She had a young face, seemingly not yet of age. Xue Zi Ning was startled; she really hadn't expected that the duck thief would be such a little girl.
The little girl didn't seem surprised to see her. She handed over the remaining ducks and mumbled indistinctly because she was eating, "You want to eat too!"
"Who are you?" Xue Zi Ning didn't take the ducks and asked, looking at the little girl.
"Ling'er." The little girl continued to gnaw on the duck leg in her hand without looking up.
"Where is your home?" Xue Zi Ning asked again.
Ling'er suddenly stopped her duck leg, looked up, and saw her. "You want to go to my house?"
"No, it's not safe for you to be out alone this late. I'll take you home."
Upon hearing this, Ling'er smiled and tilted her head, looking at her. "Who dares to do anything to me? They can't beat me."
Xue Zi Ning: "..." She knew Ling'er was telling the truth.
"Then aren't your family worried about you?"
Ling'er shook her head. "They should be worried about others."
"Let's go down!" Xue Zi Ning said, and with a leap, she descended to the ground.
Ling'er, holding a duck leg and sitting on a chair, was much faster than Xue Zi Ning. Xue Zi Ning was a little surprised that such a young girl could have such good skills; it was truly astonishing.
"Sister, I'm thirsty. Pour me a cup of water." Ling'er said.
Xue Zi Ning chuckled but still poured her a cup of water. Ling'er picked it up and drank it down in large gulps.
Setting down the cup, Ling'er looked at her and said, "Sister, you are a good person. I will repay you."
Xue Zi Ning blinked her eyes and said, "I don't need you to repay me. Just go home obediently."
"Shhh..." Ling'er suddenly shushed her.
Just as Xue Zi Ning was about to speak, the faint sound of footsteps from outside made her instantly vigilant.
Ling'er whispered, "Sister, it seems someone is coming."
Xue Zi Ning took a step forward and whispered to Ling'er in front of her, "When they come in, you go hide up there."
Ling'er was stunned. Looking at the sister she had only known for a short time, she stepped forward to protect her at this moment.
She blinked her eyes, but still obeyed Xue Zi Ning's arrangement and leaped onto the roof beams.
A small hole was poked in the paper of the door and window, and then a wisp of smoke seeped in.
Xue Zi Ning instinctively held her breath. A moment later, the door was pushed open, and she heard someone speaking, "Boss, this chick looks pretty good. She'll fetch a good price if we sell her."
"Shut up. Let's talk after we've caught the person."
"Where is the person?" asked the big man who spoke first.
"Not good, the person isn't drugged."
With a series of thuds, the waiter from downstairs came to knock on the door and ask, "Guest, is something wrong?"
"Nothing, the wind was too strong just now, it knocked something to the ground," a woman's voice came from inside.
The waiter was stunned. The wind was too strong? Was there wind tonight?
But thinking that it was better to have one less thing to worry about, he chose to leave.
After the waiter left, Xue Zi Ning had a man under her foot, and Ling'er was sitting on another. In total, three men were beaten black and blue.
"Heroine, spare our lives! Heroine, spare our lives!" the three big men begged.
"Who sent you?" Xue Zi Ning asked coldly.
"Heroine, we brothers saw that the heroine was as beautiful as a flower and had evil thoughts. Heroine, please be merciful and show leniency."
"Not telling the truth?" Xue Zi Ning applied more pressure with her foot.
"I'll tell you, I'll tell you..." "Tell us..." Xue Zi Ning said sternly.
"Yes, a young lady hired us and told me to abduct her..." The man pointed a trembling finger at Ling'er.
Xue Zi Ning looked at Ling'er. Ling'er was nonchalant. "That person should be my second sister."
After beating the three men severely and warning them not to do such things again, she let them go.
Xue Zi Ning looked at Ling'er and asked, "Are you running away from home because of your second sister?"
Ling'er looked elsewhere and said, "I'm used to it."
"Didn't you report it to your family?"
Ling'er was slightly taken aback, then turned back and said with a grin, "She can't hurt me anyway, so let her be!"
Xue Zi Ning looked at the girl in front of her. She was clearly someone who should be enjoying the love of her parents, yet she was resented by her own sister. Xue Zi Ning felt a strange pity for her.
As if sensing her pity, Ling'er said, "Sister, you don't need to feel sorry for me. I'm already used to it."
She was used to people in her family targeting her, simply because they all wanted this identity.
Xue Zi Ning walked up and stroked the girl's head. "From now on, I'll be your sister. They don't count. I'll dote on you."
At this moment, she suddenly missed her children, whom she had left without even giving them names.
She had deliberately tried not to think about them during these days, but now, Ling'er had touched that part of her emotions. The longing surged like a tide. She missed them so much, so much.
"Sister, you feel like my mother," Ling'er said, looking up at her.
"Do I? From now on, your sister will protect you."
Ling'er smiled. "Sister, thank you!"
The night passed without any disturbances. When Xue Zi Ning woke up, she saw the girl sleeping peacefully in the inner bed.
She got up, and the girl suddenly murmured, "Mom, don't go..."
Xue Zi Ning patted her hand and said, "I'm not leaving..."
The girl slowly woke up, her eyes shimmering with tears. "Sister, I dreamt of my mother."
"I know."
The girl suddenly sat up and threw herself into her arms. "Sister, I killed my mother..."
Xue Zi Ning was stunned. "Ling'er..."
"She fought wild beasts alone to save me. She, someone who had no fighting skills, fiercely protected me beneath her, but she..."
"Ling'er, protecting children is a mother's instinct. Your mother must have wanted you to grow up safely. She exchanged her life for your lifelong safety, so you must live well, otherwise, your mother's sacrifice would have been in vain."
Ling'er trembled all over and lowered her head. "But they all don't like me."
"Ling'er, you don't need to change yourself for anyone. You are you. Those who like you will naturally like you. Those who don't like you, no matter what you do, they still won't like you."
Ling'er looked up at her and asked, "Then do you like me, Sister?"
"Yes, I do," Xue Zi Ning said without hesitation.
Ling'er beamed. "Your liking me is enough."
Xue Zi Ning stroked Ling'er's head. "However, Sister has something to do. Can I come back to find you after Sister finishes?"
Ling'er was stunned and asked, "What are you going to do, Sister? Ling'er can accompany you."
Xue Zi Ning shook her head. "It's too dangerous. Sister can't let you get involved in danger."
"Sister, how will I know if it's dangerous if you don't tell me?" Ling'er asked.
Seeing Ling'er's persistent questioning, Xue Zi Ning had no choice but to say, "I'm going to the Feng Yin Clan."
"Sister, why are you going there?"
Xue Zi Ning looked up at Ling'er and asked, "Do you know?"