Chapter 119: The Girl on the Floor

Seeing the brawl inside, Baseball Cap Guy asked in confusion, “Boss, what’s going on here?”

Yellow Hair snapped out of his daze and noticed there was still one more person on his side. He cursed, “Damn it, you idiot, hurry up and help! We’re about to get our asses kicked!”

Baseball Cap Guy quickly pulled an expandable baton from his waist, flicked it open, and swung it at her.

Luo Xiaoning blocked it with the frying pan. The baton slammed into the pan’s bottom with a harsh clang.

Her arm went numb from the impact, and she almost dropped the pan.

She clenched her teeth, charged forward, and slammed into Baseball Cap Guy’s chest, her head cracking into his chin. He let out a muffled grunt and staggered back, his skull knocking against the shoe cabinet.

Luo Xiaoning seized the chance to snatch the baton, retreated two steps, and pointed it at them.

Her whole body ached. Her shoulder had been hit, her back had been smashed, her elbow was scraped, and her legs were shaking.

But she stood straight, breathing hard, glaring at those men.

Yellow Hair, clutching his still-bleeding nose, looked at his comrades lying all over the floor and spat, “Damn it, you useless pieces of shit, get up! There’s no way the four of us can’t take down one little girl.”

Just as he was cursing, Luo Xiaoning whipped the baton across his shoulder. He yelped in pain.

Yellow Hair was about to curse again when he looked up and saw Luo Xiaoning standing in front of him, holding the baton up. She said coldly, “Get lost now, or the next swing hits your head.”

Seeing the baton right in his face, Yellow Hair swallowed hard. His tone shifted, with a trace of unease: “Fine, you’re tough. Just you wait.”

He turned and walked out. Green Hair and Bald Guy helped Baseball Cap Guy along behind him. They didn’t even bother with the sack, leaving it at the door.

At the door, Yellow Hair glanced back at Luo Xiaoning, then at the direction of the bedroom. His voice was low and muffled: “That little thing can hide today, but not forever. When our Boss Huang wants someone, he gets them.”

Luo Xiaoning said nothing.

She walked over, grabbed the sack by the opening, and threw it at Yellow Hair’s back.

He stumbled, didn’t look back, and hurried downstairs.

The footsteps faded, and the building entrance door slammed shut with a bang.

Luo Xiaoning stood there, her whole body trembling. Her hands were shaking, her legs were shaking, and her back hurt so much she kept sucking in air.

She waited a while to make sure no one was coming back up. Then she closed the door and locked it.

She turned and looked at the living room. The coffee table was overturned, the vase was shattered, the remote control was split in two, and the dining table sat crooked. The floor was covered in water stains, drops of blood, and broken porcelain.

She didn’t clean up.

She just dragged her aching leg to the bedroom door.

The door was half open. Su Yutao lay in bed, curled up in a ball, hugging the penguin, her white hair spread across the pillow, breathing softly. It looked peaceful, like nothing had happened.

Luo Xiaoning stood at the door, looking at that quiet, pale, bruised little face.

She remembered how she had hesitated earlier.

She had asked herself, ‘Should I hand her over? If I did, I’d be free.’

‘Sister Lin Xue will come back and find her gone. That’s just bad luck. What does it have to do with me?’

‘But Sister Lin probably isn’t stupid. She’ll probably kill me.’

She took a deep breath, pulled the bedroom door closed, and shut it gently without a sound.

Then she leaned her back against the door, slowly slid down, and sat on the floor. She hugged her knees.

She buried her face in her arms, and her shoulders began to shake.

The trembling wasn’t silent or suppressed. It had been held in for too long and finally broke free, surging up from deep in her bones.

She bit her lip to stay quiet, but a few faint, broken whimpers still squeezed out of her throat, like a small animal with its tail stepped on.

It hurt.

Her whole body hurt.

Her fingers hurt, her calves hurt, the spot on her shoulder where Yellow Hair had punched her was swollen, and her back where the stool had hit her was burning.

Her elbow was scraped raw, blood beading and sticking to her sleeve. Her lower back had slammed into the corner of the table, leaving a large bruise.

She winced in pain, and tears dripped onto the floor.

She hadn’t wanted to hold on. She wasn’t that brave.

Everything just now had been an act. Acting ruthless, acting tough, acting unafraid.

She had been scared to death.

Now she could finally relax.

All the pent-up emotion came flooding out.

She cried for a long time, crying until she hiccupped, until her nose was stuffed up, until her face was a mess of tears.

Then she cried herself out. The sobs gradually turned into sniffles, then an occasional sniff, and finally went completely quiet.

She leaned against the door, her head tilted to one side, and fell asleep.

Her face was streaked with tears, her hair was a tangled mess, her rumpled pajamas were stained with blood and water, and her bare feet were on the floor, her toes white from the cold.

She curled up there like an old doll thrown by the side of the road.

Su Yutao was woken up by the need to pee.

She turned over groggily and reached out beside her. Empty.

The blanket was thrown open, and there was a dent on the pillow, but no one was there.

She froze for a moment. ‘Luo Xiaoning is gone?’

‘Maybe she went to the couch?’

Su Yutao sat up, hugged Qiansui, and slid down off the bed slowly.

She was too sleepy to care where that pink-haired girl had gone.

She just wanted to use the bathroom.

She felt her way toward the bedroom door, one hand on the wall, step by step, her little feet padding silently across the floor.

She found the doorframe, pushed the door open, and stepped out. Her foot landed on something soft.

It wasn’t the floor or a slipper. It was a person’s body.

Su Yutao tripped, and her whole body pitched forward. She landed with a thud, her knees cracking against the floor, knocking the breath out of her.

Qiansui rolled out of her arms and fell to the side.

Su Yutao lay on the ground, dazed for two seconds. Then she slowly got up and felt around the floor.

She found Qiansui and hugged it back to her chest.

Then she touched an arm. Soft, warm, wearing flannel pajamas.

‘It’s Luo Xiaoning.’

‘Why is she sleeping on the floor?’

Su Yutao crouched down, her hand moving up Luo Xiaoning’s arm, past her shoulder, her neck, to her face. The face was wet, with traces of tears.

Her fingers paused on the tear tracks.

‘Luo Xiaoning cried?’

She remembered the sound of those people banging on the door, remembered Luo Xiaoning cursing as she went to open it.

Then she’d heard a jumble of voices, then scuffling, then things breaking, then quiet.

She’d been too sleepy then, so she’d rolled over and gone back to sleep.

‘So Luo Xiaoning had been out there the whole time, sleeping on the floor, and crying.’

Su Yutao pulled her hand back, hesitant.

She crouched there, facing the direction of Luo Xiaoning, her fingers clutching Qiansui’s fuzzy fur.

She didn’t want to get involved.

‘I hate this pink-haired girl. She bullied me, threw my ham sausage, and yelled at me. She deserves to sleep on the floor. She deserves to cry.’

Su Yutao stood up, hugged Qiansui, and stepped around Luo Xiaoning’s body to fumble her way to the bathroom.

The bathroom door closed.

Water sounds, the toilet flushing, the faucet running.

Then the door opened, and Su Yutao felt her way back out.

As she passed Luo Xiaoning, her foot brushed against Luo Xiaoning’s calf.

She stopped.

She crouched down again.

She reached out and touched Luo Xiaoning again. She was still in the same position, still asleep on the floor, not moving.

Her face was still wet, the tears not yet dry.

Su Yutao pulled her hand back again.

She stood up, took a step forward, and stopped.

She bit her lip, her cheek puffing out slightly. Then she turned around, crouched down, grabbed Luo Xiaoning’s wrist, and tried to drag her up off the floor.

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