Chapter 3

Ruiduo and Fei’an exchanged a glance and instantly burst into radiant smiles.

Ruido was the first to dash toward Gu Zhenqi, crashing into her arms.

Seeing this, Fei’an felt a bit shy and awkward as he slowly walked over to his mother. When he stopped in front of her, Gu Zhenqi looked at her son’s shy and adorable expression and felt a warm surge in her heart.

She reached out and pulled Feian into her arms, embracing both of the children she had lost and regained.

In that moment, the emptiness and hollow ache that had long occupied Gu Zhenqi’s heart were suddenly filled to the brim.

A deep sense of satisfaction and overwhelming happiness—something she had never felt before—flooded her entire being.

Ruiduo gently rubbed her little head against Gu Zhenqi’s chest, overwhelmed with joy. In her memory, this was the first time her mother had ever held her.

She and her brother had often wondered in private what it would feel like to be hugged by their mom.

Her brother had said, “It must feel warm and soft!”

And she had dreamily added, “And sweet and fragrant… a feeling you never want to let go of!”

Now that she was finally being held, the sensation was even more wonderful than she had imagined—so much so that she felt like crying from happiness.

Fei’an carefully nudged his head against Gu Zhenqi, thinking he was being discreet. Then he quickly looked up at her with a secret glance.

This was his first time being hugged by his mom—and it was amazing! Normally, in the scorching summer heat, he would start sweating the moment he stepped into the yard. But being in his mother’s arms felt warm and cozy, not hot at all!

He wished he could stay like this forever. He wanted all the villagers—especially his third aunt and those who mocked him, calling him a pitiful orphan with no mother’s love or care—to see this. To see that their mother was right here, holding him and Ruido tight!

He wanted to grab his sister’s hand and go tell everyone:
“We do have a mother! She loves us, she wants us, she holds us!”

“Mom smells so good, but me and brother smell stinky!” Ruiduo suddenly paused, clenched her little fists, and seemed to make an important decision. She stiffened her little neck, her eyes red, clearly reluctant to leave her mother’s embrace.

But…

She and her brother were stinky. What if Mom disliked them because of it and didn’t want to hug them again?

They had been hugged for a while already. Maybe it was better to save the rest for later—like the candy grandma once gave her.

She had learned from her brother: if you wanted to eat the candy, just lick it a tiny bit with the tip of your tongue, feel the sweetness, then wrap it back up and save it for next time…

She had made that one piece of candy last a long time. When it got too hot and began to melt, she and her brother finally finished it together, unwillingly.

After that, they never had candy again. Ruiduo really wanted to taste it once more—even just a tiny lick.

“Mommy, let go of me and brother. Let’s save the next hug for later, just like we saved that candy before.”

“Mommy smells nice, but we’re stinky. If we stink up Mommy, she might not want to hug us next time!”

Boom—boom—boom… Gu Zhenqi’s mind exploded as she listened to Ruiduo and Feian’s words.

In her past life, she truly hadn’t done a single thing right! The day Ruiduo and Fei’an were born, she had handed them off to Wang Guiying.

What had she ever done for them as a mother?

All she did was reluctantly breastfeed them for six months, only because Wang Guiying begged her again and again, and her mother had pleaded too.

She had never truly embraced them, never spoken to them kindly. The best she ever managed was speaking in a neutral tone, not impatient.

She never made them any clothes, never bought them a single thing—not even a piece of candy, not even a simple hair tie…

She didn’t deserve to be called “Mom.” Selfish and self-absorbed, she lived in a world that revolved solely around herself. She thought she was the center of everything, perfecting the art of self-interest to the extreme.

Gu Zhenqi didn’t dare dwell further on those shameful memories, because they only reminded her of how horribly she had treated the children she had brought into the world.

What she had done was worse than hitting or scolding them—it was pure neglect, coldness, and emotional abuse…

“Mommy, Mommy, what’s wrong? Don’t scare Ruiduo by staying still! I’m scared… waaah…”

Ruido’s crying jolted Gu Zhenqi back from the abyss of regret and guilt.

She quickly wiped Ruiduo’s tears and gently comforted her, “Shh… it’s okay, sweetie! Mommy’s fine. I was just thinking about how lucky I am—to have you and your brother, my precious little angels!”

Ruiduo immediately smiled through her tears, blinking her long, teary lashes. Her bright eyes were like sparkling little fairies. “Mommy, really? We’re angels?”

“You’re Mommy’s little angels!” Gu Zhenqi lowered her head and kissed their thin little cheeks.

Looking at their sunken cheeks and protruding cheekbones, they resembled little monkeys at a zoo. Gu Zhenqi’s eyes burned, and she had to fight hard not to cry again. It felt like a giant hammer was pounding her heart over and over—so painful!

When it came to Ruiduo and Fei’an’s diet, she had never paid attention. She rarely ate with the Chen family. Their eating schedules never matched. Their meals were extremely basic: cornmeal porridge, mixed grain cakes, veggie congee with barely any rice, wild vegetable patties, sweet potatoes, coarse buns, elm seeds, and dumplings made from leaves…

Just looking at that food made her feel full—let alone eating it. Wang Guiying ran the house, and she always served herself the best first!

Thinking about it now, Ruiduo and Fei’an could only have eaten the leftovers of those miserable meals—the food even she couldn’t stomach.

“Ruiduo, Fei’an, from now on, Mommy won’t let you suffer anymore. We won’t eat those awful things again. I’ll make you delicious meals every day and feed my two little skinny monkeys until they become chubby babies!”

“Mommy, can we really eat yummy food every day? We won’t take the food Grandma gives you. We won’t be bad people like Third Aunt either.”

Gu Zhenqi wanted to slap herself—how blind had she been in her past life?

These thoughtful, loving children who saw her as their whole world… she had given birth to them and then cast them aside.

—-

In the 21st century, she had learned the value of children. Toddlers over two were still treated like infants—pampered, played with, taken to parks, read to, snuggled…

Her own children could already speak fluently and were so mature, it made her forget how young they really were.

She gently patted Ruiduo’s head. “Mommy has magical powers. I can make endless delicious food. I’ll show you after we take a bath!”

When Ruiduo and Feian heard the word “bath,” they gave Gu Zhenqi confused looks. “We take one bath a year. On New Year’s, Grandma rinsed me and Brother off!”

“She used a basin of warm water. It was so cold, we took off our clothes, and she gave us a few quick swipes.”

Gu Zhenqi turned her head away as tears silently fell. The kids’ every word was a silent accusation.

Gu Zhenqi, you’re not just unfit to be a mother. You don’t even deserve to be called a person! Heaven gave you a second chance—you must repay the sins of your past life. Make up for all your debts!

These children are the ones you wronged most. In this life, you must live only for them.

She took a deep breath to compose herself. Then, as she glanced at the top of Ruido’s head, she noticed lice crawling through her hair and clusters of white nits.

Just then, Ruiduo scratched her itchy head, caught two lice, and held them out. “Mommy, they bite me. It’s itchy! I have lice on my body too. Grandma’s been too busy to get them for us!”

Gu Zhenqi stared at the wriggling lice in her daughter’s tiny hand, her heart aching. “Sweetie, Mommy will give you a nice bath. From now on, we’ll bathe every day. No more lice, ever again!”

Feian, who had been quiet, quickly asked, “Really? No more lice?”

“Really! Now let’s go get clean!”

The three went to the kitchen. Ruido, very familiar with the setup, scooped water into a pot, while Feian squatted by the stove to light a fire.

Gu Zhenqi rushed over and lifted Ruiduo off the counter, then pulled Fei’an away from the fire. “You two go play. These chores are too dangerous. From now on, Mommy will take care of everything.”

“But, Mommy…” Fei’an started to protest.

Gu Zhenqi gently interrupted, “Be good! After your bath, Mommy has something even tastier than candy waiting for you!”

Ruido, who had been dreaming of candy, instantly lit up. She grabbed Fei’an and ran toward the yard.

“Stay in the yard! Don’t run off!” Gu Zhenqi called after them anxiously.

She then lit the fire and started boiling water. In her past life, she had been a complete domestic idiot. But after living decades longer in her second life, she had learned to cook and manage everything herself just to pass the time.

Now, she was truly a woman who could run the household and manage everything with ease.

After the water was ready, she took out two foldable bathtubs she had specially picked out: one pink, shaped like a little fish; the other blue, shaped like a car.

She placed little rubber duckies and bubble bath with various scents in them.

Finally, with trembling hands, she brought out two children’s outfits she had sewn herself and kept for fifty years—never expecting to ever see them worn. In her past life, she thought she’d never have the chance to dress them in those clothes, only to hold on to the memory of them with guilt.

But now, Heaven had given her a second chance. The things she hadn’t done in the past—she could finally do now.

After everything was ready, she stood in the kitchen doorway and called out, “Ruiduo, Fei’an, it’s bath time!”

A moment later, the two children came running like little cannonballs and clung to her legs.

Gu Zhenqi crouched down and hugged them tightly. Ruiduo lifted her head and planted two wet kisses on her cheek. Fei’an hesitated, then gently kissed her other cheek, feather-light like a whisper.