Xie Zhuo sighed, walked over and helped his fallen nephew up. After checking that his hands and arms were alright, he gently patted his clothes.

The two children froze instantly, staring at him with their big, round, black eyes.

"What are you looking at?" Xie Zhu squatted down and pinched the two little ones' faces. "They just played in the dirt for a while, what's there to be afraid of?"

The children were surprised by his words and stared at him for a long time before timidly saying, "Third Uncle doesn't like dirty children."

Xie Zhuo: "?"

Did he say that?

Xie Zhuo frowned and thought carefully. Whether in his previous life or after being reborn, he had never been too strict with his two nephews. Besides, which child who grew up in the countryside hadn't played in the dirt when he was young?

Let's talk about his childhood...

Oh, he never played with that when he was a kid.

I find it dirty.

Let alone when we were kids, even now, we're still working in the fields all day long, facing the loess soil and turning our backs to the sky. The soil in the fields is nothing compared to the little bit of soil in the sandpit in the yard!

“Third Uncle doesn’t like dirty children,” Xie Zhuo said. As soon as he opened his mouth, the two children in front of him froze instantly, their eyes opening up as if they were about to burst into tears.

"But!" Xie Zhuo didn't expect that before he could finish his sentence, he had already scared the child to tears. He quickly added, "But, Uncle San likes both of you. No matter if you are dirty children or not, Uncle San likes you."

I thought that his words would stop the two children from crying, but when he finished speaking and went to wipe their tears, they cried even harder.

Xie Zhuo: "..."

"Third Uncle," one of the children sobbed, looking at Xie Zhuo, "if you liked me and my brother, wouldn't you have kept us from selling us?"

As soon as he spoke, Xie Zhuo's expression immediately turned serious.

"Da Bao, who said I was going to sell you?" Xie Zhuo asked.

“Grandma Tian,” the child called Da Bao was still crying, his words somewhat unclear, “Grandma Tian said that when Third Uncle gets married, she will sell me and my brother, and then she will be my grandma. Third Uncle, I don’t want her to be my grandma.”

“I didn’t want to either,” another, slightly younger child cried, “Grandma Tian hits people very hard. Last time I saw her pinch Hei Ya’s arm until it was red.”

Xie Zhuo's expression grew increasingly grim.

The two children seemed to sense his change in mood, looking at him with teary eyes, and dared not make a sound.

Xie Zhuo snapped out of his daze.

"Don't worry, I won't sell you off," Xie Zhuo reached out to wipe their tears, but seeing that his hands were covered in dirt, he could only stand up and pull them into the house. "Third Uncle loves Da Bao and Xiao Bao the most. If anyone says anything like that again, come back and tell Third Uncle."

Children's emotions come and go quickly. After receiving Xie Zhuo's personal promise, they were happy again. "Yes, Da Bao also likes Uncle San the most."

“Xiao Bao also likes Uncle San the most,” another child quickly chimed in.

“Alright, since you both like Uncle San so much,” Xie Zhuo glanced at the two of them, who were covered in dirt, “they’ll definitely behave when Uncle San gives them a bath later!”

Xie Zhuo looked at them with a smile.

Da Bao: "..."

Xiao Bao: "..."

Although, something still feels off.

Didn't Uncle say he would like them no matter what?

Then why do we need to take a bath?

However, since Uncle San has already said so, let them take a shower. It'll be a good opportunity to play in the water!

Half an hour later, Xie Zhuo brought the two little ones, whose faces were full of smiles, out of the room. Children are cute, and although they are from different fathers and mothers, they still have Xie family blood in their veins and look somewhat alike.

They all have the same double eyelids, big eyes, and like to squint when they smile. Of course, they are also equally mischievous.

Xie Zhuo's hair was all wet from taking a bath.

"It's too hot in the sun, let's go play in the afternoon," Xie Zhuo said, stopping them when he saw they still wanted to go out into the sun. "Go inside and play for a while, and I'll take you to the river to catch fish when it's a little cooler in the afternoon."

Just as the two children were feeling disappointed that Xie Zhuo wouldn't let them play in the yard, they heard the second half of their uncle's sentence.

"Really? Third Uncle," Da Bao exclaimed happily.

“Really? Third Uncle,” Xiao Bao immediately followed.

“Really,” Xie Zhuo looked at Xiao Bao, the parrot, with amusement, “It’s too hot now. Don’t get heatstroke. If you get heatstroke, you won’t be able to go anywhere.”

The two children immediately said they would stay in the room and wait obediently, and would never go out into the yard.

What a wonderful day it is today!

Uncle San is actually taking them out to play!

Since my grandparents suddenly disappeared, my third uncle has been very busy every day. Besides coming back to cook for them, he often doesn't come back until very late, and he leaves very early in the morning. He has very little time to talk to them, let alone take them out to play.

Grandma Tian said it was because her third uncle didn't like them, which was why he didn't take them out to play.

He also said that his third uncle would sell him and his younger brother Xiaobao sooner or later, because his third uncle was getting married and his third aunt would definitely not want two burdens in the family.

Da Bao doesn't know what a "burden bottle" is.

But Da Bao was very scared.

I'm afraid it really will be like what Grandma Tian said, that Uncle Three will abandon them.

What will they do then? They don't want to be beaten by Grandma Tian every day like Hei Ya.

Now things are better. Uncle San told them that he likes them and won't sell them.

The two children darted into another room like kites with broken strings, and after a while, their clear, giggling laughter could be heard.

Xie Zhuo stood at the door for a while before going back inside. He took out a half-sized wooden bucket of water and emptied it. Then he scooped up a basin of sun-heated water from the yard and brought it inside. He washed himself and then washed his clothes along with the clothes the two children had changed out of.

Now I know just how much my parents and brother spoiled me, after all the lawlessness I used to live.

Xie Zhuo's family was once considered a well-known wealthy household in Qingshan Brigade. His two older brothers were soldiers with relatively high ranks, and they would send money and tickets home every month. His father was the brigade's accountant, and his mother was also a capable woman. She was not only one of the few literate women in the village, but she also managed the household affairs efficiently. As for him, he was the most favored youngest son in the family, so he naturally did not have to shoulder the burden of the family.

He spent some time idling away his time.

Later, my parents and brother all passed away, and the family fell apart...

On his first day working with the production team, his hand was rubbed raw by the wooden handle of the shovel, and he worked all day without uttering a sound. When he got home at night and looked at the oil lamp, he saw that the blister had long since burst, and blood was flowing all over his palm.

He sat under the oil lamp in a daze, and when he came to his senses, he found two children hiding by the door, peeking at him. Their stomachs were growling with hunger, but they didn't dare to make a sound to disturb him.

Xie Zhuo then realized that he wasn't the only one left in the family; there were also two children left behind by his brothers.

From now on, the burden of life will fall on his shoulders.