DLRC – Chapter 2 The Silent One

“Doctor, how is it? Is something wrong with my son’s head?”

As soon as Yu Wei arrived at the hospital, she asked for directions and quickly got him registered. After the doctor examined the child’s head, he told her to get a scan. Now, a middle-aged man in a white coat was holding the scan film and studying it intently.

“It’s not too bad. He’ll need stitches, though.”

“Alright. When can he get them? Can it be done now?” Yu Wei asked anxiously.

“Yes, just go to the first floor to get the medication.”

“Okay, thank you, doctor!”

From early morning till nearly noon, she had been running around non-stop. The hospital was packed, waves of patients coming and going, noisy and chaotic. Yu Wei’s head began to feel stuffy again.

Naturally, she hadn’t brought any money when she left the house. All the checkups and prescriptions had been paid for with her mother’s money. Distressed over the expense, Yuan Guifang scolded her relentlessly for being thoughtless.

Letting out a slow, heavy breath, Yu Wei looked at the endless stream of patients and doctors. Holding the now-sleeping little one, she sat on a wooden bench in the corridor and closed her eyes to rest. Beside her, Yuan Guifang had caught up and continued to nag without pause.

“I’m telling you, there’s no such thing as a woman not getting married. Your father and I have helped raise this kid for over four years. This year, no matter what, you have to repay us.” As she spoke, she even held up four fingers for emphasis.

Yu Wei let out another deep sigh. On the window opposite the corridor, her reflection was clearly visible.

A face nearly identical to her pre-transmigration self stared back—an oval face, delicate arched brows above a dainty, well-shaped nose. Her lips were perfectly shaped but dry, and aside from her still-clear eyes, every part of her face radiated exhaustion.

Even with such a tired, worn-out expression and coarse clothing, her natural beauty still showed through—she was, unmistakably, a beautiful young mother.

Yuan Guifang was still rambling on.

“With your kind of situation, dragging a kid around, you’re lucky someone’s even interested. And he’s the factory director of a garment plant! If you marry him, you’ll have nothing to worry about for the rest of your life, and Dabao will have a father.”

Yuan Guifang’s loud voice drew a few curious glances from nearby and succeeded in waking the little one in her arms.

The little fellow opened his dazed, deer-like eyes from her warm embrace, clearly not fully awake. A misty sheen of tears lingered in his gaze, and small droplets trailed from the corners of his eyes down to his ears before disappearing into his jet-black short hair.

Like her, he had a circle of pure white gauze wrapped around his head. Paired with his delicate, pale face, it gave him an oddly adorable look—he would be considered an absolute little heartthrob in the modern world.

One look at the child, and it was clear he rarely went outside. Though his skin was flawless and white, it lacked any healthy color—so pale it looked almost unnatural. Fine veins were faintly visible beneath his skin.

Even so, the boy had a sweet, obedient little face. Big round deer-like eyes, a small delicate nose, and that milky white, smooth skin with soft downy fuzz visible on his cheeks—he was irresistibly cute, nestled in her arms like a little bundle of fluff melting her heart.

He was just a bit too thin. There wasn’t much flesh on his face, and he felt light as a feather when held. If he could put on a little weight, he’d be even more endearing.

Back in the modern world, Yu Wei was already twenty-six. An only child, she had lost both parents a few years ago, but they’d left her a villa and several million in savings.

She’d grown up in a comfortable middle-class family, with no financial pressure. Aside from the year she spent grieving after her parents’ passing, her life had returned to normal.

She earned a living streaming cooking content online. While the income wasn’t extravagant, it was enough for a comfortable solo life. Her food livestream had been gaining popularity over the past three years, and just last month, her earnings had finally passed 20,000 yuan.

Who could have guessed that one night’s sleep would land her in this place?

Ironically, her birth mother had never pressured her to get married. But this transmigrated world’s mother was hell-bent on marrying her off.

But she had no intention of marrying just anyone, especially not a forty-something man with a previous marriage.

Arranged marriages weren’t her style.

It had taken her quite some time to come to terms with the fact that she had transmigrated, but Yuan Guifang’s sharp voice cut through her thoughts again.

“You damn girl, are you pretending not to hear me?!”

Seeing Yu Wei ignore her, Yuan Guifang fumed with rage and reached out to smack her again.

“Can you keep your voice down? We’re in a hospital!” Yu Wei frowned. It hadn’t even been that long since she transmigrated, yet Yuan Guifang had already hit her several times. Wasn’t she her biological daughter, after all?

Still, those words seemed to have a bit of effect. Yuan Guifang looked around and finally quieted down for the moment, though her eyes were still full of frustration as she stared at Yu Wei and the boy.

Yu Wei felt a faint pain in her shoulder. She took a deep breath and looked down at the quiet little one in her arms. Seeing his confused little expression, her mood softened slightly. She smiled gently and opened her mouth to speak.

“Baby doesn’t hurt, right? Good boy.” As she spoke, she gently stroked his soft, fine hair.

However, little Yu Hui, who had been so obedient, didn’t cry or fuss at all. His misty big eyes stared unblinkingly at Yu Wei, watching her quietly for a long time.

Yu Wei had always had a soft spot for well-behaved and adorable kids—especially ones with those bright, black-glass-like deer eyes. When he looked at her without speaking a word, it felt like her heart was about to melt.

She honestly had no idea what was up with this child—he was nothing like the kids she’d seen or imagined.

Forget crying, fussing, or making noise—even when the doctor stitched up his head earlier, he didn’t react much. He just clenched her clothes tightly with his pale little fists, trembling slightly, without showing any other emotion.

“Well, now both of us have our heads wrapped up.”

Yu Wei smiled teasingly. When the little one still stared at her in silence, she sighed softly, picked him up, stretched her sore neck, and got ready to head home.

The little boy lay quietly on her thin shoulder, breathing softly, his round eyes watching the bustling hospital lobby.

Behind a wall, he spotted a man whose dark, bottomless eyes were fixed on him.

On the way home, Yu Wei walked slowly while observing her surroundings. Her mother, Yuan Guifang, was so angry with her disobedient daughter that she refused to speak and followed behind, sulking.

“Mom, what year is it again?”

“1985! Did you really get knocked stupid?” Yuan Guifang snapped.

Yu Wei chuckled, “Nope, just testing you.”

Yuan Guifang smacked her hard on the shoulder in frustration. “You little brat! I’m trying to talk about something serious, and you’re testing me?!”

Yu Wei quickly dodged, letting the slap graze past her, and silently quickened her pace, trying to retrace the route they’d taken to the hospital.

The streets of this small county town in the 1980s weren’t exactly bustling. Most buildings were single-story homes; some had two floors, rarely three, and almost no four-story buildings. Most houses were made of cement and bricks, with tiled roofs.

The ground was fairly spacious, with a thin layer of cement. It wasn’t as slippery as the rural roads Yu Wei had walked in the past. Near the residential areas, there were street stalls selling all sorts of things—mostly grains and vegetables, with vendors coming and going endlessly.

As they approached the front gate of their home, they could hear soft voices from inside the courtyard, loud enough for the three people outside to catch.

Soon, hurried footsteps approached, and Yu Wei’s sister-in-law came rushing out, shooting a glare at Yu Wei and the child in her arms.

“Mom! Where did you go? Factory Director Luo came to see Yu Wei!”

“Oh dear!” Yuan Guifang exclaimed in alarm, quickly ushering Yu Wei inside.

The Yu family home had three rooms total, none of them large. Six people lived there, and now with the child Yu Wei had brought back, there wasn’t even a place to set foot.

As they entered what could barely be called the main room, they found it dominated by a big bed, piled with all sorts of clutter. Next to it was a worn wooden table, though it had been wiped clean.

The infamous Factory Director Luo—whom everyone kept mentioning—was sitting at that table. When he heard footsteps from outside, he turned his head, and Yu Wei finally got a good look at his face.

Hmm… not very appealing. Medium height, slightly pudgy, and probably not very tall. He had a square face with rough features, narrow slanted eyes, giving him a shrewd look. In his hand, he held a black leather folder that he hadn’t let go of, even while sitting.

His clothes were much nicer than Yu Wei’s parents’. He wore a gray Mao suit, a bit oversized but clearly expensive and made of quality fabric with no patches.

Only his feet spoiled the image—a pair of black leather sandals… worn over white knee-high socks…

A vivid picture of a middle-aged widower in his forties.

Yu Wei only spared him a glance before heading straight to the innermost room with the child, planning to let him rest on the bed before coming back to deal with the visitors. But just as she laid the soft little guy down on the quilt, he opened his eyes.

“Sweetie, be good and sleep. Mommy’s just going out for a bit.” Yu Wei liked children but had never taken care of one herself. She wasn’t sure if four-year-old Yu Hui could understand her.

As expected, the little one stayed silent. Yu Wei bent down and gently placed him on the bed. She kissed him lightly on the forehead where it wasn’t wrapped in bandages, then got up to leave.

But just as she started to straighten up, a small, soft hand grabbed her forearm. Looking down, she saw the boy’s misty eyes staring up at her, with a faint trace of grievance.

Yu Wei thought she was imagining it and leaned over to gently ask, “What’s wrong? I’ll be right back.”

She tried to free herself, but the little one held on tight. Afraid of hurting him, Yu Wei didn’t dare use force and eventually just picked him up and took him with her.

That brief delay—about five minutes—had already made Factory Director Luo very impatient. Yuan Guifang had been whispering at the door for a long time before Yu Wei finally emerged, still carrying the child.

“Director Luo came all this way to see you. Go talk to him!” Yuan Guifang said in a low voice, then reached for the child. “Give me Dabao. I’ll hold him.”

Before Yu Wei could say anything, Yuan Guifang had already reached out, but little Yu Hui clearly had no intention of letting go. His arms clung tightly around Yu Wei’s neck, refusing to budge.

“It’s fine. I’ll hold him,” Yu Wei said, dodging her mother and walking into the main room. Director Luo, who had been standing by the doorframe, finally moved to the seat prepared for him.

Her sister-in-law hurried to serve him some brown sugar water. When she saw him approaching the table again, she rushed over to pull out the chair and flatter him with a wide smile. “Please have a seat, Director Luo.”

She even gave the already clean stool a symbolic wipe before heading off to cook lunch.

Director Luo nodded curtly and sat down. He sipped the brown sugar water a few times before speaking in a pompous tone that instantly made the air feel heavy.

“Where did you buy this brown sugar? It’s poor quality.” He smacked his lips a couple of times, took another sip, and shook his head in disapproval. “Have Yu Wei come to my place and get some real brown sugar next time. Just look at what you people are using.”