Chapter 75: 075. Experience with the baby (second update)
Translator: 549690339
There were only three adults and one child left in the broken temple, and it was uncertain when the heavy rain would stop.
Su Liang and Ning Jing had their own bedding in their carriages, so if it didn’t stop raining by nightfall, they would have to stay in the dilapidated temple.
Ning Jing fetched an umbrella and went to the carriage, taking out a box of Osmanthus Cake and two fur cloaks given by Hu Er when they passed by Feiyan Town yesterday.
Cheng Yun was adding wood to the fire.
Zhengzheng leaned against Su Liang’s chest, and she gently asked him what he remembered while rubbing his little hands.
The Kid was only a little over three years old and couldn’t remember his mother’s name, but he did remember that the four bad uncles were very scary.
“One for you and one for him,” Ning Jing handed Su Liang both of the fur cloaks.
Su Liang took the woman’s cloak and wore it.
She then took the men’s cloak and wrapped Zhengzheng up in it, leaving only his adorable little face exposed.
“Say, ‘Thank you, Uncle Ning.”‘ Su Liang taught Zhengzheng.
Zhengzheng looked at Ning Jing, smiling so widely that his eyes disappeared, and mimicked in his babyish voice, “Thank you, Ning… Uncle!”
Ning Jing gave a grunt, opened the box of Osmanthus Cake, and let Su Liang feed it to Zhengzheng.
“I’m cold. You feed him.” Su Liang didn’t want to move her arms.
Though it was already winter, she disliked wearing too much clothing. The sudden drop in temperature due to the rain made her sneeze twice, but she felt much better after wrapping herself in the fur cloak.
Ning Jing went outside again to wash his hands with rainwater, wiped them clean, and returned to break the Osmanthus Cake into small pieces to feed Zhengzheng. He had an iron water bladder, which he warmed up by the fire before pouring the hot water into a small cup and feeding it to Zhengzheng.
After eating two pieces of Osmanthus Cake and drinking two small cups of water, Zhengzheng shook his little head and didn’t forget to say, “Thank you, Ning… Uncle!”
Su Liang was so sleepy from warming herself by the fire that she eventually fell asleep holding Zhengzheng.
When Zhengzheng rubbed his eyes and sat up, Su Liang was still asleep.
“What’s wrong?” Ning Jing, who had been sitting nearby reading a book, looked up and asked Zhengzheng, speaking to him as if he were an adult.
“Pee…” Zhengzheng stretched his hand awkwardly toward Ning Jing.
It took Ning Jing a moment to understand that Zhengzheng needed to urinate, so he picked him up, still wrapped in the fur cloak, and carried him outside.
Cheng Yun was standing outside and smiled when he saw them, saying, “The rain is getting lighter.”
When Su Liang woke up, the sky was much brighter, and the child was gone. She looked up to see Ning Jing holding Zhengzheng, who was reaching out to touch Cheng Yun’s bald head—a warm and cozy scene…
“The rain is almost stopped.” Su Liang walked out, “Cheng Yun, take
Zhengzheng with you and head to Bei’an County town before dark to stay the night. Buy a carriage and some clothes tomorrow, then send him home.”
“Auntie! Auntie!” As soon as Zhengzheng saw Su Liang, he wanted to go to her, seemingly quite fond of her.
The heavy rain finally stopped.
The air was fresh, the sky was bright, and a beautiful rainbow appeared in the eastern sky.
Su Liang pointed it out to Zhengzheng, whose little face was full of wonder and excitement as he clapped his hands.
“Let’s pack up and go,” Su Liang said, “If we start now, we can find a place to stay before dark. Zhengzheng, you’re going back home with Uncle Cheng Yun.”
Zhengzheng seemed to understand and nodded his head, but when Su Liang tried to hand him over to Cheng Yun, he tucked his head into the crook of her neck and completely lost interest in Cheng Yun’s bald head.
“Are all children this clingy?” Ning Jing asked with a frown.
Cheng Yun shook his head, “This humble monk doesn’t know.”
Listening to them discuss children’s clinginess in all seriousness, Su Liang was at a loss for words, “Ning Jing, what do you think we should do?”
“We can’t just abandon him.” Ning Jing left the comment hanging and went inside to pack.
Cheng Yun put his palms together, “You both have kind hearts and will surely take good care of Zhengzheng. I’ll set off now to inform his family. Where should Zhengzheng’s mother meet him?”
Su Liang asked, “How long will it take you to reach the Wan Family? How far is it from Pingbei City?”
Cheng Yun thought for a moment before answering, “It will take me three to five days to get there at the fastest. From the Wan Family to Pingbei City is a six-to-seven-day journey if we travel quickly.”
The Wan Family was located in the southeast direction, and after the four men had kidnapped Zhengzheng, they had purposely detoured into this area to avoid pursuit.
“We’ll be in Pingbei City by the 18th of this month,” Su Liang stated. Cheng Yun nodded, “Alright.” He then prepared to leave.
Su Liang handed him a silver banknote.
Cheng Yun initially refused, but Su Liang said, “Buy a horse if you need it and travel as fast as possible. Don’t waste time because you don’t have money. You can ask the Wan Family to pay us back later.”
Cheng Yun accepted the money and said goodbye to Ning Jing and Zhengzheng.
Su Liang waved at him with Zhengzheng’s hand, “Take care.”
After extinguishing the fire in the ruined temple and cleaning up, Su Liang and Zhengzheng got into the carriage, and Ning Jing took the reins, continuing their journey.
“Let’s switch. You can rest in the carriage, ” Su Liang said to Ning Jing.
“No need,” Ning Jing refused.
Su Liang wrapped Zhengzheng in a blanket from the carriage and handed Ning Jing a cloak, “Put this on.”
“Put on!” Zhengzheng stuck his head out, mimicking Su Liang’s words.
Ning Jing took the cloak with one hand and pushed Zhengzheng back into the carriage with the other.
Zhengzheng giggled, thinking Ning Jing was playing a game with him. He tried to get out of the carriage again but was caught by Su Liang, “It’s cold outside. Don’t catch a cold.”
At nightfall, Ning Jing and Su Liang arrived at the next city, found an inn, and rented an independent guesthouse at the back where they could park their carriage.
The food at the inn was mediocre, but it was comforting to have something warm to eat in cold weather.
They ordered some egg custard for Zhengzheng, but Ning Jing didn’t eat much and soon went out.
When Su Liang finished coaxing Zhengzheng to eat, Ning Jing returned with a bundle of clothes and shoes for him. The little guy’s clothes hadn’t been changed and were dirty.
“You give him a bath, and then take him to sleep with you tonight?” Su Liang suggested to Ning Jing.
“He might not want to,” Ning Jing replied.
Su Liang chuckled, “Just give him a smile, and it’ll be fine.”
Ning Jing looked at Zhengzheng’s smiling face and picked him up in his arms.
At first, Zhengzheng thought Ning Jing was going to play with him and was delighted. But when he saw that Ning Jing was carrying him out the door and
Su Liang was soon out of sight, he started kicking his legs, wanting to go back.
Ning Jing stopped and said seriously, “Men and women should keep their distance.”
Zhengzheng’s little face looked confused, and before he could react, Ning Jing carried him into the next room.
Before long, Su Liang heard Zhengzheng’s cheerful laughter from the next room. She felt relieved and planned to read a bit more after washing up.
However, Su Liang didn’t know that Ning Jing had to threaten Zhengzheng with “I’ll beat you if you keep messing around” to get him to take a bath quietly, even though Zhengzheng neither understood nor cared about the consequences.
It took quite a while to bathe the child, wrap him up, and put him on the bed, Then he kept sliding down.
Finally, Ning Jing wrapped him in a blanket, tied him to the bedpost, and went to take a bath.
Su Liang heard Zhengzheng next door, sweetly calling uncle all the time while thinking Ning Jing had quite a way with kids!
When it was time to sleep, Zhengzheng wanted to find Su Liang. So, Ning Jing lay in bed, lifting him up and putting him down.
Zhengzheng quickly fell in love with this game and forgot all about Su Liang for a while.
So, Ning Jing spent a considerable time lifting weights before bedtime, finally exhausting the energetic child, who fell asleep beside him.
Ning Jing let out a long sigh, tucked Zhengzheng in, and gently lamented, “Kids are really troublesome.”
The next day, when it was time to leave, Su Liang offered to take the reins, but Ning Jing refused again, “You take the daytime shift, and I’ll do the nighttime shift. ”
Playing with a child was more tiring than driving.
Su Liang found the arrangement reasonable and accepted it.
She had no experience taking care of children, either, especially such a young one who required constant attention, unlike Zhuzi, who could already entertain herself.
Ning Jing listened to Su Liang telling Zhengzheng fairy tales. After two stories, Zhengzheng wanted to go outside the carriage.
“Ning Jing, he insists on going out. What should I do?” Su Liang sounded a bit helpless. You couldn’t reason with a child that young.
“Give him to me,” Ning Jing reached in, picked Zhengzheng up, and wrapped him against his chest, leaving only his eyes exposed. He wouldn’t be cold this way, and he could enjoy the view.
“Uncle Ning, what’s that?”
“A cow.” “What’s a cow?” “A cow.” “What’s a cow?”
“A cow is a cow.”
Soon, Su Liang discovered that Ning Jing, who was always eager to learn new things, quickly learned how to communicate with a three-year-old child and how to comfort him and find his interests.
At first, the child always clung to Su Liang, but later he preferred to be with Ning Jing, even though Ning Jing didn’t smile at him or speak to him in a gentle, coaxing tone.
As a result, Su Liang could continue reading while they traveled, as she originally planned, without being too affected.
A few days later, Su Liang asked Ning Jing, “Do you still find children strange?”
Ning Jing thought for a moment and replied, “What’s strange are adults who think too much.” A child’s feelings are pure – they become close to whoever treats them well.
Su Liang agreed and laughed, “Great God, after meeting Zhengzheng, have you ever wanted to be a father?”
Ning Jing pondered for a moment, shook his head, and said, “I can’t bear children. In the future, if I marry, whether or not we have a child will be up to my wife..”
Follow current nov𝒆ls on freew(𝒆)bnov𝒆l.(c)om