The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 29: Chapter 29: The Shop’s Price is Very Touching

If he didn’t pay, Liang Xiaoyu would have divorced him right then and there.

Expert Wang personally supervised one of his students as they worked with Cai Wenjun, while Liang Xiaoyu and Cai Xueqin watched from outside.

When Liang Xiaoyu saw her son actually performing structured running and jumping motions under Expert Wang’s guidance, she was so overwhelmed with emotion that she covered her mouth.

Cai Xueqin also noticed a change in his son; it was as if he were more cooperative in the expert’s hands.

”Xiao Yu, don’t cry. No matter what, we’ll get our son the help he needs,” Cai Xueqin said softly, holding his wife as she covered her mouth, trying to stifle her sobs.

Liang Xiaoyu nodded, her eyes red. ”Expert Wang said there’s a chance for improvement. As his parents, we have to get him help, even if it means selling everything we own. Otherwise, he’ll be considered a simpleton for the rest of his life, and we’ll never be able to rest in peace, not even on the day we die.”

Cai Xueqin nodded. ”We have savings, and I can earn money. You just focus on taking good care of our son. If there’s anything you don’t know, you can learn from Xiao Han and her sister.”

”Okay, I understand.” Liang Xiaoyu nodded, feeling a small sense of relief.

After the three morning sessions, Liang Xiaoyu didn’t know if it was her imagination, but she noticed that her son’s eyes seemed brighter than before.

Han Xiaorui and Han Xiaoqing took their little cart straight home.

Wanting to save money, Liang Xiaoyu and Cai Xueqin chose to take the bus. Although it took a bit more time, it only cost twenty cents to get home.

When they got home at noon, Cai Wenjun was hungry. He ate his lunch with great appetite, even eating several stalks of green vegetables, which he normally wouldn’t touch.

Liang Xiaoyu was overjoyed. After lunch, she tidied up the house and took her son over to Han Xiaorui’s place for a visit.

Pingping and An’an were feeding the chickens, ducks, and geese. The little sisters didn’t talk much, but they worked together in perfect harmony.

Seeing Liang Xiaoyu arrive, Han Xiaorui handed a small bowl to Cai Wenjun. ”Wenjun, come feed the chickens and ducks too!”

Perhaps because he was also interested in the little animals, Cai Wenjun surprisingly reached out and took the bowl. Copying Pingping and An’an, he grabbed a handful of feed and tossed it in.

Seeing the chicks, ducklings, and goslings scrambling for the food, the corners of Cai Wenjun’s mouth curled up, and he actually let out a laugh. ”HAHAHA!”

Liang Xiaoyu was astonished. Her son was usually so unresponsive, barely reacting to the world around him. He didn’t speak, never laughed, and rarely even cried.

But now, she had heard him laugh. She shot to her feet, ready to rush over and hug her son.

Han Xiaorui quickly grabbed her. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, calm down! You’ll scare him if you rush over like that. Just let Wenjun keep playing. This is part of the learning process.”

At Han Xiaorui’s words, Liang Xiaoyu gradually calmed down. She wiped away her tears and gripped Han Xiaorui’s hand tightly. ”Xiao Rui, I really have to thank you. If it weren’t for you, how would a country woman like me ever have known about any of this?”

”We’re all the same. As mothers, we wish we could just rip out our own hearts and suffer in our children’s place,” Han Xiaorui comforted her. ”But we can’t. They have to figure things out and grow on their own. Don’t be anxious. Take it one step at a time.”

Liang Xiaoyu had been on the verge of depression over her son’s condition. Now that she saw a glimmer of hope, her spirits began to lift.

Seeing Han Xiaorui doing chores and cleaning up, Liang Xiaoyu grabbed a broom and started to help.

’If I help out, I can bring my son over to play more often. Otherwise, I’ll feel too embarrassed to come.’

Han Xiaorui understood Liang Xiaoyu’s intention and didn’t stop her.

She had been wanting to become a part of the Jinshan Bay community anyway. ’Making more friends is the only way to truly get a firm foothold here.’

After they finished feeding the chickens, ducks, and geese, Pingping and An’an took Cai Wenjun to look at the ornamental fish.

Han Xiaorui had already moved the two large triggerfish into separate buckets. The main tank was now filled with nothing but newly hatched triggerfish fry.

They were tiny and numerous, forming a dense, teeming cloud, which was a beautiful sight.

Cai Wenjun looked like he wanted to press his face right against the glass. His eyes were focused, tracking the movements of the fish as they swam around the tank.

After watching the fish, Pingping and An’an started playing fetch with the dogs, throwing a frisbee for the two puppies to retrieve. They were all having a great time.

Cai Wenjun watched them, looking on with envy, but he didn’t dare to join in.

Han Xiaoqing gently encouraged him. ”Here, Wenjun, you take it. If you throw it, the puppies will bring it back.”

Han Xiaoqing was pretty, and her warm smile gave her a natural affinity with children. Cai Wenjun summoned his courage, took the frisbee from her hand, and threw it.

His gaze followed the frisbee as it flew, and when a puppy chased it down, his eyes shifted to the puppy.

That simple try was enough to fill Cai Wenjun with a sense of joy, and he continued to play tirelessly, his occasional laughter ringing out.

As Liang Xiaoyu worked on making shrimp traps with Han Xiaorui, she watched her son playing in the distance and smiled, filled with gratification.

”Xiao Rui, from now on, I’ll put these shrimp traps together for you. All I ask is that after his classes, my Wenjun can come to your house to play for a little while in the afternoon.”

”You know, Xiao Jun never used to talk, so none of the other kids wanted to play with him. And if they did, they would just bully him, calling him a ’little idiot.’ I’d get so furious when I heard that, I even got into several fights with people from the village.”

Han Xiaorui never had much patience for assembling the traps anyway, so after a moment’s thought, she said, ”Of course. My Pingping and An’an could use a playmate. Let Wenjun come over and play with them.”

”Usually, it’s just my sister at home with my two daughters while I’m out fishing, so I’m always a little worried. It would actually be a huge help if you could bring Wenjun over.”

Hearing this, Liang Xiaoyu was filled with gratitude. ”Xiao Rui, you’re such a good person. Yang Jianming must have been blind to divorce a wonderful wife like you. He’ll regret it one day.”

Liang Xiaoyu thought Han Xiaorui was a wonderful person, even better than the local wives. ’And she’s educated, too!’

Han Xiaorui just smiled. ”Sister-in-law Xiao Yu, that’s all in the past. When a relationship has run its course, it’s time to part ways. Times have changed. We women can live perfectly fine lives without men.”

Liang Xiaoyu was both fast and skilled at assembling the shrimp traps. In a single afternoon, she finished sixty of them.

As it started to get dark, Han Xiaorui invited them to stay for dinner, but Liang Xiaoyu declined.

Liang Xiaoyu said her goodbyes and left with her son. Her steps were light, and even her posture seemed straighter as she walked away.

The next morning, Liang Xiaoyu took Cai Wenjun with her in Song Sixth’s car to the hospital for his session.

They had agreed to split the fare.

Han Xiaorui didn’t refuse. After all, this kind of intervention therapy for the children was a long-term commitment, not something that would be over in a day or two.

After dropping them off at the hospital, Han Xiaorui hailed another cab and headed to Nanyang Law Firm.

She had an appointment with Chen Nanyang today to look at potential storefronts.

Chen Nanyang didn’t have any other cases or clients at the moment. For the past few days, he had dedicated himself to scouting commercial properties for Han Xiaorui and researching how to open an ornamental fish shop.

”Ms. Han, please come in. Would you like some tea?” He had bought a tea set specifically to host her and had boiled water first thing in the morning.

Han Xiaorui waved a hand dismissively. ”No need, I’m not thirsty. Let’s just go look at the storefronts. We can check out a few, and if we find a suitable one, we’ll take it.”

Chen Nanyang nodded and grabbed his briefcase. ”Alright. Let me just lock up.”

Based on his inquiries, Chen Nanyang had found six available properties near the Maternal and Child Health Hospital.

They looked at all of them. Depending on the location and the condition of the building, the monthly rent ranged from three hundred to five hundred and fifty yuan.

Han Xiaorui was surprised by how low the prices were, and that there was still room to negotiate them down further.

’She knew that property values in Shencheng were going to skyrocket over the next few decades. Buying real estate here was a surefire investment!’