As soon as Zhou Huaian walked into the house, Zhou's mother rushed in, "Where is Chunyan, the youngest? Take me to town quickly, your sister is about to give birth."
"Hey!" Yang Chunyan hurriedly shouted into the room, "Huai'an, come out quickly, I'm about to give birth!"
Zhou Huaian ran out holding the snow cap, "Why so fast? Shouldn't it take another ten days?"
"How can it be so accurate?" Zhou's mother said as she climbed onto the tractor. "Hurry up, your husband is waiting at the intersection!"
"Oh oh!" Zhou Huaian hurriedly picked up the handle and started shaking it hard.
Yang Chunyan thought about it and said to Zhou's mother, "Mom, if Sister Yumei gave birth to a girl, and Mrs. He gave her a bad look and didn't want to treat her well, you can take her back and we will take care of her after she has given birth."
Mother Zhou was stunned for a moment, then nodded with a heartfelt smile, "That's fine!"
"Yan'er, don't worry. We will pick her up if anything goes wrong." Zhou Huaian sat on the driver's seat, started the tractor and drove out of the yard.
When we reached the intersection, Zhou's father and I lifted the baskets and the backpack onto the tractor.
****
In the backpack were clothes, shoes, hats, suspenders, and blankets for the baby. In the two baskets were brown sugar, white sugar, rice, chicken, and eggs. Mother and father Zhou looked anxious but didn't dare to rush. They just wished they could grow wings and fly to town.
At the He family's home, He's father sat on a chair and smoked non-stop. He Jianjun listened to the groans from inside, anxiously pacing on the steps, praying silently that the baby would be a boy so that all the troubles would be gone in the future.
He's mother stayed in the room for two people, looking at the midwife anxiously, wishing she could pull the baby out of Zhou Yumei's belly to see if there was a penis underneath.
"What's going on?"
"Almost there, we can see the end!" The midwife looked at Zhou Yumei, "Yumei, try harder!"
"Ah~" Zhou Yumei screamed, felt her stomach empty, and fell back exhausted.
He's mother hurriedly stepped forward and asked the midwife, "Is it a boy or a girl?"
The midwife took a look and said, "It's a girl!" Then she picked up the child and patted her on the buttocks twice. "Wow~" the baby's clear and loud cry rang out.
Mother He staggered for a moment, then leaned against the wall with a sullen face. "The master calculated and said this baby is 100% a son. How could it be a money-losing baby?"
The midwife glanced at Zhou Yumei, whose face was full of tears. "Old sister-in-law, how can you believe what the master said? The baby is in the mother's belly. Who knows whether it is a boy or a girl except the Goddess of Childbirth?"
Mother He glanced at the baby in the cradle with a gloomy face, then turned to look at Zhou Yumei, "The son I asked the master to cast a spell to bring back will become a maid. What's the point of bringing back a woman like you who has no luck?"
"Mom, how can you say that..." Zhou Yumei looked at the fierceness in her eyes. Her throat seemed to be blocked by something. Her whole body was shaking and she could no longer speak.
He's mother's face was frighteningly gloomy. "Why can't I say anything? I ate so many good things and gave birth to a money-losing child. How dare you cry!"
The midwife shook her head secretly after seeing this, and did not dare to give the baby to her. She took the baby and placed it next to Zhou Yumei, "Yumei, don't sleep yet, I'll clean it up for you.
Zhou Yumei nodded, quickly picked up the child and held her in her arms, patted her gently, looked at the person standing outside the window, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably.
My mind flashed back to when my sisters-in-law gave birth, my brother stayed in the room and couldn't be chased away. From the time I started to labor until I gave birth, he didn't even come to see me. It turned out that I and my baby were outsiders in this family...
*****
Over there, the tractor had already arrived at the door of the He family. Zhou's mother jumped down neatly without even taking anything with her. She strode into the yard and asked, "Jianjun, how is Yumei? Did she give birth?"
He Jianjun nodded, "It's born!"
"Wow~" Before Zhou's mother ran to the door, she heard the baby's clear and loud cry. She stepped into the room in two or three steps, "Yumei, how are you? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Mom!" Zhou Yumei opened her eyes weakly, tears falling, "You're here!"
"Mom is here, dear girl, stop crying!" Zhou's mother came forward and lovingly wiped away the tears on her face, "The youngest and your old man are here too, are you still in pain?"
Zhou Yumei shook her head with tears in her eyes and grabbed her hand. "It doesn't hurt anywhere, but I just feel an empty stomach and an empty heart. It's so empty and uncomfortable..."
Mother Zhou's heart was broken when she saw her sad face. Tears welled up in her eyes. "My dear, it was the same when I gave birth to you."
He's mother looked at the mother and daughter with a dark face and said nothing, thinking: If I had only one daughter like you, I would treat her so well!
Mother Zhou wiped away her tears, and from her expression she knew that the baby in the cradle was a girl.
When Yumei gave birth, the old woman stood there with a gloomy face, and she was reluctant to even cook a bowl of poached eggs for her. When I was not here, I don't know what unpleasant words she said.
Thinking of this, she suddenly remembered what Yang Chunyan said, if the He family bullied Yumei because she gave birth to a girl...
Yes! Rather than leaving her in the He family to suffer and hurt her health, it would be better to take her back and take care of her myself as Chunyan said.
Mother Zhou made up her mind and ignored Mother He who was standing there with a sullen face. She happily picked up the little baby wrapped in a blanket and looked at her red face, "Yaoyao, grandma will hug you!"
Seeing her mother's joy, Zhou Yumei also smiled, "Just like when Xiaolin and the others were born, their faces were as red as a little monkey."
Mother Zhou smiled and said, "All babies are like this. You were like this when you were born too. You will be white and tender after a while."
He's mother was complaining in her heart, what a fart! Your Zhou family has many children and grandchildren, so of course you don't care whether the baby is a boy or a girl. The He family has only one child, so you can't give birth to a son. Don't blame me for being cruel...
…
In the yard, Zhou Huaian and his father carried the backpack and basket into the yard, and saw He Jianjun standing dejectedly on the steps. When He's father saw the father and son coming in, he forced a smile and greeted them.
"The in-laws are here!"
"Hmm!" Father Zhou glanced at He Jianjun and put down his backpack. "Did Yumei give birth?"
"Yes, it's a girl!" He Jianjun replied with some difficulty.
Zhou Huaian was furious when he saw him like that, and said bluntly: "Then what are you doing standing here? Why don't you bring some food to Yumei? What's wrong? You won't let her have confinement after giving birth to a girl?"
"No!" He Jianjun saw him glaring, and his stomach ached. "Yumei ate eggs just before she had the attack!"
Zhou Huaian said angrily: "It's already eleven o'clock since the onset of the disease in the morning. If you don't let me recuperate after the baby is born, we will take my sister back to her parents' home to recuperate!"
"Youngest, stop talking." Father Zhou waited for him to finish before speaking. Then he said to He Jianjun, "There are eggs and brown sugar in the basket. Cook a bowl of poached eggs for Yumei and send it in."
"Oh!" He Jianjun took the eggs and brown sugar handed to him by Zhou's father and walked towards the kitchen.
"In-laws, sit down and rest for a while!" He's father hurriedly brought a stool for the father and son to sit on.
When He's mother in the room heard Zhou Huaian's words, she was so angry that her mouth kept moving like an old cow chewing food: Useless thing, you gave birth to a girl and you want to have a second child in two years. You want me to take care of you during the confinement period? You are just dreaming!
After Zhou's mother comforted Zhou Yumei, she saw that He's mother was still standing there. She took out six pieces of money from her pocket, wrapped them in red paper and stuffed them into the midwife's hand, "Thank you for your hard work, big sister!"
Vicious old hag, as the old saying goes you reap what you sow, your own seeds are not good, yet you still have the nerve to look at my Yumei with a bad face!
"Oh, you're so polite, mother-in-law!" The midwife happily took it and said, "Don't worry about the baby I delivered. The belly button is very tight. Don't get it wet these few days. It will be fine in a few days."
She didn't expect that when she came to the He family to deliver a baby today, it was He Jianjun's mother-in-law who came from the mountains who gave her a red envelope of six yuan.
Mother Zhou smiled politely and said, "Thank you for your help!"
"As you should!" The midwife looked at He's mother, packed up her things and said, "Yumei, take good care of yourself during the confinement period. I'm leaving first."
Zhou's mother said politely: "Go slowly!"
"Yes, yes!" The midwife hurried away carrying the medicine box.
"I'll see you off!" He's mother forced out a sentence and walked out with her with a dark face.
When Zhou Huaian saw the midwife coming out with a medicine box, and Mrs. He following behind with a dark face, the anger in his heart surged up and he stood up suddenly.
"Just sit still." Father Zhou gave him a sidelong glance and said, "Wait until your mother comes out."
"Oh!" Zhou Huaian sat back down.
In the room, Zhou Yumei saw that Mother He had left. She looked at Mother Zhou with tears in her eyes and choked up and shouted, "Mom, Mother-in-law doesn't like girls!"
She thought that Jianjun had never come to see the baby since he was born, and he was just as son-centric as his mother.
Thinking of the bullying suffered by the young wives in the team who had given birth to girls at their in-laws' homes, he became more and more worried that his future life would be difficult.
Mother Zhou sat down on the edge of the bed and said distressedly, "Don't cry, my dear girl. You can't get angry or shed tears during confinement. We will just treat her as a fart and let her go so we won't be angry anymore. You can get some sleep. Mom and your brothers will take care of everything."
After hearing what Zhou's mother said, Zhou Yumei felt much more at ease. She nodded weakly, closed her eyes, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
Mother Zhou looked at her granddaughter in the cradle, picked her up and walked to the door of the main hall, "Old man, youngest, come and see little one!"
Zhou Huaian and Zhou's father walked over after hearing the sound. He's father looked at the three of them, hesitated for a moment, then stood up and walked towards the kitchen.
Father Zhou looked at it lovingly. He wanted to touch it but was worried that his hands would be too cold. "It looks like a little monkey."
Zhou Huaian turned his head and looked in the direction of the kitchen, and whispered: "Mom! They are discussing in the kitchen!"
"Don't worry about him!" Zhou's mother said to Zhou's father regretfully, "Mrs. He has lost her dignity. She will definitely not take good care of Yumei during her confinement. If she can't, we will take her home to take care of her."
Seeing his only daughter being bullied in the He family, Zhou's father was also very angry, "Take the child inside, we'll talk later!"
"Okay!" Mother Zhou carried the baby back to the house.
In the kitchen, He's mother looked at He Jianjun with a dark face, "Did they really say that Zhou Yumei had to raise the baby for two or three years before giving birth to the second child?"
"Yes!" He Jianjun nodded and said, "They said that if we insist on letting Yumei continue to have children, they will take her back to her parents' home and divorce me." (End of this chapter)
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