" Ah? That family? We've always been bothered by that Shao Xiaolin bastard . He always beat the boy as if the boy wasn't his son . Also , he also abuses his wife and often slapped her whenever he was being disrespected . "
" Yeah , we always hear that man's shouts whenever his temper flares up again . He deserved his death! "
The junior police officer then asked. " Why didn't you helped them? "
The Middle aged woman waved her hands nonchalantly and spoke . " We had once helped that family solve their domestic problems but after the new dawn . We found Lu Meifeng gained a lot more bruises and wounds , it turns out that Shao Xiaolin vented his anger on her again because of our scoldings . The man said to Lu Meifeng that because of her , he got humiliated by the whole neighborhood . Because of that , we don't dare to help them anymore . "
" We also have limited capabilities and authority so we can't restrain that man . Even if we report it to the government , no one would look at their situation seriously . "
" Who would have thought that this situation would end up in a murder case. "
The crowd of villagers simultaneously sighed and clicked their tongue .
One villager spoke out loud . ", I couldn't believe that the first crime that would happen in our village were such a crime of felony. "
Another villager nodded . " Can't you believe it? Rape , Child Abuse , Domestic Violence , and what was it again? Murder with malice-aforethought and? "
The junior police officer nodded. " Yes it is , murder with malice-aforethought . "
Another villager applauded in disbelief. " If Shao Xiaolin didn't die , he would have been jailed for more than one year! "
While the adults talked and ignored the police man . The wandering kids were also curiously listening and talked with each other .
" Such big crime , this is my first time encountering such thing . We usually only learned and saw it from T.V and dramas . "
" Yeah , me too . Our Greenleaf Village will probably get featured on the news later. "
One child covered his mouth . " Really? "
The big child nodded. " After all , this is a big news for the news station . With this , all the people in the world would be warned to report any domestic abuse that you discover and should not turn a blind eye anymore . "
" We're such a stupid Village , if we only called 110 earlier , this thing wouldn't have happened. "
" There's no use crying over spilled milk. It had already happened . "
- a few days later , it was confirmed that the victims' narration matched the results they got from the lab .
They also saw the poison inside the woman's cabinet which is clearly hers . The knife also has Shao Xiaolin's fingerprints . Unfortunately though , there'd no footage that could prove their narration more .
But still , even if they really learned the whole truth .
The offender had already died .
So the case was closed immediately and there's no need for any court hearing because of the evidences .
Moreover , this kind of cases weren't unusual in the city . The detectives have encountered more severe cases than this .
Lu Meifeng stared silently at her son who is calmly watching the departure of the police investigation of crime scenes team .
" Shao Boya "
Lu Meifeng rubbed the sleeping Shao Yu and stared at his son . Shao Boya slowly turned back and faced his mom .
" Yes , mom. ".
" What you did is dangerous . Don't do that again . "
Shao Boya slowly nodded . Lu Meifeng sighed and crouched down before spreading her arms . " Give mom a hug . "
Shao Boya started shedding tears and pounced into her embrace . " Mom ... I feel like ... I'm becoming more like monster . "
" Am i a monster now? Now that i killed two lives? "
Lu Meifeng couldn't answer Shao Boya because she herself was a witness of how Shao Boya expertly disguised the revenge murder to a something incomprehensible .
" Even if you're a monster ... You are still mom's eldest son . "
Shao Boya sighed in relief . Shao Yu suddenly woke up and stared at their position . " Huggie? " She childishly spoke out .
Lu Meifeng smiled and nodded. " Huggie. "
Shao Yu opened her arms and flashed her incomplete cute little teeth. " huggie "
Shao Boya helplessly hugged Shao Yu .
When mid-night comes , inside a simple room. The child lying on the bed started moving restlessly . Sweats began on dripping down from the child's temple as a frown surfaced upon his face.
Shao Boya's breathing turned ragged as he groaned restlessly . Lu Meifeng slowly opened her drowsy eyes and hugged the boy into her embrace .
" I'm not! I'm not a monster.... " The boy weakly muttered and sobbed .
Shao Boya hugged the person nearest to him and started sobbing . Lu Meifeng watched her son with complicated eyes and patted his back patiently .
She must bring Shao Boya to a psychologist soon , or else Shao Boya will grow with a different world views from ordinary people .
Shao Boya gradually calmed down with Lu Meifeng's company and felt safe within her weak arms . Lu Meifeng may not be the best and strongest mother in the world , at least she cares for her son and daughter .
Lu Meifeng's mentality was also no longer healthy because of her miserable experience ever since she cut ties with her family .
When Lu Meifeng tried to recall those painful memories , Lu Meifeng couldn't help whimpering silently .
" Yi Meilin ... I'm sorry. "
----
Early in the morning , Shao Boya woke up early and started washing up. He only ate a mouthful of breakfast before going out.
" Mom , I'll bring the garbage to Old Guo now . Take care of Shao Yu. "
Lu Meifeng smiled and nodded. .
Shao Boya then lifted up two sacks of garbage and went to Old Lu . He recieved only three dollars for the two sacks of garbage but Shao Boya is already satisfied with it .
When Shao Boya returned , he was confused when he heard Shao Yu's resounding cry and Lu Meifeng's troubled voice .
Shao Boya entered the house and looked at Lu Meifeng .
Lu Meifeng rubbed her temples and beckoned to the child . Shao Boya obediently walked forward and held Lu Meifeng's hands.
" I paid the electricity bill earlier but we only have small amount of money for the whole month . Shao Yu wants to eat but we only have a dollar left in my wallet. Shao Yu also broke the vase Shao Xiaolin bought , so we can't resell something for money . "
Shao Yu cried again and rubbed her tummy saying she's hungry . Shao Yu was only a one year younger than him , but Shao Yu was born a little bit stupid because of the pregnancy complications.
Shao Boya turned silent as his mind started rolling with Shao Yu's cries ringing within his ears . He had long since realized that they were poor , but Shao Yu's cries and complains made him realized that collecting garbage couldn't solve this problem .
He has to earn more money from now on . His mother is also working but because of Shao Xiaolin's abuse , they could only eat a little to survive .
Shao Boya looked at his own self . His body looked just like Shao Yu. Because of malnutrition , he didn't grow up much.
Shao Boya bit his lips and run upstairs .
Lu Meifeng watched his eldest son silently climbing upstairs and a distressed expression flashed upon her face.
" Should i go back there? "
But that thought was immediately thrown away as Shao Yu tugged at her t-shirt and complained that she's hungry. Lu Meifeng's hands trembled and hugged her thin baby .
She wished she could have a strong body to work harder and earn more money for Shao Yu . That way ... Shao Yu wouldn't complain anymore that she's hungry.
Upstairs , the young boy looked silently at the two bloody wallets he stole from Shao Feng and Shao Xiaolin . He planned to burn these wallet because he couldn't stomach the thought of using the money inside that was once touched by those two assholes ... But it seems that he had to turn a blind eye to it and prioritize his family first over his stupid pride.
Inside , there are five thousand dollars that could be used up to approximately 4 months if they didn't spend much .
It can be payed for electricity and water bill , transportation , food and some other miscellaneous stuffs .
But if he wants to have a stable income in the future , he thinks he should consult with his mother about this .
The door suddenly opened and Lu Meifeng's eyes landed on the two wallets.
Shao Boya slowly extended his hand and put the two wallets to her palm . " Use the money inside and feed Shao Yu ... If she got hungry again next time , I'm afraid she'll get sick. "
Lu Meifeng stared at her son and couldn't help shedding tears . She knelt down and hugged her son . " Shao Boya ... Shao Boya ... You don't know how mom feels lucky because of your existence . "
" Mom couldn't feel blessed enough that my big boy is a bright and farsighted child unlike any other boy in our neighborhood. "
The child blushed and covered his eyes . " Mom , don't flatter me . "
Lu Meifeng smiled indulgently and kissed Shao Boya's nose . " Thank you , Shao Boya. "
Shao Boya while being hugged , smiled faintly .
" Mom ... What do you think? Should we start selling wontons and meat buns? I know you're good at cooking , I'm sure the kids in the school would like it . "
Lu Meifeng couldn't believe that her son would think of this . Her eldest son really has a mature mind and often thinks for his family's situation . Because of her son's mentality , she's starting to get afraid that her son would grow up without even enjoying a normal childhood life.
" I'll take that suggestion in mind but promise mom that you must not forget to focus on your study . "
Shao Boya bit his lower lip and nodded .
What study? Those things were so easy!