Chapter 2 — Reborn On The Night Of Fraud

Khuong Mien Mien's heart jumped. Her father looked at him accurately. In his previous life, when Trinh Du took revenge on the Khuong family, he was truly cruel and terrifying.

"I don't care what you think, from today onwards, I won't let you near it anymore!" Khuong Thiet Tru gave the final order.

On the outside, Khuong Mien Mien agreed, but inside she was planning how to approach Trinh Du. She knew that only by winning his trust could she change the fate of the Khuong family. Late at night, in a quiet night, she secretly left the house, carrying a bottle of red medicine and some dumplings in her arms. Trinh Du lives in an abandoned buffalo barn at the end of the village. That place was originally where the production team stored farming tools. It was damp and cold, and even the window paper was torn. She gingerly approached, suddenly heard a deep "pop" inside, like the sound of punching a wall.

“…Want to die…”

Trinh Du's low voice carried suppressed anger. Khuong Mien Mien held her breath and looked through the crack in the door. Under the moonlight, the man, with his upper body bare, was applying medicine to the wound on his wrist. His back was covered in bruises, some places were purple, obviously due to being beaten for a long time. Khuong Mien Mien's heart clenched painfully. In her previous life, she only knew that Trinh Du lived a miserable life in the village, but did not know what specific things he had endured.
\deer?"

Trinh Du suddenly turned his head, his eyes sharp as knives. Khuong Mien Mien was startled, the dumpling in her lap fell to the ground. The two of them were separated by a rotten door, but facing each other, the air seemed to freeze.

“I… I brought medicine.” She mustered up the courage to push the door open, put the bottle of red medicine and dumplings on the only healthy wooden chest, "There's still food."

Trinh Du didn't say anything, just looked at her coldly. Khuong Mien Mien took a deep breath, mustered the courage to take a few steps forward: "Your wrist... let me bandage it for you."

“Why?” He suddenly spoke, his voice cold as ice.

“Huh?”

“Today. Why do you do that?” Trinh Du took a step forward, his body still carrying the pungent smell of medicinal wine, "Who told you to do it?"

Khuong Mien Mien retreated to the wall, there was no way back. The man's shadow covered her, she could smell his breath mixed with the smell of sweat and blood on his body.

“No one is wrong.” She raised her head and looked straight into his eyes, "I just... don't want you to hate me."

This answer was clearly beyond Trinh Du's expectations. He frowned, carefully assessing the little girl in front of him. Under the moonlight, her eyes shone brightly, without any guilt or scheming.

“You know what kind of person I am.” He said slowly, his fingers caressing her neck, "Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?"

Khuong Mien Mien's heart was pounding, but she stubbornly refused to hide: "I won't."

“Oh?”

“Because you clearly knew I was standing outside the door, but still intentionally let me see those wounds.” She whispered, "Trinh Du, you're asking for help."

The man's hand suddenly tightened, Khuong Mien Mien immediately had difficulty breathing. But the next second, he suddenly let go, turned around and walked to the window.

“Get out.”

Khuong Mien Mien knew she would only come here tonight. She put the things down, walked to the door and suddenly turned around: "The medicine is not poisonous, I made the dumplings myself. Tomorrow... I will come back." Trinh Du's back stiffened slightly. but still did not turn back. On the dike road leading home, Khuong Mien Mien rubbed her still burning neck and breathed a sigh of relief. She bet right - although Trinh Du is cold on the outside, deep down he is still the guy who used to carry water to help the lonely old woman. In the distance, a few dogs barked. She quickly walked faster, not knowing that in the darkness there was a pair of eyes still watching her. In the buffalo barn, Trinh Du picked up a bun, tore it open, examined it carefully, and then took a small bite. The sweet aroma of flour spread in his mouth. He lowered his eyes and looked at the carefully bandaged bandage on his wrist, his eyes becoming complicated. On the open notebook on the table, the newest page, which was originally filled with the words "Khuong family", has now been violently erased.

—— “Khuong Mien Mien”.

It was just dawn, Khuong Mien Mien carried a bamboo basket and secretly left the house. In the basket were still warm tortillas, a small jar of lard, and a bowl of herbal medicine she secretly cooked last night. The morning dew wets the canvas shoes, each step makes a "creaking" sound. The buffalo barn at the end of the village was eerily quiet, the crack on the door seemed even wider than yesterday. She took a deep breath and was about to knock on the door when she discovered that the door was only slightly closed.

“Trinh Du?”

There was no response. Khuong Mien Mien pushed the door open, a wave of moldy steam rose up and hit her face. There was no one on the "bed" made of wooden panels in the corner of the room. The blanket was neatly folded, as if no one had ever slept.

"Strange..." She sat down and touched the bed surface, it was cold as ice.

When she placed the bamboo basket on the chest, she noticed that one of the dumplings she brought yesterday was missing, and the red potion was also used. That proves that Trinh Du has really returned, just left again. Khuong Mien Mien bit her lip. In his previous life, Trinh Du was still reforming in the village, where could he go? Her eyes scanned the ground, suddenly discovering that behind the door there were a few drops of dark red blood - blood stains!

“Isn't that what happened…”

She followed the scattered blood trail outside, through the cornfield, to the foot of the mountain behind the village. There is an abandoned brick kiln here, no children in the village dare to play there, it is rumored that there is a ghost. The blood trail stopped right in front of the cave entrance.

"Trinh Du? Are you in there?" Khuong Mien Mien clung to the edge of the cave and called out, the echo in the empty cave sounded even more terrifying.

Suddenly, a muddy hand from behind covered her mouth!

“Um!”

“Silence.” A low, familiar male voice rang in my ears, carrying the cold breath of morning dew, "Who let you follow?"

Khuong Mien Mien stiffened, then slowly relaxed, blinking to signal that she would not scream. Trinh Du let go, and as soon as she turned around, she almost screamed - the man's right shoulder had a fierce wound, the simple bandage was soaked red with blood.

“You're injured!” She quickly reached out to remove the bandage.

Trinh Du leaned forward to avoid it: "It's just a small wound."

“So you call it small?” Khuong Mien Mien's eyes widened, "The wound is about to fester! It must be dealt with immediately!"

She didn't give him a chance to resist, pulling Trinh Du's sleeve and dragging him towards the buffalo barn. That man was actually pulled by her sideways a step. Only then did Khuong Mien Mien notice that Trinh Du's face was frighteningly pale, and his lips were also unusually purple.

“You Have you been poisoned? Her voice trembled.

Trinh Du didn't answer, just coldly shook her hand away: "Don't meddle in unrelated matters."

“I just want to manage it!” Khuong Mien Mien's eyes suddenly turned red, "Are you going to pick medicine?" Only you dare to touch the long grass at the back of the mountain!”