He didn’t continue speaking but moved slowly, struggling to move forward.
Fu Yuling silently followed behind him, carrying things. After a few minutes, he began to speak again.
“Previously, my adoptive father brought back another child. The child came from a good family. They thought the child was stolen by my adoptive father, so they sent someone to cause trouble. My adoptive father grabbed the child crazily and held him tightly. Those people didn’t dare to act because of the child, so they threatened him with the other kids in the yard.”
“My adoptive father, with no choice, gave the child up. Those people then started to smash everything, and my adoptive father was also… beaten to death.”
He suddenly stopped, his cloudy eyes looking at Fu Yuling.
“You tell me, do good people really get rewarded?”
This was a heavy topic. She couldn’t answer.
If she said yes, it contradicted the fact that this adoptive father had helped so many orphans and even risked his life to protect them, only to end up being beaten to death by the rescued child’s family.
If she said no, it seemed that the beggar before her was merely repeating the path he had walked.
This mission continued in his hands.
It seemed he didn’t need Fu Yuling’s answer. He turned around and continued walking.
“I’m a child abandoned by my parents. I’m the youngest at home. They gave birth to me just to sell me for money. They heard that children around six or seven years old sold for a higher price, so they tried their best to raise me to six and then sold me off without hesitation.”
“At that time, I cried and shouted, but they didn’t look back. I knew I had become an unwanted child. I was bought by a wealthy merchant who liked to abuse me. When I first arrived there, I was always covered in scars. I was in despair, but fortunately, my adoptive father took me away not long after.”
“Although my adoptive father was rarely sober and often acted crazily, he treated me very well. As I grew older, more and more children came to the yard. Some of them even stole my adoptive father’s money to escape and never returned.”
He stopped to rest, limping. “But what they didn’t know was that my adoptive father owned several shops under his name, all meant for those children in the yard. They didn’t need to steal…”
His tone finally broke and he began to choke up.
“Now that he’s dead, I handled his funeral all by myself. In truth, I hate him. Why did he leave everything behind and dump this mess on me? Couldn’t he have worried a few more years…”
He was at his most vulnerable time. Fu Yuling stood beside him, feeling a pang in her heart as she listened quietly.
At this moment, words felt too pale to comfort this young man who had lost everything.
His emotions broke through in an instant. He closed his eyes, filled with a sense of despair.
When Fu Yuling looked closely again, there was nothing left.
They reached the gate of the yard, which was silent and void of any sound.
Upon opening the door, she realized there wasn’t a single person inside. Everything was scattered haphazardly in every corner.
“The children are all inside.”
Fu Yuling followed him in. There were a dozen children huddled together. Their originally innocent eyes were cautious, but once they recognized the familiar person, they rushed forward, surrounding the beggar and calling out.
Fu Yuling immediately thought of He Wen and the others. They seemed the same way, so endearing.
Fu Yuling became the most ignored person here.
But she didn’t mind. She set down what she was carrying. She noticed a little girl standing beside her, curiously staring at her. Her heart softened, and she squatted down.
“What’s your name, kid?”
