The Suffering of the World, The Suffering of the World

Sitting in the courtyard, Ye Shu pondered all night. Even when the sun rose the next day, he still couldn't figure out what exactly was going on.

It was just too bizarre, you know?

Since he couldn't figure it out, he simply stopped thinking about it.

As long as it didn't affect his plans, it was fine.

As for compensation...

They only mentioned compensation, but never specified when it would be given.

At worst, once he grew stronger in the future, casually leaking a tiny bit of power from his fingertips would still be a massive fortune for the Snake-People tribe.

Thus, Ye Shu continued to idle his days away with a clear conscience.

Over the past two months, he spent his days watching the girls rehearse on the high stage specially built by Medusa, and his nights lying in the courtyard counting the stars. His life here was even more comfortable than in the Ye family.

It got to the point where Bingxuanzi suspected he was just here on vacation.

In response, Ye Shu pointed out that a certain someone who ran off to Bai Ling's place every few days seemed much more like they were on vacation. Whenever asked about this, Bingxuanzi would stammer, change the subject, and fall silent.

Days passed one by one, and the Heavenly Flame Ceremony drew closer.

On the eve of the celebration, the night was deep.

The lights in Qing Li's room, however, were still on.

"Come now, time to wash the feet of our eldest young miss Qing Li!"

Qing Yuan carried a basin of hot water over to the bed. She crouched down and gently placed Qing Li's fair, tender little feet—which still carried a faint scent of sweat from her recent exertions—into the water.

"Hss—it's hot!"

Little Qing Li grimaced and tried to pull her feet back, but they were forcefully held down in the water, leaving her unable to break free.

"Don't move, it's good for your feet."

"But it burns Qing Li..."

"Now you know it burns?"

Qing Yuan said in exasperation, "Why didn't you think about that when you were dancing? Look at you now. Every day they swell up like steamed buns."

Saying that, she gave them a hard squeeze.

"Hss!"

Little Qing Li gasped in pain, nearly jumping off the bed. In her anxiety, she spoke rapidly, "Sister Yuan, it's easy for you to say! You just sit on the side and play the flute. You don't have to dance. But Qing Li has to dance for a very, very long time every day, and even gets scolded by the troupe leader. It's not fair at all, and Sister Yuan is even bullying Qing Li."

"Sister Yuan is the worst!"

"Qing Li hates Sister Yuan the most!"

"Well..."

Looking at Qing Li's puffed-up little face, Qing Yuan awkwardly scratched her head. "That... that was assigned by the troupe leader, what can I do about it? Besides, do you know how to play the flute? This is called specializing in one's profession."

After saying that, she lowered her head and focused on massaging little Qing Li's feet, too embarrassed to say more.

Little Qing Li snorted and stopped talking as well.

The room fell quiet, leaving only the sound of splashing water and the occasional hiss of pain.

Outside the window, it was completely silent.

The moonlight flowed like water.

Suddenly, a drop of water splashed onto the back of Qing Yuan's hand.

At first, she didn't pay it any mind, assuming it was just a splash from the basin. But soon, the drops became more and more frequent.

By the time she finally realized something was wrong and looked up, she found Qing Li's face already covered in tears.

"What's wrong? Did I hurt you?" Qing Yuan thought it was from the pain and quickly lightened the pressure of her hands.

Qing Li shook her head, her voice choking with sobs.

"Sister Yuan, tomorrow... after tomorrow, are we going to leave?"

"After this, we won't have such nice houses to live in, no delicious steamed buns to eat, and no beautiful clothes to wear."

"We'll go back to how it was before. We'll have to wear clothes with barely any fabric, travel from east to west every day, never getting enough to eat or sleep. We'll have to force smiles while dancing for those bad men, listening to them say dirty things to us, and if we don't dance well, the troupe leader will whip us."

As she spoke, her tears fell even harder.

"Sister Yuan, do you know?"

"These past two months have been the happiest time of my life. We have a big house to live in, steamed buns to eat, and the troupe leader only scolds us but never raises a hand against us. The audience below the stage isn't just there to gawk at our exposed legs and arms; they truly appreciate our dancing. They cheer and clap for us when we dance well."

Qing Li looked up, her large, tear-blurred eyes filled with confusion.

"Once, when I was dancing on the high stage, listening to the cheers and applause around me, I truly forgot everything. I couldn't see anything else; I just wanted to keep dancing like that forever, until the end of time."

Qing Yuan listened, stunned.

She listened to the girl babble on, occasionally choking on her own sniffles but insisting on continuing.

"But... but..."

"Tomorrow is the ceremony. After dancing for this final day, we'll have to leave, and it will be just like before..."

Qing Li lowered her head, looking utterly dejected.

"Getting whipped, wearing skimpy clothes, and dancing for those disgusting, bad men."

"I don't want it to be like before..."

Qing Yuan's heart tightened, and she was just about to offer some words of comfort.

But then she saw little Qing Li sniffle, as if remembering something, and a smile forced its way back onto her face. "Sister Yuan, the Snake-People tribe is really powerful, right? Because of them, the troupe leader even lets Qing Li wear nice clothes, live in comfortable rooms, and eat good food."

"So I was thinking..."

"Thinking what?" Qing Yuan asked softly.

"I was thinking," little Qing Li kept her head down, her voice as faint as a mosquito's, "I want to dance harder, to dance so beautifully that the Snake-People can't bear to let us go. Didn't the troupe leader say there will be many important figures at tomorrow's ceremony?"

"They will all come to watch Qing Li dance!"

"If Qing Li dances well enough, will they like Qing Li? Will they let Qing Li stay? Let everyone stay? I can dance for them every day. That way, everyone won't have to live that old life anymore. We won't have to get whipped, we won't have to wear clothes with barely any fabric, and the older sisters won't have to be taken into the dark rooms anymore..."

As she said this, Qing Li clenched her fists, her eyes sparkling like stars, as if she could already see the scene where those important figures were moved by her dancing and chose to let them stay.

Seeing her look of longing, Qing Yuan was momentarily dazed.

It was quite a while before she spoke.

She finally forced a hoarse question from her throat.

"Then... what about your big brother?"

"Didn't you say he would come to save you?"

"Even if the Snake-People keep you here and you dance for them every day, that's still a life without freedom, isn't it?"

Hearing this question, Qing Li clearly froze for a moment.

"Big brother... big brother..."

"Big brother might not come... Sister Yuan..." She lowered her head, her expression downcast, her tone lacking the confidence she had shown back in the camel carriage. "It's been two months. Do you know, Sister Yuan? Actually, every night I wait in anticipation, hoping big brother will appear just like in my dreams. But sometimes I also think that dancing for the Snake-People is quite nice. If the troupe leader doesn't lose his temper, doesn't make us wear those kinds of clothes, and doesn't hit people..."

Time would slowly wear away a girl's hope.

And it would grind down her aspirations.

"Sister Yuan, do you think the VIPs of the Serpent Clan will like my performance tomorrow?" Qingli asked. Her eyes sparkled with anticipation, as if she could already picture those important figures clapping and laughing.

Qingyuan lowered her head, remaining silent for a moment.

"They will."

She spoke softly. "They absolutely will. Our little Qingli is so beautiful and adorable. Even if you don't dance and simply stand there, everyone will love you."

Little Qingli clasped her hands together and gazed out the window at the bright moon.

"If that were really true... that would be wonderful."

The hands Qingyuan used to wash the girl's feet tightened slightly. Her throat felt unbearably dry, yet no words would come out. She merely massaged the small feet, over and over again.

She didn't stop until the water grew cold.

Looking up, she saw that little Qingli had already fallen fast asleep. Her small head bobbed gently, a faint smile still lingering on her lips.

Qingyuan gently laid her down on the bed and tucked her in with a blanket.

Just as she tried to pull her hand away, little Qingli rolled over and gripped her fingers tightly. The girl's brows furrowed, and the smile vanished from her small face, replaced by a look of grievance and agony she had never shown before.

"Mother... the adult world is so bitter..."

"It's truly so bitter..."

"........."

Qingyuan stared at her face, her own expression as cold as ice.

After who knew how long, she finally let out a soft sigh.

"The mortal world is bitter... the mortal world is bitter..."