Chapter 6: The Little Ones Fall Ill

“Who… are you again?” Su Xingwan asked politely with a smile.

Tang Muya was momentarily taken aback.

Then she thought it was understandable that Su Xingwan didn’t remember her.

“I’m Tang Muya.”

Su Xingwan looked at her, smiled faintly but still didn’t recognize her. Out of courtesy, she replied, “What a coincidence.”

Tang Muya said calmly, “Yes, quite a coincidence. What brings you here?”

Su Xingwan said, “Ah, I’m just taking these two kids shopping.”

Tang Muya glanced at the two children beside her, a trace of surprise in her eyes. “Are these your children?”

Su Xingwan shook her head. “No, they’re my sister’s kids.”

“...Oh.”

Tang Muya let out a long breath, unsure whether to believe her or not.

“Have you been going through a tough time recently?”

Su Xingwan nodded. “Yes.”

Then Tang Muya sent her a red envelope.

Su Xingwan was surprised; this woman didn’t seem very familiar with the original owner.

“…Thank you.”

In the past, Su Xingwan would never have accepted money from others without a good reason.

But now, unemployed with no income, and taking care of two children, she was indeed in need of money.

She decided to treat this money as a loan from Tang Muya and would repay it once she was able.

Tang Muya said indifferently, “No need to thank me. Consider it a small gift for the two kids.”

She and Su Xingwan had never really interacted, except once at a banquet where Su Xingwan nearly fell, and Tang Muya had helped her up.

But her attitude wasn’t exactly warm, so Su Xingwan hadn’t felt grateful.

Tang Muya had heard from others that those who knew Su Xingwan didn’t give her a good reputation, so she had kept her distance.

Running into her today while shopping, seeing her chatting with Wu Qian and the others, Tang Muya greeted her out of politeness.

After a brief conversation, Tang Muya found Su Xingwan was not quite like what Wu Qian and Zhang Qiaoqiao had described.

Looking at the shabby cotton-padded jackets the two little ones wore, Tang Muya said, “Su Xingwan, if you don’t want others to know you have children, you’d better keep it well hidden.”

She knew Su Xingwan was trying to climb into high society and was eager to become a famous star.

If anyone found out, her desired path to stardom would be hopeless.

Su Xingwan was stunned; had Tang Muya misunderstood something?

Before leaving, Tang Muya glanced at the two little ones. “They’re quite cute.”

The two children smiled at the lady.

Su Xingwan was surprised by the difference in their attitude toward Wu Qian and Tang Muya.

She asked them, “Do you like this lady?”

Xiao Suhua tilted his head. “She’s not bad.”

Su Xingwan: “What do you mean by ‘not bad’?”

Xiao Suhua: “Although she seems a bit cold, she gave you money to spend.”

Xiao Sulu nodded beside him.

Su Xingwan was somewhat amazed.

These two little ones, not even three years old, already knew which lady was kind.

She thought to herself, *No wonder they’re portrayed as genius little treasures in those CEO novels—so clever and perceptive at such a young age.*

“Let’s go! Time to head home!” Su Xingwan said with a bright smile, holding the two little hands.

Back at home, Su Xingwan let them play freely in the living room while she went to the kitchen to cook noodles.

After the auntie went inside, Xiao Suhua whispered, “Brother, what’s a CEO novel?”

Xiao Sulu scratched his head. “I don’t know either.”

Xiao Suhua sat on the carpet, counting on his fingers. “One, two, three…”

Xiao Sulu asked, “What are you doing?”

Xiao Suhua said, “Auntie said we are the three babies in a CEO novel, but we don’t have a dad?”

Xiao Sulu scratched his head, not quite understanding his sister.

“The delicious noodles are ready!” Su Xingwan came out of the kitchen with a big bowl of noodles.

The two little ones immediately abandoned their previous worries and ran over quickly.

“Go wash your hands first,” Su Xingwan said.

They hurried to the bathroom, washed, and came back out.

Su Xingwan checked their hands; they were still very clean.

“Good job washing, come eat your noodles now.”

The two happily sat at the dining table, noticeably more confident and natural than the day before.

Su Xingwan took out two baby bowls and served each of them a steaming bowl of noodles.

Xiao Suhua eagerly slurped a mouthful. “So tasty!”

Xiao Sulu expressed satisfied amazement, “It’s as delicious as little cakes!”

Xiao Suhua put on a little grown-up expression and said earnestly, “I think little cakes taste a bit better, but auntie’s cooking is pretty good too!”

Xiao Sulu nodded a few times and quickly finished his bowl.

Su Xingwan smiled as she reached out to gently ruffle their fluffy little heads.

That night, Su Xingwan noticed there was no air conditioning in the children’s bedroom and said, “Tonight, you two sleep in my room.”

The two little ones looked up in surprise.

Was auntie really asking dirty little them to sleep in her bed?

Before they could say anything, Su Xingwan scooped them up and carried them into her bedroom.

Her room had the heater on, and the warmth hit them as soon as they entered, prompting them to take off their down jackets in no time.

So comfortable!

The two happily rolled around in auntie’s bed, which even smelled nice—it was the scent of auntie.

Seeing them so happy made Su Xingwan happy too.

She thought to herself that once she had money, she would install air conditioning in their room and replace the thin, unwarm quilt they were using.

She admired how these two little ones managed to grow up so resiliently under such harsh conditions.

Su Xingwan turned off the lights, and after a while…

Hidden under the covers, Xiao Suhua whispered, “Brother, I feel like the bad auntie has really changed this time.”

Xiao Sulu remained silent.

He just couldn’t figure it out.

Their little minds still couldn’t grasp so many things.

He knew his sister had the ability to read minds, to tell who was good or bad.

“Are you really sure the bad auntie has changed for real this time?”

Xiao Suhua nodded. “I’m sure. I haven’t heard auntie scold us again.”

Still not asleep, Su Xingwan thought, *…*

Those two little rascals were scheming again right in front of her.

Late at night, half asleep, Su Xingwan suddenly felt two soft, heavy lumps pressing down on her chest, almost suffocating her.

She was used to sleeping alone; in her past life, she was solitary.

Sleeping with the two little ones tonight felt a bit unfamiliar.

She reached out to move them off her, only to touch a warm head.

Suddenly alert, Su Xingwan quickly got out of bed and turned on the small nightlight by the bed.

She felt the foreheads of the two little ones again.

To her shock, both were running a fever…