Chapter 16

In the winter of 2018, I was sentenced to one year in prison with a year and a half of probation for mutilating a corpse and obstructing justice.

When I walked out of the Detention Center, white snow was falling from the sky.

Officer Wu was waiting for me at the gate. I hadn’t expected him to come.

He told me that Liang Chuan had already been arrested. According to his confession, after he had accidentally saved my sister and me, he genuinely wanted to turn over a new leaf. But his family needed money, so he set his sights on Bai Xue again.

Based on Liang Chuan’s testimony, those who had treated Bai Xue like an object to be traded were all rooted out, one by one.

Because my sister had mental problems and it was impossible to determine if all her actions were of her own free will, they would be charged with rape.

Uncle Li and Aunt Li became state witnesses and could testify that Bai Xue was extremely resistant at first.

No one had ever abused my sister.

The wounds on her body were self-inflicted; she was in so much pain that she kept hurting herself.

Perhaps my last words to her felt like forgiveness.

“What will happen to Uncle Li and Aunt Li?” I asked.

“If you write a letter of forgiveness, there’s hope for them to get probation.”

“Alright, I’ll write it.”

“They asked me to tell you, you can come home anytime.”

I shook my head.

If, in the past, my parents neglected me because of Bai Xue, now Uncle Li and Aunt Li had abandoned Bai Xue for me.

I have no right to hate them, but I also cannot forgive them.

So, that place-I can’t go back.

“Where will you go next?” Officer Wu asked.

I had nowhere to go, but I forced a smile. “I’ll take it one step at a time. I’ll find a way.”

“Come with me for now.”

He led me toward the parking lot, speaking as we walked: “My daughter’s room is empty. If you don’t mind, you can stay there for the time being.”

I knew this man. For the past half year, he had run around on my behalf and even got into a huge argument with the Procuratorate for refusing to drop the charges.

I was moved, and choked up as I said, “Thank you.”

“Officer Chen was going to come pick you up, but he felt ashamed for wrongly accusing you before and didn’t have the nerve to see you. Don’t blame him. He worked harder than anyone on your sister’s case.”

Officer Wu paused, then continued: “The things you were most worried about-Liang Chuan has destroyed them all. Some were distributed before, but Officer Chen tracked down every last copy. Rest assured, no one will see them again.”

I thought of that hot-tempered young officer and smiled with pursed lips. “He’s a good person.”

Once inside the car, Officer Wu handed me a metal box-the one my sister used to keep her candies in.

I carefully opened it. Beneath the colorful candies was a bankbook.

“The money in the bankbook is Bai Xue’s legitimate advertising income. We’ve investigated. Most of the illegal earnings went into Liang Chuan’s account, while a small portion ended up with Li Jinshui and his wife, and was used for your family’s daily expenses,” Officer Wu explained.

My hands trembled as I opened the bankbook. It was so, so heavy.

A sheet of letter paper fell out-it was the note I had written to my sister that New Year’s Eve, under the bursting fireworks.

“Bai Jie will take Bai Xue out to see the world.”

I saw that this promise had been changed.

At some unknown point, my sister had crossed out the words “take Bai Xue.”

My heart was pierced with pain. “She must hate me.”

Officer Wu glanced at the note in my hand and said, “I don’t think so. I believe this is your sister’s wish.”

“She was a kind girl, wasn’t she? I think her heart was full of love, not hate. Don’t let her down.”

Tears fell onto the words, smudging “Bai Xue” into the shape of snowflakes.

The car started up, driving along the snowy road. The sound of the wind was like fairies singing.

My sister must be reunited with our parents in another world now. I hope she will be happy.