After Da Bao finished speaking, Xiao San Bao added, "Besides, we don't want to call you 'Mom' either."

After all, bad women treat them badly, often beating, scolding, and abusing them.

They didn't want to acknowledge such an ugly and wicked woman as their mother.

Upon hearing this, Ning Huan looked at Xiao Sibao, but the little girl immediately shook her head and said, "I really want to call you Mother. You're different from before. You brew medicine for me, and you tell me stories at night and tuck me in."

Every little thing Xiao Sibao said was a reason why his heart was warmed little by little.

The bad woman is becoming more and more like the mother she imagines.

Ning Huan was deeply moved by what Xiao Sibao said. The words of Da Bao and the other two little ones also made her feel uneasy.

She gently patted Xiao Sibao's head, then paused and said to Xiao Sanbao and the other little ones, "I did not do well before, and I was indeed wrong."

“You may not like me, and you may not call me Mother, and I won’t be angry. But you can’t bully Xiao Sibao. You are my own brothers and sisters, and you should help and take care of each other.”

Hearing this, Xiao Sanbao lowered his head in embarrassment. He was so focused on being angry with Xiao Sibao that he forgot she was the fourth sister and he should take care of her.

Ning Huan continued, "You have your own reasons for not wanting to call me 'Mother,' and Xiao Sibao has her own reasons for calling me 'Mother.' She hasn't interfered with you, so does that mean you can't interfere with her either?"

Da Bao and Xiao Er Bao both lowered their heads. The bad woman was right; they had gone too far.

Looking at the four little ones with their heads down, Ning Huan, who had been somewhat serious, couldn't help but laugh out loud again: "You guys are like sunflowers after sunset. Why are you all bowing your heads so low?"

"If you really know you've done something wrong, lift your head and apologize to each other."

Upon hearing this, the four little ones all raised their heads. Da Bao said first, "I'm sorry, Xiao Si Bao, I shouldn't have ignored you."

The second and third babies also apologized to the fourth baby.

Little Sibao's eyes welled up with tears of grievance: "It's okay, I forgive you."

That night, after the four little ones made their agreement, they decided to sleep together in Ning Huan's room so that she could tell them a bedtime story.

Ning Huan was speechless when she heard this. So the little ones need to hear stories before going to sleep, just before they fall asleep, and even if they can't fall asleep, they still need to hear stories.

I have to listen when I'm happy, I have to listen when I'm unhappy, and now I have to listen even when we've argued and made up.

That night, Da Bao reluctantly left Zhou Jing'an's room with his blanket, worried about what Zhou Jing'an would do if he got up alone at night.

Zhou Jing'an repeatedly assured him that he would call him if needed before leaving with peace of mind.

That evening, Ning Huan told them a fairy tale about unity.

The four little ones listened with great interest. After the story was finished, the third child asked in confusion, "Is the power of unity really that great?"

Ning Huan said, "Of course. You can easily break a single chopstick, but what if you put ten chopsticks together?"

Da Bao said quietly, "It will be very difficult to break."

Ning Huan: "..."

She then said somewhat helplessly, "What about twenty chopsticks? Fifty chopsticks? A hundred chopsticks? My point is not about how much effort it takes to break chopsticks, but that no matter how strong a person is, they will not easily win against the powerful force of unity."

The four little dumplings nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

The night passed quickly, and Ning Huan prepared meals for the four little ones and Zhou Jing'an early the next morning.

Just as I finished eating, Zhou Lan rushed over: "Third sister-in-law, we should go now."

Ning Huan nodded and, carrying the things she had prepared the night before, went to the Zhu family with Zhou Lan.

After greeting Zhu, he sat on the oxcart and waited to depart.

Although they arrived at the Zhu family's house early to wait, some people were always late.

After everyone in the car was seated, Brother Zhu still hadn't set off.

Some people couldn't sit still any longer and asked impatiently, "Brother Zhu, everyone's here, why aren't we leaving yet?"

Zhu Dali said somewhat embarrassedly, "There are still a few people who haven't arrived yet."

Zhu spat and cursed, "There's always one bad apple that spoils the whole bunch. If these people are late again next time, we might as well not let them ride the bus anymore."

Then he said to the people in the cart, "I'm telling you all this now. From now on, we've set this rule: the oxcart will leave whenever it says it will. If anyone is late again, they'll have to chase after the ox's tail!"

Upon hearing this, some people on the bus burst into laughter, while others who were almost late looked embarrassed and turned their faces away.

But the Zhu family was the only one in the whole village with an oxcart that could go to town. Their rules were the rules, and there was nothing that could be done but listen to them.

Just as Zhu was speaking, a series of noisy footsteps came from the doorway.

"They're here! They're here!"

Ning Huan recognized the voices and looked over to find that they were Ke Ruxiu, Liu Shi, and Zhou Yan.

The three of them came running up, panting, and then said shamelessly, "Thank goodness, we're not too late. We made it just in time, right?"

As soon as the question was asked, some people on the bus objected.

The village's fourth aunt said sarcastically, "It's not too late yet. It's been so long since we agreed on a time. If you come any later, you might as well go to town tomorrow."

Hearing such sarcastic remarks, Zhou Yan was the first to feel uncomfortable.

"Hey, Fourth Aunt, even though we're a little late, no one else has said anything yet, so why are you already making your point? Did Brother Zhu sell his cow to you?"

Fourth Aunt didn't tolerate Zhou Yan's behavior and said directly, "What else do you want others to say? Just now, Madam Zhu said that if anyone is late again, they'll have to chase after a cow's tail!"

He then burst out laughing.

Zhou Yan's face flushed red instantly, and she fell silent.

At this moment, Ke Ruxiu stood up and bowed slightly to Madam Zhu, saying, "Madam Zhu, I am a little late today, so I would like to apologize to you first. But I am late today because there was a sudden emergency at home, and I was unable to come over in time. I would also like to apologize to everyone."

This actually calmed down both Fourth Aunt and Zhu Shi, who were still angry just moments before.

They explained the reason politely and apologized respectfully, so even if I wanted to complain, I couldn't say anything more.

Ning Huan narrowed her eyes slightly as she looked at Ke Ruxiu, thinking to herself: I underestimated this woman before.

Clearly, Ke Ruxiu and the other two had also noticed Ning Huan. Zhou Yan gave a cold snort, rolled her eyes at her, and found an empty spot to sit down.