The bone soup noodles were very hot.

As Chuxia picked up a bite and was about to eat, she noticed Cen Huai’an had already grabbed a large helping with his chopsticks and stuffed it into his mouth without hesitation, as if someone was about to snatch it away.

In an instant, Cen Huai’an’s face contorted in pain.

Chuxia was startled and quickly put down her chopsticks, reaching out to pinch his mouth. “You child! Spit it out quickly! Do you want to burn yourself?”

However, Cen Huai’an avoided Chuxia’s hand and stubbornly swallowed the hot noodles without spitting any out.

Seeing his expression, Chuxia felt a mix of emotions—sour and painful.

She stood up and quickly brought a bowl of cold water to him. “Rinse your mouth with the cold water before eating more.”

She knew that stopping him from eating was impossible.

Although Cen Huai’an was clearly resistant to her, he knew the pain and hesitated for a moment before using the cold water to rinse his mouth.

During this time, he didn’t say a word to Chuxia.

The small bowl of noodles was still quite substantial.

Cen Huai’an finished his bowl while guarding it protectively, his eyes still longing for more from others.

Before Cen Huai’an could react, Chuxia quickly checked his stomach and found it already swollen, indicating he was full.

But the child was clearly afraid of hunger and wanted to eat as much as he could, regardless of whether it would upset his stomach.

The bone soup noodles were indeed delicious, made from pure lamb bones, rich and fragrant.

Even Chuxia herself almost wanted another bowl, so it was no wonder Cen Huai’an still wanted more.

“I’ll bring you again next time,” Chuxia said.

She reached out to pat his head, but Cen Huai’an dodged her.

She didn’t mind.

Once they were outside the state-run restaurant, Cen Huai’an tried to run.

Chuxia ignored his resistance and grabbed his arm.

“Where are you going?”

“None of your business!”

For the first time, Chuxia heard Cen Huai’an’s voice—young but slightly hoarse, like a child with a cold.

His tone was harsh and impatient, and his gaze toward Chuxia showed no affection, as if she were a stranger.

Chuxia noticed he was grinding his teeth, apparently wanting to bite her, but he didn’t actually open his mouth.

His resistance was limited to struggling with his arm, not using his body to push against her.

Chuxia couldn’t quite describe her feelings, but she felt a bit of warmth in her eyes.

She blinked and, with a smile, pinched his cheek. “I’m your mom. If I don’t care for you, who will?”

Cen Huai’an stared at her with wide eyes, as if she had committed a grave crime.

But when she pulled him along, he no longer resisted or made any noise.

The pillar industry of Liangzhou City is its textile factories.

The city has six major textile factories, and several of them are located in the same area, which was not the city center in the past.

But now, with the development of these factories and their proximity to the city center, the area has become quite prosperous.

In early summer, Chuxia took Cen Huai’an on the bus to Liangzhou City Hospital.

She had a monthly pass from the factory, so she didn’t need to pay.

Cen Huai’an had never taken a bus before.

At this moment, he had the curiosity of a child, following Chuxia closely.

After boarding, he quietly looked around the bus, thinking to himself:

The children in the courtyard are so naive; this bus is nothing special.

However, when Chuxia pulled him down to sit, his whole body tensed up.

As the bus started, his eyes widened in surprise, and his thin little hands gripped the seat in front tightly.

Chuxia noticed his reaction and suddenly reached out to turn his head toward the window. “Look at the scenery outside. Is it different from when you’re walking?”

Cen Huai’an didn’t respond, but he kept his head turned toward the window, looking outside.

The hospital was not far away.

After two stops, the bus arrived right in front of the hospital.

When Chuxia and Cen Huai’an got off, she noticed a hint of reluctance in his eyes.

“We’ll need to take the bus back later.”

The hospital was similarly plain, a long, four-story building with gray-white walls.

The entrance had a large door, and inside, the upper half of the walls were white while the lower half was painted turquoise.

Inside the corridor, there were patients as well as busy doctors and nurses.

This was Cen Huai’an’s first time at a hospital, and he didn’t know what his mother intended to do.

But with the strange smell of the hospital, he felt like running away.

Chu Xia was also visiting a hospital from 1981 for the first time.

She asked a nurse where the traditional Chinese medicine department was, and after getting the information, she went to register and took Cen Huai’an there.

Actually, she had already taken Cen Huai’an’s pulse on the bus earlier.

Although she had studied Western medicine in her previous life, focusing on cardiothoracic surgery and spending her days in the hospital, her family background was a traditional Chinese medicine one.

She learned to read using the “tangtou ge” (soup recipe song).

Since childhood, her grandfather had forced her to memorize medicinal herbs and prescriptions, and she was involved in preparing medicines.

She got tired of it and rebelliously chose Western medicine during the college entrance exams, despite her grandfather’s criticism.

However, her grandfather only sighed and advised her to remember traditional Chinese medicine and study hard in her chosen field.

He didn’t say much more.

Looking back now, she realizes how immature she was back then and didn’t understand her grandfather’s feelings.

Fortunately, by the time she came here, her grandfather had already passed away; otherwise, it would have been even more painful for him to outlive her.

As for her parents, they had divorced when she was young, and they left her with her grandfather, never to care for her again.

So, her pulse diagnosis was still quite professional.

Both she and Cen Huai’an were weak mainly due to malnutrition.

Her own health was even worse; she hadn’t taken good care of herself during the postpartum period, which led to lingering minor health issues.

The original owner didn’t pay much attention to this, and combined with the intense work and often inadequate diet, her health would quickly deteriorate if not properly adjusted.

Although she had already diagnosed Cen Huai’an’s condition, she still planned to have him examined at the hospital.

This way, when she went back, she could buy medicinal herbs to adjust both her and Cen Huai’an’s health without arousing suspicion from Cen Huai’an and the other people in the family courtyard.

After all, the original owner had never had any medical knowledge.

In the book, Cen Huai’an was portrayed as a genius who could remember things very clearly from the age of five.

The traditional Chinese medicine doctor was an elderly man.

Chuxia felt a strong sense of familiarity as he resembled her grandfather in demeanor.

She looked at his nameplate: Li Guanzhong.

Chuxia smiled.

Guanzhong was also the name of a traditional Chinese medicine herb.

She sat Cen Huai’an down and placed his hand on the pulse pillow.

Addressing Li Guanzhong, she said, “Doctor, could you please check what illness he has and how to properly adjust his health?”

Upon hearing this, Cen Huai’an immediately looked up at Chuxia, his eyes full of complex emotions—surprise, and a mix of wanting to believe and not daring to.

Li Guanzhong glanced at her and said, “He clearly has severe malnutrition. This frail little body is starving. Now you’re worried about the child’s health? What were you doing before? Young parents like you are so irresponsible.”

Chu Xia did not argue despite being scolded; she simply nodded and responded with “mm-hmm.”

As Li Guanzhong continued to take Cen Huai’an’s pulse, his brows furrowed even more tightly, and his gaze became increasingly stern.

“Who are you to him?”

Chu Xia, behaving very obediently, like she was in front of her own grandfather, replied, “I’m his mother.”

“If you are his mother, how could you let him get so starved? Do you know what his current health condition is? Severe malnutrition! None of his organs are developing healthily! If you don’t properly adjust his health, it could lead to serious long-term problems and even affect his lifespan!”

Li Guanzhong spoke in a sharp and stern tone, glaring at her, clearly enraged that a child’s mother could let the child become like this.