Chapter 29: I Don’t Want to Drag You Down

“You ask why I’m here? Of course, it’s to find you.”

He Ziqing’s eyes flashed with a hint of guilt. “Sister Yinuo, what do you need me for?”

“I just came from your aunt’s house.”

Even without her saying more, He Ziqing knew that Yinuo had seen through her lie.

“I…”

“This isn’t a good place to talk. Let’s go somewhere else.”

On this street, everyone lowered their heads and whispered, trying to avoid being noticed.

He Ziqing knew well how dangerous this place was, and she didn’t want to drag Yinuo into trouble. Picking up her backpack, she led Yinuo down a different path to leave.

Just as they reached the alleyway, they saw people in uniforms rushing toward them. He Ziqing cursed under her breath and pulled Qiu Yinuo to run in the opposite direction.

The wind in December cut like a knife.

“They’re arresting people up ahead, we need to run.”

Normally, walking wouldn’t have been a problem, but when they started running, Qiu Yinuo deeply felt the difference between being slim and being heavy.

She could feel every part of her body shaking, and in less than twenty meters, she was already gasping for breath.

For the first time, she hated being so heavy. The uneven road almost made her twist her ankle.

Dragging her 150 pounds of weight, her body was sore and weak.

“Don’t run!”

The man in a wide-brimmed hat, wearing a uniform, arrived, and the entire black market stirred.

“I can’t do it, Qingqing, I can’t run anymore. You go first.” Qiu Yinuo only needed to find a secluded spot and slip into the space to escape, and she would be free.

With He Ziqing’s quiet movements and without her as a burden, she would surely escape easily.

But He Ziqing didn’t know any of this. She only knew that if she let go, Qiu Yinuo might end up in the hands of the authorities.

She couldn’t leave her behind at this moment. “Sister Yinuo, hold on, I know a shortcut.”

Yinuo followed her through several turns and finally arrived at a low wall. He Ziqing moved a few stones aside and said, “Climb over.”

“What?”

Qiu Yinuo looked up at the low wall—it wasn’t too high, but with her figure, there was no way she could climb over it.

Time was running out, so He Ziqing pushed against Yinuo’s large frame, “Sister Yinuo, use some strength, we can get over.”

Yinuo: “…”

He Ziqing’s small hands lifted her, and with a strong push, Yinuo was tossed over. She cried out, “Ah!” before hitting the ground with a thud.

He Ziqing quickly cleared the stones, made a sprint, and used both hands to push herself over the low wall.

Yinuo felt the pain from the fall—it wasn’t light. Her elbow, knee, and body ached everywhere.

“Sister Yinuo, can you keep going?”

From the other side of the wall, voices could be heard—some were loudly declaring their innocence, others crying and begging for mercy.

He Ziqing put a finger to her lips and whispered, signaling for silence. The two of them got up and carefully made their way forward.

Only when they reached a safe spot did Qiu Yinuo gasp in pain. It hurt so much, really so much.

Even though she wore plenty of layers for winter, it felt like her skin had been scraped raw underneath.

“I’m sorry. I’ve dragged you into this,” He Ziqing said, wanting to pull up her pants to check, but Yinuo stopped her.

“I’m fine. Let’s find a place where we can talk.”

The two of them went to a nearby small park. Though small snowflakes still fell from the sky, they sat down in a pavilion by the lake.

“Sister Yinuo, you’re out. What about the twins?”

“…I asked the aunt next door to help take care of them. But let’s not talk about them for now. What’s really going on with you?”

Now that she had been found, He Ziqing had nothing to hide anymore.

“Actually, I came back last night. When I passed through a dim alley, I saw people from the Cultural Association dragging a girl and trying to do something indecent. I acted on impulse and beat them up. The one leading them got hurt the worst.”

Qiu Yinuo knew all too well that in this era, the Cultural Association’s word was law. He could accuse whoever he wanted with just his mouth.

So many innocent people had died in vain at their hands. If they had suffered at Qingqing’s hands, they would definitely come back for revenge, tenfold or more.

“Did they get a good look at your face?”

If they did, that would be a real problem.

He Ziqing shook her head. “They probably didn’t. It was really dark at the time, and they even mistook me for a man.”

Qiu Yinuo looked her up and down. Tall and thin, with short hair, and a voice that lacked the liveliness of a young girl—instead, it carried a trace of a youthful boyishness. It wasn’t impossible for someone to mistake her for a man.

“If they didn’t recognize you, what are you so afraid of?”

“Their place is really close to my home. I’m afraid they’ll come investigate. I don’t want to drag you into this. That’s why I thought of quitting. If they can’t find me, they won’t suspect you either.”

Qiu Yinuo pressed her lips together. “If that’s the case, then they would have started investigating nearby today. But I haven’t seen a single unfamiliar face.”

He Ziqing opened her mouth, unsure how to respond.

“Qingqing, are you hiding something else from me?”

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and said, “I think I might’ve… kicked the leader in his privates. Badly.”

“What?”

“I even went to the hospital this morning to ask around. I heard he’s still lying there.”

Qiu Yinuo gave her a thumbs-up. “Not bad.”

“Sister Yinuo, are you praising me?”

“A dog like that who bullies women—it wouldn’t be too much even if you kicked him to death. You did the right thing. But something this serious happened, and you didn’t tell me right away. I’m really angry with you.”

He Ziqing lowered her eyes as large tears began to fall.

“I panicked after hitting them, but I don’t regret it one bit. I’m just afraid of getting you involved. Sister Yinuo, I really can’t take care of the twins right now. From today on, you have to pretend you don’t know me. Those people from the Cultural Association are ruthless—I’m scared they’ll take revenge on you.”

Qiu Yinuo pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket. “Wipe your tears. If something happened, we’ll find a way to fix it. Running away isn’t the answer.”

“But I…”

Qiu Yinuo suddenly remembered something. “If you came back last night, where did you stay?”

She lowered her head and said with embarrassment, “I spent the night at the train station.”

“You treat me like your sister, don’t you? And you still went to the train station to freeze in this weather?” Qiu Yinuo couldn’t even imagine how rough that night must have been for her.

She thought for a moment. “You went to the hospital today to ask around. There’s no way to keep this under wraps anymore.”

“Then what should I do?”

“It’s only a matter of time before they find you.”

He Ziqing’s face turned pale. “Then I definitely can’t drag you down with me.” She couldn’t go back to her aunt’s place either.

Qiu Yinuo fell into a brief silence. “At this point, there’s only one option left.”