Chapter 25: I Only Died When I Was Fifteen in My Past Life

[What should I do? Erbao is still sleeping!]

What can be done? Of course, wake him up!

Qiu Yinuo didn’t hesitate to tap Erbao, “Erbao, wake up. Mommy has something to ask you.”

Shao Xingchen: “…”

[What the hell kind of excuse is that—‘something to ask him’?]

“Ah!” Dabao, feeling wronged, covered his little bottom, [Why are you hitting me, mom?]

“Children aren’t allowed to say bad words.”

Dabao pouted, glaring at her in defiance but not daring to argue.

It wasn’t until Erbao opened his sleepy eyes and looked at his mother, who was right in front of him, with a blank stare. He yawned lazily, tilted his head, and was about to close his eyes again.

“Erbao, don’t sleep, Mommy has something to ask you.”

[Quickly tell your brother, did you cross over too?]

The space fell into silence, with only Shao Xingchen’s voice breaking the quiet, and no other sounds followed.

[Erbao, was that other car that hit us yours?]

[So, who were you in your past life, some big shot?]

[Erbao, I’m telling you, I’m a celebrity. You might have seen me on TV. I’m really good at acting.]

Qiu Yinuo: “…”

Erbao kept squinting his eyes at Dabao, as though he was really thinking about something.

But as he squinted, his eyes closed again, and a faint snoring sound escaped him.

“Erbao might just be an ordinary little baby.”

Shao Xingchen said regretfully, [So Erbao might just be a local.]

“Yeah, if he really came from the same place as us, I should be able to hear his thoughts.”

[Oh well, if he’s just a local, he’s just a local. Mom, we should treat Erbao well from now on.]

“I believe you’ll be a wonderful big brother.”

Dabao smiled contentedly, [In the future, I’ll definitely treat Erbao well. I’ll give him all the money I earn. After all, Erbao looks like a not-so-smart kid.]

Qiu Yinuo’s lips twitched, “Just don’t let Erbao catch up to you.”

[How is that possible? I’ve been to school for ten years. Our starting lines are different. How can Erbao catch up to me?]

At this moment, looking at Erbao, there was a hint of pity in his eyes, [Poor little human, he has to start from scratch, while I’m already standing at the top.]

Qiu Yinuo was speechless, “…” This kid’s a little too arrogant.

Normally, she couldn’t hear his inner thoughts and didn’t know what strange things he was thinking.

But now that she could hear them, it was definitely better when she couldn’t.

[If one day Dad comes back, do we have to follow him to the military?]

Qiu Yinuo fell into thought, her expression unchanged.

Shao Xingchen pursed his lips, realizing he had forgotten that his mother was a modern woman from decades ahead, with her own career and special excellence. She definitely wouldn’t depend on a man.

At that moment, Dabao’s thoughts were active again, [If they get divorced later, who should I follow? Will I be separated from my little brother? Even though he’s a bit silly, without me looking after him, what if he gets bullied by a stepdad or stepmom later?]

Qiu Yinuo cleared her throat twice. “What you’re worried about probably won’t happen.”

[Ah, you heard me. So, are you guys getting divorced?]

“How could I not hear that? It’s pretty loud. I worked hard in my past life. In this one, I just want to find a man to support me. Your dad’s a good choice, though. If we can find your grandmother, that would be even better. I’ve heard your grandmother’s family is doing quite well. We won’t have to rely on your dad to live a good life.”

[What’s so good about it? Tell me about it.]

“…If I knew, I would have already brought you two brothers to live with them.”

[So this is the point you missed when skipping chapters?]

“Probably. Your dad isn’t the main character, and the author can’t write about him in every chapter.”

Shao Xingchen resigned himself. [How did I get such an unreliable mom?]

Qiu Yinuo raised her hand, ready to smack this troublesome kid, but then she saw a panda running excitedly toward them in the distance.

Dabao excitedly shouted, “A panda! It’s a real live giant panda! I can’t believe I’m seeing it! When did my space get so amazing?”

“The panda is an iron-eating beast. You’re too brave,” she said, picking up Dabao and Erbao with one hand and quickly stepping out of the space.

Just before leaving the space, she could hear Dabao’s thoughts. [What’s there to be afraid of? The space belongs to me. I’m the master here. It wouldn’t dare hurt me.]

The speed was so fast that it left only an afterimage, and the giant panda stood frozen in place, smacking the ground with its heavy paws in frustration. It was upset because they had escaped again, ruining its brief moment of joy.

If Dabao had been there, he would have exclaimed, “So cute! So cute! No wonder it’s a national treasure.”

Once out of the space, Dabao was still sulking, pouting angrily. Qiu Yinuo couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to him and immediately went to take a nap with Erbao.

Fuming, Dabao kept kicking his little chubby feet, but his short legs never reached Qiu Yinuo. He silently grumbled, Bad mom!

…

Before long, it was the end of December, and the New Year was approaching. He Ziqing had taken leave to visit her aunt.

“I’ll give you one more day off. Go help your aunt with some work.”

“Sister Yinuo, I’ll just go take a look and come back.”

“It’s fine. If you can come back, then come. If not, you can stay there for the night.”

“Can you manage with the twins on your own?”

“Of course, no problem. If I can’t handle it, I’ll just go next door and ask Aunt Yang for help. Don’t worry!”

He Ziqing happily agreed, and before leaving, Qiu Yinuo gave her a bunch of pickled vegetables, including dried radishes and other preserved foods from their home.

“Sister Yinuo, I really can’t take these.”

“Don’t go back empty-handed. That way, your aunt’s husband won’t find fault with you. After all, it’s hard to refuse someone who gives you something.”

He Ziqing’s eyes brimmed with tears, “Sister Yinuo, you’re so kind to me. Even my real sister wouldn’t be this good to me.”

“If you treat me well, I naturally will treat you well. I’ve never been kind for no reason.” She smiled. “Alright, it’s getting late. Hurry up, or you might miss the bus.”

Watching He Ziqing leave, Qiu Yinuo closed the door and immediately let herself relax. She grabbed both sons and entered the space.

She made sure the iron-eating beast wasn’t nearby and then took the boys to the library.

Dabao started chattering as soon as they entered. [Do you think we should plant something here?]

[Before, this space wasn’t much use to me, kind of useless, but now it’s different. Our family is so poor. If we plant something to eat, we won’t have to starve.]

[I’m growing, and you better not treat me badly. I’m telling you, I’ve been acting since I was little, which messed up my development. I didn’t grow tall, and everyone online laughs at me for being short.]

[In this life, I’m going to be 1.9 meters tall.]

“Will you be quiet? At your age, you talk so much. Do your fans know this?”

[Of course not! I have a cool persona in front of others.]

“Please keep it up.”

[Bad mom.]

“No acting cute.”

[But I only died when I was fifteen in my past life!]