Because Zhao Qing was a daughter, and in this family that favored sons over daughters, Chen Rou, whose body was not suited for childbearing, could probably only have one child in her lifetime, and it just so happened to be a daughter. So a divorce agreement was slapped in front of Chen Rou, her beloved husband spat at her, and went back to marry the woman his mother had chosen, who was supposedly fertile and could give birth to a son.
The family, which had seemed to be doing quite well, was completely shattered by the birth of Zhao Qing. Chen Rou spent the most difficult time alone in the hospital. She didn't have much money, and after paying off the hospital bills, she and her child huddled together in an old, cramped, dirty, and dilapidated apartment building. But it was cheap.
Chen Rou originally intended to abandon the child, but her resentment led her to choose another way to take revenge on Zhao Qing...
Chen Rou grabbed Zhao Qing's hair and pulled her forcefully towards herself: "If you don't earn money back, I'll sell you to Sister Li."
Zhao Qing finally made a move: "I'll look for a new job tomorrow." But it's not that easy. She only has a junior high school diploma, and nobody wants her. She's not a strong, capable boy who can do manual labor. In the end, she'll probably end up doing manual work in an assembly line factory.
"You'd better find it, or how will you repay what you owe me?" Chen Rou loosened her hair and pushed her forcefully into the corridor: "You don't need to go home today."
In the cold, damp corridor, Zhao Qing huddled in a corner, dozing off. The moss-covered area in the corner was wet, leaving stains on her clothes. Around midnight, Zhao Qing felt something touching her, startling her so much that she immediately opened her eyes.
It was a middle-aged man living upstairs, wearing a white vest and suit pants that clashed terribly with him. His zipper was open, and his hand was touching her clothes. Without a second thought, Zhao Qing kicked him, striking him squarely in the groin.
With a bloodcurdling scream, she scrambled to her feet and knocked on Chen Rou's door, but there was no response. Seeing the man about to stand up, Zhao Qing hurriedly ran downstairs. He was chasing her; the footsteps echoing in the quiet stairwell were of two different kinds, and Zhao Qing knew he was still behind her.
She rushed out of the old building like a madwoman, not knowing where she was running. By the time she shook off the man, she was already under the overpass. Panting heavily, she casually wiped away her sweat and slowly walked into the shadows under the overpass.
There were other people under the bridge.
Zhao Qing stopped in her tracks, watching the figure below the bridge warily.
It was a person, a boy who looked about her age. His eyes were closed, his head tilted to the side; it was unclear whether he was asleep or had fainted. Suppressing her fear, Zhao Qing tiptoed over and gently shook him on the shoulder.
She hadn't used much force, but the person almost fell to the side. Zhao Qing quickly stepped in and caught them. Only then did she notice that the person's right forehead was cut and bleeding. Her face paled. If she left the person there, they might die, and the police would find her fingerprints and arrest her. So, not wanting to go to jail, she reluctantly carried the person on her back to find a clinic.
She couldn't afford the medical bills at a regular hospital, but she had secretly hidden a few dozen yuan in her pocket. She planned to use the money to buy textbooks from her teacher; the school library always had extra books to sell to students who had lost them. Unexpectedly, she didn't get the books and instead got a beating. Well, the homeroom teacher wasn't a very good person to begin with; as soon as she dropped out of school, she labeled her as unmotivated. She definitely had to have a good talk with her mother.
"Who is it?" At this hour, the clinic is usually empty. The assistant was dozing off when the door was suddenly opened, and the jarring sound woke her up, instantly ruining her good mood.
"Xiao Qing?" The old doctor at the clinic heard the voice and came out from the inner room. Upon seeing Zhao Qing, he immediately asked, "Did your mother hit you again?"
Zhao nodded, then shook her head: "I hit him, he's fine." With the help of her assistant, she unloaded the person from her back.
"My God, look at that gash! How much blood must have flowed out!" The assistant's earlier impatience had vanished. Zhao Qing was known for her misfortune in the neighborhood. She worked at the clinic and had helped treat Zhao Qing's injuries, big and small. The more she looked at Zhao Qing, the more pitiful she felt.
"Who is this?" The old doctor examined the wound and took out some tools to treat it.
Zhao Qing shook her head: "I don't know, he collapsed under the overpass."
As the assistant brought the old doctor a tray with soiled cotton wool, he asked, "What are you doing under the overpass so late at night?"
“She kicked me out. I was sleeping at the bottom of the stairs when a man touched me. I hit him and he ran away.” Only in this small clinic would Zhao Qing talk more.
"Tsk." The assistant spat, thinking that he shouldn't use foul language as it would have a bad influence, and finally spat out, "They're all trash." The old doctor didn't say anything, but nodded in agreement.
After they finished bandaging the person, Zhao Qing thanked them and carried them away. Watching their struggling figures disappear into the distance, the old doctor shook his head, holding the ten yuan Zhao Qing had given him, and said to his assistant, "Too stubborn." Zhao Qing never wanted to owe anyone anything. She wanted to pay for bandaging her, and she refused to stay overnight, saying she had a home and didn't live outside.
She has no home. That godforsaken place can hardly be called a home.
Zhao Qing carried the person slowly back to the overpass. This was the most remote corner of the city, and there wasn't a soul in sight at night.
In the shadows under the overpass, Zhao Qing put the person down against the concrete surface, then sat down beside her and unknowingly fell asleep.
The next morning, when Fu Wei woke up, his forehead was still a little sore. He raised his hand to touch his forehead and felt the gauze.
"You're awake." Zhao Qing was holding a bottle of mineral water. Fortunately, their place was remote, and a bottle of mineral water only cost one yuan.
“You…” Fu Wei looked at the person in front of her. She was a rather thin girl, and her clothes were ill-fitting and oversized, making her, who was not big to begin with, look even smaller.
"Have some water." Zhao Qing opened the bottle of mineral water and handed it to him, then sat down next to him: "You fainted last night. I found you while I was staying here overnight. The old doctor at the clinic in front bandaged your wound. I dragged you there and then dragged you back."
Fu Wei drank some water and looked at her strangely: "You're spending the night here?"
Zhao Qing nodded: "I was kicked out of my family."
Fu Wei paused for a moment, and after a long while said, "Me too."
The two children stared at each other for a while, then quietly leaned against the concrete. A slight morning breeze gently ruffled a few stray hairs on Zhao Qing's forehead. She asked, "How were you kicked out?"
Fu Wei didn't feel there was anything she couldn't say: "I'm gay."
Around the age of ten, he realized he was different from others. Children always see their parents as their pillar of support, so Fu Wei told his parents about this feeling...
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