the majority of goodness.

Shu Nian loved this world.

She didn’t want to give up her life because of such a person, because of such an ugly thing, give up the people who were still waiting for her.

Even being tortured like this, Shu Nian had never yielded.

But Zeng Yuanxue seemed to just want to hear her say “I want to die” with her mouth. As long as her answer was negative, he would just shrug his shoulders and indeed wouldn’t do anything to endanger her life.

On the third day of staying there.

Shu Nian heard Zeng Yuanxue mention something.

That day his mood was better than usual, and consequently, he talked more. He seemed to believe completely that Shu Nian couldn’t leave alive, so he spoke to her without any reservations.

That day, Zeng Yuanxue told her.

She was the third guest he had invited.

The first was a young girl still in middle school who played the violin well and was pretty. He asked her if she wanted to die, but she would only shake her head in tears, crying “I want to go home.”

When she heard these words, Shu Nian’s blood seemed to freeze.

A middle school girl who played the violin.

Despite so many years having passed, Shu Nian still had a vivid impression.

The first name that came to her mind was still “Chen Xiang.”

Zeng Yuanxue’s expression showed some regret: “She said she didn’t want to die, just kept crying, making a fuss. I thought since she liked playing the violin, I’d take a knife and cut off one of her fingers.”

Hearing this, Shu Nian’s eyes immediately reddened, her lips trembling.

“I hadn’t even cut off a second one,” Zeng Yuanxue said as if finding it amusing, “when she was crying and begging me to kill her.”

In the past few days, while being tortured by him, Shu Nian had never felt as angry as she did at this moment. She gritted her teeth, her eyes so red they seemed about to drip blood, completely unable to understand his behavior.

“Why would you do this? She was just a child.”

A child who couldn’t live independently without her parents.

One who should have been protected by society, who should have lived along her life path, who should have become the person she wanted to be in the future.

“What did I do?” Zeng Yuanxue tilted his head, not understanding where her anger and hatred came from. “I didn’t say I would kill her, she asked me to kill her herself.”

This person had nothing left for the world but malice.

An extremely distorted worldview.

Shu Nian suppressed the physiological reaction of nausea, turned her head away, and stopped conversing with him.

“Really no fun.” Zeng Yuanxue sighed, also appearing to feel sad, “I didn’t want to kill her so quickly, but she didn’t want to live anymore, so I had no choice.”

Shu Nian closed her eyes, pretending not to hear.

Zeng Yuanxue continued talking to himself for a few more sentences, then suddenly grabbed her hair and sneered: “I’m talking to you, can’t you hear?”

Shu Nian still kept her eyes closed, not making a sound.

Zeng Yuanxue suddenly became interested: “You must have heard the news.”

“…”

He said the second was a woman who had eloped with her husband to this place. The husband had violent tendencies and was in the process of divorcing him. She had a son in high school.

Zeng Yuanxue got tired of squatting and stood up to rotate his neck: “That woman looked so frail, and her cries were soft too. I thought she wouldn’t last half a day, but no matter how I beat her, she wouldn’t want to die.”

Shu Nian’s hands and feet turned cold. She finally couldn’t help but open her eyes to look at him, as Ji Xiangning’s smiling face and Xie Ruhe’s desperate appearance floated in her mind. She lost her temper and shouted: “Stop talking!”

“She said she had a son who was waiting for her to come home,” Zeng Yuanxue clicked his tongue, “said that without her, no one else would take care of her son.”

Shu Nian’s tears fell, and she repeated sharply: “Stop talking!”

Zeng Yuanxue raised his eyebrows: “Why are you crying? Ah… I remember, her son is your friend, right?”

“…”

“Later I told her that her son had been looking for her day and night, then died in a car accident.” At this point, Zeng Yuanxue laughed, “She believed it and cried, asking me to kill her.”

“…”

“So you know what, little girl.” Zeng Yuanxue said, “They all requested it from me, hoping I would kill them. They were seeking my help. Most people in this world are unwilling to live, thinking the world is too filthy. What did I do? I just gave them a hand.”

His nonsensical words angered Shu Nian.

“Then why don’t you die?” For the first time, Shu Nian hated someone so much. She clenched her fists and cursed viciously, “Why don’t you go die.”

Hearing this, Zeng Yuanxue gently stroked her head, as if dealing with a disobedient child.

“Because I still need to help you.”

Later, no matter how Zeng Yuanxue tortured her, Shu Nian remained silent.

Only when the pain became unbearable would she involuntarily cry out? During this nearly week-long period, she visibly lost weight, and the light in her eyes disappeared.

But no matter when Zeng Yuanxue asked her if she wanted to die,

Her answer was always negative.

She wanted to live, to keep this life to see the world, to meet the people she wanted to see, and to keep this life to wait for the devil before her to receive legal punishment.

So that Chen Xiang and Ji Xiangning in heaven could also rest in peace.

So that their families could find closure.

She had to live.

Otherwise, there would surely be another victim.

Shu Nian believed that until the moment she died, this would be her thinking.

But this thinking changed on the day she was rescued.

That day, Zeng Yuanxue came in to bring Shu Nian food, his mood seemingly at its worst. He took out the small knife he always carried, his face gloomy, just as he was about to vent all his anger on her.

A knock sounded at the door outside.

Zeng Yuanxue’s movements stopped, and he got up to walk outside, not forgetting to lock the door.

But he left the knife directly on the nearby chair.

Shu Nian’s gaze froze for a few seconds as if seeing a glimmer of hope. Her hands and feet were bound, so she could only inch over, or she would make too much noise.

And attract Zeng Yuanxue’s attention.

Her entire body was weak and in pain, but she gritted her teeth and moved herself over.

When she reached the chair, Shu Nian adjusted her position, barely standing up, and gripped the knife with her hands tied behind her back. She had no experience and couldn’t see behind her.

Also fearing that Zeng Yuanxue might return at any moment, she haphazardly cut at the rope with the knife.

Due to anxiety and weakness, Shu Nian couldn’t help but make whimpering sounds, ignoring the pain of the knife cutting her hands, and dividing her attention half on her hands and half on the door outside.

After several minutes, she finally cut through the rope.

Shu Nian dared not dawdle and cut the rope binding her feet as well. She could see her hands were a bloody mess, her breathing becoming rapid as she pulled the cloth gag from her mouth.

It was quiet outside the door.

Shu Nian held the knife, nervously listening for movements outside, fearing that this hope would shatter. She didn’t know where Zeng Yuanxue had gone, nor could she hear any sound from outside. The door was locked from the outside, so she couldn’t open it.

Shu Nian walked to the window and pulled the curtain open.

The window was also locked.

She turned her head numbly and saw the chair nearby.

Shu Nian used all her strength to lift it and forcefully smashed it against the window.

It was her only chance.

If she failed, there certainly wouldn’t be a next time.

The window shattered with a crackling sound, glass flying everywhere, some pieces grazing her cheeks. Shu Nian heard movement outside. Ignoring the remaining shards of glass on the windowsill, she climbed onto the sill and out.

At the same time, she heard the sound of the door being opened.

Zeng Yuanxue cursed.

Shu Nian didn’t look back, staggering as she jumped down from the window and ran.

In the distance, two men were passing by.

Shu Nian ran toward them, sobbing with the relief of survival.

She saw sunlight, crawling out from the darkness.

She was shouting for help.

Behind her were Zeng Yuanxue’s footsteps, like the steps of death itself.

Shu Nian was wretched, her clothes covered in blood, not a patch of skin unharmed, impossible to recognize her original appearance. She had no strength to run, and couldn’t outrun Zeng Yuanxue behind her.

She could only call for help with all her might.

The two men heard the commotion and hesitantly walked over.

Shu Nian was caught by Zeng Yuanxue again.

She heard him at her ear, saying through gritted teeth: “Did I let you out?”

Shu Nian screamed and struggled, completely deaf to his words, shouting like a madwoman at the two men in the distance, her words choked with sobs: “Save me! Save me… please… he’s a murderer…”

Zeng Yuanxue held her body still and explained with a smile: “Sorry, this is my daughter. She had an accident before, which affected her mentally… sorry to frighten you.”

The two men’s expressions showed hesitation, wanting to approach but also concerned that it might indeed be someone else’s family matter.

The standoff lasted for several dozen seconds.

The two men still did not come forward.

Seeing their expressions beginning to retreat, Shu Nian opened her mouth. Her eyes widened, as if unable to believe, saying: “He’s not my father… he’s a murderer, you can’t believe him…”

Zeng Yuanxue sighed: “Come home with dad.”

He dragged Shu Nian toward the house, pulling her back to that hell.

Shu Nian resisted with all her might, but the difference in strength between men and women was too great, and she could not break free at all. She looked at the two men, as if the world had collapsed, sobbing: “Why won’t you save me!”

“…”

“He’s not my father, my father is already dead.” It was her desperate cry, sharp and hoarse, “You can check, it’s online, my father was a firefighter, his name was Shu Gaolin… he died saving people…”

One of the men stepped forward but was pulled back by the other.

At this moment, all her resolve and determination vanished, and Shu Nian wailed: “My father is already dead… he wasn’t like this at all…”

Shu Nian watched as the two men stood in place.

They seemed to be saying something and then turned to leave. Ignoring all her pleas for help, they left as if deaf and mute. They acquiesced to all of Zeng Yuanxue’s actions, choosing to stand by and do nothing.

Perhaps because of their actions, a person would lose their life.

But they believed.

It had nothing to do with them.

Shu Nian was taken back to the house and led to another room.

“Killing you now, I probably won’t be able to escape this time.” But perhaps seeing what Shu Nian had endured, Zeng Yuanxue’s mood didn’t seem bad, “Little girl, you’re quite impressive, actually able to run away.”

Shu Nian no longer cried, sitting numbly in place.

Zeng Yuanxue was still saying something, but Shu Nian had no heart to listen.

She was thinking.

Her father was already dead, and her mother had remarried, having a new family.

It seemed like no one needed her anymore.

Shu Nian began to doubt, was Deng Qingyu looking for her.

Why, after so long, was she still in this place?

She was still being tortured, persisting in living just to fight for an unnecessary breath.

No one needed her anymore, right?

Shu Nian even began to blame Shu Gaolin for abandoning her to save others.

If Shu Gaolin were still alive, he would come to save her.

He would come.

But Shu Gaolin was already dead.

Her father was dead.

Shu Nian raised her eyes, looking hollowly at Zeng Yuanxue, saying softly: “Are you still going to kill me?”

Zeng Yuanxue said: “Do you want to die now?”

Shu Nian’s gaze paused for a moment, and she nodded: “Yes.”

She heard Zeng Yuanxue laughing.

At this moment, Shu Nian suddenly thought of Xie Ruhe.

Thought of the day he left Shiyan Town when he came just to talk to her.

His face was pale and sickly, gripping her arm, his emotions exceptionally agitated as he repeatedly emphasized: “From now on, you can’t go home alone after school, you can’t walk on night roads alone, before doing anything, you must ensure your safety.”

Shu Nian was stunned, not speaking.

“When you see strangers, don’t approach easily.” Xie Ruhe said hoarsely, “Don’t get involved in other people’s business, you must ensure your safety, your safety is the most important thing.”

Xie Ruhe stared at her, his words seeming to carry tears, his voice rising: “You must promise me!”

At that time.

Shu Nian held his hand, carefully yet solemnly saying: “I promise you.”

Promise you, I won’t get into trouble.

But I’m sorry, I didn’t listen to you.

Zeng Yuanxue’s voice sounded in her ears.

He asked her: “Is there anything you want to say before you die?”

Shu Nian’s eyelids moved slightly, looking as if there was no life left in her.

After a long while, she finally choked out a sentence: “I hope the world stays peaceful and safe.”

Eyes closed, joyful sounds; eyes open, smiling faces.