5 Pep Talk (1/2)

Li Xiuying began crawling along the fence. She had to crawl roughly 15 meters to get to the gap.

There was a small space between the fence and the rose bushes. It was about a ruler's width. The space wasn't large enough that she could avoid the thorns but it at least provided a small path for her to maneuver.

The thorns of the roses were scratching her body; drawing small amounts blood. She tried her best to crawl in such a way that she could avoid being scratched in the face, especially her eyes. This caused thorns to keep getting embedded in the sleeves of her top, forcing Li Xiuying to use more of her strength to crawl forward.

Bits of rock were prodding into her elbows, knee's and stomach. There were dead leaves and small twigs in her hair.

Li Xiuying fought her way through spider webs and an ant's nest. She batted away flies and lady birds. She felt ants and spiders crawling all over her body.

She even saw mice weaving in and out of the rose bushes. She fought the urge to scream and get up to shake everything off.

Li Xiuying: ”I can do this.”

Beads of sweat were streaming down her face.

She clawed at the soil and rotting vegetable compost. She felt beetles scurrying along her palms. Her sense of smell was being overwhelmed by the odor of decaying food.

Only her sheer determination and willpower kept her going. Li Xiuying gritted her teeth.

The adrenaline rush from earlier had long since worn off. Her body was aching all over. Her bones felt heavy. The scratches on her body were stinging.