"We're here." After walking for five more minutes, Xu Yinchen finally stopped in front of a two-storey house.
It was a house with a yard outside and a small iron gate that seemed more decorative than functional, as it could easily be opened from the outside.
Qin Lian, who was tired from the long walk, couldn't hide her surprise when she saw the house.
Not only was it made of bricks and was of two floors, but it also had a spacious yard in front. Though the yard was overgrown with weeds and littered with waste items, the sheer size of the property made it stand out.
Owning a place like this in the village? It's far better and richer than squeezing into some tiny apartment in the city.
In her previous life, after leaving the orphanage, she had lived in a small, rented 1 room apartment that felt more like a box than a home.
A house this big, with its own yard, was a luxury she could never have imagined.
What surprised her even more was that the house was larger than the Qin family's two-storey home in the city, which was in the government compound.
The house was allocated to Qin Zhong based on his official rank. The Qin family house was smaller and lacked the spacious yard that this one had.
On the way, she had noticed other village houses; they were all small, made of clay tiles, and in poor condition.
Compared to that, Xu Yinchen can be considered a rich person in the village. A house like this, with two floors, brick walls, and such size, was rare in a village in this era.
…..
At that moment, Xu Yinchen opened the small iron gate to the yard and parked his bicycle inside and locked it with a metal chain. After he was done, he turned around and noticed Qin Lian still standing outside, staring at the house in a daze.
"Let's go inside," he said, breaking her thoughts.
Startled, Qin Lian nodded quickly. "Oh, yes," she replied and followed him in.
Upon entering the house, Qin Lian was greeted by a dimly lit room, illuminated only by a flickering candle.
She frowned, glancing around the large house. Why was there just a single candle for light?
Her gaze fell on three small figures seated on the floor, their curious, confused, and scared eyes fixed on her.
These were Xu Yinchen's children, or rather, his late sister's children, now in his care. The eldest looked around seven years old, while the second was about five, and the youngest seemed to be around two years old.
Even in the faint candlelight, their frail, malnourished figures were clear. Qin Lian's heart tightened. When she had read about these children in the novel, she always felt bad about them and cursed Qin Lian for mistreating these innocent souls.
Now seeing them in front of her, she felt her heart aching.
Having grown up in an orphanage, she understood their loneliness all too well. Even her life had been better than this; at least the orphanage director had ensured they were well-fed.
These children seemed to have endured far more hardships at such a young age.
Before she could process the emotions rising in her chest, Xu Yinchen's actions broke the silence. He strode forward, turned on the light, and in one swift motion, blew out the candle.
A harsh, white glare flooded the room. His voice cut through the silence like a knife."Why didn't you turn on the light instead of using a candle?"
His gaze locked onto the eldest, Xu Shen, who sat hunched over his homework, a pencil in his small hand.
"Didn't I tell you to use proper lighting while studying?" He said coldly.
Xu Shen flinched, but he didn't look up.
He just tightened his grip on the pencil, his knuckles turning slightly pale. His voice was small but steady when he finally spoke."Using tubelight costs too much," he muttered.
"A candle was enough. We don't want to be a burden on anyone."
A burden.
Xu Yinchen's lips pressed into a thin line.
Something flickered in his gaze, guilt, frustration, and maybe even helplessness, but it disappeared as fast as it came.
He stood there for a long moment, as if struggling to say something. But in the end, he didn't.
No matter what he says, it wouldn't work.
Instead, his voice turned colder, more detached as he turned to Qin Lian. "This is Qin Lian. She will be staying here from now on. She… She is your—"
Before he could finish, Xu Shen looked up. His dark, sharp eyes met Qin Lian's, his brows furrowing."Stepmother?"
His voice was icy, his words carrying an edge too sharp for a child his age."I understand. No need to be awkward about it."
A tense silence followed.
Xu Yinchen's face darkened instantly. His voice dropped, deeper this time, "What stepmother? Who taught you that nonsense?"
Xu Shen didn't answer.
His pencil scratched against the paper, his small hands gripping it tightly. Xu Yinchen's jaw tightened further. His next words came slower, but firmly. "Just call her mother."
A beat of silence.
Then, his expression flickered.
He glanced at Qin Lian, hesitation creeping into his normally emotionless face. He couldn't help but wonder if she would be offended by this.
After all, she is just a young girl, and becoming a stepmother to three children is not something to be proud of.
His voice softened. "Just call her Aunt. And don't think about anything else."
Xu Shen let out a soft snort, his expression indifferent. But he didn't argue.
He simply lowered his head again and continued writing, as if the conversation had never happened. The faint sound of a pencil scratching against paper filled the silence.
"Grhhh."
The sudden loud growling sound broke the silence in the room. The children and Xu Yinchen instinctively turned toward Qin Lian, whose face turned beet red with embarrassment.
She awkwardly placed a hand over her stomach and said, "Ah, well… nice to meet you all. My name is Qin Lian. And I'm…your father's new wife? I'll be staying in this house from now on, too."