William kept pedaling with his head down, thinking this girl was saying silly things again.
He cared for Scarlett as much as he did for Michael—they were all children of the Miller family. How could he not care for them?
If only he had come to his senses a few years earlier, he might have been able to provide his family with a life free from worry. Then Scarlett wouldn’t have had to endure the hardship of making money by selling eggs.
As William pedaled halfway down the road, he noticed someone waiting by the roadside in the distance and immediately became alert. The sun was just beginning to rise—what kind of idle young man would hang around at this hour? Could he be an accomplice of the hooligans from yesterday, lying in wait to cause trouble for his niece?
“Scarlett, do you recognize the person up ahead?”
Scarlett craned her neck to look. In the dawn light, the figure’s distinctive crew cut and unforgettable features could only belong to Kay.
“It’s Big Brother Kay! He and another comrade were the ones who saved me yesterday!”
William quickly braked, and Scarlett jumped off the back seat.
“Big Brother Kay, what are you doing here?”
The morning dew had soaked Kay’s shoulders, indicating he had been waiting there for quite some time. There were seven or eight cigarette butts on the ground, evidence of how long he had been standing there.
Seeing Scarlett, Kay tossed his half-smoked cigarette to the ground and stamped it out.
“Didn’t I tell you to leave a little later?”
He glanced at William, and Scarlett hurriedly introduced them: “This is my uncle. He wanted to come and thank you both. Uncle, this is Big Brother Kay.”
Kay seemed slightly awkward.
Scarlett was fair-skinned and tall, while William was short and dark-skinned. They didn’t resemble each other at all. Meeting her family so quickly caught Kay off guard. But since he was a straightforward and easygoing person, he followed Scarlett’s lead and addressed William accordingly:
“We stayed at the Greenfield County guesthouse last night and had a truckload of goods with us. I asked Leo to keep watch. When Scarlett mentioned she’d be heading into town again today, I worried those hooligans from yesterday might have accomplices, so I came to wait for her on the road,” Kay explained.
William nodded.
“Let’s go, let’s get into town first and talk later.”
Kay had originally come specifically to pick up Scarlett; William hadn’t factored into his plans. However, now that William was present, Kay addressed him respectfully as “Uncle” and acted properly. He took the bicycle carrying the eggs from William, pushing it carefully and trying his best not to glance at Scarlett.
By the time they reached the town, Kay had already learned most of Scarlett’s situation.
He now knew that she and her mother were temporarily staying at her uncle’s house and that she had just started trading eggs a few days ago. Because it was the busy farming season, there was no one else in the family to help, so Scarlett had to travel alone. That’s why she had encountered those hooligans yesterday. Kay frowned slightly—she was both delicate and charming, yet she had been going door-to-door collecting eggs in rural areas. Wasn’t that putting herself in danger?
When they arrived at the guesthouse, Leo was already waiting impatiently.
As soon as he saw Scarlett, his eyes lit up. However, after a glance at the silent Kay, Leo’s enthusiasm waned a bit.
Scarlett handed over the pickled radish and dumplings she had prepared for Leo and introduced her uncle. Without thinking much, Leo followed Scarlett’s lead and called him “Uncle.”
Kay cleared his throat with a light cough. “What are you calling him for no reason? You should address him as Mr. Miller.”
William remained silent.
He could see clearly that Kay harbored such blatant ambitions that he didn’t even bother to conceal them!
