Chapter 51 Does being uncultured mean one lacks ideological awareness? ...

“They’ve been together for several days, and someone even saw them.” Yang’s mother went directly to Tian’s mother.

Yang Yaohui, the son of Yang's mother, was a petty hoodlum who spent his days idly doing odd jobs and often not taking them seriously. His mother, noticing his close relationship with Tian Kexian, kept a close eye on them for several days and eventually allowed him to sleep with her.

If you sleep with her first, Tian Kexian's innocence will be ruined, and then Tian Kexian will only be able to marry Yang Yaohui.

Yang's mother still wanted the Tian family to give a larger dowry, saying, "Given your family's situation... your family has a spy in it. If my son marries her, our family will be at a disadvantage. Your family needs to prepare more dowry. If you don't prepare a larger dowry, our family..."

"Prepare more dowry?" Tian's mother thought that she hadn't even agreed to the marriage yet, and Yang's mother was already saying that Tian should prepare more dowry.

“Yes, the two young people are already together,” said Yang’s mother. “With your family’s financial situation, how can you expect to get by without giving a generous dowry? If my son marries your daughter, my son will suffer, our whole family will suffer, and people will talk behind his back that my son married the daughter of a spy.”

Yang's mother was a widow, and she was very strict with her children. By "strict," she meant that her children had to obey her. Whether her children had good jobs or not was secondary. Yang's mother habitually controlled her children, and even her daughter-in-law had to listen to her.

When Yang's mother came to propose marriage, she always gave the Tian family a hard time.

Mother Tian was naturally furious, her face darkening. "Then don't marry her."

“My son can choose not to marry your daughter, but can your daughter choose not to marry my son?” said Yang’s mother.

“That was your son being a hooligan!” said Tian’s mother.

“In a family like yours, would my son need to act like a hooligan?” Yang’s mother said. “If you told anyone, would they believe you? I’d even say your daughter seduced my son!”

Yang's mother wasn't afraid of what Tian's mother would say. Being a hooligan was indeed a serious crime, but they were dealing with the Tian family, a family with a spy in their ranks. They had nothing to fear.

"Go ahead and shout it out, let everyone know, and see if anyone is willing to marry your daughter?" Yang's mother said deliberately.

"You...you..." Mother Tian was so angry she almost fainted.

"Think it over carefully." Mother Yang stood up, tugged at her clothes, and patted them lightly. "If your family is not willing, then this marriage is off. It doesn't matter."

Afterwards, Yang's mother left directly.

Mother Tian was so angry that she slumped into a chair. What a terrible thing to do! What a terrible thing to do!

Meanwhile, Tian Kexian was still with Yang Yaohui. Yang Yaohui took Tian Kexian to see a movie and even bought her popsicles.

In the south of the city, the fighter jets successfully flew back to their base.

Song Fenglan breathed a sigh of relief; it was a success. This test flight wasn't just for one fighter jet, but for two of the same model. Fortunately, both aircraft passed without incident. During the actual test flights, simulations were conducted, but there's a significant difference between simulation and real-world testing. Especially between new and old fighter jets, which are different models, there are substantial differences.

The pilot returned safely with the fighter jet, and everyone was very happy.

It's done! It's done!

There were no problems, that's great.

The first test flight was successful, but more tests are needed to ensure the safety of the fighter jet before it can be put into mass production.

Song Fenglan and Professor Su held another meeting; they wouldn't be leaving get off work so soon.

This success eased everyone's worries a little. They all understood the significance of this type of fighter jet; if their country could use such a jet, they wouldn't lag behind other countries, and might even be stronger.

Qin Yizhou took Qin Zihang out to buy some groceries and fruit. Qin Yizhou was careful not to let Qin Zihang run around too much; the child was older and could run fast now.

"Dad, shall we buy some bayberries?" Qin Zihang asked his father.

"Do you want some?" Qin Yizhou asked. He knew Song Fenglan didn't like bayberries, firstly because they were quite sour, and secondly because they often contained small white worms. Song Fenglan was afraid of the worms in bayberries, so she rarely ate them.

"I don't want to eat, Dad, you eat," Qin Zihang said.

"..." Qin Yizhou looked down at his son, "There are small bugs inside."

“Little bugs are meat, Dad, eat more of them.” Qin Zihang looked at Yang Mei. “A couple of days ago, Xiao Hu’s mother gave me some to eat, but they weren’t very good.”

"If it's not tasty, then don't look at it." Qin Yizhou had no intention of buying bayberries. The rest of his family didn't like bayberries, and although he could eat them, he didn't particularly like them.

There are still plenty of bayberries available this season. Bayberries are a summer fruit, and the shops have been selling them for a while now. Qin Yizhou rarely buys bayberries to take home; Song Fenglan doesn't like them, and neither does Qin Zihang.

Qin Zihang saw the tiny white worms and asked if they could be given to the chicks to eat. The chicks had grown a lot. Sometimes Qin Zihang would also dig for earthworms and said he wanted to dig up more.

This summer has been rainy. After the rains, earthworms would crawl to the surface to breathe near the soil in the yard. Qin Zihang would then herd the chickens into the yard to eat the loaches. When his father asked him why he wasn't catching them anymore, he said he wasn't stupid and the chickens could peck at them themselves.

Buy some other things

"Yes," Qin Yizhou said, "Cook extra food tonight."

"Dad's cooking," Qin Zihang said. "Mom's coming home to eat."

"Okay, Mom will be back for dinner." Qin Yizhou didn't let Song Fenglan cook. When Song Fenglan was home, if Qin Yizhou wasn't there, Song Fenglan would go to the cafeteria to get food.

Qin Yizhou bought groceries and took his child home. He cooked the dishes, but Song Fenglan still hadn't returned. It was already evening, so Qin Yizhou and his son ate dinner first, without waiting for Song Fenglan any longer.

"Brother Zihang." Zhang Xiaohu came over again after finishing his meal.

Zhang Xiaohu likes to play with Qin Zihang because Qin Zihang has lots of toys and a TV.

"Let's watch TV," Qin Zihang said, glancing towards the living room doorway. His mother hadn't returned yet. Qin Zihang wanted to tell his mother that he had seen airplanes again today.

Song Fenglan isn't back yet; there are still some things to take care of.

When Tian Kexian returned home, her mother gave her a severe scolding.

"What did you do? How could you find a scoundrel like Yang Yaohui? Do you know that his mother came to our house and said she wanted us to prepare more dowry for you?" Mother Tian was furious. "Are we marrying off our daughter or taking in a wife? She even said she wanted us to prepare a TV for you. A TV? She really dares to dream."

Mother Tian gritted her teeth. It was always the woman who asked the man to prepare those things, so how could it be the woman who prepared them?

“Let me tell you, we have no money or ration coupons at home, so we can’t afford to buy a television,” said Tian’s mother. “You and Yang Yaohui should stop seeing each other.”

“Do you think I want to be with him? There’s no one else!” Tian Kexian said. “Other men don’t want to be with me, they all stay far away from me. What can I do? Mom, I want to marry Yang Yaohui.”

"Okay, you can get married, but don't even think about the television," said Tian's mother.

"Mom, I..."

“When your sister-in-law married into the family, she didn’t ask for so much, and we didn’t ask her family for such a large dowry,” said Mother Tian. “As for you, you can either bring two quilts with you when you get married, or you can ask for nothing at all.”

Doesn't Tian Kexian know the situation of the Tian family?

Mother Tian was so angry that her heart ached. There was so little in the house, and Mother Yang still had the nerve to ask the Tian family to contribute so much.

"Does Yang Yaohui know what his mother said? Their family is dirt poor and doesn't have much to offer," said Tian's mother. "I don't think they can afford much dowry at all, yet they have the nerve to ask our family to contribute this and that."

"Why don't you just stay home?" Tian Kexian didn't expect Yang's mother to come to her house and say these things. She wanted those things, but her family would never prepare them for her.

Tian Kexian knew her family's situation. Her parents were unemployed, and her second brother did have a job, but his salary was not as high as before. There were several siblings in the Tian family. Tian Kexian's second brother was at home, but her third and fourth brothers were not. Some had gone to the countryside, and others had gone to other places.

In this situation, if Tian Kexian dared to ask for anything, her parents would definitely kick her out. When her older sister remarried, her family gave her a new quilt, but nothing else.

Tian Kexian thought it was perfectly normal that her family didn't give Tian Keshu anything anymore. After all, this was Tian Keshu's second marriage, and her family had prepared a large dowry for her first marriage. Those dowry items were brought back by Tian Keshu when she divorced Brother Qin, but they were old and it wasn't appropriate to take them all to her second husband's family, for fear of upsetting him.

"Not going out? We don't plan to go out," said Tian's mother. "If you really stay with Yang Yaohui, just wait, his mother will definitely make things difficult for you. She won't give you a kind look."

“I won’t live with her, right?” Tian Kexian said. She thought marriage was an easy thing and didn’t even think about whether there would be any other issues involved.

"Do you really think this will do?" Mother Tian sneered. "You'll suffer later."

Tian's mother wanted Tian Kexian to marry into a better family, hoping to get a higher dowry to help support the household. However, given the current situation, it was unlikely that any slightly wealthy family would want Tian Kexian. If they could, Tian Kexian wouldn't have been waiting until now.

Song Fenglan returned from the research institute around 10 p.m. She had a lot of things to take care of, and by the time she checked the time, it was already so late.

Song Fenglan and Cao Fang walked back together. It was such a short distance; they didn't need to take a car, and taking a car might not be comfortable. Song Fenglan arrived home before Cao Fang left.

Qin Yizhou sat in the living room, still awake, while Qin Zihang was already asleep. Qin Zihang had originally intended to wait for Song Fenglan, but after playing for a while during the day and then playing with Zhang Xiaohu in the evening, he quickly became sleepy.

"You're back," Qin Yizhou said. "I'll go cook some noodles."

"I'm a little hungry," Song Fenglan said, taking two boiled eggs out of her pocket. Cao Fang had given them to her when she came back, saying they were from the cafeteria.

Cao Fang knew that Song Fenglan sometimes didn't go to the cafeteria for late-night snacks and went straight home instead. Cao Fang would go to the cafeteria in advance to get some food for Song Fenglan, sometimes boiled eggs, sometimes steamed buns or mantou.

Compared to boiled eggs, Song Fenglan really wanted to eat rice noodles.

Song Fenglan didn't shower immediately. She figured she'd get hot after eating the noodles, so she decided to wait. After sitting in the living room for a while, Qin Yizhou finished cooking the noodles and brought them out. They were topped with some greens, a fried egg, and a little bit of meat.

"Eat up," Qin Yizhou said.

Song Fenglan picked up some noodles with her chopsticks, about to put them in her mouth, but then realized they were too hot. Qin Yizhou simply took another bowl, scooped out some noodles to cool, and let Song Fenglan eat what he had scooped out first.

"Do you want some?" Song Fenglan asked.

"I'm not eating, I'm full." Qin Yizhou sat down next to Song Fenglan. "Eat slowly, there's more if you're not full."

Qin Yizhou didn't ask Song Fenglan about her work; it was confidential, and he knew that. He had guessed some things, but he kept them to himself. Looking at his wife, Qin Yizhou thought it must have been successful. The fact that there was no news of a plane crash was the best news; other problems were minor.

"Zihang saw fighter jets in the sky today and was playing with the model airplane that his second uncle gave him," Qin Yizhou said.

“I said before that I would give him an airplane, so I made a small one,” Song Fenglan said. “It’s very ordinary.”

Song Fenglan would never make a new fighter jet model for Qin Yizhou to play with, not even the appearance. The one Song Fenglan made casually, without much refinement, was obviously inferior to the one her second brother had given her. Qin Zihang kept the model Song Fenglan made in a treasure chest; he liked to put old toys in chests and called them treasure chests.

Song Fenglan felt a warmth in her heart when she thought of her son.

"Second brother's gift is very thoughtful," Song Fenglan said.

"What your second brother sent is enough. You didn't have to go to so much trouble." Qin Yizhou occasionally put some noodles into his bowl. In addition to the original bowl for noodles, he took three more bowls. This way, the noodles would cool down faster and not be too hot. "Eat slowly."

"Here, two boiled eggs, you can have them." Song Fenglan thought of her two boiled eggs. In this hot weather, it wouldn't be good to leave boiled eggs out for too long.

Qin Yizhou picked up a hard-boiled egg, tapped it on the table, and then peeled off the shell little by little.

“Not bad,” Qin Yizhou said.

"I have food every day." Song Fenglan felt that her food was better than her son's. There were many good dishes in the research institute's canteen, and the staff would also prepare extra food for her, fearing that her health was not good.

No one said Song Fenglan received special treatment, and no one said anything bad about it. Even disregarding Song Fenglan's own abilities, just look at her deceased uncle—what's wrong with him eating a little better food?

"Not bad," Song Fenglan said. "The noodles you cooked are good."

"It's alright," Qin Yizhou said. "Would you like some vinegar?"

"No," Song Fenglan said. "Eat it like this, without chili or vinegar."

Song Fenglan now adds fewer of these things and eats them directly. She tries her best to avoid any health problems, as she has many other things to do. When Song Fenglan came to join the military, she didn't expect to be so busy.

"These days, I'll have to trouble you to take good care of Zihang." Song Fenglan took a bite of noodles and then a bite of vegetables.

"What are you saying? He's my son." Qin Yizhou took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from Song Fenglan's forehead. "Don't worry."

After Song Fenglan ate the vermicelli and took a shower, it was almost midnight. She didn't do the laundry; Qin Yizhou helped her. She was tired and wanted to get some sleep.

Qin Yizhou didn't say anything bad about Song Fenglan's behavior. He went to wash Song Fenglan's clothes and hung them under the eaves before quietly returning to his room to lie down and go to sleep.

The next morning, Qin Yizhou woke up, and Song Fenglan woke up too. They checked the time and it was only a little past six o'clock, not even seven yet. Song Fenglan changed her clothes and went out again.

When Qin Zihang woke up, Song Fenglan had already gone to the research institute and was not at home.

"Where's Mom?" Qin Zihang sat at the dining table eating, wondering if his mother hadn't gotten up yet.

"Mom went to work," Qin Yizhou said. "Mom went to work and will come back to see Hangbao when she's done."

"Mom's so busy," Qin Zihang pouted. "Dad, did you upset Mom?"

"Huh?" Qin Yizhou didn't understand for a moment how he had ended up making his wife unhappy.

“Mom is unhappy, Mom doesn’t want to see you, so she avoids you,” Qin Zihang said. “I’m being dragged down by you, Dad.”

"No." Qin Yizhou was speechless. How could his son have such thoughts? "Mom has work, she'll be busy for a few days. Once she's not busy..."

"You're lying, Mom's been busy for ages." Qin Zihang counted on his fingers; it really had been a very, very long time, he could hardly keep track.

"Has it taken that long?" Qin Yizhou asked.

“It’s been a long time,” Qin Zihang said. “I haven’t eaten with my mother in a long time.”

Qin Zihang misses his mother very much. He wants to eat with her and play with her.

"Mom works so that our baby can live under a safer sky," Qin Yizhou said. "Mom spends time with our baby whenever she has time."

"Mom used to spend a lot of time with me." Qin Zihang sniffed; he really missed his mother. Even though he lived with her, he'd only seen her briefly these past few days, and she always seemed very tired. He didn't feel comfortable talking to her much. "Dad, are we short of money?"

"No, my family is rich, enough to feed you," Qin Yizhou said.

"If we have enough money, why does Mom still need to work?" Qin Zihang asked. "Can't Dad protect Hangbao? Does Mom have to earn money to support Hangbao? Mom also needs Dad's protection."

Qin Zihang wanted his mother to come home early so he could play with her.

“This…” Qin Yizhou heard the grievance in the child’s tone. He reached out and gently touched Qin Zihang’s head. “Because someone has to do certain things. If it’s not Zihang’s mother who has to do those things, then it has to be another baby’s mother who has to do those things.”

"Then let other babies' mothers do it," Qin Zihang said.

"..." Qin Yizhou couldn't answer for a moment. That's right, Qin Zihang is still young. Children don't have a sense of right and wrong, nor do they understand national righteousness. Adults can only teach children, "Other babies' mothers do other things."

“Little Tiger’s mother is at home,” Qin Zihang said. “Little Tiger sees his mother every day.”

“Everyone’s mother is different,” Qin Yizhou said. “Isn’t Xiaohu envious of you for having such a great mother? So many people envy you.”

“But… I don’t want them to envy me anymore,” Qin Zihang said. He really didn’t want others to envy him. “I miss my mother.”

“Mom knows Hangbao misses her, so she’s working hard to get back to Hangbao soon,” Qin Yizhou said. “You have to eat well and grow up healthy so Mom will love you.”

"Okay." Qin Zihang nodded and picked up his spoon to eat.

Qin Yizhou served food to Qin Zihang, saying, "When your aunt comes to take care of you, don't say you miss your mother. Our little Hangbao, be strong, your mother will be back soon."

"Mm," Qin Zihang replied.

"Our Hangbao is amazing; it's destined for the stars and the sea," Qin Yizhou said. "This little thing..."

“Mom’s problems are never trivial matters,” Qin Zihang said. In the baby’s heart, Mom’s problems are never trivial matters.

In the capital, Tian Keshu returned to her parents' home and learned about her sister's situation, leaving her speechless.

"No way!" Tian Keshu said. "A television set? How could they even think of that? What do they take our Kexian for? Does she have to pay so much to get married? If they don't want her, we don't want her either."

Tian Keshu gritted her teeth and looked at her sister, "You too, you're utterly useless, with such terrible taste, you actually found such a piece of trash."

"Do I want to find someone like this? It's just because no one else wants me," Tian Kexian said. She thought Yang Yaohui was willing to spend money on her, treat her to meals, and buy her food. Tian Kexian thought that Yang Yaohui wasn't bad; he treated her well, unlike other men who looked down on her.

"Can't you...can't you wait a little longer?" Tian Keshu asked.

"Wait? If I wait, people will say I'm an old maid, and I'll never be able to get married?" Tian Kexian said.

"Alright, if she wants to get married, let her get married," said Mother Tian. Given the current situation, nobody knows when things will get better. It's better for Tian Kexian to get married so she won't have to stay at home eating and living there. However, the dowry issue can't be handled by the Yang family.

Tian Keshu's life isn't much better now. She's thinking about having another child, but she's not sure if she can conceive at her age. Her husband isn't interested in having more children; he already has two sons, so it doesn't really matter to Tian Keshu whether she has another one or not.

Tian Keshu thought that if she couldn't have children, she would adopt a girl. However, she didn't have a job, and her husband was the breadwinner. He had two sons, and the food they had at home might not even be enough for them. Her husband would never agree to her adopting a child who wasn't related to him by blood. It would be fine if it were a child born to Tian Keshu and her husband.

"In the end, it's all because of my sister," Tian Kexian said. "If my sister hadn't caused so much trouble, and she were still in the Qin family, our family's situation would be much better."

The Qin family doesn't have those major problems, and the Song family, with whom they have a marriage alliance, is highly regarded. Others will be more polite to Tian Keshu, and also treat the Tian family better.

"I..." Tian Keshu certainly wanted to stay in the Qin family, but it was impossible. "Why bring this up? Don't think about it anymore, that's all in the past. Think about it carefully, your marriage with Yang Yaohui isn't in a hurry, you can wait a while."

"Will you wait until my belly gets big?" Tian Kexian asked.

"How...how can you be so shameless?" Tian Keshu said.

"I was forced into this," Tian Kexian said.

“If you get pregnant, then don’t even think about your family giving you a dowry,” Tian Keshu said. “If the Yang family doesn’t agree, then you should get an abortion. They can use the child to threaten our family, so why can’t we use the child to threaten them?”

Two days later, Song Fenglan was finally able to get some rest. She didn't need much praise from others; what she needed now was rest.

During this holiday, Song Fenglan didn't make any pastries or other food, but Fatty Sister-in-law made grass jelly instead.

Aunt Pang even prepared some honey; it was pure honey with a particularly good taste. She had already soaked the grass jelly in water, then scooped it out, added some white sugar, and then some honey water.

"Is it good?" the plump woman asked with a smile. She had cut quite a lot and placed a large bowl of it in the middle of the table.

Song Fenglan and her family of three came over to sit and eat, and they could also cool off in the courtyard.

The grass jelly that Fatty Sister made was a little firm, but it could also be cooked as a side dish. Stir-frying it with bay leaves, chili peppers, and ginger made it quite delicious. Fatty Sister also gave some to the neighbors, and she packed a few pieces for Song Fenglan to keep in the refrigerator so they could eat it tomorrow.

The food we're eating now is what we're eating now; the food given to Song Fenglan is something else.

Sister-in-law Pang is very good at making grass jelly; she makes it very well.

“A handful of grass can make several pots,” said the plump woman. “If you divide it up, there will still be quite a lot left over.”

"It's delicious." Qin Zihang was very happy today, with his mother by his side and grass jelly to eat.

"It has honey in it," the plump woman said with a smile. "At your age, you can eat some honey."

If the child is under three years old, Aunt Pang will not add honey, because she is afraid that the child's stomach will not be able to handle it.

"Eat up," Song Fenglan said to Qin Zihang. She hadn't spent much time with him for several days, so she was taking three days off to spend with her son and get some rest.

Song Fenglan didn't plan to go shopping in the city; she just wanted to rest at home, maybe buy something to eat nearby. The workload was too heavy, and even when she stopped, she still felt exhausted.

In the afternoon, Song Fenglan slept for a long time. Qin Yizhou and his son didn't disturb her. Qin Yizhou was also on vacation these days, but the real reason was for him to protect Song Fenglan, which he was naturally happy to do.

The two families sat together eating grass jelly, and Song Fenglan asked Qin Yizhou to bring over the watermelon from home and cut it up.

"Such a big watermelon?" the chubby woman exclaimed in surprise. "We can just drink grass jelly; we can eat the watermelon another day."

"Cut it up, everyone have a taste," Song Fenglan said.

"Cut the watermelon, cut the watermelon." Qin Zihang got up to go see his father.

"I'll go get the knife," Zhang Xiaohu said.

"This child." The fat woman couldn't help but shake her head. Zhang Xiaohu was always like this. Zhang Xiaohu was very familiar with Qin Zihang's family, but he didn't know how to refuse. He even thought about getting the knife.

"Time to eat watermelon!" Zhang Xiaohu said happily.

Zhang Xiaohu's brother sat there without saying a word, feeling that he was just a freeloader.

"I'll cut it," Zhang Chenghai said. "Let's wash the watermelon first."

Zhang Chenghai was too embarrassed to sit still, so he naturally got up to cut the watermelon.

Grandma Fang next door was annoyed when she heard the sound of someone cutting a watermelon at Zhang Chenghai's house. Zhang Chenghai and Qin Yizhou's families often ate together, sharing all sorts of different things, unlike the other neighbors who didn't have as much variety in their food.

Grandma Fang didn't even consider that the children from those two families played together and ate together all the time, which was naturally different from other families. Sister-in-law Pang gave Gao Xiuxiu some herbal jelly, but not honey. She specifically reminded her that Gao Xiuxiu's eldest daughter was still young and it was best not to let her eat it, adding that such young children shouldn't eat honey.

Grandma Fang didn't care about any of that; she thought it was good enough that there was something to feed the children.

We didn't have any watermelons at home, but we did have some honey.

Grandma Fang made some honey water, and she actually let her eldest granddaughter eat some.

Two hours later, her eldest granddaughter was in severe stomach pain. Grandma Fang suggested rubbing the child's tummy would be enough, but Fang Xudong insisted on taking the child to the hospital. When the doctor asked what the child had eaten, Grandma Fang hesitated and wouldn't give a complete answer. The doctor then asked, "Did she eat honey?"

"I had a little bit of honey water, not much," Grandma Fang said. "I just saw the neighbors eating watermelon, so I wanted to get some sweet things for my granddaughter too."

Grandma Fang wasn't very kind to her eldest granddaughter; most of the honey water went into her own stomach, and only a small portion went into her granddaughter's. Grandma Fang didn't know that honey water wasn't suitable for such a young child, who was not even two years old.

"It's a problem with the honey," the doctor said bluntly.

"How could it be a problem with the honey?" Grandma Fang frowned, she couldn't believe it could be the honey. "Honey, such a wonderful thing, she..."

"The child has a sensitive stomach," the doctor said. "It's fortunate that she was brought to the hospital quickly this time; if she had been brought in later, the outcome might not have been so good. Don't give her honey water for a while; wait until she's a bit older before giving her honey water."

"A little girl, so precious." Grandma Fang said unhappily.

"It's not just girls, boys too," the doctor said. "Very young children shouldn't eat honey. Honey is a good thing, but young children shouldn't drink it."

The doctor gave Fang Xudong some instructions without looking at Grandma Fang. The doctor felt it was pointless to talk to someone as stubborn as Grandma Fang; she would only think it was someone else's problem, not her own.

Fang Xudong did not let his grandmother take care of the child. Instead, he took care of the child himself at the hospital and told his grandmother to go home and rest first.

When Grandma Fang returned home, Gao Xiuxiu asked her a question. Grandma Fang replied irritably, "Your daughter is certainly precious."

"..." Gao Xiuxiu was also in a bad mood after being rebuked by Grandma Fang, and she was angry. "Mom, this child has suffered so much in your care. Last year, she almost drowned, and this year, it's the same again. You..."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Grandma Fang said. "I was just trying to be kind by giving your daughter honey water, and she got it wrong. Who knew she couldn't drink it?"

"Didn't Sister-in-law Pang say that children can't drink honey?" Gao Xiuxiu asked.

When Fatty Sister delivered the herbal jelly, Gao Xiuxiu was at home. Fatty Sister was worried that these people would add honey water and then feed it to the child, so she specifically mentioned it to avoid any problems the child might have and these people coming after her.

“Who knew she was right?” Grandma Fang had another reason. “I thought she was looking down on us, thinking we didn’t have any honey at home.”

"..." Gao Xiuxiu really didn't know that Grandma Fang would have such thoughts.

When Grandma Fang lived in the countryside, her family didn't have many good things, and they basically never gave honey water to very young children. If they did manage to get honey, they would try to sell it and use the money to buy other things.

"It's alright," Grandma Fang said. "Xudong is taking care of the child at the hospital. I told him I would stay at the hospital, but he insisted I come back. Xudong has to go to work tomorrow, so you can go to the hospital and relieve him."

“There is another child in the family,” Gao Xiuxiu said.

“I’ll take care of her,” Grandma Fang said. “She’s my granddaughter, how could I not take care of her? Don’t worry, I won’t feed her honey, wild boars can’t eat fine bran.”

After thinking it over, Gao Xiuxiu decided to let Grandma Fang take care of her second daughter instead of taking her to the hospital. Grandma Fang only didn't try to comfort the child much when she cried; she didn't like her granddaughter at all, she preferred her grandson.

At the hospital, Gao Xiuxiu asked Fang Xudong to go back, but Fang Xudong refused.

“I’ll take care of the older one, you go back and take care of the younger one.” Fang Xudong was worried that his mother didn’t know how to take care of children. He had originally thought that his mother, who had raised so many children, should know how. But now, he had to think about this issue more deeply; it seemed that his mother really didn’t know how.

"Don't you still have to..."

“After something like this, how can I go back to work?” Fang Xudong said. “You go back, I’ll take care of things with the boss.”

The next day, Fatty went to Song Fenglan's house and told her about Gao Xiuxiu's eldest daughter being hospitalized.

"They said they ate honey." The fat woman was a little scared after hearing this. "Luckily, when I delivered the herbal jelly, I told them not to let the child drink honey water. But they still let the child drink honey water. Maybe they thought I looked down on them and thought they didn't have any honey."

Fatty Sister really didn't understand Grandma Fang. Everyone said that children shouldn't drink honey water, so why didn't Grandma Fang just follow their advice?

Grandma Fang's eldest granddaughter has been really unlucky, both last year and this year.

"They might even be relieved that it was a girl who got into trouble, not a boy," the fat woman said dismissively. "They had a girl first, and this is how they treat her? They don't care about her at all. With them like this, it's a miracle the child even survives."

“Old experiences are not necessarily correct,” Song Fenglan said. “There are some things they simply haven’t encountered.”

When Song Fenglan was taking care of Qin Zihang in the capital, she was extra careful. Worried that her aunts might not know how to care for a child, Song Fenglan told her aunts various precautions, just in case they were unaware. Song Fenglan was also concerned that her aunts might be unhappy, but thankfully, they weren't; her aunts took the notes.

“That’s exactly how it is,” said the plump woman. “If a boy is born into their family, he’s fine because he’s pampered. But if a girl is born, she’s unlucky.”

“That’s their family’s business.” Song Fenglan didn’t have any overflowing sympathy, and she didn’t think about helping the little girl.

The little girl has biological parents; it's not Song Fenglan's place to care about her. Song Fenglan doesn't even have that much time to take care of her own child, let alone help other people's children.

It's not about being cold-hearted or not, but about Gao Xiuxiu's child. Others might help her once, but not forever. Once they get involved, they might not be able to shake it off.

Regardless of when these people will be discharged from the military and transferred to civilian work, given the current situation, they may still live here in the future unless they go elsewhere.

“That’s true.” The plump woman nodded. “They’re just neighbors, not anyone to them. Neighbors are fine if they lend a hand sometimes, but you can’t expect them to do it every day. Luckily, I told them not to let the kids drink honey. If I hadn’t, it would have been my fault.”

That evening, after dinner, Fatty's wife still went to Gao Xiuxiu's house and made a scene. The reason was that Grandma Fang had said outside that if Fatty's wife hadn't brought her some herbal jelly, she wouldn't make honey water either. She also said that since Fatty's wife and the others were eating watermelon, Grandma Fang wanted her granddaughter to have some too.

“I kindly gave you food, and you gossiped about me behind my back.”

"Didn't I tell you not to give honey to your children?"

"Gao Xiuxiu, you were there at the time, not just your mother-in-law. Do you dare say you didn't hear it?"

“If I don’t give it to you, you’ll say I’m stingy; if I do give it to you, you’ll say I’m harming your children.”

“You traitors, you don’t even take care of your own children, yet you criticize others.”

“We’re eating in our own home, what’s it to you?”

"Are you all so greedy? Why do you have to eat other people's watermelons?"

"That was brought by Fenglan, and the two families ate it together. You want to eat it too? Don't you have any shame?"

"You're talking badly about Fenglan behind her back, pretending she doesn't know, pretending I don't know?"

“Fenglan is perfectly healthy. She just doesn’t plan to have any more children, but you all say her health is bad. You say things like whether Commander Qin will mind, whether Commander Qin will abandon her in the future, and that you’re not afraid of raising a child.”

...

The plump woman stood at Gao Xiuxiu's door and said, "Aren't you afraid of upsetting Gao Xiuxiu's family? If Gao Xiuxiu's family is unhappy, I'll be unhappy too."

"This is a misunderstanding." Gao Xiuxiu could only come out. Many people had heard the fat woman's outburst. "My mother-in-law..."

"Don't say she's old. Just because she's old doesn't mean she can say whatever she wants. Is she taking advantage of her age?" the fat woman said.

"Qin Tuan's wife, she..."

“I didn’t invite her,” said the plump woman.

Fatty Sister-in-law didn't invite Song Fenglan, but Song Fenglan came on her own.

Song Fenglan heard the fat woman's voice and came out.

In this short while, not only Song Fenglan came out, but also Political Commissar Zhao and his wife. Political Commissar Zhao was in high spirits.

The new fighter jet has successfully completed its test flight. This is something that cannot be told to everyone, but they all know the great significance of this event.

Political Commissar Zhao and his wife went for a walk after dinner and encountered this incident.

"Fang Xudong." Political Commissar Zhao called Fang Xudong's name. Fang Xudong had just returned to the door and hadn't yet figured out what had happened when he heard Political Commissar Zhao call him.

"Here," Fang Xudong said.

"Come inside!" Political Commissar Zhao needed to have a serious talk with Fang Xudong about this issue. They had already transferred Staff Officer Xu; if they transferred Fang Xudong as well, it would be tantamount to telling others that something was wrong. Even if they didn't transfer Fang Xudong, they had to find other solutions. "Let me ask you, does being uneducated mean you lack ideological awareness?"