"My name is Hoang Lan."
"This is the name my mother gave me..."
In addition to Hoang Lan, I also have another name, which is Hoang Ly.
"Although they are not much different in pronunciation."
"But I don't like the second one."
"Because it was given by the aunt in the village who used to beat me..."
...
Rainy season.
As the dark gray sky descends, a drizzle begins.
Gradually.
Under the passage of time.
The raindrops become more numerous...
Finally, it's like silver needles falling from the sky.
Penetrating the mud, wetting the entire ground...
In front of an old mud house in the village.
A group of simple girls in dresses are moving back and forth, carrying bundles of fabric.
Because their strength is not enough.
They usually choose a few people to collaborate.
To lift the bundles onto their backs.
However, even so.
They still have to move with their small feet, blushing with effort to place the bundles at the door.
Using it temporarily as a barrier.
Blocking the impending water from entering the house...
Among them, two girls roll up their pants, barefoot in front of the door.
They frown, looking at the rain because the fabric bags aren't tightly covered, leaving a gap for water to seep in, a bit worried on their faces.
"Sis, the rain is too heavy, let's go back and wait for aunt to return before deciding what to do next."
One of the girls looks at an older child and says.
Unable to stay and persuade.
"Too heavy, we can't really stop it..." The girl called sister has an unpleasant expression.
Looking at the incessant rain pouring in, she hesitates a bit, then continues to speak in her youthful voice:
"But if aunt comes back and sees rainwater flowing in, we'll be in trouble again."
Hearing that.
The older girl next to her speaks.
It also obediently keeps quiet, not saying anything more.
It knows that what the sister said is true...
Because during this time, there are often rainy days, so the aunt will remind them every time before going out.
If it rains.
They have to move the mud-filled bags right to the door to block the rainwater.
They vaguely remember, the last time because they forgot to do this, all of them were beaten and even punished with a day of fasting.
Perhaps the girl recalls the pain of hunger.
Finally, she imitates the older girl's deep sigh, continues to run out carrying the fabric bag in the rain.
Her small feet are agile but firm like bamboo poles.
Splashing a little mud...
"Ha ha, if Ly could come to help, we could finish much faster."
The sister of the small group shakes her head looking at the rain.
After a moment of thought.
She also runs clumsily in the rain...
Inside the mud-made room.
A girl lies quietly on the mat with a painful expression.
Seems to be itching on the back.
Causing the girl to want to reach out and scratch...
But when her hand touches her back, she quickly withdraws it like lightning and makes a painful moan that is unrecognizable.
Looking closer.
A shocking scar can be seen on the small back of the girl...
The scars seem to have been left for a while.
Some still have blood scales that haven't fully dried.
This is the result of the girl daringly stealing leftovers from the kitchen because of her friend, due to lack of food and extreme hunger.
"Aunt is back!"
"Hurry, let's go inside and clean up, don't let aunt know we just finished blocking the door..."
"Quickly!"
"..."
Amidst the noisy sounds of children outside, not long after, a series of footsteps became audible to Hoang Ly's ears.
She lifted her small head and looked.
Realizing that it was her aunt returning with an umbrella.
"Aunt, it hurts so much..."
Hoang Ly tried to seek comfort from her aunt.
But all she received was her aunt's unsympathetic gaze, so she wasted no time and stepped aside from her aunt's petite figure, heading inside.
A lump of mud on the sole of the worn-out shoes also came off when her foot lifted, falling straight onto Hoang Ly's back.
This made her scream in pain...
"You even know pain? A thief who steals and damages things also knows pain? Shut up, don't let me hear your voice again!"
Her aunt turned around and shouted a few more sentences.
Hoang Ly, with tears streaming down, gritted her teeth and bowed her head again.
Seeing Hoang Ly's appearance.
Her aunt, bewildered, turned her head and continued walking forward.
Although these children looked very pitiful.
But she felt nothing...
Of course.
In fact, this couldn't entirely blame her for being malicious.
After all, the poor also have reasons to be hateful, as they can't afford much.
Furthermore.
In this era, who would choose to spend money to buy a girl?
A boy could grow up and inherit the family business later.
Only a rich family would want to raise such a child!
"Don't know if these brats in my hands have any value. If they grow a bit more, it'll be harder to sell them..."
Her aunt casually washed the purchased dishes.
She used the knife that hadn't been cleaned in the kitchen and started cutting and chopping on the cutting board.
She tied on an apron.
It seemed that she was afraid that dirty food water would splash onto her expensive clothes.
"Eat more, have less strength..."
"I really don't understand why Tí brought these kids back!"
"If we lose money every day raising them, wait until we break even!"
Her aunt was chopping vegetables.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
At this moment, she wished she could rush out and kill them. If they couldn't be sold intact, it would be better to sell them in the market like pork.
At least there would be some money...
After finishing chopping the vegetables, she mixed them with rice in the large iron pot next to her and started cooking.
It seemed like she could make less rice.
Thinking about it, she poured two more cups of water, then covered the pot.
Her aunt didn't know when Tí would return.
Standing at the door, watching his wife's actions, he hurriedly grabbed the dangling cigarette on his mouth and rushed over to intervene.
"Hey, wife, you can't cook like that."
"These little ones have to be kept pretty to sell at a profit. If they become thin, none of them will be sold."
The woman turned back and squinted at him...
"Why can't I cook?"
"If they eat like this, what's wrong with dying?"
"You still dare to talk! If that queer says that the rich like girls, and now we bring them in so many, what if these two survive?"
"Still want to fatten them up to sell. . ."
"Do you know that a few days ago when I went to buy rice, I could only afford the cheap kind! The rice seller recommended another type, saying it's good, and I was ashamed to say I didn't have enough money!"
The aunt is very angry.
It seems that she has vented all her anger towards Tí at this moment!
In fact, their life is not bad.
Because Tí occasionally finds orphaned boys in nearby villages and towns, brings them home for a while, and then sells them at a high price in the city.
It can also be considered a short period without worrying about food and clothing.
But just a few years ago...
She didn't know what got into Tí. He brought back several boys to raise, and at the same time, brought back several girls.
A series of them to keep at home.
No one wanted to buy them, and the buyers all said that they wanted a son at home and couldn't take one.
In the end, some savings were set aside.
All were eaten clean by these kids.
"Alright."