A Strange Presence
As their life began to stabilize, Yiling noticed odd occurrences near the river plot. The tools she left neatly arranged would sometimes be scattered in the morning. Footprints—too small for an adult but too deliberate for an animal—appeared in the freshly tilled soil.
One evening, as she carried water back from the river, a chill ran down her spine. Turning slowly, she thought she caught a glimpse of something in the trees—a fleeting shadow, too quick to discern.
"Mama?" Zhi's voice startled her as he ran to meet her halfway. "You look scared."
She forced a smile, crouching to pull him into her arms. "It's nothing, Zhi'er. Mama was just thinking too much."
But deep down, Yiling knew it wasn't her imagination. The warnings from the boy in the forest had started to resurface in her mind.