Chapter 554: Almost Died from Being Tormented

At night, No. 8 Siheyuan in Yu'er Hutong.

In the washbasin, the dim yellow bulb reflected a pair of big feet and two pairs of small feet.

Lu Cheng seemed accustomed to the two children's presence; at least the empty Da Za Yuan now had a bit of lively laughter, and thus gained some popularity.

"Uncle, when will my mother come?"

Lu Cheng glanced and said, "What, missing your mother? See if you still dare to sneak onto a train! Wait, it should be a few days."

Seeing the little girl silently lower her head, she clearly missed her mother.

Fearing the two children would cry again at night, Lu Cheng changed the subject and asked, "Is your mother doing well now?"

Noticing the little girl's puzzled eyes, Lu Cheng switched his question: "Is Mom usually happy?"

This time the little girl understood and gently shook her head.

"Mom likes to act goofy, seems unhappy…"

Lu Cheng could understand; he guessed that this marriage was forced by the mother Yu Wanrong, and because of the father's job, they rarely saw each other all year, so a bad mood was normal.

"Alright, wipe your feet and go to sleep quickly."

Lu Cheng gave the two children their clothes, placed them into the quilt and tucked the corners: "Close your eyes, Uncle has turned off the lights."

"Mm, good night, Uncle."

"Good night…"

After pulling the plug, the room was pitch black; Lu Cheng took off his clothes and lay in the quilt at the other end.

Just as he was drowsily about to fall asleep, the other end of the bed suddenly twitched; shortly after, a fluffy little head popped up from the quilt side.

Lu Cheng set a stern face and said, "Why aren't you asleep yet? What time is it? Go to sleep now, you can't play any longer."

"Uncle, I'm thirsty…"

Dinner was roast duck; the two children ate a lot, so thirst was normal.

Lu Cheng reluctantly got up, groped in the dark and poured a cup of hot water: "Don't drink too much, or you'll wet the bed again."

After drinking, the little girl still hadn't gone to sleep on that side: "Uncle, my back itches."

Lu Cheng had to lie down again, close his eyes, and unconsciously reach out to scratch the little girl's back.

"Is it okay now?"

"It's still a bit itchy…"

"……"

"Now is it okay?"

"Mm, it's fine."

"Then go to sleep quickly, your brother is already asleep."

"Uncle… I'm hungry…"

"What?" Lu Cheng sat up: "You ate a lot of roast duck, why are you hungry again!"

"Woo~ My belly is just hungry."

Seeing the little girl still rubbing, Lu Cheng sighed helplessly, got up again to find food; fortunately the older sister had brought many cookies and egg cakes.

Soon in the dark bedroom, a "crack‑crack" sound like a mouse nibbling appeared as the cookies were eaten.

Lu Cheng stood at the bedside, holding a cup of water to prevent the little girl from getting thirsty again after eating.

Sure enough, before she finished half, the little girl said, "Uncle, I choked…"

Lu Cheng couldn't be more helpless; after finally giving water, he let the little girl eat the cookies and egg cake.

"Uncle, my belly is full."

Lu Cheng yawned, thinking that he could finally sleep.

"Uncle, you haven't told a story…"

"No story, it's too late, go to sleep…"

Lu Cheng pulled the quilt over himself, and after a while the little girl muttered again.

"Uncle, I want to poop."

Lu Cheng took a deep breath: "Hold it."

"Oh…"

This time the little girl was quiet, not speaking for a long while, but Lu Cheng couldn't stay calm; after five minutes he lifted the quilt and sat up.

"Go, go, don't poop on the bed, I'll take you to the bathroom."

It was cold outside; Lu Cheng dressed the child, put on shoes, and fetched paper to lead the child to the bathroom.

"Uncle, faster…"

"Hold it, we're almost there, please hold it."

Seeing the little girl walk slowly, Lu Cheng had to pick her up and run to the bathroom.

But when they reached the corner bathroom and Lu Cheng set the little girl down, she suddenly said, "Uncle, never mind."

Lu Cheng was startled: "What, never mind? Don't want to go now? You're just tormenting me… Wait, why does it smell so bad?"

Lu Cheng sniffed at the bathroom door; a foul smell was normal, but the scent of fresh poop differed from old.

He slowly turned his head, looking at the little girl: "Did you poop in your pants?"

As the little girl nodded, Lu Cheng sighed to the heavens, recalling his past life.

He remembered he hadn't committed any major sins, only in his later years he had flirted with a few old ladies, and was chased by a few old men in the neighborhood wielding kitchen knives.

The only thing he felt guilty about was that Lin Qingyan had saved his life; that was a life‑saving debt, but in this life he had already repaid it.

So why did her child still come to torment him?

Changing the child's clothes, washing, building a fire to dry them—it's already the middle of the night.

Lu Cheng completely lost his drowsiness, and after the two kids peed on him, he just kept his eyes open until dawn.

In the early morning, the little girl rubbed her eyes upon waking and said, "Uncle, you're up so early."

Lu Cheng, with dark circles under his eyes, looked over and said, "Hehe…"

He dropped the two kids off at the department store and saw Lu Cheng yawning nonstop.

"What's up? Didn't sleep well?"

Lu Cheng waved his hand, "Don't bring it up. I almost had the kids work themselves to death."

After she recounted last night's events, Lu Ying laughed so hard her waist nearly gave out: "Not bad, not bad, you took good care of them. I bet their real father never even washed the kids' soiled pants; you got a taste first."

Lu Cheng gave a wry smile, "At night you cuddle the two of them, but I'm not going to cuddle."

Seeing his sister about to refuse, Lu Cheng reminded, "These are the kids of your good friend Qing Yan; if you don't want to look after them, just throw the two on the street."

Lu Ying crossed her arms and put forward her own condition.

"The two kids can sleep with me at night, but you have to get the soy‑sauce matter sorted for me right away."

Lu Cheng yawned again, "Deal, I'll definitely get it done. I'll go take a nap first."

In his sister's office there was a coal stove, warm and cozy; Lu Cheng lay on the chair and took a short nap.

It wasn't until noon that Lu Cheng rode his bicycle to Qingbei University.

It was dismissal time; classmates riding bicycles rang their bells and sped down the main road, a hint of pride on their faces.

Most were on foot, groups of three or five leaving the campus.

Lu Cheng sat on a flowerbed at one side of the school gate waiting; after a while, Yang Yin walked over from the crowd.

"This way," Lu Cheng waved.

Yang Yin bent over and leaned in, "Why do you look like you didn't sleep well?"

Lu Cheng thought about whether to bring up the two kids, but decided against it; after all it didn't concern him, he'd be gone in a few days, no need to mention it.

"It's fine, let's go. I'll take you to eat first."

They ate simple wheat noodles; after the meal, Lu Cheng hopped on his bike and headed straight to the hospital.

When they reached the hospital's entrance, Yang Yin looked puzzled, recalling that Lu Cheng had said he'd bring her to meet someone yesterday, someone very important—could it be right here in the hospital?