I Bacame the Mother of His Child-Chapter 105 - 104: Xu Jingjing Leaves Home

Xu Xiuxiu looked at her clumsy son with a headache and said after a long pause, "Cheng Guang, why don’t you go around the yard again? Maybe you’ll find another egg!" They had five hens in total, and since one hen in the batch had laid an egg, she figured the others were probably about ready too.

After hearing Xu Xiuxiu’s words, Song Chengguang wiped away his tears, turned around, and ran into the yard. After a thorough search, he actually discovered another egg. Delighted, he carefully held the egg and showed it to Xu Xiuxiu before taking it into his room while muttering about making a little nest to hatch chicks.

Xu Xiuxiu couldn’t help but laugh at Song Chengguang’s enthusiasm and didn’t stop him. Song Chengguang happily placed the egg on the bed, planning to let the egg sleep with him and, come morning, he would see the cute chick that hatched.

Song Chengguang’s plan to hatch a chick ultimately fell apart. When he woke up the next day, he found the eggshell crushed beside his pillow, having been squashed by him. He cried woefully, and it took Xu Xiuxiu a great deal of effort and a promise to buy him some chicks in a few days to finally calm him down.

Song Yuanhuan’s annual leave was a full ten days. After staying in his hometown for seven to eight days, he spent the last two with Xu Xiuxiu in the city. Seeing that Song Chengguang had someone to look after him, Xu Xiuxiu threw the father and son pair home and threw herself into the busy bustle of Sichuan Pavilion.

In the blink of an eye, it was the 15th day of the Lunar New Year. Since the first batch of staff had not yet returned from their holiday, Sichuan Pavilion was extremely busy. Xu Xiuxiu was also worn out, but luckily all the staff returned to their posts after the holiday.

Once Yuanhuan’s leave ended, he dove back into his work with the military. After spending a few days at home with Song Chengguang, Xu Xiuxiu moved the plan to enroll Song Chengguang in a nursery that had been prepared before the New Year higher on her agenda.

Xu Xiuxiu now had a deep understanding of what it was like to revolve one’s days around a child. She couldn’t understand those women who cried out about losing the focus of life and their freedom after having children. But now, she too began to find it unbearable. Her entire day was occupied by the rambunctious child, and with the child’s boundless energy, even if she did nothing but chase him around all day, she was exhausted. It was pain mixed with joy.

But considering Song Chengguang’s age, the military nursery was not willing to take him in. They mostly accepted children around five to six years old. Xu Xiuxiu had no choice but to start inquiring about private nurseries outside. In that era, there weren’t many independent nurseries, and after much searching, Xu Xiuxiu finally settled on one.

The nursery was just a half-hour’s drive from Xu Xiuxiu’s place in the city, and they didn’t have strict age requirements for the children. However, looking after a slightly older child like Song Chengguang wasn’t cheap. The monthly fee was as much as two "big union" bills! The price was somewhat frightening, and that was just for dropping off the child at 8 a.m. and picking him up at 5 p.m., with the cost of lunch and snacks charged separately. Of course, the nursery also offered overnight accommodation, but the overnight fees were charged per stay and were not cheap either.

Aside from these issues, Xu Xiuxiu was actually quite satisfied with the daycare; given the current conditions, it could definitely be considered a top-notch facility. So, biting the bullet and steeling her heart, she paid for two months. After all, sending her little troublemaker to daycare meant she would have at least nine hours of free time every day. Plus, the daycare had plenty of children, so Song Chengguang might even make some friends his own age.

The first day Xu Xiuxiu took Song Chengguang to the daycare, her heart felt empty and unsettled, worried that he might cry, feel hungry, or miss her! At noon, she specifically snuck over to peek through the iron fence of the daycare, only to discover that Song Chengguang’s ability to adapt was beyond her expectations. The little guy seemed to be in his element, surrounded by a few cute little girls, thanks to his pale and tender looks. At this point, Xu Xiuxiu couldn’t help but exclaim at the superficiality of the world.

While Song Chengguang was doing just fine at daycare, Xu Xiuxiu decided to put her mind at rest and returned to Sichuan Pavilion to go over the annual earnings report. As she was racking her brains, the landline on the desk started ringing loudly. The call was from back home, from Mrs. Xu, saying that the fourth daughter, Xu Jingjing, had left a letter, taken US$ 100 from home, and caught a train overnight to find her sister.

Xu Xiuxiu was dumbfounded upon hearing that. Mrs. Xu didn’t say much on the phone; if it hadn’t been for her worry that Xu Jingjing, who had never traveled far, might get into some kind of trouble, Mrs. Xu probably wouldn’t have phoned Xu Xiuxiu about this. After hanging up the phone, Xu Xiuxiu was perplexed by what Mrs. Xu had said about Xu Jingjing running off because she was supposed to meet a prospective match, only to sneak away at the last minute.

During Chinese New Year, she thought Xu Jingjing hadn’t had any objections to meeting a prospective partner, so why did she sneak off again? But Mrs. Xu was obviously hiding something on the phone, being unclear about the details. Xu Xiuxiu thought it would be best to track down Xu Jingjing first and ask her what was going on.

Not long after hanging up with Mrs. Xu, just as Xu Xiuxiu was considering going to the train station to inquire about the recent arrivals from Z City to avoid missing her younger sister, the phone on the desk rang again.

"Third sis, it’s Si Ya! I’m right at the entrance of Z City train station waiting, come pick me up quickly!" Xu Jingjing spoke with a quiver in her voice, looking at the bustling crowd around her, feeling a bit timid. Although the young girl could read and write and had learned a thing or two, this was her first time leaving home. She had been vigilant during the train ride, thinking she was being cautious. Yet, upon disembarking, she realized that the few ten yuan notes she had were gone, leaving her with only one yuan. Having gotten off the train, she felt lost and helpless, so she gathered her courage to call her third sister for help.

"Xu Jingjing, you scamp, why rush to Z City without any notice? Stay put, I’m coming to the station to get you now," Xu Xiuxiu said with urgency and a bit of anger on the phone.

"Got it!" Xu Jingjing replied sheepishly, intimidated by Xu Xiuxiu’s shouting, but still sounding a bit wronged. After hanging up, she handed out her last remaining yuan and sat down with her small luggage bag, finding a spot on one side.

She patted her empty belly, reflecting on the lost ten yuan notes and mentally cursing her luck, relieved she still had one yuan left. Otherwise, without even the money to make a call, she might have starved right there in the Z City train station.