fictionpage Chapter 13 Half a Sugar Cube
Chapter 13 Half a Sugar Cube
Firewood always burns very intensely in the summer.
The mute girl's already emaciated body quickly disappeared into the flames.
Beside the fire, Xiaolin trembled and wept.
There were only a few foreign overseers watching from a distance, and she was finally able to cry out loud.
"A single character is written with a long horizontal stroke; grass fears drying out and vegetables fear turning yellow. A stove without firewood won't burn brightly; a dead person will never return to life..."
Old man Xiao Yuanshan stood to the side, muttering to himself, seemingly singing some kind of ballad. Fang Jianqiu could only hear Xiao Lin's cries, so he couldn't hear clearly.
The traitor tossed out a message, "Keep an eye on the fire," and left, followed by several Chinese men.
Only a handful of people remained in the room.
Xiaolin couldn't cry loudly for long; she was too thin and weak, and long-term malnutrition had left her without even the strength to cry.
Its small body swayed precariously.
Fang Jianqiu came to her side and touched the child's head with his hands, which were scorched by the fire.
With someone to lean on, Xiao Lin's body went limp, and she collapsed next to Fang Jianqiu.
He was about to say something when Kobayashi spoke first.
The child looked up at the older boy he had met a few times, and choked up as he spoke:
"I...I haven't had a chance to give...my older sister any candy yet!"
Her right hand, which had been clenched tightly, loosened its grip.
There is half a sugar cube in my palm.
The sugar had been soaked in sweat, its edges softened, and it was mixed with dirt.
She gripped it so tightly that the candy almost got embedded in her flesh.
After saying this, Xiaolin started crying again.
She cried her heart out.
Fang Jianqiu stared at the half-eaten candy, but couldn't utter a single word...
Time passed in a short while, yet it felt like an eternity.
Without any warning, the child's crying stopped, and she collapsed completely onto Fang Jianqiu.
Fang Jianqiu picked up Xiaolin and felt that she was not even as heavy as a bundle of sugarcane, as light as a piece of white paper.
He walked up to the group of Chinese women, took out two packs of tobacco from his pocket, handed them to them, and said:
"Please, sisters, take care of this child from now on, at least make sure she doesn't go hungry. Consider this a small token of our appreciation."
His voice was flat and emotionless, which made the women hesitant to respond.
But when they saw the tobacco pouch Fang Jianqiu handed them, they immediately beamed and nodded in agreement.
This thing is a form of hard currency among the working class, regardless of gender.
Afterwards, Fang Jianqiu handed over the tobacco pouch and Xiaolin together. A rather sturdy woman carried Xiaolin on her back, and the group left.
Fang Jianqiu stood there, staring blankly at the still-burning fire.
"You're planning to run away, aren't you?"
That old, hoarse voice rang out from the side.
Fang Jianqiu did not turn around, neither admitting nor denying.
"The children sold here don't live to adulthood."
Xiao Yuanshan blurted out something out of the blue.
Fang Jianqiu remained silent.
"It's easy for you to walk alone, but it's difficult to take that little girl with you! However, we can help you."
Old Xiao revealed the truth.
"A little girl? Kobayashi is a girl after all."
Fang Jianqiu was surprised for a moment, but not too much, and that wasn't the key point.
He finally turned around, but asked a completely different question:
"Brother Xiao, why do you think I left this plantation?"
"Hehe, I've been in this godforsaken place for so long, I've seen a lot of Qing Dynasty laborers. Some came here voluntarily, some were deceived, and some were forced."
"But in any case, when they first arrived, they were always thinking about making some money."
"Only you, who just arrived, went to buy on credit, as if you didn't care about your wages at all. This kind of behavior is usually what Western laborers do."
"And they only buy cigarettes, alcohol, and candy, unlike you, who bought such a huge pile of grain..."
Xiao Yuanshan wanted to continue speaking, but Fang Jianqiu interrupted him:
"Brother Xiao, there's no need to say anything more. I understand. What do you mean by saying you can help me? So you already have an organization?"
Seeing Fang Jianqiu ask such a question, Old Man Xiao finally showed a relaxed expression. He waved his hand and said:
"There's no organization involved. They're just a bunch of unfortunate people who have come to terms with reality. Let me explain..."
The old man and the young man sat by the fire and began to truly talk.
......
Before we knew it, it was the morning of the third day.
Fang Jianqiu cut down sugarcane expressionlessly, but his mind was replaying his conversation with Old Man Xiao the day before.
It's normal that Old Man Xiao didn't specify who his accomplices were.
The most useful thing was a picture he provided.
That was a key defensive point of the plantation, and also a hidden escape route.
The old man drew very clearly on the ground with charred wood.
After reading it, Fang Jianqiu couldn't help but ask him:
"Brother Xiao, aren't you afraid I'll report this place to those foreigners if you just tell me like this? Also, brother, who exactly are you?"
Although this map is simple, it is by no means something that an ordinary person could draw.
Xiao Yuanshan simply smiled faintly and said:
"Hehe, finding like-minded people is a gamble. If you betray them, then just consider it a lost bet. It'll only be a matter of a single bullet. But the person who betrays them will probably not escape the foreigners' guns either."
"As for this old man, I was just a farmer from Guangxi. But later, in order to make a living, I followed Hong Tianwang to brave the trials..."
Fang Jianqiu finally understood.
Who else could be the Hong Heavenly King of the 19th century? It could only be Hong Xiuquan, the supreme leader of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and the second son of God.
Xiao Yuanshan's identity is self-evident.
"However, Brother Xiao, this veteran of the Taiping Rebellion, has misunderstood one thing. I will leave this place, but definitely not by running away!"
The Tianjin man swung his sickle repeatedly, just like the emotions in his heart at that moment.
What should I do? What can I do? He already had the answer in his heart:
He's going to turn this cannibalistic place upside down and see just how many sugarcane stalks these foreigners' lives are worth!
Finally, take Kobayashi away safely.
......
The sun sets, the moon rises.
The third day will pass just like that.
After a day of logging, the experience bar for the Prismatic Rune had increased significantly.
The shortfall in progress, if converted to sugarcane, would amount to about six or seven hundred more stalks.
"It'll be soon. We'll unlock the Bright Sword Rune tomorrow. Brother Xiao said his group has been waiting for the right opportunity. I'll personally create that opportunity for them..."
Fang Jianqiu returned to the residential area once again.
He wanted to find Ye Lang, give him a hint, and prepare him mentally. He also wanted to take Ye Lang, this warm and kind young man, with him.
Fang Jianqiu was nowhere to be seen. It was assumed that he was cutting sugarcane in another area and might return later.
Unfortunately, he never saw Ye Lang appear.
Fang Jianqiu's heart sank; he had a bad feeling.
At that moment, an unfamiliar Chinese man walked over and looked at him hesitantly.
Fang Jianqiu looked up and recognized the Chinese man who had helped push the cart for the mute girl yesterday. He asked directly:
"Hey buddy, what can I do for you?"
The man finally spoke, and his single sentence sank Fang Jianqiu's heart even further:
"When I was working in the fields before, a woman quietly told me to tell you that the child was sick and had a fever..."
Ye Lang is missing; he's probably been taken away by Hans again.
Kobayashi has a fever, which is even worse news.
In this godforsaken place, getting sick is a matter of fate; if you can endure it, you live; if you can't, you die.
What does it mean when plans can't keep up with changes? Fang Jianqiu finally experienced it firsthand.
At this moment, Old Man Xiao also came over, his face solemn, and waved his hand, saying:
"Young Master Fang, I have something to say to you..."
In the distance, a few gunshots could be faintly heard...