"Pfft!" Song Xiaowen burst into laughter through her tears. "Alright, it's rare to hear you joke. I didn't cry on purpose, I just couldn't help but fantasize about the wonderful days to come."

"Mom, I know." Chen Ke gently hugged Song Xiaowen. "There will be such days in the future. When that happens, Chen Zhuo and Xiaoya will give you two grandchildren to take care of, so you won't have time to cook or grow flowers."

"And yours too, as long as our old arms and legs can still move, we'll take care of you." Zhou Shanhuai seemed to have imagined that scene as well, and said with a smile.

Song Xiaowen objected, saying, "No, I'll take care of my own child. If you have grandchildren, you'll have to raise them yourselves."

······

The three of them sat on the sofa and talked about the future. They even discussed what dishes to cook for the New Year, who would buy them, who would wash the vegetables, who would cook, and who would wash the dishes. They didn't realize that they had been chatting for an entire afternoon until the sun started to set.

"Oh dear, we've been chatting so much we've forgotten how much time we've spent. Zhou Shanhuai, hurry up and wash the vegetables and make dinner."

"I'll go right away, I'll go right away," Zhou Shanhuai hurriedly agreed and got up.

Song Xiaowen turned around and smiled, telling Chen Ke to wait a moment, and that she would cook him something delicious that night. She got up and turned back to say, "Zhou Shanhuai, cook Chen Zhuo's meal too. That kid might come back tonight, and he'll go hungry if there's no food for him."

"Okay, okay," came Zhou Shanhuai's reply from the kitchen, accompanied by the sound of scooping rice.

Looking at Song Xiaowen's slightly hunched figure, Chen Ke's eyes suddenly warmed. He really liked Song Xiaowen. She was optimistic, strong, open-minded, and had a bit of a sense of humor. It was truly the greatest luck of his life that the two brothers, Chen Ke and Chen Zhuo, were adopted by her and Zhou Shanhuai.

As he carefully looked around the house, even though he was just a passerby, there were moments when he truly considered it a home, a place he could return to, a home where someone was looking forward to his return.

Listening to the clanging sounds of chopping vegetables coming from the kitchen, Chen Ke asked the system in a hoarse voice, "Are you ready?"

The system countered, "Master, are you really sure? If this happens, all our efforts will be in vain."

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