Chapter 81: Duoduo's Memories (Part 2)

Lan Duoduo looked up, revealing a big, smiling face.

"Thank you, uncle," she said politely.

The young man with a fierce expression was momentarily stunned by Duoduo's innocent smile.

"Where are you going?" the young man asked.

"I'm going to find my brother," Duoduo said, struggling to open her umbrella.

"Your brother, is he at Xicheng Primary School?" the young man said.

"Wow, how did you know?" Duoduo's face was full of surprise.

"I guessed. It's raining so heavily; let me take you."

"No need, I have an umbrella, and I know the way."

By now, Duoduo had already opened the umbrella in her hand and ducked under it.

"Goodbye, uncle."

Holding her umbrella, Duoduo checked the road and walked toward the direction of Xicheng Primary School; she really did know the way.

But as she walked, Duoduo suddenly felt something was wrong and turned her head to look behind her.

She saw two green trouser legs and a pair of army-green work shoes; the rain had soaked the shoe uppers and trouser legs. Duoduo found them very familiar, so she turned around, tilted the umbrella back, and strained her neck to look up. It was indeed that uncle from just now.

"Why are you following me?" Duoduo asked.

Remembering what her mother and father had said about bad people, she was now a bit wary.

"I'm not following you; I'm also going to Xicheng Primary School to pick someone up," the young man said.

"Pick up who?" Innocent Duoduo instantly dropped her guard.

"I... my younger brother."

"Oh, your younger brother goes to the same school as my older brother," Duoduo said, somewhat delighted.

"Oh, yes, you have an older brother, I have a younger brother..." the young man said in a low, mournful tone.

It seemed he said something more at the end, but his voice was too low and the rain too loud for Duoduo to hear clearly.

She didn't care anymore; holding her umbrella, she walked into a nearby alley. Once out of the alley, Xicheng Primary School, where her brother went to school, was right across from her.

But as soon as she entered the alley, she felt someone grab her from behind and hug her.

"I can walk myself; you don't need to carry me."

Even at this point, Duoduo still innocently thought the other person wanted to carry her away.

But immediately after, this little fool also started to feel something was wrong.

The other person said nothing, strode forward, and his shoes splashed up large amounts of water.

The umbrella Duoduo held in her hand almost fell to the ground.

"Put me down, I want to walk myself, put me down..."

Duoduo struggled, kicking her short legs wildly, and the kaleidoscope in her hand fell to the ground.

Seeing her struggle violently, the young man tilted his head, clamped the umbrella handle under his arm, freed a hand, and grabbed Duoduo's neck.

"Don't scream, or I'll kill you."

The young man's face showed a fierce and cruel expression, becoming even more hideous, but Duoduo's face was toward the ground, so she couldn't see it.

Now with her neck being choked, she struggled, trying to pry the other person's hand open, but she was too small; her soft little hands were completely useless.

The sensation of suffocation spread from her throat to her whole body, like a dull knife piercing through her body, as if steel needles were stabbing into her lungs. Soon her eyes widened, her face turned blue and purple, her hands struggled weakly, and her entire body went limp.

This painful memory was also reflected onto Shen Siyuan, who was watching the memory, making him feel it as if it were his own.

Then everything went black before his eyes; the memory broke off here. When he recovered again, he found himself in a dilapidated house.

Duoduo rolled over and sat up, looking around fearfully.

This was a folk house; the red wooden windows had become mottled due to wind and rain, the window frames were covered in spiderwebs, and not a single piece of glass was intact.

The room was piled with miscellaneous items: newspapers, bricks, wood, and a coal stove. A tightly closed wooden door was locked from the outside.

Duoduo wanted to get up and look out the window but found her whole body was soft and limp, with not a shred of strength. Her wet clothes and hair also made her very uncomfortable.

"Dad, Mom..." Duoduo called out softly, sobbing in her mouth.

But no one responded to her. She looked around fearfully, then noticed her umbrella was placed aside, but the "telescope" was nowhere to be seen.

She hurriedly crawled over, hugged the umbrella to her chest, and only then did she feel a little more at ease.

But soon, soaked to the skin, she was cold and in pain, especially at her throat, which was a patch of blue and purple; even breathing felt painful.

This was also the reason she dared not cry too loudly, because it truly hurt too much.

"Dad, Mom, older brother..."

She sobbed quietly, her heart full of helplessness. She reached out her little hand, touched her own neck, and immediately pulled it back.

"Duoduo hurts so much, Duoduo feels so uncomfortable, I want to go home, wuwu..."

"Duoduo will be obedient from now on, never run around again, wuwu..."

Perhaps she cried herself out and grew sleepy; Duoduo's consciousness began to grow dim. Plus, having been caught in the rain and frightened, she started to develop a high fever. Her cheeks turned flushed, and her body instinctively began to curl up.

However, she still held that umbrella tightly in her arms; now, only that umbrella seemed able to give her some comfort.

After an unknown amount of time, Duoduo was awakened by the sound of a door opening.

She tried hard to open her eyes but felt her whole body aching, her limbs limp, with not a bit of strength.

"Mom~" Duoduo murmured softly.

But no one answered, so she called out again: "Dad."

Still no one responded to her. At this moment, her mind was already muddled, as if she had forgotten she had been kidnapped.

She felt someone approaching her, struggled to open her eyes, and tried to see clearly who the person coming was.

When she opened her eyes and saw that ferocious, menacing face, she finally came to her senses.

"Uncle..." she called out timidly.

This was the very uncle who had kidnapped her that afternoon; he still held a wood-splitting axe in his hand.

Duoduo's originally Bai Xi little face was now covered in grime, tinged with a flush of red; her blue-and-white striped dress had become filthy, like a flower trampled by a storm.

Yet the man's expression remained cold, showing not a shred of pity.

"You have a brother; I have a younger brother too." He squatted down, looking at Duoduo lying on the ground.

"He and my brother go to the same school." Duoduo recalled their earlier conversation.

The man chuckled lightly but offered no explanation.

Then he raised the axe in his hand and struck directly at Duoduo's neck.

"Don't blame me; if you must blame someone, blame your father..."

Terrified, Duoduo closed her eyes, then felt a sharp, intense pain in her neck, followed by a warmth spreading outward.

Duoduo opened her eyes, wanting to see what was happening.

But she saw blood staining her dress red, flowing into the umbrella she clutched tightly in her arms; the blood soaked the canopy, and even the handle seemed to turn crimson.

Duoduo was too small, and with her consciousness nearly fading, she noticed nothing amiss.

But Shen Siyuan, who had been observing everything through a third-person perspective, detected the anomaly.

This oil-paper umbrella must have been waterproofed; otherwise, it could not have shielded against rain.

Yet if that were so, why was Duoduo's blood being absorbed by the canopy? And the handle too.

This umbrella was somehow wrong.

Just then, the young man brought the axe down again; Duoduo's bright, innocent eyes lost their luster, and her consciousness plunged completely into darkness.