The golden candlelight was cast through the window, forming a spot of light on the ground, and the little girl seemed to be able to smell the fragrance of cakes and bread from the candlelight, and of course some faint smell of wine, which was not her fantasy, but a real wisp of smell wafting from the crack in the window.

The snowflakes are a little smaller at the moment, but after a day of accumulation, a layer has accumulated on the ground, and the old snow that has been trampled by people's footprints is covered by the newly fallen snowflakes in the sky, which looks very beautiful.

"Who says no one needs matches? Look, isn't this family just a lit candle? ”

The little girl's voice, which she could only hear, her lips a little blue from the cold, looked at the window on the second floor, and then walked over to the candlelight cast in the snow, as if to keep warm.

She didn't walk to the cinema in the distance, and she had to walk a long street to get there, but her feet were frozen numb at the moment, and the thin cloth shoes could not resist the cold. But she didn't dare to go home, she didn't sell a match herself, and the vicious woman would never let her in.

The matches were well hidden by her in the close parts of the body to prevent them from being wet by the wind and snow, otherwise the wet matches could not be ignited, and people would not buy them.

"Wouldn't it be nice to have a warm stove at this time? Then you can bake the fire next to you, and dry your soaked shoes and skirts. ”

The little girl's two thin shoulders were constantly shaking because of the cold, and she couldn't walk anymore, and then she found a corner and sat down, and not far away was the bright candlelight. Shadowy figures were faintly cast on the windows.

She didn't dare to go home, she didn't dare to go back to the welfare home that was regarded as her home. She didn't know who her parents were, actually from the time she started to have her own memories. She was already in this orphanage, and Sister Mia raised her in the orphanage. And last winter, Sister Mia was given severe pneumonia, coughing up blood constantly, unable to work, and finally left this world on a dark night because she had no money for treatment.

And on Sister Mia's deathbed. A new nun was appointed in advance to take care of the small, dilapidated orphanage. Except for the statue of the Virgin in the welfare home. There were also a few beds, and there was nothing else of value in the welfare home. Because after the Germans occupied Paris a few years ago, they moved everything else from the orphanage, including a portrait. It seems to be a man named Pablo. Picasso's Spaniards left it to Sister Mia. Also snatched by the Germans.

"God will surely bless Sister Mia to heaven. Oh my God, hopefully Sister Serena won't notice that a match is missing. ”

The little girl can't stand the cold around her, and at this time, even a match is warm! She took one out of the box of matches and lit it on the wall, the bright flame like a small candle, which instantly brought her a hint of warmth.

The flame seemed so warm that the little girl felt as if she was next to a burning stove. There was also a pot of hot water boiling on it, steaming constantly. But she just wanted to stick her feet out to keep warm. By the way, she dried the shoes she had picked up from the garbage heap, and the stove was gone, and there was only a burnt matchstick in her hand.

The burnt matchstick was black, as if it was the black nun dress on the fat pig-like Sister Serena, which made the little girl shiver, if she knew that a match was missing, she would definitely kill herself.

After Sister Mia's death, the obese Sister Serena used the cheapest price to dig a grave and bury Sister Mia, along with the other six children of the orphanage, who hung a string of hand-woven gifts on the grave. But the next day, the little girl and the other six boys, the girl found that the two meals a day had turned into one, and that the fat nun had confiscated all their possessions, such as some glass beads and a clean cup.

In the words of Sister Serena, these children are all God-outcasts, incarnates of the devil, and should not even be in a welfare home. It's just that she can forgive their "sins" for God's sake, and she needs to help her work every day in exchange for food.

No child dared to refuse her, and Serena's big hand could have beaten them out in the eye, and in this way, Sister Serena soon became the master of the seven children, and every day she would go out to take on some simple tasks, such as sewing clothes, weaving fishing nets, cleaning the yard, etc., in exchange for a small payment, to buy her all kinds of food for herself.

Sometimes, when they couldn't get a job, Sister Serena would drive them into a garbage dump and ask them to look for something that could be exchanged for money, nails, bottles, and burning sticks of wood and paper, which could be used as fuel in the furnace, knowing that the price of coal doubled every winter. Since the arrival of the Germans, the price of coal has been higher than in previous years, and it has remained high every year.

Their food was hard black bread, which was bought from the bakery owner at a very cheap price, and Serena herself ate fluffy fresh bread and other foods, and the little girls, if they were lucky, if they could earn some more money, their food would be improved - a sugar cube for each of them.

The sweetness of the sugar cube made the little girl feel very hungry, and she lit another match, and in front of her appeared a long white dining table full of steaming food, and in the center of the plate was a roasted roast goose with a knife and fork in it!

"Hersha, it's yours."

The little girl's eyes widened, what did she see? Sister Mia, who had ascended to heaven, was smiling at her and brought the plate of roast goose to her, and she could clearly smell the aroma of the roast goose!

But just as she reached for it, the flames went out, and what appeared in front of her was still the cold walls, and the candlelight from the second-floor window, from which the smell of roast goose wafted out.

The little girl sighed, she had already lit two matches, and even if she went back now, Sister Serena would not spare her lightly. This large box of matches was picked up by Sister Serena from a house that had been destroyed by a cannonball on her way to the bakery on her way to the bakery.

She remembered what Serena had told her when she went out at night.

"You little vampires who grew up sucking my blood! I've got God's will, and you're going to have to sell this box of matches!" You see, these matches are all complete and will definitely sell for a good price! ”

"But, but it's night, and it's still snowing outside." The little girl tried to explain, and then the fat woman grabbed her golden curls fiercely, and said viciously:

"Damn, you don't have the right to bargain with me! I tell you that if you have not sold your matches by tomorrow morning, then your lunch will be cancelled tomorrow and your bread will be distributed among the others. Hurry up and sell it, maybe someone will sympathize with you in such weather, and you can sell it for a high price! ”

In this way, the little girl was expelled from the welfare home by the obese Sister Serena, and the other six children could only look at her with sympathy, and they were helping Serena to wash her clothes, and their hands were red from the cold water, because Sister Serena was going to dry the clothes on the stove, but she was unwilling to do it herself, and the little girl had the least strength, and was disgusted and the slowest to wash, so the matter of selling matches fell on her.

"Get out of here, little vampire!"

The little girl walked down the snowy street on a snowy day, wearing a shabby thin skirt and a pair of shoes from the garbage heap, selling her own matches to a group of people who didn't need to buy them.

But at such a time, when every household has begun to use electric lights, when the snow is falling on the streets and few people are walking, who will come out to buy her matches?

She struck another match, and Sister Serena would have deducted her lunch the next day, whether it was two or three, and this time, the little girl saw a tall Christmas tree!

The Christmas tree was covered with colorful bells, and there were many strips of colorful cloth, and cards with beautiful patterns were hung on it, exactly like what they saw in the shop window, and although it was now Christmas, the little girl still remembered very well that when Sister Mia had not died, she had taken them to make a small Christmas tree. It's not as beautiful as this tree, but it's the only thing that belongs to them.

Under the Christmas tree, there are many colorful boxes containing gifts from Santa Claus, the lid has been opened, and the little girl sees a beautiful pair of small red cotton shoes lying inside! She thought that if she wore it on her feet, it would be warm, right?

In a larger box next to it, there was also a small white cotton jacket, the thick cotton and cloth must be very warm, the wind could not blow through, and the snow would not soak through.

"This dress, I've only seen it in a shop's cupboard, sells for 10 francs!"

The little girl looked at the dress enviously, she could only imagine the clothes on her body, the wind and snow around her seemed to become smaller, and her body instantly warmed up.

Ten francs, even if Sister Serena wanted to buy this dress, I am afraid it would take a while, and the fat woman would definitely not be able to wear it, the little girl laughed silly.

And just then, the match went out again. (To be continued......)