Just like that, Niuwa stayed at Qiao Lanshu's house.
Originally, Qiao Lanshu thought the matter would be settled in three or four days at most.
As a result, several days passed, and the police station still hadn't found any clues about Niuwa's family.
Qiao Lanshu didn't dare take Niuwa out either. This was what Qin Yuanzheng had instructed, saying he was afraid the child might be recognized by certain people and taken away, which would cause more trouble.
Niuwa was kept in the small courtyard every day. After thinking it over, Qiao Lanshu decided to put some clothes on him.
A little pink dress.
This was an old piece of clothing worn by Huang Erling's daughter that she had brought over. The original intention was for Qiao Lanshu to alter it so An'an could wear it.
Auntie Shi said that if they put the little dress on Niuwa, he would be too embarrassed to run around.
Sure enough, Niuwa didn't dare to run around.
Wearing the little dress every day, he fed the chickens and sheep in the yard, and also dug in the dirt. Once, he pulled up all the vegetable seedlings Auntie Shi had just planted.
Auntie Shi was furious. She grabbed Niuwa and gave him a good spanking.
Niuwa cried, his eyes brimming with tears, and that very day he tried to crawl through the dog hole to escape this house.
And then, Niuwa got stuck in the dog hole.
Auntie Shi and Qiao Lanshu, holding An'an, stood there laughing out loud.
Auntie Shi laughed heartily for a long time before saying to Qiao Lanshu, You look at this child. At lunch, he ate two steamed buns and a bowl of milk powder, stuffing his little belly until it was bulging. And now he actually tried to squeeze through a dog hole. Isn't that hilarious?
Qiao Lanshu also chuckled quietly for a while. Stuck in the dog hole, Niuwa cried loudly, his bottom wedged tight, and sobbed to Qiao Lanshu, Auntie Qiao, I was wrong, please save me, boohoo.
Qiao Lanshu was soft-hearted. Holding An'an, she walked over and said to Auntie Shi, Auntie, should we get him out first?
Having laughed enough, Auntie Shi said, You stand back, let me do it.
Saying that, she went over, grabbed Niuwa's legs, gave a gentle tug, and pulled the stuck Niuwa out of the dog hole.
Niuwa had cried until his face was flushed red, his face covered in snot and tears.
As soon as he was pulled out of the hole, he ran over to Qiao Lanshu whimpering, hugged her thigh, and bawled loudly.
Qiao Lanshu, both annoyed and amused, scolded him, Why did you go and crawl into a dog hole for no reason? Are you going to do it again?
Niuwa didn't shake his head, nor did he say he wouldn't do it again; he just kept crying.
Auntie Shi remarked, I have to say, this kid has some backbone. If he doesn't want to do something, he absolutely won't agree to it. I reckon he'll try crawling through it again later.
Niuwa looked at Auntie Shi with some terror and muttered, Bad guy.
Auntie Shi really was too wicked; she had him completely figured out and under her thumb.
How could there be such a terrifying woman?
However, Niuwa was also very easy to coax. When Qiao Lanshu handed him a piece of date cake, he immediately stopped crying. Holding the cake in both hands, he sat on the steps and ate it bite by bite.
While tidying up the vegetable garden, Auntie Shi said, It's been several days, why hasn't this child's family been found yet? Ever since he arrived, our yard has been in absolute chaos, and the chickens in the backyard are nearly bald.
Although her tone was complaining, there was a smile on Auntie Shi's face.
After all, who wouldn't like such a chubby, fair-skinned child who loved to eat and sleep, and was incredibly smart despite being mischievous?
Qiao Lanshu held An'an in her arms, watching him drink from his milk bottle.
She sat down next to Niuwa with An'an in her arms, sighed, and said, Brother Zheng said this child might be from out of town. His home is probably very far from Yangcheng, which is why it's so hard to find them.
In this era, transportation and communication were underdeveloped, making it very difficult for information to spread out of many cities.
The speed of information transmission was very slow.
If two cities were too far apart, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Qiao Lanshu thought for a moment and added, If we really can't find them, it's fine for me to adopt him. That way, An'an will have an older brother.
Auntie Shi smiled and said, Not just you, even I'd want to adopt him. This kid is smart; he'll definitely achieve great things when he grows up.
Auntie Shi continued, I see An'an is quite active too. In the future, he'll surely be a little devil who turns the house upside down.
Qiao Lanshu: ...
Looking at the child quietly drinking his milk, Qiao Lanshu couldn't help but smile.
Niuwa had finished his date cake by this time. He leaned over, looked at An'an, and called out, Little devil, little devil.
Qiao Lanshu: ...
Qiao Lanshu sighed and rubbed Niuwa's sweaty little head. Seeing that it was about time, she handed the milk-finished An'an to Auntie Shi, asking her to watch the two children at home while she went to the food factory to pick up Zhong Mei from work.
Then she would go look at houses with Zhong Mei.
The two of them had been house hunting for the past few days and had found a suitable one in a multi-family courtyard. Two families were already living there, and the remaining unit only had two rooms. The previous owner felt it was too narrow for their large family and had moved out.
Qiao Lanshu and Zhong Mei had already seen it before and both thought it was quite nice. This was their second visit.
Arm in arm, with Qiao Lanshu carrying a vegetable basket, they came out of the food factory, crossed the street, passed through an alley, and arrived at the courtyard.
It was very close to the food factory, not far from Qiao Lanshu's home, and the supply and marketing cooperative was also nearby.
Qiao Lanshu said to Zhong Mei, This courtyard is good. Let's lock it down today.
Zhong Mei nodded, Okay.
The rent was one dollar and fifty cents a month. Zhong Mei actually felt it was a bit expensive; she was used to being frugal and thought renting any place for a dollar would be fine.
But Qiao Lanshu insisted on this one, saying it was safe to live here.
Of the other two households living in the courtyard, one was a family of four: two elderly parents, their son, and daughter-in-law, with no grandchildren yet.
The son and daughter-in-law were both workers at a nearby factory. The old lady didn't work, and the old man was an employee at the waste station.
They all had legitimate jobs, so they seemed like good people.
As for the other household, they hadn't seen them yet.
When Qiao Lanshu and Zhong Mei arrived there again, the old lady from the next door was just squatting by the courtyard well washing vegetables.
Qiao Lanshu and Zhong Mei went over to greet her and asked her about the other family.
Seeing that two girls were moving in, the old lady was also happy. After all, who wouldn't want to have hassle-free neighbors?
Young girls are clean and quiet, which was much better than the previous large family of five or six people crammed in here.
The old lady said happily, Oh, a young couple lives in the next room. They also moved in not long ago and work at the nearby garment factory. The couple is very easy to get along with, so you can move in with peace of mind.
Zhong Mei and Qiao Lanshu exchanged a glance, smiled, and thanked the old lady.
Qiao Lanshu even took out a freshly bought melon from her basket and gave it to the old lady.
The old lady refused to take it and insisted on stuffing it back.
Qiao Lanshu smiled and said, We'll be neighbors from now on, and we'll be counting on you to look after us. Please don't be so polite with us, grandma.
The old lady beamed as she accepted the melon, becoming even more welcoming. She said, "That room has only been vacant for a little over a month, and everything inside is still kept in good order. If you need any help, just come to me. Please don't hesitate to ask."
Zhong Mei and Qiao Lanshu agreed, and then went to look around the rooms.
Neither of the two rooms was large. One room had a kang bed, which was quite big, taking up more than half the space. Visually, it could sleep a family of four.
The other room had a stove, but some of the bricks were damaged and needed fixing.
Furthermore, there was no pot on the stove, let alone tables, chairs, benches, bedsheets, or bedding.
Everything would have to be purchased, which would cost quite a bit of money.
However, the house was quite nice. At the very least, it didn't need major repairs, and the kang could still be used without having to be rebuilt.
Qiao Lanshu whispered, "How about here? Let's go to the Housing Administration Office and rent it today."
In these times, most houses were allocated by work units; public housing directly managed by the Housing Administration Office was rare.
Now that they had found a suitable place, Qiao Lanshu felt they should act fast and rent it immediately.
Naturally, Zhong Mei had no objections. She also liked it here very much; she had long wanted a room of her own.
She happily said, "This place is great! Let's go to the Housing Administration Office right now. I already have the introduction letter from the food factory, and the money is ready."
The two walked out of the courtyard happily, but just as they reached the intersection, they saw a woman acting suspiciously, running into the alley with a child in her arms.
Both Zhong Mei and Qiao Lanshu saw her, but Zhong Mei didn't recognize her, while Qiao Lanshu did.
She gasped, grabbed Zhong Mei's arm, and whispered, "Why does that look so much like Niuwa?"
Zhong Mei stared in that direction for a moment and whispered, "It does look a bit like him..."
But wasn't Auntie Shi keeping a close eye on him? How did Niuwa still manage to run out?
Qiao Lanshu frowned and said, "The person holding the child is my former colleague, Liu Weihong. Her character isn't very good... Zhong Mei, you go home first to check on Auntie Shi and An'an. I'm worried about them... I'll chase after her to take a look. If it really is Niuwa, I have to bring the child back."
Pressed for time and unable to think too much, Zhong Mei nodded after hearing this and quickly ran home.
If Niuwa had been taken away, what if An'an was taken too?
Zhong Mei hurriedly ran home, while Qiao Lanshu went after Liu Weihong.
Although she was also worried about An'an, Zhong Mei wasn't very familiar with Longcheng. If she got lost and lost track of the person, they wouldn't be able to find Niuwa.
Zhong Mei ran home panting, just in time to see Auntie Shi standing at the courtyard gate holding An'an, talking to a neighbor.
Seeing Zhong Mei return, she quickly said loudly, "Zhong Mei, you're finally back! Oh dear, Niuwa just ran out. I chased after him but couldn't find him. I wanted to go to the police, but An'an is still little, and I didn't dare take An'an out with me..."
Zhong Mei ran up to her, saw that Auntie Shi was still holding the baby, and quickly pulled her into the house.
Auntie Shi carried An'an back into the courtyard, and Zhong Mei whispered, "Auntie Shi, stay in the house with An'an and don't go anywhere. Lanshu and I just saw Niuwa. I have to go help Lanshu now. Lock the door and don't go out, understand?"
Auntie Shi nodded solemnly. "Don't worry, I know what to do. My job is to take care of An'an, so I definitely won't run around."
When Niuwa ran out just now, she had wanted to chase after him, but considering An'an, she decided against it.
To be selfish, she was An'an's nanny, and her duty was to care for An'an.
Niuwa wasn't Brigade Commander Qin's child to begin with, so if he got lost, she wouldn't be the one to blame, right?
Zhong Mei searched around the room, grabbed a carrying pole, and ran out aggressively.
Auntie Shi: "..."
Auntie Shi hurriedly followed behind her and called out, "Hey, be careful! Don't do anything reckless!"
Zhong Mei didn't say a word, but she shut the courtyard door.
Auntie Shi: "..."
Auntie Shi felt the situation was somewhat serious, so she ran to the door again and asked the next-door neighbor to pass a message to Qin Yuanzheng at the mining area troops, telling him to quickly go find Qiao Lanshu and Zhong Mei.
