"I only met her once, and I don't remember her at all." Yang Zhibin moved closer to the wall, a little embarrassed. "I haven't seen her since I took her home last time. My mom only came to ask about her yesterday after hearing about her from my cousin-in-law."
Since Wu Xiufang came to the city, she often goes to their house to play.
When they were chatting, Wu Huihui came up in the conversation. She assumed Zhao Lianxiang knew about this, so she said that Wu Huihui had a good job, earning more than thirty yuan a month.
When Zhao Lianxiang heard about it, she was furious. How could she, as a mother, not know about such a big thing? She came today specifically to ask about it.
"Since you don't agree, let's just forget about it." Knowing Zhao Lianxiang's temperament, Zhao Futang said calmly, "We'll talk to Wu Huihui about it later. This matter is all about mutual consent, and no one can force anyone else."
“If something like this happens again, you must tell me first. Only if I agree can they date.” Zhao Lianxiang softened her tone when she saw Zhao Futang’s face darken. “I know you’re doing this for Zhibin’s own good. If it were a girl from a good family, I wouldn’t disagree.”
Zhao Lianxiang knew Zhao Futang's temper.
She's afraid when she gets angry.
Yang Yuelan listened and then remained silent.
No matter what, Yang Yuexiang was her own sister, and she couldn't bear it when her sister-in-law criticized her to her face.
Originally, she didn't want to get involved in their two families' affairs, so it's a good thing that it didn't work out.
It's only when it's done that there will be a lot of trouble!
Actually, in her heart, although Yang Yuexiang had a bit of a temper, Zhao Lianxiang was no pushover either. They were the same kind of people, and neither of them should look down on the other.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Zhao Lianxiang then asked Yang Yuelan, "Is Jingyu's wife about to give birth? Is she going to the hospital or staying at home?"
"To the hospital." Yang Yuelan heard that Zhao Jingyu and Xu Qingning had returned. "They went for a check-up today."
"Why go to the hospital to give birth?" Zhao Lianxiang thought they were making a fuss over nothing. "You can give birth at home and save money."
“It’s their own business, they can decide for themselves,” Zhao Futang said, raising an eyebrow. “Whether they go to the hospital or stay at home, it’s the same, as long as the adults and children are safe and sound.”
"Yes, it's fashionable to go to the hospital now, and we feel more at ease going to the hospital." Yang Yuelan was annoyed by Zhao Lianxiang. She should just mind her own business. Why did she have to interfere in her niece-in-law's childbirth?
What right do they have to look down on Yang Yuexiang...?
Hearing Zhao Futang and Yang Yuelan say this, Zhao Lianxiang wisely shut her mouth, sat for a while, and then said she wanted to go home.
As they were leaving, Zhao Jingyu and Xu Qingning came out of the house and greeted them.
Zhao Jingyu exchanged a few pleasantries with Yang Zhibin and then saw the mother and son to the door.
Yang Zhibin glanced quickly at Xu Qingning, then abruptly looked away, a mix of emotions welling up inside him.
He didn't know why, but he felt that he still liked her, just like when he was young.
Zhao Jingyu did not notice anything unusual about Yang Zhibin. He politely said goodbye and told him to come again when he had time.
It was cold outside, so Xu Qingning didn't go out to see them off. She paced back and forth inside a few times, then picked up a fairy tale book and read softly: "Once upon a time, there was a prince who was tired of life in his father's palace. He was also born fearless, so he thought: I want to go to the vast world, where I will never feel lonely or bored again, and I will see many strange things..."
Zhao Jingyu pushed open the door and walked in. Hearing her reading aloud, he knew she was receiving prenatal education and smiled: "Once he experiences the outside world, he will find that the days in his father's palace were the most pleasant and comfortable, and then he will never leave again in his life."
Xu Qingning glared at him and continued reading: "He said goodbye to his parents and kept walking and walking from morning till night, completely unconcerned about where he would end up..."
“Wrong. In this situation, his parents wouldn’t let him go out easily. They would at least send someone to protect him secretly. And since he is a prince, he should have a plan and a goal when he goes out. How could he not care where he goes?” Zhao Jingyu sat cross-legged in front of her and simply took her book away. “You’d better not read it. I’d rather tell him a story.”
"Stop interrupting!" Xu Qingning took the book back from his hand and turned to the page she had just read. "We don't want to hear you tell ghost stories. This is a world fairy tale."
As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a slight pain in her stomach and quickly grabbed Zhao Jingyu's hand: "My stomach hurts..."
"Is she about to give birth?" Zhao Jingyu immediately became nervous and got up, saying, "You lie down first, I'll go to my workplace to borrow a car, and we'll go to the hospital right away."
As he spoke, he immediately ran out and called to Yang Yuelan, "Mom, my wife has a stomachache. Could you go and check on her? I'm going to borrow a car from my workplace."
Yang Yuelan was knitting a sweater for Zhao Futang on the kang (a heated brick bed). When she heard Zhao Jingyu say that, she put down the sweater and went into the new room. She sat on the edge of the bed and asked her, "Does it hurt a lot?"
"I feel better now." Xu Qingning felt less pain than before. Yang Yuelan, being an experienced woman, wasn't as panicked as Zhao Jingyu. "If the pain comes in waves, and the intervals between each wave are getting shorter, then you're about to give birth."
"I don't know why, it just hurt for a while." Xu Qingning sat up and touched her stomach. "It doesn't hurt anymore now."
"Wait and see. If the pain continues, you'll have to go to the hospital," Yang Yuelan comforted her. "First pregnancies don't happen that quickly; it takes at least four or five hours, and sometimes even longer."
By the time Zhao Jingyu returned the car, Xu Qingning was no longer in pain and continued reading while leaning against the bed.
"What if it hurts again at night?" Zhao Jingyu asked worriedly. "How about we go to the hospital and stay there, and wait patiently?"
"No need, it's inconvenient to stay in the hospital." Xu Qingning didn't want to go. "You can take the car back. It's not too late to start it later. I don't feel anything now."
She thought she was going into labor because of the stomach pains.
But now that her stomach pain has subsided, going to the hospital and waiting would be too agonizing, and it wouldn't be convenient for her to eat and stay at home, so it's better to stay at home.
"Director Gao said the unit doesn't need cars lately, and that I can use one anytime." Zhao Jingyu was sweating profusely. "I thought I was going to give birth today!"
"Take the car back, I'm really fine now." Xu Qingning even got out of bed and walked around. She didn't feel anything, except her stomach felt hard.
Zhao Jingyu drove the car back to his workplace. It only took about ten minutes round trip anyway, and he could borrow it again when he needed it.
Yang Yuelan also felt that there was nothing wrong. Her water hadn't broken and she hadn't seen any blood, so it didn't seem like she was about to give birth.
Zhao Jingyu slept restlessly that night, asking her several times, "Does your stomach hurt? If it does, tell me right away."
"It doesn't hurt." Xu Qingning got annoyed by his questions and turned her back to him. "Go to sleep quickly, you won't give birth tonight."
Zhao Jingyu hugged her from behind, his large hand occasionally touching her belly: "Didn't you like any of the names I suggested?"
"I think we should let Dad choose the name after the baby is born!" Xu Qingning hadn't thought about a name these days. "I don't know if it's a boy or a girl, so I haven't thought about it."
"We'll choose the nicknames ourselves," Zhao Jingyu suggested after thinking for a moment. "Whether it's a boy or a girl, we'll call them 'Baby,' how about that?"
“Baby is a nickname for all children, you’re being too casual,” Xu Qingning said, amused. “It doesn’t make any sense at all.”
Zhao Jingyu thought about it carefully again: "If it's a boy, we'll name him Tianbao, and if it's a girl, we'll name her Mibao. I hope our children's lives will be sweet and happy."
"Okay, it's settled then." When Xu Qingning heard "Sweet Baby" and "Honey Baby," she thought of strawberries and dragon fruit, both of which are delicious and not bad.
When Zhao Jingyu heard that his wife had agreed, he was very happy and started teasing the baby in his belly: "If you're a sweet baby, then kick your legs."
The baby in his belly actually kicked him.
“He can understand me.” Zhao Jingyu was overjoyed. “Son, I’m your dad. Call me Dad.”
Xu Qingning also became interested: "Why don't you ask him again if he's Mi Bao?"
“If you’re a sweetheart, then kick your legs,” Zhao Jingyu asked again.
Then, in response, he received another kick.
“Look, this child is just like you, he’s a master at coaxing people,” Xu Qingning said with a smile. “You can ask him anything, and he’ll answer you.”
"If you're Gou Dan, then kick your legs a bit," Zhao Jingyu said, getting carried away with the question.
"You're the one who's calling me Dog Egg!" Xu Qingning pushed his hand away and scolded, "Don't call me by my name like that, really."
For three days in a row, Xu Qingning showed no reaction, eating and sleeping as usual, and the baby in her belly remained very calm.
"The due date is the day after tomorrow. Is it really going to be past the due date?" Yang Yuelan was also a little anxious. She stretched out her fingers and counted. "Her aunt calculated that it would be the 26th."
"Don't worry, just wait." Zhao Futang was genuinely not in a hurry. "Tomorrow, Jingyu and I will go to the river to buy some crucian carp and raise them."
“No, you have to go yourself,” Yang Yuelan said immediately. “Jingyu can’t go anywhere these two days. He has to stay at home. If he goes into labor, I’ll have to go out and find you.”
Zhao Jingyu has been very nervous these past two days, staying indoors and never leaving the house, always ready to go to the hospital at any time.
As luck would have it, Wu Yong returned from Yuecheng at that time. Zhao Jingyu knew he would come, so he arranged for him to stay at Wang Yaqiang's place.
Wu Yong spent several months in Yuecheng and gained a lot from it. He asked Zhao Jingyu to go to Yuecheng with him next year to develop his career, saying that there are many opportunities and higher incomes there.
Xu Qingning listened without saying a word.
She wouldn't stop Zhao Jingyu from going to Yuecheng if he wanted to.
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