Stepmother

Closer

This time he didn't bring anything back so he didn't need help, and just directly took the kids home. During the whole walk home, he could see just how much the kids were hit by the words uttered by Zhang Fu. After they got home he sent the kids to do homework and went to make dinner. He planned to talk to the kids about the issue over dinner.

Today he was going to make braised pork and rice. This was the first time he would eat meat since he crossed over, so he couldn't help but gulp. Though he wanted to eat meat, he was still rational and cut the meat and half. He then salted the other half and hung it to dry.

He cut the pork belly into bit size pieces and then put them in a pot of hot water to blanch. He then added the pork into a clean pot and added hot water, soy sauce, ginger, and anise. He then covered the pot and left it to simmer for about an hour. After an hour passed, he added some rock sugar, and let the water boil. After a while, the sugar melted and thickened the braising liquid.

Seeing the liquid thicken, he continuously stirred the meat to ensure that each piece had that appetizing color and shine. After a while, the braising liquid reduced all the way to the bottom of the pot, informing Sun Baohai that it was ready to serve. 

From the moment the meat was cooking the kids couldn't hold back their selves from curiously peeking in the kitchen. The aromatic smell of the meat had already flooded the house and the yard. People outside also smell the divine smell of meat. They did eat meat but they had never smelled one as fragrant as this. They could only hold back their urges lest they wanted to be seen as shameless.

The white rice was cooked while the pork was simmering all he had to do now was serve. He served each kid a generous amount and then called them to the table to eat. The kids' eyes lit up when they saw the shiny meat in the bowl and for a moment they even forgot about their grievances.

"Kids we need to talk," Sun Baohai said as he carried out the baby in his arms.

"Yes Mommy," The kids responded nervously, as they sat down at the table.

"So what did Zhang Fu say to you guys?" Sun Baohai questioned gently. The kids flinched a little, clearly hesitating. But they feared not talking would work against them so they relented.

"He said that we were basically orphans and that you were just being fake and would abandon us one day. He also said that you're just a fake mommy," Qiqi responded trying to hold back the tears in her eyes.

"Did you guys believe what he said?" Sun Baohai knew the answer to this but these kids were very insecure kids, and just comforting them every time would not work, he needed to start building their confidence.

The kids hearing his question bowed their heads and didn't answer. Who were they to tell their new mommy not to leave? Even their biological mom abandoned them, but this new mommy took good care of them even if their dad was not there. He fed them good food, clothed them, and never yelled at them when they did something wrong. Even if their new mommy did abandon them, who were they to be angry at him?

Seeing their silence he knew what they were thinking about. That psychology minor was very handy right now. 

"Kids, right now I am your mommy. And do you know what the job of a mommy is?" Sun Baohai asked gently.

"To scold us?" The twins responded confusedly. That's what their mom and most of the village moms did.

"That's part of it. That only happens when the children do something for moms to scold them. But a mommy is supposed to love, spoil, and coddle you. Tell you when you're in the wrong or in the right. Scold you when needed, but loves you all the time. Protect you from the bad stuff and back you up when you retaliate against something you don't agree with. I might not be your real mommy but I am willing to be your mommy if you give me the chance to. I'll do everything a mommy does if you allow me to. I will slowly learn to love you just like my own so please take care of me." Sun Baohai said his eyes a little red.

He was born into a rich family in his last life. He was shunned by his family when they realized he was an omega. And things got even worse when his illness was discovered at the time his alpha brother was born. As soon as he was old enough he left the house and never looked back. He worked himself to the bones searching for something that even he didn't know what it was. But seeing the looks on the face of the kids now he realized what he was looking for all this time.

Maybe he was numb from the abuse and failed to recognize what he wanted in the past but right now he realized what he wanted all along was a family. At first, he just took care of the kids out of pity but over the few weeks he stayed with them he actually formed a little bond with them. So he was a little attached to them.

"We want Mommy!" The kids burst into tears as soon as they heard Sun Baohai's words. They always envied kids who were loved by their moms. They only had their dad who loved them but he was in the army. So they could only swallow their grievances, but they too wanted to be coddled spoiled, and loved. But they couldn't say in fear of their new mommy leaving. 

"And I want you kids too, now eat," Sun Baohai said as he lowered his head to not let the kids see his crying self. This was the first time somebody said they wanted him.

The kids ate with relish that day. By the end of dinner, they were so full they couldn't even stand. They had so much meat for the first time and were completely satisfied. Their little bellies protruded as they walked, making Sun Baohai laugh. After eating so much the kids were very full and went straight to sleep. 

Sun Baohai couldn't bear to wake them to do their homework and went to clean the house. He went over the accounting book for his shop and decided to prepare things for his shop. His shop was a DIY shop, so he would sell other things than jam. So he needed to make plans. 

His wave of customers today was a sign that he should strike while the iron is hot. Being from a rich family he knew how businesses like these worked. On the first day, you would get just a bit of a customer, but if your products were good, the first-day customers would rave about it, attracting a wave of customers for the second day. The wave of customers from the second day would follow suit, and on the third day the business would have the biggest wave of customers, and the shop would reach its peak, but on the fourth-day business would start going down.

On the third day which was tomorrow he planned to stock up on strawberry jam, but also introduce peach jam. So instead of just three peak days they would have six peak days, but that wouldn't necessarily mean that their business would be successful. So he planned on making a small quantity each time. If there was one thing he learned in his last life, it was that the rarer the product the more people wanted it. 

After brainstorming his ideas he went to prepare the peach jam. After preparing it he took a bath and put some rice water on his face. One thing he realized after crossing here is that there was no affordable skincare for broke people. The rich had the ability to buy milk and honey in bulk and use it for their face and bodies but that was impossible for him, and with the way the sun is hitting when he goes outside, his skin really started cracking, so he could only use rice water until he had enough point to buy something better from the system. He went to check up on the kids in the other room, and after making sure they were alright he made his way into his and went to sleep.