Jin Erniu's face flushed red instantly, and he stammered, "How... how did this happen?"
Liang Shuyan said with a smile, "It's good that you're pregnant. Our Jin family still needs a little granddaughter. It would be great if the second son's wife could have another daughter!"
Liang Shuyan put down her chopsticks, came out, and asked softly, "What's wrong? Are you really pregnant? Didn't you have any experience when you gave birth to Beibei? How could you not know if you were pregnant or not?"
Liu then covered her mouth and stood up: "Mother, it seems I am pregnant. My period has stopped, but I don't know how to tell you, so I didn't dare to tell you!"
"After becoming a daughter-in-law, having a baby is a very normal thing, isn't it? Why are you embarrassed? Go wash up quickly. If you can't stand greasy food, I'll make you something light. You can eat!"
Zhang, holding the bowl, twitched her lips slightly: "Oh dear, my mother is so happy to see that my second son's wife is pregnant!"
Li Lanfang breathed a sigh of relief: "Of course, if you can get pregnant, Grandma will be happy, and your mother will be even happier."
Zhang lowered her voice and said, "Grandma, how can that be? If neither of us can work, wouldn't that be a hardship for my mother and grandma?"
“What’s so hard about it? Your mother and I are happy. There’s only so much work to do at home. Just count how many people there are now, how could we not be able to keep up? Your mother brought another one back today, so we’re not worried about not having anyone to do the work.”
Madam Zhang whispered, "Grandma, you don't know, this young master is the son of the county magistrate. The county magistrate found that Dashan and Erniu are very filial to my mother, so he entrusted my mother to take care of his son. It's best not to let him do the housework. If the county magistrate gets angry one day, our whole family will suffer."
Li Lanfang then noticed that Dashan and Zhao Heng were not on the table, and hurriedly said, "Quickly check if there is any extra food. Leave some for them. Don't let them finish it all. My eldest grandson hasn't eaten yet, and the magistrate's son can't go hungry either."
Zhang glanced at the pot and nodded: "Grandma, don't worry, my second son's wife left some in the pot, it's keeping it warm."
Jin Sanwang's eyes darted around, and he whispered, "Sister-in-law, does that mean that as long as we treat Zhao Heng well, the magistrate will definitely think of our family when it comes to benefits?"
Zhang nodded: "In short, we mustn't offend the magistrate's son!"
"Nonsense! The magistrate sent this child to our family precisely to correct his shortcomings. Furthermore, the magistrate also provided Zhao Heng with food and lodging expenses. This young master, Zhao Heng, who is used to being waited on, will definitely order you around. You all need to remember this: once you come to our family, you must listen to us. No work, no food!"
Zhang's hands trembled slightly, and she looked at her mother-in-law: "Mother, he was frightened by Dahei today, so it shouldn't count, right? Starting tomorrow, let him do the work, okay?"
Thinking back to what she had just done, she realized she shouldn't have bothered Dahei. Dahei was becoming more and more obedient, and it had pounced on Zhao Heng right then and there. Feeling a little ashamed, she nodded and said, "Let's do it your way, starting tomorrow!"
Inside the west room, Jin Dashan filled a basin with hot water, placed it on a stool, soaked a towel, and applied it to Zhao Heng's forehead.
As soon as Zhao Heng opened his eyes, he pulled the towel off his forehead, looked around the room, and let out a long sigh: "Jin Dashan, tell me, if you didn't have such great abilities, why would I have locked you up? Now look what's happened, why would my father have sent me to your family? Tell me, isn't your mother obviously taking revenge for personal reasons?"
As Zhao Heng spoke, he began to cry sadly: "Look at this, your family actually keeps a wolf as a pet, and you even let the wolf bite me. If I do anything that displeases her, she'll send that wolf to bite me. What am I supposed to do?"
Jin Dashan shook his head: "No, my mother isn't that kind of person. Maybe she didn't expect Dahei to be so obedient just now. Don't be sad. With me here, you definitely won't suffer."
"Really? I... I wouldn't dare to be jealous of your talent or harm you. It was my narrow-mindedness. Please don't be angry. Now look at me, I'm in your house, and no one serves me food or puts me to bed. How am I supposed to live?"
Jin Dashan, however, sternly reprimanded Zhao Heng: "What are you saying? There are three of us in our brother factory, and nobody serves us food or sleeps for us. Aren't we all living the same lives? Why are you making such a fuss!"
When Zhao Heng saw that Jin Dashan was angry, he was too scared to say anything more.
Jin Dashan came to the kitchen, saw the food in the pot, and took it out, preparing to bring it to the west room.
Liang Shuyan said, "Dashan, don't misunderstand the magistrate's meaning. Since Zhao Heng has come to our house, he is Zhao Heng, not the eldest young master of the Zhao family. Don't expect to be served by others!"
Jin Dashan lowered his head and said, "Mother, look, he was so scared by Dahei today, he's crying and sobbing now. Please forgive him this once tonight, and tomorrow, everything will go according to your plan, okay?"
Jin Dashan was originally a kind-hearted child, and thinking of this, Liang Shuyan did not make things difficult for him. She nodded and said, "Okay, then let's do as you say and let him have a convenient meal today."
Jin Dashan thanked Liang Shuyan and carried the food to the west room.
Zhao Heng had already sat up. Seeing the food on the table, he jumped down without saying a word and started eating heartily.
"Is this one yours?"
It was clear that Zhao Heng wasn't full and wanted to eat more, but Jin Dashan said, "My mother said that she'll let you have a quick meal today because you were scared by Dahei. Tomorrow, you'll have to do what my mother tells you to do in order to get food."
Zhao Heng nodded: "Okay, alright?"
Liang Shuyan returned to the house, and the old lady followed her: "Why did Dashan come back? Did something happen?"
"Mom, it's alright. School is suspended for the next semester. Dashan is doing very well. Both the teacher and the students adore him. So, I was so happy that I treated everyone to the cold noodles I made last night."
"Huh? So all that work last night was for nothing? What a mess this was?"
"It's alright, Mother. Tomorrow I'll take the children to the fields and we'll weed them together. Then we'll make jelly. While the weather is still warm, we can keep the jelly business going for a while! Once we've made some money, we'll build a house!"
Li Lanfang rummaged through her cabinet and pulled out a packet of silver, handing it to Liang Shuyan: "Take this. This is the money your mother earned from her embroidery. Keep it. Little by little, it will add up, and there will be many more places to spend money when building the house!"
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