“Whose child is this? Why is he sleeping here?” Zhu Cheng Cai came out of the door and, seeing a child about the same age as his own son, was a bit surprised as he spoke. Then he picked Li Rui up in his arms.
Seeing his father holding someone else, Zhu Yun Xuan couldn’t help but feel a little jealous. Maybe it was because his parents treated him so well that he couldn’t tolerate even the slightest bit of neglect from them.
“This child seems to have a fever,” Zhu Cheng Cai said, unaware of Zhu Yun Xuan’s small feelings. It was already early morning, the sky was beginning to lighten. He looked around, then carried the child back into the main room and laid him on the lounge chair they used to cool off in the evening.
Li Rui was already awake. Just a moment ago, seeing Zhu Yun Xuan had stirred his emotions, but after being picked up by Zhu Cheng Cai, he realized that he really wasn’t feeling well.
He figured that since his grandfather had caused him to get injured, and he had traveled all the way here and spent the night outside, it was quite normal to catch a cold and have a fever.
“How did he come to our doorstep?” Zhu Yun Xuan looked at the child, rosy lips, white teeth, eyes fixed tightly on him, he did look somewhat familiar.
“Where are you from?” Zhu Cheng Cai asked Li Rui.
Zhu Cheng Cai spoke in the local dialect, and Li Rui didn’t understand it at first, looking at him with some confusion.
“Could he have been kidnapped?” Zhu Cheng Cai looked at his son, then shouted, “Xiuxiu!”
Soon, Jiang Yue Xiu came out, and the family of three gathered around Li Rui.
Jiang Yue Xiu’s eyes were the sharpest and quickly noticed Li Rui’s swollen finger. “Chengcai, you go set up your stall first. I’ll take him to the clinic to get checked, then we’ll send him to the police station.” Right now, that was the most appropriate thing to do.
“Alright, if I don’t go soon, it’ll be too late… Yun Xuan?” Zhu Cheng Cai looked at Zhu Yun Xuan.
“Dad, I’m not going to the market anymore!” Zhu Yun Xuan immediately said. He didn’t remember such a thing happening in his past life, but he had forgotten many things. Now that he encountered it, he was more willing to stay with Jiang Yue Xiu.
Suddenly having a child show up like this could cause trouble if not handled properly!
“Yun Xuan, you should talk to him more and ask where he’s from,” Zhu Cheng Cai said. The boy hadn’t spoken all this time, and he was at a loss. Maybe two kids would communicate better?
“I will!” Zhu Yun Xuan said, feeling that the other boy looked more and more familiar.
Zhu Cheng Cai rode off on his bicycle. Jiang Yue Xiu went upstairs to change clothes and get some money. Only then did Zhu Yun Xuan look at the child lying on the lounge chair.
“Where are you from? How did you end up collapsed at my doorstep?”
Li Rui frowned at the clear, proper Mandarin with a certain forcefulness in Zhu Yun Xuan’s tone. “Zhu Yun Xuan?”
“How do you know my name is Zhu Yun Xuan?” Zhu Yun Xuan looked at him and finally recalled why the boy looked familiar. “Boss?”
“You also got reborn?” they asked each other in unison.
Li Rui was so excited he tried to sit up but accidentally touched his injured hand, gasping sharply.
“You being reborn is one thing, but why are you at my house? How do you know my family?” Zhu Yun Xuan frowned. Although Li Rui was young, he looked quite good, he, on the other hand, seemed a bit chubbier?
“Huh?” Li Rui had thought of many ways to trick six-year-old Zhu Yun Xuan and how to win his favor, but since the other had also been reborn, he was suddenly at a loss for words.
“Do you have a crush on me?” Zhu Yun Xuan suddenly remembered the look in Li Rui’s eyes just now. That kind of look wasn’t unfamiliar, there were quite a few people in that circle who liked him.
“I…” Li Rui leaned back and collapsed again on the lounge chair, his entire face flushed red.
Earlier, Zhu Yun Xuan had been so confident and fierce, but seeing Li Rui’s reaction, he didn’t know what to say.
If it were in his previous life, knowing Li Rui liked him, he might actually have tried dating him. But in this life… would he really end up falling out with his parents so badly that they never spoke again?
“I’m not teasing you. But how exactly did you get to my house? Don’t tell me you live here too!” Zhu Yun Xuan smiled at Li Rui, as if he was just joking earlier. But Li Rui obviously wasn’t local since he didn’t even understand the local dialect here.
“I came to your house in my past life. Back then, your dad took me home, and you threw a big tantrum, crying and tattling to your mom…” When he first saw Zhu Yun Xuan, he disliked him because Zhu Yun Xuan had everything he didn’t. But that night, as they talked, for some reason, he firmly remembered Zhu Yun Xuan.
At that time, it was probably a mix of envy, jealousy, and longing. But more than ten years later, when they met again, it was love at first sight.
Li Rui could tell that Zhu Yun Xuan wasn’t ready for a relationship now, whether because he still thought of that guy named Lu Ming or for other reasons, this life, he wouldn’t let go.
However, with so many things going on at home and without the ability yet, what right did he have to fight for Zhu Yun Xuan’s love?
Maybe this life, he really had to work hard, work hard to become the best man by Zhu Yun Xuan’s side!
“How could that be?” Zhu Yun Xuan frowned but suddenly remembered something.
He recalled that after third grade, since he had many friends, he insisted on walking home by himself. But once, when he walked home, he found another kid about his age sitting on the back seat of his dad’s bicycle!
That was clearly his exclusive seat! He remembered being so angry that he didn’t even want to talk to his father. When his dad asked if he wanted a ride, he flat out said no. Then, full of anger, he went home, only to find that the kid his father brought had also come to his house, and was even sharing food and a bed with him!
He was so mad that he had a big fight, but his mother’s suggestion the next day to go to the park stopped him from continuing. Reluctantly, he slept with that kid and as they talked, he suddenly felt that the kid was actually quite pitiful. Out of sympathy, he shared a lot of his own experiences, concluding that “the kid who cries gets the candy.”
That kid, he remembered, was later taken by his father to the police station. He vaguely recalled that incident, but couldn’t remember the kid’s face.
That kid was Li Rui? This kid was really unlucky. He remembered that the kid in his memories seemed to have been abused by his family.
Zhu Yun Xuan looked at Li Rui’s injured hand and thought about how a kid could run away from home. He felt pity. Could this kid have been beaten? Wasn’t Li Rui supposed to be a rich second-generation heir? Such a miserable rich kid?
“I remember you were chubby back then…” Li Rui spoke, feeling more relaxed seeing Zhu Yun Xuan. For a moment, still a little dazed, the chubby Zhu Yun Xuan in front of him looked completely different from the delicate Zhu Yun Xuan he had seen just days ago, he actually resembled Zhu Yun Xuan at eleven years old.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you?” Zhu Yun Xuan noticed something off and patted Li Rui’s face, only to find that he had a fever.
For a moment, Zhu Yun Xuan didn’t know what to do, but then Jiang Yue Xiu came downstairs, and he immediately shouted, “Mom! Mom! He has a high fever!”
Jiang Yue Xiu had originally planned to ride a bicycle, but seeing Li Rui in that condition, she could only borrow a tricycle from a neighbor to carry him inside. Since people in the countryside get up early to do farm work before sunrise, she was able to borrow it so quickly.
They went to the local village health clinic. This clinic was quite large and Zhu Yun Xuan was actually born there. The total cost was one hundred yuan. However, since the clinic was not far from the town, by the late 1990s, many doctors had moved to the town and the clinic no longer delivered babies. It mostly treated minor illnesses, but because it was cheap, it still had many patients.
There were still staff on duty at the clinic, but it was already past six in the morning, so people were getting up. Jiang Yue Xiu quickly carried the boy inside.
She had actually thought about taking him to the police station early since once he was there, it wouldn’t be their problem anymore. But as an ordinary civilian, she had an innate fear of the police. After learning that the police started work at eight, she didn’t dare disturb them earlier. Worried about the boy, she decided to take him to the hospital first.
Zhu Yun Xuan had long forgotten about these childhood events, so the clinic felt new to him. He watched as Li Rui was placed on the bed to get an IV drip and injections, and saw his mother chatting with the clinic staff, feeling a bit emotional.
He had wondered before what would happen to Li Rui, never expecting that Li Rui would also be reborn like himself… But clearly, Li Rui meant no harm, and having someone to talk to might be good. As for feelings… he wasn’t interested at all right now. When his parents were so desperate, and the first time after he was born they hit him… Was he really going to let all that happen again? Even if it was destined, he hoped it would only happen when he was fully prepared.
Li Rui’s finger was fractured.
In the countryside, a fractured pinky finger wasn’t taken very seriously. People often cut off half a big toe while harvesting rice, yet only came to the clinic for a few stitches. After a while, as more staff came in, a thin middle-aged man came over, squeezed Li Rui’s finger, then gathered some supplies to bandage it.
“Is he okay? Seems like a fracture.” Zhu Yun Xuan was worried, by his thinking, a fracture should be treated at a large hospital. But Jiang Yue Xiu felt going to town was just wasting money.
“It’s nothing serious, just a small fracture. Kids heal on their own after some time, as long as it doesn’t grow crooked.” The middle-aged man finished bandaging, then took out a sesame flatbread wrapped around a fried dough stick and started eating. Seeing Zhu Yun Xuan watching him, he tore off a piece of dough and offered it.
“Thanks, uncle, but I already ate.” Zhu Yun Xuan smiled and declined, knowing the man meant well, but he would never take a stranger’s food now!
“Then keep an eye on him. If the water in that bottle runs out, come find me.” The man said.
“I will!” Zhu Yun Xuan promptly promised.
The clinic was lively. Female doctors and nurses had brought clothes from home to wash to help save water for their families. The middle-aged male doctor was outside picking peaches.
No wonder this clinic eventually disappeared… Zhu Yun Xuan glanced at Li Rui. Earlier, in Jiang Yue Xiu’s tricycle, he had flipped through Li Rui’s bag and found even a pager. He felt like hitting this damn rich kid a few times…
But since Li Rui’s family had money, when his parents found him, they could take him to a big hospital, right?
“Xuan Xuan, your mom told people to come get the clothes in the morning. You stay here for a while. Mom will come back to pick you up, okay?” Jiang Yue Xiu said after paying and seeing Zhu Yun Xuan behaving obediently.
“Okay!” Zhu Yun Xuan agreed immediately. Li Rui had fainted so quickly before that he still had many questions. Besides, Li Rui’s eyelashes were fluttering now, he must be pretending to sleep. There was no way he didn’t feel pain when the doctor bandaged him earlier!
Jiang Yue Xiu gave many more instructions and promised Zhu Yun Xuan that if he behaved well, she would buy him a sesame flatbread with fried dough sticks at the clinic’s entrance when she returned, then she left.
As soon as Jiang Yue Xiu left, Li Rui opened his eyes.