Chapter 2 Guilty

when nani of the orphanage first met mangu, mangu was four years old and he was eight years old.

nani lost both his parents and was sent to an orphanage in x cityat a very young age. life in the orphanage is not easy. they need to make their own biscuits to sell, and exchange the number of biscuits sold that day with the orphanage for a day's meals.

nani was dark and did not like to talk when he was a child. going out with other kids, often eloquent and more attractive looking kids, sold more and he got nothing. no matter how many times the dean criticized him, he starved for as many days. but nani was stubborn by nature, and he didn't like this kind of practice in the orphanage. because he has seen many children try their best to please adults in order to sell a cookie. some kids are even willing to let adults touch their butts.

but the dean turned a deaf ear to these things, and his only purpose was to have more income. in the opinion of the dean, the process is not important, what is important is the result of getting the money back.

in order to satisfy his stomach, nani often helps local farmers farm the land while other children go out to sell biscuits. he works hard, has few things, and doesn't get much. the farmer's uncle is very happy to exchange some steamed buns and cakes for free labor. but in the past, nani's skin has become darker and more unpleasant after being exposed to the sun and rain.

his secret work on the farm was finally discovered by the dean. the dean whipped him with the cane angrily, and he gritted his teeth and said nothing. at that time, he secretly swore that one day, he must leave here, leave this place of sucking human blood.

soon, nani waited for an opportunity.

the news that ruan's family, the richest man in t city, is coming to the orphanage to adopt a child has spread throughout the orphanage. every child is looking forward to it, hoping that the child who is selected is himself. nani cherishes this selection even more. for this reason, he deliberately did not go to help the farmer's uncle farm the land, but went to the city to collect sweet-scented osmanthus under the century-old osmanthus tree while other children were selling biscuits. he has inquired about it. the rajput family is a family of perfumers. since he can't be pleasing to his personality and face, he has to put more effort into the fragrance.

deeper dew, after a night of dew moisturizing, the best osmanthus is picked in the morning. among them, the flowers on the top of the tree are particularly lush, and are more suitable for dried flowers. nani cautiously climbed to the top and chose the full and fragrant sweet-scented osmanthus into the basket. in order not to be discovered, he couldn't use it all day to do these things, so he had to hide the picked flowers and continue the next day.

nani went out the next day before he saw the light. today, he is going to the kiln factory ten kilometers away from the orphanage.

fortunately, it is autumn now, the autumn is high and the air is refreshing, the red leaves of the mountains are leaning against the morning glow, like the flowing dan of the mountains. nani had no time to enjoy the scenery. the eight-year-old child had been walking for nearly two hours, and his physical strength was close to the limit. so he stopped by the creek to rest, took a few sips of water, wiped off a few drops of sweat, and then continued on the road.

when he arrived, the kiln had just opened, and the workers yawned and started the machine to start their day.

nani observed the people at the end, found a good-looking teacher, and walked over.

"hello, can you give me some quicklime?"

the worker took out his ears, turned off the machine, and lowered his head to ask him, "whose child are you? how did you come here? what did you just say?"

"i want to ask, can you give me some quicklime? i can work here in exchange." his voice was still young, but his face was mature for his age.

"don't be kidding, who would dare to hire child labor!" the worker laughed: "what do you want quicklime to do?"

"i need to make some dried flowers."

"old li, what's the matter?" another worker found nani, he walked towards them while taking off his gloves.

"oh, the doll said he wanted some quicklime for dried flowers."

"quicklime? how much do you want?" the worker asked.

"not much, i just need to spread on the bottom of two jars. it's important to me, and i can do the work for you in exchange."

"that's not necessary." the worker who came over was obviously more powerful than lao li: "lao li, you can go and pack some food for this kid. but kid, you have to be careful and don't touch it with your hands, you know?

" well, i know, thank you uncle!" nani put the paper wrapping the quicklime into the basket behind him with extra care, thanked the workers again, and happily returned the same way. he thought to himself, if the quicklime came so smoothly, does it mean that his next life has turned around and things will be quite smooth?

on the third day, nani went to the soil slope where the garbage was thrown. after searching for a long time, he found two clay pots that were slightly broken but barely usable. he washed and dried the jar, carefully spread the quicklime on the bottom layer, and put a layer of plastic bag on it. above the plastic bag, a well-cut piece of paper nicely insulates the osmanthus from the quicklime. he sealed the pot and waited to open it in two days.

he has been returning empty-handed in the past few days, and he was unavoidably beaten and scolded by the dean several times. for the past three days, nani only relied on some fruits picked by the roadside to satisfy his hunger, and his empty stomach protested to him, which kept him up at night. but nani felt it was worth it, as long as he could be elected, everything would be worth it. fortunately, the dean was also preparing for the arrival of the rajput family, and he didn't have much time to investigate what nani was doing every day.

the day when the rajput family came to the orphanage finally came, and every child took a clean bath after a long absence. lined up under the banner to welcome the nguyen family. the person who came was mangu's mother, pihu. her demeanor was elegant and dignified, demure and beautiful, and many children in the orphanage were dumbfounded.

pihu had explained to the orphanage before she came here that the children she wanted to adopt this time should be between five and nine years old, male or female. so after lining up to welcome, eligible children were called out individually and lined up in a vertical column.

pihu swept over the children in front of her, and selected five children who looked festive and good-looking. she wanted to turn around and leave, but a fragrance filled her heart. she turned her head and sniffed the scent of flowers in the air, walked to nani in a little surprise, and stopped.

nani stood at the end of the line, and his dried flowers were crisp and dry. he stayed up all night last night, packed the dried flowers in several sacks that were made, and wore them close to his body. the fragrance of the flowers is fresh and good, sweet but not greasy, fragrant and fragrant.

"this fragrance of osmanthus came from you?" pihu asked.

"mrs. hui, it came from the sachet i made." nani replied obediently.

"can you show it to me?"

nani took out a rather exquisite sachet from his bosom. although it was far less delicate than pihu's usual use, it could be seen that the person who made this sachet put his heart into it. .

pihu picked up the sachet and smelled it, and said with admiration: "the fragrance is strong, and the aroma of osmanthus is fragrant. this smell should be picked three or four days after the flowering period, and then dried just right, so as to retain the aroma of osmanthus. ." she handed the sachet back to nani: "thank you little friend, i will return it to you."

"madam, this is what i made for you, a gift for you." nani did not accept it, but answered humbly. .

"well, he's polite, polite, and understands people's feelings. he's a smart child, not bad." pihu was not polite to nani either. she put away the sachet and said to the principal, "i also took this child with me. ." the

principal was wondering when nani did this, and hurriedly agreed when he heard pihu's words: "okay, okay, no problem."

the children who were sitting happily in the car saw nani. when they were brought into the car, they were all silent. inside the extended luxury car, mrs. ruan sat on the sofa on the right, while nani consciously squeezed with the other five children on the sofa on the left.

xu was having too many people, and it was uncomfortable to sit. one of the handsome boys complained: "che, i used some rude tricks, it's disgusting. otherwise, it's just like black coal balls based on your appearance , how can i be selected."

nani didn't respond, just sat upright and ignored it.

"do you mean to say that making sachets is a trivial trick? then did my rajput family make a fortune from inferior tricks?" pihu changed her gentleness and stared sharply at the child who was talking.

"no no no, ma'am, that's not what i meant, i was just talking about him." the boy waved his hands in fright.

"my rajput family, what i hate the most are those villains who tell lies and disgusting mouths. you go down, go back to your orphanage, and don't have to go with us."

"madam, i was wrong, i was wrong, you can give i have a chance!" the boy cried aloud, and pihu felt annoyed, and when she waved her hand, the bodyguard immediately took the child down. the crying faded away, and the car returned to silence.

pihu swept over every child in front of her, and after the incident just now, all the children lowered their eyelids and no one spoke.

"there is something i need to make clear with you." pihu's voice was cold: "don't think that if you get in this car, you are the child i will adopt. among you, only one child will be adopted by me. and i will adopt you all. the reason is because my son wants to grow up with him personally. you are going to ruan's house with me now, and you will live with my son for a week. after a week, he will choose the one he wants to stay the rest of the children will still be sent back here."

"your character, habits, and abilities will all be examined within this week. so, let me remind you to do well within this week. don't make trouble like that kid just now, understand?"

"understood, ma'am." the children answered one by one.

nani's small fist clenched unconsciously, and he made up his mind that he would perform well this week and become the one who stayed in the end.

when the lincoln car started, nani looked at pihu, who had closed his eyes and took a nap and thought, "i wonder what a child born from such a beautiful person will look like?" .

To be continued