Finding Joy in Helping Others

Hua Jinyin, her face expressionless, also glanced toward the entrance of the Supply and Marketing Cooperative. It was crowded outside, and Xia Yu was trying hard to squeeze in.

She shook her head at him, then turned to the saleswoman. "You're the one who told us to leave. If she dies later, don't blame us for making her fall."

The saleswoman, feeling frustrated, gritted her teeth and said, "I won't blame you!"

Hua Jinyin snorted, pulling her brother and sister out the door.

As they passed Xia Yu, she stopped Hua Aidang from calling out "Brother Xia," pretending not to know him as she walked straight past.

Hua Aidang wanted to ask why his sister ignored Brother Xia, but Hua Jinyin pinched his palm lightly.

Hua Aidang's eyes lit up. Thinking of the stories of outwitting the enemy he had read in books, he shut his mouth tightly, even using his free hand to cover it.

Afterward, the three of them continued strolling through the market. Pretending to casually look back, they saw Xia Yu following at a distance that was neither too close nor too far.

Hua Jinyin nodded. *Indeed a smart man; he understood my meaning with just a glance.*

After strolling for another ten minutes, Hua Jinyin stopped in front of a food store, bought three bottles of soda, and the three of them sat on the steps in front of the door to drink.

While they were drinking, an old woman in her sixties pushed a small cart past. Perhaps the wheel caught on a rock, because the cart tilted, spilling food everywhere, and the old woman fell with it.

Hua Aidang, being a good boy, immediately ran over to help her up. "Grandma, are you alright?"

The old woman glanced at Hua Jinyin and Hua Xiaohua, who were sitting, and smiled kindly. "I'm fine, it's just the food..."

Hua Aidang understood and patted his chest. "I'll pick it up for you!"

With that, he set the cart upright, ran around to gather all the spilled food, and put it back in.

The old woman thanked Hua Aidang and was about to push the cart away, but after taking just one step, she cried out, "Ouch!" The cart fell again, and she sat on the ground, clutching her leg and groaning in pain.

Oh dear, she had sprained her ankle.

Hua Aidang looked awkwardly toward his second sister, who was still sitting, and his third sister, who was about to stand up but was held back by his second sister. "Second Sister, Third Sister, is Grandma going to die?"

The old woman, who was groaning, froze. Her face twisted, though it was unclear whether it was from pain or from being angered by Hua Aidang's words.

Hua Jinyin said helplessly, "She won't die. Why don't you ask where she lives, and we can go to her house to call her family to fetch her."

Before Hua Aidang could hesitate, the old woman quickly said, "What a kind girl. My house is in the fourth alley ahead, the one with the black gate and the stone lion in front. Help me call my family, and I will have them reward you handsomely."

Hua Jinyin quickly waved her hand. "No need to thank us. Helping others is a joy in itself!"

Hua Aidang looked at the food in the cart and shook his head. "Grandma, you've really taken a loss this time. How much did this cart of food cost? And you still want to reward us? In the future, try not to come out if you can avoid it. You met us this time, but if you fall harder next time and no one cares, you might die without anyone knowing."

The old woman's face turned pale with anger at his words, but she still had to nod in agreement.

The three siblings went to find the house the old woman had pointed out. After walking a distance, Hua Aidang pulled Hua Jinyin's hand, gestured for her to lean down, and whispered in her ear, "Sister, I saw this old woman at the entrance of the Supply and Marketing Cooperative earlier. She even nodded to the saleswoman who wouldn't let us leave. When she walked past us just now, I noticed that she tipped the cart over on purpose, and her ankle isn't sprained at all. She lured us here; there must be no good intention. I bet we've run into human traffickers, right?"

Hua Jinyin patted Hua Aidang's head in praise. "Then shall we go catch the traffickers? Are you scared, Aidang?"

Hearing this, Hua Aidang puffed out his chest and said loudly, "I'm not scared! The teacher said anyone who dares to fight bad guys is a hero. I want to be a little hero."

Hua Xiaohua was completely bewildered, not knowing what mysterious thing the two were discussing. Why were they suddenly going to fight bad guys?

Just as she was about to ask, Hua Jinyin smiled at her and mouthed, "It's fine!"

Hua Xiaohua felt relieved, thinking her sister was just teasing her brother. She felt she wasn't smart enough; her second sister was joking with her brother, and she hadn't even realized it.

Afterward, the three of them easily found the alley and the house with the black gate and the stone lion. Through her ability, Hua Jinyin knew there were five people in the yard—four men and one woman—pacing around. Two of them were the young men she had seen at the Supply and Marketing Cooperative, and they were holding several coils of rope, likely to bind people.

Underground, there were thirteen people—seven women and six children, all boys. It was indeed a human trafficking den.

Seeing that Xia Yu had followed them, Hua Jinyin signaled her brother and sister to go to him.

Hua Aidang didn't want to go, but Hua Jinyin pushed him, so he had to go with Hua Xiaohua toward Xia Yu. To their surprise, Xia Yu told them to go play in a crowded area, while he leaped onto the wall, then onto the roof, not forgetting to wave at the two siblings.

The two siblings knew that with Brother Xia's skills, they couldn't help with what was to come. To avoid getting in the way, they ran out of the alley to a crowded area.

Seeing some children playing marbles, Hua Aidang pulled out the marbles from his pocket and dragged his third sister to join them.

Hua Jinyin knocked on the door. A middle-aged woman opened it, smiling warmly when she saw her. "Little girl, who are you looking for?"

Hua Jinyin also smiled and replied, "An old woman fell outside and asked me to find her family."

"Oh, that must be my mother-in-law. Thank you."

The woman laughed and grabbed Hua Jinyin's hand as if to thank her. But in the next second, she suddenly pulled hard, dragging Hua Jinyin into the yard. Immediately after, a handkerchief was shoved toward her face from behind.

However, before the handkerchief could cover her mouth and nose, both the person holding it and the woman were kicked flying. Before they could scream, a strange fragrance wafted past, and the two who had attacked, along with the three who were about to, all fainted.

Hua Jinyin retrieved the jasmine plant that Jasmine had given her earlier back into her space. Over time, the original two jasmine flowers had grown into two plants, and she could fully control the scent so it wouldn't affect her family.

Seeing that the people in the yard had been dealt with cleanly, Xia Yu, standing on the roof, pursed his lips helplessly before jumping down, feeling like a hero who had no chance to show off.

The two used the traffickers' own ropes to bind them all. To keep them from shouting, they tore cloth from their clothes to gag them.

Hua Jinyin pointed to a room. "There's a cellar entrance in there. The abducted women and children are hidden inside."

Without a word, Xia Yu rushed into the house. Following Hua Jinyin's guidance, he moved the bedside cabinet aside, and indeed, a cellar entrance was revealed underneath.