Chapter 433: Chapter 433: Pregnant Again
Chen Guizhi was practically over the moon when she found out her daughter-in-law was pregnant again.
She didn’t know where she got it from, but a portrait of Pu Sa was brought in and for days she burned incense and prayed to it.
Five-month-old Lele had started eating complementary foods, including mashed carrots, mashed potatoes, and egg yolks. Chen Guizhi fed him porridge twice a day, along with formula, fruit juice, and a mush of vegetables. Now that his diet had some variety, Lele was eating with gusto, and he wasn’t at all fussy over the fact that his meals didn’t come from Yang PeiMin anymore.
Yang PeiMin jokingly cried to Shen Yiguang, “Your son, the little ingrate, has so quickly abandoned me.”
Shen Yiguang wrapped her in his arms, “As long as you have me, it’s fine. Let the little guy go.”
Yang PeiMin gave him an elbow shove to push him away, she wouldn’t stand for him talking about her son like that.
A letter arrived from the old home, asking whether they were planning to return for the New Year or not.
Shen Yiguang, after having consecutive leave for the New Year for the past two years, only had three days off this time due to staff rotations and rest days, which wasn’t as long as the ten or so days from the previous years.
And with Yang PeiMin newly pregnant and Lele still so young, it wasn’t proper to travel long distances.
Chen Guizhi started to hesitate, not knowing what to say.
Yang PeiMin suspected that she probably wanted to go back because Shen Erniu was there.
So she discussed with Shen Yiguang whether they should let Chen Guizhi go back and spend New Year with Shen Erniu. After all, he was the only one at home, with perhaps only Shen Yiyue for company; no matter how you looked at it, it was too quiet and pitiable.
Shen Yiguang went to talk to Chen Guizhi about it.
Chen Guizhi’s worries were actually not about that. She said, “Your father writes every month asking about Lele, and every time I have you help write down everything about Lele to send back. He, ah, really doesn’t know how much he wants to see him. But with PeiMin unable to go back, and Lele can’t be away from his daughter-in-law, even if it were possible, I would still worry about his health. Yet, when I think of your father, I can’t bear it.”
Yang PeiMin then said, “Why don’t we invite dad to come here and spend New Year with us? That way, our entire family can be together, and we won’t have to worry about anything.”
Chen Guizhi was immediately tempted, “That would be great, that would be great. My only worry is about your father’s foot.” Shen Erniu had suffered an injury on the battlefield. Although it made him limp a bit, it didn’t hinder his mobility. But as his spouse, Chen Guizhi still worried about him. Sometimes the injured foot’s joints ached due to his age and the weather.
Shen Yiguang nodded and smiled, “That would be for the best. If so, let’s make a call now. There is just over a month left before the New Year, and it’s about time to start preparing. Let him get things sorted at home. The livestock can also be taken care of by someone else. Once Yiyue is on vacation, they can all come over together. With her by their side, she’ll be able to take care of things.”
Chen Guizhi couldn’t stop smiling at her son’s arrangement.
“Now that’s settled, things will be easier for me once your dad comes over,” said Chen Guizhi, referring to the care of her grandson. Shen Erniu would be coming to help, changing diapers, making baby food, and such.
Unable to contain her excitement, Chen Guizhi immediately wanted to clear out the bedding for Shen Yiyue.
The three-story house had a total of eight rooms. The first floor housed Yang PeiMin and her husband in one room. Initially, she had wanted to live on the second floor, but with pregnancy and childbirth, going up and down was inconvenient, so she decided against it. Chen Guizhi, because of her age, also lived on the first floor. There was another room which was used as Yang PeiMin’s laboratory. Yang Peijun’s siblings lived on the second floor, and Shen Yixiang had moved back recently, also occupying the second floor. If Shen Yiyue were to come, she would only be able to stay on the third floor, which had been used for storage and was not really tidied up. Chen Guizhi now wanted to clean it out.
The house had initially been signed on a one-year lease. When the term was up, Yang PeiMin was too lazy to renew and bought it directly from the landlord for a price of 800 yuan.
Seeing Chen Guizhi’s impulsive idea, Yang PeiMin felt somewhat helpless and advised, “Mom, there’s still time. Don’t tire yourself out climbing up and down. Later, let Yixiang help clean it up. The sisters surely know each other’s preferences; it’d be perfect for her to arrange it.”
Chen Guizhi agreed with a smile and then began to talk about her twin daughters, “In the past, they always stuck together, wanting everything to be the same—clothes, shoes, even their hair ties had to be the same length. When they were young, raising them together was hard. One person’s milk wasn’t enough, and they had to follow us eating porridge. But how could that be palatable? We could only dilute it with water until it was almost like drinking water. They cried all day, and when they cried, they cried together… Everyone found it annoying, and their grandmother even thought about giving them away, but I stopped her… In the blink of an eye, they’ve grown up so much. Now they don’t stick together as much, and their hobbies have changed… Yixiang has even started dating…”
Then speaking of Shen Yixiang, Chen Guizhi sighed once more.
Although her youngest daughter had moved back, there wasn’t anything particularly troubling, but what did trouble her was her daughter’s marital affairs.
A few months ago, Lu Hailing had mentioned her mother was sick. Chen Guizhi had decided to urge the Lu siblings to take their mother to the hospital for a proper check-up to give her peace of mind.
The next day when Lu Hailing came over, Chen Guizhi brought it up directly, but Lu Hailing said that her mother was fine after taking some medicine. Chen Guizhi was still not at ease. When Lu Haijun came over, she talked to him about it, insisting that he take his mother for a check-up. Lu Haijun agreed, and that very day he took his mother to the hospital, where the doctors said there was nothing serious—it was just some old postpartum issues combined with previous hardships that caused severe malnutrition, leading to anemia. They were advised to go home and rest, eating more nutritious food.
After learning about this, Chen Guizhi sighed. It seemed many of them had similar issues because of the hardships they had endured over the years. So, she asked Yixiang to take some chicken eggs and brown sugar to help nourish her.
She also instructed Lu Hailing to make some good food for her mother. The child agreed and took back some of the cured meats and ducks that were being air-dried in her home.
After some time, while Chen Guizhi was holding her grandson and chatting with neighbors at the door, she spotted Hai Ling’s mother washing clothes in the courtyard. She looked even thinner and more haggard than before, with no signs of having been taken care of. A child ran past her, nearly knocking her over.
Chen Guizhi was very surprised, wondering if she was sick again. At that moment, thinking that it wasn’t appropriate to go back and inquire with her grandson in her arms, and considering Lele’s mother’s advice that children should not be too close to sick people due to the risk of infection, she did not go over.
When Lu Hailing came by later, Chen Guizhi asked about her. Lu Hailing said she wasn’t sick, and that at home they were treating her well, cooking nice meals for her.