Chapter 71: Integrating into my husband's family life is truly a long-term process...
It's Lunar New Year's Eve again.
For many families, including the Fu family, the process was not much different from previous years, but it still made this year's Spring Festival feel special.
Perhaps happiness is about repetition; every day spent together as a family is unique, especially on such a joyous holiday.
We rested on the first day of the Lunar New Year, and the second day was still the traditional visit to the maternal home.
Tang Mingli and Fu Ci went to their uncle's house.
Because Tang Mingmei was quite far along in her pregnancy, Li Dazhu and his family didn't want her to travel around with such a big belly. So today, besides Tang Jianguo and his wife, only Tang Mingli and Fu Ci were at the Tang family's dinner table.
The food was certainly not as plentiful as when Tang Mingmei was around, but it was definitely much more abundant than in previous years.
Li Hong truthfully replied, "It's much more convenient to buy things now."
In the past, even with ration coupons, you might not be able to buy meat. During holidays, you had to go to the grocery store very early to queue up.
Even if you queue up, you might not be able to buy anything, and even if you do, you might only be able to buy a little bit each.
This year is different; you can basically buy anything you want, and the variety is even greater.
She sighed that life was getting better and better, but since her daughter couldn't come back, she wasn't really in the mood.
It's been over a month since Li Hong last saw her daughter, and she doesn't know how she is doing now.
Since her daughter became pregnant, she had been visiting the Li family too frequently, which caused discontent among them. In order not to put their daughter in a difficult position, her husband forbade her from doing so.
The reason given was this: "No news is good news. If anything really happens, Dazhu will definitely notify us immediately."
Li Hong certainly understood this principle.
First, spit out a mouthful of saliva, then say "Good luck and prosperity."
She had no doubt what her husband said. If their daughter really needed money, Li Dazhu would definitely tell them immediately.
That was their only daughter; they were willing to pay any amount of money.
Because she was their only daughter, how could she not miss her after not seeing her for so long?
In short, this year's New Year was particularly unpleasant for Li Hong.
When preparing the New Year's Eve dinner, I wondered if my pregnant daughter would help with the chores. When keeping watch at night, I wondered if my pregnant daughter would be allowed to rest. When firecrackers were being set off everywhere, I wondered if my daughter would be affected by the smell of gunpowder.
In short, all he thinks about when he's awake is his daughter, and all he dreams about when he's asleep is his daughter.
Tang Mingli could also see that her aunt was distraught, so she deliberately centered the conversation around Tang Mingmei.
For example, right now, they specifically asked, "When is your due date?"
Without hesitation, Li Hong replied, "Early May."
Tang Mingli: "There are less than three months left."
"That's right, I don't even know if we've prepared everything we need." Li Hong said with concern.
To be honest, she knew nothing when she gave birth, but luckily she had a good mother-in-law who helped prepare everything. But she really doesn't trust her daughter's mother-in-law at all.
Tang Mingli had never given birth and had never learned about childbirth before, so she didn't know what to prepare. However, she had seen on TV in her previous life that expectant mothers would prepare a delivery bag. As for what was in the delivery bag, she had no idea.
She could only understand that since production kits were needed, there must be quite a few things required, so it was indeed necessary to prepare properly.
During a brief silence in their conversation, Tang Jianguo spoke up, saying to his wife, "Why are you worrying so much? He's the Li family's first grandson. Do you think they wouldn't value him?"
When her uncle mentioned his grandson, Tang Mingli almost asked if he knew the gender, but she held back the question.
She didn't know if the country's current ultrasound equipment could clearly determine the gender, so she decided to avoid saying anything uncertain to prevent trouble.
What if they don't know that ultrasound can determine gender, and she accidentally reveals it? What if they beg her to use her connections to get Tang Mingmei examined?
The more Tang Mingli thought about it, the more clever she felt, so she picked up a piece of chicken to reward herself.
To be honest, the chicken was a bit old today and tasted tough, but at least it wasn't a factory-farmed chicken, so she treated it as a nutritional supplement.
Tang Jianguo and Li Hong were still arguing about whether the Li family would make preparations for their daughter's delivery in two months. Just as the two were about to get angry, Fu Ci picked up his wine glass and clinked it against Tang Jianguo's.
"Uncle, I toast you."
Tang Jianguo still gave Fu Ci face, so he took the opportunity to pause his argument with his wife and took a small sip of his wine.
The wine was brought by Tang Mingli and her group today, and it tastes very good.
Licking his lips, still wanting more, Tang Jianguo took another big gulp.
Since her husband had already taken action, Tang Mingli naturally wouldn't stand idly by and also spoke up to smooth things over.
"Actually, there are still more than two months until the due date, so it's a bit too early to argue about these things. Besides, it's always good to be prepared, right? Even if the Li family has made preparations, as the bride's family, it wouldn't hurt for us to be prepared as well, would it?"
"You're saying too much."
Tang Mingli's words struck a chord with Li Hong, and they were like a wake-up call for her.
As a mother, what's wrong with her worrying about her daughter giving birth?
Li Hong decided to ignore it and told her husband her decision: "I'll go to the Li family tomorrow."
I want to see my daughter, and also see how the Li family is preparing.
If they really don't care about this, then she should worry about it.
Tang Jianguo wanted to object, but he was also genuinely worried about his daughter.
All the words I wanted to say finally culminated in a long sigh: "I'll go with you tomorrow."
If his wife gets angry, at least he can keep her in check.
However, when Tang Mingli heard them say that they were going to see Tang Mingmei tomorrow, she already had a premonition that something unpleasant might happen again.
Visiting one's pregnant daughter is a perfectly normal and understandable thing to do. But the uncle and his wife and Li Dazhu's family are truly two sides of the same coin.
However, that's not necessarily true. Tang Mingmei's body can't withstand any stimulation right now, so perhaps the two families can be more tolerant of each other for her sake.
As Tang Mingli was inwardly complaining, Li Hong's eyes lit up and she also turned her attention to her.
"Why don't you come see Mingmei with me tomorrow?"
Li Hong said this while looking at Tang Mingli, her eyes filled with undisguised expectation.
The request didn't seem too unreasonable, but Tang Mingli was still in a bit of a dilemma.
Putting aside the unpleasantness she had with Li Baohua, just thinking about Li Dazhu and the Li family made her want to keep her distance.
"I might not be able to come here."
Tang Mingli struggled to lie.
"What's inconvenient?" Li Hong was a little unhappy, thinking that her niece was making excuses.
Tang Mingli was obviously looking for an excuse, but she couldn't think of a good one for the time being.
In the midst of her confusion, she subconsciously glanced at her husband.
There was no intention to shirk responsibility, but Fu Ci took the initiative to shoulder it.
"It's like this, my aunt and her family happen to be coming tomorrow. They haven't come for several years because of some things, and this is their first time coming in a few years. It might not be good if Mingli isn't here."
Tang Mingli raised her eyebrows, offering silent praise.
Indeed, those who can thrive in the business world must be able to tell a clever lie.
His words were sincere, and who wouldn't believe them?
Li Hong and Tang Jianguo were no exception; although somewhat disappointed, Fu Ci's words made sense.
Finally, Li Hong could only say, "In your generation, there are only two members of the Tang family, you and Mingmei. Although you are cousins, I hope you can help each other."
Tang Mingli smiled and nodded.
Since it's a two-way street, if Tang Mingmei can do it, then she can too.
After lunch, as usual, they sat for a while before Tang Mingli and Fu Ci left.
Because it's the same every year, Tang Jianguo and Li Hong have gradually become so used to it that they don't even notice anything wrong with it anymore.
As soon as they left the tenement building, Tang Mingli couldn't help but praise her husband: "He truly is a shrewd businessman. His reason for refusing your aunt's request was perfectly reasonable."
"Shrewd?" Fu Ci muttered the word, both amused and exasperated. "Are you praising me or teasing me?"
"Of course I'm praising you." Tang Mingli even cupped her face and smiled.
Fu Ci wasn't trying to be serious; his wife was being especially adorable, so how could he possibly hold a grudge?
However, he still needed to make it clear to his wife that what he had just said was not entirely an excuse.
Before my great-aunt and grandfather had a falling out, they did indeed come back every year on the third day of the Lunar New Year.
The relationship between the two families improved significantly last year, and he believes they will come over tomorrow.
Not only did he think so, but his mother and grandmother also thought so. However, no one said it aloud, for fear that if he didn't come back, his grandfather would be disappointed.
"Oh, I see!" Tang Mingli suddenly realized.
It seems that integrating into one's husband's family is a long-term process.
The way the Fu family treated her is something few families in the world could match. They lived together for several years, their bond stronger than that of blood relatives, and they could confide in each other about almost everything. But you see, she still had blind spots in her knowledge about her in-laws' affairs.
In this world, the only other instances where the word "marry" can be used besides a woman getting married are plant grafting and framing someone.
None of them are easy or pleasant.
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