Me? I was transported into a book? And I became a vicious villain?

The children's words made Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen smile at each other, their eyes full of happiness and hope. Yes, just like the morning star, they will also strive to be role models for children and guide them towards a better future.

However, life is like the night sky. Although it is dotted with stars, it is inevitable that there will be dark clouds covering it...

The next day, the shop opened as usual. The fragrant buns, steamed bread and pastries attracted customers coming and going, and the business was still booming.

"Boss, give me two meat buns and a bowl of soy milk!"

"Okay, wait a minute!"

Xiao Yichen was busy greeting customers with a warm smile on his face, while Chu Mengmeng was busy in the kitchen, with hot steam coming out of the steamer and the aroma filling the entire store.

However, at this moment, a discordant voice suddenly sounded at the door of the store...

"Hey, have you heard? There's a new bun shop on the corner. I heard the food is pretty good and the prices are cheaper than here!"

This sentence was like a stone thrown into a calm lake, causing ripples. The atmosphere in the originally bustling store suddenly became subtle. Some customers looked hesitant and slowed down their pace.

Xiao Yichen observed calmly, but secretly thought in his heart. Since their steamed bun shop became popular, several similar shops have appeared on this street. At first, he didn't take it seriously, after all, healthy competition is the norm. But recently, these shops began to deliberately imitate their business model and even started a price war.

In the evening, after seeing off the last wave of customers, Xiao Yichen and Chu Mengmeng sat in the store, both looking a little solemn.

"It seems that we have to think of a solution." Xiao Yichen was the first to break the silence.

"Well, we can't just sit there and wait for death." Chu Mengmeng also understood that blindly tolerating would only make competitors more aggressive.

However, before they could come up with a solution, new problems came one after another. After dinner, Xiao Xiao and Xiao Yao returned home in a depressed mood, contrary to their usual behavior.

"What's wrong? Did you encounter something unhappy at school?" Chu Mengmeng asked with concern.

Xiao Xiao lowered his head and remained silent. Xiao Yao, with red eyes, said aggrievedly: "Mom, they said I love to show off too much, and that my brother only knows how to study hard..."

It turned out that Xiao Xiao was envied by some classmates because of his excellent grades, and they spread rumors that he was arrogant. However, Xiao Yao was lively and cheerful, but was misunderstood as being too flamboyant, and some even said that she was "using the power of others to bully others".

Seeing the children's lost looks, Chu Mengmeng felt distressed. While comforting the children, she couldn't help but reflect: Is it because I am too busy and neglect to care for and guide the children?

It was late at night, and Chu Mengmeng lay in bed, but she couldn't fall asleep. The children's problems, the competition in the store...all kinds of troubles came like a tide, making her breathless. She sighed softly, turned her head to look at Xiao Yichen who was sleeping beside her, and hesitated to speak...Chu Mengmeng tossed and turned, and the sound of Xiao Yichen's even breathing was right beside her, which made her even more upset. The problems the children encountered in school were like two huge rocks pressing on her heart. They were still so young, and they had to face these rumors, which made Chu Mengmeng feel distressed and blamed herself.

"Am I paying too much attention to the store and neglecting the children?" Chu Mengmeng thought secretly, "But if I don't work hard to run the business, how can I give the children a better life?"

Family and career are like the two ends of a scale. Chu Mengmeng tried hard to find a balance, but found herself increasingly unable to do so.

The next morning, Chu Mengmeng got up with dark circles under her eyes. Xiao Yichen noticed her fatigue and asked with concern: "Mengmeng, didn't you sleep well last night?"

Chu Mengmeng forced a smile: "It's okay, maybe I'm a little tired recently."

Xiao Yichen looked at her distressedly, he knew how much Chu Mengmeng had paid for this family. The business of the store was getting better and better, and Chu Mengmeng had more and more things to worry about, from food procurement to product development, no matter how big or small, she did it herself.

"Mengmeng, how about we hire an assistant?" Xiao Yichen suggested, "This way you can have an easier time."

Chu Mengmeng's eyes lit up. This was indeed a good idea. But how easy is it to find a reliable assistant?

"But where can we find a suitable one?" Chu Mengmeng said worriedly, "We are not familiar with this place..."

"Don't worry, I'll find a way." Xiao Yichen comforted, "There will always be a way."

In the next few days, Xiao Yichen was busy with the business of the store while asking around, hoping to find a suitable clerk. However, things did not go as smoothly as he imagined. He found several people for interviews, but they were either inexperienced or had high expectations but low skills, and none of them satisfied him.

"It seems that finding a suitable assistant is really not easy." Xiao Yichen couldn't help but sigh.

On this day, Xiao Yichen's cousin Li Mei came to the steamed bun shop to help. Li Mei had just come to the city from the countryside. She was diligent, capable, and smart. Xiao Yichen and Chu Mengmeng liked her very much.

"Cousin, how about letting me help you?" Li Mei volunteered, "I have done a lot of work in the countryside, I am not afraid of hardship."

Xiao Yichen and Chu Mengmeng looked at each other and were both a little moved. Although Li Mei had no experience, she was diligent and eager to learn, and she was a family member, so they felt at ease using her.

However, just when Xiao Yichen was about to agree, Chu Mengmeng suddenly remembered something. A few days ago, when she and Xiao Yichen went to a friend's party, she accidentally heard some rumors about Li Mei...

"Wait..." Chu Mengmeng pulled Xiao Yichen's sleeve, wanting to say something but stopping herself.

Chu Mengmeng hesitated to speak, Xiao Yichen noticed her strangeness and asked in a low voice: "What's wrong?" Chu Mengmeng looked at the busy Li Mei, then looked at Xiao Yichen, and finally swallowed the words on the tip of her tongue. She thought, it's useless to say these now, let's talk about it after the children fall asleep at night.

In the evening, after the family had dinner, Xiao Yichen helped the twins with their homework as usual. Recently, Xiao Xiao and Xiao Yao seemed to have changed into different people, studying very seriously and their grades had improved by leaps and bounds.

"Dad, I'm going to try to get first place in this exam!" Xiao Xiao clenched his fists with a determined look in his eyes.

"Me too! I want to let those who gossip about me see that I am not who they say I am!" Xiao Yao also said.

Xiao Yichen looked at the children with satisfaction, knowing that they were proving themselves with their actions. However, Chu Mengmeng saw a hint of depression in the children's tired eyes that did not belong to their age.

Late at night, Chu Mengmeng lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. She thought of the words she heard at the friend's party that day, and her heart was troubled.

"I heard that Xiao Yichen's steamed bun shop business is getting better and better, and he makes a lot of money every day!"

"That's right. I heard his wife doesn't have to go to work anymore and has become a rich wife at home!"

"Ah, what a different fate for the same person! Back then, Xiao Yichen was just a poor boy, but I didn't expect that now he would..."

These rumors were like thorns piercing Chu Mengmeng's heart. She knew that these words were directed at her.

"Mengmeng, what's wrong with you?" Xiao Yichen noticed Chu Mengmeng's uneasiness and asked softly.

Chu Mengmeng was silent for a moment, and finally couldn't help but speak: "Yi Chen, I..."

She told Xiao Yichen everything she heard at the party that day.

After hearing this, Xiao Yichen's face became serious. He didn't expect that these rumors would spread so quickly and even reach his friends' ears.

"These are all nonsense! Don't take it to heart." Xiao Yichen comforted.

"But..." Chu Mengmeng wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Xiao Yichen.

"I know what you are worried about." Xiao Yichen held Chu Mengmeng's hand, his eyes firm, "I will take care of this matter."

Chu Mengmeng looked at Xiao Yichen with mixed feelings. She knew that Xiao Yichen had been silently contributing to this family. However, she really didn't want to embarrass him.

"Yi Chen..." Chu Mengmeng wanted to say something, but saw Xiao Yichen suddenly stand up, walk to the window, look at the dark night sky outside the window, and remain silent for a long time.

"Mengmeng, do you remember when we first came to this city?" Xiao Yichen's voice was low and hoarse.

"Of course I remember..." Chu Mengmeng was stunned for a moment, not knowing why Xiao Yichen suddenly brought up this matter.

"At that time, we had nothing and could only live in a small basement." Xiao Yichen turned around and looked at Chu Mengmeng, his eyes full of memories, "But we were very happy because we believed that as long as we worked hard, we would be able to change our fate."

"Yeah..." Chu Mengmeng's eyes were a little moist. She remembered the difficult days they had gone through together, and the promises they had made to each other along the way.

"But now..." Xiao Yichen's voice suddenly became trembling, "We seem to have lost our way..."

"No, we are not lost!" Chu Mengmeng walked to Xiao Yichen and held his hand tightly, "We just..."

"Just what?" Xiao Yichen looked at Chu Mengmeng, his eyes full of anticipation.

"It's just..." Chu Mengmeng took a deep breath, "It will take some time..."

"It just takes a little time..." Chu Mengmeng's voice was very soft, but like a stone, it stirred up thousands of waves in Xiao Yichen's heart. He understood what Chu Mengmeng meant. They needed time to adapt, to adjust, and to find a new balance point.

"Yes, we need time." Xiao Yichen gently hugged Chu Mengmeng and whispered in her ear, "Don't worry, everything will be fine."

Outside the window, the night is deep, and the moonlight pours down like water, covering the earth with a layer of silver gauze. Inside the house, under the dim light, a young couple hugs each other tightly, leaning on each other, and jointly resisting the wind and rain of life.

The next day, Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen both woke up very early. They tacitly did not mention the conversation last night, but started a busy day as usual.

Xiao Yichen was busy greeting customers in the store, while Chu Mengmeng was taking care of the children at home. Although they were both trying hard to play their roles well, the atmosphere between them had obviously changed.

Xiao Yichen became more silent and devoted all his energy to work, as if only in this way could he temporarily forget those troubles. Chu Mengmeng became more sensitive and suspicious. She couldn't help but think about it, worrying that those rumors would affect their lives.

In the afternoon, Doctor Ye and Doctor Lin came to visit unexpectedly. They brought carefully prepared supplements, saying that they were for Chu Mengmeng and the children.

"Have you encountered any problems recently?" Doctor Ye looked at Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen and asked with concern.

Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen looked at each other and saw surprise in each other's eyes. They didn't expect that Doctor Ye and Doctor Lin would be so keen to notice their abnormality.

"No, nothing..." Chu Mengmeng answered hesitantly. She didn't want to make her elders worry about them.

"Child, if you have anything to say, just speak up. Don't keep it in your heart." Doctor Lin held Chu Mengmeng's hand and said lovingly, "We are all experienced people. If you have any difficulties, let's work together to find a solution."

Chu Mengmeng looked at Xiao Yichen, then looked at Doctor Ye and Doctor Lin, and finally decided to confess to them...