Chapter 14: The Sickly Child and the Two Encumbrances Disappeared

Su Yuanyuan was surprised by their answer, stunned for a moment.

Children’s perspectives were simple.

They heard that having a father meant less bullying, so they needed a father; they hadn’t thought further.

Su Yuanyuan recalled the original owner’s struggles; the children were right.

Su Yuanyuan was sick; if Lu Zhengan were there, her life would be much easier.

Women had fewer job opportunities than men; being alone made her vulnerable to gossip and bullying.

A strong woman might have resisted, but the original owner was sickly and meek, only able to endure.

Su Yuanyuan was relieved; she had feared the children craved paternal love, which would be more complicated.

This showed the original owner’s love for her children; she had cared for them well for three years.  The children weren’t fixated on “fatherly love.”

“Okay, we’ll go to Beijing.  We need to leave tonight before anyone notices!”

Su Yuanyuan wasn’t naive enough to think she could leave openly.

The Lus were wary of her after the original owner’s attempt to write to Lu Zhengan.

Leaving was better than enduring more suffering.

Lu Siyuan considered their time in the space. “Should we leave now?”

Su Yuanyuan nodded.  They needed to leave quickly.

But before heading to Beijing, she needed to write to Lu Zhengan.

Finding him in Beijing would be like searching for a needle in a haystack.  Su Yuanyuan wasn’t comfortable traveling with the children without informing him.

“Yes, let’s go now. We won’t catch the train tonight; we’ll go to the county first. Mom needs to write a letter to your father, so we don’t have to ask around in Beijing!”

The children’s eyes lit up.

“Wow! Mom is amazing! I won’t call you slow anymore.”

Lu Mingzhu nodded vigorously. “I declare Mom the smartest Mom ever!”

Su Yuanyuan laughed. “You’re so funny. Let’s go. Pack what you need into the space.”

The children clapped. “Yay! We don’t have to carry anything!”

They left the space and began packing.  They didn’t have much.

They packed their clothes and some toys.

Su Yuanyuan took the washbasin and bedding; leaving them would be a waste.

After clearing the room, it was completely empty.

They laughed.

“Grandpa and Grandma will be furious when they see we took everything,” Lu Siyuan grinned.

“Let them be furious. It’s their turn to be upset,” Su Yuanyuan said, taking the kerosene lamp. “Almost forgot that.”

They lived in Congcun, a small village, two hours from Bajiao County.

Walking was impossible.  Su Yuanyuan had a Phoenix bicycle in her space, but it was too tall for her.

Fortunately, she had her old bicycle in the space smaller and more durable, recently serviced.

Riding a bicycle with two children was too difficult, so Su Yuanyuan put them in the space and cycled to the county herself.

The bicycle had a small headlight, not as bright as modern streetlights, but sufficient.

Su Yuanyuan arrived in under an hour.

The county was asleep; the streets were dark and deserted, only punctuated by the occasional crow of a rooster or bark of a dog.

Su Yuanyuan turned down a small alley, checked for onlookers, and entered the space.

Her children rushed into her arms.

“Mom, you’re back!”

“Are we in Bajiao County? Were we not discovered?”

Lu Siyuan anxiously checked Su Yuanyuan, worried she’d been caught.

Su Yuanyuan knelt, hugging them.

“We arrived safely. No one noticed.”

The children relaxed; they had worried about her being caught.

“Tomorrow, we’ll take the train.  Let’s sleep well tonight.”

Su Yuanyuan yawned; pretending to work had been tiring.

“Okay.” The children nodded, not pestering her with questions.

Escaping the Lu’s, they slept soundly.

The next morning, Li Hua knocked on Su Yuanyuan’s door with a lunchbox.

“Third daughter-in-law, get up and cook! It might rain; make breakfast and lunch. Wash the lunchboxes and pack the food.”

The last of the wheat needed harvesting before the rain.

The room was silent.

Li Hua, already upset about the stolen money, was even more frustrated.  Her anger flared when Su Yuanyuan didn’t respond.

“Are you dead?  Who’s so lucky that someone has to ask them to cook?  You’re so delicate! If you die, it’s fine, but you’re alive and a burden!”

Su Yuanyuan heard these curses daily from her in-laws, sisters-in-law, and even Gou Wa and An Niu.

Usually, if Su Yuanyuan didn’t get up, they would scold her children.

Su Yuanyuan usually got up immediately.

But today, Li Hua waited at the door, and there was no response.

“Are you really dead?! Get up and cook!  Are you too good for cooking? Then pack your things and leave with your brats!  You think you can freeload? No way!”

Li Hua cursed, but Su Yuanyuan remained silent.

Lu Zhengning, awakened by the noise, stormed out in a blue cotton shirt and kicked open Su Yuanyuan’s door.

“Mom’s been calling you!  Are you showing off?  If you don’t want to work, get out…”

Lu Zhengning stopped mid-sentence.

Seeing the empty room, meticulously cleaned, Li Hua and her son were stunned.

Wang Chunhua arrived, her eyes widening in surprise. “Oh no!  The sickly woman and the brats are gone!  Were we robbed again?!  See if anything else is missing!”