The younger brother was gradually becoming more outgoing, learning to make friends on his own and starting to let loose.
Meanwhile, the older brother was still trapped in his own world, unwilling to interact with anyone outside those he had already accepted.
While being independent and self-reliant was good, having no friends was just too pitiful.
Si Nian sighed.
It seemed she had indeed thought too simply.
She led the children into the courtyard one after the other; the younger brother was already home.
The aroma of bone broth floated in the courtyard, so rich it made one's mouth water.
Seeing his older brother return with their mom, the younger brother, who was feeding the fish, immediately widened his eyes in anger. "Big brother, you cheated! You told me to wait for you at the school gate so we could walk home together! How come you're with Mom?"
How infuriating! He figured it out. His big brother must have done it on purpose so he wouldn't see. He waited for him to leave first, so when Mom went to pick them up, she wouldn't find him.
And then his brother came back with Mom.
No wonder he couldn't find Mom when he got home.
Big brother was really too cunning.
Si Nian smiled and ruffled his hair. "Alright, that's enough. I bought some vegetable seeds. You and your brother can help me plant them later, and we'll have dinner after we finish."
The younger brother, who had just been angrily thinking about giving his brother a hard time, immediately had his attention diverted.
"Plant vegetables? Really? Mom, do you support me becoming a migrant worker? Yay! I'll go get the hoe right now!"
With that, he dashed into the house like a whirlwind.
Si Nian turned around with a smile and looked at Zhou Zedong, who still seemed a bit stiff. "What are you standing there for? Go put your schoolbag away and come help."
Zhou Zedong was taken aback.
He thought Mom would definitely scold him once they got home.
Last time when his younger brother got into a fight, Mom had lectured him.
Walking home, he had been so nervous.
He had already prepared himself mentally: if Mom got angry, he would apologize immediately.
Si Nian was soft-hearted when faced with submission, so she would surely forgive him.
To his surprise, not only was she not angry, but she also didn't blame him.
Zhou Zedong stood still for a moment, then suddenly his eyes curved into a smile. The gloom that had been weighing on his heart vanished in an instant. He nodded heavily. "Mhm!"
Si Nian went inside, saw that the bone broth was about ready, started cooking the rice, and then fetched the vegetable seeds before heading back out.
"Mom, Mom, where is our family's plot?"
"I haven't dug in the ground for so long, I'm so happy!"
"Wait, I'll go call Little Jiang to join us..."
The younger brother excitedly rattled on by himself and was about to sprint towards the Jiang family.
Little Jiang?
Si Nian was both amused and exasperated. She quickly stopped him. "Our family doesn't have a plot. We don't need Jiang Jiu's help."
"Huh?" The younger brother was confused. "How can we plant vegetables without a plot?"
"Of course you can plant without a plot." Si Nian led the bewildered younger brother to the corner of the wall and pointed at several large foam boxes. "We'll plant them in here."
Then, she handed the vegetable seeds to the older brother, who had followed them. "Xiao Dong, you and your brother plant the vegetables. Mom will go cook."
At home, the two children had always helped her plant. It wasn't technically demanding anyway; you'd learn after watching a couple of times.
Si Nian couldn't be bothered to do it herself anymore.
The older brother nodded solemnly, accepting the seeds with great seriousness.
This was definitely Mom giving him a chance to redeem himself.
He must plant the vegetables big and healthy! He wouldn't fail the importance Mom placed on him.
The two little ones squatted in front of the foam boxes, ready to start planting.
Although the younger brother was a little disappointed, having a small space was better than nothing.
He quickly became interested. One dug holes, the other dropped seeds, and soon they were planted neatly in rows.
During dinner, the younger brother hugged a big bone, gnawing on it as he asked, "Mom, didn't Dad come home again today?"
Si Nian paused, frowned slightly, and said, "Your dad has some business these few days. He might not be back for a while."
The old man had said he'd only be gone for two days, but Si Nian knew that if something required him to travel so far, it probably wouldn't be that simple.
Besides, she had heard him mention his military district before.
Northwest.
It took several days just by train.
He probably said it lightly because he didn't want her to worry.
Regardless, Si Nian just hoped he could return safely.
Everything else was secondary.
After all, even when Zhou Yueshen was home, he was always busy with matters at the factory.
It wasn't much different.
She was getting tired of eating meat every day anyway. A period of simpler, plainer meals wouldn't be bad.
The children also wore expressions that said this was nothing unusual.
Asking once was already the last bit of respect they had for Zhou Yueshen.
"Drink more bone broth. It'll help you grow tall."
She reminded the two children.
Zhou Zehan never refused anything offered. He gulped down the broth and asked, "Mom, will I grow as tall as Dad if I drink this?"
Si Nian looked at the little fellow's height. Over the past six months, he had grown very well.
He was almost no different from his peers now.
Actually, with genes like Zhou Yueshen's, which were quite extraordinary, his children probably wouldn't be far off.
And according to the original setting, even living in his previous conditions, the younger brother would grow to be 185 cm tall.
Now that he was eating better and getting proper nutrition, he might even catch up to his father.
Si Nian looked at the little bean sprout in front of her, with his comical expression, and thought about the younger brother growing up to be a gangster...
She instantly found the image hard to look at directly.
She said, "Of course. Xiao Han will definitely be as tall as Dad."
"Wow, I'll be so tall! Brother, did you hear that? I'll be as tall and strong as Dad~" The younger brother waved his arms excitedly, gesturing.
Zhou Zedong, who originally didn't like drinking soup, heard this and looked at his brother again.
His brother really was growing fast. Even seeing him every day, he could clearly notice the changes in his brother's height.
Then he thought about when he was seven or eight; he was much smaller than his brother now, the shortest in his class.
After moving to the city, everyone seemed tall.
Although he had grown a bit, he still wasn't considered tall in his class.
Zhou Zedong pursed his lips and silently finished his soup. Then, while Si Nian wasn't looking, he drank another bowl.
He also wanted to be like his dad, tall and strong.
So that no one would dare bully them.
With this thought in mind, Zhou Zedong fell into a sweet sleep, his belly round and full.
However, halfway through his sleep, he suddenly felt as if he were drowning, and in hot water at that. He was all wet and sticky.
Zhou Zedong jolted awake immediately and pulled back the blanket.
Both he and his brother were lying in a wet, sticky patch.
His face flushed red at an unbelievable speed.
Had he... wet the bed?
He jumped out of bed in shock. He hadn't wet the bed since he was five years old.
Thinking about the soup he had secretly drunk at night—that's right, after drinking two bowls behind Mom's back, he couldn't resist having a bit more while washing dishes in the kitchen.
Considering this possibility, Zhou Zedong's face turned pale.
His brother beside him stirred. "Brother..."
Zhou Zedong's expression tightened. "What's wrong?"
Zhou Zehan: "So yummy, so yummy, munch munch Zzzzz..."
