For so many years, the family has carefully raised Chu Xingyue, and the two boys in the family have been instructed since childhood to take care of their younger sister Chu Xingyue.

Later, Chu Jiaojiao came along. From a young age, this younger sister followed Chu Xingyue closely, learning to take care of the adults in the family. This resulted in Chu Jiaojiao being like a tomboy since childhood.

The eight-year-old girl couldn't stand seeing any of the village children say a bad word about her obedient and well-behaved older sister, let alone bully Chu Xingyue. But what rural child isn't mischievous and prone to fighting? Because of this, Chu Jiaojiao had fought with all the other children in the village who were about the same age or older than her.

Feeling utterly frustrated, Chu Jiaojiao climbed onto the bed and leaned against Chu Xingyue. Like a boy, Chu Jiaojiao, with red eyes, cautiously touched Chu Xingyue's face.

"An'an, I'm sorry. I'll take you with me wherever I go from now on, and I'll never let you leave my side." Looking at Chu Jiaojiao, who was frowning and looking down, Chu Xingyue opened her mouth and uttered a single word, "No." Upon hearing the sound, Chu Jiaojiao paused for a moment and then burst into tears, crying, "An, An, An, you, you."

Liu Nuoling, who had just returned from her own fields, heard her daughter crying before she even reached the door.

Her heart skipped a beat, and she quickened her pace, jogging into the courtyard. She saw her in-laws standing at the entrance to the main room, but she didn't notice their expressions.

She tiptoed into the house and checked on her niece. Her face was calm and her injuries were not serious. She applied gentian violet around the wound. Turning her head to look at her daughter next to An'an with a forced smile, Liu Nuoling was so angry that she quickly took off her left shoe and pretended to hit her.

"Mom, Mom, don't hit me, don't hit me! I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong!" Having learned her lesson from being hit, Chu Jiaojiao didn't even have time to put on her shoes before jumping out of bed and running outside. The mother and daughter chased each other.

"You little brat, this is how you take care of An'an? You better not let me catch you today, or I'll spank your ass raw!"

After chasing Chu Jiaojiao for several rounds without success, Liu Nuoling angrily threw down her shoes and leaned against the stone table in the courtyard, panting heavily as she said:

"I'm so angry! How can that brat run so fast?" After catching her breath, she noticed her in-laws' undisguised joy in the main room. She wondered, "What's wrong with the old couple today? An'an is injured, but instead of taking care of her in the room, they're standing in the main room with such happy faces."

Seeing her daughter-in-law looking over, Su Jin quickly beckoned her over, "Xiao Ling, come here, come quickly!" Hearing her mother-in-law call her, Liu Nuoling hurriedly put on her shoes, stepped over the threshold, and went into the house, calling out, "Dad, Mom." Chu Qian responded, "Jiao Jiao's mother, your mother wants to tell you, I'm going to the yard to check on that girl, Jiao Jiao." He turned and walked out of the house, the barely suppressed smile revealing the old man's current mood.

"Mom, what's wrong? What happened? Why do you and Dad look like that?" Liu Nuoling helped her mother-in-law sit down. Su Jin patted her daughter-in-law's hand and said, "Xiaoling, our An'an's injury this time has turned out to be a blessing in disguise." "What? Injured and yet—" Liu Nuoling suddenly grabbed her mother-in-law's hand, her voice trembling, "Mom—you mean, you mean An'an is better?" The daughter-in-law, who had been married for over ten years, naturally knew that Chu Xingyue had gone to the Taoist temple on the mountain to pray for peace and blessings when she turned one year old, and the abbot had blessed her with a destiny.

The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law looked at each other, as if they had finally let out the breath they had been holding back for years. They both sobbed softly with tears in their eyes. Ever since Chu Xingyue started behaving differently from normal children, she had been quiet and peaceful for so many years. Now that the whole family was almost resigned to taking care of her for the rest of their lives, this was undoubtedly a great joy. Only their own family could understand the hardships they had endured over the years.

Liu Nuoling smiled and wiped away her mother-in-law's tears. "Mom, don't cry, let's not cry. Our An'an will definitely be smart and clever in the future. Please take good care of yourself. We still have to raise An'an, let her go to school, learn to read, find a partner, and find a family as good as ours." Su Jin wiped away her tears, sniffed, and smiled. "Yes, don't cry, I won't cry. My darling just woke up, and she doesn't understand or know many things. I have to teach her, I have to teach her. We'll teach her together." "Yes, don't cry. The child is awake in the inner room. She'll feel sad if she hears us crying. Mom, let's go get some water to wash our faces and be happy. I'll go prepare some dishes. Let's all have a drink and be happy today." After saying that, she helped her mother-in-law walk towards the kitchen.

Outside, Chu Qian listened with red eyes to the conversation between his mother and daughter-in-law inside. He looked up at the distant sky, took a deep breath, and slowly exhaled.

Inside the room, Chu Xingyue had fallen into a deep sleep after a morning's rest.