Farm Girl's Manor

In the courtyard, Mo Yan, with nothing better to do, plucked the leaves of the vegetables from the garden and threw them to the ground for the chicks to eat. Watching each tender yellow chick wriggle their chubby little bodies to compete for food, she found it amusing. She occasionally poked their bottoms with her finger, and if a chick lost its balance, it would topple over headfirst, which made her burst into laughter.

There were a total of eight chicks, hatched by a hen from the Space. The hen had laid her eggs in a very concealed spot, and Mo Yan had not discovered them until the day before yesterday when she stumbled upon the hen foraging in the Space with her chicks. She then captured them all and brought them outside to raise them as pets, for a change of pace in life.

"Big sister, you’re really bored!"

Zhenzhen, lying on the small table practicing his calligraphy, was rendered speechless by his sister’s mischief. She was usually so serious, yet sometimes she acted like a fool.

Mo Yan pretended to be angry as she tousled his hair, "Don’t you think they’re cute? If we don’t play with them now, they won’t be fun when they grow up! Just like you, ever since you started your enlightenment, you’ve become less and less cute! Children should enjoy their childhood!"

Zhenzhen rolled his eyes. No matter how cute the chicks were, how could it be interesting to play with them every day?

"Sister, we’re going to return to our hometown soon. Are you really planning to take these chicks back with us to play with?"

As Xin Er asked, she finished her last stitch and looked at the newly completed purse, nodding with satisfaction. She thought it should fetch about eight Wen Money at the embroidery shop.

The mention of returning to their hometown made Mo Yan lose interest in teasing the chicks. She silently tallied the days and realized there were only nine days left until the final deadline of September 30th.

Zhenzhen also stopped writing, gazing blankly at the pecking chicks for a while before asking with a glimmer of hope, "Big sister, isn’t there any other way?"

Mo Yan stroked his small head and shook her head in response to his hopeful gaze, "Going back home is fine too. When we get there, dad will become a teacher in town, and you’ll attend his school. We’ll find a good Embroidery Master for your second sister, and I’ll take care of the farming at home, ensuring our family lives like Landlords!"

The beautiful vision made Zhenzhen’s somewhat dim eyes suddenly brighten. He tilted his head and thought for a moment, then suddenly felt that returning to their hometown might not be so bad after all.

"Sister, are you really going to find me an Embroidery Master?"

Xin Er’s eyes shone with excitement. She loved embroidery, especially the large screens in the embroidery shop that looked almost real. She thought she would only ever embroider small purses and handkerchiefs, but her sister was actually considering hiring a master for her.

Mo Yan pinched her soft cheek and said with a smile, "Of course, it’s true. When have I ever lied to you?"

Ever since Xin Er learned needlework, she had thrown herself into it completely. Whenever she went to the embroidery shop to deliver her work, the sight of those exquisite models would make her legs go weak with admiration, and her longing was written all over her face. How could Mo Yan not see it? Although her own embroidery skills weren’t bad, they paled in comparison to those professional Embroideresses, and she couldn’t teach Xin Er much.

"Sister, you’re the best!" Xin Er threw herself into her sister’s arms, her eyes brimming with tears. What did it matter if they had no mother? She had the best sister in the world.

"I’m your sister; of course, I should be good to you. Silly girl!" Mo Yan chuckled.

...

Late at night, after the two young girls had fallen asleep, Mo Yan opened her eyes, tiptoed out of bed, put on her shoes, and went to the courtyard.

At that moment, the moonlight was hazy, and all was still. She yawned, covering her mouth, and was about to enter the Space to harvest the potatoes she had planted a few days ago, when she heard a loud "clang" at the gate, which nearly made her shriek in fright.

Who’s outside the door? Could it be a thief?

Mo Yan clutched her pounding chest, eyes tightly fixed on the courtyard door. Having lived here for nearly two months, she hadn’t heard of any nearby thefts, but in the dead of night, if not a thief, could it possibly be a ghost?

Guided by the dim moonlight, she tiptoed under the eaves, holding the wooden bat used for laundry, and stealthily positioned herself beside the door, hiding her body behind it. Her ears were perked up for any sound outside. Should someone break in, she was ready to strike first and ask questions later.

"Bang—" "Bang—" Twice, louder than before, the noises made Mo Yan’s heart tighten, and her palms began to sweat.

Just as she wondered if it was too late to call her father for help, suddenly a dark figure unexpectedly leaped over her head and, with a "thump," fell behind her.

"Uhm—"

Possibly hurt by the fall, the figure let out a restrained moan. He struggled to stand, but Mo Yan did not give him the chance. She raised the bat high and brought it down hard on the figure’s back.

"Thump—"

The sound of the bat striking muscle was so vivid that even Mo Yan felt the pain. The figure collapsed to the ground without a stir.

Wiping the cold sweat from her forehead, Mo Yan approached and kicked the figure on the ground, only to find him unnaturally stiff, causing her toes to hurt from the kick.

"Tsk tsk, who would’ve thought a thief could be so solidly built, such a shame. Why choose to be a thief?"

With such a good build, I wonder what he looks like!

A sudden thought crossed Mo Yan’s mind. She squatted down and struggled to turn the unconscious thief over. Just then, a strong smell of blood assaulted her nostrils, almost making her vomit.

The smell of blood was so potent; had her blow veered off and cracked open the back of his head?

Mo Yan felt a rush of panic. While she intended to teach the thief a lesson, she hadn’t meant to kill him. The back of the head was so fragile, and such a heavy blow was bound to cause trouble.

Suppressing her fear, she shakily reached out to touch the back of the figure’s head and found it to be perfectly clean, without a trace of injury!

Sitting down hard on the ground, Mo Yan heaved a sigh of relief. Thinking back to her fear, she laughed at herself mockingly, but her laughter ceased abruptly. If she hadn’t caused the wound, then it must have been inflicted by someone else. Was this person being hunted down?

At this thought, Mo Yan’s complexion turned extremely grim. She could no longer care about other things, hastily went inside to fetch a lamp, and then bent over the figure. Sure enough, there was a long gash across the man’s abdomen, still oozing fresh blood. His clothes, soaked through, clung tightly to his body, and the scent of blood was even more intense than before.

Seeing his black tight-fitting attire and veiled face, Mo Yan was sure the man was being pursued and had sought refuge at her home. At this realization, she quickly opened the courtyard door; indeed, there were two identical bloody handprints on it and a small puddle of fresh blood on the ground.

A bad premonition welled up inside Mo Yan; their home might be in grave trouble!

Pushing down the turmoil inside, Mo Yan removed his veil and was about to wake him when she caught sight of his face, and couldn’t help but exclaim, "Holy shit, how could it be him?"