Chu Fuyu looked at the three little boys before her.
They were exactly the same as in her dreams—thin and yellow-faced from malnutrition, dressed in ragged clothes, yet their eyes were bright and clear, their expressions obedient and well-behaved.
A sharp ache suddenly pierced her heart, as if she truly were looking at her own children.
Then memories from her previous life began flooding into her mind.
In that life, she had been much like she was now—a young lady from an official’s family. But her parents had died early, leaving her under the care of her uncle.
Her uncle and aunt treated her like a burden, scolding and beating her at every turn. Growing up in such an environment had shaped her fiery, rebellious personality. She constantly fought back against them.
Later, during a palace banquet, the famous God of War of Great Liang, Prince Jing—Xiao Jingheng—was schemed against alongside her. By a twist of fate, the two ended up consummating their relationship.
After the incident, Xiao Jingheng behaved honorably enough and married her properly as his principal wife.
Thus, at eighteen years old, Chu Fuyu became Princess Jing.
At the beginning of their marriage, the two had actually been quite affectionate. The Prince Jing Manor had only her as its mistress. Xiao Jingheng had no interest in beauty or women—there were no concubines, no bedwarmers—and life had been comfortable and peaceful.
But not long afterward, Prince Jing used his military achievements to request an imperial decree allowing his mother, the Dowager Consort Shu, to leave the palace and return to the manor to recuperate.
The Dowager Consort Shu had actually been a reasonable and understanding mother-in-law who genuinely wanted to get along with her daughter-in-law.
Unfortunately, the former Chu Fuyu had been immature and unreasonable. She felt that the prince spent too much time accompanying his mother and not enough time with her, so she constantly gave the dowager consort cold looks and attitude.
For the peace of the manor, the dowager consort endured it all in silence.
But Chu Fuyu only became more excessive in return, eventually angering the dowager consort into illness.
At that point, the matter could no longer be concealed.
Prince Jing valued filial piety above all else. After a huge argument with Chu Fuyu, he furiously wrote her a letter of divorce.
And Chu Fuyu herself had a terrible temper. Seeing the prince act just like her uncle and aunt—looking down on her and disliking her—she stormed off in anger and left home.
Who would have thought that after running away, she would discover she was pregnant?
With triplets.
Too proud to lower her head, she stubbornly came to this tiny village, determined to raise the three children alone so that Xiao Jingheng would regret divorcing her someday.
Chu Fuyu was speechless.
Even if it had been her previous life…
this was just… unbelievably stupid.
She had started with such a good hand and completely ruined it.
And now she had no choice but to take over this gigantic mess.
Sure enough, people really shouldn’t be too reckless when they’re young.
Otherwise, the debts they create end up being repaid by their future selves.
At this point, all she could do was try her best to support herself and the three children. Everything else could wait.
She stretched her stiff body and quickly realized what had happened.
She had fainted from overwork and prolonged hunger—classic hypoglycemia.
Seeing the identical little bean buns staring at her with concern, warmth surged through her chest.
She would take responsibility as their mother.
She would let these children eat well and live well!
Their lives would definitely be no worse than life in the prince’s manor!
“Damao, Ermao, Sanmao, don’t worry. Mother is fine.”
Chu Fuyu sighed inwardly. Her previous self really hadn’t been very educated—even the children’s nicknames sounded rustic.
Once they had eaten properly, she needed to hurry and give the three boys proper names.
Supported by the children, she slowly got out of bed.
“Go fetch some water first. Mother will make dinner.”
The three boys exchanged puzzled looks.
Cook?
There wasn’t even enough rice left in the house to boil into porridge. The only food remaining was a tiny sweet potato.
Still, they always listened to their mother. Led by the eldest brother, the three little boys hurried outside with a small bucket to fetch water.
Meanwhile, Chu Fuyu surveyed the surroundings.
The house could truly be described as bare walls and nothing more.
Sigh…
One bite at a time. One step at a time.
The most urgent matter was feeding herself and the children properly and helping them regain nutrition.
Fortunately, she had stockpiled a mountain of supplies.
With a single thought, two roast chickens, a plate of stir-fried vegetables, four steamed buns, and a bag of rice appeared before her.
After some thought, she also took out four bottles of milk.
She quickly carried everything into the kitchen, hiding away what needed to be hidden and plating the food properly.
By the time the three children returned carrying a small bucket of water, they immediately smelled an indescribably delicious aroma.
Little Sanmao, the glutton of the three, sniffed wildly and tugged at his brothers’ sleeves.
“Big Brother, Second Brother, smell that! What is it? Why do I smell meat?”
Ermao responded enthusiastically, “I smell it too! It smells just like when Grandpa Wang’s family slaughtered chickens for New Year!”
Damao frowned suspiciously.
“Who’s cooking meat? The smell drifted all the way to our house?”
Sanmao dashed into the house, wanting to call their mother out to smell the meat too—it had been so long since they’d smelled anything like it.
But the moment he entered—
he froze.
On the tiny dining table sat two enormous roast chickens.
Golden, fragrant roast chickens!!!
He could hardly believe his eyes.
“Mother! I’m starving so badly I’m hallucinating! I see roast chicken! Big Brother! Second Brother! Hurry and come look!”
Hearing Sanmao’s scream, Damao and Ermao rushed in as well.
“Aiya! It really is roast chicken! Mother, did you buy two chickens?”
“I’m not seeing things, right?! It smells so good!”
Seeing the children’s excitement, Chu Fuyu’s heart ached painfully.
She gently stroked their little heads and said softly,
“Don’t worry. Mother has money now. I can let you eat good food and drink good things from now on. Come—each of us gets a big drumstick! Go wash your hands and eat! We’re eating chicken legs today!”
“Okay!!”
The children burst into delighted smiles.
The four of them gathered around a small wooden table.
In front of each person sat a brand-new blue-and-white porcelain bowl containing a fluffy white steamed bun.
In the center were the two roast chickens and a plate of stir-fried greens.
The chickens and vegetables glistened with oil, making the three boys drool uncontrollably.
Yet none of them touched the food first.
Instead, they stared eagerly at Chu Fuyu, waiting for her permission.
Her heart stirred.
Although her previous self had been foolish, at least she had raised the children well.
They were sensible, obedient, and polite despite growing up in the countryside.
“Go ahead and eat.”
Chu Fuyu tore off the four drumsticks from the roast chickens—one for each child and one for herself.
Only after seeing their mother take the first bite did the children finally begin wolfing down the food.
They ate so enthusiastically that grease coated their mouths, yet they couldn’t bear to wipe it away.
“It’s so delicious! Mother, can we eat chicken legs again in the future?”
Sanmao looked up at her with shining eyes, making her heart soften completely.
She nodded firmly.
“From now on, we’ll eat meat every day! Eating meat will make you stronger and help you grow tall!”
Damao quickly chimed in,
“If we eat meat, we’ll grow up faster too! Then the three of us can protect Mother! When that time comes, we’ll go out to work, and Mother can stay home and eat chicken legs every day!”