"Cui girl, Yu'an is missing."

Liu Meie grabbed her arm and spoke breathlessly.

Just moments ago I was basking in the joy of making a lot of money today, but in the blink of an eye my mood plummeted.

Han Yu'an is Grandma's lifeline; if he's lost, they'll never be able to come out again.

"Aunt, catch your breath first. What exactly happened? How did Yu'an get lost?"

After taking a few deep breaths, Liu Meie stood still and stared at her without blinking.

“It’s all my aunt’s fault. I left with Yu’an, and I was thinking he wanted to eat candied hawthorns, so I was going to buy him two skewers. But while I was haggling with the shopkeeper, Yu’an disappeared.”

“You know, it’s only been a blink of an eye. Where could he have gone? We thought he would definitely come looking for you, so we rushed over to find you.”

"Aunt, you must tell the truth, you didn't throw him away, did you?"

Liu Meie threw her hand away and angrily scolded her.

"What are you saying, you brat? Do you think I'm that kind of person?"

“Yulu, I can testify that my mother really did not abandon Yu'an. We were really bargaining, and then he disappeared as soon as we turned around.”

Han Chunying was holding three strings of candied hawthorns covered in sugar.

"You stay with your aunt, I'll go look for it separately."

We must find Han Yu'an before dark, or they're all doomed.

Where should we meet?

I hope that before we find Han Yu'an, this girl doesn't run away again.

Wouldn't all their efforts be in vain?

"Meet at the wonton stall before dark."

After saying that, Cui Yulu ran away without looking back.

"Mother, do you think she might have run off with the money?"

They earned twenty-three taels of silver that day, plus the five taels she earned for her medical treatment, for a total of twenty-eight taels of silver, enough to build a new house in the village.

"Don't think too much about it, hurry up and find someone, otherwise both your legs and mine will be broken."

Liu Meie tugged at Han Chunying and quickly ran towards the other side of the road.

The streets were bustling with people and cars, but Han Yu'an was nowhere to be seen.

"Girl, would you like to buy some lace? It's a pretty floral fabric."

"Boss, have you seen a man this tall and with a simple, honest appearance?"

"Want to buy floral fabric?"

"I won't buy it."

"I didn't see it."

Cui Yulu was speechless for a moment, and had no choice but to take out ten coins.

"Is this enough to buy your floral fabric?"

The boss's eyes immediately crinkled into crescent moons with laughter upon seeing this.

"That's enough. Take whichever piece you like."

Cui Yulu casually picked up a piece of paper with a rather plain color and then asked again, "Can you tell me this time if you've seen that person?"

"That simple-minded man you mentioned seems to have walked ahead."

The shopkeeper pointed ahead to a jewelry shop, and further ahead was a rouge shop; this half-street was lined with shops selling women's products.

Cui Yulu thanked the boss and hurriedly got up to leave to continue searching for Han Yu'an.

They searched each shop one by one, but in the end they couldn't find any trace of Han Yu'an, and they had no idea where he had gone.

Cui Yulu was anxious, and her pace quickened.

Suddenly, she knocked a dirty little boy to the ground.

The broken bowl in his hand was thrown far away, and he finally ended his life in front of him.

The little boy cried sadly and clung to her legs, not wanting her to leave.

"Waaah, you have to make up for my bowl. It's my only friend, it's always been with me. You have to make up for it."

"Little brother, don't cry. How about I buy you a new one?"

"Hmph, who wants your new bowls? They're not bowls at all. I want bowls."

The little boy cried so beautifully, his tears were almost more artistic than a girl's.

He was afraid that others wouldn't know how much he loved Wanwan.

As Cui Yulu led him, she picked up the broken bowl and wrapped it in a handkerchief.

Here's a bowl.

The little boy cried even louder when he saw the bowl.

"Waaah, my sister is mean."

Cui Yulu was getting a headache from his nagging; how could this child cry so much?

"Get up first, I'll take you to eat meat buns, and then we'll find a shop to fix your bowls, okay?"

The little boy stopped crying instantly, looking at her with his big, dark eyes, tears still clinging to his long eyelashes.

Seeing this, Cui Yulu's heart softened instantly. Who could bear to be angry with such a sweet baby?

"Are you telling the truth?"

"Of course it's true."

So the little boy stood up, stretched out a dirty little hand, and took Cui Yulu's hand.

"Let's go, I'll trust you this once."

Cui Yulu was almost amused by his antics; this kid was sure to be a domineering figure in the future.

However, Cui Yulu had no time to care about that right now; she just wanted to appease the boy so she could continue searching for Han Yu'an.

I wonder where he went. Isn't he scared around all these strangers?

Thinking about this made me even more anxious.

"May I have your name?"

The little one was engrossed in eating his meat bun and had no time to pay attention to her question.

Judging from his tattered clothes, he must be a little beggar. However, he looked to be only about five years old. With the weather getting colder and him dressed so lightly, Cui Yulu was a little worried about him.

“My name is Abu, but I don’t know my surname. Everyone calls me Abu, and it seems that’s what my mother calls me too.”

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!