1novels Chapter 1063 - 936: Was It You Who Abandoned the Child?
Chapter 1063 - 936: Was It You Who Abandoned the Child?
"Second Uncle makes a good point, Third Grandpa. I’ll head to the township at first light. If anyone wants to adopt, they can talk about it after things are clear. Does that sound okay to you?"The Old Captain nodded, then shook his head, letting out a long sigh as he walked out with his hands behind his back. He was old and couldn’t understand how anyone could abandon their own bloodline like this.
As soon as Mr. Zhang saw him leave, he gave his wife a look, stayed a while longer, chatted briefly with the other old timers, and then withdrew from the crowd.
Back at the old house, as soon as Mother Zhang saw him appear, she hurried over, "Why did you have me come back first?"
"You’re there watching the excitement, aren’t you worried that someone will ask you to take care of the child?" Mr. Zhang frowned. "Just like in the city, someone intends to send the child to our house."
Mother Zhang raised her voice, "What?"
Mr. Zhang quickly covered his wife’s mouth and looked around, "Keep your voice down. Otherwise, why do you think the child ended up at our doorstep?"
"Did you throw it there?"
Mr. Zhang rolled his eyes at her, "Can you listen to yourself? What’s ’I threw it’? It’s not our child. I figure someone left it at our eldest son’s door, and he moved it."
"Nonsense, our eldest son’s very kind-hearted. He wouldn’t do that."
Mr. Zhang looked at her in frustration, "So you think I’m the unkind one? I remember it was you who told me to take them far away when kids were left at our doorstep, or else we’d end up raising someone else’s child."
Mother Zhang thought back to those years when kids were left at their doorstep, and it was indeed she who urged her husband to hurry and move them away, laughing awkwardly.
"That’s not what I meant. Last night, Xiao Wu told me he’s taking the kids up the mountain today. I guess he didn’t have time to notice outside and might have already left."
Mr. Zhang shook his head in amusement, "You think you’re clever, ’training the kids,’ exercising them, sounds like training puppies, really awkward."
He laughed to himself, "Last night Xiao Wu said our little grandson can shoot pheasants and rabbits, at just five years old, hahaha..."
"Keep it down, you just reminded me," Mother Zhang said as she pulled her husband inside, lowered her voice, and whispered, "Did May 1st tell you to hunt more meat for you to slowly eat?"
Mr. Zhang wasn’t happy, snorting, "Of course, Liu Yi told me early this morning that as soon as he got down the mountain, he’d soon be able to catch something big and store it as wine for me."
’Old kid, old kid,’ there’s some truth in that saying. Mr. Zhang and Mother Zhang bragged to each other on their way to the kitchen, still needing each other in their old age.
At this moment, as Mother Zhang said, Zhang Guoqing’s family of five had already woken up, quietly starting their morning routine while listening to the outside corner.
"What’s going on?" Zhou Jiao furrowed her brow.
Zhang Guoqing didn’t plan to keep it from her, briefly explaining what he did, unsurprisingly receiving an approving look from his wife.
Like him, Zhou Jiao despised others scheming against them. Innocent children don’t deserve to be part of someone else’s plan. She gave a few instructions to the kids.
Basically letting them occasionally mention in Beijing, families like theirs without children who want to adopt usually take in martyrs’ orphans or Welfare Institute orphans. The procedures are very complicated, requiring verification and approval.
If any family deliberately abandoned a baby and got caught, they’d be thrown in jail. She didn’t want these trivial matters spoiling their good vacation time.
"Not planning to intervene?"
Zhou Jiao shook her head, "Too much trouble, getting involved would entail gossip about being heartless or whatever. No point in damaging our reputation for these people."
Zhang Guoqing chuckled. At least she wasn’t soft-hearted at the sight of a child. If someone was truly in trouble and came for help, he’d be willing to do some good deeds discreetly, but the nature of this situation is different, and so is the outcome.
That day, the family quietly left through the back door before dawn. The issues of the town below were left behind them.
Without the twins present, Zhang Guoqing managed to show his two young sons the dangers of the mountains, and of course, these little ones got to see wolves, quite different from dogs.
Zhou Jiao led the two sons in horse stance practice in front of their log cabin, often glancing into the depths with an uneasy heart, until the sun slowly rose, she finally saw a familiar figure emerge.
Seeing her little son’s eyes light up, face flushed with excitement, she knew it was another Ping’an. Her eldest had been the same way.
"Wasn’t he scared?"
Zhang Guoqing laughed, "If I wasn’t planning on switching with Liu Yi, he wouldn’t want to leave yet."
Zhou Jiao glanced at the little son bragging to his two brothers, shaking her head regretfully. She thought May 1st would take after her, have a scholarly persona.
"Liu Yi, hurry up; it’s so much fun. I’ll start practicing my stance first. Dad promised me that once I’m older, he won’t have to carry me; I can hunt by myself."
"Where’s the meat?"
"Huh?" May 1st, puzzled by Liu Yi’s question, scratched his head and looked at Zhang Guoqing, "Dad said they’re too small, not much meat. We’re here to exercise, not just for the meat."
Liu Yi rolled his eyes at him until Ping’an gave him a light smack on the head, stopping him, "You’re so dumb. In our family, except for Grandpa, each person only gets four liang of meat per month."
"You’re the dumb one. Dad said he’s taking brother back in the afternoon to hunt something big. Brother doesn’t need to be carried; he can run fast, and Dad can carry a lot back."
Liu Yi nodded nonchalantly, showing he understood, and started his little legs towards Zhang Guoqing with a water bottle.
"Son, are you ready?"
"Dad, take a seat first and rest."
Zhang Guoqing, moved, picked up his son, "Jiao Jiao, look how filial and considerate our son is."
Zhou Jiao shook her head amusedly. She should cook something nice to nourish him, or this silly father might exhaust himself without realizing it.
Zhang Guoqing had arranged things well. After bringing Liu Yi back, the family had lunch and rested for a while. Just as the twins went down for their nap, Zhou Jiao could rest with her son, read, or prepare a stew, while he could take the eldest son and venture further out.
This busy farming season, he wasn’t worried about the old hunters getting time off to enter the mountains. Even if someone did, for her son’s sake, his wife would be on high alert and wouldn’t hesitate to act decisively.
Compared to taking the twins, bringing Ping’an was much easier. Father and son cooperated well, mixing teaching and hunting, and their haul was impressive.
So, when Zhou Jiao awaited their return, she was almost taken aback. If Zhang Guoqing and his son kept ravaging Daqing Mountain, would there be any animals left?
At once guilty and amused, Zhou Jiao felt that her mother-in-law’s annual offerings to the Mountain God still served a purpose, considering asking Mother Zhang to provide more in the future.