Chapter 261: Chapter Seventeen Night, Because of You It Never Ends

Under dim streetlights, on a black park bench, I and Han Duo sat on the park's long bench, she on the left, me on the right, we remained silent for a long time.

"Hungry…" I handed over a rice ball, no, more accurately it's a piece of sushi. After getting caught in the rain, I was hungry and cold; there happened to be a sushi shop nearby, so I packed a few cylindrical sushi.

Han Duo was completely soaked, her tied-up long hair had come loose, and she was wiping herself with a tissue. Seeing the sushi I handed over, a complex emotion suddenly appeared in her eyes; gazing at the sushi in her hand, she let out a soft sigh.

Thinking of her nickname "Milk Grain", I couldn't help teasing her: "What, do you feel like you're eating your own companion and can't bring yourself to swallow it?"

She showed a reminiscent expression, as if she had seen through the vicissitudes of the mundane world. Suddenly, she turned her head and asked me: "Hey, do you know why my nickname is 'Milk Grain'?"

"Why?" This puzzling question left me confused, but I still couldn't help blurting out the question to her.

Han Duo gazed at the moonlight and let out a soft sigh: "I remember one year when the locust plague was especially severe; rice and meat prices in the city skyrocketed, and almost all the grain was eaten by the locusts. The already hard days in the orphanage became even tougher. At the dinner table, let alone meat, many kids relied on older brothers and sisters digging up wild vegetables to bring back and stave off hunger."

"I recall once when a kind person donated three catties of rice to the orphanage; Mom Lan boiled it all into thin porridge at once and gestured for the children to come get bowls. But many older brothers and sisters just held their bowls and didn't move, because Mom Lan hadn't drunk, they dared not drink." Han Duo said, tears already welling up on her face: "Later, Mom Lan said, 'I'll drink, I'll drink.' In front of us she picked up a spoon and ladled herself a bowl. But I clearly saw she drank only the rice water, not a single grain of rice."

"Back then I didn't understand much, I ate the most, the pot was scooped empty by the starving kids, yet I still felt unsatisfied. The sensible older brothers and sisters gave me their porridge. That meal was the happiest I'd ever eaten, and also the messiest—my little face was covered in rice grains."

"So they gave you the nickname 'Milk Grain'?" It sounded like a funny story, but hearing it I just couldn't feel happy.

Han Duo softly hummed in agreement, saying: "The nickname 'Milk Grain' has accompanied me for a long, long time; it will follow me through my life. Because this name represents the time I love most, and the person I love most."

"The orphanage environment must be pretty tough, right?" I handed her a tissue to wipe her tears dry. But Han Duo didn't take it; instead she reached into my pocket, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it herself.

But after Han Duo exhaled a puff of smoke, still crying, she continued: "Have you seen the old dormitory at Child Fate Bay? Two large tile houses, with over twenty kids crammed together. In summer, the kids would take straw mats to sleep in the big courtyard. In winter, we could only rely on a coal stove for warmth. However, Mom Lan didn't dare nail the windows shut too tight, fearing the children inside would be poisoned. When the cold wind blew in, everyone shivered all over, only able to huddle together for warmth. Come winter, the children at Child Fate Bay would develop chilblains on their feet and hands. Mom Lan saw it in her eyes, felt it in her heart, and could only do more work, using the money she earned to supplement the orphanage's daily supplies."

"And we kids, we all understood to go out on the streets to pick up newspapers, to collect bottles and cans to sell at the garbage station for a few cents per can. Older brothers and sisters were chased by restaurant owners' dogs, beaten by outside beggars… I personally saw an older brother chased by a dog onto the road, only to be hit and killed by a car."

Han Duo once again threw herself into my arms and sobbed loudly, saying through her tears: "I hate it, I hate my own helplessness, I hate that back then I didn't have the abilities I have now, couldn't help my older brothers and sisters."

My chest felt blocked, even tears welled up. Half was because hearing Han Duo's words made my heart ache; the other half was from the pain. While Han Duo cried loudly, she kept pounding my chest hard, the pain almost making me unable to breathe.

"Um, little Millet, that's Chen Xiao's son…." I shifted the topic to Chen Xiao's son Chen Zhi, still wanting to advise Han Duo not to get involved. Unexpectedly, Han Duo then suddenly asked me: "Hai Sheng, do you know why the orphanage is called Child Fate Bay?"

"Is it 'child', 'fate', 'harbor'?" I understood it literally.

"Right…" Han Duo nodded firmly, stood up, turned her back to me, and wiped her tears dry.

"Every child at Child Fate Bay shares the same destiny; we are all homeless children. Child Fate Bay gave us a sense of family, gave us a harbor we could rely on. Since fate has brought us orphans together, none of us can abandon another…"

"I swear I will not abandon any of my younger siblings at Child Fate Bay, even if I die I will absolutely not forsake them." Han Duo's voice carried a stubbornness; both her small hands clenched into fists.

In the chilly night wind, she stood on this quiet, deserted park path; the night cast her as even more fragile, even more tiny. But in my heart, her figure again became tall, that peacock-like pride blossoming once more on her.

No matter how lonely the night, no matter how gray the sky, nothing can block your dazzling light.

Han Duo (Milk Grain), night, because of you it never ends.

"Milk Grain, let's go! I'll first take you back to the orphanage, then tomorrow we'll investigate the case." I stepped forward and draped my nearly dried coat over her shivering shoulders.

I know she told me all this so I would stop stopping her. Since I can't stop her, I can only give my last bit of effort.

Han Duo remained silent, slowly walking with me down the road; her face returned to its usual calm, that hint of fatigue, that hint of weakness, seeming like a fleeting wisp of haze that had never appeared.

I escorted her all the way, and not long after we arrived at Ye Liang's small eatery; just as we were about to reach the gate of Child Fate Bay, both I and Han Duo involuntarily froze.

Suddenly, many police appeared at the gate of Child Fate Bay, followed by a funeral home's vehicle; intermittent sobbing drifted from inside the compound, causing my and Han Duo's hearts to jolt violently.

Could it be… that Aunt Lan has passed away?

Han Duo couldn't wait and rushed into the compound, I followed closely. As we passed through the bustling crowd and entered the grounds, Han Duo instantly froze like a soulless puppet.

She covered her face with both hands, disbelief flowing from her eyes—just like in a movie when the protagonist sees a dead relative and can't accept it for a moment.

"Xin Xin…" Finally, Han Duo could no longer suppress her inner grief; she burst into tears and lunged toward the child who was about to be carried away.

On the stretcher carried by the funeral home staff lay a little girl under ten years old—the very one Han Duo and I had encountered on the road; her name was Xin Xin, and when I first saw her, her thigh had not yet been bitten by a wolfdog.

When I pushed Han Duo aside and clearly saw Xin Xin's condition, at that moment my scalp went numb and cold chills ran straight through my heart.

On the stretcher, Xin Xin's Yintang area was just as darkly discolored; on her skullcap there was similarly a hole about five centimeters wide, its edges dotted with white granular matter. This manner of death was exactly the same as Chen Zhi's.

"Xin Xin…" Han Duo flung herself onto the stretcher, clutching the icy corpse in anguish. Aunt Lan and the children of Child Fate Bay stood guard around, tears streaming, faces sorrowful.

But I, at this moment, felt no sorrow at all—only tumultuous waves. It seems this matter is getting less and less simple; one child's death you might consider a revenge killing, but two…?

My heart pounded thump-thump without cease; an ominous premonition grew stronger. I felt that Han Duo and I had fallen into a massive vortex, darkness creeping closer step by step. Perhaps one misstep and our fate would be utter ruin.

Author's note: (When I was seventeen, I personally saw a beggar kid snatch an unfinished bottle of wine from a restaurant customer; the owner chased after him. Then the little beggar ran panicked and was finally hit and killed by a car. I still remember it vividly, can still recall the scene of his miserable death before my eyes. If readers of this book happen to be restaurant owners or businesspeople, when you encounter child beggars, if things like aluminum cans aren't worth much, give what you can, or offer some food to send them on their way—though we all struggle to make a living, are tired, thrifty, and life isn't easy for anyone, we find earning money easier than they do; a little bit of money, given out of kindness, will also bring blessings.)