Chapter 62 Leaving Lu Lu
Two people arrived at the welfare home; they were two middle-aged women.
Logically speaking, Lu Lu's situation, with his grandparents still alive and receiving a pension, did not meet the criteria for admission to the welfare home. However, the military region leaders spoke up, and several leaders and Lu Zheng's comrades donated money to the welfare home, so the welfare home made an exception and agreed to admit Lu Lu.
When Molly and her three friends returned home, Cheng Yubin and Bao Haoming were standing outside the door, along with several men Molly didn't recognize. All of them were wearing military uniforms, except for two middle-aged women dressed in dark blue homespun cloth with several patches.
These two are from the welfare home.
In addition, there were some military wives and children watching from a distance.
Lu Lu's tears had dried, and he looked frightened, tightly gripping Molly's hand.
“This is the child.” Cheng Yubin pointed at Lu Lu, looking at Lu Lu’s thin and somewhat sunken face, he felt a tightness in his chest.
"Is his mental health issue serious?" one of the middle-aged women asked, her face showing concern. "Could he be aggressive? We have some infants in our orphanage; could he—harm them?"
“This—” Cheng Yubin looked at Bao Haoming.
Bao Haoming shook his head, "We don't know either. We only heard from the child's grandparents that he hits people and throws things."
The two women exchanged a glance, their expressions showing hesitation.
"And who is this?" They pointed to Molly.
“She is my lover,” Ji Hefeng said. “Lu Lu is the son of our former regimental commander, and the son of a martyr.”
The middle-aged woman nodded. "We know Lu Lu is a good child because he has good parents. But now that he's sick, we have to be responsible for the safety of the other children in the orphanage until we're sure he won't cause any harm."
These words were irrefutable, and Cheng Yubin, Bao Haoming, and the others fell silent.
“I see that the child is close to this young lady, so it seems that he trusts her a lot. Why don’t you entrust Lu Lu to this young lady’s care?” one of the middle-aged women said.
Ji Hefeng frowned. "My wife is eighteen years old this year. We don't have our own children yet, and she has no experience in raising children."
A child with mental health issues could be in danger at any time if left unattended 24/7. Molly is an independent person; Lu Lu is not her responsibility, she shouldn't bear that responsibility, nor should she bear that pressure.
"Sister, do we really have to send Lu Lu away?" Mo An was feeling down. He didn't know whether sending Lu Lu away was a good thing or a bad thing.
Molly didn't speak. She felt a slight pain in her arm. How much force had the child used to grab her?
She turned her head and met a pair of red eyes. The person who had stopped crying now had eyes that were brimming with tears again.
Did he understand?
He cried when he heard they were going to send him away.
But he didn't say anything; his eyes were filled with grievance and reluctance.
Molly felt a slight prickling sensation in her heart, as if pricked by a needle.
“Lack of experience isn’t a problem; what’s most important is gaining the child’s trust and affection. You see, the child is especially well-behaved when he’s with this young lady; that’s a very good sign,” the woman continued. “Having the child with this young lady might be beneficial for his condition.”
Everyone fell silent. It was obvious to everyone that Lu Lu was close to Molly, but they couldn't force Molly to raise someone else's child when she had never given birth.
On the one hand, they earnestly hoped that Molly would keep the child, as this would be the best outcome for the child and would also be a way for them to give an explanation to Lu Zheng and his wife; on the other hand, they could not force Molly to stay, lest they leave a negative impression of them abusing their power.
Therefore, it would be best if Molly took the initiative to ask to keep the child.
Molly wasn't stupid; she saw through their plans.
"Follow your heart. Whether you send the child away or keep the child, don't force yourself," Ji Hefeng whispered in Molly's ear.
Molly glanced at Ji Hefeng, then turned to face Cheng Yubin and Bao Haoming. "I can raise this child, but I have one condition."
Cheng Yubin: "What are the conditions?"
Molly: "I want to clear six-tenths of the wasteland."
Cheng Yubin was stunned for a moment, then looked at Bao Haoming with confusion, silently asking what she meant by those words.
“My wife wants to clear six-tenths of an acre of wasteland by the river to grow vegetables and grains,” Ji Hefeng explained.
Cheng Yubin breathed a sigh of relief. It was just a piece of wasteland that no one wanted, so he gave it to her. "Okay, I agree on behalf of the organization. After all, you have to raise this child, and there probably won't be enough food. The organization understands your difficulties and wants you to support yourself."
This is a veiled message to Molly: having taken six plots of wasteland, she can no longer use the excuse of raising Lu Lu to ask for anything else.
Molly nodded. "Thank you for your understanding, boss."
Lu Lu stayed.
Molly led him home, and after closing the gate, Lu Lu called out, "Mom."
Molly paused, and Mo An turned around in surprise, "Sis, he just called you Mom."
"I heard you." Molly's heart felt soft, as if it were being soaked in water.
“Since you’ve decided to adopt Lu Lu, the adoption procedures definitely need to be completed. Do you want him to call you sister, or do you want him to call you mom?” He and Lu Zheng addressed each other as brothers. If Lu Lu called Molly sister, then he would be a generation younger than Lu Zheng.
Oh well, let it be.
"Mom!" Lu Lu called out again, his eyes filled with determination.
Molly shrugged helplessly. "It seems I don't have a choice."
Ji Hefeng chuckled, "I got a great son for nothing, it's not a bad deal. Son, come here, call me Dad."
Lu Lu didn't even glance at Ji Hefeng, remaining attached to Molly and calling out again, "Mom."
Molly smiled and patted his head. "Good boy."
Mo An then came to his senses, "I thought he was my younger brother, but now he's my nephew."
Molly: "Whether it's your younger brother or your nephew, you've been taking care of them all. Thank you, Xiao An."
Mo An scratched his head. "I'll practice taking care of the older child first. After you give birth, Lu Lu and I will help you take care of the baby."
Upon hearing this, Molly and Ji Hefeng both fell silent. Although they were sleeping in the same bed, they each used their own blankets.
Having children?
No rush, take your time.
Ji Hefeng stared at Molly's head, his mind starting to wander. If there were a child with his and Molly's blood flowing through his veins... it wouldn't be so bad.
Lunchtime arrived, and Molly led Lu Lu and Mo An to the cafeteria. She noticed that Lu Lu seemed more prone to nervousness in crowded places, and to change this habit, she decided to take him to crowded places more often. Perhaps if he could assure her that crowds didn't necessarily mean danger, he would adapt.
As soon as the three entered the cafeteria, they smelled the aroma of meat. Mo An was really curious about wolf meat, so he jogged to join the queue.
Not only was Mo An excited, but everyone in the cafeteria was also excited.
"Did you see the words on the blackboard? Today, wolf meat is free."
"Wow, what a great thing!"
"Did our people hunt wolves in the mountains? But I haven't heard of any training missions recently."
"I haven't heard of any squad encountering wolves either."
"You're all wrong. It wasn't us, it was a family member. A family member from the 1st Regiment hunted down a three-headed wolf and brought it to the mess hall last night."
"Wow, the family members are really something! How many of them were there? What weapons did they use?"
"It's unclear what weapon a woman with two children used."
"Who are you trying to fool? You lie without even thinking."
Believe it or not.
"......."
Mo An gave Ji Hefeng's name, and sure enough, the head chef brought him a small bowl of wolf meat, which looked to weigh about four or five pounds.
"We're all eating wolf meat for free, so why does he get so much while we only get a few pieces?" someone protested.
"Just because the wolf meat was hunted by someone else. Alright, if you want to eat, bring your lunchbox; if not, get out of the way," the head chef said rudely.
The people in line fell silent, obediently handing over their lunchboxes, their eyes following Mo An as he met up with a beautiful woman, who was accompanied by another child.
They had heard about this beautiful woman; she was the wife of Battalion Commander Ji Hefeng of the 1st Regiment.
"A woman with two children."
"And they are family members of the 1st Regiment."
"Could they be talking about those three?"
Everyone fell silent.
Ji Hefeng was whitewashing the walls of his house. Several rooms had already been painted, and the living room was halfway done. He had moved the dining table and chairs to the hallway.
“You’re pretty fast,” Molly said.
"We have to hurry. The things you mailed from your hometown have arrived. I'll store them temporarily at the mailroom. I'll bring them back by cart tonight once the lime has dried." Ji Hefeng put down his tools and went to wash his hands.
Molly: "You've been painting the walls all day? Didn't you agree to go for a medical checkup?"
Ji Hefeng was taken aback. "I had forgotten about it if you hadn't mentioned it. I'll go after I finish painting the walls."
As he spoke, Ji Hefeng suddenly lowered his voice, "Will it be detected?"
Molly shook her head. "Probably not."
Actually, she was also curious whether it was possible to find out.
"Sister, brother-in-law, hurry up, I can't wait to eat wolf meat." Mo An was already sitting down at the table.
Lu Lu had already sat down, his eyes fixed on the plate of meat.
Molly was also curious about what wolf meat tasted like. After sitting down, she picked up her chopsticks and took a piece, putting it in her mouth. The wolf meat had a strong flavor; the cafeteria chef had been generous with the seasoning, masking the gamey smell, and had stewed it for a long time.
However, overall, the meat is rather coarse and really can't compare to domestic pork.
Despite the fact that this was true, the two children ate with great relish. Perhaps it was because the food was rare and precious; having eaten so much pork, the occasional taste of something legendary excited them inexplicably.
After lunch and a short rest, Molly took the two children to clear the wasteland. Perhaps because he had fallen in the morning, Lu Lu was scared and obediently followed behind Mo An all afternoon.
Molly spent the entire afternoon clearing the road and laying stones, which was quite fast.
They got home before dark.
"There's already hot water in the pot. You can take a shower first, and then we'll go to Political Commissar Bao's house for dinner," Ji Hefeng said.
Molly noticed several familiar bags in the hallway; they were the items she had mailed from her hometown.
She immediately told Mo An and Lu Lu to go take a shower first, and then took scissors to open the package.
"The new bathroom is finished, but it will be ready to use in a day or two." Ji Hefeng was picking up stones near the bathroom and cleaning up the hardened mud on the ground.
Molly nodded. "What kind of gift should I bring when visiting someone?"
Ji Hefeng's expression changed. Oh no, he had been so busy all day that he had forgotten.
"Do you still have pastry tickets? If you do, you can just buy one or two boxes of pastries and take them with you."
Molly glanced at her watch and reminded him, "The supply and marketing cooperative should be closing at this time."
"Then bring another fish." The political commissar smiled quite happily when he delivered the fish yesterday.
"The fish was delivered yesterday, take a piece of cured pork with you." Molly went to pick out a piece of cured pork that weighed three or four pounds.
"Tonight it's Political Commissar Bao's house, tomorrow night it's Regiment Commander Cheng's house, and the day after tomorrow it's Division Commander's house," Ji Hefeng counted on his fingers.
Molly: "......That's perfect, treat everyone the same, send them all cured meat."
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