Yuxi woke up at dawn that day. Not naturally, of course, but because Zaozao was crying for milk. Yuxi now understood the pain of feeding her own child. She had to feed her baby two or three times a night, meaning she always woke up and had no time to sleep in the morning. It was good that Zaozao was still easy to raise. Otherwise, it would have been worse.
Before breakfast, Yuxi told Mama Xi, "Tell Han Dong to prepare a carriage. I'm going to the Children Charity Home later." She wanted to see just how bad the place was.
Mama Xi's face lit up as she said, "Okay, I'll talk to Steward Dong right away." Han Dong was called Steward Dong to distinguish him from Han Ji.
Yuxi's heart sank when she saw Mama Xi's expression. The people following her were all experienced people. They could not be said to have hearts of stone, but their hearts were much harder than the average person's. The way Mama Xi behaved could only show that the environment of the Children Charity Home was terrible.
Mama Lan had nothing to say once she knew Yuxi wanted to go to the Children Charity Home. It was just that she was a little reluctant to let Yuxi take Zaozao with her. "Madam, I also heard about the situation at the charity home from Mama Xi yesterday. It's dirty and messy there. It would be terrible for Young Miss to catch something bad if Madam takes her there!" Mama Lan had given a lot of thought to Zaozao's welfare. Of course, it was also because of her thoughtfulness that she was held in such high esteem by the people at the Duke of Han's residence.
Yuxi also expressed her concern: "What if Zaozao gets hungry?" If the little one was hungry, she could cry until she got something to eat.
The baby was still too young and would have to be at least five or six months old before she could be given any supplementary food. Mama Lan thought for a moment before she said, "Madam, it's all right for you to take Young Miss, but when we get there, I'll wait for you in the carriage with her, and we won't go in." She also had to bring two extra sets of clothes with her, as Madam had to change as soon as she came out of the Children Charity Home. Otherwise, who knew what she might have caught inside?
Mama Lan was very particular about this. It could be said that she was even more careful than Yuxi, who was Zaozao's mother. However, both Yuxi and Yun Qing loved Zaozao very much, so they did whatever Mama Lan said and were very cooperative.
Yuxi nodded her head. "Okay."
Half a shichen[1] later, they arrived at the entrance of the Children Charity Home. After getting out of the carriage, Yuxi gazed at the semi-old building in front of her and asked, "Is this the Children Charity Home?" When Yuxi saw Mama Xi nod, she frowned. "Why isn't there even a plaque on it?"
Mama Xi replied, "I guess they forgot about it."
Yuxi's expression didn't look good, but she went in anyway. No one was guarding the door, so it was easy for the group to get in.
This kind of situation made Yuxi's face turn ugly. It was not so much that someone was doing something against the children, but what if those children went out without anyone guarding the entrance? How on earth did Da Nainai[2] Fu take care of things?
The place where the children were now staying was a two-storey mansion that Yun Qing had asked someone to find. When Yuxi walked in, the first thing she saw was a yard. Quite a few children were there at the moment, all sitting on the ground in twos and threes, not looking well. When they saw someone coming, they all raised their heads. However, as Yuxi had four guards with her, they did not dare approach her despite their curiosity.
Yuxi's face did not look too good when she noticed how emaciated the children looked, but she said nothing and continued on her way. Before she entered the house, she heard a shouting and cursing voice: ''Are you dead? I told you to go out when you pooped, and you pooped in your trousers. I've never seen anyone as stupid as a pig like you."
A child's cry was heard as soon as the words were uttered, but the sound was small, like that of a kitten. One didn't have to look to know the child had been beaten.
Zijin was furious. She wanted to go in and teach the wicked old woman a lesson, but as soon as she took a step, her feet retracted. It wasn't as if she hadn't improved after following Xu Wu for so long.
Yuxi was very pleased with the changes she had seen in Zijin and led her group into a room. As soon as they entered, they were hit by a strange smell, not to mention how bad it was. The only good thing was that they didn't see any faeces or urine in the room.
Yuxi looked at the children who were either reclining, lying or crawling. Their faces were all sallow. Looking at them, she knew they had not eaten well.
At that time, a married woman in her forties in the room saw Yuxi and her group and asked with a happy face: "Madam, are you also here to adopt a child?"
When Yuxi heard this question, she felt that it was not right. Even if someone wanted to adopt a child, this woman should ask about the visitors' identity first instead of rushing up to them with a cheerful expression. "Why? Has anyone come to adopt a child before?
The married woman smiled and replied, "Yes, a lady had already adopted three children and left. I don't know how many children Madam plans to adopt."
Yuxi calmly asked, "Who is the lady that adopts three children at once?" The moment she heard this answer, she felt it was strange. Even if she did not have a child and planned to adopt one, it made no sense to adopt three at once. There must be a problem here.
The honest and timid-looking married woman shook her head at this and said, "I am not sure. That matter was handled by Mama Yin. But that lady was dressed in silk and satin[4], wearing gold and silver jewellery. For the children to be adopted by her, they will surely live comfortably."
Yuxi's face turned extremely dark at that moment, and she said sternly, "Who is in charge here? Let her come and see me." There was something fishy going on here.
The married woman was frightened and pointed to the other room, saying, "Mama Yin is in that room." Having said that, she hurriedly bowed her head, not daring to say anything else.
With such a loud noise outside, the people in the other room walked out. The woman who appeared was about forty years old with a very ordinary appearance and wearing coarse clothes. She also looked honest. If no one had heard the beating and scolding just now with their own ears, everyone would believe that this person was an honest and sincere woman just by looking at her. Therefore, you really couldn't judge people by their appearance.
When Old Woman Yin saw Yuxi, her face changed, but she quickly regained her composure, bowed to Yuxi, and said, "Greetings, Madam." Old Woman Yin lamented in her heart, why is Han Shi here?
The environment was poor, and the children were not well looked after. This condition was due to a lack of manpower and money. Yuxi did not intend to pursue this issue too much, nor could she, but there was another problem that she could not ignore. Yuxi asked, "How many children have been sent out during this period?"
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Old Woman Yin bowed her head and answered, "Thirty-six."
Yuxi was too lazy to talk nonsense to her and asked, "Where's the register? Show it to me." Adopting a child definitely required registration. It was not as if you could adopt just because you wanted to.
Old Woman Yin's hand trembled as she shook her head, "What register?"
Yuxi's face changed drastically. "Then who took the children away? Are you going to tell me you don't even know those people?"
Old Woman Yin lowered her head and replied, "Madam, there are too many people, and I can't remember clearly." Her hands were shaking as she said this.
Yuxi didn't bother to talk to Old Woman Yin at this point and said to Zijin, "Drag her out and make her talk." There's no need to be polite to such a person.
When Old Woman Yin heard this, she shouted, "I am a member of the Fu family. You have no right to tie me up." This statement could be regarded as putting up her last-ditch struggle.
Zijin slapped Old Woman Yin, who fell to the ground with blood dripping from the corner of her mouth. Seeing such a ferocious Zijin, Old Woman Yin immediately fainted.
Yuxi glared at Zijin. "With so many children around, you still don't know how to be cautious." Such ferocity would frighten all the children in the room.
After saying this, Yuxi turned to look at the children in the room. They were all huddled together, but none of them dared to cry. Her heart sank even deeper. "Darn it." From here, she could see that these children must have been used to seeing someone being beaten, and they had been threatened not to cry. Otherwise, there wouldn't be such a scene.
After finding and asking someone who understood the actual situation of the place, Yuxi realised that there were still more than four hundred children in the Children Charity Home. It was too crowded to have over four hundred children crammed into the two-storey mansion. In addition, the current room was not well-lit and smelled strange.
Yuxi asked some people to send all the children to Qingming Hall. The rooms there were spacious and bright, much better than here. But this was only temporary, and they would be moved when she found a suitable place. After thinking for a while, Yuxi instructed again, "Please ask two physicians to check on these children." Some of the children's faces were sallow because they hadn't eaten well, and some might be ill.
Da Nainai[2] Fu rushed over when she heard the news. As soon as she reached the entrance of the charity home, she saw the guards of the Yun Residence carrying the children onto the carriage one by one. Of course, only children under the age of five were allowed on the carriage. Those over the age of five would have to walk to Qingming Hall.
When Da Nainai[2] Fu went into a room, she saw Yuxi washing a little girl's face, and seeing this scene, Da Nainai[2] Fu didn't even know what mood she should be in.
Yuxi looked up at Da Nainai[2] Fu and greeted, "Saozi[3] is here." After saying this, she bowed her head, wiped the child's hands with a towel, and then asked a guard to carry the child out.
Da Nainai[2] Fu's face stiffened a little as she asked, "Dimei[5], I just saw the children being carried out. Where are you planning to send them?" The reason why Fu Tianlei took the initiative to suggest to Yun Qing that his wife should run the Children Charity Home was because he felt that Da Nainai[2] Fu was capable of doing so. Of course, Fu Tianlei also had his own selfishness. On the one hand, he could help Yun Qing share his worries, and on the other, he could help his wife gain a good reputation.
Fu Tianlei's intentions were good, but he had forgotten to ask the person concerned for her opinion first. Da Nainai[2] Fu was unhappy when she found out, but since Fu Tianlei had promised, she couldn't argue with her husband's words and reluctantly accepted the job.
There were almost 500 children at the Children Charity Home, a quarter of them under the age of five. It was already a huge expense just to provide them with daily food and drink, plus the helpers' wages. Unfortunately, the money allocated from above was pitifully small. Da Nainai[2] Fu became fed up with it after a few days, and as she was also not feeling well then, she turned the matter over to the steward.
After the guard had taken the child away, Yuxi placed the towels in the wooden basin, stood up and said, "The environment here is not good. I am worried they will get sick if they stay here for a long time, so I will move them to Qingming Hall for now until I find a suitable place."
Da Nainai[2] Fu's expression looked somewhat unnatural.
Footnotes Full List
- 2 hours
- da=eldest, nainai=a young miss of a family
- sister-in-law
- Chinese idiom: best costume; costly attire
- younger sibling
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi