Xua Ying Yue spent the rest of the day sleeping and when she regained consciousness, it was already the next day. The morning sun was shining brightly in the sky and she could hear the twittering of the birds that were sitting outside the window of the small rooftop room where she was living with her sister.
Her sister was already up and about bustling in the small kitchen at the entrance of the room, Xua Ying Yue could smell the scent of an egg getting fired with the smell of the rice porridge that had been simmered for the entire morning lingering in the air.
When Xua Yenay heard the rustling of the blankets, she turned her head to look at Xua Ying Yue and smiled before greeting her sister with a cheery voice, " Good morning, Yue'er? You are finally up. Get up and wash yourself, today is your big day. You do not want to be late on such an important day, now do you?"
" I am getting up," Xua Ying Yue replied as she pushed herself up from the mattress on which she was sleeping till now and then sat up straight. Her long black hair that was left loose fell on her forehead making Xua Ying Yue push them away from her eyes as she got up from the mattress on which she was sleeping and then stood up on the ground before walking to the small bathing room.
Her sister had filled up the large wooden bucket with hot water since there was no geyser in the bathing room. Xua Ying Yue could not take a bath with her hands in bandages which was why she wore plastic gloves and then wiped her body with a clean cloth and hot water. Once she was done wiping, she started washing her clothes, even though the skin that was burnt was biting her Xua Ying Yue did not stop her actions.
She wanted to keep this pain as a reminder lest she forgot why she was doing everything. Every bite, every scream and every tear that she had shed, she would have to return everything to Lu Biya and the rest with interest that will be getting accumulated in the next few years.
Xua Ying Yue hung the clothes that now smelled of lilacs and then hung them up on the small string tied in the bathroom to let the water drip down the clothes before she turned around and walked out of the bathing room after dressing herself in clean clothes.
As soon as she stepped outside, Xua Yenay who was setting the small dining table in the middle of the room after cleaning up the area where the two were sleeping, turned to look at her sister and when she saw Xua Ying Yue's bandages being covered in blood, a distressed expression came upon her face as she rushed to Xua Ying Yue and held her hands.
" How many times do I need to tell you, Yue'er?" Xua Yenay chided her sister lightly as she glared at the latter with a heartbroken expression. " Why do you have to do things that hurt you? Can't you take care of yourself a little more?"
Xua Yenay could not understand what was going on in Xua Ying Yue's mind, her sister had been fine months ago but because of those monsters ——Xua Yenay shook her head and calmed herself down. Between the two of them, she will have to keep her head clear and her mind completely stable, if she lost herself as well then who will become Xua Ying Yue's wall when she stumbles?
Seeing that Xua Ying Yue was not replying, Xua Yenay could only sigh with helplessness as she ushered her sister to sit down before she started rummaging in the luggage bag. Xua Yenay pulled out the first aid kit that she had brought with her and then started untying Xua Ying Yue's bandages, the second she pulled the bandages open, she saw the burned skin that was yet to heal was bleeding.
The sight was enough to bring tears into Xua Yenay's eyes as she pursed her lips and then pulled out a clean set of cotton balls and started wiping the blood off the skin that was dripping on the floor.
" They were monsters, Yue'er," she told Xua Ying Yue who was sitting obediently on the floor in front of her. With her fingers delicately tapping the skin that was burned and bleeding, Xua Yenay continued speaking to her sister, " But that does not mean that you need to follow their path as well, I will not say or stop you but I do hope that you will never dirty your hands with blood because of them."
As she spoke Xua Yenay raised her head and looked at her sister, she could bear anything but she could not see her sister becoming a murderer. Her sister was above that, she was better than those monsters who almost ruined her, which was why she could never see her sister walking down the path that was the same as theirs.
They were beasts but her sister was human.
Xua Ying Yue did not say anything which worried Xua Yenay, she was worried that the latter will really do something that will be unforgivable in the eyes of others and their parents but then she heard her sister say, " Do not worry, Sister Yenay. I will never spill any blood."
With her eyes looking into Xua Yenay's, Xua Ying Yue promised. She was not lying, she too had no intention of dirtying her hands with the blood of those people who were worse than demons.
Her words caused a worry that was pressing on the shoulders of Xua Yenay to lift as the latter heaved a sigh of relief. She quickly finished tying the bandages around Xua Ying Yue's hands and then said with a sweet smile, " Very well, I knew my sister was better than everyone else. Come on, let's eat, after that, we need to go to the college as well."
Xua Ying Yue smiled back at her sister who naively believed her. With her eyes flickering she looked at Xua Yenay who was walking to the small kitchen to pick up the bowl of porridge and thought in her head, ' Silly sister, the most successful murders are the ones that spill no blood.'
She promised that she will not spill blood but she never promised that she will not kill.
------------------------