While Yang Qiaoqiao's family was happily shopping, a sudden phone call broke the quiet and peaceful atmosphere at the He family's home in Beicheng.

When He Nian answered the phone, she heard Peng Cuiying's humble and ingratiating voice on the other end, "Is this Niannian? Can I speak with Yongxian for a few minutes?"

He Nian frowned immediately, and said with a hint of anger, "Speak, speak, speak, what's there to say?"

Peng Cuiying, I beg you to get this straight. Although you are Jiang Yongxian's mother, Jiang Yongxian is already in his thirties and has long been weaned.

Stop all day...

"Year after year!"

Before He Nian could finish speaking, He Zhengguo coldly shouted, "What are you doing? How many times have I told you, you married Yongxian, and Yongxian's mother is also your mother?"

Calling your mother-in-law by her first name—is that your politeness, your upbringing?

He Nian's face was grim. She gritted her teeth, hating that old woman Peng Cuiying to death.

If she hadn't called to cause trouble during the Chinese New Year, why would her father have scolded her?

"Yongxian, go answer the phone," He Zhengguo said.

Jiang Yongxian forced a smile. "Niannian, you can just hang up. Dad, I don't need to answer. I already sent her the rice, flour, and meat she needs for the New Year a few days ago. She won't need anything if she calls me."

He Nian's expression softened slightly upon hearing Jiang Yongxian's words.

Just as she was about to hang up, He Zhengguo sternly shouted, "Don't hang up."

Then he said to Jiang Yongxian, "Yongxian, you don't need to worry about Niannian. Just answer the phone when Dad tells you to."

It's Chinese New Year, and your mother is all alone in Beicheng. Logically, you should all bring her over to celebrate the New Year with us.

She throws tantrums every year, refusing to let you bring her over; you've already indulged her.

Your mother has already called, and you still aren't answering. What kind of behavior is that?

Before answering the phone, Jiang Yongxian looked at He Nian with affection and said, "Nian Nian is my lover, the wife I want to spend my life with. As a grown man, it's only right that I give in to her."

Upon hearing Jiang Yongxian's words, He Nian's expression softened completely, even showing a hint of blissful shyness.

She gave Jiang Yongxian a coquettish look and handed him the microphone, saying, "You answer it!"

"Thank you for your understanding, my wife." As Jiang Yongxian said this, he gave He Nian a look that was so ambiguous it could make your eyes water.

He Nian looked shy and blushing, as if she was so happy she could fly.

Looking at his daughter like this, He Zhengguo's eyes, which had been expressionless, flashed with deep thought.

Jiang Yongxian answered the phone, and Peng Cuiying's anxious voice came from the other end, "Yongxian, come over here quickly, the water pipes here are frozen."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yongxian's expression hardened.

When Peng Cuiying said the water pipes were frozen, it wasn't actually frozen. It was a pre-arranged signal between him and Peng Cuiying, indicating that Wang Xue had been activated.

"Okay, Mom, I understand. Don't worry, I'll be right there."

After hanging up the phone, he said to He Zhengguo and He Nian with a guilty look on his face, "Dad, Nian Nian, my mom said that the water pipes over there are frozen. She has always lived in the south and has never experienced this kind of situation before. I will go over and help her fix it and then come back."

He Nian was immediately displeased.

"It's just a frozen water pipe, right? She could easily give any of the people in the compound a dollar or two, and plenty of them would be vying to fix it for her. Why did she have to call you over?"

Jiang Yongxian looked troubled.

Before he could even speak to coax He Nian, He Zhengguo said first, "Nian Nian, don't be silly! Yongxian spoils you, but that's no reason for you to be arrogant."

If he abandons his own mother because of you, then in other people's eyes he's unfilial! If he's unfilial, then you, as his daughter-in-law, should be despised even more!

He Nian pursed his lips, his slightly thick lips forming a straight line.

Jiang Yongxian quickly coaxed her, "Niannian, I'm sorry, I broke my promise today. When I come back, I will definitely take you shopping and make it up to you."

After saying that, Jiang Yongxian grabbed his coat and hurried out the door.

Under pressure from He Zhengguo, He Nian could only urge him to come back soon.

After Jiang Yongxian's figure disappeared through the door, He Zhengguo asked He Nian to sit down opposite him. "Nian Nian, Dad wants to ask you, before the New Year, you and Jiang Yongxian went to the hospital for a check-up. You haven't been able to get pregnant since you got married. Whose problem is it?"

When He Nian heard this question, he felt his body stiffen.

After the test results came out, Jiang Yongxian promised her that regardless of whether she could have children, he would always love only her and would never divorce her.

During that time, whenever she felt sad when she thought about it, Jiang Yongxian would comfort her, saying that it was actually good that they didn't have children. Without children, the two of them could continue to live a life as a couple and enjoy the happiness that belonged only to the two of them.

So in the time that followed, she deliberately stopped thinking about that matter.

She just didn't expect her father to ask about it so suddenly.

He Nian lowered his head dejectedly. "Yongxian is normal. It's my problem."

He Zhengguo remained remarkably calm upon hearing the result, only asking, "Have you had a doctor examine you for the cause?"

"I've had a checkup. The doctor said I have depleted my yin and blood, and my qi and blood circulation is abnormal, making it difficult for me to conceive," He Nian said, her head drooping even lower, her voice filled with unspeakable sadness and sorrow.

"Irregular blood and qi circulation?" He Zhengguo repeated these words before comforting He Nian, "The doctor said it's difficult to get pregnant, not that you definitely can't."

In a couple of days, Dad will contact a specialist in this field who just returned from abroad. He'll give you a thorough examination then, and we'll prescribe the right treatment to regulate your body.

"If you really can't get pregnant naturally, that's okay. We've already introduced IVF technology from abroad to China. Dad will find an expert in that field to do it for you."

Upon hearing He Zhengguo's words, He Nian's heart, which had resigned itself to its fate, instantly came back to life.

Last year, or rather the year before last, the first test-tube baby in China was born in Beicheng. At the time, newspapers and media reported on it extensively, which also sparked heated discussions.

She was so devastated after finding out she couldn't get pregnant that she completely forgot about it.

She looked at He Zhengguo excitedly, "Thank you, Dad!"

He Zhengguo smiled kindly, "What are you thanking me for? You are my only daughter. If I don't plan for you, who will I plan for?"

“Didn’t you ask Yongxian to go shopping with you? If you go there now, he should have already fixed the frozen water pipes. You can pick him up and then you can go shopping together.”

He Nian nodded emphatically, "Yes, Dad, I'll go find Yongxian right now and tell him the good news."

As He Zhengguo watched his daughter run off excitedly, his kind gaze slowly turned cold.