Li Yanran: "..."

She gave Shen Fenghua a resentful look. This person's way of speaking is so annoying!

Eat your food properly!

The tranquility at the dinner table was broken by the little guy Qi Nian'an. Holding up a steamed bun, he said to He Dongdong without any hesitation, "At this rate, when will you ever finish this?"

He Dongdong was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously looked up at Li Yanran, wanting to seek his mother's help.

Li Yanran seemed to be possessed by some evil spirit; her mind raced faster than her brain, and she turned away abruptly, ignoring He Dongdong's pleas for help.

Shen Fenghua: "!!!"

Goodness, she immediately followed suit, turned her head, and even started chatting with Li Yanran.

He pretended to be speaking very seriously, as if he hadn't heard what He Dongdong said at all.

He Dongdong: "..."

Weak and helpless.

Unable to rely on either his biological mother or godmother, He Dongdong could only bite the bullet and speak to Qi Nian'an, "Huh?"

"I told you to eat quickly!"

Qi Nian'an had already eaten two buns, but He Dongdong's bun wasn't even halfway gone.

So...

Qi Nian'an tilted her head, looked at He Dongdong's long face as he ate, and then had a look of sudden realization. "Oh~ I know, you don't like the vegetable and mushroom filling, do you?"

Before He Dongdong could react, his hand suddenly went empty. The half-eaten bun had vanished, and the next second, a brand-new, steaming hot bun was shoved into his hand, the kind without a single tooth mark on it.

He Dongdong: "!!!"

These steamed buns I painstakingly ate!

"Eat this," Qi Nian'an said, her mouth full of the leftover bun from He Dongdong, her words muffled. "Auntie loves this. It's sour and spicy, so delicious. You should eat it."

“But…” He Dongdong raised his hand, his little face full of confusion.

Qi Nian'an thought he was disgusted by her. "I washed my hands before eating. Dad said that Auntie likes clean children. I'm very clean, really!"

Hearing this, He Dongdong panicked and hurriedly shook his head, "No, no, no, I didn't mean that. I just wanted to say that what you're eating is what I left over. Aren't you disgusted by its mess?"

"Dirty?" Qi Nian'an was stunned. He took the half-eaten bun out of his mouth again. This white and soft bun looked so delicious, how could it be dirty?

If it were in the past, he and his brother would have been so happy to eat such fragrant steamed buns that they wouldn't have been able to sleep all night.

He looked at He Dongdong like a little adult and sighed, "Sigh~ You've never experienced hardship!"

Li Yanran and Shen Fenghua, who had been silently listening to the conversation, were speechless.

What should I do? I'm so tight in the chest trying to hold back my laughter.

“Yes,” Qi Nianping chimed in, “We used to not have enough to eat, so you should eat properly. This pickled cabbage is delicious, you should try it.”

After being persuaded by his two brothers, He Dongdong actually started eating the sauerkraut bun.

I don't know if it was just his imagination, but eating with other people did seem to make the food taste better.

Before I knew it, I had eaten a sauerkraut bun.

"Another bowl of soup," Qi Nian'an kept chattering, "A bowl of soup after a meal, just to cleanse the palate!"

He Dongdong did indeed drink the soup with her, but his appetite was limited. One and a half buns and half a bowl of soup was his limit. Even so, Li Yanran was so excited that she wanted to shout.

Good heavens, her son has made something of himself!

Shen Fenghua: "!!!"

Grinning and snarling!

Silently pushing away Li Yanran's hand that was gripping her arm, she thought, "You can love your son, but please don't hurt me."

Just after they finished eating, He Jun brought over an oxcart. After tying the ox to a tree in the yard, He Jun went inside and started calling the children to take some things with them. When the children went out, they needed to change their clothes, and also get some snacks and drinks.

But Shen Fenghua, that careless fellow, didn't think of anything and came over empty-handed with the child.

Shen Fenghua: "..." Belatedly realizing her embarrassment.

Li Yanran was too embarrassed to say anything to her, "Alright, alright, you've been doing this to me for more than just a day or two. Now you feel ashamed? Why didn't you do this earlier?"

Shen Fenghua blushed and playfully punched Li Yanran, her pretty face flushed with shyness. "Oh dear, I used to come alone, but now I've brought two more mouths with me. I'm so embarrassed."

Li Yanran: "..."

Goosebumps instantly rose all over her body. She gritted her teeth and said, "Shen Fenghua, if you keep doing this worthless nonsense, I'll throw you out by the leg. Then we'll be sitting on the oxcart, and you can run behind us on your own two legs."

Shen Fenghua remained silent. "Alright, alright, I'll shut up. Let's go quickly."

Even if two children eat as much as they want, how much can they possibly eat?

If these two kids could take good care of Xiao Dong and make him eat properly, she would really wish they could just live in her house.

Raising one child is the same as raising three; it's just a matter of adding an extra ladle of water when cooking—no big deal. Besides, with their current financial resources, raising two more children would be more than enough.

The oxcart was cleaned spotlessly, as if it were covered with a layer of clean straw. Then He Jun laid a tattered cotton quilt on top of it. "It's a bit hot, but it will reduce the bumps."

Then they handed out hats to each child one by one, being incredibly thoughtful from beginning to end.

Shen Fenghua clicked her tongue and silently gave a thumbs up. This man is so thoughtful!

He Jun chuckled when he saw the thumbs-up, and jokingly said, "Don't look at me like that. That kid Qi Ye is even more meticulous than me."

Shen Fenghua: "?"

She looked completely bewildered. So, she was being teased?

“Brother He, look at you,” Shen Fenghua felt a little embarrassed, but she was very generous on the surface and waved her hand, “You’re still teasing me. I’m just a young girl. If you keep talking to me like that, I’ll feel ashamed. I’m easily embarrassed.”

"Get in the car!" Ever since Li Yanran saw Shen Fenghua, her smile hadn't faded. "You're such a troublemaker. How old are you? You're still acting like a child."

"Oh dear," Shen Fenghua climbed onto the oxcart, settled in, and shook her head, "Who told us to have someone who dotes on us, right, Sister Yanran~"

The children didn't understand, but when the adults laughed, they laughed along with them, and the oxcart made a clanging sound all the way down the road.

Hearing the familiar sound of cowbells, Shen Fenghua suddenly thought of Qi Ye, wondering where he was now and whether the mission was safe.

The children surrounded her, chattering incessantly, but Shen Fenghua, being the little heartless one she was, quickly forgot all about Qi Ye.

Well, people should focus on the present moment while they're alive, right?