Reborn in the 80s: Divorced and Spoiled by the Military Man - Chapter 159

Chapter 159: My Sister Was Killed by Human Traffickers

Why wouldn’t she dare hit him? A mother disciplining her son was only right and proper!

Li Wengang was only brave at home, but deep down, he was just as spineless as Li Dayong. He didn’t dare hit back, and Yingzi chased him all over the yard, beating him until he was scurrying everywhere.

After finally venting her fury, Yingzi threw the stool down and said in a rough voice, “If you ever get ideas about your sister again, I’ll beat you to death first and end the Old Li family line myself!”

It felt good. No wonder Yunshu had flipped the table last time!

But in the end, she was not Xie Yunshu. Once that burst of anger was spent, she collapsed to the ground, covered her face, and began to cry. How was she supposed to live from now on?

Afraid she would go crazy again, Li Wengang bolted off to school, leaving only Xiaoshuang standing there helplessly, watching her cry. “Mom, don’t cry. I’ll earn money and support you when I grow up…”

Yingzi lowered her head, tears streaming down her face. But what would her daughter’s fate be in the future? Wouldn’t she end up just like her two older sisters, only able to get married off in exchange for bride price?

The mother and daughter fell silent in the yard. Only the sound of quiet sobbing remained.

When Li Fenlan carefully pushed the door open, what she saw was this complete mess. She herself had come through life as a widowed mother, so she knew Yingzi must be having a hard time right now.

After thinking it over and over at home, she still couldn’t stop herself from coming.

She stuffed the thirty yuan in her hand into Yingzi’s hands, who was still sitting on the ground, and said softly, “Take this money. Use it to pay Xiaoshuang’s tuition when the time comes. They won’t be back anytime soon.”

Yingzi looked up and said hoarsely, “Eldest Sister, why are you here?”

Li Fenlan felt a little guilty. No one knew she was the one who had sent Li Shenggen to prison. She pressed her lips together. “Well, about Dayong…”

Yingzi clutched the money in her hand and cut her off. “This has nothing to do with Yunshu. They were stealing every day. Sooner or later, something was bound to happen.”

At first, it had only been detention, and Yunshu might have been able to put in a word. But now that they had been sentenced, who would dare go against the country? Yingzi was actually a reasonable person. She knew Yunshu didn’t have that kind of power.

Of course, there was another reason. Li Fenlan’s words had suddenly made her realize something: her in-laws and husband had all been locked up, so didn’t that mean she had the final say in this household now?

That meant her daughter didn’t have to drop out of school anymore! At that thought, Yingzi actually felt that the three of them being locked up was a wonderful thing. She could go take over Li Dayong’s job, earn wages herself, and then spend the money on whoever she wanted!

Li Fenlan had also come in secret. She still didn’t dare tell Yunshu about this.

Working under her own daughter, she received wages as well, and this thirty yuan was something she had painfully forced herself to take out. “Yingzi, I can’t help you with anything else. Take this money. I’ll be going now.”

From arriving to leaving, she had only stayed a few minutes. She had to hurry back. Today, she had only managed to get a little free time by lying to Yunshu and saying she needed to buy yarn.

Yingzi sat on the ground, staring at the money in her hand, feeling as if she were dreaming. Only after a long while did she wipe away her tears and stand up, a smile appearing on her face. “Xiaoshuang, go to school!”

From now on, she would be the one earning money in this family, and she would be the one calling the shots. If anyone dared disobey, she would learn from Yunshu-flip the table and grab a kitchen knife!

Li Fenlan hurried back to the canteen once again. She had never done anything major in her life, and she was even worse at lying. She thought she had hidden it well, but how could that little bit of panic on her face escape Xie Yunshu’s eyes?

Still, Xie Yunshu didn’t ask too much. Her mother really had done something big-she had sent Li Shenggen to prison in one fell swoop! If Xie Yunshu hadn’t gone to the Police Station to ask around, she never would have known her mother had become so capable.

The weather was gradually warming up. Xie Yunshu was not wearing a coat, just a yellow sweater, and her long hair was still tied in a high ponytail.

Ji Siyuan had recently become very enthusiastic about coming to the canteen for meals. Today, he had deliberately worn a black trench coat. Standing there with both hands in his pockets, he said, “Xie Yunshu, I’ll be right here watching you. Anyone who goes back on their word is a dog!”

Xie Yunshu looked at him the way one might look at the neighbor’s dog. She was sitting in the back kitchen with a bowl in her hands, still eating, and was more than a little speechless. “I never said I wasn’t going.”

Yesterday, during their evening college class, this guy had whined and wheedled, insisting she accompany him to The Bund. He said there was some art exhibition there by Haicheng University, and he was afraid he’d get lost if he went alone.

Only then was Ji Siyuan satisfied. He gathered his overcoat around him and squatted down. “Taking the bus is such a hassle. I borrowed my brother’s car. We’ll drive there!”

Xie Yunshu was a little surprised. “You know how to drive?”

Ji Siyuan gave her a smug look. “Isn’t that simple?”

Xie Yunshu thought of the motorized tricycle she had parked outside and immediately grew interested. “I’m good at driving too. Captain Shen taught me for two days, and I learned it right away!”

Why had Shen Subai’s name come up out of nowhere again? Ji Siyuan gave a cold laugh. “He hasn’t been in Haicheng these past two days.”

Captain Shen really hadn’t come by to eat in several days. Curious, Xie Yunshu asked, “Where did Captain Shen go?”

“Why do you care about him?” Ji Siyuan curled his lip, then added maliciously, “He’s already that old. It’s not like he’ll get lost!”

Xie Yunshu had no idea where his hostility toward Captain Shen came from. She stood up, washed her hands, and said casually, “Right, Captain Shen won’t get lost, but you might! Human traffickers love brats like you!”

At the words human traffickers, the teasing smile on Ji Siyuan’s face instantly darkened.

He stood up as well and walked outside without saying a word. Only after he opened the car door did he spit out harshly, “Human traffickers should all die!”

There was a vicious edge to his words, as if, were a trafficker standing in front of him, he would kill them on the spot. The hatred was so intense that even Xie Yunshu felt it.

“I was just joking.” She hadn’t expected such a huge reaction from him. After a moment’s hesitation, Xie Yunshu patted him on the shoulder. “Are you okay?”

Ji Siyuan’s hands were clenched tightly around the steering wheel, the veins on the backs of them bulging. He turned to look at Xie Yunshu beside him, his gaze falling on her face yet seeming to pass through it and see someone else entirely.

The same upturned eyes, the same delicate nose, the same pretty, charming face. But in the end, she was not her.

That girl had clearly lived with him for sixteen years. She clearly could have lived a smooth, happy life. Yet when he saw her again, it had only been through a mound of yellow earth and a single photograph. All that had been left to them was the knowledge of what inhuman torment she had suffered.

Seeing that something was wrong with him, Xie Yunshu, for once, didn’t get angry at his mercurial moods. She was only a little worried. “Do you feel sick?”

It couldn’t be that he’d worn too little today and caught a cold or fever, could it?

Ji Siyuan slowly came back to himself. The spring sun shone through the car window, filling the car with warmth. It wasn’t cold at all, yet he couldn’t feel the slightest bit of it.

After who knew how long, Xie Yunshu gradually ran out of patience. She opened the car door and sighed. “If you’re not feeling well, go to the hospital. Let’s not go to the exhibition this afternoon.”

A hand reached across from the other side and grabbed her. Ji Siyuan had already reined in his emotions. “Anyone who goes back on their word is a puppy. You promised you’d go with me.”

Xie Yunshu was helpless. “I was only worried you weren’t feeling well.”

Ji Siyuan returned to his usual cheeky grin. “Didn’t think you’d actually care about me. Don’t worry, I’m young and in much better shape than Shen Subai. I’m nothing like him, always fainting over low blood sugar for no reason!”

What kind of grudge did he have against Captain Shen? He couldn’t go three sentences without mentioning the man.

The car started. Xie Yunshu settled back into her seat, only to hear Ji Siyuan suddenly say in a low voice, “My younger sister was killed by human traffickers.”