Lujia Village in the winter of 1986.
Lu Siqiao felt a splitting headache, and blood gushed down from her forehead, blurring her vision. The ground was covered in blood...
My head hurts so much.
I overheard two women talking.
"Mom, I... I beat that brat to death!"
"What should I do? I... I don't want to go to jail!" The woman's voice was filled with resentment as she complained, "It's all her fault for stealing the sweet potatoes. Those were the food I was saving for Lu Wei and Daya..."
"If that good-for-nothing is dead, she's dead. Clean up the scene, and I'll carry her to the back of the mountain. In an hour, go find her there and tell them she fell to her death!"
Another woman comforted her.
Gradually, Lu Siqiao's vision became clear: beside her was a messy, blood-stained pile of straw, not far away was a farmhouse stove covered in black soot, and in front of her was a dilapidated stool.
In this familiar yet unfamiliar environment, she looked down at her thin, bony hands, covered with old and new scars. The nail on her right thumb had been peeled off, and black bloodstains were clotted on it.
A huge fly hovered over my head, making a buzzing sound.
Isn't this the day when she was seven years old, when she was beaten for stealing sweet potatoes and almost died on Mount Otani?
The woman speaking outside was her biological mother, Huang Ling.
Huang Ling violated birth control regulations in her desire to have a son, but instead gave birth to three daughters. After being fired from Dafeng Silk Factory, she vented her anger on her youngest daughter, Lu Siqiao, frequently beating and scolding her, and starving her became commonplace.
That day, Lu Siqiao was so hungry that she couldn't resist and stole a piece of raw sweet potato, but was caught by Huang Ling in the kitchen and given a severe beating.
Huang Ling thought the body was dead, so she discussed with her mother, Old Lady Shao, about destroying the evidence.
Fortunately, the villagers found her still breathing and rescued her in time, saving her life, but leaving her with a permanent disability in her right leg. Due to her introverted and self-conscious personality since childhood, she suffered from severe depression and was constantly subjected to inhuman abuse.
At the age of thirty-five, Huang Ling secretly plotted to kill her and sell her organs in order to make money.
Upon learning this, Lu Siqiao was utterly devastated and jumped from the 25th floor with Huang Ling in her arms, dying together with her.
Heaven has eyes; she has been reborn!
Lu Siqiao's pupils contracted sharply, blood staining her face, flashing with a crazed obsession.
She heard a noise outside the door and quickly lay back down on the floor.
Old Mrs. Shao grabbed a handful of wood ash from the stove and sprinkled it on her, cursing her for bad luck.
Once the blood on Lu Siqiao's body was absorbed by the ashes, he quickly threw it into the bamboo basket.
To avoid attracting attention, she stuffed the basket with more pig feed and a heavy whetstone, and hurriedly left home.
Along the way, to prevent herself from fainting, Lu Siqiao dug out the wounds on the ashes. The pain made her grit her teeth, and she pulled the pig feed off her face, anxiously seeking a way to escape.
"Isn't this Third Master? Where are you going, old man?"
"Okay, let's go for a walk in the fields."
Just as Lu Siqiao was racking her brains, she heard Old Mrs. Shao talking to someone in front of her.
Upon hearing that calm voice, Lu Siqiao burst into tears of joy, her body trembling uncontrollably.
For more than thirty years, whenever she felt discouraged and desperate, a loving figure would always appear in her mind.
That man was her grandfather, known as Third Master Lu.
In her past life, even her own sisters ignored her and insulted her, calling her a jinx and a money-loser. Only this old man in front of her, without expecting anything in return, warmed her short life with the remaining light of his life.
"What's wrong with girls? Chairman Mao said that women can hold up half the sky just the same!"
"If you don't want her, I'll take care of her!"
Huang Ling also disliked Master Lu and wished her husband and children were far away from him.
Lu Siqiao's eyes were red and swollen. She endured the pain and reached her hand out through the small hole in the bamboo basket. As Lu Sanye passed by, she grabbed his clothes and said in a hoarse voice, "Grandpa, Grandpa, save, save Qiaoya!"
"Oh my god!" Old Mrs. Shao thought it was a corpse that had come back to life, and she was so frightened that she fell to the ground along with her basket.
"You are, Qiao Ya'er!" Third Master Lu held up the bamboo basket with one hand and carried Lu Siqiao out.
Upon seeing her face clearly, the usually composed old man's eyes instantly reddened: "What a tragedy!"
Lu Siqiao was covered in black blood, with a gaping wound on her forehead. Her dry, yellow hair was clumped together with blood and ashes. Her right eye was swollen and she couldn't open it. Her arms and short legs were covered in whip marks, dense and shocking...
"My dear in-laws, no, the child just accidentally fell and hurt herself—" Old Mrs. Shao quickly tried to clear her daughter's name.
"Damn women, you gave birth to me but didn't raise me, you're not worthy of being human! I'll deal with you later!" Third Master Lu's eyes were bloodshot, his gaze as if he wanted to kill, and he ran like a madman towards the town's clinic, shouting, "Qiao Ya'er, don't be afraid, Grandpa will take you to find a doctor!"
Just then, Lu Wenqing, the village head, drove back in his tractor. When he saw Lu Siqiao lying on the verge of death, he didn't say a word. He called Lu Sanye to get in the tractor and rushed to the town's clinic.
"That damned woman, how could she do that!" Even Lu Wenqing, a grown man, couldn't bear to watch and said with a face full of grief and indignation.
Holding Lu Siqiao, Third Master Lu was afraid of hurting her, but putting her in the car was also risky due to the bumpy ride. He was at a loss, and with red eyes, he asked, "Child, does it hurt a lot?"
Due to excessive blood loss, Lu Siqiao's lips turned purple, and she was in so much pain that her teeth were chattering. She felt like her whole body was falling apart.
"Grandpa, your granddaughter misses you so much!" She hugged Third Master Lu with all her might, as if afraid that he would disappear if she let go, and cried loudly, "Please take me away, I want to live, I want to live well!"
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