4 Gifting them what's worth 1000 gold

"Stop!" A sweet and soft voice cried as a pair of children raced around the Finnish villa.

"Momo, Nini!" Another voice chimed in, this one belonging to an older woman. She stood still in the center of the living room as she watched the pair of siblings fight.

She blew out a heavy breath and noted her gaze in the mirror on the wall. This was Dai Aiba and she had been hired by Lei Yinying six years ago to look after the pair of twins. She was surprised that such a young girl, only eighteen at the time, had a pair of twin babies. She was even more surprised to see the woman gave her enough money and the required paperwork to relocate across the world. Over the years, they had not discussed the finer details of their deal, but during the summer and winter breaks when the woman would arrive in Helsinki. Dai Aiba watched her slowly transform from a guarded child and into a strong mother. This transformation caused admiration to take root in the older woman's heart. She vowed to care for her charges to the best of her ability.

But she would have to admit. As they turned from obedient little toddlers and into tricky young kids, Dai Aiba was feeling much older than she was.

"Put that away!" The same soft voice begged, her tone floating between hysterical and angered. "I'm talking to mom first!"

A louder voice although just as sweet as the other's responded, "Nini! That's no fair. You took my ice cream yesterday and now you want to keep mom to yourself!"

At this point, Nini had leapt onto the couch with tears shining in her large chocolate eyes. "If...if you don't put it away...I'll tell on you!" She threatened with a large amount of venom in her voice.

"Both of you!" Dai Aiba shouted, arms on her hip. "Momo, stop tormenting your sister. Put the sheep stuffie away! And Nini, you need to learn how to stop stealing from your brother!"

Both of the children glanced at their nanny and braced themselves for another round when the tell-tale sound of a Chinese folk song echoed through the living room. Momo tossed the sheep halfway across the room while Nini flopped onto the coach. They each took less than a minute to compose themselves as Dai Aiba set up the video call. She had it so Lei Yinying would appear on the large flatscreen as it saved her the headache of the twins fighting for control over the tablet.

The folk song ended and was replaced by the warm countenance of the twin's mother. "Momo, Nini," she called in greeting.

"Night, mommy!" Nini called excitedly. She beamed up at the camera and clapped her hands in excitement. "Did you get my letter? My drawings? Are my flowers pretty like yours?"

Momo frowned at his sister's string of questions and called over her, "Did you see my last math test? And I hand wrote you too, did you see?"

Lei Yinying listened to both of her children and her smile was replaced with a laugh. "One at a time. Auntie Aiba has taught you better to shout over one another. I got both of your letters. Momo, your writing has gotten neater and you only confused a few characters. Nini, your flowers were beautiful, but if you're wanting to help me make new designs you need to think a bit harder."

Dai Aiba watched as the twins went from eleation to disappointment to determination in the span of their mother's words. It happened every time they received their weekly call from their mother. It was amusing to watch them return to school after the weekend and how they would be fired up to excel where she had critiqued them.

Mother and child chatted for a while about how their week had gone when they came back to a question that Lei Yinying usually didn't answer.

"Mommy," Momo called, a hesitant expression overshadowing his fair features. "When can you live with us?"

It had been asked in many different forms over the years, but it was always left without a confirmed answer. Dai Aiba knew that Lei Yinying had her reasons for keeping the children overseas and away from her. Why she insisted on only contacting them once a week through a secure network and would only accept physical mail from them. Such a cautious approach made little sense to her which meant it would make even less sense to two young kids.

Lei Yinying's smile didn't freeze in place like usual, instead it melted into a gentle and doting expression. "How about coming home with me after I visit this summer?"

Nini sprung up from the coach and stared at her mother intently, "Really? We can live together, eat together after this summer?"

The slightest bit of doubt that bleed through into their expressions caused the emotion behind Lei Yinying's eyes to waver for a moment. She braced herself against the emotions battling her and smiled widely at them. "That is what I'm going to promise you," she vowed.

Momo and Nini turned to look at each other and their faces were covered in wide grins. "We'll be able to live with Mommy," they declared with happiness and proceeded to bounce around the living room in excitement.

Dai Aiba was surprised at the news. She was a little irked that Lei Yinying hadn't thought to confirm these things with her before making any announcements to the children, but it made sense. A mother would always put their children first when it came to things like that.

"Alright, alright," Lei Yinying scolded in a teasing tone. "Both of you leave me to talk with Auntie Aiba alone for a moment."

Nini and Momo departed from the room after a few more vows that they would be leaving Finland for China that summer.

Dai Aiba disconnected Lei Yinying from the television and brought up her personal phone. "Were you ever going to disclose anything to me?" She felt the need to ask. She had willingly left behind her friends and family for a foreign land. One where she hadn't spoken the language in years. While she wouldn't consider the woman a member of a family, she did regard her children as her own in a way.

"You would be informed at the same time the children would be, but I wanted to explain more to you," Lei Yinying explained, her gaze turning back to the tepid gaze. The look she had to those who didn't concern her.

Dai Aiba felt a measure of discomfort at the gaze. She lowered her head and frowned. "I didn't mean to imply I was privy to...special treatment. You've made our relationship over the years clear."

"And I'll tell you the reason for such drastic measures. So, consider yourself privileged," she informed.