Braving the wind and snow, Cheng Su and the others returned to their home in Huangtian Village. It was already near eight oâclock in the evening. From afar, she could hear Qi Xiaoqiâs crying, and her heart tightened and ached, worrying incessantly.
Mother Qi carried Qi Xiaoqi out to the front door of the main house, bouncing her grandson as she craned her neck to look. Seeing Cheng Su and the others, her eyes lit up.
"Finally back!" She was very excited.
Cheng Su stepped forward first, saying, "Mom, letâs go inside first. Iâm freezing cold."
Inside the house, it was warmer than outside. Under the table where they usually ate, there was a coal basin surrounded by a thick cotton blanket, warm and cozy.
Cheng Su couldnât be bothered with anything else. While coaxing Qi Xiaoqi, she pulled the cotton blanket around the table closer and started to warm herself by the fire, trying to quickly get rid of the chill on her body. She then asked Mother Qi whether Xiaoqi had not had his formula or what.
Mother Qi replied, "Heâs cried several times, and he wouldnât eat when I tried feeding him just now. He cried again."
Cheng Su felt warm enough and didnât go back to her own room. She took Qi Xiaoqi from Mother Qi and went into Qi Fengpingâs room to breastfeed him.
Under the lamp light, seeing the red corners of his eyes made her heart ache terribly. While feeding him, she kept apologizing. Qi Xiaoqi hummed a few times, sucking earnestly.
Cheng Su stroked her sonâs head, thinking of Zhang Jishengâs sick son, and couldnât help but sigh.
The child is innocent; heâs not to blame in this matter, merely deserving of sympathy. Especially when his mother and his bone marrow blood type were a match, yet she didnât want to save him, it seemed utterly absurd.
The child doesnât understand now, but when he grows up and learns the truth, how will he feel towards her? Will he bear resentment in his heart?
Being a mother herself, Cheng Su truly couldnât believe there could be such a heartless mother who, for the sake of her own body and superstition, wouldnât save her son.
She looked at Qi Xiaoqi and said, "If it were you, not just my bone marrow, but my life, Iâd give it to you!"
Qi Xiaoqi sucked the milk and turned his eyes to glance at her before resuming sucking.
After feeding her son, Cheng Su went out into the hall where Mother Qi was scolding someone. Other than the Zhang family, there was no one else whom she could be scolding.
Clearly, during this short period, she must have heard the whole story from several people.
"Zhang Jisheng is dominated by that wife of his, even calculating against his own son. He really is useless, dumbfounded, ignorant." Mother Qi said angrily, "Having that illness, he lost one son. Even if saved, who knows if he can ever be fully recovered. Yet he wants to gamble on the healthy child. Itâs not simply that his brain is muddled; itâs filled with manure, stupid to death!"
Seeing Cheng Su come out, Father Qi said, "Enough, donât say anymore. Fenglian surely wonât let him near Baobao now. Itâs so late already, Fengping, get the New Yearâs Eve dinner ready. Everyone is hungry!"
Qi Fengping responded with an "Oh," and Mother Qi said, "I didnât know when you would be back, and thereâs still a vegetable not sautĂ©ed."
Cheng Su handed the child to Father Qi and went to the kitchen to help.
The sisters-in-law busied themselves with sautéing the leftover vegetable, inevitably gossiping about the matter.
"Iâve truly been opened my eyes to this. Sister-in-law, would it be understandable if they didnât match blood types and needed to take Xiao Bao, but the fact is they could use it yet refused. What kind of people are they?" Qi Fengping mocked, "That Zhang Jisheng is so weak, incited and prodded by that wife of his, he took Xiao Bao along. Who knows how long theyâve been planning this? Fortunately, we discovered it early today. Had we not, if it truly matched, wouldnât they have taken all of Xiao Baoâs blood cells and transplanted them into that child?"
Thinking of this, the sisters-in-law shivered, feeling a great sense of relief and gratitude.