Chapter 122: I Wait for You

An’an walked over obediently and saw Chun Ni tiptoeing, leaning against the door, trying to peer through the small glass window in the middle to see what was happening inside.

An’an tugged at her sleeve. “Sister Chun Ni, let’s go sit over there. If there’s any news, the doctor will come out and tell us.”

Chun Ni glanced down at An’an, withdrew her hand from the door, and sat down with her on another bench by the entrance.

Seeing Chun Ni’s tense expression, An’an comforted her, “Sister Chun Ni, your mother will definitely be fine.”

Chun Ni nodded numbly. “Thank you both.”

“No need to thank me. You’re my first friend.”

Only then did Chun Ni come back to herself, asking in disbelief, “Don’t you have friends back home?”

An’an shook her head. “There’s only one playmate now and then, but that doesn’t really count as a friend.”

Curious, Chun Ni asked, “If you play together, why wouldn’t that be a friend?”

Her attention shifted instantly.

An’an puckered her lips. “At first, we used to fight and quarrel; he even snatched my things. He wasn’t nearly as friendly as you are.”

Chun Ni found it hard to imagine. Such a sweet An’an—who could be so unkind to her? She nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that doesn’t count as a friend. Then you shouldn’t play with him anymore.”

An’an’s eyes dimmed. “But I don’t have any other playmates.”

Chun Ni thought for a moment and asked, “Where is your hometown? When your mother gets better and your little sister grows up, I’ll come find you and we’ll keep being friends.”

“My home is in Jingdu. There’s a huge department store there with everything inside, plus parks and a zoo. If you come, I’ll take you to play. There’s also an overseas Chinese store that sells things you can’t find in the department store.” These were the only places Shen Qingyi often took him to; he didn’t know any others.

“Jingdu?” Chun Ni thought for a moment. She seemed to have heard of it somewhere. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. “I remember now. It’s a very large city, and going there costs a lot of money. I’ve heard adults say that only one man from our village who passed the university entrance exam went to Jingdu.”

“Is that Wang Chunhua’s husband?”

Chunhua blinked. “How do you know that?”

“Your mother told mine when she delivered eggs that day.”

Chunhua hadn’t paid much attention. She remembered her mother talking with Shen Qingyi while she played with An’an, teaching him how to fold paper boxes. She didn’t realize An’an could multi-task so well and had such a strong memory.

Seeing Chunhua quiet, An’an smiled and said, “I’ll tell you a secret. Want to hear it?”

Chun Ni nodded eagerly.

An’an leaned close to her ear and whispered, “My father was in the village when he was little, but then he passed university and went to Jingdu. Later, he married my mother. Someday, when you pass university, come to Jingdu to find me.”

After hearing this, Chun Ni cautiously glanced at Lu Yan. “I’ve never seen a man like your father in the village.”

So handsome, so clean, and the way he held his little sister was so gentle, not harsh at all.

An’an thought Chun Ni might think he was lying and sat down to argue earnestly. “It’s true! My father said he used to fight fiercely in the village when he was little.”

Fight? Chun Ni once again couldn’t imagine it. She glanced at Lu Yan again—he didn’t seem like it.

But seeing An’an’s anxious expression, she still nodded. “Okay, I’ll come find you when I pass university.”

An’an immediately grinned. “Great! I’ll wait for you.”

Then she thought for a moment. “When we get to university, will we become adults?”

“Yes, because it takes many years.”

An’an tilted her head, pondering. “When we’re adults, can we get married like mom and dad?”

Chun Ni was taken aback for a moment, then shook her head vigorously like a rattle. “When I grow up, I don’t want to get married.”

An’an’s eyes widened. “Why? Isn’t getting married good? Only by marrying can we be lifelong good friends.”

“Getting married means taking care of children or cooking all day, endless chores, and being scolded by your husband.” Chun Ni had no desire to live her mother’s life.

An’an blinked his naive big eyes, somewhat doubtful. Was that really true? Thinking this, he glanced at his own father and mother.

Then he turned back and said to Chun Ni, “How could that be? At my house, as long as dad’s around, he cooks. When you grow up and marry me, I promise I won’t scold you.”

Chun Ni was stunned. “You and me?”

An’an nodded. “Yeah, that way we can always stay good friends.”

Chun Ni fell silent. She felt such words shouldn’t be spoken lightly, though she couldn’t explain why.

Girls matured faster than boys, and Chun Ni was two years older than An’an. She already had a vague idea of what marriage meant—definitely more complicated than An’an made it sound.

An’an was a little disappointed. “What, you don’t want to?”

Chun Ni shook her head. “No, it’s just that I haven’t thought it through. Let’s talk about it after I get into university.”

An’an smiled, holding out a finger. “Pinky promise.”

Chun Ni also extended her finger.

The two benches sat on either side of the ward door, so Shen Qingyi and Lu Yan could hear every word the children said.

Shen Qingyi couldn’t help but smile and shake her head after hearing it all.

Lu Yan asked, “What are you smiling at?”

“Just that our son is really adorable.”

She glanced at her watch. “I’ll go buy some food.”

Lu Yan handed their younger daughter over to Shen Qingyi. “I’ll go.”

“No need, I’ll be right back,” she said.

Soon, Shen Qingyi returned with steamed meat buns and pastries. The only bowl of noodles went to Lu Yan because buying lunch boxes for takeout was inconvenient—too much to carry and messy to clean.

Lu Yan hesitated for a moment before hearing Shen Qingyi say, “There aren’t enough buns.”

She reached out to take their younger daughter from Lu Yan’s arms.

Lu Yan opened the lunch box to find it filled with noodles topped with beef and two eggs.

He couldn’t help but glance at his wife again. She wasn’t as fussy and delicate as he had imagined. She was particular only when conditions allowed, but in certain situations, she would make do and even consider others’ feelings carefully.

Shen Qingyi took two bites of a bun and, noticing Lu Yan’s gaze, stopped and smiled. “What’s wrong? Doesn’t it suit your taste?”

“No!” Lu Yan bowed his head to eat the noodles, feeling touched. His wife must really love him.

After finishing, Lu Yan washed the lunch box. When he returned, he saw Shen Qingyi holding their younger daughter, gently soothing her while breaking the steamed bread into tiny pieces and feeding her. The tenderness in her manner was profound.

Had she comforted An’an like this too? He seemed to have missed so much.

Lu Yan sat beside Shen Qingyi again and, on impulse, said, “Qingyi, how about having another daughter?”

Shen Qingyi was startled. She looked up and met Lu Yan’s dark eyes, her emotions tangled. Just as she was about to speak, the ward door suddenly opened, and a doctor came out.

“Who here is a family member of Feng Erqiu?”