Chapter 263: Worry

Looking at the large pile of things, Mrs. Fu could only accept the situation.

She actually wanted to say that even though she rarely went into town to buy vegetables and meat, her Mingxue had a good colleague.

That colleague was well-connected and would frequently help them buy meat, fine flour, and rice.

They had truly never gone without.

Lunch was a sumptuous spread.

In the afternoon, Sister Cai made a trip to the hospital.

She came back with good news: Hao Rong’s son’s high fever had broken.

...

Because Fu Mingxue had left in a hurry, she hadn’t sent word home.

Mrs. Qin, thinking about how she was leaving the next day, decided to wait up a little later.

She didn’t expect it to be eleven o’clock already, and her daughter-in-law still hadn’t come home.

’Does she work overtime this late every day?’

’This is just too grueling!’

She wanted to wait a little longer, but she couldn’t fight off her drowsiness and fell asleep.

The next day, both mothers woke up very early.

But Qin Wenshu was up even earlier than them.

"Auntie, did my sister-in-law not come home last night? Her bicycle is gone."

Qin Wenshu had planned to get up a little earlier. He wanted to ride the bicycle to the hospital and get back before his sister-in-law left for work.

But he was surprised to see that the bicycle wasn’t in the courtyard.

’Surely my sister-in-law didn’t leave for work before dawn, right?’

Hearing this, the two mothers looked toward the spot in the courtyard where the bicycle was normally parked. Sure enough, it was gone.

Mrs. Fu had never known her daughter to work overtime all night without coming home.

The sight made her anxious.

She immediately went and pounded on Fu Mingxue’s door. "Mingxue!"

With a forceful pound, the door swung right open.

Mrs. Fu saw that the quilt on the bed was still neatly folded; no one had slept in it.

The room was empty. Her anxiety flared. "The girl really didn’t come home last night!"

’Could something have happened to her?’

Mrs. Qin also glanced into the room. It certainly didn’t look like anyone had been in it.

"Don’t be anxious," Mrs. Qin said. "She probably had an urgent task at the factory and had to work overtime."

’That’s what I’m thinking too,’ Mrs. Fu thought, but she couldn’t quell her unease.

’But what if it wasn’t overtime?’

’A young woman like her... coming home in the dead of night. Who knows if she took a fall or had some other accident on the road?’

"How about this? We’ll have Wenshu go check on her."

"No, don’t. Don’t you have an eight o’clock train? You need to get going, or you’ll miss it. Mingxue is probably still at the factory. That child... working overtime and not coming home, without even sending word."

Mrs. Fu wasn’t really complaining; she was just worried.

Mrs. Qin immediately added, "Mingxue is at work, and no one else from our family compound works at her factory. She wouldn’t have anyone to bring a message for her."

Her words did remind Mrs. Fu of something. ’There’s no one to carry a message, but couldn’t she have called?’

’The military base has a phone, and her factory has one too.’

But she immediately dismissed the thought.

’If she worked until dawn, she couldn’t just make a casual phone call, could she?’

’She wouldn’t want to bother people in the middle of the night.’

"As long as she’s at the factory, everything will be fine."

"Wenshu, go to your sister-in-law’s factory and ask around."

"Alright," Qin Wenshu agreed.

’If she’s really there, then everything’s fine.’

He pushed his tricycle and headed out.

Mrs. Fu had wanted to tell him not to go, but she was truly worried about her daughter. So instead, she added a reminder, "Wenshu, be quick. Don’t miss your train."

"Auntie, there’s plenty of time. It’s only five-thirty!" Qin Wenshu hopped on his tricycle and rode off.

Mrs. Qin decided to start helping with breakfast.

Mrs. Fu was on edge.

She kept thinking, ’Even if she did work overtime... it’s already light out. Shouldn’t she be home by now?’