Wen Tingli hazily heard Xiao Taozi’s crisp voice, her heart trembling as she hurriedly opened her eyes.

People immediately crowded around.

“You’re awake?”

Wen Tingli looked around, and this rose-colored room was clearly her own bedroom; she couldn’t help but let out a breath of relief.

She suddenly caught sight of Xiao Taozi sitting at the edge of the pillow, and without thinking she reached out to hug her sister, but was stopped by Zhou Sao.

“Don’t move around, you scared everyone half to death yesterday, crying and laughing, and then you clung to Xiao Taozi and wouldn’t let go, and just after finally getting home, you fell into a deep sleep before saying a few words. Mr. Lu was worried sick, he watched over you the entire night. Fortunately the doctor said there’s nothing seriously wrong with you, just that your emotions were too agitated and you were drained of strength. He also said you got a bit chilled yesterday, and instructed that you must rest quietly these days.”

As Zhou Sao spoke, the intense sound of gunfire seemed to echo faintly in Wen Tingli’s ears, shot after shot, accompanied by screams and shouts—she remembered everything. Her gaze slowly grew calm, and she looked down at herself; that unusually thin qipao had already been changed, and now she was wearing a clean set of pajamas. She was no longer cold; her whole body was warm.

Where was Lu Shicheng? She anxiously looked around.

Just then, someone knocked at the door outside. Zhou Sao hurried to answer it, and the next moment Lu Shicheng led someone in. The instant their eyes met, Wen Tingli was secretly startled—in one night, Lu Shicheng had grown noticeably haggard, his eyes appearing especially dark.

She had no time to even look at who was behind him; she couldn’t wait to reach her hand out to him. Lu Shicheng took her hand and, following the motion, sat down in the chair by the bed, but the two of their gazes were suddenly blocked by Xiao Taozi’s head. Xiao Taozi leaned close to her sister’s face, looking her over worriedly. “Sister, are you still filming?”

Wen Tingli looked at Lu Shicheng in slight surprise, and saw him nod almost imperceptibly, then look at Zhou Sao, who was frantically making faces at her.

Looking more closely, she realized the person behind Lu Shicheng was Huang Yuanshan.

Huang Yuanshan was also communicating with her through a knowing look. Right after, Huang Yuanshan bent down and said to Xiao Taozi: “Of course we’re filming. Did you forget Sister Huang is a big director? That bandit scene yesterday, Xiao Taozi acted wonderfully, everyone praised you endlessly. Here, this is the prize the crew gave you—yesterday your sister’s heroine character used this prop to hit the bandits. Keep it as a memento. Next time we’ll find you to guest-star in another role, alright?”

While speaking, she took out a toy gun from her bag and solemnly presented it to Xiao Taozi.

Xiao Taozi’s gaze turned back and forth between the adults’ faces. Huang Yuanshan had always been her favorite big sister, and hearing this, her doubts finally vanished. She nodded excitedly and reached out her small hand to take the toy gun, playing with it very preciously. Zhou Sao seized the moment to carry her down from the bed. “Your sister still has to film the next scene, let’s go wait outside.”

Wen Tingli’s throat tightened. She could see they truly loved and cared for this child—after the incident, who knew how much effort it had taken to make Xiao Taozi believe this terrifying event was just filming a movie.

Her gaze swept gently over Lu Shicheng’s face, and at the same time she said earnestly to Huang Yuanshan: “Thank you, Sister Huang.”

Huang Yuanshan’s eyes reddened slightly: “Do we still need such formalities between us? That damned Bailong Gang—thank goodness it’s all over!”

“My filming schedule—”

“At a time like this, and you’re still thinking about filming?! You focus on resting quietly first, I’ll handle everything.”

Wen Tingli silently held Huang Yuanshan’s hand. Seeing that she seemed to be in good spirits, Huang Yuanshan gradually relaxed, sitting with her for over an hour before finally taking her leave.

Lu Shicheng sat down on the sofa by the bed, reverently bringing Wen Tingli’s hand to his lips.

“Did you prepare that toy gun?” She smiled at him.

Lu Shicheng forced a slight smile; he didn’t dare speak, afraid she would hear the choked emotion in his voice.

Wen Tingli thought differently—even while unconscious, her subconscious had been worrying that Xiao Taozi would be frightened. She hadn’t expected Lu Shicheng to have arranged things even more thoughtfully than she had imagined; now she was completely at ease.

She couldn’t help reaching out her fingers to gently stroke his face, tracing his furrowed brow and tightly pressed lips. She could tell he was still trapped deep in fear and self-reproach.

She tried to put on a relaxed expression: “You came so fast yesterday—the moment I mentioned the gift you gave me, you guessed that I’d hidden that miniature gun you gave me away. This is what’s called a meeting of minds, isn’t it? Hey, why do you keep not talking—what are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking about why I didn’t protect you properly from the very start.”

Wen Tingli’s gaze turned pained: “How can this be your fault?! There’s never been a thief who could steal for a thousand years without eventually being caught, but there’s also never been a guard who could guard against thieves for a thousand years. Besides, Qiu Dapeng was gambling with his life this time—no one could have guarded against that kind of despicable trick. If you keep blaming yourself, I’ll cry in front of you.”

Lu Shicheng forced a slight smile, but it was only fleeting. He turned serious and said to her: “I need to discuss something with you. Qiu Lingyun isn’t dead—”

Wen Tingli’s gaze sharpened: “Where is he.”

“I want to spare his life.” Lu Shicheng leaned close to her ear and said a few words. The dark aura on Wen Tingli’s face slowly dissipated, and she sighed with relief: “I was worried he’d die too easily. Good, let’s do it that way!”

Both their moods improved slightly. “Are you hungry?” He stroked her forehead.

“Hungry. But you’ll never guess what I most want to eat right now.”

“Knife-fish noodles.”

“How did you know I wanted that?”

“Just a random guess that happened to hit.”

Wen Tingli couldn’t stop laughing: “Alright, alright, I also want to eat pickled river snails.”

“I’ll go buy them.”

“I also want the rice-flour dumplings and Taishi frog dish from Qihonglu.”

“I’ll go get them.”

“Don’t forget the chestnut cream cake from Feida Western Bakery!”

“I’ll buy it all for you.”

After eating, Wen Tingli grew a bit drowsy. Lu Shicheng helped pull the blanket up to her chest and quietly stood guard beside her.

Once she was fast asleep, he didn’t leave right away. Instead, he carefully brushed aside the two loose strands of hair by her cheek, staring unblinkingly at her sleeping face. He sat there for about half an hour before getting up very, very quietly.

Walking out the front door, Kuang Zhilin immediately brought people forward to meet him: “Everything’s been arranged.”

His people were stationed both inside and outside the house.

Lu Shicheng’s expression turned slightly cold; somewhat uneasy, he looked back at the tightly shut bedroom door. Zhou Wei and the others said shamefully: “Young Master Cheng, rest assured, there absolutely won’t be any more mistakes this time!”

Jinshenfu Road, inside a certain gray stucco garden house.

Lu Kejian was watching from the second-floor window, ceaselessly urging: “What’s taking so long! It’s been this long already, isn’t the car ready yet?”

Two men ran upstairs in response, lifting Third Master Lu’s wheelchair from either side and trotting downstairs with it: “Third Master, Boss Cao still wants to see you once more—are you really going to leave without saying goodbye like this?”

Lu Kejian gripped the armrests of the wheelchair tightly with both hands, his face livid: “What’s there to see him for? This whole affair was Qiu Dapeng acting on his own initiative, it has nothing to do with me from start to finish. Besides, the Bailong Gang has been fighting and killing for years—this time a few brothers died, what’s there to make a fuss about! If anyone’s to blame, it’s Boss Cao for not managing his gang strictly, letting that Qiu father and son cause trouble right under his nose. Now that the man is dead, consider it a lesson learned.”

“But—according to people from the Bailong Gang, though Qiu Dapeng is thoroughly dead, his son’s body still hasn’t been found. It’s not that we’re afraid of anything else, but what if this fellow survives and takes revenge on you, Third Master? Don’t forget, that day they wanted to get in the car and flee with us, but we kicked them off.”

“If anyone should be his revenge target, it should be Lu Shicheng, what does it have to do with me?” Though he said this, Lu Kejian’s eyes flickered uneasily. “Send a few people to secretly inquire about Qiu Lingyun’s whereabouts—once his hiding place is found, eliminate the root immediately. Alright, let’s hurry, we must leave the city within half an hour! Don’t take the railway, don’t take a steamship—”

While he was speaking, the two arched doors of the parlor suddenly swung open, and someone burst in. Lu Kejian was about to draw his gun to intimidate them, but was kicked in the wheelchair wheel, sending him sprawling to the ground.

The guards inside the house rushed forward from all directions, but in an instant they were surrounded by more than a dozen intruders.

Third Master Lu crawled forward a few steps in disarray, loading his gun with the fastest speed, and turned to aim at Lu Shicheng—only to find that Lu Shicheng had already walked behind him and, unhurriedly, stepped on his hand.

“Ah—” Third Master Lu’s face twisted in pain, “Lu Shicheng! Have you gone mad!”

Lu Shicheng crouched down and grabbed Third Master Lu’s hair, forcing him to look him in the eye.

“When did you return to Shanghai? Did you get my permission?” Lu Shicheng’s tone was so calm, even gentle, but Third Master Lu began trembling all over.

This boy knew exactly how to enrage him. He had long since had enough of this condescending tone!

“Whenever I want to return to Shanghai, I return to Shanghai—do I need your approval? These past two-plus years, I’ve been hiding in Beiping like a useless coward, while you, my nephew, have been managing everything grandly in Shanghai. What more could you possibly be dissatisfied with?”

His voice cut off abruptly, because Lu Shicheng had pressed a gun to his temple.

Third Master Lu swallowed in fear—this nephew was capable of anything. At this point, better to secure his life first. “Don’t shoot yet! Coming to make trouble for me for no reason—I really don’t understand what’s happened.”

Kuang Zhilin spoke coldly from the side: “Third Master, let’s not beat around the bush—this kidnapping was orchestrated by you, wasn’t it?”

“What kidnapping—” A bang exploded by his ear; a bullet grazed dangerously past the rim of his ear, striking precisely into the floor in front of his line of sight. Third Master Lu stared in terror at the smoking bullet hole, and all the sophistry in his throat was swallowed back down.

“I ask, you answer. Answer one wrong, and I’ll put another hole in you.” Lu Shicheng’s voice was cold as ice.

Third Master Lu, face pale, nodded frantically.

“When did you get involved with Qiu Dapeng? How long did you two plan this kidnapping? Besides you and the Qiu father and son, who else in Shanghai was involved?”

Third Master Lu broke into a cold sweat: “I didn’t want to take in Qiu Dapeng either—it was Boss Cao who personally came to Beiping to ask me for help. I really couldn’t refuse for the sake of face, so I reluctantly agreed to let that man surnamed Qiu stay at my private residence for a while. This kidnapping plan was also Qiu Dapeng’s idea—I really didn’t know he was going to kidnap your Miss Wen.”

Facing Lu Shicheng’s gaze, Third Master Lu gritted his teeth and said: “I—I’m sorry, this time your Third Uncle was wrong. I promise, I will never touch your people again—”

Suddenly the sound of the gun being loaded again could be heard, and this time it was for real. Third Master Lu’s face turned ashen, and his whole body shook like chaff being sifted. Just then, a tall figure flashed into view at the entrance—seeing this scene, disregarding his own risk of being shot, he flung himself forward and pressed down hard on Lu Shicheng’s gun-holding hand.

Lu Shicheng didn’t need to look back to know who had come, because not a single person around dared to step forward and stop this—including Kuang Zhilin.

“Cheng-er.” Old Master Lu said sternly, “What are you trying to do? Put down the gun now—didn’t you promise your grandfather you would absolutely not harm your uncle’s life!”

Feeling he now had support, Third Master Lu disregarded his dignity and cried out to his father: “Father, save me quickly!”

Lu Shicheng held the gun firmly, refusing to let go no matter how Old Master Lu tried to pry it from him.

In his urgency, Old Master Lu said in a deep voice: “Don’t forget the agreement we reached last year. At the time you promised to spare your Third Uncle, and I promised not to interfere in matters between you and Wen Tingli anymore. Do you want to break that agreement now?! Aren’t you afraid I’ll go make trouble for your Miss Wen afterward?”

At these words, thick killing intent gathered in Lu Shicheng’s eyes—this time, the target was clearly Old Master Lu. Kuang Zhilin, watching from the side, saw it plainly and couldn’t help shuddering.

Fortunately, Young Master Cheng quickly masked that flash of malice in his eyes. He looked at the ground and smiled silently, asking with seeming innocence: “Grandfather, you don’t even ask what my Third Uncle did?”

Old Master Lu sighed sorrowfully: “No matter what your Third Uncle did, I don’t want to see the Lu family’s children killing each other again. Your Miss Wen suffered a wrong—Grandfather can compensate her on behalf of the Lu family, but you must listen to Grandfather and stop pointing guns at your own family!”

Kuang Zhilin couldn’t help but speak up: “Old Master, but this time, it was Third Master who pointed his gun at Young Master Cheng first. Young Master Cheng nearly died at Third Master’s hands!”

“This is a conversation between grandfather and grandson—it’s not your place to interrupt!” Old Master Lu roared, his voice reverberating through the spacious hall like a lion’s roar, making everyone present feel a chill run down their spine.

“Remember, you are a son and grandson of the Lu family—never make things difficult for your own family for the sake of outsiders. Grandfather now has only your Third Uncle left as a son. Can you bear to break your grandfather’s heart?”

There was no pleasure on Lu Shicheng’s face, nor was there hatred, only a numb calm. The corner of his mouth slowly curved upward, and with a mocking tone he asked: “Grandfather, actually all these years I’ve had a question in my heart. Back when my parents were framed and killed, did you truly never once suspect that the culprits might be your other two sons?”

Old Master Lu was struck speechless.

“You pride yourself on being shrewd—back then there were so many holes in the story, I don’t believe you didn’t notice something was wrong with those two brothers. Or perhaps, you clearly had doubts in your heart, but only because they were the sons born by your beloved Ayabaya, you chose to deceive yourself!”

Old Master Lu slapped him backhanded across the face. Clear finger marks immediately appeared on Lu Shicheng’s cheek. He remained unmoved, wiping the blood at the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, slowly rising from the ground.

His gaze, as he rose, gradually lifted higher and higher. From looking up at first, it changed to looking level, and finally to looking down.

He began to look down on his own grandfather.

A vein throbbed at Old Master Lu’s temple; it seemed like the first time he realized that weak little grandson of the past had already grown taller than himself.

Under this invisible pressure, he, who had never known what it meant to submit, unconsciously took half a step back—this made him feel he had lost his dignity, and his resentment grew even more intense.

Lu Shicheng watched every subtle change in his grandfather’s expression, including the faintly trembling wrinkles and the corners of his mouth hard as a blade.

The smile on his face grew wider.

In his childhood, he had once hoped to receive enough love and protection from this elder. In his most helpless moments, he had once hoped this elder would quickly uncover the truth and seek justice for his parents. But later he learned that this world had a father biased to an outrageous degree.

As a small child, he hadn’t understood why his grandfather had suddenly ordered the investigation into his parents’ tragic deaths to stop. To answer the doubt in his heart, he had once searched everywhere for answers. Later he had wandered by chance into his grandmother’s room, and found a diary hidden in a drawer. Since his grandmother’s death, this room had been sealed by his grandfather’s order; he had snuck in quietly one night when no one was around.

Through his grandmother’s diary, he learned that after his grandfather and grandmother married, they had always treated each other with courteous distance; his grandfather had no feelings whatsoever for his legal wife—the marriage had been entirely arranged by the family.

When his grandfather reached middle age, he happened to encounter a beautiful woman named Ayabaya, and he lost his soul to her instantly. To marry her, he didn’t hesitate to turn against his grandmother, but this move met with fierce opposition from the Lu clan, because when the Lu ancestors first ventured to Nanyang, they had personally established a rule: descendants of the Lu family were absolutely forbidden from marrying Nanyang women.

Unable to openly defy the clan rules, his grandfather simply took Ayabaya to live permanently at a separate residence. Because of this, his grandmother lay sleepless almost every night.

Ayabaya died just past thirty. To commemorate this woman, his grandfather not only personally raised the two sons she left behind, but also planned to have them recognized as part of the family lineage. Not long after, these two sons successfully returned with their grandfather to the Lu family estate…

Thinking of this, pain began again in Lu Shicheng’s chest—all this evil originated from his grandfather’s undisguised favoritism!

Back then, after reading his grandmother’s diary, the young him had vaguely sensed that he could never expect justice to come.

Justice, he would have to seek with his own hands. Blood debts must be repaid in blood!

Sixteen years later, in a kidnapping case in which his Third Uncle had again participated in the planning, his grandfather still chose to shield his youngest son. The difference was, he was no longer that helpless child from before. He smiled silently and made a show of moving the gun barrel away from his Third Uncle’s head. Old Master Lu, seizing this chance, shouted to his own attendants behind him: “Still not coming up to save him?!”

But to his surprise, the attendants only looked at Lu Shicheng, and no one responded or stepped forward.

Old Master Lu turned back in astonishment, and happened to meet his eldest grandson’s calm, unruffled gaze.

Facing his shock and helplessness, the eldest grandson smiled faintly: “Grandfather, you’ve probably forgotten—the one holding power in the Lu family now is me.”

Old Master Lu’s legs wavered. Seeing that they were about to tie up his son, he rushed forward again to block them, shouting loudly: “Very good! It seems you no longer have your grandfather in your eyes at all. But don’t forget, everything you possess was given to you by the Lu family! If you want to kill, why not start with the oldest one in the Lu family—kill your grandfather first, then it won’t be too late to kill your Third Uncle!”

The several men froze in astonishment, waiting quietly for Lu Shicheng’s signal.

Old Master Lu, unable to catch his breath, clutched his chest and gasped loudly. He wasn’t unaware that to his eldest grandson now, such threats were as feeble as a soft breath blown in his ear. What could he blame but the fact that his own favoritism back then hadn’t been thorough enough!

If he hadn’t harbored such deep guilt toward this child in the beginning, he wouldn’t have sat idly by watching this child grow day by day without intervening, until one day, this grandson would seize power, seize influence, and even seize people’s hearts away from him!

Now that the situation was hopeless, he who had always been hardheaded had no choice but to lower his head somewhat, saying gently: “Cheng-er, Grandfather knows you’ve harbored much hatred in your heart all these years, but for that matter back then, your Second Uncle and Third Uncle have already paid a heavy price. Your Second Uncle still lies in bed unable to move, needing others to care for his every need, and your Third Uncle, he’s also lost the use of his legs and become crippled. Seeing them like this, no matter how much hatred remains in your heart, you should let it go.”

At these words, Lu Shicheng’s eyes filled not only with mockery, but burst forth with intense hatred—he could not let it go! The most innocent one was his mother; the disputes of the Lu family had nothing to do with her from start to finish. She was murdered simply because she was the Lu family’s eldest daughter-in-law.

Originally, they hadn’t intended to spare even him!

If his mother hadn’t fought to the death to protect him—

No, only death could make his grandfather truly feel it himself.

Tears welled up in Old Master Lu’s eyes; in these few short minutes, he seemed to have aged more than ten years. In an almost pleading tone he negotiated with his eldest grandson: “Your Miss Wen wasn’t harmed, was she? Why go to such extremes? As long as you spare your Third Uncle’s life, Grandfather will agree to any condition you name.”

Lu Kejian, sensing something, struggled madly at his father’s leg like a madman: “No, Father, you mustn’t listen to him! This boy hates me to the bone, he will surely make sure I lose everything! Rather than that, I’d rather die!”

Wen Tingli woke up in the middle of the night and glimpsed someone sleeping beside her bed.

She was startled, but quickly realized it was Lu Shicheng.

She couldn’t help smiling, and opening her eyes wide, quietly leaned over to observe him.

When had he come back? In the darkness she couldn’t see his brows and eyes, but she could see his profile. He must have been too exhausted; his head rested on his arm, and he was sleeping quite deeply.

Listening to his even breathing, she wanted to press her cheek against the back of his hand, but was afraid of waking him. The weather was growing colder, and sleeping like this, he would surely catch a chill. She turned and pulled half of her own blanket over to cover him—and with this movement, discovered that her own hand was clasped in Lu Shicheng’s hand.

Even sleeping this deeply, he still hadn’t let go of her hand.

Without reason she felt a pang of tenderness. She stared blankly for a long while, then used her other hand to pull the blanket over him. She kept her original position, quietly lying down beside him.

The next morning after breakfast, Lu Shicheng peeled an apple for Wen Tingli by the bedside. Zhou Sao brought in the newspaper, and Wen Tingli casually flipped through it, catching sight of a piece of news.

【Nanyang tycoon Mr. Lu Hongjun formally announces severing the father-son relationship with his third son, Lu Kejian.】

Wen Tingli exchanged a knowing glance with Lu Shicheng, suppressing the surging turmoil in her heart, and read on through the article by herself.

In the body of the article, not a single word mentioned why Old Master Lu had suddenly expelled Lu Kejian from the family, only announcing that from now on Lu Kejian was not permitted to use the surname Lu, and that all the shares, factories, and real estate under this son’s name had been entirely reclaimed by the Lu family.

The report didn’t mention cash—presumably Old Master Lu had other arrangements—but even if he gave Third Master Lu a large lump sum of cash to set up on his own elsewhere, this announcement meant that from now on, Lu Kejian could no longer claim to be a member of the Lu family, nor could he flaunt the Lu family banner to stir up trouble anymore.

From now on, the Lu family was the Lu family, and he, Lu Kejian, was on his own. If a jianghu gang like the Bailong Gang wanted to get entangled with him again, they would first have to weigh whether it was worth it.

With this, Lu Kejian had thoroughly become a solitary outcast.

But Wen Tingli understood clearly that this was only the beginning—the true purgatory still awaited Lu Kejian ahead. Lu Shicheng didn’t look at her, continuing to peel the apple in his hand: “What do you want to ask?”

Wen Tingli smiled and shook her head. Over the following days, Lu Shicheng stayed by her side almost without leaving a step, going along with whatever she wanted to do, and however she wanted to eat, he would find a way to get it for her.

Friends came in turns to visit Wen Tingli, and her mood was boundlessly pleasant; every night she slept extremely soundly.

She had finally personally eliminated the great scourge weighing on her heart, and from then on even the air of this city felt fresher than before.

She discussed with Lu Shicheng: “After I leave the hospital, I want to make a trip back to Nanjing.”

“To pay respects to your aunt and uncle?”

“Mm, my father died feeling so wronged. To this day I still dream of his face at the moment of his death. He not only hated Qiu Dapeng to death, but was also worried sick about the two of us sisters. I want to personally tell him this good news at his grave—now he can finally rest in peace.”

“Good, I’ll go with you to Nanjing.” He cut off a piece of apple and put it in her mouth.

As Wen Tingli ate the apple, a sudden thought struck her: “Why don’t we spend a few days playing in Nanjing? Though I was born in Nanjing, I came to Shanghai when I was very young, and I’ve long forgotten what Nanjing looks like. Let’s take a good walk around Nanjing this time.”

He smiled and nodded. Just then, Zhou Sao came over to say there was a visitor. Lu Shicheng exchanged a glance with Wen Tingli and temporarily retreated to the study.

A moment later, Cao Renxiu was seen leading someone upstairs.

“Why have you come here?!” Wen Tingli was both startled and delighted, hurrying to get out of bed to greet her.

It was Ding Xiao’e, the female worker from the Hongmian Textile Mill. Compared to their last meeting, her cheeks had filled out quite a bit, no longer so skeletal, though her frame was still very thin.

Ding Xiao’e rushed forward to support Wen Tingli. When she’d first come in, she’d still been somewhat at a loss and nervous, but seeing Wen Tingli welcome her so warmly, her tightly knit brows relaxed at once.

Cao Renxiu said with a smile from the side: “She heard you were sick and insisted on coming to see you in person.”

“Miss Wen, are you feeling better?” Ding Xiao’e spoke haltingly, “I’ve wanted to come visit for a long time now. About last time, I really felt bad about it—I thought you and that Director Huang were just making fun of me, I never expected you’d really donate all the money from the movie tickets—”

She fumbled a cloth pouch out of her own pocket at a loss: “Everyone’s already received the funds you and Director Huang raised. It was that lady lawyer surnamed Liu who delivered it. Sister Zheng’s tuberculosis had dragged on for quite a while, and as soon as Lawyer Liu arrived she sent Sister Zheng to the hospital. Those two Japanese foremen didn’t want to allow it at first, but Lawyer Liu scolded them until they couldn’t say a word. I’m this old and it’s the first time I’ve ever seen a lady lawyer! She’s really impressive. She said this money was donated to us by your women workers’ fund foundation, and we don’t need to pay it back—”

As she spoke, Ding Xiao’e suddenly seemed to remember something, and fumbled to set the bamboo basket hanging on her arm onto the bedside table, lifting the cloth covering the basket to let Wen Tingli see the eggs inside.

“This is what a few of us sisters pooled our money to buy,” Ding Xiao’e said sincerely, “this is the best thing for building up your strength. There’s also a can of foreign milk powder underneath—I heard it’s most effective to drink when you’re sick.”

In her understanding, this was already the finest tonic there was. Wen Tingli didn’t know what to say; with every sentence Ding Xiao’e spoke, she nodded once through brimming tears.

“Miss Wen, Miss Cao said you all set up a night school for us, to teach us all how to read. Is that true?”

“It’s true.”

Ding Xiao’e’s expression grew even more anxious, and she stammered: “But, you and Director Huang don’t even know us—why are you so good to us?”

“Because—” Wen Tingli sniffled, “someone once helped me like this too.”

Ding Xiao’e was somewhat surprised: “Miss Wen, you used to work in a factory too?”

“I never worked as a factory girl, but I was once a switchboard operator, and I even sold newspapers.” Wen Tingli smiled as she said this, tears faintly glimmering in her eyes. “Don’t forget, I too am just an orphan girl who came out of Ping’an Li.”

If someone hadn’t once helped him without expecting anything in return, how could she have what she had today.

She held Ding Xiao’e’s hand: “Please believe me, I understand your hardship better than anyone. So please, don’t feel uneasy—just accept our help with an open heart, alright?”