The snowfall stopped. They stood in that remote corner and could faintly hear the noise from the teaching building.
“I may not be able to study anymore.” You Yu said, looking down.
Chi Tang frowned: “Are you going to go back with him?”
You Yu shook her head: “I don’t want to go back, but I can’t escape. When I was in middle school, there was a girl in our village who was also going to school. Her grades were good. Later, her brother asked for money to marry a wife, so her parents asked her to come back to marry, but she refused, staying at school and didn’t go home. Her father and her brother came to her school and took her away. The teachers couldn’t help her.”
“When I came to Nanlin to go to school, she has already given birth to a second son. She has given birth to a son and no longer wants to go to school. She feels that she is doing well.” You Yu said her whole body trembling.
Chi Tang couldn’t understand it. If it hadn’t been for You Yu telling her personally, she probably wouldn’t believe that there was still such a terrible thing in the world. “It is illegal to get married to an adult. Why don’t you call the police?”
You Yu looked at her and shook her head slowly: “Our village is all like that, no one thinks it’s wrong and no one calls the police.”
Chi Tang: “You can run from your house. If he wants to catch you, you just keep running, hiding where he can’t find you, and going anywhere is better than going back, isn’t it? There is a police station here. People here will call the police. If you don’t want to, he can’t take you back.”
“You stay here, I’ll see what’s going on inside.”
After Chi Tang finished speaking, she gave another half of the tangerines that she hadn’t eaten to You Yu, turned her head, and walked towards the classroom seething in anger.
The headteacher Lao Fang had brought the man to the office, but the classroom still didn’t calm down. Everyone was talking about what happened just now, and no one had any intention of starting the party again.
Chi Tang went to the office. The door of the office was closed. Hei Pi was leaning against the door, trying to listen. Chi Tang also walked over.
She heard You Yu’s father inside loudly saying, “I gave birth to her and raised her. If I want her to marry, she will marry. I don’t care about everything else!”
The headteacher, Lao Fang, had a good temper. He sounded annoyed at the moment, and his voice was strained: “Parent of You Yu, You Yu is not an adult and has not reached the legal age for marriage. It is illegal for you to ask her to marry.”
“I don’t know what is illegal or not, my daughter will listen to me.”
“You Yu has very good grades and will be admitted to top universities in the future. You are wasting her ability if you stop her from studying.”
“She is a girl who wants to waste time and money reading so many books, I have already made arrangements for her at home.”
No matter what You Yu’s father said, he felt right and confident. In the end, Lao Fang couldn’t help but said, “You go quickly. The school does not allow people outside the school to stay here.”
The guard at the school gate was much looser because of the New Year’s Day party in several classes tonight, students would go in and out to buy things. Normally he wouldn’t have been able to come in so easily.
“I won’t leave, find my daughter and let her go home with me.”
Lao Fang wanted nothing to do with this savage man. At that time, the office door was pushed open and Chi Tang stood at the door, “Teacher, ask the school security to take him away or call the police.”
You Wanchun’s anger rose as soon as he saw her and strode over and raised his hand, “You took my daughter away, where is she?”
Chi Tang didn’t hide, instead, she stared at the man fiercely: “If you put your hand on me, I will put you in jail and make you lose money!”
Lao Fang hurriedly came up and stopped them but in the end, it was the school guard who drove You Wanchun out.
You Yu became more silent, just like when Chi Tang was not familiar with her in the first place. There was no smile on her face, and she was immersed in her study every day. Chi Tang even though she was a little depressed and only when she was talking to her, You Yu’s eyes would still be slightly bright.
You Wanchun never left. He wandered outside the school for several days. Some students in the class lived nearby. Every day they went to school, they discussed the man quietly. He was blocked from the school and could not get in but refused to leave. Chi Tang frowned every time she listened, but You Yu didn’t respond.
The headteacher, Lao Fang, visited You Yu once and he told her to come to see him after class.
“What did Lao Fang say to you?” Chi Tang asked before You Yu held her pen again.
You Yu looked up at her and said after a while, “The headteacher asked me to stay in his house temporarily after the holiday.”
The exam was about to take place. After the exam, the school was on holiday. You Yu couldn’t go home in that situation. If You Wanchun hadn’t left at that time, she might be taken away by him. Lao Fang was a very responsible headteacher.
Chi Tang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If you can go to Lao Fang’s house temporarily during your holiday, it should be no problem.
The final exam was over and the official holiday began. Many students waited until the report card was issued before returning home to school. High school students had a holiday two days later than them, and the school entrance guard was still there.
After sending out the transcript, Chi Tang saw her grades and found that her grades in a certain subject had improved a lot. That was the credit of You Yu and her feeding question worked.
“Congratulations, You Yu, once again achieved good grades in the first grade!” Lao Fang smiled, quite proud.
Chi Tang turned her head slightly to look at You Yu’s report card, “You got the first place again.”
Every time they took an exam, she had to say this.
You Yu was distracted. She didn’t know what to think. Hearing her words, she subconsciously glanced at her transcript, glanced at the math column, and smiled at her, “Yeah.”
That was the first smile that Chi Tang saw You Yu smile after New Year’s Day.
Most of the students had left school, and Chi Tang would also go back. She packed a backpack and said to You Yu: “See you next year.”
“See you next year.”
This time when she went home, the house was empty. Although there were still uncleaned playing cards and ash melon peels in the living room, at least no strangers were in her room.
But even so, Chi Tang removed all the bed covers and sheets and threw them into the washing machine.
She didn’t where her father went, but he never told her where he went.
Hearing the movement downstairs, Chi Tang thought it was her father who was back, but when she stood on the stairs, she saw a strange woman cleaning the house as if hired to clean the house.
It’s been like this since before. Her dad made a mess of the house. He never cleaned up. She didn’t care as she was tired of tidying up. Her dad had trained her several times, saying that she was lazy, but she ignored it.
He then started to hire people to clean up regularly.
She went back to her room upstairs again. In the evening, her father hadn’t come back. Chi Tang went out to find a restaurant to eat by herself and went back to rest after eating.
She was the only one in the room, and there was no other sound. She had long been used to not turning on the lights. She sat on the bed and swiped her phone, listened to songs, and was in a daze until she was tired and lay down to rest.
After sleeping, she was awakened by movements outside and glanced at her phone. It was 1:22 in the morning.
It was her dad, he was drunk again, and there was a woman’s voice, they were talking and laughing loudly, making very intimate and ambiguous noises. Chi Tang could guess what was going on outside without opening the door. She had bumped into it many times.
She rolled over and wrapped herself tightly in the quilt.
The snowfall stopped. They stood in that remote corner and could faintly hear the noise from the teaching building.
“I may not be able to study anymore.” You Yu said, looking down.
Chi Tang frowned: “Are you going to go back with him?”
You Yu shook her head: “I don’t want to go back, but I can’t escape. When I was in middle school, there was a girl in our village who was also going to school. Her grades were good. Later, her brother asked for money to marry a wife, so her parents asked her to come back to marry, but she refused, staying at school and didn’t go home. Her father and her brother came to her school and took her away. The teachers couldn’t help her.”
“When I came to Nanlin to go to school, she has already given birth to a second son. She has given birth to a son and no longer wants to go to school. She feels that she is doing well.” You Yu said her whole body trembling.
Chi Tang couldn’t understand it. If it hadn’t been for You Yu telling her personally, she probably wouldn’t believe that there was still such a terrible thing in the world. “It is illegal to get married to an adult. Why don’t you call the police?”
You Yu looked at her and shook her head slowly: “Our village is all like that, no one thinks it’s wrong and no one calls the police.”
Chi Tang: “You can run from your house. If he wants to catch you, you just keep running, hiding where he can’t find you, and going anywhere is better than going back, isn’t it? There is a police station here. People here will call the police. If you don’t want to, he can’t take you back.”
“You stay here, I’ll see what’s going on inside.”
After Chi Tang finished speaking, she gave another half of the tangerines that she hadn’t eaten to You Yu, turned her head, and walked towards the classroom seething in anger.
The headteacher Lao Fang had brought the man to the office, but the classroom still didn’t calm down. Everyone was talking about what happened just now, and no one had any intention of starting the party again.
Chi Tang went to the office. The door of the office was closed. Hei Pi was leaning against the door, trying to listen. Chi Tang also walked over.
She heard You Yu’s father inside loudly saying, “I gave birth to her and raised her. If I want her to marry, she will marry. I don’t care about everything else!”
The headteacher, Lao Fang, had a good temper. He sounded annoyed at the moment, and his voice was strained: “Parent of You Yu, You Yu is not an adult and has not reached the legal age for marriage. It is illegal for you to ask her to marry.”
“I don’t know what is illegal or not, my daughter will listen to me.”
“You Yu has very good grades and will be admitted to top universities in the future. You are wasting her ability if you stop her from studying.”
“She is a girl who wants to waste time and money reading so many books, I have already made arrangements for her at home.”
No matter what You Yu’s father said, he felt right and confident. In the end, Lao Fang couldn’t help but said, “You go quickly. The school does not allow people outside the school to stay here.”
The guard at the school gate was much looser because of the New Year’s Day party in several classes tonight, students would go in and out to buy things. Normally he wouldn’t have been able to come in so easily.
“I won’t leave, find my daughter and let her go home with me.”
Lao Fang wanted nothing to do with this savage man. At that time, the office door was pushed open and Chi Tang stood at the door, “Teacher, ask the school security to take him away or call the police.”
You Wanchun’s anger rose as soon as he saw her and strode over and raised his hand, “You took my daughter away, where is she?”
Chi Tang didn’t hide, instead, she stared at the man fiercely: “If you put your hand on me, I will put you in jail and make you lose money!”
Lao Fang hurriedly came up and stopped them but in the end, it was the school guard who drove You Wanchun out.
You Yu became more silent, just like when Chi Tang was not familiar with her in the first place. There was no smile on her face, and she was immersed in her study every day. Chi Tang even though she was a little depressed and only when she was talking to her, You Yu’s eyes would still be slightly bright.
You Wanchun never left. He wandered outside the school for several days. Some students in the class lived nearby. Every day they went to school, they discussed the man quietly. He was blocked from the school and could not get in but refused to leave. Chi Tang frowned every time she listened, but You Yu didn’t respond.
The headteacher, Lao Fang, visited You Yu once and he told her to come to see him after class.
“What did Lao Fang say to you?” Chi Tang asked before You Yu held her pen again.
You Yu looked up at her and said after a while, “The headteacher asked me to stay in his house temporarily after the holiday.”
The exam was about to take place. After the exam, the school was on holiday. You Yu couldn’t go home in that situation. If You Wanchun hadn’t left at that time, she might be taken away by him. Lao Fang was a very responsible headteacher.
Chi Tang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. If you can go to Lao Fang’s house temporarily during your holiday, it should be no problem.
The final exam was over and the official holiday began. Many students waited until the report card was issued before returning home to school. High school students had a holiday two days later than them, and the school entrance guard was still there.
After sending out the transcript, Chi Tang saw her grades and found that her grades in a certain subject had improved a lot. That was the credit of You Yu and her feeding question worked.
“Congratulations, You Yu, once again achieved good grades in the first grade!” Lao Fang smiled, quite proud.
Chi Tang turned her head slightly to look at You Yu’s report card, “You got the first place again.”
Every time they took an exam, she had to say this.
You Yu was distracted. She didn’t know what to think. Hearing her words, she subconsciously glanced at her transcript, glanced at the math column, and smiled at her, “Yeah.”
That was the first smile that Chi Tang saw You Yu smile after New Year’s Day.
Most of the students had left school, and Chi Tang would also go back. She packed a backpack and said to You Yu: “See you next year.”
“See you next year.”
This time when she went home, the house was empty. Although there were still uncleaned playing cards and ash melon peels in the living room, at least no strangers were in her room.
But even so, Chi Tang removed all the bed covers and sheets and threw them into the washing machine.
She didn’t where her father went, but he never told her where he went.
Hearing the movement downstairs, Chi Tang thought it was her father who was back, but when she stood on the stairs, she saw a strange woman cleaning the house as if hired to clean the house.
It’s been like this since before. Her dad made a mess of the house. He never cleaned up. She didn’t care as she was tired of tidying up. Her dad had trained her several times, saying that she was lazy, but she ignored it.
He then started to hire people to clean up regularly.
She went back to her room upstairs again. In the evening, her father hadn’t come back. Chi Tang went out to find a restaurant to eat by herself and went back to rest after eating.
She was the only one in the room, and there was no other sound. She had long been used to not turning on the lights. She sat on the bed and swiped her phone, listened to songs, and was in a daze until she was tired and lay down to rest.
After sleeping, she was awakened by movements outside and glanced at her phone. It was 1:22 in the morning.
It was her dad, he was drunk again, and there was a woman’s voice, they were talking and laughing loudly, making very intimate and ambiguous noises. Chi Tang could guess what was going on outside without opening the door. She had bumped into it many times.
She rolled over and wrapped herself tightly in the quilt.
