Chapter 6 — The Marquis was wronged, I hid with my young master, and later overturned the capital to collect debt.

In the blink of an eye, five years have passed. Five years, in the capital, are probably just a few times when flowers bloom and then wither. But in this small camp deep in the mountains, it was enough to change a lot of things. I am no longer the newly arrived Han woman, my eyes filled with fear and anticipation. People in the camp all affectionately call me "A Dien". I am half of Ah Ba's disciple. In the camp, anyone with a headache, mild fever, bumps or scratches, all came to see me. My hands were already dyed light brown by herbs. The layer of callous in the palm of your hand is another layer thick. The knife Uncle Ly left behind, I clean every day. It is hung at the head of the bed. Always remind us, under this peace, how hidden dangers are. I have learned the language of Nam Cuong. Although the tone is still a bit stiff. But was able to communicate fluently with people in the camp. I even learned how to sing their songs. Ancient songs, telling about mountain gods and rivers. I wore an indigo cloth outfit that they sewed for me. During the holiday, join them around the fire and dance. Sometimes, I see my reflection in the firelight. Feeling panic again. Like the person named Tham Dien, the fire-making girl of the Marquis Palace. It was a story from a previous life. The biggest change is Co Chieu. It is six years old. Become a healthy, strong boy. Its skin was dyed honey-colored by the Nam Cuong sun. He speaks Southern Cuong fluently, even more accurately than me. It recognizes all the birds in the mountain and knows which fruit is the sweetest. It is like a flexible cub that can easily climb the highest tree. He is the leader of the children in the camp. All the children, like to follow him. He will lead the children into the forest to set bamboo traps and catch mice. Will lead them to the deep lagoon under the waterfall, competing to see who can hold their breath longer. It is very smart and also very brave. Once, a boy was chased by a wild boar in the mountains. Everyone was scared and scattered and ran away. Only Co Chieu did not run. It imitated the hunter's appearance, shouted loudly, and used stones to throw at the wild boar. Attract its attention, buy time for the other boy to escape. It wasn't until the men in the camp ran over that they were able to save it. After that, I pulled it aside and hit it hard. I'm not angry at him for being rude. I'm afraid of the blood in its bones, which belongs to the men of the Marquis Palace. It will bring it deadly disaster. He stubbornly stood there, neither crying nor asking for forgiveness. Only using his bright black eyes, exactly like his father's, he looked at me.

“Ah lady, I'm not wrong.”

"A Ho is being chased. If you don't save him, he will die."

At that moment, my heart felt like it was stabbed hard. It has called me that for a long time. Since I learned to speak, I naturally called myself that. Everyone in the camp thought that he was my child. It is the child that I, a Han woman of unknown origin, gave birth to in the mountains. I hugged it, tears kept falling.

“Chieu Nhi, you are not wrong.”

"It's your fault."

"A lady is just afraid, afraid of losing her child."

He reached out his small hand, clumsily wiping my tears.

“Don't cry, lady, Chieu Nhi will protect you.”

I hugged it tightly in my heart. My baby... has grown up. But its status, like a big mountain, weighs heavily on my heart. What should we do to talk to it? I'm not its refuge. Its home, in the distant capital city. A place... that turned into ashes. His relatives had long died in the great fire that year. Every time it's quiet at night. I quietly took out the golden brooch that Mrs. Hou left behind, placed it under the moonlight and caressed it little by little. That brooch... that year when crossing the river, the old boatman, without knowing when, quietly stuffed it back into my small bag. I don't understand... Why can there exist so many good people in this world? Uncle Ly used his life to destroy us. The ferryman quietly stuffed my most important thing back. The old doctor didn't ask a word and saved his life twice. But at the same time... There are also people who are so cruel that they can push an entire Marquis Palace into a place of eternal invincibility. Perhaps... This world has never changed. It's just that between good and evil, there is always a thin line... that we have to spend our whole lives to cross. Under the moonlight, I quietly caress you. The brooch was still as delicate as before, but the blood stains on it had dried to black. Like a permanent scar that cannot heal.

"Never return to the capital, never tell him who he is."

Lady Hou's words still echoed in her ears. I promised you. We must let Co Chieu live peacefully like a normal person. But it... was not originally a normal person. Outside the camp, occasionally traders from everywhere will stop by.