"Little Moon, Aunt is making dumplings in the kitchen."
Zhao Qiuyue heard the voice and came out of the kitchen. Seeing the baby in Chen Lishu's arms, she couldn't help but ask curiously, "Sister, whose child is this?"
"A friend's. They'll be staying at home for a couple of days. I'll have to trouble you to take care of them more, Sister Qiuyue."
Zhao Qiuyue smiled, "What's there to trouble about? My work isn't tiring anyway."
Perhaps due to the fright from earlier in the day, Lu Yang's spirits were not good. He looked listless. Chen Lishu placed him on the sofa, and he sat there obediently, not crying or making a fuss.
"Sister, you must be hungry too, right? I just have a few more dumplings to wrap, and then we can tidy up and eat." Zhao Qiuyue turned and headed back into the kitchen.
Chen Lishu stood where she was, her gaze falling on Rui Rui again. She walked over and sat opposite him.
Time passed quickly. It had been almost two years since she adopted Rui Rui. When she first got him, he was so small he wasn't even as tall as the table. Now, he was almost up to her chest.
Sensing her gaze, Rui Rui looked up in confusion, "Mom, what's wrong?"
Chen Lishu reached out and stroked his little head, smiling as she asked, "Do you have a lot of homework?"
"I finished it at school. I want to read ahead."
"Is that so? My son is so capable."
Pleased by the praise, Rui Rui's long, straight eyelashes fluttered. His dark, grape-like eyes sparkled, and his small face flushed slightly.
"The dumplings are almost ready. Rui Rui, put away your textbooks, it's time to eat," Zhao Qiuyue's voice came from the kitchen. Chen Lishu got up, put away Rui Rui's textbooks, and then took Lu Yang to wash their hands.
...
After Lin Xiaohui followed Qiu Peng to jump out the window and escape, her mind went blank in her panic. She had no idea where to go, so she could only rely on instinct and tightly follow Qiu Peng's retreating back.
They ran for several blocks before Qiu Peng finally slowed down. Lin Xiaohui felt as though her chest was about to explode.
"Brother Peng, what do we do now?" Thinking that the police had been alerted, Lin Xiaohui was so scared she was about to cry.
She had only thought that since Lu Yang was bought, she could sell him without any problem. Who knew it would lead to this situation? If she had known, she should have just sent the child to the train station instead of being greedy for a bit of money.
But even if she regretted it deeply, there was no medicine in the world for regret.
"Selling children is a serious crime. From the look of things just now, those police officers should have already set their sights on us. Two people are too conspicuous, we should split up now."
Hearing Qiu Peng wanted to get rid of her, Lin Xiaohui felt anxious and scared. She opened her mouth and pleaded, "No, no, no, Brother Peng, I have nowhere to go. Please let me follow you."
Lin Xiaohui had never experienced anything like this before and was already in a panic, having lost her sense of direction. Qiu Peng was now her only lifeline.
Seeing her like this, Qiu Peng, who usually worked alone, thought that perhaps having someone by his side might make it easier to get by.
With this thought, he nodded, "Alright, but you can't say too much. You have to follow my lead in everything." He wasn't afraid of Lin Xiaohui having other intentions; if she disobeyed, he naturally had plenty of ways to deal with her.
"I promise to listen to you obediently." She didn't want to go to prison, and only Qiu Peng could help her now.
Qiu Peng nodded and turned to walk forward, pondering in his mind that he should change his clothes and alter his appearance, which might also make the police relax their vigilance.
"They probably won't pay too much attention to you now. Go to the shops and buy me a set of clothes," Qiu Peng ordered.
"If I get caught, what then?"
"You won't."
"But..."
"Didn't I say you have to listen to me? If you don't want to, we can split up now."
Lin Xiaohui dared not split up and finally could only nervously go to a nearby shop to buy a set of men's clothes.
Qiu Peng found a place to change and washed his hair and face. Although his appearance remained ordinary, at first glance, there was a significant difference compared to before.
After getting ready, Qiu Peng took Lin Xiaohui towards the train station. Since they were being watched, it was only safe to go to another city to hide for a while.
"Brother Peng, where are we going?"
"I knew someone in S Province before, so we'll go there to lie low for now."
"Ah? So far away?" Lin Xiaohui hesitated.
She had never left home since she was little, and the farthest she had ever been was to the provincial capital to her sister's house.
Thinking of Lin Xiaoyue, Lin Xiaohui hesitated even more. If she went back and apologized, her sister would probably help her, right? Her brother-in-law was an official in the army, so he could definitely intercede for her. She had just been momentarily confused, and the police would surely handle it lightly.
"If we don't leave now, we'll both end up inside. Without ten to eight years, don't even think about getting out." His wife had been sentenced to ten years. If it weren't for wanting to be closer to her, Qiu Peng wouldn't have been so persistent in staying around here.
Ten to eight years?
Lin Xiaohui's face instantly turned pale.
Dazed, she followed Qiu Peng all the way to the train station, only to find that the station had suddenly become crowded with many police officers holding wanted posters. They were questioning people one by one and asking to see their household registration books and identification.
Qiu Peng and Lin Xiaohui naturally had nothing. Qiu Peng usually rode the train without a ticket.
Seeing many people being turned away for lacking identification, Qiu Peng's expression turned grim.
Afterward, the two went to the bus station, where the security was equally strict.
"It seems we'll have to wait a few days before leaving," Qiu Peng said, turning to walk back.
Lin Xiaohui asked nervously, "Brother Peng, where are we going now?"
"Where else can we go? We don't have proof to stay at a guesthouse, so we'll have to sleep under a bridge for now."
Having been on the go all day and barely eating anything, the two found a spot under a bridge to settle down. Both were famished.
This time, Qiu Peng went out to buy some food. He dared not go to a large establishment, so he bought a pile of steamed buns from a small stall.
The dry buns were hard for Lin Xiaohui to swallow, but Qiu Peng was not particular. After finishing, he went to a nearby ditch to scoop some water to drink.
Seeing the green, stagnant water in the ditch, Lin Xiaohui suddenly felt nauseous. She then thought of her sister, who would surely have dinner ready for her at this time every day. Her regret over what she had done grew deeper. She sat on a rock nearby and began to cry.
Qiu Peng pretended not to see, finished eating his food, and as dusk settled, he took out a discarded mat, spread it on a clean spot, and lay down with his back turned to sleep.
The nights in early October were already quite cold. Lin Xiaohui, crying, shivered as a cold wind blew, and unconsciously moved closer to Qiu Peng.
They hid under the bridge for two consecutive days. Lin Xiaohui had never endured such hardship. If she had to choose between prison and this life, she would rather choose prison now.
Moreover, after two days of reflection, she had come to realize some things. If she were to surrender and report Qiu Peng, her crime of reporting him would certainly not be as severe.