Yang PeiMin nodded, "Sister-in-law, don’t worry, I promise you."
Luo Dahua was also afraid that her two children would trouble Yang PeiMin, and somewhat incoherently said that her kids were very well-behaved and obedient, doing whatever they were told to do, and if they were disobedient, they could be scolded or smacked.
She looked so anxious, and Yang PeiMin could tell she was really out of options, which is why she had turned to her.
So Yang PeiMin also quickly agreed, in order to set Luo Dahua’s mind at ease.
Luo Dahua was very grateful after hearing her words, even reaching up to touch the corner of her eye and wiping away a tear.
It was Shen Yiguang who reminded them from the side, "It’s already past two o’clock. If you need to hurry to catch the train, you should start getting ready. What about the kids? Are they still sleeping or somewhere else?"
"Right, right, the kids—I haven’t told them yet! I should hurry over to arrange things and carry the children over."
Yang PeiMin stopped her, "Sister-in-law, wait for me. I’ll grab a coat and come down with you!"
Then Shen Yiguang and Yang PeiMin put on a coat and followed Luo Dahua downstairs. Before they had reached her dormitory, they heard a bout of severe coughing from inside.
Luo Dahua quickened her pace and explained to Yang PeiMin, "Xiao Niu has been coughing worse these last few days, it’s a bit better during the day."
She then rushed into the dormitory, where Lu Daqi was holding the coughing Xiao Niu, whose face was red, getting ready to give her medicine. When he saw them come in, he seemed overjoyed, "You, you..."
Luo Dahua chided him, "You’re usually so capable, but now you can’t even speak clearly. My sister-in-law has already agreed to help look after the children."
Lu Daqi was also full of gratitude, "Thank you so much, I’m really thankful."
Shen Yiguang looked at the child in his arms, who seemed to struggle to breathe due to the coughing, "With the child coughing like that, I think we should make a trip to the health clinic."
"We did, we did, we already went this morning and got some medicine, but I didn’t expect her to still cough so badly tonight." Luo Dahua, with a worried face, picked up a medicine bottle from the table to show them.
Yang PeiMin glanced at it; it was the western medicine kind of small pills. She nodded; such coughs are hardest to cure and only time could tell. Then she remembered the bottle of autumn pear syrup she had bought, unopened and unused. But she couldn’t use it now, since she didn’t yet understand what had caused Xiao Niu’s cough and her constitution.
Fortunately, after a while, Xiao Niu’s coughing slowed down and stopped, not looking as frightening. She lay listlessly on her father’s shoulder, eyes dull as she looked at them. Her gaze rested on Yang PeiMin’s face for a few seconds before she softly called out to her, "Aunt Yang..."
Yang PeiMin’s heart ached for her, and she walked over to touch her small face, "Xiao Niu, close your eyes and sleep Tightly, Auntie is talking with your mom and dad. I’ll play with you tomorrow."
Xiao Niu obediently nodded, and then she really did close her eyes.
On one side, Lu Daqi held Xiao Niu until she fell asleep, while Luo Dahua quickly packed their things. She also woke up their elder son, Da Niu. Yang PeiMin gestured to her, letting him sleep a bit longer.
"Sister-in-law, what things do you need to pack? I’ll help you pack."
Luo Dahua pointed to the items in her hands and showed them to Yang Peimin, "All these things belong to Da Niu and Xiao Niu..."
Yang Peimin carefully noted everything down and incidentally began to pack away the items beside Luo Dahua; meanwhile, Lu Daqi was discussing with Shen Yiguang how to get a ride to the train station.
Since they had to catch the 6 o’clock train, the timing was very tight.
Luo Dahua hurriedly called the two kids to get up, and she specifically instructed her elder daughter, Da Niu, "Dad and Mom have to make a trip home, you need to be obedient and follow Aunt Yang, help Aunt Yang take care of your little sister, do you understand? You’re the older child now, you have to help Aunt Yang with things, you can’t be lazy, got it?"
Da Niu was already aware of the situation at home, so despite being only six years old and a tearful, noisy little girl, she nodded earnestly at her mother’s serious words.
Seeing her , Luo Dahua thought she was still sleepy and hadn’t come around yet, so she shook her little shoulders and asked sternly again, "Did you hear me?"
Da Niu tightened her face and quickly said, "I heard you! I’ll take good care of my little sister and also help Aunt Yang with things." She spoke this sentence with her head down in a quiet voice.
Yang Peimin felt Luo Dahua was being too strict; the child hadn’t even recovered from the shock of the separation before being asked to do things, which would inevitably make her even sadder.
She squatted down, took Da Niu into her arms, and said, "Grandpa at home is sick, so Daddy and Mommy have to go back to see him. They really wanted to bring you and your little sister too, but since both of you are ill, you can’t sit on the train for that long. Daddy and Mommy are really worried about you, so they asked Aunt Yang to look after you for a few days. They will be back soon, so don’t worry. You play at Aunt Yang’s place for a few days, and then we can joyfully welcome them back together, okay?"
"If you’re still worried, you can make a pinky promise with your mom to have her assure you when they will return, is that good? Now you and your little sister will go up to the third floor with Aunt Yang, is that okay?"
Da Niu nodded and stretched out her finger towards Luo Dahua.
Luo Dahua smiled, touched her head, and said, "Okay, Mommy promises you, Daddy and Mommy will be back in ten days."
Then, she couldn’t help but say to Yang Peimin, "Sister-in-law, this is really asking a lot of you."
Because their trip back to their hometown by train would also take almost three days, the round-trip would indeed be nearly a week. She said ten days, which was probably a bit of a stretch.
Yang Peimin nodded thoughtfully and shared her own situation, "Sister-in-law, as I told you before, I was admitted to a school here, and classes have already started. I’ll need to go back to school in a couple of days. If Da Niu and Xiao Niu get a bit better, I might take them with me to the school’s area, so I hope you are aware."
Upon hearing this, Luo Dahua felt even more embarrassed, "Won’t this affect you?"
Yang Peimin shook her head, "I’ll arrange everything. It’s just a bit hard on the kids."
"What’s so hard about it? If they misbehave, you can just tell me or discipline them. Don’t worry about it."
The two discussed these trivial matters, and since there really wasn’t much time left, they took the two children back to the third-floor dormitory to let the couple leave for their hometown with peace of mind.
Shen Yiguang went with Lu Daqi to arrange transportation to the train station.
Yang Peimin put the sleeping Xiao Niu on her own bed and allowed Da Niu to lie down. Da Niu looked at the clean and beautiful bed and still felt a bit shy.
Yang Peimin came over and took off her outer clothes, touched her head, kissed her little cheek, and whispered softly, "Baby, go to sleep now."