Chapter 88: Unacclimatized

Chapter 88: Chapter 88: Unacclimatized

"Say thank you to the mister," Deng Yuyuan said, patting her head.

Tuantuan obediently thanked him. Suddenly, the young man asked Deng Yuyuan, "Are you going to be a live-in nanny in Beijing with your child?"

"Didn’t I tell you? It’s better for me to stay at home and be a supportive wife to my husband," Deng Yuyuan replied, her eyes curving into a smile.

"You’re lying. You probably don’t have a husband. Is he dead?" he asked bluntly, though he didn’t dare look at her.

Deng Yuyuan choked on her words. She didn’t mind that her cover had been blown—she hadn’t put much effort into the disguise to begin with. She looked past him. "Your family is calling you. Hurry up, don’t keep them waiting."

Giving the young man a gentle, unnoticeable push, she hoisted her woven basket onto her back and walked away.

The boy—or rather, the handsome young man—returned to his parents with his head bowed. When asked what they had been talking about, he simply said he was whispering a few things to Tuantuan.

The older couple exchanged a smile. "Now that we’re in Beijing for your university studies, you should hurry up and find a girlfriend. When you have a baby as cute as Tuantuan, we’ll help you take care of it!"

The sister chimed in, "I want to play with a baby too! Hurry up and find yourself a wife!"

The young man’s face flushed as red as a sunset. "Whether a baby is cute or not depends on both parents’ looks."

"Then you’d better find a pretty girlfriend at university," his parents teased. "You blush so easily. Don’t go tongue-tied when you finally meet a girl you like."

"Mom, Dad, hurry up! Today is registration day!"

***

Deng Yuyuan took Tuantuan to a secluded corner of the train station. They both put on their face coverings before continuing. After being stuck in an unventilated train carriage for two days, Tuantuan didn’t run around excitedly now that they were finally out. Instead, she scampered back to the woven basket and asked her mother to carry her.

Deng Yuyuan understood; the child was definitely exhausted from the journey. Finding a blind spot, she redeemed a lollipop from her Farm System’s shop and handed it to Tuantuan.

The train station was bustling with young travelers today, all chatting excitedly. It was then that Deng Yuyuan realized it was also registration day for Jinghua University. Due to the special circumstances of this year’s college entrance exams, there were no classes during the first week of the semester. The time was reserved for registration and getting familiar with the campus, teachers, and classmates.

University security in this era wasn’t as strict as it would be in later years; there were no curfews or checkpoints. Once Deng Yuyuan settled Tuantuan down, she could easily pretend to be a student, sneak in, and find the counselor to check the student roster.

Stepping out of the station, the cold early spring wind blew against her face, carrying sand and dust. It brought with it a familiar scent unique to industrial cities—a mixture of coal smoke, steel, and exhaust fumes. Faded red slogans painted in large characters were faintly visible on the street walls, still exuding a sense of authority despite their peeling paint. In the distance, layers of buildings mostly featured grey walls and red roofs, with a few Soviet-style structures towering occasionally among them. Pedestrians were mostly dressed in dark colors, riding heavy-duty black bicycles. DING-DING. The crisp ringing of their bells punctuated the chilly air.

"Mommy, Tuantuan wants to get down," the little girl whispered in her ear.

Deng Yuyuan assumed the child had never seen such a sight and wanted to explore out of curiosity. She set the basket down. "Mommy will hold your hand, okay? If you want to look at something, just hold my hand tight and we’ll go together."

Suddenly, Tuantuan convulsed violently in her arms. Pulling off her face covering, the little girl’s head flopped forward and down. BLEGH! A sour, half-digested paste splattered everywhere, splashing onto Deng Yuyuan’s shoes.

Behind Tuantuan’s snow-white neck, she clearly saw a dense, shocking patch of red rashes spreading behind her ears. Tuantuan leaned weakly against her mother’s shoulder. She didn’t even have the strength to cry, only letting out miserable whimpers, every breath carrying a scorching heat. Deng Yuyuan felt Tuantuan’s forehead; she was already running a fever.

The sudden vomiting startled the passersby. Deng Yuyuan adjusted Tuantuan into a secure position in her arms and apologized to the people around them. "I’m so sorry. My child is suffering from travel sickness."

"It’s fine, it’s fine. Does the child need to see a doctor?"

A commotion arose in the crowd, and someone ran off to fetch a station worker. Soon, a middle-aged man in a dark blue coarse-cloth uniform arrived with a large broom and an oversized tin dustpan. He wore oversleeves and a red armband that read "Health Inspector."

He took one look at the child’s complexion and pointed Deng Yuyuan in the right direction. "Head this way, pass two intersections, and turn right. You’ll find the Municipal Children’s Hospital there. If money is tight, go the opposite direction. Turn left at the first intersection, go straight past two more, and you’ll reach the District Women and Children’s Health Center. Don’t worry about the mess. I’ll put up a sign here and get some wood ash to clean it up later. You just go on ahead."

Deng Yuyuan thanked him profusely. A kind female traveler helped her take a piece of clothing from the basket and draped it over the child, leaving only her nostrils exposed for air.

"Tuantuan still wants to throw up," the little girl mumbled softly.

"This is just to protect your head from the wind. If you feel like throwing up, just sit up and do it. Mommy will change it for a clean one later," Deng Yuyuan coaxed her gently.

The Farm System’s shop had medicine for travel sickness, but Deng Yuyuan wasn’t a doctor. Tuantuan was only two years old, and she couldn’t just feed her medicine blindly. Her heart burned with anxiety as if she were being slowly roasted over a low fire—every second was pure torture—but her arms holding Tuantuan remained perfectly steady.

"Miss! Miss!" An older woman rushed over, pulling her husband along, and stopped in front of Deng Yuyuan. "I have a tricycle. If you trust me, hop on, and I’ll take you there."

"Of course I trust you. I’ve run into some truly good people today. Thank you, ma’am. Thank you, sir." Deng Yuyuan expressed her endless gratitude as she followed the elderly couple to their tricycle.

On the back of the tricycle sat a small wooden stool and a large burlap sack. The elderly woman told her to sit on the stool, saying she would just sit cross-legged on the floorboard.

Feeling Tuantuan trembling in her arms and noticing the old man’s wiry but aging physique, Deng Yuyuan said, "Ma’am, why don’t you two sit in the back and let me pedal?"

"Oh, don’t you worry. Let my old man pedal. We aren’t kidnappers! If you pedal it yourself, you’ll be too slow, and the child can’t afford to wait." The elderly woman, understanding her hesitation, was about to swear to the heavens to reassure her when Deng Yuyuan stopped her.

"That’s not it. I’m from the countryside, and I was born with more strength than most men. I can pedal this thing a lot faster. Please, just help me watch the baby in the back," Deng Yuyuan explained.

Realizing it was just a misunderstanding, the woman readily agreed. Deng Yuyuan carefully placed Tuantuan back into the woven basket, securing her with some clothes. Once the elderly couple was seated, she slammed her foot down onto the pedal.

Sitting in the back, the elderly woman marveled inwardly, "This young mother really rides both fast and steady. Once government policies fully open up, if she ever starts a business ferrying passengers on a tricycle, she’ll definitely be swamped with customers!"