The Jiang family and Xu Ningyan did not have a particular preference regarding whether the child was a boy or a girl; they would just let nature take its course.
After it was confirmed that they were twins, the clothes, diapers, blankets, cotton-padded jackets, and other supplies that Sister Mei had prepared for the babies to wear after birth were no longer enough.
Jiang Zhixing was utterly stunned when he heard that he was going to have two little nephews all at once.
If he weren't the younger brother-in-law, and couldn't get too close to his sister-in-law, he would have liked to touch Xu Ningyan's belly.
Now he could only stand far away, sighing with admiration, staring at Xu Ningyan's belly, secretly marveling at her appearance.
When Sister Mei complained that she didn't have enough clothes and diapers for the baby, he immediately patted his chest and said that he would take care of everything.
Jiang Zhixing's years in Beijing have truly paid off; after making his commitment, he would frequently bring back some things on his bicycle.
Sometimes it's just cotton fabric, sometimes it's a bundle of cotton, and sometimes it's a few baby bottles.
Occasionally, he would even pull out a few milk powder coupons from his pocket.
What's most surprising is that they somehow managed to find two cradles.
The bed is made of solid wood, with carvings on all four sides. It is breathable and beautiful, and the base is crescent-shaped with pointed upturned sides.
An adult sits to the side, places their feet on the raised footrests on either side of the base of the crib, and gently steps on them a couple of times, causing the crib to rock rhythmically.
Especially in summer, a mattress and a cooling mat are laid out inside, and the child can take a nap. A mosquito net is hung on the bed so that mosquitoes can't bite, it's cool, and adults can keep an eye on the child at any time.
Xu Ningyan didn't expect Jiang Zhixing to have even managed to get his hands on this.
You should know that those two wooden frames are not ordinary wood; they look like they are made of rosewood, and they are carved with various patterns and stories.
Images of babies playing, longevity locks, and ruyi (a type of scepter) are displayed.
Who knows, this might have been used by some noble family in the past. Such old objects would probably be treasures that could be placed in museums in later generations, but now Jiang Zhixing has dug it out from some corner.
Jiang Zhixing enthusiastically put the things in the yard and asked Sister Mei to wash them thoroughly so that they could be used by his nephew.
Sister Mei, however, looked troubled. After hesitating for a while, she finally said, "This is obviously an old item. Who knows how many people have used it? If it were an old family item, we wouldn't be afraid with the blessings of our ancestors! But we don't know whose it is, so it's hard to say! The baby was just born, and his eyes are still innocent. What if—"
Sister Mei dared not say anything more, after all, it had only been a short time since the "Destroy the Four Olds" movement began.
But Jiang Yuan and the others understood.
If it were anything else, they wouldn't believe it, after all, they are all materialists! But when it comes to children, everyone agrees that it's better to believe it than to take any risks.
Jiang Yuan immediately slapped Jiang Zhixing twice: "Tell me, what kind of things have you done as an uncle? What if these things are unclean and scare my precious grandson? Quickly drag these two beds away, drag them away—"
Xu Ningyan stopped him: "It's all thanks to my second brother! Just don't let the children sleep in it. Put it in the storage room. When the children grow up, it will be something to remember them by."
This is a valuable item; now that it's in our own home, we're not going to let it get away.
Seeing Xu Ningyan's greedy appearance, Jiang Zhiyuan was both amused and annoyed: "Fine, we'll listen to Yan Yan and keep it. When the children grow up, we can show it to them so they can remember their uncle's kindness!"
After saying that, she glared at Jiang Zhixing.
Jiang Zhixing chuckled and shrank back guiltily.
Hey, isn't it because I'm about to become an uncle that I'm getting a little too excited and taking over the father's duties from my older brother? Is it really necessary?
Whether it was true or not, no one knew, but two days later Jiang Zhiyuan brought back two brand new cradles.
Below is an ordinary solid wood frame, on which are placed two large bamboo baskets, polished very smooth and coated with tung oil. They are smooth to the touch, without any burrs, and have a shiny finish.
Sister Mei was already skilled at sewing, and having a sewing machine at home made her even more capable.
They quickly made two small quilts and two sets of cotton-padded jackets and trousers.
Four months later, Xu Ningyan's belly grew as big as an inflated balloon.
Especially since Xu Ningyan only gained weight in her belly and not in her flesh, and with the weather getting warmer, from the back she still looked like a slender little beauty, but when she turned around, a bulging pot was upside down on her belly, which made onlookers' hearts jump.
Xu Ningyan didn't feel anything at first, but gradually she also started to feel powerless.
Five months later, Xu Ningyan would occasionally feel breathless and weak in the legs after walking a few extra steps. The examination could not find the cause. Old Yu said it was because of a slight lack of mental strength, but it was nothing serious.
Summer is here, and it's hot. Every time Xu Ningyan moves, beads of sweat roll down her face. She can't let the fan blow on her all the time, for fear of catching a cold.
You can't eat too many popsicles; you're only allowed one or two a week to satisfy your craving.
Especially in the later stages, my legs would cramp frequently, I couldn't bend over, and I had back pain and frequent nighttime urination.
The weather was hot, and Xu Ningyan felt uncomfortable all over. Even with her good temper, she couldn't help but feel irritable. Her temper rose as high as the temperature outside.
Everyone knows that she's pregnant and has a lot of energy, and she's also superstitious about all sorts of things, so it's normal that she can't control her temper.
Jiang Zhiyuan was extremely considerate; since Xu Ningyan couldn't use an electric fan, he would spend half the night fanning her with a palm leaf fan.
Xu Ningyan gets a leg cramp, and no matter what time it is, as soon as she wakes up in pain, before she can even react, Jiang Zhiyuan has already rolled over and is massaging her legs and feet with his eyes closed.
When Xu Ningyan had backaches, Jiang Zhiyuan would hold her in his arms and give her a gentle massage.
Whenever Xu Ningyan gets up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night, Jiang Zhiyuan will always get out of bed first, help her to the bathroom, prepare water for her to wash her hands, and then help her back to bed.
Over the past few months, Xu Ningyan has been fine, but Jiang Zhiyuan has lost all the weight that Sister Mei had managed to feed him.
Mei saw all of this and couldn't help but click her tongue in amazement.
In all her years, whether in the countryside or the city, she had never seen a man who loved his wife so much.
A leader in a workplace goes home on time every day, spends his time taking walks and chatting with his wife, and even reads to the baby in her belly. Who wouldn't be envious?
You have to understand that in the countryside, even men who aren't even brigade cadres have to cook, wash clothes, take care of the children, and serve their wives even if they're pregnant!
Previously, at the Bian family, the son and son-in-law treated their wives so well that they were already considered quite good if the family could hire a nanny to take care of them.
In Sister Mei's opinion, Xu Ningyan was truly blessed to have married into the Jiang family.
However, in the eyes of the Jiang family, Xu Ningyan was wronged by marrying Jiang Zhiyuan.
Jiang Zhiyuan is eight or nine years older than Xu Ningyan. That delicate young girl saved Jiang Zhiyuan's life and was willing to marry him. It must be because of the good deeds of Jiang Zhiyuan's ancestors.
Not to mention Jiang Zhiyuan, who wished he could worship Xu Ningyan, even they were afraid of not treating Xu Ningyan well enough.
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