The Secret Code of Monsters.

Chapter 1 Ch.1 Amber Stone in the Suburbs

Before receiving that letter, Roland was working at the county workhouse.

Ever since he was not even as tall as the wheels.

Everyone said he was the most beautiful child they had ever seen. The women in the working class loved him very much, and the nurses and cooks also treated him with special favor - he had a thin little face, black hair, thin arms and legs, and golden eyes like amber.

No one doesn't love him.

There was no one who wasn't happy to give him a little teasing as they passed by.

Until they found out that he was blind.

Until the whole year round, he was either sick or suffering from that disease.

Roland thought he would stay in the "stable" (a joking name for a house with a roof and walls by children) for the rest of his life, or when he was old enough, he would be taken out to paste paper boxes, clean chimneys or dig coal for someone - he was obviously more suitable for digging coal - so as to save lamp oil than others.

Until he received that letter.

"I wish you good health, Mr. Collins."

"If you allow me to call you Roland."

The woman who read the letter was called Yam Jones. She had taken care of Roland for several years and was the only one who was not afraid of Roland's blind disease being "infected".

"I'm Will, the Collins family's butler."

With the help of the flickering oil lamp, she carefully held the two corners of the letter and read it word by word.

The envelope was made of high-grade kraft paper and stamps. The ink looked very new and if you rubbed it back and forth with your fingers up close, you could smell a faint fragrance.

This is the smell of rich people.

The well-informed James Jones knew that the arrival of this letter might not be a good thing for little Roland.

"Recently, a tragic event occurred in the Collins family: Mr. Tallis Collins's eldest son, Wendy Collins, was killed in a traffic accident."

"This pious, generous and kind man not only had to deal with the grief of losing his son in his later years, but his daughter, your sister, Nina Collins, has also been bedridden recently (because she missed her brother too much)."

"It is with great sorrow that I have to write this letter. I hope you can return to the Collins family as soon as possible."

"The return of a son may, to some extent, comfort Mr. Collins's broken heart (by the way, we also hope to discuss the inheritance with you in person)."

"In addition, I took the initiative to send the second letter to Mr. Stitch Abner, the director of your area, and enclosed the travel expenses. I hope you can forgive me."

"Finally, the Collins family, Tallis Collins, Nina Collins, and their most loyal servant Seth Will, welcome you at any time."

That's all.

The two people in the room fell silent.

After a while, Roland lifted his black hair, revealing his eyes the color of dead leaves, and said jokingly:
"So I have a father, Yam."

The woman silently folded the letter and put it back into the envelope.

The whole letter is not long. In addition to the obvious things, James Jones read another metaphor between the lines:
The Collinses had always known Roland was here.

Otherwise, how could a butler deliver the letter to him accurately?

but…

The Collins family lived in town.

The house of the old merchant Thales Collins is in the town.

It's less than an hour's journey from here.

Ten years...

Right in town.

Ms. Jones felt her stomach contracting, as if something was stuck in her heart and throat, making it difficult for her to breathe.

They didn't even send a messenger, nor did they even say in the letter, "We went through a lot of trouble to find you."

The whole letter is like a condescending hand, as if before the letter was sent, the writer saw someone would kneel down to open it and then dance with it.

She really couldn't help being happy for the kid, happy for him that he finally found his 'family'.

"Little Roland."

Yam called out, hugged the boy in his arms, and gently stroked his hair.

"Little Roland." Her arms were like a cradle, and her body was like the wooden poles supporting the cradle, rocking gently left and right. In her heart, she prayed to God to blow a gentle breeze to warm her cold heart.

"The All-Father will bless you, my dear."

Roland leaned on the worker's shoulder, smelling the hot sweat and the pungent smell of medicine on her body, and said lightly: "If the Father of All Things blesses me, I should punish him with divine punishment and burn this pious, generous, and kind master to death..."

"Roland!"

Yam pressed his head down in horror, his eyes quickly moving around the door: "...You can't talk like that!"

Roland lowered his head, freed one hand, fumbled on the wooden board, and found the sharp-edged letter.

“…Or maybe, He has blessed me, Yam.”

Yam Jones lowered his eyes and looked at the boy's white knuckles.

She didn't know what to do with the letter.

No one helped her, and no one helped him.

"Yam."

Roland leaned on her shoulder and said gently, "I heard that the people from Noti Golden Lamp came here yesterday."

Yes.

She just found out about this today.

Noti Golden Lamp.

That gold-selling den.

The person in charge of the Golden Lantern promised Director Abner that as long as Roland was handed over to them for upbringing, the Noti Golden Lantern would not need the subsidy from the poorhouse - 3 pounds or 5 pounds?
They don't want a penny.

Of course, in the account book, the money will probably still be recorded as expenses. In a few days, the director will have an extra pair of new leather shoes.

James Jones thought numbly.

"I don't want to go to Noti Golden Lamp." Roland sat up slowly, his thin and pale body like an ice ridge about to melt in the heat of the lamp. He stared at a certain place with his deep golden eyes, but held the woman tightly in his hand: "Any choice is better than Noti Golden Lamp, you have to stand on my side."

Yam Jones stared at the boy's extremely delicate face, and saw the sharpness of a new knife on his soft face:
"Yes, yes, that's right. Any choice is better than Noti's golden lamp. You are right, Roland..."

"Of course I always and always stand by you..."

Once this kid goes to that nasty place, he...

It's completely over.

Old Collins was one of the few wealthy businessmen in the town. It was better for Roland to go there than to be adopted by the person in charge of the brothel...

Yes, it is.

Roland was right.

Thinking of this, she let go of the boy, turned around, and lifted the mattress——

The cracks between the wooden boards were filled with scattered coins, like a dartboard.

James Jones straightened his hair, gritted his teeth, took out the money one by one, and stuffed it into the boy's hand.

The coin felt like a frozen chopping block.

"I don't think I'll be short of money in the future."

"Roland." Yam Jones ruffled his black hair and whispered, "Keep the money. Once... do you still want to come back here and wait for the people of Noti Golden Lantern to take you away?"

“This is not normal.”

Roland clenched the money in his hand and said nothing.

"You are blind, but I can see. Since my husband died, I can work every day: I can work today, tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow. I can save this money quickly." Yam could see Roland's hesitation, and pretended to be relaxed as he let go of his hand and patted his jacket pocket.

"It contains hope. I gave you some of it, Roland."

"You can't buy anything with the money in your pocket here." Roland sighed, and after hesitating for a long time, he put away the money in his sweaty palm. "I will return it to you."

Jaim Jones feigned anger, pulled him back into his arms, and patted him hard on the back.

(End of this chapter)