On the day of the Chaohua Festival, since the activities would only begin in the afternoon, there was no need to rise early. Su Tian’s family of four slept in comfortably. They ate a light bite of breakfast before heading out.
There would be various performance stages by the riverside in the afternoon, and plenty of food stalls along the way. Naturally they could not go on full stomachs. There would also be flower lanterns at night.
Su Tian muttered softly, “Modern festivals aren’t even this lively.”
The day before, during their rest day, Su Wanhai’s family had taken Su Dashu and Zhang Guihua out to the outskirts for a spring outing. They had agreed to return only in the evening today. Su Wanhe’s family said they were going to a restaurant to listen to storytelling and did not go together with Su Tian’s family.
Su Wenchen rarely had the chance to go out together with his parents and elder sister. His excitement was obvious. He ran ahead, waving his arms and legs. Li Hongyue, worried that there might be child traffickers in the crowd, shouted angrily from behind, “Chen ge’er, you little monkey, come back here!”
Su Wenchen turned his head and made a face, twisting his backside and completely ignoring Li Hongyue.
Li Hongyue grabbed Su Wanqing. “Look at your good son. He’s not even listening to his own mother anymore. Hurry and catch him. Let me see how I’ll deal with him.”
Su Wanqing laughed as he pulled Li Hongyue along toward Su Wenchen.
Su Tian followed behind, watching her parents bicker, a faint smile on her lips. They were almost at a corner where there were fewer people. She had already spotted a corner of Su Wenchen’s clothes around the bend. The boy was probably planning to jump out and scare Li Hongyue. Su Tian shook her head with a smile and casually leaned against the stone railing by the river.
The sky gradually darkened, and waves of flower lanterns drifted along the river. A trace of daze filled Su Tian’s eyes. Before she knew it, she had already been in this dynasty for three months. In her previous life she had neither father nor mother. In this life, she had elders who doted on her, siblings who were loving and harmonious. The small restaurant’s business was getting better day by day. What was there to be dissatisfied with?
“Let go of me! Or I’ll beat you to death!”
“Don’t you even look whose territory this is! A brat this small dares to snatch your grandpa’s things!”
Just as she was staring blankly at the river, Su Tian suddenly heard commotion from an alley behind her. Listening carefully, it sounded like several children fighting.
She hesitated for a moment, then walked over. The alley likely saw very few visitors and was filled with a damp, gloomy smell.
Covering her nose, she saw several little beggars punching and kicking at a small figure on the ground, cursing as they did so.
“What are you doing?!”
Su Tian vaguely saw a small hand stretch out from that heap on the ground and was startled. It was a child.
The beggars had not expected someone to appear. Frightened, they turned and ran.
Seeing them flee, Su Tian hurried forward and gently turned the child over, touching his forehead. “Wake up. Wake up. Where are your parents?”
The child’s face was covered in bruises, patches of blue and purple. His hair showed signs of once being tied in a proper topknot, but after long neglect it had become matted.
“Ah…”
His eyes opened into a thin slit. His lips moved, but before he could speak, he fainted again.
“Poor child. He probably hasn’t eaten or slept properly for a long time.”
Su Tian’s heart ached. He looked only three or four years old, about the same age as Su Yin, yet had suffered like this. Without hesitation, she picked him up. The small kid was shockingly light.
Carrying him out of the alley, she ran into Su Wanqing and the others who were looking for her.
“Tian jie’er, where did you run off to? We almost thought after finding Chen ge’er we’d have to look for you too.”
“This… where did this child come from? How did he suffer like this?”
Su Tian briefly explained what had happened. The family hurried home, while Su Wanqing detoured to fetch a doctor.
“The child has no major injuries. It’s long-term malnutrition and lack of rest. He needs proper nourishment. The wounds are only superficial and haven’t damaged the bones or tendons. I’ll prescribe some ointment. Apply it twice daily.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
After seeing the doctor out, Li Hongyue sat by the bedside and tucked the blanket around the child. “I wonder which family he belongs to. He’s still so young. Look at these clothes. Though torn, the fabric isn’t something a poor family could afford. He must have been lost by accident. His family must be worried sick.”
Su Tian nodded. “Yes, Mother. Let’s help him recover these few days. When we find his family, it will at least ease their hearts.”
“Tomorrow I’ll take him to the yamen to register, just in case. We’ll find them eventually,” her father, Su Wanqing said reassuringly.
“Alright. There’s some leftover chicken broth at home. When he wakes, we’ll cook some chicken broth noodles for him,” said Li Hongyue.
“Okay.”
Late at night, Su Tian stayed by the stove while the pot gently simmered with chicken broth noodles.
Earlier, Li Hongyue had come to say the child had awakened. Su Tian went in to check, only to discover that the child could not speak. No matter what they asked, he simply stared with round eyes, lips slightly pursed, looking timid. Seeing she could not get answers, Su Tian went to prepare food.
When she brought in a small bowl of chicken broth noodles, Li Hongyue had already wiped him down with warm water. The weather was still cool, and his body was weak, so he could not bathe yet.
“Come, finish this. You’ll recover faster after eating,” Su Tian coaxed gently.
The child was wearing Su Wenchen’s old clothes from when he was younger. They hung loosely on him. Hearing Su Tian speak, he looked at her for a long moment before reaching directly into the bowl.
Startled, Su Tian quickly moved the bowl away. “Do you know how to use a spoon?” she asked, demonstrating.
He licked his lips and tried again to grab the food.
“Looks like you don’t. I’ll feed you then, alright?” She blew a spoonful cool and brought it to his mouth. He stared at the spoon and opened his mouth to eat.
Eating mouthful after mouthful, the bowl was soon empty.
Only then did he seem to realize he had eaten quite a lot. He covered his face with his small hands and smiled shyly.
Su Tian felt closer to him. “Be good and take your medicine later, then sleep early, alright?”
He bit his finger as if trying to understand. When he saw Su Tian about to leave, he quickly grabbed her clothes, eyes reddening instantly.
“I’m not leaving. I’m just putting the bowl in the kitchen. I’ll be right back.”
Only then did he let go.
With Su Tian present, he cooperated in applying the medicine. But at bedtime, he refused to let her leave.
Li Hongyue sighed. “This child is stubborn too. Forget it. He’s still small. Tian jie’er, let him sleep with you for a few days.”
Su Tian carried him back to her room and laid out a quilt beside her bed.
He lay quietly, eyes following her movements. Soon, after finally relaxing, his breathing became steady.
The next day the restaurant operated as usual. The child clung tightly to Su Tian. With no other option, she asked Zhang Guihua to help watch him.
He sat in the backyard with Su Yin, staring through the kitchen window at Su Tian while holding the candy she had bought the day before.
“We picked him up by the river yesterday. Some beggar children were bullying him. He can’t speak. Maybe because I saved him, he relies on me more.”
“If he can’t speak, finding his family will be difficult.”
“We’ll try. Father already took him to the yamen this morning. If it doesn’t work out, our family can afford one more bowl of rice.”
She smiled and waved at him through the window. His eyes lit up immediately.
“He needs a name. We can’t keep calling him ‘child.’”
“I’ve got it. Let’s call him An’an. He’s so small, and we don’t know how long he wandered. I hope he’ll be safe and sound from now on,”Su Tian said.
“That’s a good name. Simple and easy,” Li Hongyue replied.
“An’an! Time to eat!”
An’an dropped his stick and ran to the well to wash his hands. Seeing this, a smile surfaced in Su Tian’s eyes.
More than a month had passed since she brought An’an home. He was clever and obedient. He had learned to eat by himself and quickly picked up good habits. He still refused to speak, however.
The doctor had confirmed there was nothing wrong with his throat. Thinking of this, Su Tian felt a pang of heartache.
After washing his hands, An’an ran to her and raised them up proudly to show they were clean. Su Tian took the chance to gently pinch his soft cheek.
— 🌷—
Can’t resist posting this chapter because the 16th member of Su Family has appeared.
In case you can’t follow their names/titles, below is the Su family tree:
Grandparents : Su Dashu & Zhang Guihua
✨ First branch : Su Wanhai & Zheng Chunmiao.
Child [ Su Wenzu, Su Wenyang ]
✨ Second Branch : Su Wanhe & Wu Fen.
Child [ Su Miao, Su Wen’an, Su Yin ]
✨ Third Branch : Su Wanqing & Li Hongyue.
Child [ Su Tian, Su Wenchen ] + Adopted An’an