Mu Jingzhe felt that she was still young. She’d only turned 20 years old that year. Even if she raised these kids for another ten years, she would only be 30 years old.

  By then, the five kids would be more or fewer adults and wouldn’t need her anymore. She could then consider leaving.

  Shao Nan blurted out in surprise, “Barring accidents, you’re not allowed to leave.”

  He was spooked after seeing her leave once. Now that Mu Jingzhe had returned and given them hope, he didn’t dare have his hopes dashed again.

  After saying that, he felt that his tone wasn’t very nice, so he added awkwardly, “We’ll treat you well. When we grow up, we’ll be filial to you and ensure you lead a good life.”

  “That’s right,” Shao Xi added. “We may be burdens now, but we’ll all amount to something in the future. We’ll make sure you wear the finest clothes and most expensive jewelry in the future.”

  Mu Jingzhe burst out laughing. “Make sure I wear the finest clothes and most expensive jewelry?”

  Shao Xi’s face darkened. “You don’t believe me? We’ll keep our word. We’ll definitely make sure you live a better life than you would if you remarried.”

  He was afraid that Mu Jingzhe wouldn’t believe him, so he said seriously, “The young ladies who get married in the village don’t have it easy either. They work hard to serve their mother-in-law and the entire family, yet they have to hear gossip about them. They can’t even stay idle for a while. They are always treated as outsiders. When they get married, they become outsiders. When they return to their parents’ home, they are still outsiders.

  “That’s not all. They even have to give birth to children. Giving birth to a child is dangerous enough, yet the husband and in-laws are even picky about the gender of the baby. This family wants a son, and that family wants a daughter. One might just die in the process. This is exactly what happened to an auntie in the village last year.

  “But in your case, you don’t have to give birth. Now that you have us, we’ll be filial to you in the future. You don’t have to serve the entire family either. In the future, we’ll help with the housework. You’re the head of the family, so you don’t have to be bullied. You’re a true family to us.”

  Mu Jingzhe was shocked. “How did you come up with all that? Shao Xi, are you…”

  Did you transmigrate? Or have you been reborn?

  Shao Xi was puzzled. “Am I what? One can see this all around us. I’ve been observing.”

  He had been analyzing and summarizing in the past two days. He’d even wanted to go over to Mu Jingzhe and analyze the theories with her to persuade her to come back.

  But he couldn’t go.

  Now that Mu Jingzhe was back, he couldn’t help but say this.

  When Mu Jingzhe heard him say that he had been observing, she secretly praised Shao Xi’s observation skills and incisiveness. She thought to herself that it was no wonder he would become a writer. He could see through phenomena and get to the essence of things.

  Shao Xi heaved a sigh of relief when he saw Mu Jingzhe give him a thumbs-up.

  “We’re sincere. We don’t need you to take care of us forever. If you want to get married in the future, we won’t stop you. We’ll even help you. When that time comes, you can marry whoever you want. We’ll give you a big dowry. If he dares to bully you, we’ll teach him a lesson.”

  In the end, Shao Xi concluded, “Anyway, we can get you whoever you like.”

  The last sentence was very bold and domineering. He could help her get anyone she liked.

  Hear, hear. Get her anyone she liked…

  \r \r \r

  This didn’t sound like something a seven-year-old child would say. Even though he was about to turn eight, he was still a child.

  Mu Jingzhe: “…”

  She was convinced. As expected of a writer, Shao Xi knew how to summarize things very well. His words were sharp and hit the nail on the head, as they were full of persuasive power and sounded incredibly captivating.

  That’s right, Mu Jingzhe was tempted. Any woman would be tempted.

  Mu Jingzhe couldn’t help but extend her pinky. “Then it’s a deal.”

  Shao Xi’s eyes lit up. He stretched out his pinky and made a seal with hers. “Deal!”

  Shao Dong was gratified as he watched from the side. Shao Nan looked at Mu Jingzhe’s shining eyes. It was clearly inappropriate timing, but he couldn’t help but ask Mu Jingzhe which part she had found the most tempting.

  Mu Jingzhe: “…”

  Do you have to be so sharp?

  Of course she had been tempted by the money. Men were just a bonus.

  Shao Dong laughed and nudged Shao Nan with his arm, as if saying ‘that’s enough’. He changed the subject and asked Mu Jingzhe, “Have you eaten?”

  He had referred to her as mom in front of Mu Teng previously, but he felt a little embarrassed to say it to her face.

  “Not yet. I wanted to come back and cook for you guys. Have you eaten?” Mu Jingzhe asked as she helped Shao Dong wipe the dust off his face.

  When she saw him wipe himself, Mu Jingzhe felt that something was wrong. “Shao Dong, why is your face so hot? Are you having a fever?”

  “Another fever?” Shao Xi immediately touched his face. “Why is your face so hot during the day too?”

  Only then did Mu Jingzhe find out that Shao Dong had been sick for the past two days.

  On the day she had left, he had knelt and cried, and he’d even had abrasions on his body. That very night, he had developed a slight fever.

  For the past two days, he’d kept having a fever at night.

  However, he had managed to hold on. After taking the medicine that Mu Jingzhe had bought previously, he would force himself to get up every day to take care of his younger siblings.

  There were too many things weighing on his heart. He didn’t even dare get sick. If he fell sick, things would get even messier.

  Now that Mu Jingzhe had returned, Shao Dong heaved a sigh of relief in his heart and quickly fell ill.

  He didn’t have a high fever, but he started showing symptoms of the flu. Mu Jingzhe took him to the doctor for a checkup.

  His younger siblings felt guilty and had taken turns keeping him company.

  Now that Mu Jingzhe had returned, they felt much better.

  Shao Dong stopped having a fever at night, but he perspired and kept saying that he was thirsty. In the middle of the night, he would alternate between drinking water and going to the bathroom.

  He only quietened down during the latter half of the night.

  The next morning, Mu Jingzhe touched Shao Dong’s forehead and heaved a sigh of relief when she found that he no longer had a fever and his complexion was much better.

  Shao Dong opened his eyes in a daze but hadn’t completely woken up. When he saw Mu Jingzhe’s face, he couldn’t help but smile and call her ‘Mommy’ softly.

  Mu Jingzhe was stunned. Before she could react, Shao Dong hugged her.

  “Mommy, don’t go. I have so many wishes that have yet to come true…”

  “Alright, I won’t leave.” Mu Jingzhe hugged Shao Dong tightly.

  She was very surprised that Shao Dong had switched to calling her ‘Mommy’, but she didn’t object. Her heart softened.

  Shao Dong, who was being hugged, blinked. As he felt more and more awake, he got embarrassed.

  He… He had really called her Mommy. He had said out loud what was on his mind.

  In his daze, he had thought that it was a dream, but it had turned out to be reality.

  Shao Dong was stiff and lost. Then, he met Shao Nan’s gaze.

  Shao Nan had come to see him and happened to see this scene.

  “Brother, you’re blushing. Are you feeling shy after calling her ‘Mommy’?”

  Shao Nan came in jokingly and pretended to complain to Mu Jingzhe. “Mommy, Big Brother is feeling shy.”

  Shao Dong pointed at Shao Nan. “You…”

  Shao Nan looked at Mu Jingzhe, who was staring at him, and said frankly, “Can I call you ‘Mommy’? I want to call you ‘Mommy’ too. Actually, if you had asked us to change our way of addressing you, I would have.”

  Mu Jingzhe: “Sure, of course. I’m just a little…”

  Flattered.

  Mu Jingzhe had always felt that she couldn’t quite figure out Shao Nan. Shao Dong, needless to say, was relatively taciturn.

  She hadn’t expected to be suddenly called ‘Mommy’ by the two of them, and she was in a daze.

  After Shao Dong was exposed by Shao Nan, he suppressed his embarrassment. “Thank you for taking care of us, Mommy.”

  Unlike the three little ones, Shao Dong and Shao Xi had never called her ‘Mommy’ before. They even had vague memories of their mother.

  Now that they were uttering the word ‘Mommy’ again, they didn’t feel any indignation, only relief.

  The two of them took this opportunity to change their way of addressing Mu Jingzhe, making Little Bei get very excited. “Big Brother and Third Brother are also calling Mommy ‘Mommy’ now.”

  “Everyone’s calling Mommy ‘Mommy’ now.” Xiao Wu chuckled. “Except Second Brother.”

  Everyone looked at Shao Xi, the only one who hadn’t followed suit.

  Shao Xi: “…”

  Wait a minute, why was he the only one left?