Staring at the back of Aquiya as she left, Ye Ru called over her son, Xiao Jie, and said to him, "Xiao Jie, quietly follow your aunt and see what exactly she's up to. Those people just now were wearing uniforms, try to find out who they are."

Xiao Jie was momentarily stunned but nodded, obeying his mother's instructions.

...

Aquiya only returned by dusk.

Her face was weary. She adjusted her facial expression, forcing a smile, not wanting her sister-in-law to notice anything unusual as she pushed open the door and entered the house.

Yet she saw her sister-in-law, who should have been lying in bed, sitting in the living room very solemnly, with disappointment and confusion in her eyes.

Aquiya's heart suddenly understood something. She bit her lower lip and walked over to Ye Ru, about to say, "Sister-in-law..."

Ye Ru gently slapped Aquiya's face. It didn't hurt because Ye Ru hadn't used any force. Even knowing Aquiya had done something wrong, Ye Ru couldn't bear to use strength.

They had lived together for over ten years, and this was the first time she hit Aquiya.

Tears welled up in Ye Ru's eyes as she asked puzzledly, "Aquiya, why, why did you do this?"

Aquiya lifted her head and asked, "Sister-in-law, you know everything?"

"I watched you grow up. Do you think I can't tell when you have something on your mind? I had Xiao Jie follow you, and Xiao Jie found... found... found you were taking clients! Aquiya! Have you forgotten the education your brother and I gave you? No matter the time, a person must have dignity, even in the apocalypse, one cannot fall into depravity!

How could you? How could you sell your body?"

Ye Ru's lips trembled as she painfully looked at the girl in front of her.

At this moment, Aquiya's grievances completely erupted, and she shouted, "Why can't I? Even if I marry, wouldn't I still end up sleeping with those stinking men?

How many women in our street earn money this way to support their families, why can't I?"

"Because you are my sister! You are your brother's sister, and you can't do such things, do you understand? In the civilized world... doing such things was despised! This is the baseline of being human!"

"Civilized world, civilized world, always the civilized world! Your and my brother's mouths are full of so-called civilized world! But is this a civilized world? This is the apocalyptic Wasteland!

To survive, one must do whatever it takes!

Is this disgraceful? Is this shameful? Everyone is doing it, is everyone then disgraced and shamed?

Is disgrace and shame more important than survival? More important than having a full stomach?

The factories now don't even treat people like humans, daring to make people do the most dangerous and tiring work, yet they pay so little!

Even for some handmade clothing work, they always crush the price down!

If we really rely on this work, we'd all starve!

Previously, brother didn't let me do such things because he could earn enough to support our family, but now brother is gone!

Sister-in-law, if I don't do this kind of work, we'll all die!"

With tears in her eyes, Aquiya stared at her sister-in-law, and Ye Ru said in confusion, "Why? Aquiya, even though your brother is gone, he secured our livelihood. The pension he left us helped pay for our residency certificate, you don't have to do this.

That place is a den of demons, once you enter, you will encounter all sorts of people, one wrong step, and they will drag you into Hell!

It's inseparable from gambling, drugs, and prostitution.

Once you touch one of these, the other two will drag you down, don't you know how many junkies have died on those streets? Do you want me to recover your body from the street?"

Aquiya showed a bitter smile, "Sister-in-law, if there really were those things, do you think I would want to face those foul men?"

Ye Ru was stunned.

What did Aquiya mean by this?

"Aquiya, what do you mean? When those people sent back your brother's body, they clearly promised us they would fulfill their word!"

"Sister-in-law, do you really believe the words of a gang? Are gang members any different from those goddamn capitalist pigs who swallow you whole? They just say nice words in front of others, but there's nothing to it!

The supposed 300,000 Beta in compensation was actually only 300!

They said stupid things like they were afraid if we got too much money at once, others would target us. They gave us 300 every month, saying it would last longer.

But in reality, by the second month, they stopped giving money!

What 20 years of residence tax? They only paid for half a month's residence tax!

The people in uniforms you saw during the day, do you know who they are? They came to collect the residence tax!

If we can't pay the residence tax for the four of us, we will be forced out. Either we'll have to go to the terrifying Lower City District and be sold like livestock by those damn underground gangs, or we'll be driven from the safe zone and be turned into beast excrement!

Do you know that, sister-in-law!

This is our current situation!"

Ye Ru's lips trembled, "How can this be? How can they be so dishonest? Your brother sacrificed his life to save their boss!"

"Hahaha... but sister-in-law, this is how it is, don't you know?"

Ye Ru struggled to get up and said, "I need to go to their gang, I need to find their boss. I must ask their gang, my husband, your brother, sacrificed his life for their boss and this is all we get?"

"It's useless, sister-in-law! You think I haven't tried? But I couldn't even get past the door of their gang!"

Aquiya said as she undressed in front of Ye Ru, revealing the scars on her body, saying, "Do you see, sister-in-law! All of these were caused by them! They hit me, they scolded me, they humiliated me! What can I do?"

"I can't even get to see their boss!"

"Do you know who's behind all of this?"

"It's that bastard Wood!!!"

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