Chapter 10

After Gu Zhenqi finished writing the letter, she waited for the ink to dry before folding the paper with the two children. They placed it in an envelope, stuck on a stamp, and carefully wrote the postal code and mailing address. Finally, she penned Chen Kuo’s address as the recipient.

Her gaze lingered on the characters “Chen Kuo,” lost in thought. This man was almost a stranger to her, and yet, there were countless invisible ties between them. Whether in the past life or this one, their shared children had bound their fates together.

In their previous lives, it wasn’t love or fate that connected them—more like a brief mistake. They both ended up living lonely lives. Gu Zhenqi believed that the reason he never remarried was because of his deep guilt over Ruiduo and Fei’an.

In this life, she was determined to make amends and do everything right. She wouldn’t let there be any more regrets, wouldn’t allow what should be a happy, complete family to fall apart again into tragedy and sorrow.

She carefully put away this first letter—symbolic of a new beginning—and stored it in the cabinet, ready to give it to the postman the next day when he passed through the village.

—-

Half a month passed peacefully. Surprisingly, Chen Yue—who would usually show up every few days to stir up trouble—had not returned to her maiden home or looked for reasons to pick a fight.

With no interruptions, Gu Zhenqi’s days were leisurely. Her main task was raising the children and helping with meals for those working in the fields.

Under her attentive and loving care, Ruiduo and Fei’an’s little faces became visibly rounder and rosier. Their complexion had improved remarkably, showing the healthy glow of young children—fair, plump, and pink-cheeked.

They were getting cuter by the day. Gu Zhenqi often found herself staring at them in a daze, completely smitten. No matter how much she looked, it never felt like enough!

Ruiduo and Fei’an had grown used to their mother suddenly pulling them into her arms, doting on them endlessly, showering their cheeks with gentle kisses from her soft lips.

Gu Zhenqi was very satisfied with this phase of life. She wasn’t in a hurry to start a career. With the successful experience of her past life, she had all the advantages. As long as the timing was right, she believed success would come easily.

Before that, she wanted to fully accompany Ruiduo and Fei’an as they grew, raising them into healthy, chubby little darlings. Later, she planned to take them to the county to have their pictures taken and send the best one to Chen Kuo.

That way, he would have something to hold onto when missing them. Otherwise, when he did return, having never seen or spent time with the children, being a first-time father from the army—a rough and tough environment—he’d likely feel awkward and helpless.

She didn’t want the children to grow up with emotional gaps. If they felt distant from their father and the bond didn’t form, what then? Would they miss out on paternal love?

That was something she would never allow. In a complete family, the role of the father was irreplaceable!

—-

That same evening, Wang Guiying, Chen Guo, Ge Yun, Chen Xiaode, Chen Zhizhi, Chen Qiang, and Fan Chun had just finished a satisfying dinner.

It had become routine: after dinner, Ge Yun and Fan Chun would automatically clean up the dishes and the kitchen.

Gu Zhenqi would turn into the “child queen,” playing with the four kids—Chen Xiaode, Chen Zhizhi, Rui Duo, and Fei An. The summer breeze was cool and pleasant, and since it got dark later in summer, it was still light outside after dinner.

She took the children into her room and sprayed mosquito repellent on each of them for protection.

After this period of getting along, Chen Xiaode and Chen Zhizhi had grown very fond of this once-unapproachable little aunt. Privately, they even said they liked her more than their own parents.

Their little aunt was pretty, smelled nice, secretly gave them treats like candy, hawthorn slices, and sunflower seeds.

She spoke to them gently and kindly. She helped them with their schoolwork—something that left their parents dumbfounded. The aunt seemed to know everything, and when she explained it, they understood right away. Their teachers had even praised them several times in class.

They felt proud. Their classmates were envious of their occasional snacks, and they had become active in answering questions in class.

Their little aunt also took them out to play in super fun ways. If they wanted crickets, she could catch several just by bending over in the grass. If they wanted to see fireflies, she’d take them to a spot where they lit up the night sky.

To catch fish in the river, the kids normally couldn’t get even one in half a day. But their little aunt would place a basin in the water and, in no time, it would be full of big, fat fish.

Their little bellies would end up puffed out like balloons.

Thinking about all this, as soon as they reached the courtyard gate, Chen Xiaode was already impatient. He excitedly asked, “Little Auntie, where are we going to play? Are we going to catch fish again? I want to eat your spicy fish fillets!”

“Catch fish? Chen Xiaode, are you stupid? That lazy, greedy woman with a black heart couldn’t catch a fish to save her life. She’d probably shove you into the river when you’re not looking. You’d drown and turn into a water ghost!”

A shrill and nasty voice cut through the courtyard gate.

Gu Zhenqi didn’t even need to look to know it was Chen Yue. She’d been gone for half a month—Gu Zhenqi thought maybe she’d finally learned her lesson.

Raising her eyes coldly, she saw that Chen Hua and Chen Chun, her other two sisters-in-law, had come along as well.

She sneered inwardly, thinking: As expected. Some people just can’t be trusted to change. A dog really can’t stop itself from eating shit.

Chen Xiaode had recently benefited a lot from Gu Zhenqi. A child’s world is simple—whoever is good to him, he sides with. Between Chen Yue and Gu Zhenqi, he didn’t even have to think. He stepped forward and said firmly, “Third Aunt, you’re lying. Little Aunt would never do that. Are you here to scrounge off us again? We don’t have anything left!”

When it came to food, Chen Xiaode took after his mother Ge Yun—he wasn’t one to suffer losses. He deliberately raised his voice so Ge Yun and Fan Chun in the kitchen would hear.

Ge Yun heard it loud and clear and couldn’t help but laugh and praise, “Good boy! Definitely my son—protecting the food just like me!”

She quickly called to Fan Chun, and the two of them started packing away all the food into the cabinet Gu Zhenqi had requested from Wang Guiying in anticipation of the sisters-in-law trying to mooch.

“Quick, Fan Chun, put it all in the cabinet—these big buns, half a pot of fish soup, the eight-treasure porridge Zhenqi made for breakfast. Wrap them up! The pickled duck eggs too—lock it all up. They always come here to scrounge. Have they ever brought a single needle?”

Ge Yun and Fan Chun had long been fed up with the three sisters-in-law. But they used to come and go freely, and the old Gu Zhenqi never cared.

Over time, the three had become bolder and more arrogant.

“Let’s finish up fast and go outside. Our mother-in-law and the two men in the house can’t say anything. We can’t let Zhenqi suffer.”

“I’m with you, big sis-in-law. She’s really changed. She’s been genuinely good to our family. In these hard times, she even uses her own money to help out. We eat well now, like living gods compared to the rest of the village. Kindness should be returned.”

Fan Chun had completely dropped her prejudice against Gu Zhenqi. As for Ge Yun, whose loyalty followed whoever fed her, she’d been on Zhenqi’s side since she started cooking.

In the courtyard:

“Gu Zhenqi, I heard you’ve gotten real bold. Last time you drove my third sister out with a big broom and feather duster. You’re just an outsider. How dare you act wild in the Chen family? Tonight, the three of us sisters will show you what we’re made of!”

Gu Zhenqi had seen all kinds of people and weathered all kinds of storms in her two lifetimes. How could a shrill-voiced, shorter, skinnier, darker rural woman scare her with a few empty threats?

Please—was she living for nothing?

Even in her last life, under the influence of her notoriously fierce mother, the strongest woman in their village, she’d developed serious fighting chops.

She remained calm and took a step toward Chen Yue, Chen Hua, and Chen Chun. Her voice was cool and indifferent:

“Oh? I’m actually quite curious—just how powerful do you think you are?”