Year After Year, Spring Grain

In 1942, a severe drought struck central Henan, and the land was littered with starving corpses. The courtyard was full of delicate young ladies from prominent families, waiting for Third Master Gu to choose a bride. But he pointed to the skinniest refugee girl in the corner. Shen Chunhe shuddered. She was only there to pay off a debt, not to sell her charms. To keep her distance, she hid in the woodshed splitting firewood and ate moldy bran, never going near him. But the man seemed possessed, always insisting on getting close to her. When she ate coarse grain, he forced her to trade it for his white-flour buns. When someone bullied her, he turned the entire back courtyard upside down. With nowhere left to retreat, Shen Chunhe glared furiously at this living King of Hell. “Third Master, I only signed a work contract!” The man leaned down, wiped the charcoal dust from her face, and smiled meaningfully. “Then sign a contract for life. Even my life will belong to you.”