In the ordinary life of Crayon Shin-chan

Chapter 1528 The Secret Mother Hidden (Part 1)

That day, Misae was looking for something in the closet, while Shin-chan was lying next to her reading the newspaper.

Xiao Kui hid in the cardboard box, while Ming Xu played around with her.

Shin-chan looked at the newspaper with a helpless expression: "Sigh~ that weird uncle has appeared again."

"Huh?" Misae was a little confused, but didn't pay much attention and continued searching in the closet.

"Oh~ boys climbing the Sun Tower, how nostalgic," Shin-chan continued reading.

"...How old are you anyway?" Misae asked Shin-chan with a hint of annoyance.

"I'm just imitating Dad's speech," Shin-chan said nonchalantly as he turned around.

"Ah, you're right. You can find a lot of nostalgic things just by looking around in the closet." Misae sighed, noting that the newspaper Shin-chan was reading was found in the closet.

"Oh? What's this? Cookies!" Shin-chan looked at a box of cookies placed to the side in surprise. It was covered in dust, but his face was still full of excitement.

"This should just be a cookie tin, right?" Mingxu looked at Xiaoxin speechlessly. Mom usually wouldn't put whole cookies here.

"Impossible, I don't believe it!" Shin-chan said, reaching for the door. "It shouldn't be broken, right?"

As they were talking, the box was opened. Shin-chan looked inside expectantly, but it was full of letters, with not a trace of cookies.

"Ah~ so it's not a cookie inside, Mom, what is this?" Shin-chan shook his head and shouted at Misae in dissatisfaction.

Mingxu also curiously came over, looking at the envelopes in the box, his gaze falling on Misae. These must be either Misae's or Hiroshi's.

Misae, also curious, leaned closer and looked at the letter. Then she realized, "Oh, this is my surname. Oh, this is my letter." Misae nodded as she looked at the name on the letter.

"What is this? Is it a love letter from Dad?" Shin-chan asked curiously.

Mingxu shook his head as he looked at the handwriting: "Impossible, Dad's handwriting isn't like this. This delicate handwriting is most likely written by a girl."

“Yes, Xiaoxu is so smart. Besides, how could your father use an envelope with this kind of pattern?” Misae said, opening the envelope and looking at the contents: “Ah, it’s Xiaohui. This is Xiaohui. I didn’t know I kept this.”

Misae suddenly remembered, her face full of memories.

"Who is that person?" The little ones looked at Misae curiously.

“She was a pen pal my mom had when she was in elementary school,” Misae said with a smile.

"Oily nose?" Shin-chan scratched his head.

"Pen pals are friends who communicate through letters. Back then, Mom and her friends didn't have cell phones or the internet, so they relied on letters to share their lives. For example, they would write about interesting things that happened at school, their favorite cartoon characters, and even the flavors of snacks they secretly kept. Although it would take several days to receive a reply, the moment you opened the envelope and saw the familiar handwriting, it felt like receiving the most precious gift," Mingxu explained to Xiaoxin.

"Oh, okay." Shin-chan nodded.

"Xiao Xu's explanation sounds quite plausible, but she's right. When I was little, I often corresponded with this girl. I remember I loved writing letters back then, though the content wasn't anything special. We'd share things like our daily lunches. It's such a nostalgic memory," Misae nodded, sighing.

"Oh! I get it. When Mom was little, there were no telephones, so she could only write letters, right?" Shin-chan suddenly said seriously.

"Hey, hey, hey, I think I just said I don't have a cell phone, but that doesn't mean I don't have a landline either," Mingxu said to Xiaoxin, speechless.

“Yes, telephones already existed back then. Oh, I see. But you can become friends with strangers you’ve never met just by writing letters. That’s called pen pals,” Misae explained with a smile.

Mingxu suddenly asked curiously, "Mom, you don't know that girl at all?"

"I wouldn't say we're complete strangers. Although we've never met in person, she told me a lot of things in her letter. Oh, by the way, this girl's family owns a candy company. They're very rich. I heard she eats so much chocolate every day that she gets scared." Looking at the letter in front of her, Misae's face showed a look of reminiscence again.

Shin-chan immediately became envious: "Wow~ I'm so envious."

"Moreover, there are many servants at home, the yard is covered with green grass, and there's even a swimming pool with a slide," Misae continued, looking at the contents of the letter.

"Wow, that's awesome..." Shin-chan was even more envious.

"Ah! I remember now, I heard she looks a lot like Megumi from Pink Sisters," Misae said again.

"Huh?! She looks like the Pink Sisters?! I really want to meet her..." Shin-chan became even more interested in her.

"Oh, right, where does she live? Oh dear! She lives here, right next to Kasukabe. But since she's a girl, she must be married and moved somewhere else. Why don't you just ask me to help you find her instead of doing this super mission?" Misae said with a grin, clearly not paying any attention.

Shin-chan kept it to himself, muttering to himself, "Swimming pool, chocolate, pink sisters..."

"..." Mingxu looked at Xiaoxin, who was pulling him along, speechless. "Are you really going to go find her?"

"Yeah, yeah, Xiao Xu~ help me~" Xiao Xin hugged Ming Xu's arm and started to act cute.

"Alright, alright, but you have to be back for dinner." Mingxu warned Xiaoxin.

"Okay~ Hehe~" Shin-chan immediately grinned.

So, the two little ones took Misae's envelope and, following the address on it, embarked on a journey to find this little Hui.

After reaching the bridge next to Kasukabe, Mingxu confirmed that the name on it matched the one on the envelope, and then led Shin-chan across.

Shin-chan, beaming with joy, is still imagining himself lying in the swimming pool, with a beautiful older woman feeding him chocolates.

Mingxu looked at Xiaoxin speechlessly. This kid, as expected, was overthinking things.

Looking at the address on the letter, Mingxu and his group searched several streets before feeling somewhat lost and unsure if something was amiss.

He opened the map on his watch, glanced at it a few times, and realized something was wrong: "No, the roads here have most likely been renamed. Xiaoxin, should we continue looking?" Mingxu asked Xiaoxin after confirming for a few moments.

"Of course we have to look!" Xiao Xin immediately puffed out her little chest and pointed to a two-story building covered with ivy not far away. "Look, there's a swing in that yard! Maybe that's her house!" After saying that, she shook off Ming Xu's hand and rushed over like a small cannonball. She had just run to the iron gate when she tripped on the threshold.

Mingxu grabbed it, shaking his head speechlessly, "The family name is different from the surname on the letter. Oh well, if there's a problem, ask Uncle." As he spoke, Mingxu pulled Xiaoxin along, preparing to find Uncle to ask for directions.

Just then, an uncle happened to be riding by and saw the two little ones looking for directions. He asked curiously, "Little brothers, are you lost?"

"This is a matter of my personal privacy," Xiaoxin said, blurting out cheekily.

"Oh, is that so? Then be careful yourselves." The uncle didn't seem to mind; since the other party didn't need his help, he let it go.

Seeing this, Mingxu quickly grabbed his car: "Wait!"

"Huh? What's wrong?" Uncle looked at Mingxu in confusion.

"Uncle, could you tell me where this address is?" Mingxu handed the envelope to the other party and asked.