TPW – Chapter 95

The three greatest joys in life: recovering something lost, reunion after long separation, and achieving success in one’s career.

Qiao Lu’s precious little one had finally been found, but unfortunately, the buyer had given him a sleeping pill. The drug hadn’t worn off yet—no matter how much they shook or called him, he wouldn’t wake up.

With the help of the police, Xu Haizhou rushed the child to the hospital for emergency treatment.

After a checkup, the doctor said all they could do was wait for the drug to wear off.

He’d have to sleep in the hospital for now. Only after waking up and passing a doctor’s examination could he be discharged.

Xu Haizhou’s heart ached. He hated that buyer—what kind of monster would do this?

He’s just a tiny child! If the dosage had been even slightly off, it could’ve damaged his brain!

While keeping vigil beside the hospital bed, Xu Haizhou suddenly remembered he hadn’t yet shared the good news with his wife. In a panic, he pulled out his pager.

Less than twenty minutes later, Qiao Lu came racing in on her bicycle, dusty and disheveled, tears streaming as she ran.

“Haizhou! Haizhou!” she called down the corridor, only to be reminded by a nurse not to shout in the inpatient ward.

She swallowed the shout that had risen to her lips, but her heart was in turmoil, her eyes wild with urgency. Every cell in her body screamed to see her son as soon as possible!

Luckily, Xu Haizhou had been waiting at the door. Qiao Lu spotted him immediately upon reaching the second floor.

“Haizhou! Where is An’an? He’s been found—where is he? How is he?”

If nothing was wrong, why would he be in the hospital?

She’d been worrying herself sick on the way here!

If it weren’t for the fact that there were so few cars on the road these days, she might’ve gotten into an accident riding as fast as she had!

Her hands and feet were ice-cold as she trembled, clutching Xu Haizhou’s hand.

“He’s fine, he’s fine. An’an is okay. He’s just asleep and will wake up soon.” Gently, he held her close and led her into the ward. “He’s inside, don’t worry.”

The little one lay peacefully on the hospital bed like a sleeping angel. His face was pale, lips drained of color—dry and cracked. After just twenty days apart, how had he grown so weak and pitiful?

Not to mention Qiao An—even Qiao Lu and Xu Haizhou looked nothing like before. Both looked completely worn out.

They were far from the picture-perfect family of three they used to be.

“An’an… my baby…” Qiao Lu carefully brushed her fingertips over his tender skin, like touching fragile porcelain, not daring to use even a bit of strength. “He—he’s really okay?”

She placed her finger under his nose for a moment—his breathing was faint, but still there.

Only then did her tightly wound heart begin to relax.

“He’s just very tired. He’ll be fine after some rest.” Xu Haizhou didn’t dare tell her about the sleeping pill.

Some things… he’d shoulder alone.

She’d suffered enough already.

Seeing the child safe and sound, Qiao Lu’s nerves, stretched taut for so long, finally began to unravel beneath the sight of her baby’s peaceful sleeping face.

Unable to hold on, she caressed the little one’s hand, and as she did, drifted off asleep, slumped over the bed.

Xu Haizhou was also exhausted—his eyelids heavy.

But when he looked at his wife and son nestled together, he didn’t want to close his eyes.

He wished he had a camera to forever capture this warm, gentle moment.

Although he had long resolved to treat Qiao An as his own son, it was only after this ordeal that he realized—this child had become an indispensable part of his life.

Without him, their family would never be complete.

No matter how strong his bond with Qiao Lu, if anything ever happened to Qiao An, it would leave a scar that could never be erased.

Even if they had more children in the future, Qiao An would always be a source of heartache—irreplaceable.

He bent down and gently carried Qiao Lu to the empty bed beside them.

She was truly exhausted—not even such a commotion could wake her.

Xu Haizhou took in the dark circles under her eyes, then leaned in and kissed her eyelids lightly.

“Sleep now. When you wake up, everything will be better.”

Then he pulled out his pager and sent a message to Li Hongjun, asking him to bring some food that would be easy on the stomach. To his surprise, it was Yu Fan who showed up.

She arrived in a hurry, clearly having ridden her bicycle just like Qiao Lu earlier.

“How’s An’an? Why is he in the hospital? Did the trafficker hurt him?” She was sweating under the extra sweater she’d worn for the morning chill.

“What are you doing here? I paged Li Hongjun,” Xu Haizhou said, surprised.

Yu Fan smiled warmly and held up the stainless steel food container before following him into the ward. Upon seeing the child and his mother, she quietly let out a breath of relief.

She placed the container on the bedside table and said with a smile, “Hongjun was too busy, and I recently hired a staff member at my shop. Whether I’m there or not doesn’t matter much now. Things weren’t too busy today, so I came to bring you something to eat.”

She opened the container, which had three layers, and laid out the contents one by one:

“Here—plain rice porridge to soothe the stomach, some pickled vegetables and steamed buns, and three meat patties. I don’t know if it’s enough—if not, I can go buy more.”

“It’s enough.” Xu Haizhou glanced back at his wife and child—both still asleep—then turned back. “You hired someone?”

Yu Fan beamed. “Yeah, you haven’t been by lately, but business has been booming.”

He hadn’t been to Baiyun Street for over twenty days—it seemed he’d missed a lot.

“I moved my shop next door to yours. Business is fantastic,” Yu Fan said.

Xu Haizhou picked up a steamed bun and exclaimed, “Next door? You mean the old tea shop?”

Yu Fan nodded. “That’s right.”

Since the move, she could earn at least a dozen yuan a day. Hiring a worker at thirty yuan a month was no big deal.

“The tea shop owner quit?” Xu asked.

“Yeah, something happened in their family, so they sold off their stock cheap and left. A bunch of people competed for the shop, but I pulled some strings with a friend and managed to get it.”

A friend?

She seemed to have a rather powerful friend—otherwise, how could she have secured such a valuable shop in the middle of a competitive crowd without retaliation?

Back when Xu Haizhou was “forced” to change locations, he’d suffered retaliation from Zhang Weiqiang. If not for Zhang’s prior conviction for smuggling foreign trash landing him in jail, their conflict might’ve dragged on.

Yu Fan really was lucky—always meeting helpful people wherever she went.

They chatted a bit more about storefronts, but seeing that Xu Haizhou was clearly tired, Yu Fan wisely stopped.

“I’ll go rent a kettle and fetch some hot water for you. You lie down and get some rest.”

“Mm. Thanks.”

After she left, Xu Haizhou leaned over Qiao An’s hospital bed for a nap. But just as he fell asleep, the child stirred.

“Mama… mama…” In a half-conscious murmur, he called out instinctively.

Xu Haizhou jolted awake, stunned.

“An’an!”

His voice rang out loudly, yet surprisingly, Qiao Lu remained fast asleep—she truly was exhausted.

The little one blinked groggily, struggling to focus on the familiar figure.

He lifted his weak arms, reached out, and grabbed at the air in front of Xu Haizhou.

Quickly, Xu Haizhou grasped his tiny hand in his own, his large palm enveloping it completely.

Gulp—Qiao An swallowed, his throat and lips dry.

Only when he felt the warmth of Xu Haizhou’s hand gently stroking his cheek did he realize this wasn’t a dream.

“Daddy… Daddy!”

Suddenly, the previously calm Qiao An burst into tears.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry. Daddy’s here. Daddy’s right here.”

His voice was hoarse and raspy—not like his usual crisp tone.

Xu Haizhou’s heart ached. He wanted nothing more than to punish those responsible.

“Don’t be afraid. Daddy’s here. No one will ever take you away again. Don’t be scared…”

“Daddy—sob sob—Daddy—” The boy cried and clung to him, trembling, greedily soaking up his father’s warmth. “Daddy, sob, Mama… I want Mama…”

“Mama’s sleeping.” Xu Haizhou gently wiped his tears with the back of his hand.

The little one kept calling, tears flowing endlessly: “I want Mama… want Mama…”

Left with no choice, Xu Haizhou carried him over to Qiao Lu’s bed and laid him beside her.

The moment he touched Qiao Lu, it was as if mother and son were psychically connected—Qiao Lu instantly woke from her sleep.

“An’an?”

Mother and son reacted the same way—both thinking it was a dream.

“Mama!” Qiao An hugged her tightly, burrowing into her arms.

His tears ran down into Qiao Lu’s neck—hot, making her skin shiver.

“Mama! sob sob sob—Mama, Mama, An’an almost turned into a tadpole. I almost had to look for you like a little tadpole—Mama—”

Qiao Lu had thought she’d cried herself dry over the past twenty-something days. But with just that one sentence, her son completely broke through her defenses.

The tears now weren’t from pain—but from a mixture of overwhelming relief and joy.

“It’s okay now, it’s okay. You won’t turn into a tadpole. Mama’s here. Mama’s here… Mama will never let you become a tadpole again… An’an, my baby…”