âMom, I donât want a brother,â Xi Xi said sulkily and she looked so upset, as though she was about to burst into tears.
He Xiyan wrapped her arms around Xi Xi tenderly and gently rubbed her back.
âXi Xi, be good. Both you and your brother are my precious children. Youâre biological siblings and now that you have an elder brother, this means that someone will always have your back if anyone dares to bully you in the future, do you understand?â
He Xiyan tried her best to explain the situation to her children. She didnât understand why Xi Xi was so afraid of having siblings.
Xi Xi rubbed at her eyes and soon, she burst into tears.
âSob⦠if I have an elder brother, this means that you would no longer love me,â she said.
He Xiyan was left speechless.
Her eyes suddenly widened and her daughterâs words were like a thorn that pierced straight through her heart. She suddenly understood why her daughter refused to acknowledge her elder brother. Her daughter must have experienced this before and she guessed that after Han Xueâs son was born, the Ye family must have treated Xi Xi coldly, and this resulted in the child feeling extremely insecure.
âXi Xiâ¦â He Xiyan said as she stroked her daughterâs face. Then she used a piece of tissue to wipe her daughterâs tears away as she said, âDonât worry. I promise that I will always love you. Both you and Yuan Yuan are my children, so I will love you both equally. Your elder brother will also dote you.â
She said as she tried to soothe her childâs emotions.
Xi Xi sniffled and looked at her mother as she asked, âReally?â
He Xiyan nodded and her arms tightened around her daughter. She was taken aback by her daughterâs sense of insecurity.
âOf course. I wouldnât lie to you,â she said.
Xi Xi bit her lips and finally calmed down after she sobbed in her motherâs arms for some time.
Yuan Yuan noticed that the castle was humongous and it was way bigger than his house. He had completely forgotten that he had been raised right here at the castle until he was a year and a half.
Qin Xiaoyu was thrilled to see Yuan Yuan again because she had spent more than a year caring for him. She was pleased to see that he had grown so big.
She had only been 20 when Yuan Yuan was born and now she was already 25 years old. Unfortunately, she had yet to find a Prince Charming of her own.
He Xiyan led Xi Xi our and Xi Xi was finally not as agitated or angry as before now that she had calmed down.
She looked at Yuan Yuan and blinked up at him but she could not bring herself to acknowledge him as her brother.
Yuan Yuan smiles happily at her, revealing the tiny dimples on his cheeks.
He walked up to his mother and looked at Xi Xi.
âMom, I will take care of her,â he said confidently and looked like a mature young man as he said those words. He was only a five-year-old boy but he was more mature than most children his age.
He Xiyan crouched down and took her daughterâs hand in one hand and her sonâs hand in her other hand.
She was very comforted and happy at this development. All she wanted was for her two children to have a happy and healthy childhood.
Her two children started playing together after dinner. Xi Xi had a little nursery of her own that was filled with all kinds of toys valued at more than 10,000 dollars each.
âYuan Yuan, this is for you,â she said as she stuffed a toy into his hands. She didnât address him as her elder brother but called him by his name just as her mother did.
Yuan Yuan glanced at it and saw that it was a toy bear. It looked extremely new as though it had been a recent purchase.
However, he didnât accept her gift and placed it back with a pile of toys.