Chapter 221

Emily Johnson knelt down to eye level with her two sons. "Do you know our exact home address?"

"Stone Village!" Tommy blurted out.

"That's not detailed enough," Emily shook her head. "You need to remember the province, city, county, town, and then the village name."

David blinked, clearly struggling to recall so much information.

"What about your parents' full names?"

The boys exchanged glances before shaking their heads in unison.

"Your father is Michael Stone, and I'm Emily Johnson," she said slowly, emphasizing each word. "Memorize this."

Remembering yesterday's close call, she pressed further. "What should you do if a stranger tries to take you?"

"Find the police!" David answered immediately, gesturing with his small hands. "They wear blue uniforms and hats."

Emily nodded in approval before launching into a thorough safety lesson—never accepting food from strangers, refusing to go anywhere with unfamiliar adults, always staying near a trusted grown-up in public...

The more she spoke, the more she realized how much was left unsaid. During lunch break, she slipped into her room and retrieved several child safety manuals from her hidden inventory.

The case studies made her blood run cold—children snatched in broad daylight, predators targeting distracted mothers carrying groceries. The cruelty was unimaginable.

That afternoon, she gathered her notes and brought both boys to the Stone family home.

"Dad, Mom, still eating?"

John Stone Sr. hastily finished his sweet potato porridge and wiped his mouth. "Finished your materials? Let me see."

He flipped through the thick stack of papers, his frown deepening with each page.

"Discussed it with the other officials today. You're in charge of this," he declared, looking up. "Not many in our brigade finished high school, and you've got city experience. Your voice carries weight."

Emily agreed. "We start tomorrow. Where’s the venue? We’ll need a loudspeaker—I can’t shout over a crowd."

"The threshing ground has one. I’ll ring the assembly bell too," John Sr. added after a pause. "And anyone who skips loses a full day’s work points!"

At dawn the next day, the bell’s peals echoed across the village.

Residents streamed toward the threshing ground, murmuring among themselves.

"What kind of lesson is this important?"

"Something about children..."

"Skip it and kiss your work points goodbye!"

Emily arrived holding her sons’ hands, each boy carrying a small stool. The packed crowd buzzed with uneasy curiosity.

Taking a deep breath, she lifted the loudspeaker—the crucial lesson on protecting their children was about to begin.