Chapter 1480

Character Side Story: An Mingyu — Redemption

An Jing quit her job.

When she realized that her busyness was about to plunge this "family" into an abyss, she decisively pulled herself out of the quagmire of being busy and chose to draw closer to her family again.

Of course, another reason that prompted her to make up her mind was that her unhappy busyness hadn't earned much money anyway.

If she had truly carved out a niche for herself in the workplace or accumulated considerable wealth, perhaps An Mingyu's life might have headed down a different path.

Unfortunately, reality has no "ifs."

The only thing to be thankful for was that little Mingyu had not been tortured into a "madman" by the family's "indifference"; she grew up very well, even better than An Jing had expected.

As An Mingyu grew up, education became the top problem hanging over An Jing's heart.

She knew that education was not just simple learning; integrating into a circle of peers was equally important for a child's growth.

However, in that cold city, An Jing couldn't find a way to get little Mingyu into a normal school. With no other choice, she had to seek help from her unreliable brother.

That's how the fortune-telling master was; he was occasionally reliable just when others thought he was unreliable.

An Ning gave An Jing a suggestion: he suggested that his sister take her niece to an orphanage. This way, little Mingyu could find peers, and they could also audit classes to solve the education problem. It might even kill three birds with one stone, as it could also solve An Jing's employment problem.

He felt that An Jing, who had tirelessly raised a child from a young age, must have the patience to manage those fragile and reserved little children.

To this, An Jing did not refuse.

She couldn't think of a better method than this.

And so, under An Ning's guidance, An Jing applied for a job at an orphanage; the name of that orphanage was Sunshine Welfare Institute.

The director of the welfare institute was a lady who had just passed 50 and looked quite vigorous. After understanding An Jing's situation, she greatly appreciated this young woman who was struggling to make a living with her niece, and she finalized the hiring matters not long after the interview.

A smooth job search should have made An Jing feel happy, but she always felt that the director's care for her was a bit too... obvious.

Was it an illusion? Or was there some hidden reason?

This unusual warmth made An Jing feel a bit unaccustomed to it, but for Mingyu's sake, she decided to observe a little longer.

And little An Mingyu finally ushered in her own "collective time."

Perhaps for An Mingyu, she would never forget the day she entered the "institute."

There was no fanfare, no grand welcome; it was just in the classroom of a teacher with a warm smile that little Mingyu, held by Director Madam, was brought to the back row of the classroom and sat down beside a little girl whose eyes were bright enough to be astonishing.

Little Mingyu had rarely come into contact with children her own age; she didn't know how to say hello.

Her aunt and the director hadn't taught her either; they stood outside the classroom, watching her and smiling.

Before long, the little girl beside her broke the silence first and greeted her:

"Don't be afraid. Director Cen and Teacher Qin are both very good people, and the children in the institute are also quite nice. Although some boys are very mischievous, they don't have bad intentions. If you don't like them, just ignore them; once they hit a wall, they naturally won't come to bother you again, otherwise Director Song will give them trouble.

Also, Master Bao's cooking is delicious, and Grandpa Qu's stories are very interesting. Occasionally, little cats and dogs will sneak in to take a turn around. Auntie Deng says stray cats and dogs carry germs, so we can't touch them, but we can watch them. They are agile and fight with vigor, it's just that their barking sounds a bit unpleasant.

Sigh, I've already chattered so much, why haven't you even made a sound?"

"...... Mm." An Mingyu gave a timid "mm." She didn't even dare to turn her head to look at the person beside her, but the smile at the corner of her mouth revealed her far-from-calm mood.

"You look really pretty when you smile. My name is Seeing Zhen Xin, what's your name?"

"An Mingyu."

"An Mingyu (An Ming Fish)? Are you a fish?"

"I'm not a fish, I'm a person."

"...... You're so silly." Seeing Zhen Xin laughed happily, but soon, the radiant girl was called out by the teacher.

After answering the question and sitting down, Seeing Zhen Xin leaned over to An Mingyu's side again and complained, "One more thing, don't make too much noise in Teacher Qin's class, otherwise you'll be like me and get called up to answer questions.

But don't worry too much; he won't make things difficult for you. He says this is called exercising one's courage.

Do you know what courage is?"

An Mingyu blinked, thinking to herself that she probably knew.

The first class passed in a daze amidst Seeing Zhen Xin's muttering. An Mingyu had never attended a class before, but she was certain she had fallen in love with this place.

Seeing Zhen Xin had grown up in the welfare institute since she could remember and had never been to the outside world. When she learned that An Mingyu was not actually a child adopted by the institute, but just a "little study companion" brought by a staff member, she didn't feel any jealousy or envy; instead, she was extremely happy. She kept urging An Mingyu to tell her how wonderful the outside world was, yet An Mingyu was also "ignorant" about it.

However, to satisfy her good friend's curiosity, the time she spent walking around outside clearly increased quite a bit.

That's right, they had already become friends.

The friendship of little girls comes just like that; even they themselves hadn't expected that they would be so compatible.

This was also a good thing for An Jing. She became increasingly convinced that only by interacting with peers could a child grow rapidly, and therefore, she also loved the little girl named Seeing Zhen Xin by extension.

After spending a long time together, she even felt that Mingyu, who was already very sensible, was not as "sensible" as this quirky Seeing Zhen Xin.

No wonder the director had her sit at the same desk as Mingyu; she was indeed a ray of sunshine in this welfare institute, illuminating the childhood that should have belonged to little Mingyu.

Days passed one by one, and the two good friends grew up day by day.

The trees and flowers in the welfare institute withered and flourished cycle after cycle, and Director Madam's hair gradually turned white amidst several storms, changing from a madam to a grandmother. The carefree children always thought they would grow up to adulthood here, and then "graduate" to become a member of this welfare institute.

No one disliked this place, and no one could bear to leave. The children, who had grown up but remained innocent, even made a wish together that everyone would continue to live together in the future, work together, play together, and welcome new children together.

But such childish delusions were not realistic. Compared to a collective life devoid of family love, Director Grandma clearly wanted every child to have a better future.

And adoption, in her view, was the only path to a beautiful future.

Over the years, children kept leaving. Every time someone left the welfare institute, the remaining children would feel a bit sad, but at least Seeing Zhen Xin and An Mingyu hadn't lost their best friend.

But fate is always full of changes, and finally, this day came for Seeing Zhen Xin.

When An Mingyu learned of this, the matter was already a foregone conclusion. She didn't know what to do. On one hand, as Seeing Zhen Xin's best friend, she also hoped that Xinxin could have a happier future, especially when Director Grandma was certain that this was the best choice for Xinxin; she also firmly believed that the loving director wouldn't be wrong.

But on the other hand, when she realized that she would soon be unable to see her best friend every day, An Mingyu was practically shattered.

For a moment, she felt that if her aunt could adopt Xinxin, it would be great; that way, they would become "real" sisters.

However, at that time, An Jing had just started her own family, and little Caiwei had just been born. Such a request was not only irresponsible to her aunt but also irresponsible to Xinxin.

She deserved a better life, whichever one of them it was.

And so, amidst reluctance and helplessness, the best friends were separated just like that......

Actually, not really.

They were just separated by some distance in space, but every month, An Jing would take An Mingyu to visit Seeing Zhen Xin.

This contained not only the director's entrustment but also An Jing's care and An Mingyu's longing.

To this, Seeing Zhen Xin was very content.

That was one of the few redemptions she had in her dark times, but even so, in that winter......

"Hey, Xinxin, we've already set off and will be there soon."

"Hee~

Mingyu, hurry over. I've discovered a new delicious restaurant; I'll take you to eat there."

"Mm, okay, wait for me."