The dizzy Xie Xiaofen was helped into the house by Qian Xingcheng.

Qian Dabao, seeing his mother fall so badly, didn’t dare to make any more trouble.

Meanwhile, Old Lady Qian snatched the net bag from Xiao Weidong’s hands and disappeared into her room without a word.

Qian Zhizhi, holding half a bag of egg cakes, also vanished.

As for Qian Xingwang, the moment Old Lady Qian returned to her room with the bag, she instructed him to tidy up the empty plot of land behind the house for planting vegetables.

Li Qiuhua, who had been scowling, was pulled by Daya and Erya into the small, rundown room that their family of four lived in.

Looking at the broken window covered by a rotting wooden board, Li Qiuhua couldn’t help but sigh deeply.

“Mother, did you come here to argue with my elder sister or to see Daya and Erya?” Shen Zhihuan gently tugged on Li Qiuhua’s sleeve.

“I’ll deal with you two when we get home,” Li Qiuhua snapped, glaring at Shen Zhihuan and Xiao Weidong.

“…” Shen Zhihuan awkwardly rubbed her nose and didn’t dare to speak again.

“Grandma!”

“Grandma!”

Daya and Erya hugged Li Qiuhua’s arms on either side, softly calling out to her.

“My Daya and Erya are still the best,” Li Qiuhua said, smiling as she pulled the two girls into her embrace.

Through a gap in the window, Shen Zhihuan glanced outside. After confirming there was no one in the courtyard, she stepped out quietly.

A short while later, she returned, slipping two bags of milk powder into Shen Zhimei’s hands.

“You…” Shen Zhimei looked at her in shock, her eyes widening.

“Quick, hide them!” Shen Zhihuan whispered.

Shen Zhimei squatted down and stuffed the two bags of milk powder into the farthest corner beneath the bed.

Watching this, Li Qiuhua sighed inwardly once again.

“Elder Sister, if there’s ever a chance, you really should split from the family,” Shen Zhihuan said as she sat down on a small stool.

As long as this family wasn’t divided, the two little girls wouldn’t have any hope of a better life.

“Split the family?” Shen Zhimei laughed bitterly. “It’s not that easy.”

Shen Zhihuan pursed her lips and sighed as well.

With Old Lady Qian’s personality, dividing the family was indeed no easy task.

A person used to being in control, holding onto the family’s money and resources, would likely rather die than relinquish that control.

Unless…

Shen Zhihuan’s eyes flickered. She leaned closer to Shen Zhimei and whispered a few words.

“I can’t do that,” Shen Zhimei said quickly, shaking her head in alarm.

“…”

Shen Zhihuan gave Shen Zhimei a long, hard look before finally shutting her mouth in frustration.

As night fell, Shen Zhihuan’s family of three got up to leave.

Before they left, Li Qiuhua sternly warned Shen Zhimei, “If you can’t protect the cotton and quilts, don’t expect me to acknowledge you as my daughter anymore.”

“I understand!” Shen Zhimei nodded solemnly.

Li Qiuhua repeatedly emphasized that she would come to check on the quilts herself, as well as the cotton-padded jackets for Daya and Erya. If even one item was missing, Shen Zhimei could forget about returning home.

Terrified, Shen Zhimei promised over and over to keep the cotton and quilts safe.

Only after ensuring Shen Zhimei had taken her words to heart did Li Qiuhua leave with Shen Zhihuan and Xiao Weidong.

“Mother, look…” Xiao Weidong pointed to two figures entangled in the bamboo grove as they passed by, speaking softly.

Li Qiuhua frowned, glanced over briefly, and immediately covered Xiao Weidong’s eyes. Grabbing his and Shen Zhihuan’s hands, she hurried away.

It wasn’t until they were far from the bamboo grove that Li Qiuhua let go of their hands.

Xiao Weidong turned to glance back at the grove, as if he wanted to say something, but was silenced by a sharp glare from Li Qiuhua.

Shen Zhihuan chuckled and pulled Xiao Weidong along as they continued toward home.

Once they entered Panshi Village, Li Qiuhua, who had been walking behind them, quickened her pace.

“Third Sister, was Daya and Erya’s aunt kissing a man?” Xiao Weidong asked, glancing at Li Qiuhua’s distant figure. His round eyes were filled with innocence.

“Well, do you think girls should kiss just anyone?” Shen Zhihuan asked in return.

“No!” Xiao Weidong shook his head, blushing.

Kissing leads to having babies, after all.

“Then do you think Daya and Erya’s aunt did the right thing?” Shen Zhihuan smiled as she continued questioning him.

“No, she didn’t!” Xiao Weidong said seriously.

Daya and Erya’s aunt wasn’t even married yet. How could she kiss someone and have a baby?

“So, do you think boys can go around kissing girls casually?” Shen Zhihuan asked again.

“No!” Xiao Weidong shook his head, his face even redder.

“That’s right. Boys need to protect themselves when they’re outside. Don’t kiss people casually, and don’t let anyone touch you inappropriately,” Shen Zhihuan said earnestly.

Although incidents involving pedophiles were rare in this era, they weren’t nonexistent. And such pedophiles didn’t exactly have “danger” written on their foreheads.

Better to be safe than sorry. Prevention was always better than cure.

“No one at all?” Xiao Weidong asked, blinking in confusion.

“For now, no one at all. But when you grow up and get married, your wife will be the exception,” Shen Zhihuan replied with a smile.

“If someone you don’t know offers to take you to buy cakes or candy, will you go?”

“Or if they give you something to eat, should you take it?”

“No,” Xiao Weidong said after a moment’s thought, shaking his head.

“Exactly! You must never take food or gifts from strangers, and you absolutely shouldn’t go anywhere with them,” Shen Zhihuan said seriously.

“I understand!” Xiao Weidong nodded obediently.

“What if you’re home alone, and a stranger knocks on the door saying I or Mother is hurt and asks you to go with them? What will you do?” Shen Zhihuan squatted down to look him in the eye.

“I… I don’t know,” Xiao Weidong admitted, frowning.

“If there are no adults at home and a stranger comes knocking, don’t open the door. If you accidentally do, see if any neighbors or familiar people are nearby. If there are, shout for help,” Shen Zhihuan instructed.

“If no one is nearby, try to escape and call for help in a crowded place or ask a uniformed officer for help,” she added.

“And if the bad person pretends to be your parent to deceive others, break anything valuable within reach. The more expensive, the better.”

“Because the bad guy won’t have money to pay for it, right?” Xiao Weidong’s eyes lit up.

“Exactly!” Shen Zhihuan nodded with a smile.

Xiao Weidong’s excitement faded, and he said hesitantly, “But we don’t have money to pay either…”

“Silly boy! If I tell you to break it, I’ll take care of the cost. You don’t have to worry about that. Your safety is what matters most,” Shen Zhihuan said, ruffling his soft cheeks.

“I understand!” Xiao Weidong beamed. “Can I teach Xiao Pang these things too?”

“Of course!” Shen Zhihuan chuckled.