The Beautiful Stepmother from the Eighties: Marrying a Factory Director to Raise Kids

Chapter 396

Zhou Yueshen: "......"He rubbed his brow. When did this kid learn to be so mischievous? He was truly harder to please than his mother.

Now he even dared to secretly criticize him.

It seemed he had been too gentle with him.

Si Nian smiled and cast a sidelong glance at Zhou Yueshen, saying, "Little Han is right. Your dad is too careless. From now on, Mom's roses will all be raised by Little Han."

Zhou Yueshen choked on his words again.

They had just agreed not to be mad anymore.

Well, it turned out that Little Han's grudge-holding nature was learned from Nian Nian.

Having received his mother's praise, the Second Child was immediately even happier.

He wasn't even afraid of his dad's stoic face anymore, and happily ate two more bowls of rice.

After criticizing his dad, he still wasn't satisfied, and went on to crusade against his older brother. "Big brother, the rice you cook doesn't smell as good as Mom's. Mom's cooking is tastier."

Zhou Zedong shot him a dark, sidelong glance.

Turning around, he modestly said to Si Nian, "Mom, I will study even harder."

Si Nian patted his head and told him to take his time. Looking at the Second Child with his nose pointing to the sky, she realized he was truly spoiled by her.

Offending his dad wasn't enough for him just now; he also wanted to offend his older brother.

Thinking of this, Si Nian deliberately kept a straight face and said, "Little Han, you are the younger brother. You can't point fingers at your older brother. He already did a very good job."

"Taking away one little red flower will serve as a lesson. Don't let it happen again, understand?"

Zhou Zehan's smug smile instantly froze.

Before he could pretend to be pitiful, Si Nian said, "Nothing can be accomplished without rules. From now on, if you say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing, you must accept punishment. If you do well, I will reward you with a little red flower. If you do wrong, I will similarly take one back. Understand?"

"Through his own hard work, Little Dong now has ten little red flowers, which can be exchanged for a reward. Take a day off tomorrow. Studying all day isn't good either."

"Little Han only has five flowers. With one deducted, you have four left. Keep working hard."

"Do you have any questions?"

The two children: "......" How could they dare to have any questions.

They would thank the heavens as long as their little red flowers weren't deducted.

Zhou Zehan regretted it to death.

If he had known this would happen, he wouldn't have said his brother's rice wasn't as tasty as his mom's.

Boohoo, he was wrong!

Si Nian added, "Right, besides you two, your younger sister also has little red flowers. Yesterday she recited three poems, earning one little red flower. Today she finished learning a hundred characters, earning another. Now your sister already has two little red flowers."

Yaoyao happily raised her spoon: "Little red flower~ Little red flower~ I'm going to surpass bad second brother."

The little girl still remembered when the Second Child said he was going to secretly run away with Mom and leave them behind.

Ever since then, Yaoyao felt that her second brother was a little baddie.

Zhou Zehan's little face flushed red with shame.

He hurriedly shoveled rice into his mouth. No, he had to work hard to get back the lost little red flower.

Watching his youngest son's deflated expression, the corners of Zhou Yueshen's mouth curled up into an arc.

However, the next second, he couldn't escape his doom either. Si Nian finally turned her head and said to him, "Zhou Yueshen, you broke a brick and a vase today. That won't do. I'm publicly criticizing you this once. Next time you break my things, you'll sleep with the Second Child."

Zhou Yueshen's smile instantly froze, and he nodded with a wooden face.

The Second Child immediately became happy.

At night, Zhou Yueshen took the initiative to boil water for Si Nian to take a bath.

Si Nian never made it very obvious when she was angry, but she wasn't petty either. Her anger came quickly and faded just as fast.

If you tactfully admitted your mistake, she might forgive you immediately.

But the most terrifying thing about women isn't their anger, but their tendency to bring up old scores.

Si Nian was originally happily preparing to take a bath, but seeing the water in the tub struck a chord and reminded her of her roses. Although Zhou Yueshen had already planted them in the soil, flowers could easily die if not careful when repotting.

She had thought that if this rose plant survived, it would prove she had a talent for growing flowers and plants. In the future, not only could she create a rose garden, but she could also take rose baths all the time.

However, while her imagination was so beautiful, reality was cruel.

So she began to torment Zhou Yueshen.

Resting her hands against the edge of the bathtub, she called out, "Zhou Yueshen, the water is a bit cold."

In the room, Zhou Yueshen, who was coaxing their daughter to sleep, heard the noise and immediately went downstairs to bring up hot water.

The bathroom was steaming hot, and the scorching summer heat and the air instantly condensed into mist on the man's body.

On such a hot day, only Si Nian would take a hot bath.

Zhou Yueshen always took cold showers.

"What's wrong?"

He looked at Si Nian's slightly furrowed brows and asked in a low voice.

Si Nian sighed, "I want to take a rose bath."

In the past, when she was tired from work, she would always go home and prepare bathwater, inevitably accompanied by flower petals and red wine.

She enjoyed the solitary tipsiness.

Yet now, looking at this older man, the solitude was gone, the red wine was gone, and the atmospheric fragrant roses were gone too.

Zhou Yueshen: "......" She was actually still brooding over this matter.

Zhou Yueshen pulled a bath towel from the rack next to him and said in a low voice, "It's hot, don't soak for too long."

Si Nian liked the temperature a bit high, and since the day was hot, soaking too long would make her whole body go soft.

He leaned over and gently wiped the water droplets from her face.

"Put on your clothes. I'll take Yaoyao back to her room to sleep."

Si Nian hummed a response, and watching him walk out with slightly hurried steps, she finally revealed a sly smile.

By the time Zhou Yueshen took their daughter back to her room to sleep and returned, Si Nian was already lying down, looking as if she had fallen asleep.

Helplessly, he went into the bathroom to wash up, before pulling back the covers to get into bed and pulling her into his arms to hold her.

Si Nian couldn't pretend anymore and kicked him. "It's hot. Don't touch me."

Zhou Yueshen almost laughed out of frustration.

The Second Child was still working hard at this moment. Zhou Zedong was doing his homework, and seeing that he still looked so energetic, he couldn't help but say, "Mom said exercising at night will stop you from growing taller."

The Second Child instantly froze.

He immediately got into bed to sleep.

In less than two minutes, he started snoring.

The next day, Zhou Yueshen didn't need to drag him out of bed; the Second Child got up on his own.

His hard-working appearance made even the older man raise an eyebrow.

"Dad, I'm going to run six kilometers today. Don't try to talk me out of it."

Since he couldn't train at night, he had to exercise more during the day.

Zhou Yueshen: "......"

"Dad, I'll do squats for another half an hour today. I'm not tired at all."

Although Jiang Jiu couldn't keep up, after this period of exercise, his physical stamina had also improved a lot.

His soft, chubby flesh had even started to firm up a bit.

After Zhou Yueshen finished training his son, he went out again.

Although he had been spending more and more time at home recently, he still mostly had to go out to do things during the day.

He was running around outside every day.

But the Second Child couldn't rest easy; Zhou Yueshen had also left homework for him.

Zhou Zedong was resting today and took his younger sister out to the amusement park to play.

Watching his younger brother do push-ups, he didn't show the slightest hint of embarrassment.

The Second Child ground his missing teeth in frustration.

Si Nian felt that she had been a bit decadent lately. She didn't need to work or study, just occasionally read books and take care of the kids.

The three children were now becoming more and more sensible; they could cook and clean the house.

Zhou Yueshen was coming home more often to help out with the chores, so for a while, she couldn't find anything to do.

Now, the idlest ones in the whole family were her and Da Huang.

All day long, it was just eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating.

She vaguely felt that she had gained quite a bit of weight around her belly.

Just as she was lying on the lounge chair soaking up the sun, there was a knock on the door.

She looked over and saw it was the Fang family from next door.

It was Xiao Yi and Fang Bowen. Fang Bowen was wearing a backpack, and Xiao Yi was carrying a luggage bag in his hand.

Si Nian raised an eyebrow slightly, stood up, and went over to greet them.

"Comrade Xiao, student Fang Bowen, are you heading out?"

Second Child also cast a curious glance over.

Xiao Yi swept his gaze across the courtyard, and seeing that it was only Si Nian and Second Child, he said, "Yes, I plan to take little Bowen back to Beijing. Staying here any longer isn't a long-term solution. I came specifically to say goodbye to you and to thank you for taking care of Bowen before."

Holding his father's hand, Fang Bowen's expression was a bit complicated, carrying a faint hint of reluctance to part: "Teacher Si, I am leaving with my dad. I will remember you."

Si Nian smiled and patted his head.

Looking at Fang Bowen, his complexion had indeed improved a lot.

It seemed Xiao Yi had planned to take Fang Bowen away earlier, but because the boy's health was poor, he had been recuperating here.

It made sense; a place like Beijing was more suitable for this child.

As for Fang Hui, it seemed she would have to serve a few months in prison here before she could leave.

"Alright, your teacher will remember you too."

Xiao Yi withdrew his gaze from the courtyard and said, "Teacher Si, I've heard quite a bit about your situation. Congratulations on becoming the provincial top scorer in the science college entrance exam this time. You'll probably choose to go to Beijing for your future development as well, right?"

Si Nian nodded slightly.

Previously, the school had delivered her admission letter in such an exaggerated manner that it caused a sensation throughout the entire neighborhood, so it wasn't surprising that Xiao Yi had seen it.

Of course, Si Nian didn't plan to celebrate it again, so she hadn't mentioned the matter since.

Xiao Yi said, "To tell you the truth, I serve as a law professor at Beijing University. If you ever need anything or require any help, you can contact me."

Si Nian was slightly surprised.

She knew Xiao Yi was an intellectual just by looking at him.

But she hadn't expected him to be a professor.

No wonder he only came now; the universities were currently on summer break.

Although surprised, Si Nian didn't say much and just nodded slightly.

Her unperturbed demeanor made Xiao Yi take an extra look at her. He left his business card and phone number, saying sincerely, "I hope there will be a chance for us to meet again in the future."

Si Nian smiled, nodded, and said definitely.

After speaking, Xiao Yi looked at his son.

Fang Bowen bit his lip, looking somewhat conflicted.

He looked at Second Child, who was eavesdropping in the distance, wanting to say something.

But he couldn't bring himself to say it.

Xiao Yi smiled and asked, "Bowen, aren't you going to say anything to your little friend?"

"You're leaving, and in the future... you might never see him again."

As soon as those last words were spoken, Fang Bowen's eyes instantly turned red.

Actually, growing up, he had never made any friends.

Because his mother didn't let him play with kids who had bad grades, he was always studying and had never made a true friend.

Second Child was the first person to play with him.

It was the first time he had received food from someone else.

The first time he played Gomoku with someone his own age.

The first time someone came to visit him when he was sick.

Fang Bowen was actually very happy in his heart, but even though his dad had given him so much time, he hadn't been able to take the initiative to come over and play with them even once to fulfill his final wish.

Hearing his dad say they might never see each other again, he suddenly felt very sad, and tears welled up uncontrollably.

He blinked and choked out, "I... I, Dad, I can't say it."

Seeing him cry, Si Nian quickly turned and called Second Child over.

Second Child was still confused. Seeing Fang Bowen turn his face away to cry secretly, he asked in bewilderment, "What's wrong, Mom? Why is Fang Bowen crying?"

Fang Bowen said loudly, "I, I'm not crying."

Second Child said, "You are clearly crying."

Fang Bowen had been very sad just a moment ago, but now he somehow couldn't cry anymore.

Si Nian explained, "Fang Bowen is leaving with his dad to live in a city far away."

"Fang Bowen wants to say goodbye to you."

Upon hearing this, Second Child's expression immediately grew solemn. "Is he taking a long, long train to a place very far away?"

Si Nian nodded.

Second Child instantly felt a bit sad as well. Although he hadn't interacted with Fang Bowen much, he already considered him a friend.

"Mom, does he have to leave?"

Unable to say words of parting, he asked Si Nian miserably.

Si Nian shook her head.

Second Child asked again, "Mom, then will he ever come back?"

Si Nian shook her head again.

Second Child fell silent.

For a moment, he didn't know what to do.

Usually the one to liven up the atmosphere, he was now too sad to say a single word.

Fang Bowen felt like crying again. Seeing him with his head down and lips pursed, he said, "Idiot, what's there to be sad about? We're not even that close anyway."

Second Child pouted, "Of course I'm sad. I haven't even beaten you at Gomoku yet."

Fang Bowen: "....."

Xiao Yi laughed, "Alright now. If you want to meet, it won't be that hard. Auntie Si will be going to Beijing in the future too. If it's meant to be, you'll naturally see each other again. Let's go."

Si Nian nodded slightly.

Fang Bowen clenched his small fists, though his mouth remained very stubborn: "I don't want to see him at all. I just can't bear to leave Teacher Si."

After saying that, he looked at Zhou Zehan's expression and added, "You, you need to study hard from now on."

With that, he turned around heartlessly.

Wearing an expression that said he had nothing more to add.

Si Nian couldn't help but be amused.

It wasn't until the two silhouettes, one large and one small, had walked far away that Si Nian looked down at her son.

Only to see him wearing a look of deep disappointment: "Mom, tell me, why do people always have to part ways?"