Song Qiaoxi was grateful to Ding Miao.

She felt that Ding Miao was not as ‘high and mighty’ as the other children said, but rather a righteous child, and even hoped to be a good partner with Ding Miao.

Wang Junyang’s ear piercing wails suddenly grabbed everyone’s attention.

She turned her head in confusion, only to see Wang Junyang’s tear-streaked face.

His mouth was wide open, his eyes tightly shut, and he was letting out shrill, animal-like cries as if he had suffered some grave injustice.

“You spilled drinks on someone else’s bedsheets and framed them for it. How do you have the nerve to cry? Stop it, Wang Junyang! A real man owns up to his actions!” Father Wang scolded as he grabbed the mischievous child by the ear and dragging him over to Chu Jin. “Apologize to your big brother right now!”

“Wahhh…I-I won’t apologize! I didn’t do anything wrong! Everyone likes Chu Jin now that he’s here—even Dad doesn’t like me anymore! I have all of you!”

Wang Junyang shouted, clutching his father’s arm and in a fit of rage, he opened his mouth and bit down hard.

“Hiss…” Father Wang yelped in pain, jerking his arm away as a row of deep teeth marks appeared. Seeing Wang Junyang take off running, he angrily chased after him, yelling. “Hey! You little rascal, asking for a spanking, huh? Don’t you dare run away from me…”

At the entrance of the boiler room courtyard, only the stunned Father Song and daughter were left, along with Chu Jin who stood there frowning with a serious, almost adult-like expression.

The three of them stood in the wind, momentarily at a loss.

“Are you okay, Xiao Jin? Let me take a look.”

Hearing her dad’s words, Song Qiaoxi obediently climbed down from his lap.

Her father waved Chu Jin over and carefully checked the boy’s injuries, asking him to move his arms and legs to make sure nothing was seriously wrong.

He then ruffled Chu Jin’s hair and smiled as he said. “You should be fine. Let’s head home, clean you up and put some antiseptic on both you and Xixi.”

“Sweetheart, can you walk?”

Father Song asked, leaning on his knees as he straightened up.

Song Qiaoxi nodded, moving her knees and even giving a little jump to show she was okay, though she winced slightly.

“My girl’s tough as nails.” Father Song said with a chuckle. “Alright, let’s the three of us gather up the bedsheets first. Chu Jin, don’t worry—when we get home, Auntie will find you a clean one to replace this. And once Uncle Wang catches Yangyang, he’ll definitely make him apologize to you, no doubt about it.” He winked at Chu Jin and Song Qiaoxi then patted the boy’s thin shoulder. “Us two big guys can carry more. Let’s leave the pillowcases for Xixi—she’s too little to carry much. Sounds good?”

Chu Jin nodded, and together with Song Qiaoxi, he helped her father gather up the bedsheets.

he father carried a stack of large, peony-patterned quilt covers, the young boy held the checkered bedsheet dirtied by the mischievous child, and the little girl clutched the red double-happiness embroidered pillowcases.

One adult leading two slightly battered children, they made quite the unusual sight as they returned home.

The three of them quietly changed their shoes at the entrance, none of them saying a word.

Song Qiaoxi glanced up and saw her mother at the dining table in the living room, busy preparing her lesson plans. Hearing the commotion, her mother set down her materials and pen and came over to greet them.

Song Qiaoxi quickly lowered her head.

“Old Song, what’s going on here?” her mother’s high-pitched voice rang out, her tone tinged with concern and a hint of accusation as she noticed Song Qiaoxi’s stained dress and scraped knees. “Xixi, you just healed from your last scrape, and now you’re out fighting again? And you dragged Chu Jin into it too… Tsk, you’re starting elementary school the day after tomorrow. Is this how you two plan to show up?”

Song Qiaoxi looked up at her mother, whose usually gentle eyes were now wide and stern, like copper bells. She instinctively shrunk her neck, suddenly remembering her “criminal record.”

A quick recollection reminded her that the original host of this body had come home with fresh scrapes and bruises several times a week just two months ago. No wonder her mother was reacting so strongly.

“Honey, this time it really wasn’t Xixi’s fault,” her father said, taking the pillowcases from her and stepping in front of his daughter to shield her. “I’ve already gotten the whole story. It wasn’t our Xixi who started it, and it wasn’t Chu Jin either. It was all Wang’s Yangyang…”

As her father recounted the incident, Song Qiaoxi’s tense heart finally began to relax.

Her mother shook her head lightly, her expression still troubled. She directed her father to put away the bedsheets while she went to the TV cabinet to retrieve the first aid kit from the drawer.

Afterward, she helped both Song Qiaoxi and Chu Jin clean their wounds, disinfect them with hydrogen peroxide, and apply antiseptic solution.

“Mom, Wang Junyang was the one who started it. Chu Jin was just defending himself, and I didn’t provoke anyone either,” the little girl explained softly, sitting on the chair and afraid her mother was still upset.

Her mother blew gently on her bandaged knee, the cool air soothing the sting.

“I know, Xixi. I…” Her mother sighed softly, her gaze softening as she looked up. The gentle, warm eyes Song Qiaoxi was used to had returned. A soft, warm hand enveloped her small one. “I need to apologize to you. I shouldn’t have criticized you without understanding the situation. That was wrong of me.”

Then, her mother turned to Chu Jin and gave him a gentle smile. “Chu Jin, did Auntie scare you? I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to lose my temper earlier.”

Song Qiaoxi was momentarily stunned, feeling a little flustered.

Was her mother really apologizing to her and Chu Jin?

But they were just kids!

Whether in her memories from the orphanage or her new life, she had always subconsciously believed that adults were always right and never made mistakes.

Now, her mother was actually apologizing to her—it was shocking.

She spent a long moment processing this, still in a state of disbelief, her mouth hanging open as she struggled to find the right words.

“Mom promises you,” her mother said gently, glancing at Chu Jin, “and since Chu Jin is here, let him be our witness. From now on, I’ll always make sure to understand what happened before jumping to conclusions. Xixi, you’ve been so well-behaved these past two months. I should have trusted that you’ve grown out of being mischievous. It was my own habit of thinking that led me astray.”

As her mother spoke, she ruffled Chu Jin’s hair and gently pinched Song Qiaoxi’s cheek.

Finally, Song Qiaoxi began to recover from her “shock.”

So, adults could make mistakes too, just like kids?

But it didn’t matter. The mistakes her mother made hadn’t hurt her at all. In fact, the love her mother had given her far outweighed any tiny, insignificant missteps.

Thinking of this, the little glutinous dumpling waved her hand magnanimously and planted a loud kiss on her mother’s cheek. “It’s okay, Momo. I’ll always forgive you.”

Her mother’s eyes sparkled like stars, her skin as fair as snow without a single wrinkle. Her chestnut-brown hair was braided into a thick plait that rested on her chest making her look as beautiful as a princess.

Song Qiaoxi wished her mother could stay this young, vibrant and beautiful forever.

But in the original story’s plot, this wonderful mother would face a tragic fate. During Song Qiaoxi’s third year of middle school her father would be wrongfully imprisoned and her mother after repeatedly being turned away while seeking help would fall into a state of despair and severe depression.

By the time Song Qiaoxi turned nineteen, her father would be released from prison only to die in a car accident shortly after. This would push her mother over the edge, leaving her mentally shattered and unable to care for herself. She would eventually pass away from depression in a psychiatric hospital.

The mere thought of this made Song Qiaoxi’s chest tighten leaving her struggling to breathe.

She would never allow such tragedies befall her parents. Moreover, the original host of this body had entrusted her parents to her care the moment she crossed into this world.

Since she had been given their love and affection, she was more than willing to take on the responsibility of protecting them.

She would protect her mother and father, protect Chu Jin and protect this family…

Only then could she live up to herself and honor the one who had just left with regret.

In her heart, she had already come to see Chu Jin as a part of their family.

She was confident that she could change everything because Chu Jin’s life path had already begun to shift.

^_^