1325 I Only Want You 23 (2/2)
”Listen to me, you can't stay here any longer. Hence, we're going to take you away from this place now. Once you're in the town, Shixin will bring you to a safer place. Alright?”
The girl nodded with tears in her eyes and said, ”Thank you, Sister.”
”Don't mention it. Come, let me carry you.”
”I'll do it,” said Fan Shixin.
”Let me do it, I'm stronger.” An Xiaoning sat down on the bed and said, ”Come, get on my back.”
The girl leaned forward and wrapped her arms around An Xiaoning's shoulder.
An Xiaoning used her inner energy to pick her up. The girl was holding an umbrella in her hand, and so was Fan Shixin, who was guiding them with a torchlight.
Although Fan Shixin was not carrying anyone, he could barely keep up with An Xiaoning's pace.
The girl said softly, ”Sister, my name is Jing Chu.”
”Your mother may be abusive, but she gave you a nice name.”
”She wasn't the one who named me.”
”Huh… who did, then?”
”There's a tattoo on my arm that had been present ever since I was a child. I only found out later that it was my name, Jing Chu.”
”What did you say to the lamb to stop them from bleating when I rescued you?” An Xiaoning asked.
”I can communicate with animals. I told them to be quiet so they obeyed my instructions.”
An Xiaoning was appalled.
She can communicate with animals?
Seems like she really isn't an ordinary human.
”Oh, I see. Can you hear the communication between animals too?”
”Yes.”
”That woman… is she your stepmother or your adoptive mother?” An Xiaoning asked after much consideration.
Jing Chu answered, ”Neither. I've never addressed her as my mother. She never told me where I came from either. All she does is hit and berate me.”
”Did she ever explain why she abuses you?”
”No.”
”How old are you this year?”
”I don't know. I have no idea when my birthday is either.”
”I think you're still very young. That woman said that she had been beating you for more than a decade. You should be almost twenty now. But what happened to your leg?”
”They're broken. I broke them when I was younger. They healed by themselves, but she broke them again. After a repeated cycle, I became crippled.”
An Xiaoning sighed in sympathy. There were truly all sorts of unlucky people in this world.
”It's alright, you're free from all that pain and suffering now. From now on, I'll protect you and you'll live well.”
Jing Chu teared up and asked, ”Sister, what's your name?”
She answered, ”I… An Xiaoning.”