Farming with kids: My deceased husband returns and I spoil him rotten.

As if remembering something, Shang Qing suddenly looked at Xi'er with a serious expression and said earnestly, "Xi'er, and Pan'er and Nian'er, the three of you must remember, don't go around saying that you ate white flour steamed buns recently, understand?"

The three children stared at Shang Qing, clearly not understanding what she meant.

As Shang Qing was pondering how to explain, Gu Yu spoke up.

"Well, if you all tell everyone about this, our house might get burgled. So let's keep this a secret and see what happens."

Pan'er is the oldest and understands the fastest, while the other two are still a bit confused.

Lao Zong deliberately lowered his voice and said, "It was the right thing for us to take over that mountain. At this critical juncture, it's good to grow our own food. The prices of grain and vegetables outside are indeed high right now."

That's what Shang Qing meant. Nowadays, everyone is keeping a low profile and doesn't dare to be ostentatious, so as not to cause trouble for themselves.

Thinking of this, Shang Qing couldn't help but go up the mountain to check the situation early the next morning.

As expected of the tree species bought from the system, they have grown quite a bit in just a few days. Seeing that they are growing well, Shang Qing was very pleased.

After watering the saplings and vegetables, Shang Qing descended the mountain. She had originally thought it would be another beautiful day, but to her surprise, she discovered locust larvae in the nearby fields, which made her heart clench.

Why are there locusts at this time of year?

She was well aware of the damage locusts could cause to crops; it was something that should not be underestimated.

As Shang Qing was pondering what to do, the village chief, who was walking towards her, called out to her several times before she finally reacted.

"Shang Qing, what happened to you? You seem so distracted. Did something happen again?"

Seeing that Shang Qing's gaze was still somewhat dazed, he continued, "Looking at you from this direction... did you just come down from the mountain? Did something happen on the mountain, or did some guy do something bad behind my back again?"

Shang Qing quickly shook her head: "No, no, everything is fine on the mountain. I was just spacing out."

The village chief breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good, that's good. I thought someone was causing trouble again."

After confirming that he hadn't misjudged the situation, Shang Qing explained the whole story to the village chief. However, the village chief couldn't help but laugh and said, "Shang Qing, don't you even look at what season it is? How could there be locusts at this time of year? You must have misjudged the situation. Don't scare yourself."

“Village chief, I’m sure I’m not mistaken, those must be locust larvae.”

As Shang Qing spoke, he described it to him. The village chief listened without changing his expression: "There is a kind of insect in our village that looks very much like a locust larva. You must have mistaken it for something else!"

Seeing Shang Qing's furrowed brows, the village chief comforted him, "Alright, Shang Qing, you've said you've been quite tired lately, you must not have been getting enough rest. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on this."

Could it be that she really misread it?

Meanwhile, Gu Yu, taking advantage of the remaining time, saw Xi'er shakily carrying a small basket towards the backyard, so he waved to her and asked, "Xi'er, are you going to feed the rabbits?"

Xi'er nodded obediently, and Gu Yu accompanied her.

The two walked to the backyard. Lao Zong chopped firewood on one side, while Gu Yu carried a basket for Xi'er so that she could pick out vegetable leaves to feed the rabbits. The atmosphere was very harmonious.

Gu Yu doted on his youngest daughter, and seeing her innocent and carefree appearance, he couldn't help but get closer to her.

After feeding the rabbits, Gu Yu picked her up and sat her down on a stool. "Xi'er, how about I teach you to recite the Three Character Classic? Our Xi'er is so smart, she'll definitely learn it in no time."

Xi'er nodded as if she understood, "Okay, okay!"

Gu Yu was delighted: "Then I'll say a sentence, and Xi'er will repeat it after me, okay?"

After seeing her nod like a chick pecking at rice, Gu Yu said, "At the beginning of life, people are inherently good."

Xi'er frowned slightly, blinked her big, round eyes, and then recited, word by word, "At the beginning of life, human nature..."

“When a person is born, his nature is good.”

Gu Yu patiently taught her several times, and Xi'er was indeed exceptionally intelligent. After stammering for a while, she actually managed to say it completely.

"At the beginning of life, people are inherently good..." Xi'er asked, puzzled, "What does that mean?"

Gu Yu patiently explained to her, "This sentence means that when a person is first born, everything is good."

Xi'er puffed out her cheeks, clearly not understanding.

Gu Yu then realized he had been a bit too hasty. How old was she? It was already remarkable that she could read it completely. So he reached out and gently patted Xi'er's little head, saying in a gentle tone, "It's okay if Xi'er doesn't understand what it means now. She'll know when she's a little older."

"Natures are similar, but habits make them different."

Gu Yu taught her the next line, and Xi'er obediently followed him and learned it several times.

After repeating this for a while, Xi'er tilted her head and naturally read it aloud: "At birth, people are inherently good. Their natures are similar, but their habits differ... Is that right?"

Gu Yu originally just wanted to have some fun with her, but who knew that Xi'er was so intelligent and clever, he was very relieved.

Hearing what she said, Lao Zong immediately put down his work and ran over: "I heard everything Xi'er just said. Xi'er, please say it to me again?"

Xi'er turned her head away: "Hmph, I won't tell Uncle Lao."

Lao Zong thought she would forget after she finished speaking, so he taught her to say it, but Xi'er just wouldn't say it, which made Lao Zong very anxious.

"You were speaking so well just now, why are you stopping now? Uncle wants to hear it too."

Xi'er covered her mouth and chuckled as she looked at Gu Yu. Clearly, she hadn't thought too much about it; she just wanted to tease Lao Zong.

Lao Zong, however, assumed she didn't know how, so he started teaching her, even though Xi'er wouldn't listen.

Finally, Xi'er got annoyed and hugged Gu Yu, saying in a spoiled tone, "Uncle Zhao, Uncle Lao is really annoying. I don't want to talk to him about this. I'll tell you and Mommy instead, okay?"

This little girl...

Gu Yu nodded repeatedly, and Lao Zong finally understood. He then pretended to be angry and said, "It seems that my Xi'er doesn't like me anymore, does she? She doesn't even want to talk to me anymore."

"Alright, brother, why are you arguing with the child? If I were Xi'er, I'd find you annoying too."

Shang Qing appeared at some point, though she had actually been watching from the side for quite a while. She realized that Gu Yu indeed treated Xi'er just like his own daughter, with nothing special about her.

As soon as Xi'er saw Shang Qing, she immediately let go of Gu Yu and ran towards her.