In her short life, You Yu had several moments of despair. Those moments when it seemed like there was no one to help and no way to survive.
When her father and her cousin showed up at the headteacher’s house, she was unable to breathe. The panic and despair made her feel like she was drowning in the sea.
Even though she left the kind-hearted headteacher’s house and found a small place to hide temporarily, she was always worried that her father would suddenly appear outside the door. So she kept looking out of the glass window, unable to rest assured.
“You are going with me, I’ll show you a place to hide.” When Chi Tang stood in front of her, reaching out to her, You Yu shook subconsciously.
When she was in an unfamiliar school, trying not to pay attention to everyone’s strange eyes, and using learning as her only distraction, it was also Chi Tang who took the initiative and extended her hand.
When she held Chi Tang’s hand, she felt a little relief. They got on a bus in the night and returned to Chi Tang’s home.
You Yu looked at the faintly exposed light in the house, and began to hesitate: “Do you mean your house? “
Chi Tang told her, “No, not here. Wait for me here.”
She opened the door and entered the house, found a bunch of keys that hadn’t been used for a long time from the cabinet, and a pile of cash. Putting on the down jacket that had fallen before, she left with a bag on her back, pulling You Yu and rushing to the bus station.
They took the bus and the destination was a small county called Pengning County next to Nanlin City.
“My grandma’s hometown is there. Her house has been unoccupied since she passed away. We went there and no one could find us.” After Chi Tang got on the bus, her shoulders relaxed, and became a little excited.
You Yu felt her unconsciously squeezing her hand. She wondered if maybe Chi Tang also wanted to avoid something and she was also nervous.
They fled together the night with the same excitement and fear in their hearts.
Pengning County was not big. Although it was a county, there were no taxis. They got out of the bus at nine o’clock in the evening.
Chi Tang stood on the side of the road for a while, her nose cold from the cold wind before she felt her motion sickness symptoms improve.
“I’ve been here several times before but I can’t remember clearly. I’ll go and ask.” Chi Tang asked for directions at a store on the roadside and found that the place was not too far from here, so she walked forward with You Yu.
You Yu was silent along the way, looking at the surrounding street shops, committing the road to her memory.
Chi Tang showed her phone, “Look.”
You Yu looked at her mobile phone and saw her Alipay balance.
Chi Tang said, “I have money. It is enough for us to live here for winter vacation until school, so don’t worry.”
Seeing You Yu open her mouth and wanted to talk but she was interrupted by Chi Tang, “I promise you will not die from starvation, nor will you pay me back. If you want to live here, I will stay with you until you want to leave. I will provide food and accommodation.”
There were so many complicated emotions that could not be expressed in words in You Yu’s heart, and she hummed after a long while.
She looked at Chi Tang’s profile and thought, This person, I must repay her in the future. If she needs it, if she encounters difficulties, I will tell her as she does now, don’t worry.
Chi Tang’s grandma lived in a self-built two-story building in the old town with a patio and a small backyard, in which a loquat tree was planted. At the bottom was the shutter door. Chi Tang leaned on the street lamp to identify the small building that had been unoccupied for a long time and had been covered in dust.
The rolling shutter door hadn’t been opened for a long time. It was a bit sluggish and couldn’t move. You Yu stepped forward to help pull it up. The two people worked together and the door made a creaking sound and went up.
Turning on the lamp, Chi Tang relaxed a little, “Fortunately, there is electricity.”
The old woman’s funeral was in a hurry and the house was given to her dad. Her dad didn’t care. The water and electricity in the house didn’t seem to have been cut. Everything belonging to her grandma was burned, and only a few pieces of furniture remained.
The old bed in the bedroom was also burned. There was also a bed in the guest bedroom, and the untreated sofa in the room was stacked randomly and wrapped in large oil paper bags.
The windows were closed tightly and the ground was covered with dust. They walked in and inspected the rooms one by one.
Chi Tang’s impression of the house remained when her grandma died, she came here to attend the funeral and stayed for a week.
“It’s too dirty. Should we go find a hotel for today?” Chi Tang asked.
You Yu: “Is there any water here? If there is water, I’ll clean it up.”
She tore up the oily paper wrapping the sofa and bed and threw it aside, they were finally able to put down their backpacks. Chi Tang was very new to the house, but she took Yu Yu to look around and found a basin and a towel cloth.
The faucet was a bit rusty, and when it was turned on, there was a long burp before the water came out.
The toilet was narrow and there was an old-fashioned water heater. Chi Tang studied it before finding the switch. Fortunately, it was still working. The water was being heated, but the digital screen displayed was broken. She doesn’t know if it was 20 or 30.
You Yu took the basin and went upstairs to clean, Chi Tang also followed. She looked for quilts in the closets of several rooms. If there were no quilts, they would need to find a hotel to sleep in.
At that time, she was a little grateful that her dad did the final cleaning of the house. Her dad hated these trivial and troublesome things. He didn’t bother to clean up many things in the house. She found a quilt on the top floor of the master bedroom and she moved them. The stool lifted the quilt down.
The quilt was heavy and thick, probably from grandma before. The elderly are used to this kind of thick cotton quilt.
You Yu heard the noise and came to help her move the quilt to the guest bedroom. In just a short time, she had wiped the window sill table and was wiping the floor.
Chi Tang: “Do you need to sweep the floor? If you don’t use a mop, won’t you get tired of rubbing it like that?”
You Yu: “Without a mop, this dust is too much to be swept. I’ll just wipe it with a rag to clean it.”
Chi Tang found that You Yu was good at cleaning. She probably did the work at home before. Chi Tang was still in the house trying to unpack the quilt. She couldn’t tell the front and back, but You Yu had already wiped more than half of the ground. Of course, because the room was small it didn’t take long.
Realizing that she couldn’t figure out the cotton wool, Chi Tang said, “I’m going to find the duvet cover.”
When she returned after looking for the duvet cover, she found that the floor of the room had been cleaned by You Yu and even the cotton batting was neatly laid out. She had also cleaned the toilet.
Chi Tang tried to cover the quilt, but the quilt was too big. She hadn’t made it for a long time. You Yu stepped in and helped when she saw her struggling. Chi Tang didn’t know what she did, grabbing the two corners and shaking, the quilt was neat.
“The quilt is a bit big, it’s dirty, so be it.”
Chi Tang exhaled and sat on the bed.
You Yu sat on the small chair opposite her and put her hands on her knees.
Chi Tang asked her, “Are you tired?”
Chi Tang’s drooping eyes saw You Yu’s hands. Her hands were not good-looking, they were rough, and the joints were slightly thick, probably traces of frostbite.
After watching them for a while, Chi Tang said, “Well, I’m tired.”
You Yu didn’t know what to say, so she remained silent.
The room was a bit cold and the wind was very strong outside. Chi Tang sat for a while before standing up: “I’ll go out and buy things.”
There was a small supermarket nearby, at the intersection, two red sheds were set up outside with boxes of fruits and gifts for the New Year. The two went into the supermarket to buy necessities such as toothbrushes, towels, and some food. Chi Tang also brought a small heater.
The heater looked like an electric fan, but it had no blades. There was no heating in the room, the air conditioner was removed, and there was no electric blanket. Chi Tang was a little bit cold.
After shopping, they came out of the small supermarket and small snowflakes began to float outside.
“Snow.”
“Yeah, it’s snowing.”
There was the sound of firecrackers in the distance. Fireworks and firecrackers had been banned in big cities, but that small county was not included. There were still many people who set fireworks and firecrackers during the New Year. They could see red confetti on the side of the road as they walked on the road.
They returned to the house and closed the rolling door underneath.
A small sun-like heater was placed in the small room. The warm yellow light was enough to illuminate the entire room. After a while, the temperature in the room rose, and the warm feeling made the two girls relax.
The night outside the window was very dense and the snow got bigger and bigger.
In her short life, You Yu had several moments of despair. Those moments when it seemed like there was no one to help and no way to survive.
When her father and her cousin showed up at the headteacher’s house, she was unable to breathe. The panic and despair made her feel like she was drowning in the sea.
Even though she left the kind-hearted headteacher’s house and found a small place to hide temporarily, she was always worried that her father would suddenly appear outside the door. So she kept looking out of the glass window, unable to rest assured.
“You are going with me, I’ll show you a place to hide.” When Chi Tang stood in front of her, reaching out to her, You Yu shook subconsciously.
When she was in an unfamiliar school, trying not to pay attention to everyone’s strange eyes, and using learning as her only distraction, it was also Chi Tang who took the initiative and extended her hand.
When she held Chi Tang’s hand, she felt a little relief. They got on a bus in the night and returned to Chi Tang’s home.
You Yu looked at the faintly exposed light in the house, and began to hesitate: “Do you mean your house? “
Chi Tang told her, “No, not here. Wait for me here.”
She opened the door and entered the house, found a bunch of keys that hadn’t been used for a long time from the cabinet, and a pile of cash. Putting on the down jacket that had fallen before, she left with a bag on her back, pulling You Yu and rushing to the bus station.
They took the bus and the destination was a small county called Pengning County next to Nanlin City.
“My grandma’s hometown is there. Her house has been unoccupied since she passed away. We went there and no one could find us.” After Chi Tang got on the bus, her shoulders relaxed, and became a little excited.
You Yu felt her unconsciously squeezing her hand. She wondered if maybe Chi Tang also wanted to avoid something and she was also nervous.
They fled together the night with the same excitement and fear in their hearts.
Pengning County was not big. Although it was a county, there were no taxis. They got out of the bus at nine o’clock in the evening.
Chi Tang stood on the side of the road for a while, her nose cold from the cold wind before she felt her motion sickness symptoms improve.
“I’ve been here several times before but I can’t remember clearly. I’ll go and ask.” Chi Tang asked for directions at a store on the roadside and found that the place was not too far from here, so she walked forward with You Yu.
You Yu was silent along the way, looking at the surrounding street shops, committing the road to her memory.
Chi Tang showed her phone, “Look.”
You Yu looked at her mobile phone and saw her Alipay balance.
Chi Tang said, “I have money. It is enough for us to live here for winter vacation until school, so don’t worry.”
Seeing You Yu open her mouth and wanted to talk but she was interrupted by Chi Tang, “I promise you will not die from starvation, nor will you pay me back. If you want to live here, I will stay with you until you want to leave. I will provide food and accommodation.”
There were so many complicated emotions that could not be expressed in words in You Yu’s heart, and she hummed after a long while.
She looked at Chi Tang’s profile and thought, This person, I must repay her in the future. If she needs it, if she encounters difficulties, I will tell her as she does now, don’t worry.
Chi Tang’s grandma lived in a self-built two-story building in the old town with a patio and a small backyard, in which a loquat tree was planted. At the bottom was the shutter door. Chi Tang leaned on the street lamp to identify the small building that had been unoccupied for a long time and had been covered in dust.
The rolling shutter door hadn’t been opened for a long time. It was a bit sluggish and couldn’t move. You Yu stepped forward to help pull it up. The two people worked together and the door made a creaking sound and went up.
Turning on the lamp, Chi Tang relaxed a little, “Fortunately, there is electricity.”
The old woman’s funeral was in a hurry and the house was given to her dad. Her dad didn’t care. The water and electricity in the house didn’t seem to have been cut. Everything belonging to her grandma was burned, and only a few pieces of furniture remained.
The old bed in the bedroom was also burned. There was also a bed in the guest bedroom, and the untreated sofa in the room was stacked randomly and wrapped in large oil paper bags.
The windows were closed tightly and the ground was covered with dust. They walked in and inspected the rooms one by one.
Chi Tang’s impression of the house remained when her grandma died, she came here to attend the funeral and stayed for a week.
“It’s too dirty. Should we go find a hotel for today?” Chi Tang asked.
You Yu: “Is there any water here? If there is water, I’ll clean it up.”
She tore up the oily paper wrapping the sofa and bed and threw it aside, they were finally able to put down their backpacks. Chi Tang was very new to the house, but she took Yu Yu to look around and found a basin and a towel cloth.
The faucet was a bit rusty, and when it was turned on, there was a long burp before the water came out.
The toilet was narrow and there was an old-fashioned water heater. Chi Tang studied it before finding the switch. Fortunately, it was still working. The water was being heated, but the digital screen displayed was broken. She doesn’t know if it was 20 or 30.
You Yu took the basin and went upstairs to clean, Chi Tang also followed. She looked for quilts in the closets of several rooms. If there were no quilts, they would need to find a hotel to sleep in.
At that time, she was a little grateful that her dad did the final cleaning of the house. Her dad hated these trivial and troublesome things. He didn’t bother to clean up many things in the house. She found a quilt on the top floor of the master bedroom and she moved them. The stool lifted the quilt down.
The quilt was heavy and thick, probably from grandma before. The elderly are used to this kind of thick cotton quilt.
You Yu heard the noise and came to help her move the quilt to the guest bedroom. In just a short time, she had wiped the window sill table and was wiping the floor.
Chi Tang: “Do you need to sweep the floor? If you don’t use a mop, won’t you get tired of rubbing it like that?”
You Yu: “Without a mop, this dust is too much to be swept. I’ll just wipe it with a rag to clean it.”
Chi Tang found that You Yu was good at cleaning. She probably did the work at home before. Chi Tang was still in the house trying to unpack the quilt. She couldn’t tell the front and back, but You Yu had already wiped more than half of the ground. Of course, because the room was small it didn’t take long.
Realizing that she couldn’t figure out the cotton wool, Chi Tang said, “I’m going to find the duvet cover.”
When she returned after looking for the duvet cover, she found that the floor of the room had been cleaned by You Yu and even the cotton batting was neatly laid out. She had also cleaned the toilet.
Chi Tang tried to cover the quilt, but the quilt was too big. She hadn’t made it for a long time. You Yu stepped in and helped when she saw her struggling. Chi Tang didn’t know what she did, grabbing the two corners and shaking, the quilt was neat.
“The quilt is a bit big, it’s dirty, so be it.”
Chi Tang exhaled and sat on the bed.
You Yu sat on the small chair opposite her and put her hands on her knees.
Chi Tang asked her, “Are you tired?”
Chi Tang’s drooping eyes saw You Yu’s hands. Her hands were not good-looking, they were rough, and the joints were slightly thick, probably traces of frostbite.
After watching them for a while, Chi Tang said, “Well, I’m tired.”
You Yu didn’t know what to say, so she remained silent.
The room was a bit cold and the wind was very strong outside. Chi Tang sat for a while before standing up: “I’ll go out and buy things.”
There was a small supermarket nearby, at the intersection, two red sheds were set up outside with boxes of fruits and gifts for the New Year. The two went into the supermarket to buy necessities such as toothbrushes, towels, and some food. Chi Tang also brought a small heater.
The heater looked like an electric fan, but it had no blades. There was no heating in the room, the air conditioner was removed, and there was no electric blanket. Chi Tang was a little bit cold.
After shopping, they came out of the small supermarket and small snowflakes began to float outside.
“Snow.”
“Yeah, it’s snowing.”
There was the sound of firecrackers in the distance. Fireworks and firecrackers had been banned in big cities, but that small county was not included. There were still many people who set fireworks and firecrackers during the New Year. They could see red confetti on the side of the road as they walked on the road.
They returned to the house and closed the rolling door underneath.
A small sun-like heater was placed in the small room. The warm yellow light was enough to illuminate the entire room. After a while, the temperature in the room rose, and the warm feeling made the two girls relax.
The night outside the window was very dense and the snow got bigger and bigger.
