My Youth Began With Him

“Yeah, it’s good to watch for fun. My daughter introduced it to me and told me that she and her classmates were all watching this. Plus, we got internet last year, so I figured, why not?”

“You’re really young, how old is your daughter?” Huo Mian asked, seemingly unintentional.

“Guess.” The owner was in a good mood.

“15?” Huo Mian asked quietly.

“Haha… she’s almost 25.”

“Oh really? That’s old, but you look so young.” Huo Mian was at a loss for words.

“I’m not young at all, I’m already 45. People here get married early. I got married at 19, and had my daughter at 20.”

“No wonder… haha, what a coincidence, your daughter’s around my age. I’m almost 25, but my mother’s a bit older, she’s almost 50.” Huo Mian and the owner chit chatted.

Just then, the dark-skinned man came downstairs and glanced over at the owner…

She got up and headed to him. The two of them talked and even glanced at Huo Mian here and there.

Huo Mian knew they were talking about her, so she became more alert.

Finally, the owner said something to the man, and he turned around and stormed upstairs unhappily.

“Is that your husband?”

“Of course not, he’s a truck driver who’s staying for the night.” The owner immediately denied it.

Huo Mian smiled and didn’t ask any further. She changed the subject, “Did you give birth naturally? Did it hurt? Where did you give birth to your daughter?”

Huo Mian thought, that woman’s daughter was around her age, and if she gave birth at the town’s health center, then… she might have the chance to ask about what happened.

“Oh, gosh, I went through so much giving birth to my daughter back then. I wasn’t at term yet, but after an accidental slip and fall, I went into preterm labor. The health center in our town isn’t high-tech, and the doctors there weren’t really experienced, so they wouldn’t admit me. My husband had to hire a cart to pull me to a hospital in the city. I waited an entire day and night before giving birth. By then I promised myself that I’m never going to have a second child.”

“So you only have one daughter?”

“Yup, my little treasure.” The owner was proud.

“That’s good, fewer children mean less stress. After all, it takes a lot of energy and money to raise kids these days.”

“You sound wise. You’re from the city, aren’t you? Your husband is really handsome.” The owner smiled.

“Ha, yeah, I dated him because he was handsome.” Huo Mian smiled back.

“You’re lucky, I envy you. You’re young, pretty, and have a great husband.”

“You’ve lived here for a while, haven’t you?”

“Yup, ever since I got married. It’s been more than 20 years.”

“Do you know Doctor Lan?”

“Which Doctor Lan?” the owner asked, distracted by her TV show.

“Doctor Lan, the doctor in charge of delivery at the health center back then.”

Upon hearing that, the owner’s expression changed slightly…

Then, she looked at Huo Mian, confused, “Why are you interested in her?”

“Oh, here’s the thing, my aunt’s baby was delivered by Doctor Lan, and now she’s looking to apply for a single-child certificate. The bureau needs a stamp from the hospital, and it has to be stamped by the hospital that her child was born in. Back then, they didn’t have a birth approval, just a piece of paper. I saw that Doctor Lan was the person who signed it, so I wanted to ask if she could issue my aunt another birth certificate because her copy’s expired.”

“I see… I don’t think that’s going to happen then.” The owner shook her head