At this moment, a strong knocking was heard from the door, “This is the police! Open up!”
When Lu Yong had returned to the study the first time, Dabao had hid behind the sofa and called 110 using the portable phone.
Lu Yong stopped in his tracks when he heard the police.
He was in jail for intentional assault, and it had only been a few months since his release. If he were to be caught by the police again, he would be sent right back to jail once more.
If he’d spent another few more years in jail, Luo Fei might marry someone else.
“Mister, the police won’t arrest you if you don’t hurt me.” Dabao said tremblingly.
Lu Yong was in confusion and had run out of ideas.
He wasn’t a smart person to begin with, otherwise he wouldn’t have been used as a gun for hire by Luo Fei like that.
“If you hurt me, you won’t get out of here either. If you open the door, I’ll tell the police that you’re just a deliveryman.”
Dabao was shaking heavily but bit hard on his lips to keep himself from crying.
“Whoever’s inside, I’ll count to five! If you don’t open the door by then, I’ll break it down!”
The policeman outside started counting down.
“Mister, go open the door and you’ll be fine.”
In a state of panic, Lu Yong tossed the knife aside and opened the door.
The police rushed in and Dabao felt a sense of relief. His legs finally gave way and he slumped onto the floor with tears rolling down his cheeks.
“Don’t be afraid, kids. It’s alright now.”
The police officer had never seen such a beautiful child in his life. He picked him up and comforted him softly.
Before he was done with one, another came running out of the study crying.
“And this is…?”
Both the police and Lu Yong who had been put in handcuffs were stunned.
……
During lunch break, Ning Ran switched on her phone and saw over ten missed calls.
Three of which, were from home. She got worried and called home but no one answered.
She got even more worried as there was still no answer.
She called Cheng Xiangyun. Cheng Xiangyun told her that she was visiting the school today and had forgotten her phone in her car, so she didn’t hear it ring. She said she was rushing home now as she too, felt something had happened.
The other missed calls were from unknown numbers, so Ning Ran tried calling them back.
It was the police. They told her that her children are at the station and told her to come collect them.
As Ning Ran burst into the police station all out of breath, she saw several policemen surrounding her two angels.
Erbao was stuffing her mouth with the food given by the police as she chatted away with them. Thanks to the food, she had recovered quickly from her traumatic state.
Dabao sat quietly next to his sister, showing no emotion.
“My angels, are you alright?” Ning Ran’s tears started to fall.
“Mommy……” Erbao came running and threw herself on Ning Ran.
Dabao was less aggressive, and just snuggled next to his mommy.
“Your kids were very smart! Had they not bought us enough time to get there, the consequences would be dire.” The policeman said.
“Who’s trying to hurt my children?”
“The suspect who broke into the room has been arrested on the spot. However, he does not admit to hurting the child, nor did he tell us his motives. We are still investigating this case.”
“Thank you so much, ma’am! Sweetie, have you thanked the police officers?” Ning Ran said as she wiped her tears.
“Yes, I have.” Erbao said in her usual childish voice, “She bought me a lot of food!”
To Erbao, this was the most important part.
“Ms. Ning, I have to say this, no matter how busy you are with work, you can’t leave your child alone at home like this! They’re still so young, it’s too dangerous!” The pretty policewoman said.
“Yes, it’s my fault. I’m so sorry about this. I was busy contacting the school. I’m so sorry, it’s all my fault…” Ning Ran started to tear up again.
“Don’t cry, mommy. We’re fine! Big brother was really awesome! He was there to protect me!” Erbao reached out and wiped the tears from Ning Ran’s eyes as she comforted her.
Dabao didn’t say a word. He nodded vigorously with a strong look in his eyes.
With such children, Ning Ran couldn’t hold it in anymore. She hugged them tightly and rocked them strongly in her embrace.
As they were done filling up the paperwork, Cheng Xiangyun had rushed over to the station as well.
The pretty policewoman loved the two kids so much that she personally saw them off at the door, and advised Ning Ran to have them go through counselling.
A traumatic experience like this would’ve cast a shadow in the child’s heart, leaving behind a psychological illness. It may not show now, but it could affect the child’s life forever.
Only through professional counseling, would such a trauma be removed.
She then handed Ning Ran a phone number, and told her that it was a really good psychologist who had worked with the police for a long time. She advised Ning Ran to bring them to him.
Ning Ran thanked the police as she got into Cheng Xiangyun’s car with the kids.
“It’s all my fault… I couldn’t find a suitable school even after calling up so many of them.” “None of this would’ve happened if they were at school.” Cheng Xiangyun kept blaming herself.
“It’s not Aunt Xiang’s fault! It’s the bad guys!” Erbao said.
“No, I’m to blame. I shouldn’t have just left them at home like that.” Ning Ran said.
“We really need to find them a school. In the worst case scenario, we’ll just send them to a normal private kindergarten first.” Cheng Xiangyun sighed.
“This is our only option for now.” Ning Ran said.
At this moment, the director’s called and urged Ning Ran to get back on set.
So the two split up. Cheng Xiangyun took the children for psychological counseling, while Ning Ran returned to work.
……
In the early morning of the next day, Ning Ran was woken up by a phone call from overseas. Ning Ran frowned as she saw the number. As she answered the phone, the person hurled abuse at her over the line.
“Calling me at such an hour, are you out of your mind?”
“You’re the crazy one, Ding Mi! Why have you been ignoring my calls?” “You still owe me money! Are you trying to avoid paying up?!” “You promised me you’d call me as soon as you returned to China! It’s been so long since your return now, and you’re still ignoring my calls and messages! You ungrateful little……” The person on the other line went on and on as soon as the line got through, so Ning Ran couldn’t even get a word in.
She decided to put the phone next to her pillow and went back to sleep.
“Hello? Hello? Are you there? Damn it, Ding Mi! Are you listening to me?!”
After a few minutes, the man started to realize that Ning Ran was not listening at all.
Ning Ran then got back on the phone, “A grown man like yourself nagging like an old hag? Have you no shame?”
“You’re the shameless one! Forgetting about me once you got back to China like that… When are you going to pay back the money you owe me?”
“It’s only a few hundred, man. It’s not like you’re strapped for cash right now anyway, so why are you rushing me like this? Besides, I borrowed the money from you fairly and squarely, so why should I be paying you back so soon?”
“You……”
“Anyway, I’m busy. What did you want from me?”
“I’m coming back to China next week! Come pick me up!”
“Why are you coming back? You’re not actually coming just to collect my debt, are you?”
“Cut the crap. Just remember to come pick me up.”
“By the way, didn’t you say you’re quite a big deal in China? I have something that I need your help with, is that okay?” Ning Ran asked.
“What is it? As long as it isn’t finding you a boyfriend, I can help you out with it.”
“Could you help me find a school for my kids to go to? I’ve only returned recently and I’m not very familiar with the place, so I wasn’t able to find a good one.” Ning Ran said.
“That’s it?”
“Yeah, can you do it?”
“I’ll do it if you promise to come pick me up.”
“Alright, I promise.” Ning Ran said with a frown.
“Bring your kids to Zhixing International Kindergarten tomorrow. Just give them your name, and the child can go to school there.”
“Really?”
“Of course, why would I lie to you? This is a piece of cake for me. Just remember to come pick me up!”
“Okay. But if you lie to me, I’ll break your legs! Anyway, I’m going back to sleep, so I’ll hang up now.” Ning Ran hung up the phone straight away.
After waking up in the morning, Ning Ran asked Cheng Xiangyun, “What do you think of Zhixing International Kindergarten tomorrow?”
Cheng Xiangyun gave Ning Ran a puzzled look, “You want to send your kids to Zhixing?”
“Yeah, is it bad?”
“No, on the contrary, it’s too good. So good that most people wouldn’t even consider it an option. It’s the best kindergarten in Flower City, and it is also the most expensive one. It costs five hundred thousand a semester. And even with such an expensive fee, a lot of rich people couldn’t get in either as they only accept 30 students in the city. There was someone who was willing to pay two million but even they couldn’t buy their place in there.”
“That great, huh?”
“I don’t even know what’s so great about it. All I know is, kids who can study in Zhixing are either from extremely rich or noble families. Their parents are the members of the elite in Flower City.”
Ning Ran was starting to understand what she meant, “So, a lot of people want to send their kids there because they want to get into that elite circle and build a high-end network through their children’s relationship with fellow classmates.”
“Yes, that’s right. However, for a school to charge such high fees and still have so many parents willing to send their kids there… That means their facilities must also be top-notch.”
“If that’s the case, then I’ll try bringing the kids there.”
“But you……” Cheng Xiangyun stopped herself as she didn’t want to hurt Ning Ran’s feelings.
“I know I’m not rich or from a noble family. But since my friend recommended it to me, I’ll give it a shot. Who knows, he might have actually gotten me a spot there.”
“Who is that friend of yours, bragging like that?” Cheng Xiangyun got curious.
“His name is Tony. He’s a buddy I know from abroad. He’s a white guy with blonde hair.”
“Tony? Why does it sound like the name of a chief hairstylist?”
“Yeah, he does look like one too.” Ning Ran said.
“Mommy’s talking about Blondie.” Erbao interrupted.
“You know him too?” Cheng Xiangyun pinched Erbao’s puffy cheeks.
“Yeah, Blondie likes mommy and kept trying to win mommy over. But mommy didn’t accept him. Blondie wants us to call him uncle, but we call him Blondie.” Erbao explained seriously.
“So he’s your suitor?” Cheng Xiangyun looked at Ning Ran.
“I guess so. He looks decent and all, but he’s too childish, so he wasn’t my type.” Ning Ran said.
“If he can really get you a spot in Zhixing Kindergarten, then he’s definitely no ordinary guy.”
“Blondie said he’s a superstar, and has lots of fans. People bought him satellites as gifts for his birthday!” Erbao said.
“Don’t listen to his nonsense.” Ning Ran said.
Then, Ning Ran called her director to ask for two hours of absence and brought her kids to Zhixing Kindergarten.”
Cheng Xiangyun was nervous as she didn’t believe that a recommendation from Ning Ran’s friend could earn them a spot that countless rich parents couldn’t.
“My name is Ding Mi……”
The staff smiled the moment they heard it was Ding Mi, “Hello, Ms. Ding, this way please. You can have a drink here while you wait. We’ll conduct an admission interview for your children as per normal procedure. As long as they pass the interview, they can get enrolled immediately.”
Cheng Xiangyun’s jaw dropped. They could enroll just like that?
“Alright, thank you.”
A beautiful teacher came over and ushered Dabao and Erbao into the room next to theirs for the interview.
Erbao turned towards Ning Ran and waved her meaty little fist in the air, “Don’t worry, mommy. Brother and I will pass this interview!”
Ning Ran smiled and nodded at her.
She had complete faith in her kids, as they were both geniuses.
