Chapter 158

Zhao Xin rushed out at the fastest speed when he heard the sound of retching coming from outside.

Liu Ling was surprised and said, "Mengmeng is probably pregnant!"

Zhao Xin and Pei Meng were stunned at the door, and huge joy instantly surged in their hearts.

When Zhi Xia was pregnant, she only occasionally felt sleepy, and had no symptoms like wanting to vomit or being unable to eat anything. But she had also heard about it before.

Zhao Xin supported Pei Meng back, smiling from ear to ear, "Let's go to town tomorrow to take a look. If you're really pregnant, then we'll have to be more careful from now on."

Pei Meng shyly nodded her head, suddenly feeling like she had finally been blessed by heaven.

She didn't care whether it would be dragon and phoenix twins or identical twins, as long as the child was safe and healthy, she would be overjoyed with just one.

Moreover, identical twins were not so easy to raise. Although it seemed Auntie raised hers effortlessly, it was also because the two children were quite obedient.

Her maternal grandmother's sister-in-law gave birth to one a couple years ago. The child cried day and night since its first month. She even went to help take care of it for two days, and as a result, even she who was just helping almost had a breakdown, let alone the child's mother who had to keep watch day and night.

Because Pei Meng might be pregnant, the atmosphere at the dinner table became even better.

She also said the child was coming at just the right time. By the time it was born, she could just pick up her uncle and auntie's diapers and little clothes.

Because Zhi Xia's dragon and phoenix twins had to call Pei Meng "elder sister", this seniority would continue into the next generation. Zhi Xia suddenly felt she had earned big time by marrying her little uncle.

By the time Pei Meng gave birth, she would be someone's grandmother. It really delighted the 19-year-old her to death.

After eating their fill, Pei Meng had just discovered she was pregnant, which was a precious time, so Zhao Xin didn't dare let her help clean up. Pei Meng was still a little shy. "I've just gotten pregnant, and don't feel anything yet. It's not like I'm seven or eight months along with a big belly and can't do anything. And we'll have to cook for ourselves in the future. Are you planning to never let me do anything?"

Zhao Xin was not good at cooking, and it was very rare for men to go into the kitchen at this time.

So Pei Meng had secretly envied Zhi Xia before, wondering how she got so lucky as to marry such a good man like little uncle, although Zhi Xia was also great, beautiful and a good cook, so little uncle could only be considered as helping out in comparison.

"If you don't want to cook, we can just go eat at the canteen," said Zhao Xin.

Zhao Xin's words instantly made Pei Meng unhappy. "I thought you'd say you'd learn to cook from now on."

In front of uncle Pei Jing who was both a close uncle and matchmaker, Zhao Xin could only go along and say, "As long as you don't mind that I don't cook well, then I'll learn."

Only then did Pei Meng become happy again. Having just found out she was pregnant, she was inevitably a little temperamental, and just wanted to be pampered. It wasn't that she insisted he must do something, but at the very least, coaxing her and making her happy verbally would be good too.

Seeing their bickering, Liu Ling was also somewhat envious. "Alright, I know you've just gotten pregnant so are precious. You guys should head back first. I'll take care of cleaning up. It won't take much effort to wash a few bowls."

Liu Ling started clearing up. Thinking she must be tired from having just arrived, Zhi Xia quickly stopped her, "Sister-in-law, you don't need to help clean up today. My husband and I will tidy up ourselves. You should all go back now since it's late. I won't keep you either. Let's meet again tomorrow."

"Okay, okay, stop declining. You three go rest. Zhao Xin, Zhiqing and I will do the dishes." Seeing the three politely deferring to each other, Pei Jing said helplessly to Zhao Xin, "Didn't you say you wanted to learn? Take this opportunity today to learn well. Mengmeng is pregnant and doesn't have family around to take care of her, so you as the husband have to take on most of the responsibility. Don't just think about slacking off. I'm warning you, don't let me regret marrying my niece to you."

Zhao Xin immediately smiled apologetically, "I wouldn't dare. Besides other things, I'm the most hardworking person, just ask Mengmeng. I'm only not good at cooking, not that I'm unwilling."

Pei Jing threatened him with a look. "Since you know your cooking is bad, then learn well."

As an elder and her family, no one had more right to say this than Pei Jing.

Zhi Xia and Liu Ling smiled at each other and breezily went into the room to accompany the children and play. Liu Ling also taught Pei Meng a lot of things from experience, such as diet and morning sickness at the start.

Zhi Xia didn't have a say because she didn't have morning sickness. Perhaps because she already ate well herself, so she didn't feel any particular cravings when pregnant either.

In the kitchen, Pei Jing watched Zhao Xin and An Zhiqing work, while acting as supervisor himself.

Zhao Xin was now in a junior position. Plus his wife might be pregnant, with her family in the limelight, he didn't dare speak for fear of being lectured. But eldest uncle An Zhiqing had no such reservations. He looked at Pei Jing unpleasantly and said, "We agreed the three of us would work, but now it's become you standing there watching the two of us work, and this is at your home too. Don't you feel ashamed?"

"Why would I feel ashamed?" Pei Jing gleefully looked at him. "I'm teaching you well how to make your wife happy, in case she comes for just a few days and ends up angry the whole time." If it was someone else with this gloating appearance of being completely henpecked, An Zhiqing would surely mock him thoroughly.

But this was his brother-in-law. He was henpecked, and the one enjoying the bliss was his own sister. An Zhiqing could only hold it in even though he disapproved.

Zhao Xin was surprised and said, "No way, the house application went through already. Didn't you say you'd come to follow the army? How did it become just coming for a few days?"

Pei Jing gloated at An Zhiqing. "Who can you blame but yourself for not coaxing her well? With your sour face every day, she's not a masochist, so who would be happy following you all day?"

An Zhiqing wanted to be angered to death by his gloating manner. "Shut up! You should really be grateful my sister has a good temper. Add that the child is still small. Try again in a few years when the child starts school. Will you prefer the child attends school in this rural town, or a good education in the city?"

This sentence silenced both Pei Jing and Zhao Xin.

There's a difficult scripture in every family that outsiders can never understand without going through it themselves.

This was the case for An Zhiqing and Liu Ling.

Pei Meng came because she was originally undergoing rural educated youth experience, so she had also suffered greater hardships in the countryside and didn't feel anything in particular after coming here.

And after Zhi Xia took her revenge, she wanted to get far away from the An family. Plus the joy of having just come back to life, she could appreciate life's preciousness even more, so she didn't find it tough here either.

But Liu Ling was different. She had grown up in Jincheng since young, and her child was also born in Jincheng. The living conditions in big cities were in no way comparable to this small place, plus the huge differences in temperature and diet between the two places.

Northerners didn't feel bad about going south to live because of the warmer temperatures, but people raised in the south who went to the north, especially in winter, truly felt they could freeze to death any minute.

Most importantly, she had studied hard and spent huge efforts to obtain a stable job. Once she came here, she would have to give all that up.

And she might not even be able to stay here forever.

Wen Qing was three this year and could start school at six. They would have to consider the child's education situation in a few more years. If they returned to Jincheng, she wouldn't be able to get her lost job back, so whether to follow the army or not was something Liu Ling kept hesitating over.

If she didn't come, An Zhiqing could only go back at most twice a year. Discounting the delays from travel, he stayed less than ten days each time. Apart from having a child, her life was just like living completely alone.

An Zhiqing hoped she could bring the child over. He also felt they didn't lack her small salary at home. But to Liu Ling, the stable job brought her more than just a salary.

When Liu Ling came over this time, she hoped to have another child during the opportunity, considering it comprehensively. She didn't actually want to follow the army because her mother-in-law could help care for the children if she stayed in Jincheng, and life would be relatively better.

Because of this, the couple discussed it many times and also had some disagreements over it.