Divorced woman with child travels through time

For the sake of their reputation, they all tacitly kept quiet about Wang Erniu almost being raped from Aunt Liu and the others, lest the news leak out. Apart from Chu Yizhuang and Wang Hanyang, even Chef Wang and the others didn't know.

"I'm not too sure about this, but has it spread this far?" Chen Wenfang asked.

"Yes, that's what the peddler told me."

"Hehe, never mind her, how's the harvest going?" Chen Wenfang thought to herself that it must be Wang Erniu's doing.

"As you said, I've had Chahua hire people to manage the fields. The peanuts are almost harvested, but the sweet potatoes haven't been harvested yet. Old Liu said we can wait a while. Last time you said you wanted to save the best-looking peppers for seeds, and we've already saved some, and we're still saving seeds. The chili sauce we made in the basement is all for making chili oil, about two thousand catties. Old Liu said the autumn peppers can be harvested two more times, but they're a bit spicier, though I really like them." Aunt Liu told Chen Wenfang with a happy face.

Chen Wenfang smiled gently at the woman in front of her, who was only a few years older than her. She was confident and cheerful, a stark contrast to when they first met. Only her kindness remained unchanged.

"How's the recruitment going?"

"Hiring is so easy! Didn't we hire bricklayers a few times last year? We paid them well. Now, as soon as they hear we're hiring, they come in droves. A whole bunch of people show up every day. You know, Chahua is really good. She manages well and has a good eye for people, just like me. She picked about twenty people, all of whom are hardworking and capable. We pay them every three days, so we don't have to worry about finding people," Aunt Liu said with a smile.

"Aunt Liu, you are a truly dedicated housekeeper," Chen Wenfang praised.

Aunt Liu chuckled and said, "That's because you taught me well. There's another thing. I heard Erniu has prepared a surprise for you. He'll give it to you at your wedding. Did you know that?"

Chen Wenfang smiled and said, "I don't know. If you know, Auntie, please tell me."

"No, Erniu told us to keep it a secret," Aunt Liu said mysteriously.

Just then, Chen Xuanyu ran in, shouting, "Mom!" and threw himself into her arms.

Seeing that his expression was off, Chen Wenfang pulled him into her arms, patted his head, and cupped his little face, asking, "What's wrong, Zizai?"

Not wanting to disturb the mother and son's intimacy, Aunt Liu smiled at Chen Wenfang and left the room, thoughtfully closing the door behind her.

Hearing the door close, Chen Xuanyu turned to look at it, and only after confirming it was closed did he speak to Chen Wenfang, saying, "Mom, Wang Weicheng's dad came to see him today. He brought lots of delicious food and fun things." His tone was rather downcast.

"Why didn't my dad come to see me before? Was I not cute? Was I not well-behaved?" Chen Xuanyu lowered his head, his eyes reddened, and tears silently streamed down his face.

Chen Wenfang was very sad. She hugged him and wiped away his tears, saying, "Of course it's not your fault, Zizai. I'm sorry, it's because Mom didn't choose a good father for you."

Chen Xuanyu had never shown any longing for a father figure, and Chen Wenfang hadn't paid much attention to it either, thinking that giving him enough love might fill the void left by a father figure. Perhaps today, he was stimulated by the love of other children's fathers, which is why the child suddenly began to doubt himself.

“Zizai, you have to remember, if he doesn’t like you, or rather, if he doesn’t like you or love you because of me, it’s not because you’re not cute or good enough. It’s because he’s not mature enough, not sensible enough, and irresponsible. It’s because he’s too childish. It’s your father’s problem, not your fault, understand?” Chen Wenfang looked earnestly into his eyes, picked him up and sat him on her lap, looking at him as an equal, trying her best to explain to him like a friend.

"I don't understand, I don't get it!" Chen Xuanyu looked innocent, but his tears had stopped, though he was still puzzled.

"So, to put it simply, what do you think it means to be a good father?" Chen Wenfang asked in return.

Chen Xuanyu scratched his head and said, mimicking what he had read in the book, "We definitely need to be responsible and have a sense of duty, and we need to love our families."

"Then do you know what it means to be responsible and accountable? Do you know how to love your family and friends?" Chen Wenfang asked again.

"I don't know." He still couldn't explain it clearly.

“Let’s take an example. Do you remember when we went back to our hometown, the mother hen at my maternal grandmother’s house was taking care of her chicks?” Chen Wenfang said softly.

"I remember, the mother hen had a bunch of chicks, and then a cat tried to catch the chicks, so the mother hen and the father hen chased the cat away," Chen Xuanyu said cheerfully.

"Hmm, look, the chicks here are still small, they don't have the ability to defeat the cat, right?"

"Yes," Chen Xuanyu replied, blinking his big eyes.

"At this point, the mother and father hen are already adult chickens. Would they then have the ability to chase the cat away?"

"Yes." Chen Xuanyu said thoughtfully.

"Then, as the chick is the child of the mother hen and father hen, shouldn't the mother hen and father hen protect it from being caught by the cat?"

"Of course!" Chen Xuanyu replied decisively.

“Protecting the chicks is the responsibility and duty of the mother hen and father hen, do you understand?” Chen Wenfang patted his head again, “Just like when you are still small, Mom needs to protect you. When you grow up, you also need to protect your own children.”

"I understand, Mom. When I grow up, I can protect you. I want to be a responsible and dependable man. Dad doesn't protect us well because he's not a good man; it's his problem." Chen Xuanyu suddenly understood.

“Zizai is so smart. Your father is cowardly because he doesn’t want to be a good father. He doesn’t want to take responsibility. But if we love someone, we should try our best to take responsibility and protect them, right? Just like Mom loves you, so Mom will try her best to protect you, take care of you, and let you grow up well.” Chen Wenfang added a bit of education.

"I know, I will love you well too, Mom, I love you the most." Chen Xuanyu said sweetly.

"Hehe, you little rascal..." Chen Wenfang couldn't resist, happily hugging his little face and giving him two kisses. "Waaah!"

"Oh dear, I'm going to play now." Having grown up a bit, Chen Xuanyu hadn't been kissed like that by his mother in a long time, and feeling a little shy, he ran off to play.

After he left, Chen Wenfang breathed a sigh of relief. She had been young and naive back then, and their arranged marriage had only lasted a few months. She hadn't expected this man, despite being several years older than her, to be so immature. He would leave home after every argument. At first, she didn't realize it, but later she discovered he was having an affair. Eventually, she couldn't contact him anymore, and the divorce only went through two court battles. He wouldn't even show up during the proceedings. It was truly a mistake that led to eternal regret… Thankfully, her son resembled his mother, not him…