Yu Le: "You hate him?"
Ruan Chen: "I wouldn't say I hate him, he just asked for it."
Yu Le: "I don't kill people."
Ruan Chen: "There are many ways to kill without shedding blood."
Yu Le sat back on the sofa and gestured for Ruan Chen to sit down as well. "You're twelve years old this year, why don't you do it yourself?"
"I can't get blood on my hands."
Looking at the composed Ruan Chen, Yu Le felt a pang of regret. She possessed all three qualities: beautiful, ruthless, and intelligent.
It's a pity that Ruan Chen was born in such an environment as a slum; otherwise, he would surely have achieved great things in the future.
He suddenly felt he needed to explain things to Ruan Chen.
“It was your dad… Cao De, who came to me with your photo, asking if I wanted a pretty little girl,” Yu Le said, waving his cigarette. He glanced at the two children sitting upright, didn’t light it, and continued, “Cao De’s asking price was 30,000 yuan. I’m not short of money, and I didn’t have any other intentions in agreeing to it. The main thing is that I’m not young anymore, and I always feel lonely without a child by my side. You’re not even fourteen yet, and I’m not really a beast.”
Ruan Chen lowered her eyes and said calmly, "You don't need to explain. What you talked about with him before is not important. Now it's a deal between you and me."
Yu Le pondered for a moment, "Deal. I'll help you deal with Cao De. After it's done, you'll work for me."
"Thank you, Brother Le."
Ruan Chen thanked him verbally, but didn't move, still staring intently at Yu Le.
Yu Le smiled. "What else do you want?"
"Deposit. Ten thousand yuan. You give me five thousand first. This whole area belongs to Brother Le. I can't run away."
What do you need the money for?
Ruan Chen naturally put her arm around Fu Jianzhi, saying, "Let's take care of your younger brother."
Ruan Chen didn't believe a word Yu Le said about being alone and lonely without children. She wasn't stupid enough to send herself to the Bliss Hall.
She wanted five thousand yuan so that she could run away with Cong Rao and Fu Jianzhi after Cao De's death.
Yu Le snapped his fingers, waved to the people around him, and gave them an order.
Soon, the man returned with three thick stacks of money.
Fu Jianzhi's expression remained unchanged, while Ruan Chen swallowed hard, unable to resist.
“I’m not short of money, here’s 30,000. But you have to keep your word—if you dare to run away…” Yu Le’s hand lightly traced his neck, his eyes turning cold.
"Don't worry, Brother Le, I won't run away."
As he was leaving, Yu Le asked one more question, "I want to know, if you were to do this, what bloodless method would you use?"
He no longer dared to treat Ruan Chen as an innocent twelve-year-old child.
Ruan Chen smiled, her eyes cold and indifferent. "I think Brother Le must have a lot of irresistible gadgets here. Didn't I already send him to your casino? You should be able to get him addicted easily."
Yu Le then realized that Cao De's sudden visit to the Pleasure Hall to gamble today was actually orchestrated by this little girl in front of him.
The next day, Ruan Chen went out and found several strangers at her doorstep.
She guessed that it was Brother Le who sent him to check on her.
But she didn't panic.
She took the family's household registration booklet—actually, the booklet only had her and Cong Rao's names on it. Neither Ruan Zhengde nor Cao De had registered Cong Rao with them, which is why Ruan Zhengde ran away so decisively back then.
She opened two bank accounts in her own name. One account held 15,000 yuan; she gave one to Fu Jianzhi and kept the other for herself.
She knew she shouldn't put all her eggs in one basket. She was comfortable giving half to Fu Jianzhi, but if she gave it to Cong Rao, given her stubborn nature, she would immediately spend the money on men.
"Jianzhi, keep this 15,000 safe. The password is the one I used the day I found you. Remember it?"
Ruan Chen was worried that Fu Jianzhi might not be very bright, so she forced Fu Jianzhi to memorize the password many times.
Fu Jianzhi memorized it and asked softly, "Sister, you're giving me money, does that mean you don't want me anymore? After it's all done, are you going to the Pleasure Hall?"
Fu Jianzhi and Ruan Chen share a common trait: they are both remarkably precocious.
Ruan Chen did these things without hiding them from Fu Jianzhi, and Fu Jianzhi also readily accepted that her adopted sister wanted to kill her father.
He even thought that if he had the chance, he would like to kill Fu Lin and ask him before he died why he only saved his brother and not him.
“No, we’re not going. After it’s done, we’ll run away,” Ruan Chen roughly ruffled Fu Jianzhi’s hair. “I’ll take you with me wherever I go from now on.”
Fu Jianzhi revealed a fawning and satisfied smile, like a puppy.
The next day, Cao De did not return home.
On the third day, Cao De returned home reeking of a foul odor, and even the little gold bead on Rao's earlobe was pulled away by him.
Cong Rao covered her bleeding ear and wailed loudly.
She cried about her miserable life, about how she had been with two men but hadn't gotten anywhere with them, and about her tragic first half of life.
Ruan Chen silently tidied up the house while watching her useless mother.
She was worried that Cong Rao might find a third man.
But in the daily, mechanical labor in the slums, in the cramped kitchen where even turning around was difficult, Cong Rao's figure had become out of shape, and now she looked like an incompetent, rude, and lowly village woman.
Ruan Chen comforted herself with this thought: no man would be interested in a woman like this.
Three days later, on a foggy morning, Cao De returned home.
He took a cold shower and collapsed onto the bed. Ruan Chen pretended to pour him water and saw the needle marks on his arm and the side of his neck.
Cao De slept for more than ten hours. When he woke up, it was already dark.
A profound emptiness and loss gripped him, along with a tingling and pain emanating from every bone in his body. Even his mind felt like it was being slowly scooped out with a small spoon, causing him to tremble and drool.
At that moment, Ruan Chen obediently walked in from outside.
Like a little white lamb, obedient, docile, and alluring.
Cao De became agitated.
He wanted to hunt and tear the lamb to pieces.
Ruan Chen nervously handed him a black plastic bag and stammered, "Dad, Brother Le sent this to you."
Cao De snatched the plastic bag, glanced inside, and saw the familiar syringe and powder.
When faced with even greater pleasure, hunting becomes irrelevant.
Ruan Chen turned around and tiptoed away.
She was the hunter who succeeded.
Brother Le said that this dose is enough to end all of this.
Ruan Chen carefully put the bankbook away—she and Fu Jianzhi had been inseparable from it these past few days. She pulled Fu Jianzhi aside and said to the busy Cong Rao, "Mom, I'm taking Jianzhi to the rooftop to pick some coriander."
Cong Rao waved her hand to indicate that she understood.
Suppressing her excitement, Ruan Chen led Fu Jianzhi outside. Cong Rao loudly reminded her to be careful and come back quickly. She heard her, but was too lazy to reply.
When she left Cao De's room, she took all the change—five cents, one cent, and one dollar. Although it wasn't much, it was enough for her and Fu Jianzhi to each buy a grilled sausage, which was covered in chili powder.
The two little children ate their food, enjoying the evening breeze.
Fu Jianzhi actually really likes his current life—it's very free and comfortable, and Ruan Chen treats him very well.
Back home, my older brother always got priority, and no matter how hard he tried, my father never saw it.
Even at the very end, all Dad wanted was for his older brother to live.
He had gotten used to the taste of those inferior foods and had also learned to use a few coins to buy sweet roasted sweet potatoes himself.
Fu Jianzhi ate quickly. After he finished, Ruan Chen still had half a piece left. Ruan Chen reluctantly took a bite and handed it to Fu Jianzhi, saying, "You eat it. You're too small. Eat more so you can grow up quickly and protect your older sister in the future."
Fu Jianzhi was a little embarrassed, but his hand honestly accepted it.
After finishing the grilled sausage, Ruan Chen leisurely led Fu Jianzhi home, discussing their future life along the way.
For example, going to school, or a large shopping mall.
As she reached the intersection, Ruan Chen suddenly caught a whiff of something burning in the wind, and her heart clenched.
In the distance, the firelight illuminated half the sky.
An aunt who knew her saw Ruan Chen and said urgently, "Ruan Chen, you have to go back quickly! Your house is on fire! The whole area is burned down!"
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