Chapter 202: Chapter 202: Driving Home

The ten-day trip ended amidst the “click click” sound of the camera, and the happy smiles of the whole family were captured in the photos.

Susu laughed and spread her hands thankfully that she had prepared extra film; otherwise, it wouldn’t have been enough.

On the last day, a few adults drove out to return the rental car and then went on a shopping spree, buying plenty of local delicacies from the Capital.

Since it was winter, food was easy to store, and they could also transport items by car. The most important item was the famous roasted ducks from the Capital—they bought about ten ducks, one for each family.

At home, Mrs. Lu took care of her grandchildren and let them rest well for the day, before their train journey the next day.

When the four adults returned home, the children were still asleep while Father Lu and Mrs. Lu packed their things.

Of course, before leaving, the new apartment that Susu and Brother Lu had just bought was rented out by Xiao Li, and as for the courtyard they were living in now, Susu decided not to rent it out.

Firstly, they did not lack the rental income, and secondly, they had set up quite a bit of furniture, so they simply left it there, saving it for when the family came over to stay.

The next day, after packing everything at home, Susu drove to drop her in-laws, elder sister-in-law Jiang Nan, and the six siblings at the train station.

Three adults with six children took the train back lightly packed, while Susu, Lu Xiaoting, and Brother Lu drove back with the luggage.

The three adults used sturdy cloth strips to bind the children’s wrists together. The train station was packed due to the New Year rush.

“An’an, Lele, Pingping, and Anan, stick close to the adults and don’t talk to strangers. Listen to us, and by tomorrow morning you’ll see mom.

And Tianyu, you shouldn’t be careless either, stay close to grandma and grandpa,” Susu repeated her worries and instructions over and over.

“Mom, don’t worry.”

“Susu, don’t worry, you should head back now.”

“Don’t worry, little sister-in-law, you have us three adults here.”

“Bye Mom~”

“Bye Auntie~”

After watching the group enter the station, Susu drove back, picked up her husband, her big uncle, and bags of luggage, and set off following the map.

Meanwhile, Father Lu, Mrs. Lu, and Jiang Nan, along with the children, climbed into the train through the window like dumplings dropping into boiling water.

The elderly couple didn’t even have a chance to catch their breath and quickly squeezed through the crowded aisle to the booth that seated nine—three adults and six children.

Worried about everyone’s comfort, they had bought just six seat tickets, which filled one six-seater booth exactly.

Once the children were settled by the window, the adults took seats by the aisle, and the elderly couple finally sighed with relief.

Just climbing through the window had been tough, their old arms and legs barely functional, and they were grateful for the help from young people behind them.

Previously, hearing tales about needing to climb through train windows sounded exaggerated, but having now experienced it themselves, they realized it wasn’t an exaggeration at all.

Here on the train, the three adults took turns resting, always keeping one awake to watch the children, in case a child, tempted by strangers, would be lured away.

However, the adults soon smiled; whether adults or children came over to talk, the six siblings pretended not to hear and ignored them.

Mrs. Lu asked with a smile why they ignored even the small children.

“Mom said human traffickers use kids to trick other kids.”

“Right, my mom also said that human traffickers use candy to lure kids.”

“Yeah, and it’s not like we don’t have sweets at home; we wouldn’t care for theirs,” said Lele, licking his lips dismissively.

…

The adults exchanged smiles, and each child received two white rabbit creamy candies. Their eyes lit up immediately, as sugar at home was strictly rationed to two pieces per day.

They had already eaten two eggs in the morning, and now they had more, so naturally, they were happy.

…

On the other hand, Susu looked at the dense blueprints and was overwhelmed, yearning for the electronic maps of the future. You could simply enter your destination and follow the navigation.

Lu Xiaoting and Brother Lu had already planned out their route in advance, so they just followed the marked path.

Lu Xiaoting sat in the passenger seat, responsible for reading the map and directing the route. Susu, listening to the deep, magnetic voice of Lu Gong’an giving directions, focused on driving.

Brother Lu, not needed for driving for the time being, closed his eyes and rested in the back seat to ensure he had plenty of energy.

The group only stopped the car once on their journey. Halfway through, Susu switched with Brother Lu to drive.

Susu casually ate some dry food and drank some hot water before wrapping herself in a blanket and slowly falling asleep.

The three of them had been on the road for over seven hours and arrived at home on the evening of the 23rd.

Lu Xiaomei, having received the message in advance, had someone make a ramp at the door so that the car could drive into the yard easily.

“Brother, second brother and sister-in-law, come inside and warm up.”

Lu Xiaomei happily circled the sedan, reached out to touch it, and was immediately chilled by the ice.

“Brother, second brother and sister-in-law, hurry and warm up by the fire, I’ll make you some dumplings.”

The three of them ate the steaming, plump dumplings and drank the soup.

The warm soup heated them immediately.

At dawn, Brother Lu drove to the train station to pick up the entire group.

Lu Xiaoting also got up to light the stove for the house; the pot already had hot water boiling. Hearing the sounds of the car and voices in the yard, he quickly put down a large pot of dumplings.

“Dad and mom, elder sister-in-law, you’re back, have a seat. Eat some dumplings before going to sleep.”

“Daddy~”

“Uncle~”

Lu Xiaoting said softly, “Good, you guys too, eat a couple then go to sleep.”

“Mhm~”

Susu, hearing the noise in the hall, groggily woke up but struggled to stay conscious and gave up, quickly falling asleep again.

After resting for a day, Father Lu, Mrs. Lu, Brother Lu, and Jiang Nan took the children back to the county ahead of schedule.

After Susu checked the store accounts, she distributed red packets and year-end bonuses to the staff members who had been working for more than a year and arranged for the holiday and post-holiday reopening, waiting for her man to get a holiday before going back.

Finally, on the 29th, the third brother came with his wife and child in the afternoon, and after Lu Xiaoting and his sister finished work, Susu drove them back to the county.

Five adults plus a nearly three-year-old child, there was plenty of space.

Lu Xiaomei, having coveted the sedan for a long time, finally got a chance to ride in it, touching here and there, “Sister-in-law, having your own car is so nice. No need to squeeze in public transport, and it’s both warm and spacious.”

“Yes, now that the children are grown, it’s convenient when going out; otherwise, I wouldn’t have considered buying. What’s great is, in winter you don’t have to freeze outside, and in summer you don’t have to endure the sun.”

…

While talking, everyone returned to the Family Court. The Family Court wasn’t accessible by car, so Susu simply parked in the brine yard.