Chapter 309: Chen Yechu’s Inner Turmoil
After soaking her feet, Ning Xiyue got up to pour out the foot bath water. As she reached the doorway, a cold, damp wind hit her face. Outside, a fine drizzle fell thickly from the eaves, and the flashlight only revealed a misty haze—she could barely see the path.
“Whoa, the rain’s really heavy out there.”
She put down the wooden bucket and raised her arm holding the flashlight to shield herself from the wind and rain.
Carrying the bucket all the way to the drain in this downpour would be unwise, so Ning Xiyue decided to pour the water out right under the eaves. The rain from above would help wash it away.
Chen Yechu followed her out, carrying her own basin. She felt the rain blown by the wind hit her face and stopped, tilting her face against her arm to wipe the water off. “Wow, it really is heavy.”
She, too, opted to stay nearby, standing under the eaves and splashing the water out of the basin with effort.
“Come on, let’s go back inside—the wind and rain are too strong.”
Ning Xiyue grabbed Chen Yechu’s hand, and they quickly returned indoors. Chen Yechu closed the door, and Ning Xiyue handed each of them a towel to dry their faces.
As she wiped, Ning Xiyue remarked, “It didn’t feel that bad with the door closed. But as soon as it opened, you really feel how heavy the rain is—fine, dense, strong, and the wind’s intense too.”
Chen Yechu took the face towel Ning Xiyue handed her and nodded with a smile. “Yeah, it’s really heavy. After this rain, the ground will be soaked. I’ll use my free time tomorrow to plant some vegetables nearby for us to eat later.”
Ning Xiyue was thinking the same thing and replied, “I’ll plant some too. Today I got some chili and cabbage seeds, and I plan to plant tomatoes, green onions, and garlic for seasoning.”
After finishing, Chen Yechu returned to the kang. “Yu Zhiyu said he’ll come help me dig the ground. Do you want to help?”
“No need. Don’t forget I have my second brother to help—he’s great at hard work,” Ning Xiyue said as she climbed onto the kang and unfolded the quilt, preparing to sleep.
“Oh right, your second brother. Fine, let’s sleep, we’re both tired,” Chen Yechu yawned, turned over, and slowly closed her eyes.
Ning Xiyue turned off the flashlight and also closed her eyes.
Rumble, crack—
A thunderclap outside startled the two who had just fallen asleep.
Chen Yechu opened her eyes abruptly and patted her chest to calm herself. “Scared me! That thunder is way too loud. I had just fallen asleep.”
“I’m awake too.”
Hearing the continuous thunder outside, Ning Xiyue got up, pulled out some cotton, wrapped it in cloth, and stuffed it in her ears. The world grew quiet, most of the thunder blocked out, only faint sounds remained, not affecting sleep. She handed the remaining cotton to Chen Yechu before lying down again.
After a while, Ning Xiyue woke again—this time shaken by Chen Yechu.
“Xiyue, I heard a child crying. Listen.”
“Huh? What? I didn’t hear that clearly.”
Ning Xiyue removed the cotton from her ears and asked her to clarify.
“I just heard a child crying, wailing loudly. Listen.”
Ning Xiyue tilted her ear to listen carefully. Amid the thunder, she discerned the pitiful cries. Relaxing her face, she shook her head and lay back down. “No, it’s a cat. Probably some wild cats fighting. Go back to sleep.”
“Really?”
Chen Yechu perked up and listened more carefully, agreeing with Ning Xiyue. “Yeah, seems like cat cries.”
She lay back down, eyes closed. The cries grew more mournful and seemingly closer, irritating to the mind. Not even the cotton in her ears could block them.
Ning Xiyue, unaffected, fell asleep immediately. With the cotton, the outside sounds became a lullaby.
Chen Yechu, however, could not sleep despite the noise.
After a while, it seemed someone outside the youth camp went to check.
Chen Yechu put on her shoes, opened the door, and saw Yu Zhiyu, Ning Qingyuan, and Wang Jiandong inspecting with flashlights before returning.
Chen Yechu whispered, “What’s going on?”
Yu Zhiyu ran over with an umbrella. “Yechu, it’s fine. Two cats were fighting over a fish; we chased them away. Go back inside and sleep—it’s late.”
“All right. You get some rest too,” Chen Yechu nodded, closed the door, and lay back on the kang.
Seeing Ning Xiyue fast asleep, Chen Yechu envied her—she could sleep through such noise, while Chen Yechu’s heart was restless.
She slowly closed her eyes for the third time that night. Indeed, the cat cries gradually faded.
After a while, the sound disappeared completely. Only the continuous thunder remained, and lightning lit the room through gaps in the window and thin, old newspaper coverings.
Just as she closed her eyes, Chen Yechu suddenly opened them and sat up.
She remembered something.
In her previous life, around this time, a major incident occurred one morning.
A pregnant woman in a shed no one wanted to approach died—both mother and child.
Reportedly, she had gotten up in the middle of the night to go to the toilet, fell, and went into premature labor. Due to her special status, the camp midwives didn’t dare touch her. When people went to help, doors were closed.
Helpless, people in the shed assisted, leading to massive bleeding. The mother died, and the child, deprived of oxygen inside the womb, also died.
Which day was it?
Chen Yechu clutched her hair and forcefully recalled her past life.
It seemed it rained that day as well.
Suddenly, a memory flashed in her mind.
Chen Yechu’s eyes widened as she stared out the window.
Oh no—it seems it’s tonight’s spring rain. She remembered that in her past life, there was also the pitiful cat cries that kept her awake, causing her to be late for work the next day, and she heard about the incident then.
It seemed the midwife was sought when it wasn’t raining in the middle of the night.
Chen Yechu walked to the window, staring out. The rain was still heavy. If not now, there would still be several hours to go.
She sat back on the kang, her heart twisting and burning. She clenched the quilt in her hands, brow furrowed, at a loss.
Ah! What should I do now? Go save them or not?
If she went, what could she say? She couldn’t just claim she knew they would fall and came to help—that would be absurd, and no one would believe her due to her status.
If she didn’t go, it meant two lives at stake. Having been reborn and recalling this event, she knew she couldn’t ignore it. Closing her eyes, she would see the pale faces of mother and child.
In her past life, the mother and child had been buried hastily in a pit on the mountainside with a tattered mat.
Before college entrance exams, her family reclaimed their reputation and came for her. Her grandmother, over seventy, fainted upon hearing the news.
Later, when her family came to relocate the grave, they learned the elderly woman had died from grief over her beloved granddaughter’s death.
Three lives in total.
Three lives, Chen Yechu whispered to herself, burying her face in her hands and closing her eyes.
All were terrifying images conjured by her mind.
Although unrelated to her, seeing three lives at stake, she could not bear to ignore them.
With this realization, Chen Yechu opened her eyes, resolute to intervene.
If she had been reborn and remembered, this must be fate connecting her with them. She was helping an innocent family.
Swiftly, Chen Yechu dressed, got out of bed, and paused with her hand on the doorknob, glancing toward the tightly closed mosquito net where Ning Xiyue was sound asleep.
