Chapter 3 I Lost My Mother Since I Was Young (Minor Revision)

Zhou Jibai kept the warmth of last night deep in his heart, trying not to let it show.

After calming down, he prepared to go out to the restaurant for dinner.

When I called Shi Huai to get up before, he would always glare at me and firmly say that he would not eat with their family.

Over time, Zhou Jibai no longer expected to have meals with her, and he would always ask the servants to bring the meals upstairs to Shi Huai.

Zhou Jibai planned to go downstairs to the restaurant alone to have breakfast as usual today.

When I came to the bedroom and was about to go out, the beauty on the bed seemed to hear the noise, got up from the bed and rubbed her sleepy eyes.

Zhou Jibai's eyes fell on Shi Huai, who looked half asleep, and he was wondering whether he should say something to her.

But then I thought that Shi Huai would most likely refuse and even say something unpleasant, so I gave up the idea after thinking about it.

Just as Zhou Jibai turned the doorknob and prepared to leave, his wife, who was still half asleep on the bed, suddenly called out to him, "Zhou Jibai, where are you going?"

Zhou Jibai paused. How could Shi Huai be so kind as to ask him where he was going?

But he still told the truth: "Let's go to the restaurant to eat."

Shi Huai quickly got off the bed barefoot and reached out to grab his clothes: "Can you wait for me? I'll wash up and go with you."

The unexpected event made Zhou Jibai feel dazed. He hesitated for a moment and scoffed, "Did the sun rise from the west today?"

Shi Huai: ...

He felt choked up and turned his head away, ignoring Zhou Jibai.

Then, Zhou Jibai's eyes fell on Shi Huai's pair of white and smooth feet that were barefoot and stepping on the floor tiles.

Zhou Jibai frowned, saying that pregnant women should avoid coldness.

He almost subconsciously picked up Shi Huai and sat him on the bed.

The ambiguous action made Shi Huai's cheeks blush. She sat steadily on the edge of the bed, staring at Zhou Jibai's next move.

Just when she thought Zhou Jibai would put them on for her, he just slowly placed the slippers in front of her feet and said teasingly, "I'm afraid you'll find my hands dirty, so put them on yourself."

If Zhou Jibai spoke normally, Shi Huai would definitely not let him put on his shoes.

But Zhou Jibai mocked him as soon as he opened his mouth, which made Shi Huai feel unhappy.

"No, I want you to put it on me!" Shi Huai hummed and stepped lightly on Zhou Jibai's palm.

The soft sole of the foot rested on his palm, and Zhou Jibai felt as if he was holding a delicate jade in his hand.

“Tsk.”

But she didn't say much, just half-knelt on the ground and put on her shoes according to Shi Huai's wishes. Her willing and submissive posture was like that of a loyal dog, and Shi Huai couldn't bear to take his eyes off her for a moment.

After helping Shi Huai put on his shoes, Zhou Jibai stood up, glanced down at his palms, and said, "Let me wash my hands."

Shi Huai: ...

What do you mean? Dislike her!?

But then he thought again, Zhou Jibai must be very wary of him now, and Shi Huai sighed inwardly.

Thinking about the past life when we were inseparable and it was either you die or I live, I decided to take it slow.

But she really couldn't stand this kind of blatant disdain!

Shi Huai closed his eyes, kicked off his shoes in anger, and went to the locker room to change into a new pair of shoes.

Zhou Jibai looked at Shi Huai's back as he left with anger, and thought to himself, this is what it should be.

After washing and dressing, Shi Huai put aside her past grudges and affectionately took the arm of the man waiting for her at the door: "I'm fine! Let's go eat!"

Her active approach made Zhou Jibai feel a little uncomfortable, but he didn't push her away. He frowned slightly and took in the woman's beautiful face with a happy smile.

He could not understand what Shi Huai was thinking. It was like there was a thick fog in front of his eyes that he could not get rid of. He could only stand there and let the white fog envelop him.

Zhou Jibai thought silently: Shi Huai is acting with me.

Shi Huai did not notice her husband's suspicion of her. Her mind was now full of the future of the Zhou family and revenge.

In the restaurant, sister-in-law Ruoyu, holding her less than two-year-old daughter Zhou Huanyu, sat at the dining table with old lady Bai Yusheng and chatted.

Seeing Zhou Jibai and Shi Huai appear together, Ruoyu and the old lady both had a look of surprise in their eyes.

Shi Huai took in the two people's expressions, smiled, and greeted them softly, "Grandma, sister-in-law."

When he thought about how he had been unkind to either of these two people in his previous life, a hint of shame flashed in his eyes without anyone noticing.

The old lady smiled in return, and Ruoyu gave Shihuai an unnatural smile.

Zhou Huanyu, who was sitting between Ruoyu and the old lady, blinked her big, watery eyes, stared at Shihuai, and then showed her cute little white teeth: "Sister Piao Niang~"

Children have poor memories, and I only showed my face on my wedding day. I haven't seen the Zhou family for a whole month. It's normal that Zhou Huanyu didn't recognize me.

Ruoyu pursed her lips and hugged Xiao Huanyu tighter. Everyone could see that Shi Huai had a powder keg temper, and now that she was pregnant, everyone was polite to her.

What if something Huanyue said offended this ancestor?

Shi Huai is no longer the same Shi Huai as before. She was so happy to hear her niece call her "beautiful sister"! She leaned forward slightly and said to Zhou Huanyu with a smile: "Thank you, beautiful Xiaoyu~ But I'm not your sister. I'm your second uncle's wife, your little aunt."

Zhou Jibai glanced at Shi Huai's smiling face, his heart sank, and his alertness was full.

Shi Huai is really abnormal.

He actually took the initiative to admit their relationship?

Old Mrs. Zhou coughed lightly and said, "Hurry up and sit down to eat. You're still pregnant and shouldn't be too tired."

At the dinner table, these people seemed a little unnatural because of Shi Huai's arrival, and the sounds of laughter and chatting completely disappeared.

Only Mrs. Zhou could find some appropriate topics to talk about. She asked Ruoyu beside her, "Didn't the eldest brother come home yesterday?"

Ruoyu pursed her lips and nodded slightly. Her voice was so soft that if you didn't listen carefully you wouldn't be able to hear what she was saying. It was a clear sign of inferiority.

"Zhou Xu called yesterday and said he was busy working overtime at the company, so he slept in the office last night."

Old Mrs. Zhou's face darkened. She glanced at the euphemistic and weak look of her eldest grandson's wife and sighed softly, "No matter what, you have to go home to be with your wife and children! I'll talk to the eldest brother for you when I have time."

Ruoyu quickly declined: "He's busy with work, grandma..."

Shi Huai took in this scene and thought about it carefully.

At this time in his previous life, my eldest brother’s female college classmate should have come to the company to work as his chief secretary.

Seeing Ruoyu's refusal, what else could Mrs. Zhou say? She shook her head and turned her gaze to the newlywed couple opposite.

"How are you feeling lately?" This question was asked to Shi Huai.

Shi Huai put down the spoon in his hand and said, "It's good."

In the entire Zhou family, the person she feared most was Old Lady Zhou. She was stern and hard-nosed, with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. She couldn't tolerate even the slightest injustice, and her power was undeniable. In her previous life, she had often been scolded and punished by Old Lady Zhou for her mistakes.

Although she now knew that the old lady was doing it for her own good, she was still a little scared.

Mrs. Zhou had no expression on her face. She said coldly, "Your stepmother and stepsister wanted to come to your house today, but I sent them away."

In her previous life, Shi Huai would have mustered up the courage to fight Old Madam Zhou for three hundred rounds. But after hearing these words today, she felt an indescribable sense of comfort in her heart.

Zhou Jibai put a piece of shrimp in Shi Huai's bowl and said, "Let's talk after dinner."

He was so afraid that this ancestor would just overturn the table.

Shi Huai glanced at the shrimps in the bowl and suddenly an idea came to his mind.

She lowered her eyes, pretending to be distraught, with red eyes and a look as if she was about to cry.

Seeing this, Mrs. Zhou frowned tightly and asked, "Why, you are not happy?"

Seeing his wife crying beside him, Zhou Jibai casually took out a tissue and handed it to Shi Huai, "You invited someone away so early in the morning and got the cold shoulder. Grandma, do you think everyone's teeth are as good as yours?"

His nonchalant attitude seemed to be speaking for Shi Huai and disobeying Old Lady Zhou, but in fact, he was indirectly criticizing Shi Huai's stepmother and stepsister for being narrow-minded.

Old Mrs. Zhou felt very upset when she saw her grandson's wife crying silently, and she pinched her eyebrows.

Seeing Shi Huai's handsome and innocent face covered with tears, Zhou Jibai said helplessly, "Eat first, I'll help you invite the people back later."

Shi Huai's shoulders trembled: "No..."

Everyone was confused.

Shi Huai bit his lip and choked with sobs, brewing for a long time as if he had something to hide.

"What's wrong?" Zhou Jibai's heart ached at the sight of Shi Huai sobbing, and he asked in a low voice.

Shi Huai raised her eyes, which were shrouded in mist, revealing grievance and bitterness: "Mom sent me a message..."

"She said..." Shi Huai stopped talking here, whetting everyone's appetite, "Forget it, I promised mom and sister not to tell you."

It seems that things are worse than I imagined.

Zhou Jibai's face was solemn, and he gritted his teeth: "Go on."

In front of everyone, Shi Huai pretended to be embarrassed and told the story, "She said that now that I've climbed up the social ladder, I despise them. She also said that since I'm so heartless, it's better to cut off ties with the family. But, but I really don't mean that. Grandma, can you please not drive them away?"

"You all know that I lost my mother when I was young." After he finished speaking, Shi Huai's tears fell even harder.