The person who was poked snorted coldly, as if he didn't want to talk to them. He picked up his crutches and limped away, finding a quiet and deserted place to bask in the sun.

The old man who poked him felt a little embarrassed. The person next to him consoled him: "His temper has become increasingly strange in recent years."

"It's not his fault. If it were someone else, who wouldn't feel uncomfortable?" Another person looked at the limping figure from a distance and said in a low voice, "If he hadn't broken his leg, it's hard to say who would be the village chief now. Would Zhao You be the weakling who lets his wife ride on his neck?"

A group of people agreed and praised the man for how capable and decisive he was when he was young, and how many times better he was than Zhao Youdang. The more they talked, the more it seemed to be true. In fact, if that man had really become the village chief instead of Zhao Youdang, they would probably say that he was too tough, too narrow-minded, and didn't care about the feelings of the villagers. He was not as decent, considerate, and took the overall situation into consideration as Zhao Youdang.

However, at this moment, after chatting for a while and returning home, they faced the mess at home and naturally became more dissatisfied with Zhao Youdang and Wu Guixiang, and began to fantasize about the situation that had never happened, that another person was the village chief.

In the evening, after the old sisters who had come to chat and visit had left, Miao grabbed Shen Qing. After glancing at Shen Qing from head to toe, Miao opened her mouth, not quite sure how to talk to Shen Qing about this matter. After a long while, she managed to utter, "Brother Qing, you and that Xiao Song, have you consummated your marriage now, now?"

Of course Shen Qing knew what Miao meant. He had been delaying telling Miao about this for quite some time, not because he had any concerns, but mainly because he didn't know how to start the conversation.

It’s not that he was afraid of Miao’s reaction, but he felt a little embarrassed: he and Song Kaiji were not married. People in the village often take it for granted that they get pregnant after getting married. No one would think about how they got pregnant and everyone subconsciously skips over this topic. But since he didn't marry Song Kaiji, it seemed like he had to face the fact that he had to mention sex in front of his mother...

It's strange to say, sometimes he and Song Kaiji quarreled for a long time and didn't come down to eat. Shen Qing didn't mind if Qu Weiwei and the others joked about it, but if he faced Miao, Zhang Sujuan, or even Mother Tang, Shen Qing would feel very embarrassed.

But now that Miao had already started talking, Shen Qing suppressed his embarrassment and said, "Well, we have been..." He touched his belly, "It has been five months now."

This really frightened Miao: "What? Five months?" She couldn't help but slap Shen Qing's arm twice, gently: "You naughty child, you only told me such a big thing after five months?"

But Miao's reaction still made Shen Qing feel at ease. She accepted the fact that Shen Qing was pregnant and was even very happy. Miao and Song Kaiji communicated several times through mobile phone video recording, and knew that this was a good match that was hard to find for Shen Qing in Lantang Village and even in the entire Anping County. In addition, Shen Qing once fell seriously ill because of Song Kaiji, and the two of them had a deep and loyal relationship. Even though Song Kaiji was not available, Miao never thought of persuading Shen Qing to find another one.

Well, since Song Kaiji can't come, the two of them naturally can't get married here. Could it be that they will never consummate their marriage? Although Shen Qing didn't mention it, Miao was mentally prepared. She chattered to Shen Qing about many things to pay attention to during pregnancy, and then went to her room and found a fire avoidance map that was hidden in the bottom of the box.

He turned around and looked at Shen Qing's belly, but didn't know whether he should give it to her.

Miao ignored the fact that she didn't know how to start the conversation just now, and stuffed the small picture album into Shen Qing's arms with a complaining tone: "Child, why didn't you tell your mother earlier! What's there to be ashamed of? The night before the wedding, the mother would tell you everything in detail." Even in some harmonious families, in addition to the mother, the aunts and sisters-in-law in the family would also say a few words. We talk about sex and how to get along with your husband after marriage, otherwise some children are too dull and don’t know what to do.

Miao was a person who loved children very much. She loved Lian Rong very much. What's more, the baby in Shen Qing's belly was her own grandson. She looked at Shen Qing's slightly bulging belly again and again and said, "It's been five months, why is it only this small?" When she was pregnant, she felt like a pot was hanging on her waist for five months.

Then he said, "It's better if it's a little smaller. My brother is pregnant, so it's better if it's a little smaller! It would be better if it's a boy this time. Then our family will be completely established!"

She said this subconsciously, but Shen Qing's smile faded a little, revealing a confused look: "Why is it better to be a boy?"

Miao was stunned, her lips moved twice, and she quickly made amends: "Mother, you said the wrong thing. Now our family has already decided whether we have a boy or not. Mother didn't mean that. It would be great to have a boy like you."

After all, she was a pure ancient person. The living environment she had grown up in told her over and over again that there must be a male in the family. Sometimes, even an underage boy would not work, and an adult male was required. Women, boys and even young boys without the protection of adult men are like a piece of moving fat meat, and anyone can and wants to take a bite of it.

When the man of a family dies, the clan members would insist on eating up the entire family and selling off the widow and young boys. This was not uncommon in the surrounding area.

Although Qing Ge'er was an exception, her subconscious still hoped to be "safer". Besides - Miao sighed: "Mother doesn't look down on boys and girls, but it's so hard for girls and boys in this world, and mother really hopes that her children can live an easier life. If you were a boy, you wouldn't have to endure many hardships in the past, and you might be able to achieve greater success now."

Qing'er's identity was exposed by Miao Qiuduo in the county town before. Later, Tieshan came back and told her about the situation. Miao was horrified when she heard it. If Qing Ge'er was just a kid...

She doesn't understand gender equality. "Mom is just a selfish mother."

Shen Qing shook his head: "If I were a boy, my mother and I wouldn't be kicked out of the old Shen family. Then I wouldn't have to risk so much to go up the mountain to chop wood, and I wouldn't have the chance to go to that cave. If I were a boy, even if Shen Zhiwei didn't kill me, I would be the eldest son and grandson of the old Shen family, and the family's land would all be mine. I'm still having fun on the few acres of old Shen's land."

Miao was choked and speechless.

Shen Qing glanced at Miao, and the thoughts in his mind became clearer. Perhaps only those who are incompetent will pin their hopes on the rules of society. He certainly didn't dislike his mother, but due to the limitations of the times and cognition, Miao didn't have much ability to protect him. When he was in the old Shen family, he often protected Miao.

Miao had no way to provide any help for her children, so she could only hope for the advantages that society naturally gave to her gender. Perhaps Miao still thinks so because she still lives under Shen Qing's protection and still does not have the ability to fight against gender.

However, would it be more unfortunate to be reborn as a boy or girl in the emperor's family, or in the family of a prime minister or a duke, than to be reborn as a boy in a farmer's family?

Shen Qing stroked her slightly bulging belly and said, "My child, Shen Qing, no matter what gender it is, I have the confidence to let him live a smooth, comfortable, peaceful and happy life."

When Miao heard Shen Qing's words, she just listened blankly at first. However, this sentence was not like his other words in the past, which made her forget it after hearing it. They were like thunder, coming from far away, getting louder and louder, and making her head ache.

The next morning, Shen Qing planned to go to Anping County to see a doctor to check his pulse. However, when he opened the door, Miao was sitting in front of him, as if she had not slept all night.

"Qing'er," Miao held his hand, "you are right, mother was wrong." In fact, she couldn't say what she was wrong about, and how Qing'er was right. But she truly felt in her heart that she was wrong and had been wrong for a long time. "Any child born in our family, whether it's a boy, a girl or a boy, is a precious egg. We don't need him to make this family stand up. Our family should have been able to stand up in the first place."

Shen Qing looked at her red eyes and the dark circles under her eyes. After Shen Zhang's death was revealed, he had many hypotheses that had never happened, many of which were about the Miao family. Shen Qing had been deeply troubled by this, but at this moment, even though he knew that they were two different things, some of the haze gradually disappeared with the wind because of Miao's sincere admission of mistakes.

From that day on, Miao's life was no longer just about chatting with her sisters at home about beautiful powder and creams, buying cheap and beautiful floral fabrics at the market, or just sitting around the stove and immersing herself in her cooking skills, occasionally visiting her parents' home as a guest. Without Shen Qing's arrangement, she walked out of her own yard and went to the workshop to learn how to manage people and handle things from Wu Guixiang and Miao Hexiang.

Wu Guixiang was a little surprised at first, but soon expressed her support: "I wanted to say this before. This workshop is a business entrusted to your family by a nobleman. Qing'er is supposed to be too busy to handle it. Even if I am in charge, you have to come to help keep an eye on it." But Qing'er is capable and can let other people's mother live the life of a rich lady at home. What right does she have to drag Miao out to work? It made her feel like a sour chicken who couldn't bear to see Miao's leisurely life.

Now that Miao was willing to come out and do something, Wu Guixiang supported her with all her strength: "If you ask me, there are still too few women and men in our village who can speak with authority! You have a unique status, why don't you stand up? The more there are, the better!"

Miao was very embarrassed. Only when she came to the workshop did she realize how energetic and capable Wu Guixiang, Miao Hexiang, and even ordinary women who worked there were. They could handle a lot of work by themselves, and she could never catch up with them even if she tried her best. "I was confused before and wasted a lot of time. You should teach me more and guide me more in the future."

"That's for sure. You follow me first. Guixiang is too powerful now, you can't catch up with her." Miao Hexiang interrupted from the side. When they had to split up the family before, Miao stood firmly beside her. Miao Hexiang remembered this kindness very much. "When you have learned enough from me, let her lead you to kill people everywhere!"

"Go away, how can I kill people?" Wu Guixiang scolded with a smile, and snorted twice: "I am just too good-tempered! There are so many people in the village who are dissatisfied with me now, and they want to beat me to death. How can I kill people?"

With the help of Qingger, she gained more and more power, and her words became more and more effective at home. In the past, she would discuss things with Zhao Youdang and listen to Zhao Youdang's advice. But after Zhao Youdang's judgment was not as good as hers several times and he messed things up, Wu Guixiang began to put Zhao Youdang aside and make her own decisions. For many things in the village, Zhao Youdang just stood aside as a mascot, but it was actually she who handled the affairs.

Therefore, many men in the village feel aggrieved! Let a woman decide a man’s affairs! It’s okay for the winner, but those who are dissatisfied with Wu Guixiang’s decision hate her to the core. The split of the Lian family was a new fuse, and the village was about to explode.

"Recently, many people have been running to the second brother's house, instigating him to make decisions." Wu Guixiang looked unhappy. The second son is her brother-in-law, Zhao Youdang's younger brother Zhao Youwei: "When my father-in-law was alive, the second son was much more promising than my husband. Originally, my father-in-law wanted to pass the position of village chief to the second son."

"That's bullshit." Miao Hexiang said. Although she was a victim of the village's emphasis on the eldest son system, under this system, Zhao Youdang was the eldest son. How could it be possible that the throne was passed on to Zhao Youwei? If it is really passed on to Zhao Youwei, there will be more people in the village who are dissatisfied!

Wu Guixiang snorted twice: "Who knows what my father-in-law was thinking at first? But then the second son went up the mountain to pick mushrooms and somehow rolled down the hillside and broke his leg. Even if my father-in-law had that idea originally, he gave it up."

How can a cripple be the village chief? Not only is he lame, he also has a weak physique and looks like he won't live long, so we won't let him be the village chief. This will not be conducive to the stability of the village. Wu Guixiang looked unhappy, but what she didn't say was that on the day when the second son rolled down the hillside, her brothers from her mother's side also happened to come to Lantang Village and went up the mountain. Since then, the second brother suspected that she let her brothers from her natal family harm him in order to compete for the position of village chief.

Therefore, after my father-in-law passed away, the two families stopped communicating.

There is no evidence at all, but you just suspect! So when the Lian family split up that day, Zhao Youwei was just watching the fun without saying anything. But when Zhao Youdang said he wanted to break Wang's nephew's leg, he immediately opened his mouth and said a few sarcastic words to Zhao Youdang.

I still hate it in my heart!

Wu Guixiang waved her hands and said, "Forget it, let's not talk about this unfortunate thing. Let them get together if they want. Don't mention that Zhao Youwei is a cripple. Even if he is not, with this workshop and Qing Ge'er backing me up, can I really change the village chief?"

Miao was amused by her: "Don't worry, Qing Ge'er will definitely support you!"

Shen Qing went to see the doctor with familiarity. Song Kaiji said that this is called regular prenatal check-up. They cannot use more advanced technology to perform regular prenatal examinations in the apocalypse, so having an old doctor check their pulse regularly is better than nothing.

"It's very good. The child is fine, and you are fine too." It can even be said that it is getting better and better. The old doctor glanced at Shen Qing and was very curious about how he made up for it. When I first came, my body was quite weak.

Shen Qing breathed a sigh of relief. He took a lot of health supplements and Lingquan water every day. But I still have some doubts: "Doctor, why is my stomach not growing?"

"Everyone is different. Some people grow late, but they will grow rapidly in two months." The old doctor said, "Besides, with your figure, it's a good thing for you not to grow. The child will suffer less if he is smaller."

Shen Qing smiled. Of course he was afraid of suffering, but he was also afraid that the child would not be well-nourished and would be weak in his belly. However, the doctor said it was okay, so he felt relieved. He then asked the doctor about a famous midwife in the city before leaving.

After walking out of the pharmacy, he heard someone calling Qing Ge'er from afar. Shen Qing turned around and saw a carriage parked behind him. There weren't many people in this county who could ride in a horse-drawn carriage. Sure enough, when they saw Lin Ning getting off the carriage, they took his hand and said, "I haven't seen you for a long time!"

Qingge'er has been away for two months on business, and he misses him a lot. Lin Ning turned around and shouted to the inside of the carriage: "Mom, you go back first. Qingge and I are going to play outside." County Magistrate Zhengjun whispered a few words in the carriage, and the carriage drove away quickly.

Lin Ning happily pulled Shen Qing forward, and Shen Qing was so frightened that he quickly pulled back: "Slow down, slow down!"

"What's wrong?" Lin Ning was puzzled. On the day he met Shen Qing, Shen Qing dragged him and Lin Zaoer to run across several streets. Was there also a day when Qing asked him to slow down?

However, Lin Ning soon realized that Shen Qing had just come out of the pharmacy. He immediately asked nervously, "What's wrong? Are you sick?"

Shen Qing hesitated. Lin Ning was his only friend in this world, and he felt that he shouldn't hide it from Lin Ning - and he couldn't hide it anyway, as Lin Ning would know it sooner or later in a few months. Not to mention Lin Ning, probably everyone in Lantang Village and Shiqu Village also knows about it. He can't just give birth to the child and hide it.

But Lin Ning was an unmarried boy, and Shen Qing felt guilty for teaching a child bad things. After thinking about it, he still didn't say anything: "It's okay, I just worked too hard before, and my body is a little weak. I need to take care of myself."

Shen Qing is now just delaying, every moment counts.

However, after hearing this, Lin Ning felt very sorry for Shen Qing. The two found a teahouse, ordered some snacks and dried fruits, and sat behind a screen to chat: "The memorial archway has been built. I asked the Golden Tooth Man and he said that your house will be completed next month, but the road will take some time to repair. When it's finished, take me to play - by the way, my father told me a few days ago that he would like to invite you to his home someday."

Shen Qing was stunned, then smiled and said, "I will definitely visit you when I am free." But he felt that this was just a polite remark from County Magistrate Lin. He knew that County Magistrate Lin had never liked him very much. Even if he had rewarded him with a memorial archway and promoted his relatives and friends, it was only because County Magistrate Lin was fair. After all, Shen Qing's achievements were worth it.

Lin Ning said anxiously, "I'm not being polite, I really mean it!" He was a little embarrassed. County Magistrate Lin had some opinions about Shen Qing before, and Shen Qing probably felt it. "But my father has changed his mind about you now."

Now Miao Yu and Tieshan are working for the county magistrate, and they occasionally talk about Shen Qing. From their two mouths, County Magistrate Lin heard a Shen Qing that was completely different from the one he knew. Not to mention County Magistrate Lin, even his good friend Lin Ning, although he had heard a few words about Shen Qing's past, but when he met Shen Qing, Shen Qing was already the elegant and graceful Master Shen, and it was hard to imagine how miserable Shen Qing had been in the past.

But Tieshan and Miao Yu used the simplest language to depict how difficult a young man's past was. "My father didn't look down on you or brothers before. My mother, my uncle and I are all brothers. My father loves brothers the most."

"He thought you were used to doing business outside, and that you were a bit slick and liked to give gifts, so he was afraid that you would cheat me. After listening to what they said, I realized that you had only been in business for a short time, and that you acted like that because no one taught you anything."

Shen Qing was like a wild grass with very tenacious vitality. Not only did no one teach him how to do business, but he also figured out how to survive bit by bit on his own. How can you blame someone for being slippery when he can't even survive?

But County Magistrate Lin felt sympathy for Shen Qing. Maybe it’s because my own child is also a little boy like this, who came from the village and suddenly entered a strange environment. Shen Qing's growth rate made County Magistrate Lin envious. He hoped that Lin Ning could grow up to be a self-reliant brother like Shen Qing. After putting himself in Shen Qing's shoes, he felt a little bit reluctant to see Shen Qing take a detour.

"My father said that what the Gold Tooth Man did was not wrong." After becoming friends with Shen Qing, Lin Ning also had more interactions with the Gold Tooth Man. To Shen Qing and Lin Ning, the Golden Tooth Man was a half-elder who had more experience and was more experienced than them, and he treated them sincerely. Perhaps because he knew that there was no way Shen Qing and Lin Ning could compete with him for business, the Gold Tooth Man was willing to tell them some insider information as long as they asked.

"But he is just a pawnbroker in a small county town, so he uses those little tricks of the market to do things. These little tricks are certainly enough to do some small business, but if you learn them all, you will probably only be able to do some small business in this life, and you will not be able to move up." Lin Ning looked at Shen Qing sincerely, "My father said that you are my good friend, and you have done me a favor, and in the future you may also do the whole Anping County a favor. If your family has not taught you anything before, you can ask him, and he is willing to teach you."

Shen Qing didn't know what was going on. Maybe pregnant women's emotions are more likely to fluctuate. Song Kaiji called this progesterone or something. When Shen Qing heard what Lin Ning said, he felt sore from his eyes to the tip of his nose.

He heard that even his voice was a little hoarse, but he responded to Lin Ning: "...Okay, thank you Uncle Lin."