The next day—
Qi Ziyue looked at the little girl standing before her. She was about four or five years old, with two tiny braids hanging down on either side of her head. She wore a fitted pink padded jacket, and her chubby little face was unbelievably adorable.
At that moment, she stood behind Qi Ningrui and Qi Ninghao. The moment they saw Qi Ziyue, the two little brats tossed the hairpin into the girl’s hands, shouted “Little Auntie!” and ran off.
More accurately, they ran into the room and then poked out two round little heads from inside, one stacked atop the other. They looked silly and mischievous, making for an especially comical sight.
Qi Ziyue withdrew her gaze and asked gently, “Hello there. I’m Qi Ning’an’s mother. I asked Haohao and Ruirui to give you that hairpin. It’s a small gift for you—a thank-you present for playing with An’an.”
The moment the little girl heard she was Little Bean Sprout’s mother, her round eyes immediately lit up. In a soft, milky voice, she greeted politely, “Hello, Auntie.”
Hearing that the hairpin was for her, the little girl carefully put it away before introducing herself.
“Auntie, my name is Xuanxuan. You don’t need to thank me. I’ll still play with An’an.”
Qi Ziyue noticed that although the girl was young, she was extremely polite. She neither acted timid nor arrogant around her. She really was the kind of child people naturally adored.
No wonder she became the original novel’s little heroine.
Qi Ziyue crouched down until her eye level matched the little girl’s, then took out two floral hair ornaments and smiled.
“Then, Xuanxuan, can Auntie ask you for a little favor?”
The hair ornaments had been drawn into existence using Qi Ziyue’s Peach Blossom Brush. They were designed exactly in the style little girls loved most. The flowers could either be used as hair ties or pinned separately into the hair.
The ornaments were pink peach blossoms decorated with tiny pearl drops.
Two of the pearls were real; two were fake.
The purpose, of course, was to avoid drawing trouble to the child. To outsiders, the pearls would simply look like plastic, so nobody would pay much attention to them.
Sometimes, mixing truth and falsehood together made it impossible to distinguish between them.
The pink blossoms and sparkling pearls instantly captivated the little girl. Even Ye Xuan—the novel’s future heroine—couldn’t take her eyes off them. Her eyes practically glowed with delight.
Clearly, she truly loved the pearl ornaments, but she didn’t immediately reach out to take them.
That was proper upbringing.
Qi Ziyue’s impression of the little girl improved even more.
The girl cautiously glanced at her before hesitating.
“But Auntie, my mother said I shouldn’t casually accept things from others. I already accepted your hairpin.”
Qi Ziyue gently stuffed the ornaments into her hands and smiled.
“Go ahead and keep them. But don’t wear them outside; it’s best to wear them at home. Also, Auntie wants your help with something. Think of this as payment.”
“What kind of favor?” little Ye Xuan asked.
Qi Ziyue said, “Tomorrow, when you see An’an, Auntie wants you to say that you don’t like children who are dirty and messy, and that you prefer clean children.”
Xuanxuan immediately cried out, “Ah!”
Her little bun-like face wrinkled as she instantly shoved the pearl ornaments back at Qi Ziyue.
“Auntie, how can you be like this? Is An’an even your son or not? I don’t want your hair ornaments anymore!”
Qi Ziyue: “?”
One after another, these kids sure had tempers.
She couldn’t help laughing helplessly.
Quickly, she pulled back the little girl who was about to run away and apologized.
“Little Xuanxuan, Auntie’s sorry. Auntie didn’t explain properly at first. Auntie isn’t looking down on An’an. Auntie is doing this for his own good.”
“You’re An’an’s good friend. You want more people to love him, don’t you? And you also want him to grow up healthy, right?”
Her voice was gentle and steady, the smile never leaving her face.
Her words finally made the little girl stop.
Xuanxuan struggled inwardly before finally hesitating,
“But… we’re friends.”
Qi Ziyue replied softly, “Precisely because you’re friends, you want him to become better. You don’t know this, but a few days ago, before you came, An’an got mocked by several older kids because his clothes were too dirty when he went next door. His two cousins even kicked him a few times. When he came back, he was limping pitifully.”
“Because he’s always dirty, not only does he constantly get stomachaches and diarrhea, but he’s also never truly accepted by the family. To this day, he’s never eaten at the family table, and nobody in the family acknowledges him.”
“Look at yourself—you dress so cleanly every day, so many people love you. But him? No one has ever loved him.”
The more Qi Ziyue spoke, the redder the little girl’s eyes became until tears nearly fell.
Qi Ziyue felt guilty for exactly one second.
Children’s feelings truly were pure.
She took the little girl’s hand and continued gently,
“Little Xuanxuan, Auntie went crazy for several years, so I missed An’an’s childhood. Now Auntie wants to love him properly, but he refuses to bathe or wear clean clothes. That’s why Auntie needs your help.”
After thinking for a while, the little girl finally looked up at her with reddened eyes and said,
“Auntie, I don’t dislike him. I’ll always stay with An’an.”
Qi Ziyue gently stroked the little girl’s braids before hugging her warmly.
“Auntie thanks little Xuanxuan. But Xuanxuan, you only come here a few days each year. During the other 360 days, he’s all alone. What should he do then?”
The little girl seemed to think of something. Finally, she looked up worriedly.
“But I’m scared I’ll hurt him.”
Qi Ziyue increasingly felt how precious this little girl was.
“Don’t worry. After he bathes, Auntie will explain to him that Auntie was the one who asked you to say those things.”
“And once An’an bathes and changes into clean clothes, Auntie will even prepare gifts for him.”
“Then… Auntie, I’ll try.”
Only then did the little girl finally run off happily with the hair ornaments.
After she left, Qi Ziyue beckoned the two peeking little heads over and gave them a thumbs-up.
“Well done. Tomorrow, once you bring An’an to see the little girl, you two can mock him a bit too. As long as An’an comes home willing to bathe and change clothes afterward, Auntie will reward each of you with a banana this time.”
“What’s a banana, Little Auntie?”
“Come to my room later and Auntie will let you taste one. It’s a kind of fruit.”
“Yay! Little Auntie is the best!”
These little brats were the perfect example of “whoever feeds me is my mom.” The moment they heard there was fruit to eat, the brothers each grabbed one of Qi Ziyue’s hands and dragged her toward the west-side room in the back courtyard.
After reaching Qi Ziyue’s room, the two boys actually remained fairly polite. They stood at the doorway urging her on.
“Hurry up, Little Auntie! We won’t peek!”
Though they claimed they wouldn’t look, both boys covered their eyes while leaving enormous gaps between their fingers. Their eyes were stretched so wide they practically glued themselves to her.
Qi Ziyue didn’t mind at all.
Honestly, she found it hilarious.
Her eldest brother had such a serious personality, yet he somehow ended up with these two rowdy little monkeys.
In an excellent mood, Qi Ziyue went inside and took out the promised box of osmanthus cakes and apple from her space.
She also brought out a banana, peeled it, sliced it into pieces, and stuck toothpicks into each piece before returning outside.
The moment she appeared at the doorway, the boys’ eyes locked firmly onto the osmanthus cakes and apple. They swallowed visibly, looking desperate to eat them.
Apparently, they had already tasted them yesterday and couldn’t forget the flavor.
Smiling, Qi Ziyue handed the rewards over.
The two boys had clearly already planned the split. Haohao grabbed the apple while Ruirui took the osmanthus cakes.
Their grins stretched nearly ear to ear.
“Thank you, Little Auntie!”
“No need to thank me. Here, this is a banana. Try it. Tomorrow, once your cousin bathes and changes clothes, Auntie will give each of you a whole banana.”
Probably because he had never seen one before, Ruirui curiously asked,
“Little Auntie, this white thing is called a banana? Is it tasty?”
Qi Ziyue laughed and handed him a banana slice on a toothpick.
“Try it and find out. But Auntie also wants to discuss a little business deal with you.”
Haohao was equally curious about bananas. Hearing the word “business,” he immediately asked,
“What business, Little Auntie?”
Qi Ziyue asked, “Tell Auntie honestly—when An’an goes out with you and people dislike him, doesn’t that make you lose face too?”
Ruirui nodded.
Haohao, being older, instead replied,
“Little Auntie, we’re family.”
Qi Ziyue: “?”
So now they were family because food was involved?
Internally amused, she pinched Haohao’s cheek and smiled.
“Auntie thinks that when you all go out together and people dare mock An’an, bully him, and scare him, what they’re really doing is looking down on you two.”
The boys immediately cried out in confusion.
They genuinely couldn’t understand why insulting An’an meant looking down on them.
Still, because Little Auntie suddenly had so many delicious things lately, they patiently asked,
“Why?”
Qi Ziyue explained,
“Think about it. If you were very fierce and people respected you, then even if you brought a dog outside, would anyone casually beat your dog or steal your things?”
The two boys only half-understood, but the important part was that Little Auntie somehow sounded reasonable.
They had already forgotten that they used to dislike their cousin deeply. Why should it matter if others beat him?
“And also,” Qi Ziyue continued, “if you go out together and An’an gets beaten while you don’t help him, people will think you’re cowards. They’ll think you’re weak and not united. Then next time, if they want something from you and you refuse, the ones getting beaten next time will be you.”
Ruirui became furious.
“They dare!”
Qi Ziyue looked toward Haohao.
“Haohao, tell Auntie honestly. Doesn’t Auntie make sense? If danger exists, shouldn’t we eliminate it immediately?”
Qi Ninghao’s brain was already thoroughly muddled by his little aunt’s logic.
After thinking carefully, he felt… it actually did make sense.
Before they could fully process it, Qi Ziyue continued,
“Of course, the kids next door are stronger than you right now. If someone stronger attacks you, running away is the right choice. But if you can beat them, and they still dare provoke or bully you, then hit them back.”
“But Little Auntie,” Ruirui asked, “they’re insulting and beating An’an.”
Qi Ziyue answered as though it were obvious,
“Then hit them back too! If you help An’an fight back, Auntie will double your reward when you come home. Plus, you can claim credit from your father for protecting your younger brother. And outside, people will think you brothers are united, so they won’t dare bully you easily anymore. See? So many advantages.”
Whether it truly made sense or not no longer mattered.
The moment the boys heard the fruit rewards would double—and that they could even gain praise from their father—they became completely dazzled.
Both nodded repeatedly.
“Little Auntie is right!”
That was exactly when Qi Ziyue stuffed banana pieces into their mouths.
The taste nearly moved the boys to tears.
They nodded frantically while chewing.
“So tasty, Little Auntie! Little Auntie, Little Auntie, we’ll definitely satisfy you!”
Just as they finished speaking, Qi Ziyue noticed a shadow near the doorway.
Looking up, she realized Little Bean Sprout had returned.
Immediately, she smiled brightly.
“An’an!”
But the little bean sprout merely glanced at her before walking straight inside without another word.
The three people standing at the doorway were left completely dumbfounded.
Qi Ningrui immediately raised his fist.
“I’ll help teach that disobedient brat a lesson!”
Qi Ziyue flicked his forehead.
“You two hurry back and eat your osmanthus cakes and apple. If your second uncle’s kids see them later, do you think there’ll still be any left for you?”
The moment Haohao and Ruirui heard that, they immediately turned and ran.
Everything they had just passionately promised vanished like a fart in the wind.
Qi Ziyue: “?”
These kids were truly little realists.