“Niannian, be honest with Auntie—where’s your mom?”
While cooking, Sheng Qiu had noticed a thin layer of dust on the things in the kitchen—clearly no one had used it for a while. If Sheng Chun were around, she definitely wouldn’t have gone days without turning on the stove.
So the conclusion was obvious: Sheng Chun had probably been away from home for several days.
The soft egg pancake that had looked so appetizing now felt hard to swallow. Sheng Nian forced back his tears as he looked at Sheng Qiu.
“Auntie, Mom has been gone for three days.”
The first thought that popped into Sheng Qiu’s mind was: how on earth had Sheng Nian managed these past three days?
A four-year-old little tyke had basically no ability to take care of himself. How could Sheng Chun have felt comfortable leaving her son at home alone?
“Auntie, I’ll be really good. I can eat, sleep, and get dressed by myself. I can even sweep the floor and pour water. I’m very capable. So… Auntie, can you be my mom?”
Sheng Qiu looked at Sheng Nian, confusion in her eyes. “Niannian, why do you want me to be your mom?”
To him, this was the first time he’d ever met his Auntie Sheng Qiu. She shouldn’t have earned that much trust from him yet.
“I don’t want to go to the orphanage. The auntie and the security uncle said that kids without parents have to go to the orphanage.” Sheng Nian had overheard that downstairs. He’d originally planned to wait at home for his mom to come back, but he really didn’t want to go to an orphanage.
So he decided to find his auntie.
Earlier, when his mom had tucked him in at night, she’d mentioned where his auntie worked. It took him forever to figure out how to get there. He’d been worried his auntie might not like him, but she turned out to be so nice.
She made super delicious egg pancakes.
She also looked a lot like his mom. Being with his auntie felt just like having his mom around.
“You mean your mom’s been gone for days and hasn’t come back?” Sheng Qiu couldn’t help but frown. Sheng Chun was a very responsible person—there was no way she’d just abandon her child at home.
No wonder she hadn’t come to find Sheng Qiu after they’d gotten in touch.
Sheng Qiu looked seriously at Sheng Nian. “Have you called the police about your mom being gone for a few days?”
It had already been over twenty-four hours—she could have filed a missing person report long ago. What if something had really happened?
Sheng Nian lowered his head and mumbled, “No.”
Sheng Qiu was genuinely worried now.
“Then Niannian, we need to go file a police report first.”
Sheng Nian nodded, immediately hopping off his stool, though his gaze lingered on the egg pancake—clearly reluctant to leave it behind.
No matter how anxious Sheng Qiu was, she didn’t forget that Sheng Nian was still a little kid. He’d probably been struggling these past few days without his mom, and there was a good chance he’d been going hungry. She definitely wasn’t going to let him stay hungry now.
Even in her rush to leave, she remembered to wrap up the egg pancake in paper so he could eat it on the way.
Sheng Qiu took Sheng Nian to the nearest police station to file a report. The officers were very attentive and asked several questions. Sheng Qiu had no memory at all of Sheng Chun’s situation in Yangcheng, and the only one who knew anything was Sheng Nian—but a four-year-old couldn’t exactly provide any useful information.
The officers recorded Sheng Qiu’s report, took down an address, and told her to go home and wait for news.
Walking out of the police station, Sheng Qiu looked at the little hand she was holding and felt a wave of worry.
With Sheng Chun gone, normally Sheng Nian would need her to take care of him. She could be heartless and wash her hands of it, but clearly, she couldn’t bring herself to abandon Sheng Nian.
That raised the question of how she was going to care for him going forward.
Back at the toy factory, more than a dozen people shared the dormitory—Sheng Qiu could barely stand living there herself, let alone with a child in tow. Even if Sheng Nian were willing, the other workers probably wouldn’t be happy about it.
She could move into the place where Sheng Chun and Sheng Nian had been living, but she still had to go to work. She couldn’t just leave Sheng Nian home alone all day. Her shifts were too long—just feeding him would be a problem, not to mention she wouldn’t feel at ease leaving him by himself.
Now she really understood those mothers with young kids—how could you ever feel at ease if your little one wasn’t by your side?
They took up so much of your energy that it was hard to spare any for work.
The result was obvious: Sheng Qiu needed to quit her job at the toy factory.
Actually, from the moment she’d first arrived in this world, Sheng Qiu had already wanted to quit. But being in a completely unfamiliar place, quitting without a backup plan would leave her with two huge problems—food and shelter. She couldn’t exactly end up on the streets.
Still, after just one day on the job, she’d already planned to stick it out for a month, collect her salary, and then start a street stall.
This was a perfect era for starting a business, especially in food—one of the easiest ways to make money.
Back when she’d been a full-time “daughter” at home, Sheng Qiu had really honed her cooking skills. Combined with her natural talent, she could honestly say that the monthly allowance her mom gave her was no less than what she’d earn working herself to the bone outside.
Why work like a low-level grunt when she could stay home and cater to Her Majesty the Mother?
Her cooking had received high praise from both her mom and her mom’s girlfriends. She might not get filthy rich, but she should have no problem living a comfortable life—even if it meant working a little harder.
Now she just had to move up her street-stall plans a little.
When the time came, she could even bring Sheng Nian along with her to the stall.
As Sheng Qiu thought about what lay ahead, she didn’t notice that Sheng Nian had already finished his egg pancake and was now sneaking glances at her.
Just now, the police officer said that if Mom can’t be found for now, Auntie would have to take care of me. But Sheng Nian doesn’t need Auntie to take care of him—he can take care of himself. He can even take care of Auntie.
He can take care of Auntie just like his mom took care of him.
As long as Auntie is willing to keep him around.
“Auntie, are we going home?” Sheng Nian asked cautiously.
“We’re not going home.” Sheng Qiu planned to take advantage of the free time today to go to the factory, quit her job, and move her things out, so she wouldn’t have to make a special trip to the toy factory tomorrow.
But the moment Sheng Qiu took a step, she realized that Sheng Nian, whose hand she was holding, wasn’t moving at all.
“Niannian?”
She called out but got no response. From this angle, she could only see Sheng Nian with his head lowered. She crouched down, about to ask what was wrong, when she spotted little splashes of water blooming at his feet.
“Niannian? What’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”
Sheng Qiu had never raised a child before—she’d only ever played with the neighbor’s chubby little boy, who was such a cheerful kid that as long as he was fed, he’d never cry no matter how you teased him.
Suddenly finding Sheng Nian in tears left her completely at a loss.
“Niannian? Don’t cry—tell Auntie what’s wrong?” Sheng Qiu tilted her head anxiously, checking on him. When she touched his face, she felt the wetness on her fingers.
A child that young couldn’t clearly say what was bothering him—she’d better take him to the hospital.
Thinking this, Sheng Qiu scooped Sheng Nian into her arms and hurried toward the roadside. But before she’d taken two steps, Sheng Nian lifted his tear-streaked face and looked at her with pitiful, wronged eyes.
“Auntie, are you going to send me away?”
“Can you please not send me away? I want to wait at home for Mom to come back. I’ll be really good—I can do anything. Please, Auntie.”
“I promise I’ll be so obedient.”
Sheng Qiu stopped in her tracks and looked at him in confusion. “Niannian, when did I ever say I was going to send you away?”
“Auntie, didn’t you say we’re not going home?” Sheng Nian looked at her through tear-blurred eyes.
Sheng Qiu set him down, crouched to his eye level, and looked at him seriously. “Niannian, Auntie is not going to send you away. Not now, not ever. I’m going to return you to your mom healthy and plump, so don’t worry or be afraid, okay?”
Sheng Qiu didn’t know how to raise a child, but she could tell him what was in her heart.
Good communication would help them get along better.
The next second, Sheng Nian couldn’t hold back anymore and threw his arms around Sheng Qiu’s neck, sobbing loudly.
That’s great—Auntie isn’t going to send him away.
She’d expected the crying to stop, but instead he was crying even louder. Did he not understand what she meant?
Sheng Qiu wanted to explain, but Sheng Nian was crying too intently to hear anything. He’d been so scared.
Mom was gone.
He’d been hungry and frightened at home for three days.
He’d been so scared on the way to find Auntie too.
And after he’d found her, he was scared she’d abandon him.
This bout of crying seemed to be releasing all the fear pent up inside him—he couldn’t stop at all.
Noticing that passersby were giving her increasingly strange looks, Sheng Qiu patted Sheng Nian’s back, trying to get him to stop. But she really had no experience with soothing kids, and no matter what she tried, she couldn’t calm him down.
For a moment, Sheng Qiu felt a headache coming on.
How on earth were you supposed to comfort a child?
Suddenly, she remembered the neighbor’s chubby little boy. That kid would stop crying immediately if you gave him a little snack—he’d cheerfully start munching away.
But that little boy was only a year old, and she wasn’t sure if the same trick would work on Sheng Nian.
Oh well, whether it worked or not, she’d give it a try.
“Niannian, do you want some ice cream?”
The loud crying suddenly paused, and Sheng Qiu felt her head clear instantly—what a relief.
“Niannian, how about Auntie buys you some ice cream?”
A slightly hoarse little voice answered, “Mm, okay.”
It was ice cream! His mom normally wouldn’t buy it for him—only occasionally when he’d been especially good. Just thinking about the taste made him forget all his fears.
He really wanted some ice cream.
Sheng Qiu took Sheng Nian and bought two ice cream bars. Luckily, she still had over a yuan on her, or she wouldn’t have been able to afford them.
She handed one to Sheng Nian and unwrapped her own, taking a bite.
The ice cream bar, wrapped only in a simple layer of paper, looked completely ordinary—nothing like the fancy ice cream Sheng Qiu had eaten before. But surprisingly, it was delicious, with a rich, milky flavor.
Sheng Qiu ate quickly. By the time Sheng Nian was still taking tiny little licks of his ice cream, she had already finished hers.
After finishing the first one, she smacked her lips, still wanting more, and bought another.
Only after buying the second one did she realize: she now only had enough money left for the bus ride back to the factory—and no money for the return trip.
She was so broke she couldn’t even hear a clink.