With one hand supporting her waist, Ma Aning walked slowly and unsteadily outside, a sense of worry rising in her heart, especially for the child in her womb.
She subconsciously stroked her swollen belly, feeling for the baby's movements. If it weren't for the occasional tremors in her belly when the little one turned over, Ma Aning would have been truly worried, fearing that something might happen to the child.
The child hasn't woken up for a long time, nor has he heard any of his thoughts.
Ma Aning slowly walked to the dining table. Her eyes fell on Qian Daniu, who was already sitting at the table, enjoying her meal.
Qian Danu was enjoying her lunch without any restraint, her chopsticks frequently picking up large pieces of egg and quickly putting them into her constantly chewing mouth.
"Mom, have we prepared a meal for ourselves?" Ma Aning asked casually as she watched Qian Daniu eating so heartily.
However, Qian Danu just continued wolfing down her food while vaguely replying, "That's all! This is all the food on the table."
"I'll get you some rice. You can cook something simple for yourself." After saying that, he didn't even look up and continued eating.
After Qian Danu shoveled the last mouthful of rice into her mouth in a whirlwind, she let out a loud, satisfied burp.
Then she stood up and strode towards the kitchen.
A short while later, she brought out enough food for just three people from the kitchen, and the amount was clearly less than expected.
Then, she gruffly ordered, "Here, I've left the rice for you. Go pick some fresh vegetables from the garden and stir-fry them yourself."
"Mom, Shan-ge hurt his leg and needs to recover. Eating vegetables doesn't provide any nutrition. Could you give me two eggs? I'll steam them for him."
Ma Aning asked cautiously.
Just as Qian Daniu was about to lose her temper, Shen Chong came out of the room and overheard Ma Aning's words.
"Old woman, give three eggs to our third daughter-in-law so that she and her husband can have a good nourishing meal."
Qian Danu didn't dare to argue, and went to get the eggs while cursing.
Ma Aning quickly washed the rice and cooked the meal, then went to the vegetable garden to pick some vegetables and steamed some eggs.
I heard arguing in the outer room, but I didn't pay any attention to it.
The food was ready quickly, and I slowly carried it to my room. To my surprise, my eldest brother and second brother were there too.
The two swallowed hard as they watched their younger brother and sister-in-law bring in the fragrant steamed eggs.
Ma Aning placed the food on the kang cabinet and nodded slightly to the two of them as a greeting.
They came over and helped Shen Zishan sit up. The two brothers stood by like wooden figures, not offering a helping hand.
Shen Zishan's face darkened. "Big brother, second brother, if there's nothing else, go ahead and get busy. I'm fine here; my wife is enough."
The heavy meal was left in the kitchen. After the two brothers left, only the couple remained in the room.
"Brother Shan, what's wrong? You look terrible, are you in a bad mood?"
Ma Aning had just come out of the kitchen. She had been busy cooking and hadn't noticed the argument outside, so she didn't know why Shen Zishan was in such a low mood.
Shen Zishan's eyes were red, and tears seemed about to spill out at any moment. His voice was slightly choked as he said, "The reason why my eldest and second brothers came in to see me is entirely because Father gave them a severe scolding, saying that they were too cold-blooded and heartless."
"I came back covered in injuries, but those two only cared about filling their own stomachs and didn't even ask about my condition!"
At this point, Shen Zishan became increasingly agitated, clenching his fists tightly as if he wanted to vent all the grievances and dissatisfaction in his heart.
"Two years ago, my older brother accidentally fell and seriously injured his back. The situation was critical! Without saying a word, I carried him on my back and ran to the hospital."
"I was panting and sweating profusely the whole way. When we arrived at the hospital, I was busy queuing up to register, paying for and getting the medicine. I took care of him with all my heart."
A few years ago, my second brother was accidentally bitten by a highly venomous snake, and there was absolutely no antivenom available in our small town.”
"I didn't hesitate at all. I borrowed a car from the factory overnight and rushed to the city to get the antidote serum for him."
"But what about now? Now that I've injured my leg, this is how they treat me! They won't even come to visit me, let alone help me when I get home and they see I'm having trouble moving around! It's absolutely heartbreaking!"
Ma Aning listened quietly to Shen Zishan's story, looking at his swollen, red eyes. She knew that any words of comfort would be superfluous at this moment. He needed to figure things out for himself.
She silently lowered her head and continued eating the food in her bowl, saying nothing more.
Shen Zishan was just venting his dissatisfaction. He quickly cheered up, picked up his chopsticks, and started eating. Ma Aning gave all the steamed egg custard to Shen Zishan.
Shen Zishan refused to eat, saying, "Wife, you eat. You need to nourish yourself."
“Let’s eat together,” Shen Zishan agreed, seeing the determination in Ma Aning’s eyes. The couple each ate half of the food.
Ma Aning took the bowl to the kitchen, washed it clean, and returned to her room.
The couple talked face to face. "Zishan, what are your plans for the future? You can't stay at home forever."
Shen Zishan was silent for a moment, then sighed, "I don't know either. We'll just have to take it one step at a time."
After thinking for a moment, Ma Aning suggested, "How about I teach you to collect herbs once your leg is healed? I've been learning to identify medicinal herbs since I was little."
Shen Zishan's eyes lit up. "Really? But I've never learned any of this before..."
Ma Aning encouraged him, "It's okay, take your time. As long as you're willing to learn, you'll definitely be able to learn it. And it's not difficult at all, it's just about recognizing medicinal herbs."
Shen Zishan nodded solemnly, his face full of determination: "Okay, then I'll give it a try. Thank you, my wife! With you by my side supporting and encouraging me, our future will definitely get better and better, absolutely not bad!"
He gazed at his wife with deep affection, his eyes filled with gratitude and love.
At this moment, the atmosphere inside the room was warm and peaceful.
The couple sat quietly on the edge of the bed, while the other lay on the kang (a heated brick bed). Their eyes met, and then they both smiled knowingly.
That smile filled the entire room with an atmosphere of happiness.
Time flew by unnoticed, and it was almost time to get off work.
Qian Daniu's voice came from outside. "Ma Aning, hurry up and come out and cook for me."
Ma Aning slowly walked out, supporting her lower back.
"I have to call you to cook, you lazy woman," Qian Daniu said with extreme sarcasm.
Hearing the sound, Shen Zishan looked out the window and saw that his wife had been called outside by Qian Daniu.
Immediately afterwards, the daughter-in-law got busy. She was busy chopping vegetables, and then she bent down to carefully wash the greens, skillfully rubbing the leaves with her hands to wash away the dirt and impurities. Finally, she had to cook the vegetables herself.
Qian Daniu grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds from somewhere, and sat leisurely in the chair, cracking the seeds while muttering to herself and waving the seed shells around, giving orders haphazardly.
Lying on the bed, Shen Zishan clenched his fists, veins bulging on his arms. His reddened eyes were fixed on Qian Daniu, but he suppressed his anger and did not interrupt her.
And so he silently watched everything that was happening before him until the last dish was served.
At this moment, Shen Zishan could no longer contain his anger. He loudly questioned, "Mother, is this how you order my wife around when I'm not home?"
The sound was so loud that it seemed to shake the roof off.
Upon hearing this, Qian Danu was taken aback, then realized that her son had been at home all morning.
A hint of embarrassment flashed across her face, then she chuckled awkwardly, "Oh dear, San'er! I was just asking your wife to lend a hand with a small favor."
However, Shen Zishan was not buying it at all. He said emotionally, "You call this helping? Mother, please, look at my wife's belly, it's so big, she could give birth at any moment! Can't you let her rest properly?"
As he spoke, his eyes grew increasingly red, even carrying a hint of pleading.
Seeing her son's resolute attitude, Qian Daniu was very dissatisfied, but she still reluctantly agreed.
"Alright, alright, I know, you brat who forgets his mother as soon as he gets married! I'm busy from morning till night, exhausted like a dog, and you don't care about me at all. But your wife, all she does is cook a few meals, and you're so concerned about her! Humph!"
After saying that, Qian Danu angrily turned her head away and refused to look at Chen Zishan again.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com