Chapter 45: The Attack |
Ah Huang was an old stray dog.
As a stray, it had only known warmth for a brief moment in its life—until its mother’s death. Since then, it had never experienced kindness from humans.
Years of wandering had taken their toll, leaving Ah Huang weaker than ordinary dogs, let alone pampered pets.
Its once brownish-yellow fur was now matted and dark in places, with patches missing under its ears. The wounds it had sustained during fights with other strays had become infected, harboring parasites.
On this particular night, it was scavenging trash bins as usual.
After finding a small morsel to fill its stomach, it wandered into a narrow alley—the place it had recently claimed as home.
It remembered a human from the previous week.
That day, after searching every trash bin nearby without finding enough to eat, it had crouched at the alley’s entrance, tongue out, watching people pass by.
One human had noticed it.
Years of suffering had left Ah Huang wanting to bite any human who got too close. But hunger had drained its strength.
All it could do was gaze at her with its cloudy eyes as she drew nearer, step by step.
She crouched down, pulling a steamed bun from a plastic bag.
The bun, still warm, was gently placed a short distance away.
The aroma wafted into Ah Huang’s nose, a smell so delicious it had never experienced anything like it before.
Driven by hunger, it shuffled forward and devoured the bun in a few bites.
It felt a little better afterward.
The human observed it for a moment, then took out another bun, broke it in half, and placed one piece on the ground.
She then stood up and walked away.
Ah Huang ate the half-bun but kept its gaze fixed on her retreating figure.
It sniffed the air, committing her scent to memory.
A week later, on this night, it caught that familiar scent again.
The source of the scent was a girl who looked flustered, clutching a bag and glancing over her shoulder now and then.
Ah Huang approached, but she didn’t seem to notice. She quickly turned a corner and dashed into the alley.
It turned its attention to the direction she had come from.
There, it saw another human.
Immediately, Ah Huang assumed an aggressive stance, letting out a low growl.
But before it could growl for long, a rock suddenly struck it hard from behind.
The sharp pain made it yelp loudly. Instinctively, it fled, retreating to the corner where it usually rested.
Curled up as it had been in countless other moments of pain, it extended its tongue to lick the spot where it had been hit.
The night was dark.
Footsteps echoed, drawing nearer.
Ah Huang stopped licking and looked up.
A human stood over it.
Its cloudy eyes saw something in the human’s hand, raised high.
The object came down with full force.
Liu Changqing escorted Zhou Shiyan home.
He had thought his living situation was humble enough, but upon seeing Zhou Shiyan’s home, he realized his place was practically luxurious by comparison.
Her home was a tiny rental unit.
The location was even more remote than Liu Changqing’s neighborhood, with very few residents in the area. Most of the tenants appeared to be elderly.
The room couldn’t have been more than 20 square meters.
A single iron lampshade hung from the ceiling, with a bulb at its center emitting a dim yellow glow. When Zhou Shiyan flipped the switch, the light flickered two or three times before fully illuminating the room.
As the room lit up, Liu Changqing surveyed his surroundings.
A small table, two plastic stools, a bed, and various odds and ends.
One corner of the bedframe was broken, but the bedding was clean and neatly arranged.
Zhou Shiyan was very polite.
She picked up a thermos from the floor, poured water into a cup, and, holding it with both hands, offered it to Liu Changqing.
Feeling a bit thirsty, Liu Changqing didn’t refuse. He took a few sips.
The water was hot—too hot.
Unable to drink more, he handed the cup back to her.
"Where’s your mom? Do you live here alone?"
Taking the cup, Zhou Shiyan placed it on the table. She hesitated for a moment before replying, "She’s at work."
"At work?"
Liu Changqing was puzzled.
"Doesn’t your family run a breakfast shop? Shouldn’t it be closed by now?"
"..."
Zhou Shiyan fell silent.
After a while, she explained, "She also works at a supermarket, from 1 PM to 9 PM."
She glanced at Liu Changqing.
"Our family needs money right now."
Running a breakfast shop was already a demanding job.
To work at a supermarket after closing the shop, only to come home, sleep for a few hours, and wake up early to prepare the morning’s food…
If she managed to fall asleep immediately after getting home at 10 PM, she would only get four to five hours of rest.
Liu Changqing didn’t know what to say.
This was their family matter, and it wasn’t his place to pry.
Having seen her safely home, Liu Changqing felt his task was complete. Staying alone with a young girl in such a small space felt inappropriate, so he decided to leave.
"Since I’ve brought you home, and it’s getting late, I won’t stay any longer."
"Won’t you have some water?"
Liu Changqing glanced at the cup he had sipped earlier and shook his head.
"No, thanks. I’m not that thirsty."
He declined firmly.
Hearing his reply, Zhou Shiyan gave him a deep bow.
"Uncle Liu, thank you so much for walking me home."
"There’s no need for that… It was no trouble at all."
Her gesture made Liu Changqing a little uncomfortable. This child was almost too polite.
He waved it off, walked to the door, and added with a chuckle, "I was actually planning to say hello to your mom. Honestly, after having breakfast at your shop for the first time, I was hooked. I can’t eat anywhere else now!"
With that, he placed his hand on the doorknob and opened the door.
He kept his gaze on Zhou Shiyan, not bothering to look outside.
But he was startled to see her expression suddenly fill with panic.
Turning around, Liu Changqing saw a man raising a stick, aiming it straight for his head.
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