CH 4419

4419 The Other Side 388

“I still remember, the neighborhood was actually quite chaotic. It was actually a slum area. There were also many foreign workers that came in to work, but many drug addicts and ex-convicts lived there. When Mom made her way home from buying groceries, there were often people whistling at her. Every night, she was afraid and would secure the door with several locks. Sometimes, in the dead of night, strangers would knock on the door. Mom was so frightened that she would hide under the blanket and hold me while trembling. However, only Xiao Jie would sleep soundly every time.”

Gong Shaoying listened attentively. He did not expect her to be willing to tell him these things. These were exactly the stories he wanted to hear! He especially wanted to know how she had spent that period of time. She must have had a rough time with the two children in tow. Every time he thought of this, his heart ached.

But what was the use of heartache? She was already dead.

Yun Shishi continued, “I remember that there was a period of time when all the neighbors were in a state of panic because a murder had taken place in the neighborhood. A prostitute died in a rented house. It was said that she got involved with a customer who was a drug addict. As soon as he entered her house, his drug addiction acted up and he asked her for drugs. She wasn’t in this business at all, so how would she have drugs for him? That customer went crazy and brutally killed her. The corpse was left in the rented house, and no one knew. The prostitute also had a child. She was only three years old at that time. The police investigation revealed that seven days later, the neighbor smelled a stench and called the police. When they arrived, they found the woman lying in the living room, and the bedroom door was locked. Every time she had a transaction, the woman would lock the child in a room. For seven days, no one knew about him, and the child starved to death.”

These stories were unheard of and unimaginable to people of Gong Shaoying’s status.

“At that time, many people said that the murderer was some perverse person who was out to take revenge on society, especially on women who lived alone and had children. These were his targets. Before the case was solved, the entire neighborhood was rife with rumors. Mom was especially afraid, so she hired someone to change the doors and windows.”

“It was hard being alone with two kids, having no man at home to take care of you.”

Gong Shaoying paused in confusion. “Had your mother never thought of getting married?”

“Getting married?” Yun Shishi could not help giving a smirk when she heard this. “You should know my mother better than I do. Getting married? Sure, she would never have a problem finding a suitor. No matter what, she was a beautiful woman. Those who liked her, no matter their statuses, were dazzled by her beauty. But then, it would mean Xiao Jie and I would have a stepfather. She was unwilling to marry someone else, and unwilling to have us suffer. She thought that the wait for the man she loved would not be in vain, and that the man would not let her down.”

“I didn’t let her down!”

“I thought that she was unwilling to leave with me, so I was very disappointed. I had no idea that she was kept at home by force. That she secretly gave birth to you and Xiao Jie was something that I found only later.”

“Yeah.”

Yun Shishi’s eyes reddened as she asked sadly, “But didn’t she send you a letter? Why, why didn’t you come to her immediately?”

“…”

The man was speechless. At that time, he was not able to leave.