In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl’s Journey to Freedom

China is not the deliverance Yeonmi envisioned. Upon arriving on the other side of the shore in Chaingbai, their broker, a bald man of Korean descent, rapes Yeonmi’s mother when she refuses to let him touch her daughter. They are driven to the broker’s house, where his Korean wife reveals they are to be sold separately as brides. Yeonmi and her mother resist, but when faced with the prospect of being sent back to North Korea, Yeonmi makes the decision to stay in China.

They are soon purchased by a man named Zhifang, a Chinese mid-level broker in the bride trafficking business. Yeonmi and her mother now realize why they were told to lie about their age and relationship: A mother and daughter will fetch a much lower price than two young adults. Both feel thoroughly humiliated at being treated like objects but are given no other option. Before they leave for Changchun with Zhifang and his wife, Young Sun, the bald broker rapes Yeonmi’s mother right in front of her.

In Changchun, Zhifang treats them to a lavish meal and tells them another man will soon come to match them with their future husbands. When Yeonmi’s mother protests and reveals Yeonmi’s true age, Zhifang agrees to keep her until she is older.