The cruelty that humans inflict upon their own kind is sometimes so wicked it defies imagination.

His master beat them, starved them, broke their limbs and dragged them outside to beg, then confiscated every coin they earned. He invented rule after rule of so-called “guild code” to keep them too afraid to resist — too afraid to even run.

Du Lai had thought that was hell, and that the master was the demon who ruled it.

But after that demon died, a gang came to claim the territory — and they were worse than any devil. Unimpressed by the meager profits of petty theft, they intended to sell the children overseas as slaves.

Real, genuine slaves.

Catering to clients with all manner of perversions. The younger the slave, the higher the price — and if the slave had a pleasing appearance combined with some degree of physical disability, the price would be even higher.

Once sold, there was no hope of a good life. They were typically tormented for a few years before dying. Most buyers craved novelty or kept several slaves at once — if one fell ill or died, nobody cared.

By comparison, Du Lai had come to feel that his master had actually been, in some twisted sense, “kind.”

Fortunately, when the master’s downfall came, Du Lai was already in his teens, old enough to fight back. So he led a group of children and fled.

Those first few days after escaping were brutal. Nowhere to sleep, nothing to eat. The senior apprentices weren’t willing to look after the younger ones and scattered in every direction to fend for themselves. Du Lai had no one to rely on — even his pickpocketing became hesitant and clumsy, and he often went hungry.

The more he revisited these memories, the more he felt the unpredictability of human life.

When he was being chased through the streets by stray dogs over a scrap of food, what was Fu Miaoxue doing? She was dressed beautifully, living in a villa with a garden, keeping an expensive purebred dog, attended by housekeepers and servants.

The difference between one person’s life and another’s was truly enormous.

In truth, he had never longed for great wealth. All he wanted was a quiet, comfortable life. But just as things had settled into a few peaceful years, he ended up stranded on this island…

“You said before you’d give me a hundred million, but as long as we’re stuck on this island, you can’t make good on that promise.” Du Lai smiled with a touch of wistfulness. “If I actually had a hundred million… I genuinely wouldn’t know how to spend it.”

He thought it over and laid out his plans for the future:

“I’d probably buy two homes — one up north, one down south. Winters in the south, summers in the north, and in spring and autumn I’d travel the surrounding areas. Living like a migratory bird.”

Fu Miaoxue said nothing.

Du Lai asked her, “If we were rescued, what would you want to do?”

He waited for a moment but got no reply. He assumed she was thinking, but then he heard the steady, even sound of her breathing — and realized she had already fallen asleep.

Du Lai smiled. “She pulls me into conversation, then falls asleep before I do.”

He closed his eyes as well.

……

The sleep that followed was not restful. Strange, jumbled dreams kept coming.

After all, they were out in the open — no proper shelter. Even with a bed of leaves beneath them, sleeping on stone was hard enough to grind against bone. And because he always worried about the fire dying out, Du Lai woke several times through the night.

It seemed charcoal-making would need to be moved up on the agenda.

Du Lai stared at the roof structure that had begun to take shape and thought: Once the shelter is finished, I’ll find a way to burn some charcoal.

Outside, he could hear Fu Miaoxue humming a little tune.

Her spirits were always remarkably good — as though she’d come here on vacation.

Du Lai stepped outside to look and found that she had changed back into her original clothes and was carrying an armful of broad leaves and thin vines. It looked like she was planning to weave herself a new garment.

Leaves weren’t sturdy — they fell apart within a day or two.

“Look~” She piled everything on the ground and tilted her head back to look up at Du Lai. “I picked leaves and collected a whole bunch of stones! Teach me, and tonight we can go hunt birds together! Deal?”

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