As the days go by, the weather gets colder and colder. What used to be enough to wear a coat in the morning is now being worn in sweaters.

Before Da Bao even entered the house, laughter drifted in. Xu Yan, who was washing vegetables, heard the noise and glanced outside.

"Third Aunt!"

Although Xu Yan didn't see anything in that first glance, Da Bao rushed into the kitchen the next second and told her what had happened.

"My brother and I got first place in this exam," Da Bao shouted. "In the whole school, we were the only two who got full marks."

"Really? That's amazing!" Xu Yan knew they were both smart, but she was still very happy to hear that they did well on the exam.

“Mmm,” Da Bao nodded earnestly.

“Look, our test papers,” Xiao Bao ran in, holding his and Da Bao’s test papers in his hands.

Xu Yan took a look and saw that they were indeed bright red and perfect. She immediately bent down and kissed each of the two little ones on the cheek. "Great job!"

Although Da Bao and Xiao Bao had been kissed on the cheek before, they were still a little embarrassed.

No, it should be that I was both happy and embarrassed.

"Where is your third uncle?" Xu Yan carefully put away the test paper and asked when Xie Zhuo didn't come in for a while.

“Third Uncle was called away by Grandma Yang,” Xiao Bao said.

"Grandma Yang?" Xu Yan didn't react immediately.

“She’s Uncle Mancang’s mother,” Xiaobao said.

"Oh," Xu Yan nodded. These past few days, Aunt Yang has been trying to find a wife for Liu Mancang, but Liu Mancang is stubborn and insists that he is still young and there is no rush.

Yang Shulan couldn't persuade him otherwise, so she wanted Xie Zhuo to go and talk to him.

Xu Yan didn't know whether Xie Zhuo had actually tried to persuade her or not, but she had been dragged over to act as a persuader for three days in a row.

“Then we’ll have to eat mixed fried rice today,” Xu Yan said, glancing at the two kids. “I’ll have Uncle San cook something delicious for you tomorrow at noon.”

“The mixed fried rice is delicious,” Da Bao immediately chimed in.

"Mmm, delicious. It's been so long since I've had mixed fried rice," Xiao Bao echoed Da Bao.

Xu Yan's heart immediately softened.

"Oh my, you two are so well-behaved," Xu Yan patted their heads. "Third Auntie just loves you both so much."

“We like Third Auntie too,” the two children answered at the same time.

Since Xie Zhuo couldn't come back for the time being, Xu Yan started cooking for herself. Da Bao and Xiao Bao ran back to their room to put down their schoolbags, changed their clothes, and then came to the kitchen to help.

Influenced by Xu Yan during this period, family members will consciously wash their hands and change their clothes as soon as they get home.

They both wore the same sweater and pants. Even though they weren't twins, they liked similar colors and styles.

Of course, a large part of the reason is that there are only a few styles of clothes available these days, and it's already a blessing to have something to wear, so why would anyone be picky?

After Da Bao lit the fire, he said to Xu Yan, "A classmate cried in class today."

"Huh? Why are you crying?" Xu Yan finished steaming the rice and turned to look at him.

“He said someone poured water on his chair,” Da Bao said. “Then the classmate he pointed out denied it, saying he wet his pants and blamed him.”

"So, how was this matter finally resolved?" Xu Yan asked him while chopping vegetables.

"The teacher punished the student who cried by making him copy the text," Da Bao said.

Xu Yan frowned.

“Actually, I saw Fang Guochao pour the water,” Xiao Bao said. “But I told the teacher, and the teacher said I was mistaken.”

Xu Yan stopped chopping vegetables. "Is that Mr. Feng, the math teacher?"

“No,” Xiao Bao shook his head, “it’s Teacher Chang, the Chinese teacher.”

Xu Yan stood still, seemingly lost in thought. After a while, she walked up to Da Bao and Xiao Bao, squatted down, and asked, "Does anyone at school bully Da Bao and Xiao Bao?"

"No," Xiao Bao shook his head.

“Teacher Feng likes us very much,” Da Bao said. “Last time someone said we were… unwanted wild children, and Teacher Feng even slapped their hands, saying that if they dared to talk nonsense again, they would be punished by copying the test paper, so they didn’t dare to say it anymore.”

"There are people saying this about you?" Xu Yan's eyes turned colder, but he kept his expression gentle so as not to frighten the two boys.

“That happened a long time ago,” Da Bao said. “Nobody talks about it anymore.”

Xu Yan touched his little face, "Why didn't you tell your third aunt and third uncle?"

“It’s nothing,” Da Bao said. “People have said this before, and I didn’t like hearing it back then, but I stopped caring after my third aunt came to our house.”

Xu Yan looked at him.

“Because I know we are the Xie family’s treasures, and not unwanted wild children. Even if there are no other people, we still have Uncle and Aunt,” Da Bao said.

The baby's voice is so sweet and soft.

He's still just a little kid who hasn't even turned five yet, but the things he says are so poignant they bring tears to your eyes.

“Yes, no matter what, you two will always be Uncle and Aunt’s darlings,” Xu Yan hugged the two children.

“You’re not unwanted, your third uncle and aunt want you. Such a cute little child, other families would love to have one.”

Xie Zhuo left Liu Mancang's house just before dinner and returned to his own home. When Xu Yan saw him come into the kitchen, she said, "I thought you were going to eat at his house."

Xie Zhu smiled.

“Aunt Yang insisted that I tell Mancang about the benefits of marriage,” Xie Zhuo said. “It’s a matter that can’t be explained in a sentence or two, so we sat for a while longer.”

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