Little Jingshi blinked his big eyes at the screen, "Tong Tong, can you come see me? I really want you to be with me."
His voice was soft and a bit sorrowful as he said, "Every time I get sick, I always hope that Mom will be here with me. Dad is always busy, and whenever I'm sick, he's never around. Even though Aunt Huo is with me, it's just not the same."
"I'm on my way now," Ming Yutong said, moving the camera to the side, "Look, I was already about to come over before you called me. How could I not come see you when you're sick?"
Little Jingshi was delighted to see Ming Yutong get into her car.
Ming Yutong got into the car, placed her phone in the holder on the steering wheel, and put on her Bluetooth headset to continue chatting with Little Jingshi.
She started the car and asked, "Is your dad at home?"
"No, he's at the company," Little Jingshi replied with newfound interest, "Tong Tong, do you want to see my dad?"
"No, I don't," Ming Yutong said without hesitation, "Don't tell him that I'm coming over to see you."
Upon hearing this, Little Jingshi pouted, "You and my dad are supposed to be together, so why don't you want to be together?"
Ming Yutong fell silent.
Little Jingshi said softly, "I want you both to be together."
Ming Yutong was a bit worried that Little Jingshi might play tricks and secretly get Fu Yinxiu to come home.
So, Ming Yutong advised him, "You can't tell your dad, okay? We'll talk about it later… For now, I don't want to see him."
"Okay, fine," Little Jingshi pouted, sounding reluctant.
"You promised me, so you can't go back on it," Ming Yutong stressed.
"I promise, don't worry," Little Jingshi assured.
Though they were chatting via video, Little Jingshi, being sick, quickly got sleepy.
Ming Yutong ended the call to let him rest peacefully.
***
Ming Yutong arrived at Langyuan and stood at the entrance of Fu Yinxiu's home.
It was her first time coming here. Langyuan was a villa community, but the number of villas was not very large. Most of the area was occupied by greenery and decorative features.
The garden was surrounded by trees, flowing streams, rockeries, and pavilions, resembling a private garden of some ancient dignitary.
Accompanied by the sound of the babbling brook, Ming Yutong rang the doorbell at Fu Yinxiu's home.
Soon, Aunt Huo came to answer the door.
Perhaps Little Jingshi had informed Auntie Huo in advance that Ming Yutong would be visiting, so Aun Huo was not surprised to see her.
"Mad—" Auntie Huo almost called her "Madam" out of habit, as she usually referred to Ming Yutong in this way when talking to Fu Yinxiu, but quickly corrected herself, "Miss Ming."
Ming Yutong had heard the word "Madam" and wondered if Aun Huo had meant to call her that. She didn't want to misunderstand, but the slip made her think.
She was curious about what Fu Yinxiu usually called her at home.
"Aunt Huo," Ming Yutong greeted politely.
"Please come in," Aunt Huo warmly ushered Ming Yutong inside, "Little Jingshi has already told me you would come to see him. He was so happy. He even woke up groggily just to tell me. He said if you arrived and he was still asleep, I should wake him up."
"Is he still sleeping?" Ming Yutong asked, her expression softening at the mention of Little Jingshi.
"Yes, he's still asleep. I was just up there with him before you arrived," Aunt Huo said, leading Ming Yutong upstairs. As they approached Little Jingshi's room, Aunt Huo lowered her voice, "His fever has gone down, so don't worry."
Ming Yutong nodded, and Aunt Huo quietly opened the door.
"Should we wake him?" Aunt Huo asked, seeing that Little Jingshi was sleeping soundly and feeling reluctant to disturb him.
Ming Yutong shook her head, "No, let him sleep. I'll stay here and keep him company."
"Alright," Aunt Huo said with a smile, "I just made some mixed fruit sweet soup and put it in the refrigerator to chill for later. Would you like a bowl now?"
Ming Yutong thought for a moment and smiled, "I'll have some with Little Jingshi later."
Aunt Huo agreed and left Ming Yutong in the room, going downstairs.
Ming Yutong quietly sat by Little Jingshi's bed, watching him for a while, unable to take her eyes off him.
It felt good to have talked things over with Fu Yinxiu.
Previously, she would never have had the chance to visit Little Jingshi here.
Thinking about it, Ming Yutong quietly got up and went downstairs.
Aunt Huo was placing the fruit sweet soup into the refrigerator when Ming Yutong came downstairs, and asked if she needed anything.
"Since I'm here, I want to make something for Little Jingshi," Ming Yutong said, "Did he eat lunch?"
"He threw up everything he ate at school and had to go to the hospital. By the time he came back, it was already 2:30 PM. He's been asleep since the medication kicked in and hasn't had an appetite. I made him fruit sweet soup to help him regain his appetite. I plan to make some porridge for him as well," Auntie Huo explained.
"Aunt Huo, can I make the porridge for him? I really want to do something for him," Ming Yutong asked.
"Of course, that's no problem," Aunt Huo said, taking Ming Yutong to the kitchen and showing her where the ingredients and seasonings were placed. "If you need anything else, just let me know."
Ming Yutong chose rice porridge and took out some dried plums, finely chopping them.
As she was preparing, she heard the faint sound of the doorbell from outside.
Aunt Huo went to open the door and saw He Ruoyi standing there.