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The Unfortunate Life of Xiaoyang |
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From the moment she was born, Xiaoyang was destined to be unlucky. Her mother
died in childbirth, and her father remarried a woman who always wore heavy
makeup and made Xiaoyang do all the household chores. Her grandfather couldn't
stand it and took her to live in the countryside. Xiaoyang was born at sunset,
at a time when few people in her family knew how to read, so she was given a
name that meant "sunset". Xiaoyang was very sensible, always helping her
grandfather with household chores, chopping firewood on the mountain, cooking
and feeding the livestock. The responsibility of taking care of her little
brother fell on her young shoulders.
In order for Xiaoyang to have a better life, her grandfather sold the family's
five chickens. Tears welled up in his eyes as he struggled with this decision,
but Xiaoyang tried to persuade him: "It's okay, Grandpa, I won't go to school
anymore. Don't sell them." Eventually, she was able to attend school in the
city, where she excelled academically. However, many people envied her and
bullied her. Whenever she returned home on weekends, she always had bruises on
her body. When her grandfather asked her about them, she always said it was an
accident.
When her grandfather fell ill and the doctor said he was very sick, Xiaoyang
skipped school to help him cover himself with a cold cloth. Her father and
stepmother came to visit him, and the stepmother would always mutter under her
breath: "This old man should die already and get it over with." One day,
Xiaoyang couldn't take it anymore and grabbed the stick behind the door, hitting
her stepmother's back while crying: "Get out, we don't want to see you. When the
day comes, I want you dead!"
Several years passed, and Xiaoyang had grown up. At 13 years old, she had
already made a good friend in the city who always helped her with her tasks.
However, on her little brother's 10th birthday, he suddenly died. Xiaoyang wept
as she looked at her grandfather's bronzed and blackened face. Her last hope,
her closest relative, had left her. She was only 13 years old. How could an
ordinary person bear such a heavy burden? |
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