Chapter 343

Where’s Big Brother? After glancing at the entrance without spotting Leon, Melanie couldn’t help but ask curiously:

“Where’s Big Brother? Isn’t he coming with us?”

“He went to fetch the presents.”

After hoisting Melanie under her arms and placing her onto the carriage, Anna reached out to pick up William while casually replying:

“Our little sister Elie hasn’t been feeling well. She didn’t go to school and rarely goes out. Big Brother wants to make her birthday memorable, so he specially ordered some gifts.

However, because of the tight schedule, even though he paid extra, they would only be ready by this morning. So Big Brother got up early to collect them and will meet us at the street corner.”

“Oh…”

After hearing Anna’s explanation, a flash of envy crossed Melanie’s shiny big eyes.

That’s so great. Neither William nor herself had ever received custom-made gifts before.

William, who refused Anna’s help and climbed onto the carriage himself, noticed her envious gaze. He patted her on the head like a little adult and consoled her: “Don’t worry. You’ll get one for your birthday too. Big Brother is only stingy with himself. He always gives us whatever we need.

We didn’t have such birthdays in the past because our family was too poor, so we had to save as much as possible. Now that things are better, according to Big Brother’s character, he’ll definitely prepare something special for our next birthdays.”

Hmm… That’s true…

Thinking about how good Leon had been to her in the past, Melanie’s tiny jealousy melted away instantly.

She even felt a bit guilty for being jealous of the sickly little girl who stayed home all year and never had anyone to accompany her bird-egg hunting.

Anna, who overheard their conversation, couldn’t help but feel a pang of softness. She resisted touching William’s little head, her eyes showing a hint of guilt.

Actually… Though they were a bit mischievous, both William and Melanie were really good kids. They remembered everyone who treated them kindly and knew what they should and shouldn’t do. They never did anything excessively bad…

Hm… Well, there’s some doubt, but at least they don’t start trouble first. Overall, they’re still pretty decent. I shouldn’t have worried they’d bully others before we left.

Squeezing her rather full purse, Anna, feeling somewhat guilty, promised with the intention of compensating her “wrongfully accused” younger siblings:

“Alright, since you’ve been quite well-behaved recently, when we return tonight, I can buy each of you a present. What do you want?”

?!!! Upon hearing Anna’s promise, not only did Melanie beam with joy, but even William showed surprise.

Compared to their always “generous” Big Brother, Anna was always the one managing the household wisely. To put it bluntly, she hated spending money and tried to stretch every copper coin into eight pieces.

But today, Anna was unusually generous, and they had to seize this opportunity!

Besides, given Anna’s nature, there must be a limited budget for these gifts. Even though the family was doing well now, the total would probably cap around seven or eight coppers, shared between the two of them. So…

Whoever asks for cheaper gifts loses! After exchanging a glance, the two kids immediately understood each other’s thoughts. A war for the gift budget was about to begin!

“I want a doll! And new shoes!”

In the blink of an eye, the quick-thinking and math-savvy Melanie blurted out two items totaling five copper coins, instantly claiming most of the budget.

After calculating the price of these gifts, Anna hesitated but then nodded slightly upon noticing Melanie’s slightly small shoes.

Though Melanie took more than half the budget, her shoes were indeed a bit small and needed replacing. If William also wanted toys, then maybe he could take less.

Boys’ toys break easily anyway. Whether it’s a 5-copper wind-up soldier or a 3-copper tin frog, they usually fall apart within two months, so saving where possible is still best…

After deciding how to allocate the budget, Anna slightly nodded, approving Melanie’s request.

“Alright… William, what do you want?”

“As for me…”

Looking at his smug sister with big eyes full of pride, William couldn’t help but curl his lips into a calm smile.

“Buy me some books!”

?!!! In Melanie’s alarmed expression, William pulled out a folded piece of rough paper from his pocket and read off calmly:

“Anna Sister, the books I want include ‘A Brief History of the Pan-Continental War,’ ‘Our Kingdom,’ ‘How Parliament Was Formed,’ ‘Popular Science of Standing Armaments in Various Kingdoms’…”

None missed, one after another, all inside the content of 69 Book Cafe!

After reciting a long list of titles, William handed the paper to Anna and modestly offered:

“Although I prepared this list, you don’t have to buy all of them. Just part of it is fine.

Even though these books are recommended by my teacher and guaranteed to help my studies, Melanie’s toys are important too. As for my grades, delaying improvement won’t hurt much. You can buy her toys first, Anna Sister.”

“…”

“…”

Phew… Just in time.

Recognizing the approaching carriage and identifying the passengers, Leon waiting at the entrance of Red Pine Avenue waved to the carriage, which stopped nearby.

“Keep going straight until the end. Stop at the entrance of Baohua Manor.”

After instructing the driver and handing over the pass token, Leon boarded the carriage. Just as he wanted to ask if everything was ready, he noticed something strange about the two kids.

William still maintained his usual serious demeanor like a little adult, but his slightly raised chin betrayed his inner happiness.

As for Melanie beside him, she sat slumped on the seat like a defeated rooster, her little mouth pouted high. When climbing onto the carriage, she even kicked William once while Anna looked away.

“…”

Looking at William’s pants covered with six or seven dusty shoe prints yet still wearing a victorious smile, Leon couldn’t help but rub his temples worriedly.

Though there wasn’t much basis for this judgment, he felt that agreeing to bring these two troublemakers to celebrate Elie’s birthday at Emma Senior’s place might have been a very wrong decision…

(End of Chapter)