Chapter 43.2

At lunchtime, Sister Guihua’s mother-in-law, Wang Xiaoxia, came over. Knowing that Liu Huaqing was the child of a research institute expert, she said to Sister Guihua, “A boy, huh? Boys are great! Why not take him over to our place and have this little boy jump on the kang with Jianshe? Who knows, you might get pregnant faster!”

Wang Xiaoxia saw that Liu Huaqing was good-looking and the child of an expert, and she figured he must be smart and capable.

Previously, she had thought about having Sister Juxiang’s son jump on the kang, but secretly, she disdained Sister Juxiang’s looks and was afraid her own grandson wouldn’t be handsome enough, so she never brought it up.

Now Liu Huaqing was just right—he not only had a handsome appearance with thick brows and big eyes but was also the child of an intellectual. He was bound to have great prospects in the future, which made her extremely happy.

Upon hearing this, Sister Guihua furrowed her brows and said, “Mom, please don’t say that!”

She found it utterly embarrassing.

Since her mother-in-law had come to the family compound years ago, Sister Guihua had not had a single good day.

Putting up with the strange folk remedies was one thing, but the various feudal superstitions were another. She had kept all of it hidden from Zhou Jianshe, and Sister Guihua couldn’t do anything about it.

It was impossible for anyone to really come and take her away; even if they did, she was more worried about the impact it would have on her husband, which could ruin his future!

To her surprise, Wang Xiaoxia had come again!

And she said such things right in front of Wen Nuan and Sister Juxiang!

Wen Nuan had already sensed Sister Guihua’s helplessness and said to Wang Xiaoxia, “Auntie, you can say these things here, but please don’t actually do it. If Huaqing’s parents find out, you’ll be in for quite a scolding.”

Wang Xiaoxia seemed unfazed. Sister Guihua had tricked her before, but nothing had come of it after all this time.

She scoffed and said, “What’s the big deal? I’m just letting the child jump a few times. It’s just a game on the kang.”

“If you don’t say anything and I don’t say anything, who would know?”

Wen Nuan looked over with a firm tone, “If you dare to do that, I will tell Researcher Liu and Expert Shen everything.”

She had long been unable to tolerate Wang Xiaoxia’s various methods of tormenting Sister Guihua.

Wang Xiaoxia was stunned when she heard Wen Nuan’s words, completely taken aback. She never expected Wen Nuan to say such a thing!

However, Wang Xiaoxia dared not refute a single word; after all, they were in Wen Nuan’s home, and what she intended to do was unreasonable.

In the end, she could only leave Wen Nuan’s yard awkwardly.

Sister Guihua sighed, “What do you think? Should I just divorce Old Zhou?”

Sister Guihua was exhausted. She had consulted doctors and tried countless folk remedies.

Her husband, Zhou Jianshe, had also been drinking traditional Chinese medicine for several months, but it still proved ineffective.

“I might really be unable to conceive,” Sister Guihua added.

Wen Nuan walked over and patted her shoulder, saying, “Don’t say such foolish things. Your life is shared with Captain Zhou; as long as you both want to be together, what does it matter if you don’t have children?”

Sister Guihua let out a shy laugh. “Old Zhou also said that, but did you see how my mother-in-law could never accept that we don’t have children?”

Moreover, she herself actually wanted a child; she liked children, not just for the sake of having one.

Every time she saw Lele, she felt that life had gained a lot more joy.

Although Wen Nuan felt that she was being a burden every time she took care of Lele, deep down she was extremely happy. She truly believed that children were angels sent from heaven; a smile or a hug could make her forget all her worries and dispel the stress that surrounded her.

This fondness came from within. After enduring over a decade with Zhou Jianshe, she hoped to have a child of their own.

Sister Juxiang also couldn’t stand Wang Xiaoxia. With her hands on her hips, she said, “If she can’t accept it, let her go back to her hometown. Out of sight, out of mind!”

Wen Nuan agreed, saying, “Exactly. She used to stay in her hometown anyway. But Sister Guihua, don’t be anxious. I visited Old Zhao earlier, and I think his medical skills are quite remarkable. I think you and Captain Zhou should also go and see him. After all, the more doctors you consult, the better. Don’t lose hope.”

Old Zhao was the village’s veteran doctor, and Wen Nuan had previously visited him to ask about nutritional knowledge.

After speaking with him, Wen Nuan was impressed by his professionalism; he truly lived up to the reputation of being a doctoral medical student from a top university.

However, Sister Guihua shook her head upon hearing this. “Let’s wait and see. After all, she’s Old Zhou’s mother; how could we just drive her away?”

Despite Wang Xiaoxia being quite annoying most of the time, she was still very kind to her in other respects, especially regarding children.

Since she had arrived at the family compound, she had taken on almost all the household chores, even washing clothes for her during the two months of winter.

She sighed, unsure of what to do.

As the group of women chatted, the day passed quickly. In the evening, Shen Bairong and the others were busy, so their assistant came to take Liu Huaqing home.

Lele, Lele, was surprisingly reluctant. Just moments ago, he had complained about playing with her walnut necklace and had been dissatisfied with Wen Nuan feeding him.

However, when the assistant pulled Liu Huaqing away, Lele followed them out of the courtyard, leaning against the courtyard gate, seemingly not understanding why Liu Huaqing had to leave.

It wasn’t until Liu Huaqing and the assistant’s figures disappeared around the corner that Lele realized Liu Huaqing was really leaving. He then began to cry: “Woo… Woo… Brother… Brother.”

Wen Nuan found it both amusing and heartbreaking. She picked up Lele standing at the door and comforted him, saying, “Your brother is going back to his mom and dad. If you want to play with him, you’ll have to wait until tomorrow.”

But tomorrow, Wen Nuan would return to the kitchen to work, and she would either have to send Lele there or let Liu Huaqing come to the kitchen.

However, it would be quite troublesome without any adults around to supervise.

Lele clung to Wen Nuan’s neck, crying uncontrollably and insisting that she go with him.

No matter how Wen Nuan tried to console him, nothing worked. Fortunately, Gu Qinghan returned just in time.

Seeing them standing at the courtyard door with Lele still crying, Gu Qinghan didn’t even bother to take off his clothes or wash his hands. He took the heavy little one from Wen Nuan’s arms and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Wen Nuan’s arms were sore from holding him, and since Lele was still crying, she explained, “Huaqing is going home, and Lele wants to go with him.”

Gu Qinghan couldn’t help but chuckle at that. He patted Lele’s back and said, “Come on, Daddy will take you for a ride on the horse. Let’s go!”

With that, he effortlessly lifted Lele up and placed him on his shoulder in one smooth motion.

Wen Nuan watched, a bit taken aback.

Lele seemed momentarily stunned, but when he settled onto Gu Qinghan’s shoulder, he instinctively reached out to hold onto Gu Qinghan’s head for balance. His small body slightly bent forward as he leaned against it.

However, when Gu Qinghan started to walk, Lele suddenly burst out laughing, perhaps finding it amusing.

Wen Nuan, noticing that Gu Qinghan was about to step over the threshold into the house, anxiously reminded him, “Qinghan, be careful not to let the child’s head hit the top of the door!”

“I know, I won’t let that happen,” Gu Qinghan replied as he held onto Lele’s small arms and walked into the house. Lele was completely delighted, and the house was filled with their joyful laughter.

Wen Nuan watched as they ran around inside the house, feeling too lazy to intervene. She went to the kitchen to boil water, wanting to clean up before going to work the next day.

Just as she lit the firewood, the sound of Sister Guihua’s cries erupted from the next room: “I won’t eat!”

“I don’t want to eat! Ahhh—”

Both Wen Nuan and Gu Qinghan heard the commotion and quickly grabbed Lele before rushing out to the courtyard and jogging over to Sister Guihua’s home.

They saw Sister Guihua burst out of the door, tears streaming down her face, looking terrified as she called out, “Xiao Nuan, save me!”

After dashing out, she hid behind Wen Nuan and cried nonstop.

Wen Nuan motioned for Gu Qinghan to keep an eye on Lele, then wrapped her arms around the sobbing Sister Guihua. She asked with concern, “What happened? Don’t cry. I’m here. What’s going on?”

Sister Guihua clung to Wen Nuan, her cries still not ceasing as she whimpered, “My mother-in-law… she found scorpions and geckos somewhere and told me to eat them!”

Wen Nuan’s eyes widened in shock, her expression one of disbelief. “What?”

“I’m so scared…” Sister Guihua trembled all over, crying, “Wuwuwu… I won’t eat, I don’t want to eat.”

After a short while, Wang Xiaoxia walked out of the house, clearly startled by Zhang Guihua’s reaction, her face not looking too good either.

However, she still held a bowl in her hand, which seemed to contain the scorpions and geckos that Sister Guihua had mentioned.

Wang Xiaoxia then spoke in a pleading tone, “Guihua, Mom is just doing this for your own good. People say that eating those things can help you have a baby quickly.”

“Try…”

Lele, who had been taken care of by Sister Guihua these past few days, seemed to realize she was crying because she was being bullied by Wang Xiaoxia; without any hesitation, she threw the chestnut she was holding at her.

However, her throw was too weak, and the chestnut just fell to the ground.

Lele reached out her little hand and touched Sister Guihua’s face, babbling something that no one could understand.

Seeing Lele comforting her, Sister Guihua cried even harder.

“That’s ridiculous.” Gu Qinghan’s tall figure walked over, and with one swift motion, he snatched the bowl from Wang Xiaoxia’s hands and went into the house, dumping the contents into the stove.

Wang Xiaoxia was left stunned on the ground, and upon meeting Gu Qinghan’s dark and grim expression, she didn’t dare utter a single word.

She huddled against the doorframe, not even daring to breathe.

At that moment, Zhou Jianshe, whose return was unknown, heard Zhang Guihua’s cries and rushed over.

“Wife, what’s wrong?” Zhou Jianshe asked her anxiously, at a loss for what to do.

Hearing her husband’s voice, Zhang Guihua couldn’t care less about crying anymore. She threw herself into Zhou Jianshe’s arms, sobbing, “Wuwuwu, Old Zhou, your mom wants me to eat scorpions and geckos! I don’t want to eat! I really don’t want to!”

Zhou Jianshe disregarded the situation outside and held Zhang Guihua close, patting her back. “Don’t eat, don’t eat. We won’t eat. No need to cry.”

“It’s all my fault. I’m sorry, wife. I’m sorry. It’s all my fault.”

Zhou Jianshe regretted it deeply; he shouldn’t have let his mother come to the family compound. If she hadn’t come, his wife wouldn’t have to drink those ridiculous folk remedies or eat scorpions and geckos!

He held Zhang Guihua tightly and said: “Wife, I’ve hurt you. I’m sorry.”

If his wife’s body would be harmed just to conceive a baby, he would rather not have children at all.

On the other side, Wang Xiaoxia became displeased upon hearing this. She huffed, “Wait a minute, Jianshe, how is this your fault? The one who can’t have children is her! If it comes to that, you two might as well get a divorce!”

Wen Nuan frowned and then looked at the two embracing each other tightly. She interrupted them and asked, “Captain Zhou, let me ask you something. If Sister Guihua really can’t have children, would you divorce her?”

Zhou Jianshe didn’t hesitate, saying, “No way! I wouldn’t even consider it. I’ll be with my wife for the rest of my life.”

Zhang Guihua cried even louder after hearing those words, clutching Zhou Jianshe’s waist and burying her head in his chest. “Are you stupid?”

Zhou Jianshe, after all, was a Captain. Even if they were to divorce, he had no reason to fear that he couldn’t find another wife. Why did it have to come to this?

Wen Nuan looked at Sister Guihua and asked her, “Sister Guihua, what if it’s not you who wasn’t capable? What if it’s your husband? Will you  divorce Captain Zhou?”

Sister Guihua shook her head. “No, no divorce!”

Previously, she had thought she could leave with grace, but after hearing Zhou Jianshe’s resolute answer, she no longer wished to part ways.

She wanted to be with Zhou Jianshe.

Wen Nuan then looked toward the entrance of the room where Wang Xiaoxia stood and said, “Aunt, did you hear that? This is their choice as a couple, and neither you nor I have the right to interfere with their decision.”

“You, as an outsider, of course, have no rights!” Wang Xiaoxia crossed her arms defiantly. “I am Zhou Jianshe’s mother!”

Zhou Jianshe glanced over and his expression turned dark. “Don’t say anymore, Mom. Tomorrow, I’ll take you to the train station; I’m sending you back home.”

“Pack your things tonight.”

Then, Zhou Jianshe nodded toward Wen Nuan and Gu Qinghan. “Thank you, I’ll take my wife home to rest for a bit.”

Zhang Guihua who was still in shock and had a pale face, buried her head in Zhou Jianshe’s overcoat as they left for home.

Zhou Jianshe locked the room door right in front of Wang Xiaoxia.

Wang Xiaoxia suddenly felt wronged and plopped down on the floor, crying softly while muttering insults under her breath.

Gu Qinghan reached out covered Lele’s ears, and said: “Let’s go home.”

Lele didn’t understand why her dad was covering her ears; she just looked at Wen Nuan and Gu Qinghan, opening her mouth to giggle.

—o—o—o—

After that ordeal, Wen Nuan’s previous fatigue completely vanished. Once they returned home, she held Lele and played with her.

Gu Qinghan went to start a fire, and when the water heated up, she filled half a bucket and brought it to the room.

“Alright, wife, you go wash up first; I’ll look after the child,” Gu Qinghan said as she approached Wen Nuan from behind, directly taking the child from her.

Gu Qinghan was strong, and Lele felt like a doll in her hands, easily lifting her high into the air.

Lele laughed joyfully as Gu Qinghan held her up, repeatedly calling out “Daddy—Daddy.”

Wen Nuan couldn’t help but join in, reaching out to grab Lele’s ankle and exchanging a glance with Gu Qinghan. “Come on, let’s shake Lele a bit.”

With Wen Nuan holding her little feet and Gu Qinghan lifting her up, Lele looked up at them and laughed even more happily.

By the time night fell and it was almost bedtime, Lele still showed no signs of sleepiness. She sat on the bed, playing with a piece of paper Wen Nuan had given her, tearing it repeatedly.

Wen Nuan sat on the bed next to Gu Qinghan, leaning against his chest as she flipped through a novel, while he was busy reading a report filled with foreign languages and numbers.

Wen Nuan began to tell him about Huang Yueying coming over to deliver gifts earlier that day.

Gu Qinghan’s expression remained neutral, seemingly indifferent to Huang Yueying. He said, “Just refuse her; there’s no need to pay her any attention.”

Given that Wen Nuan had been the target of rumors, it was likely that Huang Yueying had played a part in starting them, so Gu Qinghan had no fondness for her.

Wen Nuan nodded. “Okay, got it.”

After a moment’s thought, she couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Do you think if Sister Guihua really can’t have children, would Captain Zhou abandon her?”

To be honest, Wen Nuan had heard many stories about women who couldn’t have children, and their husbands would immediately find various excuses to divorce them.

Even if a divorce didn’t happen, those men would often go out and fool around, secretly fathering children elsewhere.

Yet, when men were the ones unable to have children, most women still preferred to stay with them.

Wen Nuan wasn’t very familiar with Zhou Jianshe and couldn’t tell if he was being genuine or not. Nonetheless, she still felt a bit uneasy.

Gu Qinghan lowered his gaze, glancing at the page of the book that Wen Nuan hadn’t turned on yet, and said softly, “I don’t know.”

Then, Gu Qinghan suddenly asked her, “If I couldn’t have children, would you leave me?”

Wen Nuan shot him an annoyed look. “Look at how old your daughter is! And you still think you can’t have kids!”

“That’s a hypothetical situation,” Gu Qinghan replied, setting aside the report and pulling her closer.

Wen Nuan rested one foot on his leg and genuinely thought for a few seconds before saying, “I can’t really imagine that…”

“Why not?” Gu Qinghan leaned in closer to her ear and asked.

Wen Nuan pouted, not wanting to answer, and looked at him instead. “What about you? If I couldn’t have children, you’d probably go find another woman, right?”

“Not at all.”

Wen Nuan didn’t believe him at all!

In this day and age, who didn’t have three or five children?

Gu Qinghan smiled, picking up Lele and placing her on both of their laps. Lele, suddenly interrupted, looked up at her parents with her big, round eyes, filled with confusion.

Gu Qinghan pinched Lele’s little nose and said, “A child is just icing on our life.”

Wen Nuan laughed and also pinched Lele’s nose, replying, “That’s not true; she is our destiny.”

Lele couldn’t understand what the adults were saying; she simply revealed a few baby teeth, giggling, and then started reaching for the book in Wen Nuan’s hands.

“That’s my book!” Wen Nuan barely had time to stop her when Lele’s tiny hand snatched it, causing the open page to crinkle up.

She gave Gu Qinghan’s arm a hard slap. “It’s all your fault for bringing her over!”

Lele found Wen Nuan’s frustration amusing, laughing even louder, her hands clapping together.

Wen Nuan rolled up her sleeves, preparing to tickle her. “Gu Wanyue, tonight I’m going to teach you a lesson!”

Seeing that Wen Nuan seemed genuinely upset, Lele quickly wrapped her arms around Gu Qinghan’s neck and began shouting, “Ah, ah, ah!”

Gu Qinghan raised both hands, not actually catching Lele rushing toward him. “Don’t look for me; your mother is going to discipline me too.”

—o—o—o—

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