Ye Xiaoxian went to find Xiao Baozhu and tried to persuade her to leave together. However, Xiao Baozhu refused her offer.
Stubbornly and resolutely, she said, “Since I came here, I’ve belonged to the Wong family. If they don’t want to leave, I’ll also stay with them.”
Ye Xiaoxian felt the girl was very pathetic. “Baozhu, you consider yourself part of this family, but they don’t think of you like that. Scholar Wong told me that I can take you away because you don’t belong here. Get real, Baozhu. You’re not his wife and he’s never loved you. If you come with me today, you can find another good man one day. Don’t be silly, Baozhu!”
Xiao Baozhu seemingly knew what Scholar Wong thought of her. She felt heartbroken about that, but she was still convinced that she should stay.
“Sister Ye, I don’t care what he thinks of me. Anyway, I consider myself to be his. His father is too old and Qingqing is pregnant. If I go with you, this family will lack a helper. His father is good to me, so I can’t be that ungrateful!”
“You…” Ye Xiaoxian became angry. “Why don’t you consider your mother, Baofeng or me? Do you know how much we’ll be worried about you if we leave you alone here?”
Hearing that, Xiao Baozhu suddenly turned and went back into her room. After a while, she walked out with some jewels and said, “These are all mine. Sister Ye, please give them to Mom. I can’t take care of her anymore. Please look after her for me on the journey. I will repay your kindness in the next life!”
It was obvious that she had made up her mind. If she were not so stubborn, she wouldn’t have stayed in the Wong family. It was said that one would turn around after knocking into a wall. But she was the kind that would keep trying to go forward, even when badly injured.
Ye Xiaoxian stopped insisting. After hiring two men to drive the carriages home, she left with the jewels. She had to pick Xiao Baofeng up from the school.
…
Li Hongmei also failed to persuade her relatives. Xiao Tieshu and Xiao Tongshu didn’t want to give up their jobs in the government office, as it would not be easy to find such jobs elsewhere. The lazy old man was yet more reluctant to move. After all, he had never even filled a rice bowl or looked after children. The journey would be so hard that he’d rather die at home.
When Li Hongmei tried to persuade him, Old Mr Xiao hurled abuse at her. “Flee? I’m so old! Do you want me to die halfway? You said there would be enemy soldiers? Fine, just let them come! I’ll kill them and…and I’ll become a hero!”
“You lazy old man, don’t let yourself be kicked to death before you become a hero,” Li Hongmei thought to herself.
Wong Mudan and Chen Ju also decided to stay. If they left today, they might never come back again. Besides, where could they go? How could they find a place to settle down? If they had to wander for a month or a year, sooner or later they would die.
Li Hongmei gave up her attempts at persuasion and said, “Little Ye will go as soon as she’s ready. You can join us if you want to. We have two carriages to carry food. But we can’t wait for long.” After saying this, she went home angrily.
When she arrived home at twilight, the scenes on the streets had totally changed. Half of the stores had opened in the morning, but now almost all of them were closed. Many people were pushing carts and escaping with their families.
Li Hongmei had been wavering over whether to escape or not, but the fleeing crowds had confirmed Ye Xiaoxian’s words. She realized that this might be the only way to stay alive.
…
After hearing Li Hongmei’s complaints, Ye Xiaoxian told her that Xiao Baozhu had also refused to go with them. Li Hongmei sighed and said, “Baozhu is such a silly girl!”
She then asked, “There’s only the three of us then. Are we still leaving?”
“Yes!” Ye Xiaoxian replied firmly. “Hongyan is a small island country trying to expand its domain. No invasion will spare the local people. If the enemy arrive here, they will kill anyone they see. Even if they spare us, we would live like slaves, so we’d better go. Everyone has his or her own destiny. I can’t tell what will happen next. Just let fate take its course.”
The rims of Li Hongmei’s eyes became red as she wept, but she wiped away her tears after a while. Tears were useless now. They wouldn’t bring Xiao Baozhu back to her, nor would they persuade her relatives to come with her.
Ye Xiaoxian said, “Mom, please take Baofeng back. I want to meet Liu Qianqian.”
“Shall we go with the Liu family?”
“I hope so. They are a big family, so we’ll be safer with them. If there are just three of us, we might get robbed the moment we step outside the county,” Ye Xiaoxian explained.
…
The Liu family was much wiser than the Wong family. Since Liu Qianqian had just got married, the red lanterns and pretty stickers were still decorating the house. However, Liu Qianqian was packing up her luggage, getting ready to leave.
Seeing Ye Xiaoxian, Liu Qianqian came up to her and said worriedly, “Little Ye, why are you still walking about? We’re preparing to leave.”
