Wen Ci tilted her head and asked, "Hey, kiddo. It’s raining. Why are you wandering around out here instead of heading home?"

"I don’t have a home."

Hearing this, Wen Ci’s eyes widened. Recalling his reactions, she had a wild thought. "You weren’t trafficked, were you? Did you run away and hide here?"

"Yeah."

His confirmation left Wen Ci even more shocked.

’Then again,’ she thought, ’human trafficking was most rampant from the eighties to the two-thousands. CCTV wasn’t everywhere yet, and neither was DNA testing.’

Seeing the rain fall harder, Wen Ci picked up her umbrella and said, "How about you come home with Auntie and get a warm shower? Then, on Ming’er, Auntie will take you to the police station."

"Okay."

Seeing the little boy agree, a playful smile touched Wen Ci’s lips. She teased him, "Aren’t you afraid Auntie is a trafficker who’s going to trick you and sell you off?"

The little boy pouted. "A bad person would’ve just grabbed me. They wouldn’t have talked to me for so long. So you’re a good person, Miss."

"What’s your name?"

"Xiao Chuan."

「 」

At the entrance to the military base, Xiao Chuan looked up at the uniformed soldier on guard duty. In a soft voice, he said, "I want to be a soldier when I grow up, to protect our country."

Wen Ci held Xiao Chuan’s hand, her eyes crinkling with a warm smile. "Being a soldier is a good thing," she chuckled. "Auntie’s husband is a soldier, too."

"You’re married, Miss?"

Wen Ci preferred calling herself ’Auntie’ because most of her peers already had children. Being called ’Miss’ or ’sister’ made her feel like she was a generation behind.

"I am."

Her house was just a few minutes’ walk from the military base gate. Pushing open the door to her courtyard, she called out, "Yu Qing?"

When no one answered, Wen Ci raised an eyebrow.

’Don’t tell me she’s staying at Xue Li’s place tonight.’

Inside, Wen Ci used a clean towel to wipe the rainwater from his face. She crouched down and asked, "Can you take a shower by yourself? Or do you need me to help you?"

Xiao Chuan’s face instantly turned red. "I can wash myself."

Wen Ci smiled at his flushed cheeks. She led him to the bathroom, turned on the hot water, and pointed to the faucet. "If the water’s too hot, turn the knob this way, to the right. I’m going to make some ginger soup to warm you up."

’Even though it wasn’t windy on the way here, she could feel the temperature dropping. He’s soaked to the bone. He needs more than just a hot shower; he needs ginger soup too.’ 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Wen Ci went to the kitchen to boil some water. She remembered seeing ginger and brown sugar there before. After shredding the ginger, she went to the bedroom to find some clothes for Xiao Chuan.

There were no clothes in the house that would fit him, so she grabbed one of Huo Jingyuan’s greatcoats. Its fleece lining was very warm. ’I’ll buy him a couple of outfits tomorrow when I take him to the police station,’ she decided.

In less than ten minutes, Xiao Chuan was done with his shower. He walked out of the bathroom drying himself with a towel, face beet red as he used his hands to cover his private parts.

"Miss... I don’t have anything to wear."

Seeing him trying to cover himself, a genuine smile spread across Wen Ci’s face. It was the first time she had smiled so freely since hearing that Huo Jingyuan was severely injured.

She helped Xiao Chuan into the greatcoat. "Go sit on the sofa for a bit. Auntie will bring you some ginger soup."

Once the water boiled, Wen Ci tossed the ginger threads into the pot and let them cook for a few minutes. Then she dropped in a chunk of brown sugar. As it dissolved, the color of the water instantly darkened.

Wen Ci poured the soup into an enamel mug. Holding it by the handle, she walked back into the living room and handed it to him. "Blow on it first," she said gently, "and drink it while it’s hot."

"Thank you, Miss."

Xiao Chuan was so well-behaved. Recalling his words—’I don’t have a home’—Wen Ci couldn’t help but ask gently, "How did you end up being trafficked all the way to Beijing?"

Xiao Chuan leaned against the sofa. Steam billowed from the enamel mug in his hands. The rims of his eyes were red as he spoke. "My mom and dad... they were hit by a car and died. Bad guys were robbing our house, and I... from Su... Su..."

He faltered.

"Sunan or Su City?"

"Sunan."

Wen Ci’s eyebrow twitched. ’Sunan is thousands of kilometers from Beijing. For him to be brought all the way here and still manage to escape... that’s amazing.’

"I was taken from the orphanage in Sunan."

"The orphanage?" Wen Ci frowned.

"Yeah. They’re all bad guys. They pretend to adopt us from the orphanage, but then they take us away. Some of us are turned into beggars, and others are sold to people."

Wen Ci froze, a look of surprise flashing in her eyes.

’From what she knew, this kind of scheme was especially rampant with the Millennials; average-looking kids would have their arms or legs broken and be forced to beg on the street.’

The cute ones would be sold to families desperate for a son.

’But this was happening back in the eighties, too!’

Wen Ci’s expression hardened. ’This has to be reported to the police. These traffickers need to be stopped, and the orphanage’s adoption process needs a thorough investigation.’

"I have to go to the hospital tomorrow morning. Is it okay if I take you to the police station after that?"

Xiao Chuan nodded.

Suddenly, the landline in the living room rang. Wen Ci walked over and picked it up. Hearing Yu Qing’s voice on the other end, a teasing smile played on her lips.

"Well, well. Don’t tell me you’re calling just to say you’re not coming home tonight?"

"Of course not! I was just calling to ask if you wanted me to bring some food back."

Wen Ci’s gaze fell on Xiao Chuan. "Actually, I do have a favor to ask. Could you pick up some clothes for a little boy? He’s about six or seven."

After finishing the chat, Wen Ci used the remote control to turn on the TV and asked, "Do you want to watch cartoons?"

"Cartoons are too childish."

"Oh?"

’Well, well,’ she thought. ’His family must have been pretty well-off. Back then, anyone who could afford a TV wasn’t struggling to get by.’

「 」

The rain outside began to let up. It was only five or six in the evening, but the sky was as dark as if it were eight or nine at night. Inside, a warm, yellow light glowed.

Xue Li and Yu Qing arrived in the courtyard, sharing an umbrella.

After shaking the water from the umbrella at the entrance, Yu Qing knocked on the door. Xiao Chuan opened it himself. He tilted his head up to look at Yu Qing and said sweetly, "Hello, Miss~"

Xiao Chuan was wrapped in Huo Jingyuan’s greatcoat, its hem dragging on the floor. With his face scrubbed clean, he looked incredibly fresh-faced and adorable.

"Wen Ci, is this the kid you picked up?"

Wen Ci stood up. Seeing Xue Li was there too, she couldn’t help but tease Yu Qing, "So, how did meeting the parents go?"

"Xue Li’s grandfather is incredible! He even offered to teach me a few things. So, on Ming’er, I won’t be going with you to see Mr. Huo. You two should have some time to yourselves to catch up."

"Alright."

With that, Xue Li placed the takeout containers from the state-run restaurant on the table. He grinned and said, "Sister-in-law, I’ll come pick you up tomorrow morning."

"There’s no need to trouble yourself. I can get a ride."

"I want to see the Boss, too."

Yu Qing nudged him with her elbow. "They’re husband and wife having a reunion," she whispered. "Why are you trying to be a third wheel?"

"Alright, fine."

Xue Li’s gaze shifted to Xiao Chuan. "So, what’s the story with this kid?" he asked curiously. "Sister-in-law, how’d you end up finding a kid on the street?"

"It’s a long story..."

Wen Ci briefly recounted the evening’s events and what Xiao Chuan had told her. As she spoke, Xue Li’s expression grew grim.