Sold into a ghost marriage? Four-year-old and his thuggish father go on a killing spree.

"Niannian, Dad was only gone for a few days last time, and you..."

As night deepened, the flame of the kerosene lamp flickered gently in the small mud house.

Gu Yanqiu sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), stroking the smooth business card in his hand, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

The excitement and exhilaration of the day had long been replaced by immense worry and fear.

Provincial capital, training, key personnel...

Each of these words is as sweet as honey, but when put together, they become a heavy shackle.

It will take at least two or three months to get there.

Two or three months...

He dared not think.

The nightmare from a year ago that nearly cost him his daughter remains like a poisonous thorn, deeply embedded in his heart.

It hurts terribly even with the slightest touch.

He looked at his daughter sitting opposite him, quietly doing her homework, and spoke in a hoarse voice.

He didn't even dare to finish his sentence; every word that followed felt like a knife cutting into his heart.

Gu Niannian stopped writing and looked up.

She didn't cry, nor did she whine and say "Daddy, don't go" like other children do.

Her eyes were unusually calm and clear.

"Dad, you're scared."

She used a declarative sentence, not an interrogative sentence.

Gu Yanqiu stiffened for a moment, then remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.

"You're afraid I'll be bullied and sold off like last time, right?"

Gu Niannian's voice was very soft, but it was like a needle that precisely pierced the softest part of Gu Yanqiu's heart.

He nodded painfully.

"Nian Nian is not afraid."

Gu Niannian jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed), walked to her father, and like a little adult, stretched out her small hand and patted his big hand, which was taut from the force.

"Because I am no longer the Gu Niannian I was a year ago."

She turned around and took a notebook out of her small wooden box.

It wasn't an account book, but a brand new composition book with the title "Gu Niannian's Safety Guarantee Plan".

She turned to the first page, pointed to the neat handwriting, and read it aloud to Gu Yanqiu, word by word.

"Article 1: Safety Guardian. Primary guardian: Aunt Su Xueqing. Aunt Su has promised that she will come to our house every day while you are not here."

He checks my homework, eats with me, and even locks the door before leaving at night.

"Article Two: External Security. Person in Charge: Uncle Cheng Tiezhu. Uncle Cheng has agreed that he will personally be responsible for my safety."

He also assigned militiamen to patrol the area in front of my house twice a day, morning and evening. He gave me a whistle; if I blew it, the militiamen would arrive within three minutes.

"Article 3: Neighborhood mutual assistance. Assistant: Uncle Chen Zhiyuan. Uncle Chen lives next door. He said that as long as there is any big noise on my side, he will rush over immediately."

Gu Yanqiu was stunned.

He never expected that while he was struggling and hesitating, his daughter had already arranged everything in an orderly manner!

This is hardly a solution that a six-and-a-half-year-old child could come up with.

This...this is even more meticulous than the security plan devised by the brigade headquarters!

"besides!"

Gu Niannian turned to the second page, a smug look on her face.

"I have a new 'secret protector'!"

"Who?"

"Uncle, it's Gu Yandong!"

Gu Niannian's voice was tinged with laughter, "My uncle is currently studying through correspondence courses at the commune and will be graduating soon. He works in the brigade during the day and studies at home in the evenings. I've discussed it with him, and if you're really worried, I'll move in with my grandparents and sleep in the same room as my uncle at night. He'll sleep on the floor and I'll sleep on the kang (heated brick bed). Who would dare to bully me then?"

Since what happened on New Year's Eve, Gu Yandong has completely sided with her second brother.

He was honest, upright, and a strong young man. With him watching over him, Gu Yanqiu felt much more at ease.

Thorough and meticulous, leaving no room for error.

Looking at the "safety manual" prepared by her daughter, and at her confident and determined eyes, Gu Yanqiu realized that she couldn't find any reason to refute it.

Yes, he forgot.

His daughter has grown up.

She has gained the wisdom to protect herself, the friends she can trust, and the courage to face difficulties.

If he continues to hold her back and hinder his own progress because of his fear, that would be true cowardice.

"Dad, you went to a training course for three months last time, and when you came back, you became a technician in Chengjiawan."

Gu Niannian's voice carried an undeniable power.

"This is a provincial training program. Once you finish, you'll be a key agricultural machinery operator in the entire province!"

Then you'll be able to earn more money, and we'll be able to live a better life.

Then I can go to the provincial capital, find Grandpa Cheng Fulai, and repay his kindness!

"Dad, you have to go!"

The last sentence was resounding.

Gu Yanqiu's last line of defense was completely shattered by his daughter.

He reached out his rough, calloused hands and hugged his daughter tightly, and hot tears finally streamed down his face.

"Okay... Daddy's going!"

A week later, amidst the farewells of the entire village of Chengjiawan, Gu Yanqiu, carrying a simple bag, boarded the car sent by the county to pick him up.

Before setting off, he squatted down and looked at his daughter solemnly.

"Niannian, take good care of yourself. Daddy... will be back in two months at most. When I come back, I'll bring you White Rabbit milk candy from the provincial capital and make you braised pork!"

Gu Niannian smiled, but then reached out her little hand and gave him a hard push.

"Okay, okay, hurry up and go, stop dawdling, you lazy dad!"

She urged him on verbally, but her eyes quietly reddened.

The car slowly started moving, and Gu Yanqiu leaned out of the car window, waving his hand continuously.

Gu Niannian stood under the old locust tree at the village entrance, waving vigorously until the car became a small black dot and disappeared at the end of the road.

The wind blew her hair.

This time, she didn't cry.

The small figure cast a long shadow in the afterglow of the setting sun, appearing exceptionally determined.

Dad, go chase your dreams of the stars and the sea.

From today onwards, I will take care of this home.

Unbeknownst to her, during the days she guarded this home alone, a huge secret was quietly unfolding before her from not far away.