Chapter 26

At night, the moonlight poured in through the window like water.

On the bed, Zhang Meng’s beautiful face was tightly furrowed, her closed eyes’ lashes trembling slightly.

The weather was getting colder. Goose feather-like snowflakes danced in the grey sky, and the biting cold wind blew through the window cracks, freezing Zhang Meng to the bone.

She hunched her neck, her stiff hands gripping the flint, striking it repeatedly. A spark flashed, and the cotton caught fire.

She carefully lit the flammable leaves and twigs.

“It’s alright, it’ll be much warmer once the fire is going.”

Although her face was stiff from the cold, she still managed to force a smile. Her bright black eyes curved as she looked at the white-haired boy opposite her.

Unlike the villagers, she wouldn’t ostracize him because of his hair color, calling him a reincarnated demon or such.

The boy’s clothes were thin and tattered, his lips purple-black from the cold, but he didn’t utter a sound. He curled up in the corner of the room, staring blankly at the floor, ignoring Zhang Meng’s words.

After lighting the fire, Zhang Meng dug out a few sweet potatoes from the soil pile behind her and placed them by the fire to roast.

“You must be hungry too. I’ll roast some sweet potatoes for you. Eat them here. Don’t take them outside.” Zhang Meng turned the sweet potatoes with a blackened branch. “Although sweet potatoes aren’t considered a delicacy, they always tend to snatch your things.”

No matter what the boy had in his hands, the village brats would always destroy his belongings.

Even if the boy hadn’t eaten for days, any food he managed to get would always be snatched away to feed the dogs.

The boy kept his head down, his messy white hair touching the ground. Sparks occasionally flew from the fire, landing on his hair and his scarred hands, but he showed no reaction.

Zhang Meng put down the stick, pulled the boy to her side, tied up his long hair, and tidied his clothes.

Soon, the sweet potatoes were ready. Zhang Meng peeled the blackened skin, revealing the bright yellow flesh inside, steaming hot and fragrant.

“Eat.”

Zhang Meng handed him the peeled sweet potato.

The boy, who had been silent like a wooden doll, finally moved, slowly extending his chapped little hand to take the sweet potato.

The boy nibbled on the sweet potato in small bites.

Zhang Meng smiled and patted his head: “I have to leave again soon, but I’ll come back to find you in a few days.” The boy paused but didn’t speak.

As Zhang Meng turned to leave, the boy’s scarred little hand grabbed her sleeve.

“What is it?” she asked.

The boy held onto her sleeve tightly, his fingers turning white from the effort. After a long while, he slowly let go of Zhang Meng’s sleeve.

“Remember to come back.”

The boy’s voice was cold and hoarse, but it revealed a hint of attachment.

“Mm.” Zhang Meng smiled, “I’ll come back. Wait for me.”

……

Zhang Meng opened her eyes, her thoughts still lingering in that cold, broken house from her dream.

The desperate look of that tortured boy still echoed in her mind, making her heart ache slightly.

Such a vivid dream, as if she had really experienced it.

It was strange. Ever since she had stayed with Xu Lu Cha at the bottom of the valley for a while, she had been dreaming of the same white-haired man every night.

And now, she had dreamed of the man’s childhood.

Zhang Meng shook her head, clearing away the excess thoughts in her mind. It was just a dream, no need to take it too seriously.

Dawn was breaking. Zhang Meng got dressed and got out of bed.

Yesterday, when Zhong Huo learned that she had gone to find Xu Lu Cha, she was a bit unhappy but didn’t say much. She only advised her: “Although he lives there and you should entertain him, you shouldn’t get too close to him. It might ruin his reputation.”

Zhang Meng agreed wholeheartedly. She decided to go and deliver some things to him today, but wouldn’t stay too long. She would leave as soon as she made the delivery.

……

“Boss Lin, you know your nephew is ugly and hot-tempered. In all of Cloud City, who else but me would be willing to marry him? If you’re not willing to betroth him to me, do you want him to remain unmarried for life?” The middle-aged woman in brown clothes said impatiently.

Her skin was dark, her eyes slightly slanted, her mouth corners turned down, with an air of irritability between her brows and eyes.

Boss Lin’s face wasn’t pleasant, but she still answered patiently: “Miss Liang, whether Lin Hao is willing to marry you or not is his decision. As his elder, I can’t force him. If you really like our Lin Hao, go talk to him. As long as he’s willing, I absolutely won’t stand in your way.”

Miss Liang angrily said: “He won’t even look at me properly, how can I talk to him! He doesn’t understand, don’t you elders think about it? With his looks, who else but me would want him!”

Boss Lin couldn’t bear it anymore. She slammed down her teacup, her voice turning cold: “Miss Liang, as elders, we only hope for the children to be happy. We will never force them to do anything. Even if Lin Hao never marries, I can support him. You don’t need to worry about that. If you really like Lin Hao, go win his heart. There’s no need to come here and argue with me every day.”

“You!” Miss Liang trembled with anger, slamming the table hard. The teacup on the table shook, spilling tea.

“Boss Lin, you’ll regret this!”

Miss Liang kicked over the stool and stormed off, her sleeves flapping.

Boss Lin looked at the departing figure with disgust, slowly picked up the overturned stool, and carefully wiped away the spilled tea with a handkerchief.

Just a gambler and a hooligan, coming here every day to demand that Lin Hao be betrothed to her, all for the property that her elder sister had left to Lin Hao.

No matter how undesirable Lin Hao might be, he didn’t deserve to be mistreated by someone like her.

“Constable Zhang!”

Suddenly seeing that tall and graceful figure, Boss Lin’s tense face softened a bit.

Zhang Meng was on patrol. Hearing someone call her, she turned to see Boss Lin, who always offered her free tea, and quickly smiled at her: “Boss Lin.”

……

Boss Lin was a very enthusiastic and generous person. Whenever the female constables got hot and thirsty during their patrols, she would warmly invite them into the teahouse for tea. Zhang Meng quite liked her.

Boss Lin poured tea for Zhang Meng and moved the cup in front of her: “Constable Zhang, please drink.”

Zhang Meng picked up the teacup, took a sip, and smiled: “Boss Lin, is there something you need from me?”

Boss Lin sighed. Although it was a bit difficult to speak about, she still said: “Constable Zhang, can I trouble you with something?”

“Mm, what is it?”

Boss Lin paused, then lowered her voice and said to Zhang Meng: “Could you keep an eye on Lin Hao for the next few days? I’m worried something might happen to him.”

Zhang Meng’s hand paused, and she frowned: “What’s wrong with Lin Hao?”

Boss Lin told Zhang Meng everything about Liang Bing.

“She pawned all the valuable things in her house to gamble. Recently she ran out of money, so she’s set her sights on Lin Hao. She comes to the teahouse every day to make a fuss, demanding that I betroth Lin Hao to her. I’ve never seen such a shameless person.”

“She’s fierce and unreasonable. I’m not afraid of her doing anything to me, but I’m worried about Lin Hao.”

After listening, Zhang Meng angrily put her teacup back on the table: “Boss Lin, please don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on Lin Hao. I’ll also ask other constables to pay attention to Liang Bing. If she dares to do anything bad, we’ll definitely put her in jail.”