Raising Birds and a Son with a Tycoon - Chapter 3

“Young man, can I ask you something? Do you think we can switch places? I’m on the top bunk, but my wife just switched with this young lady for the bottom bunk. My wife is with a baby and it’s inconvenient for her. I’m afraid that the baby will cry at night, it’d be easier for me to help if I’m on the bottom bunk.”

　　Li Suchuan looked over at Du Xiaomian and met her gaze head-on. He let out a small laugh and simply said, “Sure, no problem.

　　”Thank you so much.”

　　The child’s father, feeling relieved from the burden, felt relaxed and cheerful, and he started to lighten the mood by asking, “Little girl, are you a high school student? Are you home for the New Year’s holiday?”

　　”Yes, that’s right.” Du Xiaomian smiled politely.

　　But that’s not actually the case.

　　She was rushing home to save people.

　　In her previous life, Du Xiaomian did not go home and spent the New Year’s Day like it was Valentine’s Day with Xu Yang. However, on the afternoon of January 2nd, her three-year-old brother, Du Xiaolu, was accidentally injured and suffered burns over 63% of his body and he even almost lost his life.

　　It was near the end of the year when the police officers raided several small workshops in the county that were illegally manufacturing fireworks and firecrackers. They also confiscated a truckload of firecrackers and took them back to the station to destroy them. However, a minor incident occurred during the transport, and the entire truck full of firecrackers exploded on the spot, killing six people and seriously injuring twelve others. Among the victims was Du Xiaolu, an unlucky little guy who was squatting by the roadside playing with glass marbles.

　　When Du Xiaomian arrived at the provincial hospital overnight with Xu Yang, she saw a little boy lying in the intensive care unit, almost completely wrapped in bandages except for his head and face. Her mother, dressed in isolation gowns, stood by the bedside, looking ashen-faced, taking care of her son. Her usually energetic, cheerful, and robust father didn’t even have the courage to look at his son. He could only sit on a bench in the corridor, silently wiping away his tears.

　　Her parents were approaching fifty, yet Du Xiaomian felt that her parents had aged twenty years in an instant when their long-awaited son was struck by this tragedy.

It was after witnessing that scene that Xu Yang proposed breaking up.

　　”Young man, are you also home for the holidays from university?” the child’s father asked again.

　　Li Suchuan shook his head: “No, I don’t go to university. I work outside.”

　　”You’re not in school anymore? How old are you?”

　　”Nineteen.”

　　”Going out to work at such a young age, it must be really tough…”

　　The child’s father was deeply moved, but Du Xiaomian was not surprised.

　　This young man speaks concisely and slowly, and he always exudes a composure and maturity that exceeds his age.

　　In terms of temperament, he doesn’t seem like a sheltered college student at all, but rather like a seasoned veteran who has been navigating the complexities of society for many years.

　　Around 10 o’clock, the train attendant reminded everyone to turn off the lights and go to sleep. Du Xiaomian mustered her courage and climbed to the upper bunk, her back already covered in sweat.

　　Feeling sticky all over, and unable to fall asleep even though leaning against the pillow, she  habitually took out her phone and started playing with it…

　　However, 2G phones were as thick as bricks and had no other functions besides making calls and sending text messages.

　　Du Xiaomian tossed her phone aside, rolled over to find a more comfortable position, and inadvertently glanced at Li Suchuan on the opposite bunk. He had his hands behind his head, leaning calmly against the pillow as if deep in thought. Sensing Du Xiaomian’s gaze, he turned his head and met her eyes openly and frankly, his eyes were still smiling, showing no intention of avoiding her gaze.

　　Du Xiaomian felt a chill run down her spine from that dark, bright gaze. She frowned, glared at the boy, and turned her back to him.

　　She shut her eyes, trying to fall asleep. She didn’t know how long she had slept before being awakened in a daze by the baby’s whimpering cries again.

Annoyed, Du Xiaomian yanked the blanket over her head, curling up into a ball. But the cries still pierced straight into her ears without the slightest barrier.

　　”Hmph…hmph…Mama…hmph…”

　　Du Xiaomian felt something was clumsily trying to pull the blanket off her head. They tried several times but couldn’t get it off, then they finally patted her head repeatedly. The baby’s cries seemed to be shouting directly into her ear: “Hmph… Mama, Mama… Mama… Mama…”

　　Du Xiaomian shuddered, timidly pulling back the covers. A fair-skinned little boy, his face streaked with tears, sat beside her, his chubby little paws reaching out to scratch her collar: “Mama, Mama…”

　　She looked around mechanically and sluggishly, only to find that everything around her had changed.

　　The cramped sleeper compartment has been transformed into a soft two-meter-wide bed, and the green train has become a comfortable and unique Nordic-style bedroom.

　　Just then, the bathroom door opened, and a man wearing a gray T-shirt and camouflage shorts came out.

　　”Awake?” The man, drying his hair with a towel, walked up to Du Xiaomian. Seeing her blank and unresponsive expression, he reached out and pinched her cheek with a smile: “Didn’t sleep enough? Do you want to sleep a little longer?”

　　Then he beckoned to the little child: “Come here.”

　　The little boy crawled over with tears in his eyes, still whimpering, “Hmm, Mama, Mama…”

　　The man carried the child out of the room in one arm, muttering, “Crying to your mom is useless if you’re hungry. Can her little body give you milk? You need to call your father.”

　　Du Xiaomian watched the father and son leave, feeling as if she had been frozen in an ice cellar, turning into a cube of ice. 

　　The man was none other than the boy who had been staring at her on the train.

　　Although he was a bit more mature in appearance and robust in build than he was on the train, his sharp, striking eyebrows and eyes left a deep impression, and Du Xiaomian recognized him at a glance.