Lin Xiaoxiao looked at Li Yunlan, her face alight with surprise and joy. “Really? Does that mean he’ll be back before the New Year?”

Li Yunlan nodded. “Yes. If all goes smoothly, he’ll be home in twenty days.”

For a moment, Xiaoxiao was too overwhelmed to speak. She hugged An’an tightly, a silly, happy grin spreading across her face. Li Yunlan was equally delighted. “He’s finally coming back. Our An’an won’t have to copy other children calling for ‘Dada’ anymore.”

Zhou Liyun smiled warmly. “Absolutely. Your family will be whole again. I’ve always said good people get their rewards.”

Li Yunlan couldn’t stop smiling. “That’s right. Huai’an has endured so much hardship; it’s time for him to come home and rest.”

She immediately started planning—what to cook for Huai’an’s return, even what to prepare for the New Year celebration. “With Huai’an home for the Spring Festival, we’ll butcher a pig and have a proper celebration. We’ll invite all the relatives over.”

Zhou Xiaoling chimed in, feigning hurt. “Mom, you’re playing favorites! You’re killing a pig because Big Brother is coming back. You never did that for me.”

Li Yunlan laughed. “When you get married, I’ll butcher two pigs and host a banquet for the entire compound. How about that?”

Xiaoling instantly fell silent, collapsing into giggles against Xiaoxiao’s shoulder.

Between reuniting with her mother and the news of Huai’an’s return, Xiaoxiao was so elated that she ate an extra bowl of rice at dinner, her heart so full of joy she felt she might burst if she couldn’t share it with someone.

That night, holding Duoduo and An’an in bed, she whispered to them as if they could understand. “Duoduo, from now on, you’ll call me jie jie, understand? We found our mom. Who knew you were such a clever little thing, recognizing I looked like her? And An’an, your daddy is coming home soon. He’ll be here to hold you. Aren’t you happy?”

The two babies babbled back at her, chattering and giggling along with her monologue, blissfully unaware of the significance, simply happy in the moment.

The next morning, Xiaoxiao went straight to the foreign teachers’ dormitory to see Li Yuling. The redness in her mother’s eyes betrayed a sleepless night, no doubt also spent in excited anticipation. “Mom, I brought you a potato scallion pancake from home. Our auntie made it—it’s delicious.”

Looking at her daughter, Li Yuling’s joy was tinged with a pang of sadness. Her little princess, raised with every comfort, now considered a simple potato pancake a treat.

She had barely slept, her mind racing with thoughts of how her children had managed in this world. She wasn’t overly worried about her son, Lin Wenbin. He was a man, and a little hardship wouldn’t hurt him. Besides, someone capable of running a publicly traded company could surely manage some under-the-table business in this era to support himself.

But her daughter? Xiaoxiao had always been sheltered, even after starting work, she was never particularly shrewd. Li Yuling’s heart ached thinking about the difficulties Xiaoxiao must have faced. The more she thought, the more it hurt.

She took the lunchbox from Xiaoxiao, pulled her down to sit on the bed, and then rummaged in a drawer, pulling out a stack of food coupons and money, pressing them into her daughter’s hands. “Take these. Buy whatever food you want, and some new clothes. Look at your jacket—the cuffs are frayed.”

Xiaoxiao laughed. “Mom, do you think I’ve had a hard life here? This is just how things are for everyone now. And it hasn’t been hard at all! I earn money every month translating articles, I receive Huai’an’s salary, and my in-laws sneak me extra money, tucking it into An’an’s pockets if they think I’ll refuse.”
“Really, I’m not suffering at all. I live quite comfortably.”

Li Yuling was taken aback. “You’ve really grown up. You even know how to comfort me now. When your father and I first arrived, it took us a long time to adjust. Your father was the first to find his footing—he fixed a farmer’s tractor, got talking, and the farmer, thinking we were refugees, kindly took us in and gave us work on his farm.”

Recalling it now, it still seemed daunting. They had to rise before dawn, carry buckets to milk cows, and herd the cattle to pasture. Lin Wenyuan drove tractors to sow and fertilize fields, and repaired barns.

Fortunately, having worked as volunteer doctors where they did everything themselves, they weren’t completely helpless.

After a month of this grueling work, the farmer suddenly fell critically ill. The hospital was over an hour away, so Lin Wenyuan stepped in and saved his life.

In gratitude, the farmer recommended Wenyuan for a position as the town doctor. From then on, Li Yuling never had to milk another cow.

In that small town, the pastor held the highest status, followed by the doctor. They earned the respect of the community, and their lives became much smoother.

Even with that relative stability, Li Yuling had found it tough. Thinking about conditions in this era’s China, which lagged far behind the West, where many families struggled for basic food and shelter, made her worry anew.

Hearing her mother’s story, Xiaoxiao felt they had indeed been incredibly lucky. “Have you told Dad yet? When can he come to Beijing?”

Li Yuling smacked her forehead. “I’ll go to the post office later to call him. He’ll be overjoyed.”

Xiaoxiao felt she still had endless things to say to her mother, but a glance at the clock forced her to leave for class. They arranged to have lunch together and continue their conversation.

All morning, one question nagged at Xiaoxiao: How could she bring Li Yuling home, and how should she introduce her to Li Yunlan’s family?

If she said this was her birth mother, would they even believe her? The more she thought about it, the more tangled her thoughts became, and her class notes ended up a messy scrawl.

Zhang Wanqing noticed Xiaoxiao’s distraction all morning. After class, she leaned over and whispered, “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Xiaoxiao sighed. She needed to confide in someone, but she couldn’t tell Wanqing the whole truth. After a moment’s thought, she decided on a different approach. “I went to see Teacher Linda yesterday. I suspect she might be Duoduo’s birth mother. The reason he latched onto me as his mom is probably because we look alike. I told her about him, and she’s coming to see him today.”

Zhang Wanqing blinked. “Are you worried about having to give Duoduo up? There’s a simple solution—you could have him ‘adopted’ by your family in name. Since she’ll be teaching at the school, and you’re here every day, you could still see Duoduo all the time.”

Xiaoxiao stared at Wanqing, then suddenly grabbed her hand, excited. “Wanqing, that’s a brilliant idea! Why didn’t I think of that? Yes! That way, we can stay close.”