With Zhou Xiaoling back, the house felt livelier than ever. Her constant chatter left Lin Xiaoxiao little time to sink into gloomy thoughts.

Even Lin Wenbin had to admit that Xiaoling's return was perfectly timed—she was practically the family's saving grace.

When Xiaoling learned that the two boys still didn't have proper names and were just called "Little One" and "Little Two," she was outraged. "No, no, no! That won't do! How can such handsome boys not have real names? We can leave the formal names for my brother to choose, but I'm picking their nicknames!"

Pacing around the room with her hands behind her back, she muttered dramatically to herself before suddenly spinning around to face Xiaoxiao. "Look how cute they are! The older one will be Qianqian, and the younger one Xuanyuan. The Zhou family makes such good-looking kids—it's perfect!"

Before Xiaoxiao could even voice an objection, Xiaoling was already leaning over the crib, cooing at Little One. "From today on, your name is Qianqian. Look how dark you are—just like your dad! Your sister is so fair and smells so sweet, but you—you're my little stinky boy!"

Since Xiaoling insisted on calling them Qianqian and Xuanyuan—names that were indeed much nicer than Little One and Little Two—every else gradually started using them too.

It wasn't until the next day that Xiaoling heard about Luo Anran's marriage. The news shocked her so much she nearly dropped her bowl. She stared at Xiaoxiao, who was eating in bed. "She married who? Geng Aiguo? Has she lost her mind? Anyone but him!"

Xiaoxiao, whose appetite had improved with Xiaoling's company, sipped her soup curiously. "Do you have some history with Geng Aiguo?"

Xiaoling snorted. "History? More like a life-or-death feud! That guy loved tattling ever since we were kids. Whenever we did anything even slightly fun, he'd run and tell our parents. My mom ended up beating me because of him more times than I can count. And then I'd go beat him up.

It was a vicious cycle. Anran was always on my side—we never played with him." She shook her head in disbelief. "Why him, of all people?"

Xiaoxiao, however, was thinking about something else. "Do you think Anran will regret it if she finds out your second brother is still alive? Or what if he comes back and sees she's married?"

Xiaoling shrugged. "What can you do? I guess they just weren't meant to be. She couldn't wait forever—who knows when he'll return? If he never does, she can't just waste her life waiting. I just don't get why she picked the snitch."

Xiaoxiao was surprised by how pragmatic Xiaoling sounded. "Looks like I worried for nothing."

Xiaoling grinned. "I've never been in love, so I don't get the whole 'I'll wait for you even if you die' thing. Seems pretty normal to me."

Xiaoxiao had never met Geng Aiguo, but setting off firecrackers outside the Zhou family's gate on his wedding day spoke volumes about his character. "What does he do now?"

"Works in an office, I think? Something at the Housing Bureau," Xiaoling said dismissively. "Then again, a tattletale like him belongs in an office."

By the fifteenth day of the lunar new year, Lin Wenbin still hadn't heard any news about Cheng Mingyue going to the black market, but he wasn't worried. He bought pastries and sweet rice balls and headed straight to the Zhou family home.

When he walked in, he was surprised to see Xiaoxiao sitting on the living room sofa, dressed in padded clothes and a knitted hat, with the three babies sleeping soundly beside her.

"You're downstairs?"

Xiaoxiao smiled. "Xiaoling insisted. She said staying upstairs all day was making her feel disconnected from the world. She thinks a change of scenery is good for the mood."

Xiaoling, who was peeling an apple nearby, nodded vigorously. "Exactly! Being stuck in one room all day would drive me crazy. Coming down lets Grandpa and Dad see the kids too."

The two men, who felt awkward going up to Xiaoxiao's room too often, were now standing by the sofa, hands behind their backs, gazing fondly at the babies.

Seeing his sister smiling again put Lin Wenbin slightly at ease. He'd been afraid she might do something reckless in a moment of desperation.

When everyone else was busy and Xiaoling had run off to the kitchen to "help" make rice balls, Wenbin smirked at his sister. "So, still planning to go to the front? Want me to sign you up?"

Xiaoxiao's face flushed with embarrassment. "Brother! I wasn't thinking straight!"

Wenbin chuckled. "Not thinking straight? You were out of your mind. Talking about how you regretted having the kids, wishing you'd never had them... If I had a phone, I'd have recorded it and played it back for them when they're older."

Annoyed, Xiaoxiao pushed his shoulder. "You're so annoying! And you're the one who made me say those things!"

"Let's show the kids how unreasonable their mother can be," he teased. "But have you really let it go?"

Xiaoxiao nodded seriously. "I have. While Zhou Huai'an is away, I need to take good care of the children and protect his family."

Wenbin reached out and ruffled her hair affectionately. "Now you're talking. That's exactly what you should do. My silly little sister has finally grown up."

Xiaoxiao smiled. "Xiaoling helped me see things clearly. I was being too self-absorbed. After my confinement, see if you can arrange something—I want to operate on Shixun's mother again."

A few days ago, she'd been trapped in a spiral of anxiety, unable to stop imagining the worst about Zhou Huai'an. Now, everything seemed clearer. There were still things she needed to do, responsibilities she had to fulfill.

Wenbin looked hesitant. "How am I supposed to arrange that?"

"Tell your father-in-law that your best friend is also in Beijing—an authority in neurosurgery. Say she'll perform the surgery. Then find a way to sneak me into the operating room."

Wenbin shook his head. "No, no. I don't know the first thing about this, and I faint at the sight of blood. How would I even get you in? Besides, I'd definitely give us away. Or have you forgotten?

I'm still supposed to be suffering from amnesia."

Xiaoxiao grew impatient. "I'm the one doing the surgery. You just need to get me inside!"

Zhou Huai'an used to be her cover; now she could only rely on her brother.

"I can't do it," Wenbin refused again. "My legs go weak just looking at an operating room. I'm not going."

Xiaoxiao shot him a look of utter disdain. "You're useless, you know that?"

He pressed a hand against her head. "Is that any way to talk to your older brother?"

From the kitchen, Xiaoling peeked out and whispered to Zhou Liyun, "I thought Sister and her cousin just met? Why are they as close as me and my second brother?"