Chapter 114 I Never Want to Be Alone Again

The little girl was taken aback by his words, and her crying gradually subsided. She stopped crying loudly and just silently shed tears. Her big eyes stared straight at him, full of grievance and pleading, without the slightest hint of backing down.

Those clear yet aggrieved eyes made He Yuzhu's heart tremble. In a daze, he even thought of his own younger sister, He Yushui.

In the past, whenever that little girl asked him for a favor or was afraid of being scolded for making a mistake, she would look so pitiful that he couldn't bring himself to be ruthless.

Actually, supporting another person isn't too difficult for He Yuzhu; he can barely afford it.

But then he thought that the girl seemed to have a pitiful background and probably didn't even have a proper identity document. Once she entered the city, she would face many inconveniences, such as food, accommodation, and future livelihood, and it might even cause trouble.

He Yuzhu remained silent for a moment, but finally softened and asked, "What's your name? I can't keep calling you 'little girl'."

The little girl wiped away her tears, sniffed, and whispered, "I...I'm called Qiao Zhiyu! Qiao as in tall trees, Zhi as in knowing, and Yu as in giving."

Upon hearing the name, He Yuzhu frowned slightly, a vague feeling that something was amiss.

Such a refined and elegant name could not have been chosen by an ordinary rural family; this little girl's background is probably not simple.

"This name... was it given to you by your father?" He Yuzhu asked tentatively.

Qiao Zhiyu shook her head, her eyes filled with a sense of bewilderment and nostalgia: "No, it was my maternal grandmother who gave me this name. My mother said that my grandmother was a cultured person."

"Grandma?" He Yuzhu was taken aback and muttered to himself, "In the north, most people call their maternal grandmother 'Laolao,' not 'Grandma.'"

With that thought, he had his answer: it seems this little girl is not from the North, but from the South.

"Yes, I've never met my father. I take my mother's surname, Qiao." Qiao Zhiyu lowered her head, her voice tinged with melancholy, clearly harboring a secret expectation for her father whom she had never met.

He Yuzhu continued, "Your family isn't from Tianjin, are they? Judging from your accent, you don't seem to be from around here."

Qiao Zhiyu nodded and said softly, "No, my mother said that our hometown was originally in Jiangnan, where the mountains and rivers are beautiful."

"What about your grandmother? Is she still alive? Since your grandmother is educated, why don't you go and live with her?" He Yuzhu asked, puzzled. In his opinion, it was better to live with relatives than to drift with a stranger like himself.

Qiao Zhiyu's eyes dimmed instantly, and tears welled up again. She choked out, "My mother said that the year the Japanese invaded, my maternal grandparents went north to escape the war and were never heard from again."

"After the Japanese surrendered, my mother took me and traveled all the way to the north to find our relatives. But as soon as we got off the ship, thieves stole all our luggage, leaving us penniless."

"Then, my mother fell ill. We didn't have money to see a doctor, so she could only tough it out, and then...and then my mother...just like that, she passed away..."

When she got to the heartbreaking part, Qiao Zhiyu completely broke down. She threw herself into He Yuzhu's arms and burst into tears, wiping her tears and snot all over his clothes without any disgust.

He Yuzhu's body stiffened for a moment, and he subconsciously wanted to push her away, but seeing her crying so heartbreakingly and helplessly, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He just let her hold him and didn't move.

As Qiao Zhiyu cried, she gradually lost her strength, and her sobs turned into intermittent sobs. While crying, she grabbed He Yuzhu's collar and wiped her tears and snot haphazardly on her face, seemingly completely unconcerned about the strong fishy smell on his clothes.

With this smear, the little face, which was already covered in mud, became even more smeared, looking like a big tabby cat. Her eyes were red and swollen, and there were mud marks all over her face, making her look both pitiful and comical.

After she had finished crying, she looked up at He Yuzhu. He Yuzhu finally couldn't hold back and burst out laughing. Most of his impatience and confusion from before had dissipated.

Qiao Zhiyu felt a little embarrassed by his laughter, her cheeks flushed slightly, and she asked shyly, "Sir, what are you laughing at? Am I too ugly to make you laugh?"

He Yuzhu quickly cleared his throat, hiding his laughter, and waved his hand, saying, "Ahem, it's nothing, it's nothing! You're just a little kid, crying all the time, what kind of behavior is that? Hurry up and wipe your face clean."

Qiao Zhiyu wiped away the tears on her face, hesitated for a moment, and then asked cautiously, "Um... Grandpa, have you heard of my maternal grandparents? My maternal grandfather's name is Qiao Haoguang, and my maternal grandmother's name is Shen Juxian. They may have lived around here before."

He Yuzhu frowned, muttering to himself, "Qiao Haoguang? Shen Juxian? Why does that name sound familiar..."

He felt like he had seen these two names in an old book before, or perhaps overheard his elders talking about them when he was a child. But for a moment, he couldn't remember where he had heard them or who they were.

Qiao Zhiyu's eyes lit up, and she looked at him expectantly, asking eagerly, "Do you know my grandparents? Do you know where they are?"

He Yuzhu snapped out of his daze, shook his head, and said dismissively, "I don't know them. I just think these two names sound familiar, but I can't remember exactly who they are."

"Oh..." The light in Qiao Zhiyu's eyes dimmed instantly, her face full of disappointment. She lowered her head, responded softly, and her mood became depressed again.

Seeing her like this, He Yuzhu's heart softened again, and he asked again, "Are you really sure you want to come with me? If you come with me, you might suffer, you might encounter a lot of danger, and we might not even be able to guarantee a full meal."

Qiao Zhiyu raised her head, her eyes filled with unwavering determination, and nodded heavily, her tone extremely serious: "Yes! I've made up my mind. No matter how much hardship I endure, no matter how much danger I encounter, I will follow you, Master. I never want to be alone again."

He Yuzhu then asked, "Aren't you afraid I might be a bad person too? What if I bully you like Ma Lie did?"

"I'm not afraid!" Qiao Zhiyu shook her head vigorously, her big eyes clear and firm. "I'm not a bad person, I'm a good person. I saved me and chased away the bad guys. I won't bully me."

Looking into her clear yet determined eyes, He Yuzhu finally relented and said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Alright, since you insist, I'll just consider it taking in a maid. From now on, you'll be working for me, and you're not allowed to slack off."

"Yes, yes! Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir!" Qiao Zhiyu was overjoyed and nodded vigorously. A bright smile finally appeared on her face, sweeping away her previous grievances and loneliness.

She has big eyes, and when she smiles, the corners of her eyes turn up slightly, revealing a set of white teeth, making her look exceptionally cute.

Unfortunately, at this moment, coupled with his face covered in tears and mud, he looked inexplicably ridiculous, yet also exceptionally touching.

He Yuzhu couldn't resist reaching out and gently patting her head, his tone filled with affection. He then hopped back onto his bicycle and called out loudly, "Let's go! I'll take you back to the city, let's find a place to fill our stomachs first!"

He pedaled with all his might, and the bicycle sped towards the city.

After that frantic drive, plus the two and a half hours spent on the way here, He Yuzhu was now starving and parched.

Unfortunately, he had no food or water on him, and he couldn't conjure anything out of thin air. All he could think about was getting back to the city as soon as possible, finding a small restaurant, having a good meal to fill his stomach, and then drinking some hot water.

After more than three hours of travel and a bumpy ride, He Yuzhu finally rode his bicycle back to his rented courtyard in the city.

At this moment, he was hungry, thirsty, and exhausted. He barely had the strength to lift his hand, and his legs were sore and numb.

Qiao Zhiyu, sitting in the back seat, was sleeping soundly, perhaps because the journey was too bumpy or because she was too tired. She was hugging his waist, her little brows slightly furrowed, but a faint smile on her lips.

For this reason, He Yuzhu had to slow down in the second half of the ride and ride very carefully, afraid of waking her up.

As soon as they entered their own courtyard, Qiao Zhiyu woke up groggily in the back seat, rubbing her sleepy eyes, her gaze still somewhat dazed, clearly not fully awake yet.

She jumped off the back of the bicycle nervously and stood in the courtyard, looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings with a mixture of curiosity and timidity. She clutched the hem of her clothes tightly with both hands, appearing somewhat at a loss.

He Yuzhu pointed to the low side room next to the courtyard and said in a calm tone, "Look, that room is yours from now on. Go in and take a look, tidy it up, and you'll live there from now on."

Qiao Zhiyu moved her feet timidly and slowly entered the side room. Her big, dark eyes darted around as she carefully examined this unfamiliar little space that belonged to her, her eyes filled with curiosity and a hint of barely perceptible anticipation.

The room was indeed very shabby. Apart from a rickety old wooden bed and a wooden cabinet with a chipped corner, there was almost nothing else.

The bedding that should have been on the bed was nowhere to be found, not even a trace.

Fortunately, the floor was swept clean, not a speck of dust could be seen, and there were no cobwebs in the corners, making it look exceptionally refreshing.

Taking advantage of this brief moment of free time, He Yuzhu rushed into the main house and hurriedly ripped off his tattered clothes, which were covered in fishy smells and were dirty and smelly.

When he changed into a clean and simple set of coarse cloth clothes and came out of the house again, he happened to run into the little girl peeking out from the doorway of the side room.