"Xuemei, you should know now? He Ping and Wu Zhiqing from your village are getting married tomorrow." Zhang Aiping said while sewing shoe soles.
Xuemei put down the book in her hands, stretched herself, and said, "Sister Zhang, I only found out about this a few days ago."
"Xuemei, are you going to the deputy director's house for a drink, or are you asking your family members to go?" Zhang Aiping asked.
"Wu Zhiqing is from our village, and my father is the village chief. My mother will go to see the bride off with other educated youths anyway, so I plan to ask my mother to go in my place. You will go to have a drink at noon, and I will just watch over you." Xuemei replied.
Zhang Aiping said happily, "Xuemei, thank you very much. I've been worrying about this for the past couple of days. Your brother-in-law is also busy, so I'm the only one going. I was worried that if we went to the banquet at noon and someone came to buy things, it would be difficult to be alone. Now that you're here, I can let it go."
"Sister Zhang, don't worry, I will take good care of you tomorrow. Sister Zhang, my mother asked me to ask you how much money is appropriate for the red envelope?" Xuemei asked in a low voice.
Zhang Aiping came over and said, "Normally, twenty cents is enough for most colleagues, but this is the deputy director's son, and his son He Ping is our colleague. We have to give him at least fifty cents."
"Okay, Sister Zhang, I understand. By the way, Sister Zhang, your belly is so big, are you going to give birth soon?" Xuemei asked, looking at Zhang Aiping's big belly.
"There are still about twenty days left. I'm really getting old, and it's not like before when I had no problems getting pregnant. I can't sleep well at night in these few months of pregnancy. I can't sit or stand." Zhang Aiping said, standing up.
"Sister Zhang, once the baby in your belly is born, your family will have four children, a son and a daughter. How happy you and your brother-in-law will be?" Xuemei comforted her.
"Alas, I hope the baby in my belly is a son. Your brother-in-law always thinks one boy is too few in the family. I also think it is too few. If there are more boys, your brother-in-law and I will have more to rely on in the future. This way, there will be someone to take care of me during the confinement period.
My mother-in-law and father-in-law also like boys. When I gave birth to my two daughters, my mother-in-law didn't even come to take care of me during the confinement period.
A few years ago, the children were young and out of school, and your brother-in-law and I had jobs, so we didn't have the time to take care of them every day. We asked my mother-in-law to come take care of our children, but she refused no matter what. It was because my eldest sister-in-law had four sons, and she wanted to take care of her four precious grandchildren in the countryside, earn some work points, and reduce the burden on my eldest sister-in-law's family.
So I still hope this baby in my belly is a boy. If it's a boy, I won't have any more. I don't want to have any more. Look, as I was talking, the baby started to make noises in my belly again." Zhang Aiping pointed to the bulge on her belly.
"Sister Zhang, you must be having a son this time. The food you like to eat and the shape of your belly are the same as when my mother was pregnant with my two younger brothers." Xuemei said deliberately.
Xuemei actually disagreed with Zhang Aiping's statement. Boys and girls were the same, as long as they were well-educated. Besides, the decision of whether to have a boy or a girl was not made by the woman, but by the man.
But everyone's family situation is different, and Xuemei cannot impose her ideas on others. If Zhang Aiping had a girl, her husband and she would have decided to have another child.
Zhang Aiping laughed when she heard this. "Xuemei, I'll take your kind words at face value."
"Sister Zhang, who will take your place when you give birth?" Xuemei asked.
"I want my younger sister to take my shift. She is three years older than you and her child is two years old. If she doesn't understand something, please help her." Zhang Aiping replied.
"Okay, Sister Zhang, this is a small matter. If she doesn't understand, just come and ask me." Xuemei promised.
…
"Sister Zhang, you're back? Walk slowly, don't be in a hurry." Xuemei said to Zhang Aiping who was walking hurriedly with a big belly.
"Xuemei, let me tell you, He Ping's wedding today was wonderful. Everyone watched a great show." Zhang Aiping said after taking a sip of water.
Xuemei had a bad feeling when she heard this and looked at Zhang Aiping.
"Do you still remember what I told you last time about He Ping and the young widow from the commune? Today, the young widow also went to He Ping's house for a banquet." Zhang Aiping finished speaking and looked around to see that no one came to buy anything. She then continued in a low voice, "Originally, she was having her banquet and He Ping was getting married. Isn't it okay for them not to interfere with each other?
Unexpectedly, before the meal, He Ping just couldn't control his extra weight and was caught doing some dirty things with the young widow in the bridal chamber by Wu Zhiqing. Wu Zhiqing and the young widow started fighting on the spot. Wu Zhiqing's small body was no match for the young widow, who was big and strong with a lot of strength.
"I pushed Wu Zhiqing to the ground all of a sudden. But why was she holding her stomach? Could she be pregnant?" Zhang Aiping said, looking at Xuemei.
Xuemei pretended not to notice Zhang Aiping's probing and said calmly, "I don't know. I don't even know when Wu Zhiqing started dating He Ping. I even found out about their marriage around the same time as you did. But I don't think Wu Zhiqing is Huairou anymore. She looks thin and frail. Maybe that young widow hit her hard and hurt her stomach."
Wu Lian is about 5'5" tall. When she first arrived in Liujia Village, she probably weighed only 70 kilograms. She was so skinny that she looked like she could be blown away by a strong wind. Now, a few months later, although she is still a little thin, she is much better now. She looks much better and her face is no longer so miserable.
Zhang Aiping retracted her gaze and continued, "Xuemei, you're still too naive. In my opinion, there's a high probability that Wu Zhiqing is pregnant. As soon as she complained of a stomachache, He Ping and his mother immediately sent someone to take her to the hospital. I used to think He Ping was a bad guy, but now it seems that these two are a perfect match, like a tortoise and a mung bean."
Xuemei didn't want to talk about these things anymore, so she changed the subject and said, "Sister Zhang, has my mother returned home after dinner?"
"Your mother didn't even have time to eat before she and the other educated youths took Wu Zhiqing to the hospital. After all, they were like Wu Zhiqing's maternal family. They came back after I finished eating, but Wu Zhiqing didn't come back with them, and I don't know if her child could stay.
Oh! What a sin! If Wu Zhiqing's child has problems this time, that young widow might have to go into reform school.
Wu Zhiqing's future won't be easy. He Ping's mother is obviously a powerful woman. If Wu Zhiqing's pregnancy is saved and it's a boy, it's good. If it's not saved, Wu Zhiqing has caused such a big embarrassment to the deputy director's family today. She can only wait to be tortured by her mother-in-law in the future!"
"This can't be blamed on Wu Zhiqing. This is clearly He Ping and the young widow's fault. They turned someone's wedding into a farce." Xuemei said in confusion.
"Xuemei, today I'm going to tell you that if you meet one mother-in-law who is a little bit better and more reasonable among ten mothers-in-law in this world, you are very lucky in this life. Which mother-in-law doesn't favor her own son? What's more, He Ping is the only son in the deputy director's family. It is certain that all the mistakes are the fault of her daughter-in-law Wu Zhiqing. Just wait and see! Wu Zhiqing's hard days are still ahead." Zhang Aiping explained.
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