Chapter Thirty-Three: Bedtime Rituals

The couple originally worked out of town, but with this year's reforms, their workplaces underwent institutional restructuring, separating functional departments from the production frontlines. The production teams remained where they were, while the functional departments were relocated to the southwest part of the city. That area now hosts the administrative divisions and residential quarters of the former military industry and related units. The development there has been quite good, and it's not too far from the city center, with a free shuttle bus running daily.

Liu Jianmin's wife returned home to pack some belongings and then went to her parents' house.

In the evening, her eldest brother and sister-in-law came over after dinner to chat with their parents, and the conversation naturally drifted to the topic of Chen Xin.

"That girl is remarkable. Honestly, I really admire her," Liu Jianmin's brother-in-law said sincerely. "A young woman, barely an adult, resolutely taking on the responsibility of raising her half-year-old nephew—and living better than most. In terms of temperament and ability, she far surpasses her peers."

"Yes, when I went to ask around this morning, my colleagues said that many people in that neighborhood know about this aunt and nephew pair. And when the snack street near C University started developing, she played a key role. Even now, the couple of the Tie family have nothing but praise for Chen Xin."

"Exactly. I heard her academics are excellent too. Not long after enrolling, she was already taking on translation work, and later became a guest contributor for a magazine in Guang Province. Mom, that's the magazine you like—the one with features on local customs and cuisine. Many of the food articles are hers."

Their father smacked his lips and nodded with a smile. "She's a fine child. Capable!"

Liu Jianmin's brother-in-law and his wife exchanged a glance, but didn't mention their younger sister's disapproval of Chen Xin. Instead, they steered the conversation elsewhere. Finally, Liu Jianmin's brother-in-law casually reminded the elderly couple to be cautious when going out, warning them about a group of scammers targeting senior citizens. These fraudsters invent lucrative-sounding projects, spinning elaborate tales to lure people in. The scam is basically robbing Peter to pay Paul—using new investors' money to pay high interest to previous ones, thus encouraging further investments.

"Our finance colleague, Sister Ruan, said several places down south have had elderly folks fooled—not just seniors, even teachers and doctors were swindled. If you ever encounter such situations, just walk away immediately. There's no such thing as easy money."

At the door, while switching shoes, the couple reminded their parents again, never mentioning investment to their sister. Yet, their sister immediately thought of Xiaosong's investment project. She wondered if she was being paranoid, but it seemed as if her brother and sister-in-law were warning her.

Chen Xin knew nothing of the events unfolding in Liu Jianmin's household, nor did she care to.

Her communication with Liu Chunyan went very smoothly. They were both straightforward people, so everything was laid out openly and settled. Liu Chunyan's husband, though not very knowledgeable about these matters, trusted his wife completely and supported all her decisions.

After the four of them had dinner together, they each went their own way. Liu Chunyan invited Chen Xin and Cheng Jie to visit their county in March, when the apricot blossoms bloom. She described a mountain on the outskirts of town covered in apricot groves, extraordinarily beautiful, with farmhouse food to enjoy.

Chen Xin was very interested. Having Liu Chunyan's number, she promised to call ahead, eager to experience the poetic spring rain among the apricot blossoms.

Back home, Chen Xin felt she had resolved a hidden major problem, leaving her in excellent spirits. Having left Zhang Zhang at Cheng Jie's for dinner, her chubby son was now clamoring for a late-night snack. She patted his belly, deciding to indulge him a little.

Nighttime food needed to be easy to digest. She had just bought some yam at the market, so she quickly peeled, chopped, rinsed, and steamed it.

While the yam steamed, she took out her homemade orange and cherry jams from the fridge. The orange jam was made from peeled, seeded oranges boiled with rock sugar. For the cherry jam, two-thirds of the cherries were pitted, mashed, sugared, and cooked to release pectin, then boiled with a few roughly chopped whole cherries. Once cooled, the jam still had plump cherry pieces—perfect for spreading on bread or steamed buns.

Because the jam was quite thick, she added juice to adjust the consistency. The orange jam needed only a little water and lemon juice along with the syrup. For the cherry jam, she added water and a touch of lemon juice, since it was sweeter than the orange.

Once the jams were ready, the yam was done steaming. She let it cool, then mashed it vigorously in a clean, dry bowl, mixing in some steam water from the dishes. Once it was smooth, Chen Xin divided the softer-than-usual yam puree into two small glass bowls, drizzled each with jam, dusted one with powdered sugar, and topped the other with a cherry, placing them before her son.

The little boy found it impossible to choose, staring back and forth, blinking his big eyes as he asked Chen Xin if he could have half of both bowls.

"Auntie, let's share."

Chen Xin nodded at the well-behaved child and scooped a spoonful from each bowl into her own.

She hadn't made much, so even if her son ate both bowls, he wouldn't be stuffed. But she made a point of nurturing his sense of sharing, never letting him eat alone.

After finishing the yam puree, her son dutifully went to the yard to brush his teeth and wash his face, waiting for his aunt to bring hot water for his feet. Once his bedtime routine was complete, he climbed into bed, waiting for Chen Xin to read him a story.

Aside from daily behavior, bedtime stories were also an excellent educational channel for him.

The stories Chen Xin read were meaningful fables, encouraging her son to grasp their underlying messages. Though barely two years old, his comprehension surpassed many children aged three or four.

Chen Xin never considered him a prodigy; he simply began his early education sooner, developing understanding skills ahead of his peers. These abilities needed to be cultivated from the age of one.

He thoroughly enjoyed learning, constantly asking questions, which his aunt usually answered. For those she couldn't, he would jot them down in his little notebook, and later, once he understood, he'd write his answers. She had prepared five such notebooks for him, and he had already filled almost half of one, which gave him a great sense of accomplishment—but also a feeling of dissatisfaction, since less than a tenth of his questions had been answered.

His aunt told him he could find those answers in books, but he would have to search for them himself. She had many other things to do and couldn't help him every time. So, his birthday wish this year was to grow up quickly, so he could read and find the answers to all his questions.