The riverbank behind the orphanage.
Song Lan waited all day but the child never came.
I got up early in the morning and waited until dark.
Grandpa Song was hiding behind, couldn't bear to watch any longer and felt sorry for his grandson. He nudged Song Bai's arm and said, "Go and bring him over. He'll go crazy sitting like this for so long."
Song Bai also felt sorry for his younger brother, "He can't wait for that kid to leave; he's always been single-minded."
Actually, Song Lan used to be quite clever, just like any other child, mischievous and clever.
They talk a lot, chattering away all day long, it's so noisy it hurts your ears.
But my mother took her to her hometown to raise her for a few years...
When Song Bai thought of the somewhat dazed and blank look in Song Lan's eyes when he saw him again, his heart clenched painfully, and he sighed.
Grandpa Song slapped his Big Head. "Why don't we go to the orphanage and ask where that child is? Or... how about we send him to the orphanage too? He can stay with that child, at least he won't be involved in Zisha pottery."
The Song Family was in such dire straits that some had died or fallen ill that only the old man and the young boy remained who were still considered normal. After discussing it for a while, the grandfather and grandson decided to take Song Lan to the orphanage to inquire about the situation.
Ask where that child went.
By the river.
As soon as Song Bai arrived, Song Lan's previously blank gaze immediately turned wary, and she tensed up to confront Song Bai.
Song Bai felt a pang of sadness at his younger brother's reaction, but he forced a smile and tried to be as gentle as possible. "That little boy from the orphanage might be sick, that's why he couldn't come. Shall we go visit him?"
Song Bai shook the jar of lollipops in his hand.
"If he's sick, he needs to take medicine. Shall we go and bring him some lollipops?"
Song Lan looked wary, her gaze falling on the lollipop jar.
Song Bai laughed and said, "Look, all the ones your brother bought are grape flavored. Take them and go find him, okay? Your brother won't go, you go."
Song Lan then took the jar, pursed her lips tightly, and got up from the ground.
But after sitting for a whole day, my legs and feet were numb, and I fell several times before I could stand up straight.
Holding the jar, like a robot programmed, he walked straight toward the orphanage.
Song Bai followed at a distance, his heart aching and his eyes stinging.
Ever since her younger brother and mother were killed in a car accident on the highway, right in front of Song Lan, Song Lan has become like a little hedgehog, refusing to let anyone touch her.
At first, he and his grandfather didn't understand why they weren't allowed to touch it.
Until one time, Song Lan had a high fever, so high that she was delirious, and she mumbled, "Don't touch me, I'm bad luck, I'm a jinx, touching me will kill me..."
At that moment, Song Bai felt as if his heart had been stabbed with a knife.
The thing Song Bai regrets most in his life is that a few years ago, he let that woman take Song Lan away and bring her back to her hometown.
Even though Song Lan was also her child, she only had eyes for that third child born from her affair.
It's hateful that neither he, his father, nor his grandfather noticed the abuse Song Lan had suffered during those years.
It wasn't until after the car accident, when he returned to his hometown to pack his things, that he heard from his neighbors how Song Lan had been bullied in the past. One neighbor even recorded a video showing Song Lan being stripped naked and kneeling in the yard.
It was a snowy day.
They said they knelt until midnight.
Another neighbor said that his mother forced Song Lan to watch horror movies, which scared Song Lan to the point of almost having a mental breakdown.
It wasn't until then that he learned what kind of life Song Lan had been living during those years.
Unfortunately, I found out too late.
After the car accident, Song Lan was taken to the hospital from the bloody scene. When he woke up, his mind was completely out of control. He was obsessed with dying and cried out, asking why his mother pushed him out of the car.
Why?
The person is dead, and nobody knows exactly why.
But the likely reason is that her father discovered her infidelity that day and wanted a divorce, so it might have been out of revenge...
The reasons why don't matter anymore.
The important thing is Song Lan's current state.
Clutching the jar of lollipops tightly, Song Lan stood at the orphanage entrance, her face tense, and said to the teacher inside, "I'm looking for Xiaoxi, the three-year-old child here."
The teacher smiled gently and patted Song Lan's head.
She recognized him as the child who played with the Xiaoxi by the river every day.
When the teacher touched his head, Song Lan clearly flinched.
The teacher assumed it was just the child going through a rebellious phase and not wanting to be touched, and laughed, " Xiaoxi went to see his parents; the headmaster took him there early this morning."
Song Lan stared at her teacher in shock, remaining stunned for a long while before finally saying, "He found his mother?"
The teacher smiled and said, "I think so."
Found Mom.
He found his mother.
Now that she has her own mother, she probably doesn't need him to be her mother anymore.
He can go die now.
I can finally die and stop coaxing kids, but why do I feel empty and a little sad?
Holding the candy jar, Song Lan mechanically thanked the orphanage teacher before turning and walking towards the river.
Song Bai watched helplessly as Song Lan was about to lie down in the river, and his hands and feet trembled with fear. He quickly went to catch him.
" Xiaolan!"
Jiang Mingxi stayed in the hospital for a day and regained consciousness.
She cried loudly.
"That's my home! My home! Waaaaah, I want to go home! That's my home! It's Xiaoxi's home! I want to go home!"
A-Wang usually wanted to give Jiang Mingxi a good beating, but seeing him crying so pitifully, he finally mustered his patience and said, "Why don't you go ask your mother by the river if she knows what happened?"
Jiang Mingxi sobbed, her little bottom flipping over as she tried to get off the hospital bed, crying, "Go find Mommy!"
The dean just finished a phone call.
They went to find Xiaoxi's mother, which resulted in Xiaoxi stabbing another child. Although the property management immediately kicked them out, the other child's parents called afterward.
After he gave them a good scolding, and after verifying that they were indeed from an orphanage, the other party didn't make a big fuss and only asked them to pay 10,000 yuan in medical expenses.
After hanging up the phone, the hospital director sighed.
She felt something was off about what happened today.
Although Xiaoxi was small, she felt that since he was already inside the yard, he couldn't possibly mistake her for someone else.
And those two security guards... Xiaoxi stabbed a resident's child. Logically, shouldn't they have been detained and their families contacted to handle the situation? Why were they simply driven away?
The extra chapter will continue tomorrow.