Yuta fell silent, perhaps he also wanted to find someone to confide in.
After a moment of silence, he recounted what had happened.
Not long ago, his older sister and brother-in-law were in a plane accident, leaving behind three children.
Their relatives, however, couldn't raise all three children simultaneously, as they also had their own children to care for.
If any one person were to adopt The Takanashi Sisters alone, the pressure would truly be too immense for them.
Doing so would actually make it difficult to properly care for The Takanashi Sisters.
Finally, it was decided that The Takanashi Sisters could only be separated, with each family adopting one.
However, doing so was too cruel for the three children.
They had already lost their parents and didn't want to be separated from their last remaining family members.
They hoped to continue living together.
And Yuta had experienced something similar.
When he was very young, his parents also passed away, and his older sister, Yuri, to avoid being separated from him, took him in alone, living a difficult life.
But even so, they were very happy.
They were his sister's children, and Yuta was unwilling to see them unhappy.
So, he secretly took them away from their original home, without telling anyone,
preparing to raise the three of them independently.
"Your intentions are good, but have you considered what you'll do in the future?"
Liu Ming pinched his brow, saying with some helplessness, "You've just started your first year of university, and your study load is still very heavy. How will you have so much time to care for them? Moreover, raising three children simultaneously entails a very significant financial outlay."
"I'll work more part-time jobs," Yuta quickly said, thinking Liu Ming also disapproved of his actions.
"What about your studies? Do you think your sister would want to see you like this? And do you think it's just that?
It's Summer Vacation now, so you can still look after them, but what about after school starts? You have to go to school, and they have to go to school too.
The two older children are fine; they're sensible and can barely take care of themselves.
But the youngest, she's only a few years old and needs the most care. Don't you plan to give her a happy childhood?"
Liu Ming's words were like a sharp knife piercing Yuta's heart.
Yuta fell silent again. It was undeniable that taking them away had an impulsive reason, but his concern for the three was absolutely genuine.
"I'm not against you doing this, but I hope you don't act so impulsively and consider everything carefully. Because this is no longer just about you alone. Take the matter of schooling, where was their original home located?"
"Tachikawa City," Yuta replied, lacking confidence.
"Tachikawa City, huh? Then their school must also be there. What about you? Even if you live here, isn't the distance between the two places too far?"
"If they really live with you, just for them to go to school, the round trip would take over three hours.
An hour-plus one-way trip, for a girl who is only ten-something years old, do you know how tiring that is? Do you know how dangerous that can be?
Have you considered it?
Also, they are girls after all. You, a grown man, squeezing in with them, would be very inconvenient for them."
"Then I can't just leave the three of them, can I? They are my sister's children; I must take care of them on her behalf," Yuta said with a serious expression.
"I'm only raising the problems now, and what you need to do is find ways to solve these problems. Otherwise, it will be too late if you wait until the problems arise to solve them."
"Then what should I do?" Yuta said dejectedly. He was just an ordinary university student, with not as much life experience as Liu Ming.
"A very realistic problem: money. Especially at their age, and they are all girls. They need to dress up beautifully, otherwise, they'll be looked down upon at school."
"Perhaps their parents left a large sum of money, but they are still so young, it's certainly impossible to entrust them with managing it. And from your appearance, I'm afraid you don't have much either."
Yuta awkwardly scratched his head, then said earnestly, "I said I'd work more odd jobs."
Liu Ming rolled his eyes at him and gave him a chop to the head.
"My shop happens to be short-staffed. You can work here; don't worry, the pay won't be low."
"Is that okay? Won't it be too much trouble for you?" Yuta felt that Liu Ming was saying this for their sake.
"It's no trouble at all. I was planning to hire waiters anyway. It's Summer Vacation now, so all of you can work here. Consider it an early cultivation of their life skills."
"Thank you, Senior," Yuta said, gripping Liu Ming's hand, his face full of gratitude.
"Alright, no need for sentimental words. Strictly speaking, I'm their Uncle. If I didn't know, fine, but now that I do, I certainly can't just ignore it.
Now that the money problem is settled, there won't be too many issues with living. The remaining problem is schooling.
My suggestion is either to move back there to live, or to transfer schools. For cute girls like them, going to school like this every day, I'm really worried something might happen to them sooner or later.
If you move back to live, then you can only work here during the Summer Vacation, and you'll have to work a bit harder, traveling over an hour to come back for school.
If they transfer here, then they'll have to adapt to a new school and a new environment. However, you can all work odd jobs here on rest days, and you'll have more time to look after them.
This is a very serious matter, and you must consider it carefully before school starts."
"Mhm," Yuta nodded solemnly.
"However, these are all just our wishful thinking. Now, immediately call home. Explain your thoughts clearly to them and apologize. They must be very worried now that you've suddenly disappeared." Just as Liu Ming finished speaking, Yuta's phone rang.
Yuta picked up the phone and looked. The call was from his aunt, Sahara Keiko.
"What are you still standing there for? Answer the phone! Don't think you're the only one who cares about them; everyone else cares too. Remember to be respectful."