Dad said he’d take me to see the tigers today.
I was so excited I couldn’t sleep the night before. I even snuck half a sausage into my coat pocket, planning to stand far away and throw it to them if I ever saw a real tiger.
But I never imagined.
That the thing thrown to the tigers would be me.
The car had just driven into the free-roaming wildlife zone when Dad stopped in the middle of a snow-covered clearing.
He turned around, gentle in a way I rarely saw:
“Lily, could you hop out and grab the bag that fell?”
I obediently opened the door.
The moment my feet touched the snow—
Click.
The car door locked.
The car immediately backed away.
My stepmother, sitting inside, raised her phone and screamed:
“Oh my god! There’s a tiger! Someone save her!”
But the corner of her mouth was curling up.
Three adult tigers stepped slowly out from behind the bushes.
I was so scared my legs went weak.
Right then, the biggest tiger opened its mouth.
“Grrr… did those two idiots really think we wouldn’t notice they did this on purpose?”
The tigress beside it licked its claws.
“Probably want to film us mauling the cub for the insurance money.”
Another one leaned its head down to look at me.
“This scrawny thing wouldn’t even make a decent breakfast.”
I blinked, dazed.
I…
understood tiger speech?
The lead tiger walked over and gently nudged me with its forehead.
I fell flat onto the snow.
It lowered its face close to mine.
“Little cub.”
“Want to trade dads?”
“The one who feeds us every day is a rich young master who ran away from home to become a zookeeper.”
“Come with us.”
“We’ll introduce you.”
1.
My name is Lily.
I’m five years old.
My birth mother died when I was just over two.
Less than six months later, Dad married Aunt Hazel into the family.
At first Aunt Hazel treated me very well.
She bought me new dresses, brushed my hair, and told everyone she’d raise me as her own daughter.
But after she gave birth to my little brother, everything changed.
My bedroom became his toy room.
I had to move into the small room next to the storage closet.
My milk became his milk.
My dolls became his toys.
If my brother cried, I was the one scolded.
If my brother fell, I was still the one hit.
Dad always said:
“You’re the big sister. What’s wrong with giving up a little for him?”
Then “a little” kept growing.
From one toy.
To a whole room.
To even my share of dinner.
I used to think that if I was just good enough, Dad would love me again, the way he did when Mom was alive.
So this morning, when Dad said he wanted to take me out, I was thrilled.
I thought he’d finally remembered I was his daughter.
On the way to the wildlife reserve, Aunt Hazel kept staring at her phone.
She asked Dad in a low voice:
“Are you sure about this?”
Dad answered:
“Don’t worry, the policy’s already in effect.”
I didn’t understand.
I thought they were talking about car insurance.
It wasn’t until now that I realized.
The thing insured was me.
The lead tiger looked toward the car, more than twenty meters away.
“Grrr… when the car drove past us, I heard that man clearly.”
“If the girl has an unfortunate accident, they get three million in compensation.”
Three million.
I didn’t know how much three million really was.
I only knew a meat bun at the end of the alley cost three yuan.
Three million could buy a lot of buns.
I looked down at my soaked cloth shoes.
So if I died, Dad would get that much money.
I suddenly felt like I wasn’t as worthless as Aunt Hazel always said.
At least…
I was worth three million.
The thought made my tears fall again.
The lead tiger’s whiskers bristled instantly.
“Huh?”
“I just saved you, what are you crying for?”
The tigress beside it wrapped its tail around my back, pulling me close against its belly to block the wind.
“Idiot.”
“She’s just a cub.”
“Sold out by her own father for money—of course she’s crying.”
I rubbed my eyes.
“Dad didn’t sell me.”
“Dad just…”
I tried to think of an excuse for him.
But no matter how long I thought, I couldn’t find one.
The lead tiger snorted.
“Still defending him?”
“You’ll hear it for yourself in a minute.”
Just then.
Honk! Honk!
A car horn suddenly blared.
I jumped.
Dad was in the car, leaning on the horn.
Aunt Hazel rolled the window down a crack and shouted, on purpose:
“Lily! Run!”
“Run now!”
But I was standing far from the car.
If they really wanted to save me, all they had to do was drive over.
The tigress narrowed its eyes.
“They’re trying to provoke us.”
The lead tiger flared with rage instantly.
It turned its head.
“ROAAAR!”
The roar was so loud I felt the ground shake under my feet.
The phone fell from Aunt Hazel’s hand.
Dad slammed the gas.
The car spun around and sped off.
Within seconds it vanished behind the trees.
I stared after it for a long time.
They didn’t come back.
They really didn’t come back.
I suddenly understood.
If these tigers really did eat me, Dad would probably be happier.
I crouched down in the snow, hugging my knees.
“Dad doesn’t want me anymore.”
The lead tiger looked at me.
After a moment, it lowered itself to the ground.
“Get on.”
I looked up.
“Huh?”
“Hurry up.”
“The tiger clan will take you to trade for a new dad.”
2.
I didn’t dare climb on.
The lead tiger, out of patience, grabbed my hood in its teeth, lifted me up, and set me on its back.
I clutched its neck in a panic.
Its fur was very thick.
Much warmer than the old coat I was wearing.
The tigress walked alongside, occasionally using its body to block the wind.
The youngest tiger trotted behind.
It kept staring at my little legs swinging and asked, curious:
“Do young humans have claws?”
The tigress answered:
“No.”
“Fangs?”
“No.”
“Can they run fast?”
“No.”
“Then how does it survive at all?”
Me: “…”
I said quietly:
“I can feed myself with a spoon.”
All three tigers turned to look at me at once.
The youngest immediately praised:
“Impressive.”
I suddenly felt a little happy.
No one at home had ever praised me for feeding myself well.
After walking a while, a staff building appeared ahead.
A young man in a dark blue jacket stood in front of it, on the phone.
He was very tall.
His black hair was tousled by the wind.
He held a stainless steel bucket in one hand.
I heard him say, irritated:
“I’m not coming back.”
“Cut my card if you want.”
“I can live without it.”
“So Dad says I won’t do a respectable job?”
“Taking care of tigers isn’t respectable?”
“At least the tigers don’t force me into blind dates!”
He hung up and turned around—and saw us.
Then.
The bucket dropped to the ground.
Clang!
He looked at the lead tiger.
Then at me on its back.
Then back at the lead tiger.
“Rex.”
“What is that on your back?”
The lead tiger:
“Grrr!”
He frowned.
“You’re growling at me?”
“Didn’t I tell you to stop picking up random junk?”
I raised my hand hastily.
“Um, mister.”
“I’m not junk.”
The man froze.
He rushed over.
“A kid?!”
“Where did you pick up a child from?!”
The lead tiger turned to look at me.
“See?”
“Told you he’s a bit slow.”
I nodded.
“Yeah.”
The man: “?”
He couldn’t understand tiger speech.
But I could.
The man’s name was Nathan.
He was a new zookeeper who’d started here just over a month ago.
The lead tiger told me he used to be rich.
Very rich.
On his very first day, he’d accidentally brought Wagyu beef from home to feed the tigers.
Since then, the pack had rated him very highly.
Nathan lifted me down off the tiger’s back.
The moment his hand touched me, his expression changed.
“Why are you so cold?”
He took off his jacket and wrapped it around me.
“Where are your parents?”
I pointed into the distance.
“They left.”
“Where to?”
“I don’t know.”
“Why did they leave you here?”
I looked down.
“Dad said the car broke down and told me to get out and push it.”
Nathan went quiet.
He looked toward the tiger enclosure.
Then back at me.
“Push the car?”
“Here?”
I nodded.
After a pause, I added:
“But the car wasn’t broken.”
“As soon as I got out, Dad drove off.”
Nathan’s jaw tightened.
He pulled out his phone.
“Trần, lock down every exit of the reserve.”
“Someone deliberately left a child in the tiger zone.”
I couldn’t hear what the person on the other end said.
Nathan answered coldly:
“Yes.”
“Call the police.”
3.
I was taken to a break room.
A staff auntie made me hot milk.
Another man brought a blanket.
Someone helped me change my socks.
Someone brought a heater.
So many people crowded around me.
I wasn’t used to it.
At home, if I spilled a little water, Aunt Hazel would just tell me to wipe it up myself.
If I had a fever, she’d only give me cold water and say:
“A little fever won’t kill you.”
So when the staff auntie crouched down and asked what I wanted to eat, I didn’t dare answer.
She asked again:
“Do you like cake?”
I swallowed.
“Plain bread is fine too.”
The room went suddenly silent.
Nathan, standing by the window, turned to look at me.
His eyes looked strange.
I quickly explained:
“I don’t eat much.”
“It won’t cost much.”
His hand tightened around his phone.
He walked over and crouched down in front of me.
“Kid.”
“I have a lot of money.”
I blinked.
“How much is a lot?”
He thought about it.
“Probably enough for you to eat cake with filling for the rest of your life.”
My eyes went wide.
The lead tiger, lying outside the glass, roared immediately.
“Grrr! Told you!”
“A fool with lots of money!”
Nathan turned his head.
“Rex, quiet.”
The lead tiger was furious.
“This idiot dares tell me to be quiet!”
I quickly covered my mouth to hide a laugh.
Nathan looked at me.
“What are you laughing at?”
“Nothing.”
I didn’t dare tell him I could understand tiger speech.
Mom had once warned me.
If I ever heard things other people couldn’t hear, I must never mention it carelessly.
Mom said:
“It’s not necessarily a good thing for people to know Lily is special.”
I always remembered that.
About twenty minutes later.
A staff member ran in.
“Mr. Nathan, we caught up with the car.”
“They said they panicked and drove off to call for help.”
I looked up.
Did Dad come back?
Nathan laughed coldly.
“Call for help?”
“The cameras caught everything.”
“They stopped just outside the zone for nearly ten minutes, honking the whole time to provoke the tigers.”
The staffer nodded.
“Police are on the way.”
I gripped the edge of the blanket tightly.
A while later.
Dad and Aunt Hazel were brought in.
The moment she saw me, Aunt Hazel rushed over.
“Lily!”
“Mommy was so scared!”
I flinched back instinctively.
Nathan stepped in front of me immediately.
Aunt Hazel stopped.
She wiped her eyes.
“Thank god you’re okay.”
“We were trying to drive the tigers away to save you, but then—”
Outside the glass.
The lead tiger shot up.
“Grrr?”
“In twelve years I’ve never seen a human lie so shamelessly.”
The tigress chimed in:
“They were clearly running away, complaining about losing three million.”
I flinched.
“Three million…”
The words slipped out of my mouth.
Dad’s face changed.
“Lily!”
His voice was so loud I trembled.
Nathan turned instantly.
“Why are you yelling at her?”
Dad took a deep breath.
“This is a family matter.”
“Who are you?”
Nathan pointed to the staff badge on his chest.
“Zookeeper.”
Dad froze for a second.
Seeing how ordinary Nathan’s clothes looked, his attitude turned dismissive.
“Then stay out of other people’s family business.”
Outside the glass, the lead tiger:
“Grrr, hah!”
“Now this is going to be good.”
I didn’t understand.
But the very next second—
A middle-aged man in a suit rushed in.
The moment he saw Nathan, he broke into a sweat.
“Young Master.”
“The Chairman just called.”
“He says if you’ve had your fun, it’s time to come back and run the company.”
The whole room went silent.
Dad stiffened.
Aunt Hazel’s eyes went wide too.
Nathan frowned.
“I’m not going back.”
The man wiped his sweat.
“The Chairman said if you don’t—”
“Then what?”
“He’ll just buy this whole reserve for you.”
Nathan: “…”
The lead tiger wagged its tail happily.
“Hear that, cub?”
“Your new dad’s actually loaded.”
4.
The police checked the cameras.
The truth came out fast.
Dad’s car never had any problem at all.
After I got out, he’d locked the door on purpose.
Aunt Hazel had recorded the whole thing on video.
There was also an unfinished chat left on her phone.
【If something happens to her, the three million will cover the whole loan.】
【Then we can get a new place, put Tommy in an international school.】
【Don’t go soft—she’s just the daughter that woman left behind anyway.】
That woman.
Was my mother.
I sat in the chair, my feet not reaching the floor.
I didn’t understand everything the adults were saying.
But I understood one thing.
Dad really wanted me dead.
While he was being taken away for questioning, he turned and yelled at me:
“You jinx!”
“Nothing good has happened to me since the day you were born!”
I started shaking.
A pair of hands quickly covered my ears.
Nathan, sitting behind me.
He didn’t want me to hear it.
But while my ears were covered—
the tigers’ weren’t.
Outside the glass, an angry roar erupted instantly.
All three tigers stood up at once.
“GRRR!”
Dad stumbled back several steps.
The lead tiger pressed against the glass.
“You’re the jinx!”
“If it weren’t for this glass, I’d shred you into strips!”
I burst out laughing.
Nathan looked down.
“What now?”
I shook my head.
“Nothing.”
He looked at me for a long moment.
Then suddenly asked:
“Lily.”
“Do you have any other family?”
I thought for a while.
“My grandma.”
“Mom said she lives far away.”
“But Dad said she doesn’t want me.”
Nathan frowned.
“Do you have an address?”
I shook my head.
“A phone number?”
I shook my head again.
He fell silent.
Just then, the tigress outside the glass spoke up.
“This cub looks like a woman who came here before.”
I turned immediately.
It looked at me.
“About two years ago.”
“An elderly woman stood in front of the tiger enclosure and cried for a long time.”
“She was holding a photo of a child.”
“It looked a lot like you.”
My heart pounded.
“What did she say?”
I asked out loud without thinking.
The whole room fell silent.
Nathan slowly turned to look at me.
“Who… are you asking?”
I froze.
The lead tiger’s eyes went wide.
“Oh.”
“Busted.”
5.
I gripped the edge of the blanket.
I didn’t dare look at Nathan.
Mom told me not to say anything.
But Mom had also said—
if I ever met someone who was truly good to me, maybe I could try trusting them, just once.
Nathan handed me the milk.
He didn’t push me.
“You don’t have to say anything if you don’t want to.”
I looked up.
“Aren’t you scared of me?”
“Scared of what?”
“I…”
I pointed at the tigers outside.
“I understand what they’re saying.”
Nathan looked at me.
Then at the tigers.
Then back at me.
Five seconds.
Ten seconds.
I grew more and more uneasy.
Finally he asked:
“So has Rex ever cursed me out?”
Me: “…”
Outside the glass, the lead tiger looked away.
“No, never.”
I lied.
Nathan narrowed his eyes.
“Really?”
The lead tiger:
“Kid! Don’t sell me out!”
I answered right away:
“He said you’re a rich idiot.”
Nathan: “…”
The lead tiger:
“Traitor!”
I burst out laughing.
Nathan laughed too.
He didn’t treat me like a freak.
Didn’t ask if I was sick.
He just took out his phone.
“Rex says he might have seen your grandmother before?”
I nodded.
Thanks to the tigress’s story, the staff started digging through old camera footage.
Luckily the reserve kept its data for a long time.
Eventually they found footage of an elderly woman who’d visited two years ago.
I cried the moment I saw the photo.
I’d seen her before.
In Mom’s photo album.
She was my grandmother.
Nathan used his connections to track her down.
In less than a day, they’d made contact.
Grandma had never abandoned me.
After Mom died, she’d wanted to take me in.
But Dad refused.
He said I was too young and needed to stay with my birth father.
Then he changed his phone number, moved houses, and completely cut off all contact between me and my grandmother.
For two years, she’d never stopped looking for me.
The next afternoon.
A silver car pulled up outside the reserve.
An elderly woman, her hair more than half gray, hurried out.
She saw me.
The bag in her hand dropped to the ground.
“Lily…”
I stood frozen.
She walked toward me, trembling.
“It’s Grandma.”
“Grandma found you.”
I didn’t remember her clearly.
But when she pulled me into her arms, I caught a familiar scent.
Like the handkerchief Mom used to keep in her drawer.
I burst into tears.
“Grandma.”
She was crying too.
“Yes.”
“Grandma’s here now.”
“No one will ever bully Lily again.”
6.
I found out later.
Grandma wasn’t poor like Dad had said.
Her family used to run a food company.
After Grandpa died, she sold most of the shares and moved south to live alone.
Mom had fought with the family over marrying Dad.
They’d slowly reconciled after that.
It was just that Mom never got the chance to bring me to visit more before she passed away.
Dad always said Mom left me nothing.
That was also a lie.
Mom had left me a house and a sum of money.
Dad had managed it in his role as guardian.
Over the past few years, he’d spent almost all of it.
When Grandma found out, her hands shook with fury.
“We’re suing.”
“Whatever belongs to Lily, we get back to the last cent.”
Dad and Aunt Hazel were investigated for deliberately endangering my life.
The insurance policy was exposed too.
And somehow, the video Aunt Hazel had recorded leaked online.
A lot of people condemned them.
Dad called Grandma.
He cried and apologized.
Said it was just a moment of foolishness.
He wanted to talk to me too.
Grandma asked:
“Do you want to talk to him?”
I thought about it for a long time.
Then shook my head.
“No.”
I used to always want Dad to love me.
But on the day he locked that car door—
watching me stand there among the tigers—
and still stepped on the gas and drove away—
I suddenly didn’t need that anymore.
The lead tiger had been right.
Once the trash is thrown out.
You shouldn’t chase after it and pick it back up.
7.
A month later.
I went back to the reserve with Grandma.
I carried a big backpack.
Full of beef.
Of course I wasn’t allowed to feed the tigers myself.
Staff had to check it first.
The lead tiger ran over the moment it saw me.
“Grrr!”
“Cub!”
“You’ve gotten fatter!”
I looked down at my stomach.
“Grandma says I’m still too skinny.”
“No.”
It gave me a serious once-over.
“Last time I could’ve fit three of you between my teeth.”
“Now only two.”
Me: “…”
The tigress came over and rubbed its head against the fence.
“Anyone bully you at your new home?”
“No.”
“Do you get to eat meat?”
“Yes.”
“Locked in a basement?”
“No.”
“Anyone hit you?”
I shook my head.
“No.”
All three tigers looked satisfied at once.
Just then, a familiar voice came from behind.
“Kid.”
I turned around.
Nathan was standing not far away.
But this time he wasn’t wearing his staff uniform.
He had on a dress shirt and a long coat.
He looked completely different.
I ran over.
“Uncle Nathan!”
He raised an eyebrow.
“Only a month and you’ve already grown taller.”
I immediately stood up straighter.
“I got fatter too.”
The lead tiger chimed in from behind:
“True!”
Nathan laughed.
Grandma walked over too.
They greeted each other.
I heard her say:
“You don’t need to worry about the adoption thing anymore.”
“Lily has me.”
Nathan cleared his throat.
“I was only joking.”
Grandma glanced at him sideways.
“You asked your family lawyer about child adoption procedures the very first day we met.”
Nathan: “…”
I looked up.
“Do you really want to be my new dad?”
Nathan’s ears went a little red.
“No.”
“I’m not even married.”
“If I actually adopted you, wouldn’t people assume I have a secret kid?”
I said, “Oh,” disappointed for some reason I couldn’t explain.
The lead tiger, overhearing from behind, got furious instantly.
“Grrr!”
“Useless!”
“I hand-picked this cub for you and you’re turning her down!”
Nathan turned his head.
“Is Rex cursing me out again?”
I shook my head immediately.
“No.”
“Then what did he say?”
I looked at the lead tiger.
It gave me a warning look.
I answered obediently:
“He said you’re very handsome.”
The lead tiger:
“?”
Nathan looked pleased.
“Finally, someone with good judgment.”
8.
A few months later, Dad’s case was closed.
With the video, the messages, the insurance contract, and the staff’s testimony all in place, he couldn’t claim it was a misunderstanding any longer.
Aunt Hazel didn’t get off either.
My little brother went to live with our grandparents.
Grandma asked if I wanted to see him.
I thought about it.
“Maybe when we’re both older.”
My brother never pushed me into that tiger enclosure.
He was just a kid too.
The ones who did wrong were the adults.
Grandma stroked my head.
“My Lily has really grown up.”
I shook my head.
“I’m still five.”
Grandma laughed.
My life kept changing.
I had my own bedroom.
My own closet.
A moon-shaped night light.
I no longer had to fear being locked in a basement at night.
Every morning there was hot milk.
If I spilled a cup, Grandma would just say:
“Grab a towel and wipe it up.”
No one called me a waste of money anymore.
I started kindergarten.
Made new friends.
Had a teacher.
For my sixth birthday, Grandma asked what I wanted.
I said:
“I want to visit the tigers.”
So the whole family went back to the reserve.
Nathan was there too.
He’d gone back to work at his family’s company, but still came to look after the tigers on weekends.
He said he was just used to it.
The lead tiger scoffed.
“Liar.”
“He comes because he misses us.”
The tigress added:
“I think he misses the cub more.”
I froze mid-bite of my cake.
Nathan asked:
“What’s wrong?”
I looked at him.
“Uncle Nathan.”
“Hm?”
“You still don’t have kids, right?”
“…Not yet.”
“You can borrow me as your kid for a day, then.”
He laughed.
“What do I have to pay?”
I thought about it very seriously.
“One strawberry cake.”
He held out his hand.
“Deal.”
The lead tiger roared in outrage.
“Grrr!”
“Silly cub!”
“You’re an heiress now!”
“And you’re still selling yourself that cheap!”
I hugged my cake and laughed until my eyes crinkled.
I used to think I was only worth three million—if I died.
Later I learned something else.
A child doesn’t need to be good enough.
Doesn’t need to be worth any particular amount.
Doesn’t need to trade her own life for money.
To deserve to be loved.
Grandma says I’m her treasure.
Nathan says if anyone ever bullies me, just call him.
And the tigers say—
“Grrr! Cub!”
“Bring more beef next year!”
I leaned both hands on the fence.
Grinning so wide my little teeth showed.
“Got it!”
“But Uncle Nathan says you guys are supposed to be losing weight!”
All three tigers turned to look at Nathan at once.
Nathan: “…”
The lead tiger slowly bared its teeth.
“Grrr.”
“Cub.”
“I’ve changed my mind.”
“This new dad won’t do.”
“How about I introduce you to someone else instead?”
