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

"Uncle, why are you following me!"

The next day, on her way back to the village after school, Gu Niannian turned around and saw Gu Yandong following her at a distance. She was both angry and anxious.

"I...I have something to do at the brigade on my way!" Gu Yandong's eyes darted around as he made up a lame excuse.

Gu Niannian knew perfectly well that he was coming for her.

She was anxious, afraid that Lin Xiaobei's affair would be exposed, so she quickened her pace, trying to shake him off.

But she was small and had short legs, so how could she outrun a twenty-year-old young man?

Just as they were about to reach the intersection behind the mountain, Gu Yandong caught up in a few steps and grabbed her arm.

"Niannian, where are you going? Who are you giving the food you secretly hide away to?" Gu Yandong's tone was serious, with a hint of brotherly reproach: "What if you, a girl, encounter bad people! Your second brother entrusted you to me, I have to take responsibility for you!"

"I didn't!" Gu Niannian struggled violently. "Let me go!"

"I won't let you go until you explain yourself clearly!" Gu Yandong's stubbornness flared up.

As the two were struggling, a slight rustling sound suddenly came from the bushes not far away.

Gu Yandong, with his sharp ears, turned his head abruptly and shouted sternly, "Who's there! Come out!"

From the bushes, a thin figure stood up hesitantly.

It's Lin Xiaobei.

He was probably waiting for Gu Niannian, but he didn't expect to encounter this scene.

"Who do you think you are?!"

When Gu Yandong saw the ragged, emaciated stranger, he immediately became alert, pulling Gu Niannian behind him and adopting a defensive posture.

"Are you bullying my niece?!"

"No, I didn't..." Lin Xiaobei was so frightened by Gu Yandong's murderous look that she waved her hands repeatedly, her face pale.

"Uncle! Don't scare him!"

Gu Niannian emerged from behind Gu Yandong, spreading her arms wide like a mother hen protecting her chicks, and stood in front of Lin Xiaobei.

Gu Yandong was completely stunned.

He looked at his stubborn niece standing in front of the unfamiliar boy.

My mind didn't quite process it for a moment.

"Niannian, you...you know each other? The food you hid was for him?"

"Yes!" Gu Niannian tilted her little face up and loudly admitted.

Gu Yandong's expression changed instantly, and he rushed forward to grab Lin Xiaobei's collar.

"You little rascal! You dare to cheat my niece out of her food! I'll send you to the production brigade!"

What if this person is a bad guy?

What if he hurts Niannian?

Gu Yandong was both anxious and scared, and his first reaction was to control this potential danger!

"Uncle, stop!"

Gu Niannian gripped his arm tightly, using all her strength.

Her voice trembled slightly, yet remained exceptionally firm.

"He's not a bad person!"

"He was like me—" Gu Niannian looked up, her eyes glistening with tears, and said, word by word, "abandoned by his family!"

"boom!"

These words struck Gu Yandong like a thunderbolt.

His raised hand froze in mid-air.

He looked at his niece, whose eyes were stubborn and who was desperately protecting the unfamiliar boy.

Then he looked at the boy huddled in the corner, trembling all over, his eyes filled with fear and despair.

Gu Yandong's heart felt as if it had been violently clenched by something.

He thought of his second brother, Gu Yanqiu, and of what his niece had gone through.

She was sold into a ghost marriage and tortured relentlessly by her maternal grandmother's family...

"Thrown away by family members"... those six words are too heavy.

Gu Yandong finally lowered his hand, but his expression remained serious.

He didn't make another move, but he didn't give up either.

"This is beyond my control. We must tell Uncle Cheng Tiezhu!"

This is his bottom line.

He dared not be careless in the slightest when it came to Niannian's safety.

That evening, Gu Yandong found Cheng Tiezhu and told him everything.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Tiezhu's square face immediately turned serious.

He took a deep drag on his pipe, his expression obscured by the swirling smoke.

"A boy of unknown origin living in an abandoned house... This matter could be a big deal or a small deal."

The next morning, before dawn, Cheng Tiezhu led Gu Yandong and quietly made their way to the abandoned house on the back mountain.

They didn't alert anyone.

When Lin Xiaobei crawled out of the dog hole and saw the tall, imposing man in an old military uniform standing at the door,...

He was so terrified that he turned and tried to run away.

"stop!"

Cheng Tiezhu gave a low shout, which carried an imposing aura.

Lin Xiaobei's legs suddenly felt like they were filled with lead, and he couldn't take another step.

Cheng Tiezhu was not as rough as expected. He simply looked Lin Xiaobei up and down and then asked him a few questions.

Ask him where his home is, what his parents' names are, and why he is here.

Lin Xiaobei was trembling with fear, but she still stammered out her story.

After listening, Cheng Tiezhu remained silent for a long time.

He walked up to Lin Xiaobei and rolled up his sleeve.

When this tough man saw the crisscrossing, old and new scars on the boy's arm, a hint of pity flashed in his eyes.

"Sigh... what a poor kid."

Cheng Tiezhu sighed and made a decision that surprised both Gu Yandong and Lin Xiaobei.

"You can't stay here anymore. It's not safe."

"Starting today, you'll temporarily live in the brigade's threshing ground. There's an empty storage room there. During the day, you'll do some light work with everyone else, like sweeping the threshing ground and feeding the livestock. You'll earn work points. We'll provide you with two meals a day."

"Once this winter is over and the weather gets warmer, I'll try to contact your school or find you a proper place to go."

Lin Xiaobei was stunned.

He thought he would be taken to the commune or sent home.

But I never expected it to turn out like this.

They gave him a place to live, work to do, and food to eat!

Overwhelmed with surprise and gratitude, the boy's last psychological defenses crumbled instantly.

He knelt down in front of Cheng Tiezhu with a thud, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Uncle... thank you... thank you..."

"If you want to thank someone, go thank that girl Niannian." Cheng Tiezhu waved his hand, turned and left. "Get up, get to work, and stop talking nonsense!"

When leaving that gloomy abandoned house, Lin Xiaobei deliberately walked to the outside of Gu Niannian's yard.

He saw that small figure standing on tiptoe in the yard, diligently sweeping the ground.

He stood at a distance and bowed deeply to that small figure.

"Niannian, you are the best person I have ever met in my life."

Gu Niannian seemed to have heard it. She turned around and saw Lin Xiaobei not far away.

She didn't laugh, but instead waved her hand coolly, just like an adult.

"Get to the threshing ground right away; Uncle Cheng doesn't like people who dawdle!"

That stubborn yet soft-hearted demeanor is like that of a cute little hedgehog.

Lin Xiaobei looked at her, grinned, and revealed a smile that was even uglier than a grimace.

He knew that his life, which had almost been cut short, had been given a second chance by this little girl.

He had no idea what kind of magnificent flower this seed of kindness, planted by Gu Niannian herself, would bloom into one day in the future.