Chapter 8 Nude Photo Disturbance
880 Words
My mother never told me she was pregnant, and I pretended not to know. She just hinted more and more often that living with my stepfather was lucky enough, and I should learn to be content and not covet things that didn't belong to me. In this family, there would be a little master in the future.
Many times, I wanted to ask her what things didn't belong to me, but the only thing I coveted was my parents' love. But I never expected to receive it.
She and my stepfather often went to the hospital, so Tang Hai not only supervised my studies but also took charge of my daily life. Tang Hai took me all over Hangzhou, and with him, I always discovered something new, like a bouquet of flowers, a graffiti, or a story. Sometimes he would get excited and tell stories, and his smile was beautiful, like the dispersal of the morning clouds.
I was sure that I had fallen for Tang Hai, but I also knew I couldn't say it, not even a word. Otherwise, I would lose him, and I would never have this kind of companionship again, even if it was in the form of an uncle and niece.
One day, he told me he had something to do and asked me to do the test paper on my own. I finished the test seriously and found that my deskmate had called me many times. I hurriedly called her back and heard her crying voice, "Mu Yi, can you come and bail me out?"
I was too flustered on my way there, and it wasn't until I arrived that I realized this wasn't something I could handle. Xing Qing was held down on a table by a woman pulling her hair, and behind them was a middle-aged man smoking, not saying a word.
As soon as she saw me, Xing Qing cried. She raised her head and looked at me, and I realized her whole face was covered in bruises. Various palm prints and nail marks piled up, making her originally beautiful face look especially tragic.
"Mu Yi," she sobbed, calling my name softly.
I forced myself to walk over and bravely said, "How could you hit people?"
The woman laughed coldly and said, "Ask your classmate what she did." She slapped Xing Qing again and said, "Don't have the guts to call your parents over now? Weren't you bold when you slept with other men?"
I was shocked by what she said, clenching my fists and saying, "Speak properly, don't hit people."
The woman showed off, slapping Xing Qing several times in a row and staring at me with a smile. "You're protecting her so much, aren't you the same kind of person? Okay, use the money you scammed from the old man to redeem your little sister."
Xing Qing whimpered, just crying without stopping, pleading with me. I asked, "How much money do you need?"
The woman looked at me disdainfully and said, "Fifty thousand."
I didn't even have five thousand, let alone fifty thousand. I said, "I don't have that much money."
The woman released Xing Qing and pulled out a stack of photos from her bag, throwing them at me. I only glanced at them and quickly turned my head away. It was a nude picture of Xing Qing...
Xingqing rushed over crying and snatched the embarrassing photos, holding them tightly and weeping: "I know I was wrong, I know. We don't have that much money, and he didn't give me that much either."
The man remained sitting on the sofa, chain-smoking and not even looking over once. It was as if the beating, and the one being beaten had nothing to do with him.
His wife walked over, her sharp long nails pinching Xingqing's chin, and said fiercely: "Is that so? You won't give it? Tomorrow I'll post these photos in your school, let everyone see what kind of person you are!"
I don't know where I got the courage, but I pried her hand off and hugged Xingqing. "We can't pay it all at once, can we pay it in installments for you?"
She laughed and said, "Sure, write an IOU for me." As she spoke, she took out pen and paper from her bag and began to write the IOU. It seemed as if she had planned it all along...
Xingqing kept trembling in my arms, crying as if she were going to die. I held my phone in my hand, hesitating whether to call 110, but saw Xingqing shake her head and plead with me not to.
Just then, my phone rang. I answered, "Uncle Tang."
Tang Hai said, "Why aren't you home? I bought sugar-coated chestnuts for you."
I don't know why, but even though I had been calm all this time, I suddenly felt like crying when I heard his voice. I held back my tears and was about to say that I would go back later, but the woman writing the IOU snatched my phone away and shouted, "Uncle? Are you a parent? Your child is selling s*x at school, are you going to do anything about it?"
Her sharp voice echoed for a long time, like a slap in the face.
- Writer
