He looked to be about the same age as her, so why did he have so many injuries on his body? And signs of suicide?
At first, Winifred thought that if he didn’t respond to gentle persuasion, she could resort to more harsh methods. But looking at Leland, who already seemed to be in so much pain, could there be something even more painful than this?
After finding out his name and address, they quickly found his information. Mr. Hamilton read out the details to Winifred.
Leland, ten years old, both parents at home, his mother paralyzed and his father, a jobless man, taking care of her at home. Leland dropped out of school at eight years old and started working. He’s currently porting cement at the docks, earning a modest income to support his family, but unable to afford a better life or treatment for his mother’s illness.
No wonder he’s so ragged and worn out. Those injuries on his body must be from his alcoholic father, and the ones from porting cement at the construction site.
The signs of suicide on his left wrist had been there for a while, the maid said. Could it be that he attempted suicide when he dropped out of school two years ago?
Winifred couldn’t make a judgment. All she knew was that if Leland really lived as she described, worse off than a dog, then why would he stay in such a family? Since he could make money on his own, he should just leave. Staying in such a family would only drag him down.
Human endurance can be stretched, but there’s always a limit. Even a camel in the desert can be crushed. Not to mention a big child like him carrying over a hundred pounds of cement. He probably doesn’t even weigh a hundred pounds himself.
Winifred suddenly asked, “Mr. Hamilton, do you think the little brat will come back?”
Although Mr. Hamilton thought to himself that Miss Winifred really doesn’t know how to respect people, calling someone a little brat even after knowing their name and address, he kept his thoughts to himself. If she had a better attitude and didn’t treat people like dogs, maybe that kid would have agreed to come today.
After thinking for a while, Mr. Hamilton honestly answered, “I’m not sure. It seems difficult. Based on his information, his life is indeed difficult, but he has aspirations and is a determined child.” Able to maintain his dignity, refuse temptation without hesitation. Mr. Hamilton felt that if Leland was given a good environment, he would definitely have a promising future.
“Aspirations?” Winifred sneered at these words, “Can aspirations put food on the table? Fool.”
Mr. Hamilton said it’s hard, but Winifred didn’t think so. Do you know how to tame a falcon? She doesn’t believe she can’t break Leland’s will.
Winifred remembered the dog that was run over by a car. When she first brought it home, the dog was unruly, running around and barking. Winifred got annoyed and tied the dog outside, didn’t feed it, and left it to face the wind, rain, and sun. She almost starved the dog to death. Later, she fed it and called a veterinarian. The dog survived but became extremely docile and obedient. It would run away when it got triggered outside.
Unfortunately, the dog survived but was run over by a car.
Winifred felt tired. Rainy days are the best for sleeping.
…
While she was having a pleasant dream, on the other side, someone was experiencing a nightmare.
When Leland went back, he was slapped by a man. He had a slender figure, and getting drenched in the rain made him feel uncomfortable. He fell to the ground with the slap.
The man found 180 yuan in his tattered pants pocket and counted, “Only 180 yuan? Less than yesterday?”
Leland was dazed for a while on the ground, his vision darkened, his left cheek on fire from being hit and his ear hot. He lowered his head, and his nose was beginning to heat up, and his vision restored just in time to see a trickle of blood on his hand. He subconsciously wiped his nose and it started to bleed.
While wiping his nose, Leland said, “The foreman said to take half a day off because of the rain, no need to port cement.”
The man sneered, “It’s been raining for so long, where have you been? Leland, you’re the seed I’ve sown. Don’t think you can hide things from me. Did you go out to hide money?”
“I didn’t,” Leland said, looking up, blood still dribbling down his nose, half of his face rubbed red. It was clear that he looked like a dog, but his eyes were like those of a wolf.
The man squinted. This wasn’t the first time he had seen Leland look at him this way. His heart skipped a beat, but he said, “Do you remember what I said this morning? If you don’t bring back 300, I’ll break your mother’s hand.”
The man knew where Leland’s weakness lay. As long as his mother was around, no matter how fierce Leland’s gaze was, he wouldn’t be able to fly away.
“What have you done to my mom?” Leland suddenly stood up from the ground and looked around the room. He wanted to rush over there but was grabbed by the back of his head by the man.
The man said harshly, “Don’t worry, she won’t die, but you have to work overtime today, keep porting until you reach 300, and remember to buy me some meat and alcohol.”
For Leland, the pain was nothing compared to this. Always giving in it would only make things worse.
Leland’s hair was pulled, keeping his head up, and his eyes were glaring at the man, saying, “If anything happens to my mom, I will kill you! I mean it!”
This was the first time he had burst out with such strong murderous intent, without flinching, his eyes were crazed.
The man, who had been drinking half-drunk, suddenly became sober. He raised his hand again and wanted to slap Leland, but he hesitated. Leland was still holding his head up, not blinking once. The man knew for sure that Leland really wanted to kill him.
His hand landed on Leland’s neck, “You dare to kill me? I can strangle you with just one hand.”
Though the man drank excessively, his body wasn’t as fit as before, but he was still big and had strength. Catching Leland was like catching a little chicken. With just a bit of effort, he could snap Leland’s slender neck.
Feeling the tightening around his neck, facing death didn’t scare Leland in the least. For him, life had become intolerable, so what was there to fear in death? Besides, he was sure the man wouldn’t kill him.
“If I die, there’ll be no one to earn you money for alcohol,” Leland told him.
It was a good source of income, and Leland didn’t believe he would kill it.
Sure enough, the man stopped his force and looked at Leland with a probing gaze. What happened to him today? He actually dared to oppose him. In the past, as long as he used his mother to threaten him, he would obey.
“Aren’t you afraid your mother will die?” the man asked.
“I said if anything happens to my mom, I will kill you. Even if I can’t kill you, I will make you have a hard time,” Leland said.
The man suddenly laughed, the smell of alcohol breath blowing on Leland’s face, “You’re right. If you die, no one will earn money for me, but I can find someone else after you and your mother die.”
He was confident he could find a better woman and maybe have more children and didn’t necessarily need Leland. He thought his son had thought too highly of himself.
However, blood flowed in his body, and he knew what he was considering. He wasn’t really afraid of dying, nor would he let his mother die. Saying these words was just a counter-threat. He wasn’t afraid, he had a way out.
“You still want to have another one? To live with you, enduring spousal abuse and drunkenness? Or by your shamelessly gluttonous figure?”