Chapter 81

Han Shuo grew to love this kind of life more and more. He would open his eyes in bed in the morning, and a little light would seep through the curtains, making the room dark yet cozy.

Downstairs, you can hear the chatter of early-rising parents and villagers, who are happily announcing that their children have come home. In the yard, the coal stove is probably burning, the boiling water making the kettle lid clang loudly.

The smell of burning coal seeped through the cracks in the glass window, making the person lying in bed feel at ease. All these sounds and smells told them that they were at home, that they no longer had to struggle to earn money, and that they could be children being taken care of by their parents in peace.

"Sigh, it's still so comfortable at home," Han Shuo sighed contentedly in bed.

He turned his head and saw that Meng Yuxiu next to him still had his eyes closed, but he did respond with an "hmm" in response to his words.

"Aren't you getting up yet?" Han Shuo nudged him with his elbow.

Meng Yuxiu rarely stayed in bed. He reached out and put his arm around Han Shuo's waist, saying in a slightly languid, nasal voice, "I want to lie here a little longer. It's warm in the blankets."

Han Shuo loved listening to Meng Yuxiu's drowsy voice; it always sounded like he was being coquettish, just like a child.

Han Shuo's heart softened immediately, and he said softly, "Mom and Dad will call you soon."

Meng Yuxiu grabbed the blanket and wrapped himself and Han Shuo even tighter. He closed his eyes and said, "Let's wait for them to call me before we talk."

"Hehe, you little lazybones." Han Shuo kissed Meng Yuxiu's forehead, then patted his back. "Go to sleep, go to sleep."

However, Meng Yuxiu couldn't sleep for long before his father called out from the courtyard, "Xiaoxiu, get up."

Before Meng Yuxiu even got out of bed, he replied, "Okay."

Unlike Meng Yuxiu, Han Shuo's parents always indulged and doted on their pregnant daughter-in-law, allowing her to sleep in until noon or even stay in bed all day long.

After Meng Yuxiu got up and went downstairs, Han Shuo continued to lie in bed. Then the door was pushed open a crack, and a little creature happily ran in.

"Uncle!"

Han Ting had just washed his face with hot water; his cheeks were flushed and still damp. He was so excited last night that he couldn't sleep, and he woke up early this morning, equally excited.

"Have you washed your face and brushed your teeth?" Han Shuo turned to the side, pulled Han Ting onto the bed, and tucked her into the blankets.

As soon as Han Ting got into bed, he squeaked happily like a little mouse.

"It's been washed."

Where is Dad?

"Dad's washing his face downstairs!" Han Ting said. "Uncle, why aren't you up yet?"

"I'm up, I'll be up soon."

Meng's parents didn't call him Han Shuo, but Han Hong called from downstairs, "Little Shuo, the sun's already high in the sky, why aren't you up yet?"

"We're here!" Han Shuo finally got dressed and got up, then led Han Ting downstairs.

There were many people at home today, so Meng's father boiled a lot of hot water. After Han Shuo went downstairs, Meng's mother grabbed a thermos and poured the hot water into a basin.

The sun was shining brightly today. At this time, the villagers were sitting under the big tree, eating and chatting. Seeing so many people in the Meng family's courtyard, some villagers brought their bowls over to join in the fun.

"Teacher Meng, your house is so lively today."

Mr. Meng greeted people with a smile and offered them cigarettes, saying, "Well, my son Xiaoxiu and the others came back last night."

Han Hong was a generous and easy-going person, and they could chat for a long time. Han Ting had visited the Meng family a few times before and met the children from Xiqiao Village. Before even having breakfast, he was already playing with firecrackers with them outside.

He's the richest kid now, because Meng Yuxiu gives him money, and Meng's parents also give him money to buy firecrackers. Han Hong refuses to give money, but Han Ting immediately turns around and hugs Meng Yuxiu's leg, acting all cute.

After calling out "Brother Meng" twice, Meng Yuxiu took out money from his pocket.

Han Hong laughed and scolded, "You brat! Still calling Xiao Meng 'brother'?"

Han Ting grinned, revealing his grotesque teeth, and exclaimed, "Uncle!"

Then he went with the children to the village shop to buy firecrackers, until his mother told him it was time for breakfast.

Han Hong searched half the village before finally dragging his son back, cursing and swearing.

After breakfast, Han Hong told Han Shuo that he had to go home.

Upon hearing this, Han Shuo said he would go back to Xiaoshi Village with them.

Considering that Meng's parents and Meng Yuxiu were all in the courtyard, Han Hong could only say to Han Shuo tactfully, "You just got back yesterday, so stay home for the next couple of days and keep Principal Meng and the others company with Xiao Xiu."

"Brother." Han Shuo frowned and held onto his brother's arm tightly. For him, every minute and second they spent together now was something he wanted to hold onto tightly.

Han Hong lowered his voice: "Listen to me, stay at home for two days before taking Xiao Xiu to Xiaoshi Village."

Han Shuo thought that he could accompany Han Hong and the others back to Xiaoshi Village, while Meng Yuxiu could stay in Xiqiao Village with his parents. In fact, as long as he called Meng Yuxiu, Meng Yuxiu would definitely accompany him back to Xiaoshi Village.

But time was running out, and he couldn't be so selfish.

Because Meng Yuxiu also longed to spend time with his parents.

Meng's mother, noticing Han Shuo's mood, advised Han Hong, "Little Shuo's brother, don't leave. Little Shuo has just returned. Stay here for a few more days. Look how happy Tingting is. Stay a few more days, and then let Xiao Xiu come and stay for a couple of days too."

"Why go through all this trouble?" Meng's father said to Meng's mother. "Tell Xiaoxiu's maternal grandmother this year that we won't be going to their place. Xiaoshuo's brother shouldn't leave either. This year, our family will celebrate the New Year together."

Upon hearing Meng's father's words, Han Shuo was so moved that he didn't know what to say. He restrained his fluctuating emotions and looked at Meng's father with heartfelt gratitude.

Han Hong was also pleased that his younger brother had found a reasonable and good family, but he still said to Mencius' parents, "I feel so bad about this."

Mencius' mother smiled and said, "What's there to be embarrassed about? The more people there are, the more lively the New Year will be."

“Oh dear, I still need to go back,” Han Hong said. “I need to feed the chickens at home.”

Han Ting tilted her head up and told Han Shuo, "Uncle, Dad raised chickens, and his chickens laid lots of eggs! Dad said he'd give them to you to eat!"

Han Shuo: "Then I'll go back with you, and you can bring the chickens...you can bring the chickens here to raise too."

Han Hong was amused by his younger brother's words, "You should just stay at home. Your belly is so big now, don't run around too much. I can come over here on New Year's Eve, it's the same."

"elder brother……"

Han Hong couldn't understand the anxiety in Han Shuo's eyes. He just asked, puzzled, "Xiao Shuo, what's wrong?"

Han Shuo moved his lips, and after a few seconds looked at his brother and said, "Don't leave, stay here with me..."

Han Hong vaguely sensed something was wrong, but he thought at most that his younger brother missed him more because he had been away for a long time.

But he finally nodded, "Okay, I'm not leaving."

Han Shuo then relaxed his tightly furrowed brows.

The happiest person to stay at the Meng family's house for the New Year was Han Ting. Upon hearing that they weren't going back to Xiaoshi Village, he immediately ran outside to find the children to set off firecrackers.

Han Shuo asked a few more questions, "Brother, what about the chickens at home?"

Han Hong chuckled and whispered to him, "Your Uncle Li from the village already helped feed the chickens. I'm just embarrassed, brother. How can an older brother-in-law stay at his younger brother's in-laws' house?"

In fact, Meng's parents were relieved to see that Han Shuo was happy because his brother could stay. They even felt that this year's New Year was much more lively.

Taking advantage of the good weather, Meng's mother planned to clean the house before the New Year and wash and dry the baby's clothes.

Meng's father went out to town to buy groceries, and Meng's mother was too busy to manage on her own. Seeing this, Meng Yuxiu said that he would go wash the children's clothes.

Mencius' mother smiled and said, "Alright, now that you're a father, you'll definitely have to wash the baby's clothes and diapers."

After she finished speaking, she put all the children's clothes in the bucket. Most of these clothes were bought by Meng's mother, and Meng's father and Han Hong also bought some.

Han Shuo and his brother Han Hong were sitting in the courtyard basking in the sun when Han Shuo saw Meng Yuxiu carrying a bucket out of the house and asked him, "Where are you going?"

Meng Yuxiu shook the bucket. "Go wash the clothes."

Han Shuo, seeing that it was a child's clothes, joked, "Wash it gently, don't poke holes in it."

Meng Yuxiu chuckled and said, "No way."

"I won't go with you to take a shower."

"Okay." Meng Yuxiu carried the bucket of water out of the yard.

Many villagers sat under the big tree, basking in the sun, chatting, and playing chess, while Han Ting and a few children grabbed firecrackers and threw them on the ground.

In rural areas where the Lunar New Year is approaching, the sound of children playing with firecrackers can be heard constantly even before New Year's Eve.

Upon seeing Meng Yuxiu, Han Ting, amidst his busy schedule, exclaimed, "Uncle!"

Meng Yuxiu nodded to him, "Be careful of firecrackers."

"Aww!"

When the villagers saw Meng Yuxiu walk by, an elderly woman went over, took his arm, and asked him warmly, "Little Xiu, when did you come home?"

Meng Yuxiu politely replied, "I came back last night."

"Come back and have a good New Year." The mother-in-law saw the clothes in the bucket, picked up another piece and said with a smile, "Oh my, these clothes for the child are so cute."

As soon as the mother-in-law spoke, the other older women gathered around and started teasing Meng Yuxiu.

"Xiao Xiu, you're going to be a dad!"

"Oh my, that's wonderful. Teacher Meng and the others are so young and they're going to be grandparents too."

Meng Yuxiu can't help but smile whenever the topic of children comes up. Facing the older women and grandmothers, he was both happy and a little embarrassed, so he nodded and smiled at them discreetly.

After watching the tall, slender young man go to the stream, the villagers sat down to chat again, but this time the topic was all about the upcoming happy event for the Meng family.

"Have you seen Xiao Xiu's wife?"

"Are you in the yard? It seems like you haven't come out."

"Look, Xiao Xiu's wife's belly is as big as a basket!..."

"She should be giving birth soon, right?"

"It'll be soon. I asked Teacher Meng and the others, and they said it's about nine months along."

"No wonder Teacher Meng and his wife were all smiles..."

When Meng's father returned from buying groceries in town, he passed by the stream and saw his tall son squatting on a rock washing clothes.

"Dad," Meng Yuxiu called out, looking up.

Meng's father nodded, picked up his vegetable basket, and went over to continue watching his son wash clothes.

The child's clothes were too small, and Meng Yuxiu had to pinch and rub them between his fingers.

Meng's father had a bit of a fatherly air about him, and having been a principal for so long, he always had some insightful opinions.

For example, he frowned and said to his son as if he were giving a lecture: "Don't knead it so hard. Children's clothes are delicate. If you knead it too hard, you will make the fabric rough and it will be uncomfortable to wear."

“Okay…” Meng Yuxiu eased his grip.

"Add some soap."

"Oh, okay..." Meng Yuxiu grabbed the soap and rubbed some on the socks, then continued to rub them with his long, slender fingers.

"Remember to rinse the soapy water thoroughly, otherwise it will dry in the sun..." However, before Meng's father could finish his nagging, because the socks were too small, his son rubbed them a few times with his fingers, and one of the socks floated away in the water.

Before Meng Yuxiu could even notice, he heard his father shout loudly, "Hey hey hey hey hey! What's wrong with you?!"

"What's wrong?" Meng Yuxiu craned his neck.

Meng's father had already dropped the vegetable basket and ran over to pick up the little socks. On the way back, Meng Yuxiu was so glared at by his father that he couldn't even lift his head.

Mencius' father refused to let his son wash clothes anymore and told him to go away.

Meng Yuxiu could only squat down beside his father and watch him wash clothes with a sullen expression.

Han Hong and Han Ting stayed at the Meng family's house for a week. Taking advantage of the market day today, he thought he still had to go back to Xiaoshi Village. Although they were spending the New Year at the Meng family's house, the house still needed to be cleaned in advance. After all, they would definitely have to go back during the first month of the lunar calendar, and it wouldn't look good if relatives and friends came and saw the house in a mess.

He told Han Shuo, "Don't worry, I'll clean up the house today and come over first thing tomorrow morning."

Han Shuo said, "Alright then, Tingting will stay."

Han Hong asked his son, "Do you want to come back to Xiaoshi Village with Dad? We'll come back tomorrow."

When Han Ting heard that he would only stay for one night before coming back, he also said he wanted to go back because he hadn't yet shown the bunch of toys that Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu had bought for him to his friends in Xiaoshi Village.

Since he was only going back for one night, and Han Hong would be busy cleaning up afterward, while Han Ting was going to play with the village children, Han Shuo, despite being heavily pregnant, decided not to bother with anything else.

In addition, Meng's mother said she would take Han Shuo to the hospital for a prenatal checkup today.

These days, not many people get prenatal checkups, especially in rural areas. Han Shuo only had one prenatal checkup at the very beginning of her pregnancy, and hasn't gone since.

Because the hospital's equipment and facilities were outdated, prenatal checkups were limited to things like listening to the fetal heartbeat and measuring blood pressure.

As for whether the baby in the womb has two noses or six fingers, that can't be determined.

Han Hong took Han Ting back to Xiaoshi Village by tractor in town, while Han Shuo and Meng Yuxiu went to the town's health center with Meng's mother.

They took my blood pressure and listened to the fetal heartbeat as usual, and also measured my waist circumference.

The doctor told Meng's mother that the baby was fine and the due date should be around February 1st.

Han Shuo had been subconsciously trying to blur the concept of time. But when he heard the date February 1st, it was as if a terminally ill patient was finally realizing that their days were numbered, and he became increasingly anxious and restless.

Seeing Meng's parents packing the child's clothes, pants, socks, and diapers into bags, and seeing their happy and expectant expressions, Han Shuo was so anxious in the middle of the night that he couldn't fall asleep.

Meng Yuxiu noticed Han Shuo tossing and turning beside him, so he got up and poured a cup of hot water.

After drinking the hot water, Han Shuo finally fell asleep.

He was under so much psychological pressure that even when he was asleep, he kept having dreams.

He dreamed about that novel, and a voice in his dream told him about it.

"Congratulations! You're about to complete your third task. You'll soon be able to give birth and return to the 21st century with your child."

Upon hearing this, Han Shuo felt a mix of emotions, realizing he had finally completed his mission, but he was also filled with confusion.

He stood there blankly.

It wasn't until Meng Yuxiu walked up to him, took his hand, and said, "Han Shuo, we should go."

Han Shuo asked, "Where to?"

"Back to the 21st century."