Chapter 295: How to Settle the Little Girl

The little girl's surname is Xia and her given name is Ning Ning; she pulled a curtain in the yard, a few neighbors helped wash it, and finally she put on Da Hu's clothes, but either the sleeves were too long or the pant legs were too long, so after tugging here and there she could only wear them like that for now.

Pang Ya helped the little girl comb her hair: "Aunt Xianglan, this girl is quite pretty; look at her round little face—she'll surely grow up to be a beauty."

Chen Xianglan sighed: "Whether she'll be a beauty, I don't know, but this child is certainly pitiful; she's still so young, just at the age of being recorded, it would be better if she were a bit younger—then there'd be less pain from being recorded."

After changing clothes and eating a little, the little girl called Ning Ning finally calmed down a bit emotionally, though she still didn't speak much.

Two days later, Lu Feng returned.

Ten days later, Lu Cheng was forcibly taken off duty to rest and went home to sleep for two days and two nights.

If an old Chinese medicine doctor in Hu Tong Li hadn't come to see him, Chen Xianglan would have been ready to send her son to the hospital.

The old doctor said it was just exhaustion and not a serious problem.

When Lu Cheng slowly woke up, he didn't feel any soreness anywhere on his body; after all, he had trained in martial arts and had a foundation, the only feeling was "hungry."

Very hungry.

"You're awake? How do you feel?"

Lu Cheng opened his eyes and the first person he saw was Lin Qingyan, who was fanning herself with a palm fan; she helped him sit up from the bed and said, "I'm fine, is there anything to eat?"

Lin Qingyan was startled for a moment, then quickly responded: "Oh, there is. I'll make it right now and give you some noodles."

Lu Cheng stood up from the bed and only then saw, at the entrance of the makeshift shed, a little girl crouching there with her head poking out.

"Hey, whose child is this? She looks familiar."

Lin Qingyan, busy tying her apron, turned and said, "This is the child Ying Ying brought back last time."

"Oh! It's you." Lu Cheng didn't recognize her right away; after all, the last time the little girl's face was covered in mud, and he never expected her to show up at his home.

"What's your name?" Lu Cheng crouched down and pulled her toward him.

"Ning Ning." the little girl said shyly.

When Ning Ning answered, Lin Qingyan was quite surprised; the child seemed frightened and had hardly spoken at all.

"She's not even averse to you yet; you don't know, you could count all the words she says in a day with one hand—she answers every question we ask."

Lu Cheng patted the child's head: "I've met her before; maybe she doesn't reject me."

Lin Qingyan nodded, as if that were the case; this Ning Ning also doesn't reject Lu Ying.

Lu Cheng lifted the child and said, "Where are your parents? Why are you alone at home?"

Living in a makeshift shed, when Lu Cheng first returned home he didn't even have time to exchange a few words with his family before he fell asleep.

He also didn't understand the family's situation during this period.

Lin Qingyan had already started rolling dough; fortunately, Chen Xianglan, worried that her son might wake up suddenly, had prepared the noodles in advance.

"Dad and Mom went to work; this shed was still the one big brother set up a few days ago."

"Big brother came back?"

"Yes, but he stayed for two days and then left; Baoyue's nanny was pregnant, so he didn't stay longer."

Lu Cheng nodded; big brother's visit was surely out of concern for the situation here.

Then he turned his gaze back to the little girl.

"What about my sister? I recall she was supposed to send the child to the Welfare Institute, so why is she staying at our house?"

Lin Qingyan, rolling noodles, suddenly sighed: "Today the department store received a shipment, and Ying Ying was so busy she couldn't look after her; the past few days she was taken there, and it just so happens I'm free today, so I'm watching her at home."

"You don't know, during this period we sent Ning Ning to the Welfare Institute several times, but once she got there she would crawl under the beds, so we had to take her back to stay here for a few days."

Lu Cheng roughly understood the family's situation during this time; Ning Ning staying here for a few days isn't a problem, but the key question is what to do with the child afterward.

After the noodles were ready, Lu Cheng ate three large bowls in one go, plus two soft‑boiled eggs.

Just as he was about to set the bowl down, Ning Ning whisked it away.

Lu Cheng only then realized: "I'm sorry, Ning Ning, I thought you'd already eaten and forgot to save some for you."

Ning Ning shook her little head: "I—I'm not eating; I want to help Uncle wash the dishes."

Hearing Ning Ning's words, Lu Cheng was instead taken aback for a moment.

Lin Qingyan hurriedly smiled and explained: "You don't know, Ning Ning is unusually sensible. A few days ago her parents weren't home, Ying Ying went to a neighbor's to borrow rice, and when she came back she saw the child standing on a stool cooking."

"We originally thought she was hungry; after probing, we found out she wanted to cook for everyone, and normally after meals she wipes the table and sweeps the floor."

Lu Cheng nodded, called the little girl to his side, and took the bowl from her hands.

"Ning Ning, you're still young; you can safely stay here for now, you don't have to do this work—go outside and play with other kids."

Ning Ning pursed her lips and stood there stubbornly: "I don't want to play. You're good people; I can't just eat for free, I should do something. Back home I also helped my mother cook and wash clothes."

Lu Cheng was at a loss for words, knowing that Ning Ning's father had died in service, leaving the family without its pillar, and that Ning Ning's mother was raising three children alone, making life surely very hard.

Children from poor families grow up early; Ning Ning is only five, yet she has already begun to labor for the household.

A child that age is still immature, right?

But this child is actually sensible, which makes one feel a pang of sympathy; no wonder she was sent back to the Welfare Institute and then taken in several times.

"Then Ning Ning, can you tell Uncle why you don't want to stay at the Welfare Institute?"

Ning Ning has no family, so she will always need a place to settle, and the Welfare Institute is the best option.

Facing Lu Cheng's question, Ning Ning blinked her reddened eyes; tears glimmered, about to spill.

"I… I miss Mom; that place has no mother…"

Lu Cheng wanted to say that there's no mother here either, but looking at the pitiful little girl, he couldn't bring himself to speak.

During this period staying on site, he had seen far too many scenes of life and death separation each day.

To be honest, those scenes were extremely tormenting; the bureau forced him out not because they worried he was too tired, but because they feared his heart couldn't bear staying that long.

Only when he returned home did Lu Cheng feel a warmth; that's the charm of home, and perhaps Ning Ning feels the same.

Lin Qingyan hurriedly cradled Ning Ning in her arms, gently soothing, "There, Ning Ning, don't cry; staying here you don't need to be afraid."

How to settle the little girl

In fact we could simply force Ning Ning into the Welfare Institute, with no need to visit her and no need to bring her back home.

But looking at the current situation, it seems that everyone at home cannot just ignore Ning Ning.

The main point is that this child is extremely sensible; she washes her own clothes and also helps with cooking and cleaning the house.

Yet the more this happens, the older Lu family wants an even better placement for the child.

Lu Cheng has returned; that night the family gathered, ready to discuss properly how to place this homeless little girl.