Chapter 313: My Other Name _1
On the other side, Ye Xingguang slept until dawn, and Xia Ye Zhao still had not sailed the boat to Bukui Island. She took over steering for two hours, and finally saw the silhouette of Bukui Island.
“Where is this?” asked Xia Ye Zhao.
Seeing the silhouette of Bukui Island, Ye Xingguang felt a complex range of emotions: “This is where I lived when I was a child.”
Xia Ye Zhao felt a strong sense of anticipation, eager to know about her living conditions during those years she was away from home.
“Is this where you and your foster parents lived?”
“No, it’s where I lived as a child. This is not the island where I lived with my foster parents. I was adopted by them when I was twelve. Before that, I did not live with them.” Ye Xingguang explained.
Back then, her cruel parents abandoned her in the open sea, where she drifted in the stormy waves, eventually coming to this island. From then on, she put down roots here, on this nameless island, which she named Bukui Island, because it was full of cuckoo birds.
After the boat docked, Ye Xingguang washed her face.
Seeing her washed face, Xia Ye Zhao looked at her more attentively, appearing pleasantly surprised by her beauty, but he did not say anything.
In his heart, he always felt that no matter how beautiful his sister was, it was as it should be.
Later, Ye Xingguang led Xia Ye Zhao onto the island. The places they walked through were overgrown with shrubs and did not look like places for humans to live.
The further they walked, the more worried Xia Ye Zhao became. He looked at her and asked with a tightened grip on her wrist, “Did you live here for six years?”
His voice was filled with passion, or perhaps regret and self-reproach, frustration, anger, and guilt… All kinds of emotions flooded his mind.
Ye Xingguang heard his emotions and soothed him with a smile. “Brother Xia, we’re not there yet. Actually, the living conditions aren’t bad. There’s a waterfall that’s very beautiful. Don’t get too agitated.”
But how could he not be agitated? His vulnerable sister had been living in this barren and uncivilized place for six years. He wished he could punch himself for his negligence!
Why didn’t he find her back then? If he couldn’t find her, he should continue searching. Why did he give up and let her live in such a place?
About half an hour later, they saw a spectacular waterfall deep in the forest. Beneath the waterfall was a lush green area with numerous unknown flowers dotting it, as if someone had been caring for it.
Indeed, someone had been taking care of it. Two wooden houses were built on the greenery, and a yard was enclosed by a fence.
Time passed, and Ye Xingguang thought about the eccentric old woman who had taken care of her. She couldn’t help but run into the yard and started shouting before she even entered the house: “Tooth granny, tooth granny, come out and see who is here to see you.”
An old woman covered in creases and wrinkles emerged from the house. She was hunched over and thin with a necklace of animal teeth hanging around her neck. Her skin seemed like old tree bark, but her eyes were strikingly clear and bright.
The old woman stared at Ye Xingguang approaching her and suddenly laughed. She didn’t have a single tooth showing when she laughed, which sent shivers down one’s spine. But Ye Xingguang was used to it and affectionately called her Tooth Granny because she had no teeth.
Ye Xingguang rushed at her and hugged her, cooing, “Tooth Granny, Little Nine misses you so much, did you miss me?”
After the tearful reunion, Xia Ye Zhao approached them: “What does ‘Jiushu’ mean?”
“It’s my other name, Muya Jiushu. Brother Xia, please wait outside. Tooth Granny and I need some alone time to catch up.”
With that, she helped Tooth Granny into the house and closed the door behind them.