Sense of Crisis

Xiaoguo leaned closer to the mirror to take a closer look. If she hadn’t applied the cream herself, she would have thought that she was hallucinating. Has her skin become so dry recently?

With these thoughts in mind, Xiaoguo was finally paying attention to her skin. She leaned closer to the mirror and took a good look. She realized that her skin was indeed dry and rough.

She seemed to have stopped using skincare since the apocalypse. However, as she spent a lot of time in the kitchen, her skin did not become too dry at that time because her face was often covered in oil. After she came here, she did not pay much attention to her skin. She hardly applied any skincare after washing her face. Now that she thought about it, her skin had become like this due to her neglect. She was lucky that her skin had not completely dried up.

Previously, Jiang Danhe had given her a lot of bottles and jars, but she had never taken a close look at them. They were all kept in the cabinet and left unopened.

If it weren’t for the fact that she was going to see Mr. Kong today, she wouldn’t have noticed her skin condition, or opened the bottles.

She took out everything and placed them outside, reminding herself to take care of her skin. She stuffed the remaining cosmetics into the cabinet and thought for a moment before taking them out again.

She felt like she was getting more lazy recently. She was only in her twenties. This is the age where she should be paying more attention to her appearance. Although she had become a mother, that shouldn’t be the excuse for her laziness!

“No!”

Xiaoguo shuddered at the thought of becoming an old hag. She couldn’t let that happen!

Therefore, she deliberately placed all the bottles and jars in front of the mirror. She had decided to apply skincare every day in the future. She must not become a slovenly old woman at this age.

Moreover, the most important factor was Jiang Danhe. Since she had accepted Jiang Danhe as her husband, she should at least have some sort of crisis awareness.

Jiang Danhe became a general at such a young age. He was handsome and well-built. Most importantly, he was very focused. If he was seduced by some other women, it would be devastating for her.

“Mother, are you almost done?”

This was the third time Zhuang Zhuang was entering the house to rush Xiaoguo. Usually, she was the one urging him to leave the house. Today, it was the other way around.

“In a minute.”

Zhuang Zhuang snorted in dissatisfaction and turned to walk out. He had repeated himself three times. And each time the reply he got was the same. He was already seated on the donkey waiting for her now.

Xiaoguo pursed her lips and looked at her reflection in satisfaction. Putting on lipstick really helped to add color to her face.

When she was done dressing up, Xiaoguo stood up and checked her clothes carefully. She was wearing a simple outfit that she made herself. It consisted of a top and wide-legged pants. There was no heavy make-up on her face. After all, she wasn’t going to walk on the runway. The theme for her outfit today was one of simplicity and elegance.

“What are you doing on the donkey’s back? Come down quickly!”

Xiaoguo stopped breathing for a second. As soon as she stepped out of the door, she was shocked by Zhuang Zhuang. This little guy actually dared to get on the donkey’s back. He was too bold.

“You’re finally out!”

Zhuang Zhuang raised his upper body. His bold actions frightened Xiaoguo so much that she broke out in a cold sweat. She quickly carried him down and placed him safely on the ground. Only then did she heave a sigh of relief.

“Mother is so beautiful today.”

Zhuang Zhuang didn’t think much of it. He only felt that his mother was exceptionally beautiful today.

“You…” Xiaoguo was angry at first, but she was immediately tickled after hearing Zhuang Zhuang’s sincere tone. There was no way she could remain feeling upset with him.

“…” Looking at Zhuang Zhuang, who didn’t seem to care at all, Xiaoguo calmed herself down and said, “You shouldn’t climb so high without my supervision, especially on a donkey’s back, oh, and on the back of a cow.”

Xiaoguo suddenly thought of the two cows in the courtyard. They were getting taller and bigger. Zhuang Zhuang was not even as tall as their legs.

If Zhuang Zhuang was to go behind them and touch their butts or swing from their necks like how he did when he was young, he could fall or get injured by them. That must never happen!

Looking at Zhuang Zhuang’s confused expression, Xiaoguo once again felt that sending him to school was the best plan.

As Zhuang Zhuang grew older, he was becoming more lively and active. What if an accident happened while she wasn’t looking…

Xiaoguo was shocked by her own imagination and couldn’t help but shiver. Just thinking about it was frightening for her.

“Do you remember?”

Xiaoguo looked at the little guy in front of her, who was laughing and taking her words lightly. She was being very serious right now. It was different from her usual seriousness. This time, she was much harsher with her words.

“…” Zhuang Zhuang was shocked by Xiaoguo’s tone. He looked at her with his big teary eyes and nodded obediently. He whispered, “I’ll remember.”

Xiaoguo also felt that her attitude was a little too extreme just now. But on second thought, if Zhuang Zhuang could be shocked into remembering her words, at least she wouldn’t need to explain herself again.

However, when Xiaoguo saw his frightened look, she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. The tall buildings that she had just built collapsed in the next instant.

She squatted down and hugged him tightly in her arms. Now that she couldn’t carry Zhuang Zhuang anymore, she could only squat down and hug him tightly to give him warmth.

“Mother? Are you angry?”

After a while, Zhuang Zhuang’s trembling and careful voice sounded. His small hands stroked her back intermittently, just like how Xiaoguo always comforted him.

“I’m not angry. I’m just worried and concerned about you. I value you more than myself.”

Ever since Xiaoguo accepted him as her son, she had invested all her heart and soul on him. Unknowingly, he had become more important than her own life. The thought of Zhuang Zhuang getting hurt made her feel suffocated.

That was why she was frightened by her own thoughts. Unknowingly, she had become used to keeping him away from all dangers. She was highly resistant to potential dangers. Whenever something happened, it was always her first thought to bring Zhuang Zhuang away from all sources of danger.

She had to admit that she seemed a little overprotective…

“I’m sorry. I won’t do anything dangerous again.”

Zhuang Zhuang felt that he could understand Xiaoguo. He thought that it was the same way that he liked his mother. He liked being with his mother very much. If she was just absent from his side for a moment, he would start feeling uneasy. Therefore, his mother must be feeling the same way about him.

When Xiaoguo heard this, her heart was filled with tenderness. “This boy is just like a pair of good cotton pants. They are warm and resistant to cold.”

“Alright, let’s go. Let’s go!”

“Hehe, let’s go!”

The mother and son locked the door and set off happily for the county.

–

Following the address, Xiaoguo and Zhuang Zhuang arrived at an elegant house at the edge of the river. The surroundings were quiet and secluded. The place was warm in winter and cool in summer. It was a very suitable spot for retiring in comfort.

“Mother, there’s no one.”

Zhuang Zhuang raised his hand and pointed at the iron lock on the wooden door for Xiaoguo to see.

“Yes…” Xiaoguo stopped the donkey cart and asked Zhuang Zhuang to wait in it while she went to take a look.

She reached out to pull the lock, but it didn’t budge. She looked through the gap in the door. The environment inside was very neat, but there was no one around. No one was living there yet.

“Let’s go first.”

Left with no choice, Xiaoguo turned around with the donkey cart. She was guessing that Mr. Kong had not arrived yet, so it was better that she leaves first. It didn’t feel right to wait foolishly at their door.

“Mother, are we going home?”

Zhuang Zhuang tightened his grip on the cart and watched Xiaoguo turn it around.

“We’re not going home. We’re going to look for Uncle. We’ll come back and take a look later.”

Mr. Kong was expected to arrive today. Since they had arrived in the county, they shouldn’t go back. It would be too tiring to travel back and forth. They could just wait at the noodle shop and make a few trips in between to check.

“Okay. Let’s go find Uncle!”

Zhuang Zhuang raised his hands high and wriggled his little butt in joy.