Chapter 263 Being a Stepmother

noon

On the way back to the office after lunch

Hu Shan linked arms with Gu Yihan, kicking pebbles at her feet while glancing at her from the side.

She said apologetically, "Xiao Han, I didn't know that Cousin Jiang had done such a terrible thing to you."

"You can't take your anger out on me or create a rift between us because of him."

“No, that won’t happen.” Gu Yihan turned her head to look at Hu Shan and waved her hand with a smile, saying, “One thing at a time.”

"We've known each other for so long, and you've never done anything to wrong me, so why would I hold a grudge against you?"

Hu Shan smiled with relief upon hearing this.

"By the way, Sister Shan, I remember you said that your neighbor is Gu Meng, right?"

“Yes!” Hu Shan nodded repeatedly.

Gu Yihan: "Sister Shan, can you do me a favor?"

Hu Shan turned her head and looked at Gu Yihan curiously: "What kind of help?"

“My grandma is at Gu Meng’s house taking care of her during childbirth. Sister Shan, could you keep an eye on things for me?”

Gu Yihan was still worried about her grandmother, fearing that Gu Meng would bully her.

With Hu Shan keeping an eye on things in the courtyard, she could get news about Grandma Gu in a timely manner.

"Oh! That old lady is your grandmother?"

"But Gu Meng told everyone that the old lady was someone she hired from a nearby brigade to serve her!"

Hu Shan looked at Gu Yihan in surprise and said incredulously.

Upon hearing this, Gu Yihan paused, a hint of displeasure flashing in her eyes. Gu Meng's behavior was clearly courting death.

"Sister Shan, please go back and spread the word for me: the person taking care of Gu Meng is her own grandmother."

"No problem, I'll take care of it," Hu Shan said confidently, patting her chest.

Seeing the worry on Gu Yihan's face, she smiled and said, "Xiaohan, don't worry, your old lady is no pushover either."

"Except for the first day, when Gu Meng must have bullied him so badly that they had an argument, the next two days were quite quiet."

There are no secrets in the tenement courtyard; news travels fast. Because of Qin Shou, Gu Meng wasn't well-liked in the tenement.

Suddenly an old woman came to help her give birth; it was said that she was hired from a nearby village.

Behind her back, many people said she was acting like a bourgeois.

Gu Yihan was relieved to hear that Grandma Gu had not suffered any loss.

...

Without Sister Min who was always causing trouble, and Secretary Jiang who was always scheming against others, time passed quickly.

In the blink of an eye, it was July 1973.

As soon as the bell rang to signal the end of the workday, Gu Yihan quickly packed her bag and left the accounting office.

Hu Shan followed closely behind Gu Yihan, noticing her unusually fast pace, and asked curiously, "Xiaohan, why are you in such a hurry?"

Gu Yihan turned to look at her and smiled, "Today is my son's second birthday, I have to go home and cook him something delicious."

"oh."

Upon hearing this, Hu Shan fell silent and hung her head.

Since her miscarriage, she has been taking Chinese medicine almost like a staple food for the past year, drinking it every day, but she still can't get pregnant.

She and Cheng Bo have started discussing adopting a child to see if it can bring her good luck.

Seeing that Hu Shan was distracted, Gu Yihan greeted her and ran towards where the bicycles were parked.

Family compound entrance

Lan Cao grabbed Deputy Battalion Commander Wang's clothes, crying with snot and tears streaming down her face, and choked out, "Why didn't you give me any money this month?"

Deputy Battalion Commander Wang looked at Lan Cao with a troubled expression. It wasn't that he didn't want to give it to her, but he was simply powerless to do so.

His wife is pregnant with their second child, but the pregnancy isn't going well. The doctor said she hadn't recovered properly from her first pregnancy.

With such frequent pregnancies, I need to supplement my nutrition more this time, otherwise the lack of nutrition will be bad for the baby.

"Say something, are you mute?" Lan Cao was almost driven crazy by him. When did he start daydreaming?

After regaining his senses, Deputy Battalion Commander Wang glanced at the orchid.

He explained in a low voice, "Zhang Xia is pregnant again, so all the household expenses have to be prioritized for her."

Upon hearing this, Lan Cao's eyes flashed with jealousy. Why was it that everyone else was marrying Deputy Battalion Commander Wang, while she couldn't conceive for several years?

That woman, Zhang Xia, managed to have two children in three years?

When Deputy Battalion Commander Wang saw that Lan Cao was keeping her head down and not saying anything, he assumed she was angry.

He whispered reassuringly, "I'll make it up to you after she gives birth and I'm better off financially."

"no."

"Do you think I'm less important than your unborn child?" Lan Cao roared, looking up at Deputy Battalion Commander Wang.

Upon hearing this, Deputy Battalion Commander Wang covered Lan Cao's mouth while pulling her arm and walking forward for several dozen meters.

To make sure the guards couldn't hear him, he whispered, "Keep your voice down, you little brat."

"Are you afraid others won't know that we're still entangled even after our divorce?"

Lan Cao yanked Wang, the deputy battalion commander, away from her hand, glaring at him with red eyes.

With a face full of grievance, she accused, "You said you would continue to support me after the divorce!"

"It was you who promised my family that as long as I wasn't married off, you would give them living expenses for one day."

"You're twenty days late this month. If they don't see the money, they'll treat me like a stepmother because I married a man whose wife has died!"

Thinking that her family had already started looking for a suitable partner for her, she was just waiting for Deputy Battalion Commander Wang to completely cut off her money so she could sell her off.

The orchid's tears fell again in a flash.

Seeing this, Deputy Battalion Commander Wang hugged Lancao tightly and whispered to comfort her, "Don't worry, I won't let your family marry you off to just anyone."

"I'll think of another way to solve the money problem, don't worry."

"Waaah... I don't want to marry someone else. I always end up being someone else's stepmother. Why can't I be the stepmother of your child?"

Lancao nestled in Deputy Battalion Commander Wang's arms, sobbing and choking back tears.

After hearing Lan Cao's words, Deputy Battalion Commander Wang froze completely.

He gently pushed her away, looked into her eyes, and said seriously, "Lan Cao, I will not divorce Zhang Xia."

Although he didn't like Zhang Xia, the child was his own.

Upon hearing this, Lan Cao instinctively took two steps back.

The thought that Deputy Battalion Commander Wang was actually reluctant to divorce Zhang Xia completely broke him down.

Bending over, she screamed hysterically, "Why? You don't even like her, why can't you get a divorce!"

"She got divorced, remarried anyone, and can still have children. I can't have children anymore, but I can treat your children as my own!"

Why don't you think about me?

Deputy Battalion Commander Wang was about to say that he knew Zhang Xia too well and that it was impossible for her to genuinely care about someone else's child.

He looked up and saw Gu Yihan staring at him and Lancao with a surprised look.

She quickly distanced herself from the orchid and explained, "Sister-in-law, please don't misunderstand."

"Zhang Xia is less than three months pregnant and cannot be subjected to any stress."

Hearing Deputy Battalion Commander Wang's uninvited confession, Gu Yihan twitched the corner of her mouth and said, "Take your time! I have something to do, I'll be leaving now."

After saying that, ignoring Lan Cao's gritted teeth and Deputy Battalion Commander Wang's stunned silence, he rode his bicycle straight to the family compound.