"Isn't it just a coincidence that I ran into my cousin today? I had no idea I would run into her."
"Besides, she's already driven here today, so no one from Grandpa's house will definitely be coming."
Xia Wensheng reassured Xia Wenxi, saying he had never heard of anyone hiding away during the Lunar New Year, and that it wasn't like they owed anyone money and needed to avoid debts.
"I'm having dinner with some friends tomorrow, so you can just stay home by yourself."
Who knows if nobody really is coming?
Meeting relatives is too dangerous. Xia Wenxi doesn't know any of her relatives. If her parents were here, she could just sit to the side and smile. But if her parents aren't here, she absolutely cannot meet with relatives alone.
Xia Wensheng was skeptical and asked her, "Which friend is having dinner with you during the Chinese New Year?"
Not only that, they also said to her, "It's not good for you to be so socially anxious. What will you do when you start working?"
Xia Wenxi, unable to bear it any longer, threw a pillow at the great educator Xia and successfully shut him up.
"Mind your own business! Can't I just stay home and sponge off my parents? And when I said I was having dinner with friends, was that really okay? You're being incredibly petty."
She has an appointment with Li Mengting tomorrow. Since the start of the holiday, Li Mengting has been volunteering at the welfare home that she had previously introduced to her.
It just so happens that after they finish eating tomorrow, they can buy some gifts for the children and send them to the welfare home.
"Me, with a petty mind?!"
Xia Wensheng was so angry that his nostrils flared, but he couldn't win the argument with Xia Wenxi, so he could only snort coldly and ignore her.
Fortunately, it's the third year of junior high, and one of the Xia family's drivers has returned to work. Although he only works during the day, Xia Wenxi doesn't like to go out at night, so it's enough.
Otherwise, Xia Wenxi wouldn't dare to argue with Xia Wensheng like that...
It seems that learning to drive is an urgent matter!
Xia Wenxi went out in the morning and happened to go to the pedestrian street near the welfare home to have lunch with Li Mengting.
Upon meeting, Xia Wenxi smiled and said, "Mengting, I feel like you've changed a bit; you're not quite the same as before."
Li Mengting smiled sheepishly, "I have indeed gained several pounds recently. I've been eating lunch at the orphanage lately, and the food there is much better than what I get at school."
Xia Wenxi shook her head, "That's not what I meant."
The change Xia Wenxi mentioned was not in appearance, but in temperament.
Li Mengting seems much more relaxed and cheerful than before, with a smile in her eyes when she speaks.
"I think you smile more than before."
Li Mengting was somewhat surprised, because she hadn't thought about these things before. Only now, hearing Xia Wenxi mention them, did she realize that she seemed to have been in a very good mood lately.
"It's probably because the children are so cute. Being with them makes me smile without even realizing it."
She smiled and thanked Xia Wenxi, "I never thought of this before. Thank you, Wenxi. I originally planned to do a part-time job and then stay in the dormitory."
Her holiday was no different from her previous ones, but this time at "Hemiao Home," she had a completely new and wonderful holiday experience.
She is now pursuing a master's degree, with government subsidies covering her tuition, scholarships, and a salary for helping her supervisor. She no longer has to rush around doing part-time jobs every day like before.
They also started trying to experience life.
"No need to thank me, I was just offering a suggestion. Not everyone can get along with children."
Xia Wenxi herself is an example. She thinks most children are quite cute, but she generally keeps her distance from them.
After dinner, the two strolled around the pedestrian street and bought a lot of toys, dolls, and other things that children like.
Of course, I didn't forget to buy books and stationery.
"How have you been lately? Has your mother come looking for you again?"
The two chatted as they shopped.
“I contacted her once before the Lunar New Year. I told her I needed to borrow money to pay my tuition, and she immediately hung up the phone. She hasn’t contacted me since.”
When Li Mengting talked about these things, she still smiled and spoke in a relaxed tone as if she were talking about someone else's business.
"It's good that I won't bother you."
"Yes, anyway, over the years, I've already paid back all the money they spent on me during my university years. We're even now."
Primary and junior high school education is compulsory, and the school waives tuition and fees. Although her parents were very unhappy, they still let her attend.
When she reached high school, they wanted her to drop out, but she had good grades. Two high schools in the county not only waived her tuition but also gave her scholarships in order to compete for her as a "high-quality student".
Over the years, it's not so much her parents who raised her, but the country. She is a child raised by the state, living outside the "Seedling Home".
When the two returned to the orphanage, the children had just finished their afternoon nap and it was time for their afternoon playtime. The little ones were playing games under the guidance of their teachers and volunteers.
The children have recently become quite familiar with Li Mengting, and as soon as they see her, they rush over to call her "Sister Xiaomeng".
To Xia Wenxi's surprise, even though she hadn't been there for a long time, some children still remembered her.
I remember she was the older sister who bought them toys last time.
"Sister Xiaoxi bought you toys again this time!"
Upon hearing this, the children immediately jumped for joy, their excited voices seemingly piercing the sky.
Xia Wenxi suddenly felt a little lost. She thought to herself, "I guess we should keep our distance from children."
Fortunately, the teacher came to her rescue quickly.
"Everyone, line up! How's your little mouth?"
The children, who had been noisy and chaotic just moments before, immediately stood still and behaved themselves.
"Small mouth, don't speak."
Xia Wenxi breathed a sigh of relief and whispered to Li Mengting, "The children are indeed quite well-behaved."
With the help of Li Mengting and the teachers at the welfare home, the items the two brought were quickly distributed to the children.
"What are we going to say, kids?"
Upon hearing the teacher's words, the children immediately replied in unison, "Thank you, Sister Xiaoxi; thank you, Sister Xiaomeng; thank you, teacher."
The children's sweet, childlike voices were drawn out, as if they were singing a cheerful song.
Afterwards, Xia Wenxi asked her teacher if she wanted to go see other places, and the teacher naturally agreed.
"Xiaomeng, why don't you accompany Miss Xia around? You know this place very well."
Last time Xia Wenxi came here, she saw the place where she lived when she was a child. This time, she saw from afar that it had been renovated.
Xia Wenxi was a little stunned, and after a while she said to Li Mengting, "Last time I came here, I saw that the place hadn't been renovated yet, and I remembered that I used to play there."
Li Mengting looked in the direction she was pointing.
"When I arrived, it seemed to have just been renovated. The director told me that it was thanks to donations from kind-hearted people that the place was able to be renovated."
"Wenxi, they are just like you and me, able to be reborn because of the nourishment of love."
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