DLRC – Chapter 64 The New Neighbor

She smelled so nice—so nice that he almost sneezed.

Still, the scent on his mom was the best. Light and faint, it always made him feel at ease.

Finally reaching the front door, Yu Hui pulled out a red string from around his neck, the one with the key hanging on it. His mom had specially put it on him so he wouldn’t lose it no matter where he went!

He unlocked the door. The house was as quiet as it had been when he left. No lights were on, and it was pitch dark and a bit eerily cold.

Yu Hui shivered for no reason. Hugging the bowl tightly, he darted over to the switch and flicked it on with a loud click. Only then did the room come into view.

There was still no movement from the room where Yu Wei slept. Yu Hui placed the dinner on the table and tiptoed inside.

Just as he expected, Mom was sound asleep. Not a sign of waking up at all.

He left the door open, letting the dim and gentle light from the living room spill in. He could see the mound of blanket on the big bed.

The little one crept over quietly, squatted at the bedside, and widened his eyes, trying to find Yu Wei’s head.

Where did her head go?

Puzzled, he stood on tiptoe and looked again. Turns out her face was buried deep under the covers—no wonder he couldn’t find it.

Yu Hui let out a quiet giggle, not making a sound. Then his small hand gently pulled back the blanket covering her face, bit by bit revealing her warm, rosy cheeks.

“Mama…” he whispered softly—not to wake her, but just because he wanted to call her.

To his surprise, Yu Wei stirred slightly at the sound. Her flushed cheek rubbed against the quilt, and she kept sleeping.

Yu Hui covered his mouth, his eyes curving into crescents. Then he slowly leaned in and planted a warm, damp kiss on her cheek.

Since Mama was still asleep, he shouldn’t disturb her—just like Grandma Jiang had said: if a sick Mama sleeps more and rests more, she’ll get better soon!

Yu Hui straightened up. Even though he felt a little bored and really wanted Mama to sing with him and draw with him, her health was more important. So he decided to go out and play by himself for a bit.

But just as he stood up, he heard rustling from the bed. Yu Wei turned over and mumbled, “Yu Hui.”

The little guy turned back excitedly. Yu Wei lay there, unconsciously calling out, “Little Hui Hui…”

“Mama?” Yu Hui padded over and leaned on the edge of the bed. He couldn’t tell if Mama was really awake.

Yu Wei still seemed groggy, her brain half-awake, but her eyes remained closed.

So Yu Hui called her again, “Mama.”

“Mm?” Yu Wei finally heard him and instinctively responded. That woke her up a little more.

“My sweet boy?” she murmured and stretched lazily under the warm covers. When Yu Hui’s delighted little face came close, she sneakily scooped him up from the floor.

“Oh my little sweetheart, how long did Mama sleep for? It’s already dark outside?”

Yu Hui was snuggled in her arms. Her embrace was burning hot. She even pressed her cheek to his, and their warm cheeks clung together. The heat made Yu Hui shudder a bit.

“Mama, you should get up and eat now—it’s already nighttime!”

Even though she was clutching him tightly, the little guy wasn’t mad. After squirming a bit, he found a comfy position, kicked off his shoes, and wriggled into her embrace like a little mudfish.

He wrapped his arms around her slim waist, eyes curved in delight. “Mama, are you hungry?”

Looking down at her sweet, soft son, Yu Wei felt her heart completely melt.

What could be more wonderful than waking up to this adorable little boy?

“I’m starving. Let me take a bite out of Hui Hui first!” she teased, and leaned down to suck on his chubby cheek, making a loud slurping sound. She didn’t let go until it was all red.

Yu Hui wiped his cheek with the back of his hand, laughing uncontrollably. “Mama! Don’t eat me! I don’t taste good!”

“Who said that? My sweet baby is the most delicious!” Yu Wei leaned in to kiss him again. A three- or four-year-old was at peak snuggle age—once he grew up, she wouldn’t get to kiss him like this anymore. She had to take advantage of it now.

After some roughhousing on the bed, Yu Wei was finally urged out of bed by her tiny housekeeper, who took his role seriously and reminded her that she needed to eat.

Even while playing, Yu Hui didn’t forget to remind her about mealtime—clearly worried about her health.

Yu Wei pulled out her phone and checked the time. “It’s already six? No one’s made dinner yet?”

“They did,” Yu Hui nodded. “Auntie Song is cooking. Grandma Jiang already finished eating.”

“Oh? Didn’t I tell you to wake Mama up?”

Yu Hui explained, “Mama, Grandma Jiang took me to her house for dinner. She also brought some for you. She said you should sleep more—cooking is very tiring.”

If Grandma Jiang hadn’t told him, he wouldn’t have known that cooking could be tiring. He’d always thought it was a fun activity.

Yu Wei finally understood. No wonder the little one wasn’t hungry—his belly was already full.

“All right, as long as you weren’t hungry.”

She ruffled his soft head and got up to wash her face in the bathroom. After freshening up, she came out ready to cook, but saw a bowl of food already placed on the table.

“This is from Grandma Jiang’s house?” It looked a bit bland… but that was okay. Bland food was better when you were sick anyway.

In any case, it wasn’t right to be picky. Even though she was a tiny bit picky inside, she couldn’t say anything negative in front of her son—it was someone else’s kindness, after all.

“Mama, this is what Grandma Jiang gave you!” Yu Hui lifted the bowl. “But we ate all the meat! But don’t worry, Mama, your bag still has the lunch I saved for you! There’s lots of meat in there!”

He was the most thoughtful—he saved more than half the meat for Mama. It was definitely enough!

Yu Wei’s eyes stung a little after hearing that. Her heart felt full to bursting. She scooped the little guy up for another round of kisses—then suddenly remembered.

“Oh no, sweetheart, Mama’s sick—I shouldn’t kiss you!” She quickly set him down. “Until I’m fully recovered, you shouldn’t get too close to me, okay? I don’t want to pass the illness to you.”

The sudden shift from affectionate cuddles to distance in a single minute left Yu Hui stunned. He watched as Yu Wei dug the lunchbox out of her bag and went into the kitchen. Only then did he slowly follow behind.

While Yu Wei stood at the stove heating the food, the little one walked up and stood behind her. Too short to reach her waist, he wrapped his arms around her thigh instead.

“Mama! You can hug me! I’m not scared!”

Yu Wei glanced down at him and smiled, shaking her head. She didn’t push him away and let him hold her tightly. When the water finally boiled, she was able to have her first dinner since getting sick.

The food cooked by Jiang Aihua wasn’t very tasty, but wasting food was a bad habit—especially now that Yu Hui, her little “food patrol officer,” was sitting across the table watching her eat. With no other choice, even though she had no appetite, she finished all the leftovers.

It was a good way to set an example for her son.

Although Yu Wei had woken up, she hadn’t fully recovered. She didn’t have the energy to sing or draw with Yu Hui yet. After cleaning the table and the kitchen, she washed her face in the bathroom again, changed into her pajamas, and prepared to go back to bed.

It was 7:20 p.m. Normally around this time, mother and son would be singing together or looking at picture books. Whenever Yu Hui encountered something he didn’t understand, he would ask her, and Yu Wei, as the responsible mother she was, would patiently explain, using the opportunity to help him recognize a few more characters.

But not tonight.

Yu Wei was terribly drowsy. She had washed up early and collapsed onto the bed. Yu Hui, after playing around for a bit with Gu Gu and Ji Ji, obediently followed suit—washed up and snuggled into his mother’s arms.

He wasn’t quite sleepy yet, so he leaned against the headboard and flipped through a book.

Thanks to Yu Wei’s daily guidance, Yu Hui could now stumble his way through simpler stories by himself. He no longer needed her to translate every sentence—only occasionally asked her about unfamiliar words. The little guy even enjoyed working things out on his own. What a clever, quick-witted child.

They say illness strikes like a mountain but recedes like a thread. Yu Wei was now in the “thread phase” and was enjoying her time at home like a queen.

Yu Hui, her sensible little man, had taken over all the household chores while she was sick.

Every morning, after washing up, he would feed millet to Gu Gu and Ji Ji in the living room, then pour a cup of hot water for Yu Wei just as she was about to wake—setting the tone for her day with that warm gesture.

He had also taken over sweeping and taking out the trash. Recently, he’d even started learning how to wash vegetables. He was quite serious and careful about it too—just a bit slow. But Yu Wei didn’t mind. She was more than satisfied.

The whole family’s “burden” rested on his thin little shoulders, and Yu Wei couldn’t be more proud.

With no other obligations, mother and son spent their days relaxing at home. Around lunchtime, Yu Wei would start her livestream half an hour early to earn a bit of nutrition money for her son. Life felt easy and pleasant.

Jiang Aihua had quite the mouth on her. By the second day of Yu Wei being home, the entire building knew she was sick. The first to visit her was Song Xia.

She brought over a can of canned fruit, saying it was hard to buy fresh fruit in winter, so this was the next best thing. It was yellow peaches too—those weren’t cheap.

Ordinary working families these days didn’t really buy that kind of thing. Too expensive—just one can cost one or two yuan, and the better ones could be three or four.

Song Xia brought over such a big can—it must have cost her quite a few coins. Yu Wei thanked her profusely.

She had initially wanted to politely decline, but Song Xia said, “I feel like we really get along. We chat well. We’re good sisters now. If you don’t take this can, that means you look down on me—look down on me for being an old woman shamelessly trying to be besties with you!”

Yu Wei couldn’t help laughing and immediately invited her in.

“Come on, Sister Song. We can’t be that far apart in age. It’s totally normal to say we’re sisters!”

Song Xia, knowing how sweet Yu Wei could talk, didn’t argue. “I’m already thirty-one—must be a full zodiac cycle older than you!”

“No way, no way. Just eight years older. That’s not a full cycle!”

Song Xia covered her mouth and laughed, sitting by the table to chat. Her twin daughters followed her inside, then joined Yu Hui in watching Gu Gu and Ji Ji peck at their millet. The atmosphere was quite harmonious.

“Still, you’d only need to be two years younger for it to be a full cycle difference!”

Honestly, Song Xia really liked Yu Wei, this young mom—mainly because their conversations flowed naturally.

Yu Wei made her some brown sugar water—it seemed like people these days loved serving sweet drinks to guests. Oh, and snacks too.

After making the sugar water, Yu Wei went into the kitchen to bring out some stored snacks and cakes, then called out to the kids squatting by the birds.

“Shuya, Shule, come have some cookies!”

The twins’ eyes lit up and they rushed to the table.

Zhang Shule chirped, “Yay! Thank you, Hui Hui’s mom!”

Everyone seemed to like calling her “Hui Hui’s mom,” and Yu Wei didn’t mind at all. She smiled as she passed over the treats. The kids dug in happily while Song Xia jokingly scolded them, “Alright, alright! Don’t eat too much—leave some for Yu Hui!”

“Got it!” Shule laughed joyfully, stuffing a cookie into Shuya’s mouth. “We’re just having a taste. We won’t eat it all!”

Shuya gave her a glare. “Don’t shove food in my mouth—I can get it myself!”

The two sisters had different personalities and didn’t look much like Song Xia—probably took after their father.

After some casual chatting, Song Xia suddenly remembered something before she left. She eagerly told Yu Wei, “Didn’t you ask me last month to help keep an eye out for a kindergarten? Well, guess what—I had my husband ask around, and there’s one just diagonally behind the Central Primary School. It’s run by the subdistrict office, and if you pull some strings, your kid can probably get in!”

“Really? Sister Song?” Yu Wei had completely forgotten about the kindergarten matter. She hadn’t expected Song Xia to remember, let alone find a solution!

Her heart swelled with gratitude—for the fact that someone remembered a small favor she had asked. She’d made the right call becoming sisters with her.

“Sister Song, this must’ve taken quite a bit of effort. Your husband must’ve been running around a lot.”

“Bah! Just a little errand. No big deal. He’s got some connections over there anyway—may as well use them.”

Yu Wei remained deeply grateful. “It’s really a big favor… I feel bad troubling you guys like this.”

“Oh, stop that. We’re neighbors—and sisters now, remember?” Song Xia laughed heartily, then chatted a bit more about the kindergarten before finally heading out with the kids.

Yu Wei, thrilled, picked up Yu Hui and spun him around in circles—though she didn’t tell him it was because the kindergarten issue had been resolved.

The little guy giggled excitedly in her arms, his laughter echoing through the living room. He had no idea he was about to be sent off to kindergarten.

That peaceful life continued for two more days. Thanks to Yu Wei’s illness, mother and son had stayed home, enjoying a rare stretch of warm, cozy time together.

She fully recovered three days later. During those days, the dessert shop remained closed, but household expenses were low. Plus, she still had plenty of savings. She could afford to splurge for a long time yet.

Having gone through a minor illness, Yu Wei now cherished her time with Yu Hui even more.

Especially after Song Xia told her the kindergarten situation had been taken care of.

Yu Wei figured that since things were in place, it wouldn’t be long before Yu Hui could get into that subdistrict-run kindergarten. So, while she still had free time, she wanted to spend more of it with him.

Poor little guy had no clue his mom had already picked out a school for him!

Since she wasn’t hurting for money, she delayed the shop opening time from 8:00 to 9:00 and brought her return time forward from 5:30 to 5:00.

Yu Hui was delighted. Now he had so much more time with Mom.

They spent their free hours reading, drawing, and singing together.

Though, admittedly, Yu Wei’s drawing skills weren’t great. They once had a drawing contest where they both copied a little bunny from a picture book—and Yu Wei’s drawing actually looked worse than Yu Hui’s.

Embarrassed, she wanted to tear up her sketch, but Yu Hui snatched it away first.

“This is our bunny contest! You’re not allowed to rip it up!”

Yu Wei sighed. “Alright, alright. As long as my good boy likes it.”

To her surprise, not only did he like it—he insisted on keeping her ugly drawing. Yu Wei could only clutch her forehead helplessly. Her son was collecting her blackmail material!

As someone utterly lacking in artistic talent, giving birth to such a creatively gifted little ball of fluff—she wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry.

In the week after she recovered, neither of them saw Huo Mingwang again. It was as if their previous encounters had just been a one-time coincidence.

If there was any news of interest lately, it was that a new family had moved into the third floor, right above the dessert shop.

It was the same mother and daughter Yu Wei had seen in Huo Mingwang’s car a few weeks ago.