Xue and Mingzhu had been eating well and spending plenty of time outdoors, and it showed. They looked healthy and full of life. Their change didn’t go unnoticed by the locals and, of course, it stirred envy. Since Zhang Min hadn’t returned to the slums for quite some time, a few brazen souls decided to sneak into the house.

  Apparently, the thieves had hoped to find money or valuables, but left with nothing, all the girls’ wealth consisted of an almost empty sack of rice and a handful of dried fruit. Over three weeks they had eaten through all the supplies their father left, and the small sum for daily expenses that Xue kept on her person meant the burglars found nothing. Of course, they did not find the coins buried under the floor.

  Returning from the river, the little householders found their hut turned upside down, but they weren’t too upset, it wasn’t the first time someone had broken in. Still, the unpleasant feeling didn’t disappear. After barring the door tightly and putting their few possessions back in place, they lay down to sleep pressed close to each other. From then on, all valuables — namely the clothes bought by their father and the new sack of rice, were kept with their neighbor Hong Shu, who treated them kindly. Whenever they returned from the river, sisters took a little from her store to cook with.

  Sometimes local street urchins lurked near their house, hoping to learn where the two girls got their fish. From dawn they followed them, but outside the town they quickly lost sight of them. The girls ran very fast and had acquired incredible endurance, so the ragged, starving kids simply couldn’t keep up. The most desperate spent the whole day dragging their weak bodies along the river hoping to stumble upon the right spot, but found nothing.

  A few months earlier Xue and Mingzhu, like most of the underage slum-dwellers, spent all their time in a desperate fight against hunger. They had no strength for play and made no friends. Each day they competed with other children for a moldy flatbread, a handful of rice, or a copper coin. The girls remembered how terrible hunger was, but they had no intention of revealing their fishing secret or sharing food, otherwise they’d never rid themselves of beggars.

  Unable to track the sisters beyond the city, the small urchins waited to meet them on the way to the market and pitifully begged for fish, but were refused every time. Angry and swearing, the kids threatened but were afraid to use their hands. The daggers at the girls’ belts scared even the boldest. Once Mingzhu couldn’t help herself and drove a couple of little beggars off with a stick.

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  “You think I’m rich?” she shouted, slapping her old clothes. “Why should we share food? Get lost! We have nothing!”

  For a few days the slum kids pursued the girls, but then gave up and set off to find other ways to fill their bellies. None of them returned to the old hut, but two days later, thieves again crept into the house, ransacked it from floor to ceiling, smearing the room with dirty hands. Finding nothing, they stole the mats, an old basket, and the small stock of kindling the girls kept for cooking.

  “They’re all bad! I’ll never forgive them!” Mingzhu cried when she noticed the missing items, and two tears welled at the corners of her eyes from the hurt. She was growing tired of the beggars’ intrusive attention.

  “When Father returns, we’ll find them all and teach them a lesson!” Xue soothed her sister.

  “Right!”

  “Let’s eat.”

  “Mm.” Mingzhu nodded and immediately brightened. “Just you wait!” she threatened the street with a little fist.

  Together the girls went to their neighbor for rice and dishes. Outside the sky darkened and leaden clouds gathered. Gusts of wind bent the grass, rocked the short trees as if trying to tear leaves off them. The air smelled damp.

  While Xue kindled the fire, Mingzhu rinsed the rice and fetched water, and they prepared a simple dinner. If not for the coming rain, the children would have preferred to eat outside, at home they no longer felt safe. A closed room, from which it was hard to flee, felt like a trap. Lately only on the river, away from the town, did they allow themselves to drop their guard a little.

  Suddenly the front door slammed as if someone had tried to burst it open, but the bolt their father had made held. The girls jumped in fright. Voices of several men were heard outside, surprised by the obstacle. Obviously, they had poorly planned the attack; frustrated, they shook the door and tried to break it down, swearing through clenched teeth and frightening the children.

  “Open up, you snot-nosed brats!” hissed an unfamiliar voice. “Quick!”

  “Open now or we’ll kill you!” rasped another.

  “Hand over the money!” a third impatiently announced the reason for their visit. “Then you’ll live!”

  “Get away! We have nothing!” Mingzhu answered in a trembling voice.

  “Tsk,” Xue tugged her hand and whispered softly, “You shouldn’t have answered. Now they know we’re here. We have to run.” She pulled her sister toward the back door.

  “But—”

  “Tssshhhh.”

  Behind the house the crackle of branches and rustle of grass could be heard. The uninvited guests were searching for another entrance. One of them found a window and tried to crawl in. The girls slipped out the back door, but the yard already held them. A large hand reached for Xue, trying to grab her hair, but she easily dodged.

  “Grab them! Don’t let them escape!” shouted a drunken man, one of those beggars, who had been pestering travelers on the road to the port.