Mistakenly recognized as a cousin, thousands of pampered

"You have to let us in to take a look. Only then can I hand the child over to you." Seeing that the servant's attitude was still bad, Tao Jiuxi directly stated his request.

Her eyes were firm and her tone held a hint of urgency.

Upon hearing this, the two gatekeepers exchanged glances, and one of them ran in first.

The remaining servant said, "Since the young lady wants to see it, then you can take a look. However, there are many young children inside and they are a bit noisy. I'm afraid they might disturb you two."

After saying that, he led the two of them inside.

He walked at a leisurely pace, with Tao Jiuxi and Shen Zhiyi following behind him.

After a few people entered, a woman who looked to be in her thirties came forward to introduce Ci Xin Hall.

The woman had a kind face and decent manners. She smiled and told the two of them about the history and current situation of Cixin Hall.

Tao Jiuxi listened to the woman's introduction while observing the environment here.

She found that the environment here was not bad, clean and tidy, and the facilities were relatively complete.

But there were not many children inside, only about thirty.

Tao Jiuxi originally thought that there would be about a hundred children, and he couldn't help but feel a little confused.

She turned to look at Shen Zhiyi, asking for his opinion with her eyes. Shen Zhiyi frowned slightly, as if he was also thinking about this question.

Children of different ages are arranged separately here.

The younger children played freely, while the older girls sat together doing needlework.

The children were not surprised to see someone coming in and continued to be busy with their own work.

Tao Jiuxi walked around and felt that this place was not as big as it looked from the outside.

Then she saw the door leading to the backyard.

"Can I go and see the environment where the children live?" Tao Jiuxi asked.

"Girl, the house at the back is no different from here. Boys and girls live in two separate courtyards, and are looked after by special maids," the woman explained.

"Is it inconvenient to go and see?"

"Besides these children, there are also people like us who take care of the children, wash clothes and cook. Some people live here with their families, so it's really inconvenient for the girl to visit." There was a hint of apology in the woman's tone.

Tao Jiuxi also felt that what the woman said made some sense, but she always had a strange feeling in her heart, and she couldn't explain why.

Shen Zhiyi stayed by his side the whole time and didn't say much.

He quietly observed everything around him.

After the scene was completed, the woman immediately stepped forward and said, "Young lady, now that you have seen this, you will feel relieved. Leave this girl here, she will not suffer."

Tao Jiuxi looked at Fu Ya in his arms and felt a little hesitant.

Tao Jiuxi said nothing when he heard this, and turned his gaze to Shen Zhiyi again.

Shen Zhiyi spoke softly, "Madam, do you want to wait until we leave Sucheng the day after tomorrow to send Fuya here?"

Tao Jiuxi immediately understood: "I have developed some feelings for her during this period. If I don't take her back to my hometown, the neighbors will talk a lot, and I will definitely be reluctant to let her go."

She gently stroked Fuya's hair, her eyes full of love.

"My wife, it is absolutely impossible to bring her back to the countryside. My parents will not allow it. You can only keep her until the day after tomorrow and must send her out." Shen Zhiyi's tone was firm and left no room for doubt.

Tao Jiuxi pretended to be embarrassed and reluctant. Her brows furrowed slightly, and her eyes showed pain and entanglement. She hugged Fu Ya tightly, as if unwilling to let go.

The woman thought she could keep the child today, but she hadn't expected to wait another two days. "My dear, your husband is right. Don't let your family get upset over a child from outside. Leave the child with us. You can rest assured. You're from another place, so you might not know. Our great philanthropist Li is a well-known living Bodhisattva."

There was a hint of urgency and persuasion in her tone, hoping that Tao Jiuxi could make a decision as soon as possible.

"What the elder sister said is true, but I really can't bear to let go. Let me be the mother of this child for two more days." Tao Jiuxi's voice was choked with tears in her eyes.

Seeing Tao Jiuxi's resolute attitude, the woman said nothing more: "The girl is kind-hearted. Send it back the day after tomorrow."

After Shen Zhiyi finished speaking, he hugged Fu Ya and Tao Jiuxi and left.

Before leaving, Tao Jiuxi kept praising Cixintang to the woman.

It wasn't until he got on the carriage that Tao Jiuxi felt less depressed. The gloomy feeling that had permeated the Cixin Hall gradually dissipated, replaced by a sense of relief.

"Fuya can't be sent."

"Fuya can't be sent."

The two said in unison.

"Did you find anything?" Tao Jiuxi asked hurriedly. She was eager to know whether Shen Zhiyi had also noticed the things that made her suspicious.

"There's a strong smell of blood near the backyard. Orphanages usually have schools, but here, they let the children play. When I rented the carriage today, the owner knew I was going to Cixin Hall and praised the great philanthropist Li, who built it. He said they'd taken in over a hundred children in the past two years, but just now, there were only thirty-one," Shen Zhiyi said slowly, his voice low and calm, analyzing the various anomalies in Cixin Hall. The strong smell of blood alerted him, and the difference from other orphanages made him feel this was something more than simple.

"I think the woman who was talking to us was a little too attentive. People like us who are hesitant would usually persuade the person who brought the child to us to continue to take him in out of kindness." Tao Jiuxi continued, thinking back to the woman's words and actions. She felt uncomfortable with her excessive attentiveness.

A normal charity might give more understanding and time to hesitant people instead of blindly persuading them to send their children.

"Let's go back first."

The carriage had only been moving for a short while when it suddenly stopped. Then the driver's voice was heard scolding: "What are you doing? Do you want to die?"

A woman's crying was heard outside.

"We can't send the child in. We can't send the child in." The crying was shrill and desperate, which made people feel pity.

Shen Zhiyi opened the curtains and saw a woman in ragged clothes standing in front of the carriage, her hair disheveled and her face wet with tears.

Tao Jiuxi stuck his head out and looked around. Seeing no one around, he quickly ordered the driver, "Please ask her to come up and talk."

The woman did not refuse and got on the carriage.

Seeing that the child was still in the carriage, she breathed a sigh of relief. Instead of sitting down, she knelt on the ground and said, "This place doesn't really take in children. The child hasn't been seen since he entered."

Her voice trembled and tears welled up in her eyes again.

Tao Jiuxi looked at the emotional woman and stepped forward to support her: "Get up and talk slowly."

In the closed carriage, the woman's clothes were tattered and she smelled bad.

Those eyes were swollen to the size of walnuts, clearly showing the immense pain and sorrow they had experienced. Tao Jiuxi's heart tightened, realizing that the situation at Cixin Hall might be even more serious than they had imagined.