Qin Xiangyang felt a sting in his nose, and the tears just rolled down. No matter how Hu Li hit him or cursed him, he hadn’t cried before, but now, he was crying like a child, tears continuously falling, crying for the bitterness of these past years, crying for the pain he and his sister shared.
In this home, they were less than dogs. He was only eight years old, yet he worked like an adult. The sister his mother had left for him to care for had never been well-fed or clothed warmly, and there had even been attempts to abandon her. The jade was originally their mother’s and was left for his sister.
So, he left. He knew very well that even if they gave away the jade, in this family, sooner or later, they would be driven to death.
He had promised his mother to take care of his sister; he couldn’t let his sister die.
"Alright..." he choked up, as a brother, he and Nuannuan would leave, he would earn money to support Nuannuan.
"We will go to the Village Chief’s place; the Village Chief will help us separate from the family." Qin Xiangnuan gently tugged at Qin Xiangyang’s sleeve. Given their current state, it would indeed be a pity not to make proper use of it. Moreover, Qin Guohua and Hu Li were furious, and people often make impulsive decisions when angry. She wanted to use this opportunity to cut ties with the Qin Family completely.
She had dealt with Qin Guohua and Hu Li’s temperaments all her life. This was the best chance to sever ties with them; otherwise, who knew how long they would have to wait.
"Go to the Village Chief’s place?" Hu Li’s ears were sharp, and she instantly sprang up.
"Qin Guohua, listen, listen, what kind of children have you raised? They actually want to find the Village Chief to sever their relationship with you as father and children?"
Sever it then; Qin Guohua was also furious and dragged the pair of siblings straight to the Village Chief’s house. When the Village Chief hurried back, he saw Qin Guohua, his whole body trembling with rage, his face ashen, and the two children who were covered in bruises.
"What on earth is going on?"
The Village Chief pointed to the injuries on Qin Xiangyang and Qin Xiangnuan, questioning who could have beaten the children to such an extent. Where was their humanity? Although he knew that Hu Li was no good woman and could not be expected to be kind to the children of Qin Guohua and others, people generally had hearts, and at the very least, the children shouldn’t be abused.
Even if they were beaten, that shouldn’t be a big deal. In the village, which child’s skin hadn’t endured some beating? But he had never imagined they would beat the children so viciously, nearly all bruises and cuts, not a patch of unscathed skin, and Qin Xiangyang, his face so pale. In such cold weather, he was still breaking out in a cold sweat; the boy must be ill, and seriously so.
"Uncle, it’s not our fault," Hu Li hurried forward, "These two kids are light-fingered; they stole my daughter Xiang Mei’s jade. That jade has been with Xiang Mei from a young age, and if they learn to steal at such a young age, if we don’t educate them properly now, will we let them go on to steal chickens and dogs later on when they grow up? Petty theft as children leads to grand theft as adults. Our Qin family, for three generations, has been honest farmers; we can’t condone such behavior."
"This..." The Village Chief didn’t quite believe that the Qin Xiang siblings would steal, and even if they had, there was no need to beat the children to such an extent; the heart behind it was simply too cruel.
"It’s not..." Qin Xiangyang struggled to speak up, but he started coughing violently, his face even paler than before, his cotton coat nearly soaked through.