Chapter 2

Fu Jun Town was a settlement strengthened with a military force located deep within the mountains. Often, in the middle of the night, the villagers living in the outlet village would quietly hear the sound of trucks. Those were military owned passing by the entrance of the village.

At two in the morning, the villagers were sound asleep. Even if they could hear the sound outside, they would just continue to doze off.

For those who were woken up by the sound, they would wait until the sound had gone by before switching on the lights.

The village chief had said that those who did not abide by the rules would end up breaking any ties which were finally formed between the town and the country!

For that, the punishment would be spending a lifetime in prison, never to come out!

Ye Jian had been awake for a long time. Once the sound of the trucks disappeared, she endured the headache she had and got out of bed before switching on a flashlight. She swiftly directed the light source to a calendar hanging on the wall.

This…was not a dream; it seems she could still open her eyes to see the sun tomorrow.

It turned out that life had bestowed her with a grace; a fate arranged for her to grow under great tribulation, and then to be reborn in fire.

It was spring, and at six in the morning, smoke was already curling up from kitchen chimneys of the outlet village. Bathed in the morning sunshine, the trees were bright green and the water glistened as it flowed.

Outside the window, the swallows rested on the wires of the utility poles and chirped joyfully.

Gradually, the clear morning sun shone through the mist, gracing the plants beneath with light which made the flowers bloom more beautifully.

The green shoots gazed at the flowers from beneath, as if admiring the beauty and tenderness.

Seeing spring once again, when the flowers bloomed and the sparrows returned… she was no longer in the same environment she once was.

Ye Jian looked at the girl beside her bed who was chattering nonstop, and her eyes narrowed a little.

The girl before her was born with red lips and white teeth. Her black hair was braided, and she was leaning on her arm which was resting on the bed.

Her eyes were luminous like the autumn ripples, but her skin was slightly darker, and she had two small speckles on either side of her nose.

Those did not seem like a flaw, but she remembered her getting rid of them later on in the future.

“There’ll be an assessment on the first day of the week, you’ve got to remember to help me. Also, I’ve brought my assignments home from school, help me finish them quickly!”

The girl’s appearance was not too bad and her voice was also not too bad; like the sound of an oriole chirping, it was nice to hear.

However, her tone was commanding as if Ye Jian had owed her her life.

Ye Jian held onto the quilt and watched as the girl finished chattering. Hooking the edge of her lips, she laughed, “Ye Ying, long time no see.”

Fourteen-year-old Ye Ying, it truly has been a long time.

“What long time no see? We’ve seen each other yesterday! You must’ve hit your head when you fell.” The fourteen-year-old Ye Ying looked at her half-a-year older cousin and showed a look of concern, “But you can’t turn stupid! It will definitely be miserable if someone as pretty as you turned stupid.”

She was intelligent; if she turned stupid, then who would do her assignments?

Ye Jian’s eyes were shaped like a crescent, and the edge of her lips exposed several shallow lines as her face showed a slight smile, “If I were to turn stupid, won’t it be you who’ll feel more miserable? With no one to help you with your assignments, no one to give you answers during the assessments, and no one to help you top the results listing. Ai, thinking about it, why do I feel that you’re more miserable than I am?”

As Ye Jian enjoyed the change in expression on Ye Ying’s small face, she quietly chanted to herself, “Amitabha.” I’ve sinned, I’ve sinned, so this was what it felt like to bully others. Why didn’t she do so in the past?

Back to being a fourteen-year-old, she certainly had to cherish it!

“You must have really hit your head! You think I need your help with my assignments?” What she thought quietly in her heart was said out loud by Ye Jian. Ye Ying’s expression immediately turned ghastly white as she clenched her teeth tightly in dissatisfaction.

In her efforts to settle her own embarrassment, her expression was inevitably a little distorted due to her young age and lack of skill.

Ye Jian looked at her expression, and she felt as if a drop of fresh blood had fallen into her withered heart; her whole body felt entirely refreshed, but she dampened it a little. Her exquisite brows creased slightly, and she remained silent, not returning a response immediately.