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Yumiang finally became pregnant a few years after getting married, which was a joyous occasion, but the process of discovering it was quite distressing.
Zhao Physician said that Yumiang had experienced a scare and needed to take medication to protect the pregnancy, as well as rest in bed until the pregnancy stabilized, which would take three months.
Xie Qingfeng repeatedly expressed his gratitude, not only paying the consultation fee but also giving a congratulatory gift. He had someone help him escort Zhao Physician out while he stayed by Yumiang's side. At this point, Yumiang had already woken up and, upon hearing that she was pregnant, tears of excitement streamed down her face. Xie Qingfeng's eyes were also red.
Xiao Lihua smiled and said, "Alright, you two stop crying; it's not good for your health. You need to smile often to have a strong baby. Otherwise, if you give birth to a little crybaby, you'll be heartbroken."
As soon as Yumiang heard this, she quickly wiped away her tears. She had just been crying and laughing, but now she was all smiles, gently touching her belly and softly speaking to the child inside her.
Aunt Zhang had just seen Xie Qingfeng slip Zhao Physician a small piece of silver that looked like it was worth more than a coin. She inwardly cursed him as a spendthrift, wondering why he needed to pay so much for a physician when he could be spending that money on himself. She had come to ask if her eldest son was making good money; he hadn't admitted it before, but now seeing him so generous with money made her doubt his claims of not earning much.
Aunt Zhang muttered softly under her breath, which Xiao Lihua overheard. Frowning, Xiao Lihua felt happy for Yumiang finally becoming pregnant. She liked Yumiang for her gentle and simple nature. Yumiang's situation reminded her of her past life when Xiao Li lost her last child due to her mother-in-law's actions. Now Yumiang was also suffering from a scare because of her mother-in-law's interference. The mother-in-law showed no remorse and continued to speak useless words; even as an observer, Xiao Lihua felt anger.
Xiao Lihua huffed and said, "Aunt Zhang, you nearly caused Yumiang to lose this hard-won child. You show no remorse while spouting nonsense; do you even have a heart? Are you hoping for Qingfeng Brothers to be childless so you can be happy? Are you even their real mother?"
Aunt Zhang replied awkwardly, "How can I not be their real mother? If I weren't their real mother, could I have raised him this big and helped him marry? But once he got married, he forgot about me. Yumiang used to be obedient and honest; it's because she's with someone like you that she's changed and caused my eldest son to separate from me. Now you're trying to sow discord between us; what are your intentions?"
Zhang Lianxiang blocked Aunt Zhang at the door, wanting her to see the consequences of her actions. If something truly happened, it would be good for confrontation. Yet Aunt Zhang showed no guilt over causing her daughter-in-law's scare and seemed more concerned about money while blaming Xiao Lihua. Zhang Lianxiang couldn't hold back any longer.
"Aunt Zhang! You separated from your son because you disregarded his life and forced him into labor; can you blame others for that? You always blamed Yumiang for not being able to conceive; now that she is pregnant, I see you're not happy at all. Do you really not want her to be pregnant? Do you want them to work like oxen for you their whole lives?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? I've never thought that way!" Aunt Zhang insisted stubbornly.
Zhang Lianxiang placed one hand on her waist and said, "Hmph! Don't think I don't know you've said before that your second daughter-in-law should have another son to pass on to Yumiang so they could be tied together for life! Unfortunately, Qingfeng Brothers aren't as foolish as you think; they've separated! Now that Yumiang is pregnant again, no matter how much money they make, it's still their child's; stop thinking about your younger son!"
Yumiang felt a weight in her stomach as she listened to these words, and then quickly lightened it again. Her mother-in-law had mentioned such things about adoption before, and it made her feel uncomfortable at the time.
Xie Qingfeng also felt uneasy. His mother had said similar things back then, and he thought she was trying to ease his worries about not having children, but later he realized he had thought too highly of her intentions. She wasn't doing it for him; it was all for his younger brother. In the end, an adopted child is still a relative by blood. If they didn't separate their households, it would truly be as Zhang Lianxiang said—they would work hard their whole lives just to serve his younger brother. Now, seeing that his mother wasn't even happy about him becoming a father, he was more certain of this.
Xie Qingfeng thought his mother was really biased, to the point of being unfair.
Aunt Zhang felt even more embarrassed after Zhang Lianxiang exposed her thoughts. When she saw her son's expression, she wanted to sit down and cry, but before she could, Xie Qingfeng called out to her.
"Mother, if you dare to throw a tantrum or scare Yumiang's child in her belly, then don't ever recognize me as your son again."
"Eldest! How can you speak to me like that!"
"Mother, just go home. I will send you the filial piety you deserve on time; just don’t come to my house anymore. And don’t cause a scene. If you do, I will go find Xie Qing Shou to settle the score."
Xie Qingfeng looked at Aunt Zhang. He had long known about her bias and wasn't too heartbroken; he just wanted her to stop disturbing his wife and child.
Aunt Zhang saw her eldest son's expression and dared not make a fuss anymore. She left in a huff and went home to scold Second Son, blaming him for leaving her behind and running away first. Xie Qing Shou said that Xie Qingfeng dared not hit their mother but could hit him instead, so of course he had to run faster. Then he sweet-talked Aunt Zhang, quickly soothing her with just a few words.
"Mother, do you think the eldest brother has made any money?" Xie Qing Shou still cared about this matter.
Aunt Zhang replied, "Hmph! Even if he hasn't struck it rich, he has money in hand. He gave Zhao Physician more than one coin today! It hasn't been long since they separated households, yet he's living so well while my filial piety hasn’t increased at all—truly unfilial! It's all thanks to Wang Dashan and Xie Youshun supporting him!"
Xie Qing Shou said, "Mother, we can't let this matter end like this. If it does, our family's reputation will be tarnished."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Zhang realized that people in the village were already saying she was biased and many didn't want to associate with her. If word got out that she caused Daughter-in-law to have a miscarriage, it would be even worse. She thought for a moment and then said a few words to Xie Qing Shou.
As soon as morning passed, news spread in the afternoon that Xie Youshun and the others went to deliver pork not as workers but as traders, claiming they made a lot of money, and their words were quite convincing. Everyone was unclear about how many villages they had visited or how many pigs they had collected, nor did they know the price difference in buying and selling the pork. However, they speculated and felt envious.
The old house of the Xie Family was bustling with activity.
In the Hall of the Xie Family, the whole family gathered together, all eyes on Xie Youtai and the Zi Clan.
“Second Brother, you’ve been busy for twenty days, visiting at least one village a day. How many pigs could you have collected from each village? If you sold the pork to others and made a profit of just one coin per pound, how much would you earn?! Each of you must have made at least a couple hundred taels, right? With such good fortune, why didn’t you and Fourth Brother call us along?!”
The others also looked on with accusations or dissatisfaction.
Wang Clan said, “Yeah, Second Brother, I’m really disappointed in you. I didn’t expect you to forget about your family like this.”
Xie Shengcai took a puff from his pipe and looked at Second Son, saying, “Second Son, what’s going on with you and Fourth Brother? I know you’re not someone who only thinks of himself; tell me the truth.”
“Dad, you must have heard about what happened with Qingfeng Brothers’ family. Xie Qing Shou didn’t benefit at all and even caused Aunt Zhang to have a miscarriage because he called her over. The two families are at odds now. They claim to have made a lot of money just to avoid people talking badly about them. How can we believe that?”
Before Xie Youtai could respond, Zi Clan spoke up for him. She knew that the truth couldn’t be revealed; rather than let her husband speak falsehoods that would make him uncomfortable, she preferred to say it herself.
“Dad, do you want our family to be like theirs? Harmony brings prosperity; we can’t learn from them.”
“Tai Daughter-in-law is right; harmony brings prosperity.”
Xie Shengcai felt that Zi Clan’s words made sense. With that one sentence, he realized this matter shouldn’t be pursued any further. If it continued, the family would start arguing again, which he wanted to avoid. Although he suspected that Second Son and Fourth Son might have genuinely earned money without considering Eldest and Third Sons, he decided not to interfere. At least Fourth Son still looked after Second Son; Eldest and Third Sons didn’t get along well with him, so he wouldn’t push them.
Xie Youkang exchanged glances with Fang Family, both feeling quite unhappy and thinking that their father was becoming increasingly biased.
Xie Youhe and the Li Family began to talk about how difficult life was at home.
Xie Shengcai looked at them and said, "Who told you not to know how to behave? You deserve it! If I were Fourth Son, I wouldn't work with you either! If you want to get rich, then be nicer to your own brothers and let Fourth Son forgive you; that's the right way to go! Alright, let's leave it at that. No one is allowed to cause trouble for Fourth Son and his family. If anyone dares to stir things up, they will have to get through me first."
Xie Shengcai stood up and went back into the house.
The Wang Clan muttered a curse about the old man, but she also had people disperse. Now that Xie Youshun's family was getting richer, she didn't want to offend this son too much.
First Wife and the Third Household were all very frustrated. Xie Youkang and the Fang Family went to Xie Youshun's house to feel things out, but naturally, they didn't get any real answers. They could only say that if Xie Youshun found a way to make money in the future, he should definitely bring them along. Xie Youhe and her husband had offended Xie Youshun, and now they couldn't even enter his door; the couple just huddled together in their house talking.
The Li Family said, "Head of the household, tomorrow you should go see Ruyi and tell her that her good Sister Four has probably sold the recipe to someone else again. Let her remind Gao Family. Hmph, if they won't let us make money, then they shouldn't expect to make it easily either!"
Xie Youhe nodded, thinking about going to see Ruyi; at least she could bring back some benefits from Ruyi.
After hearing about this matter, Ruyi was so angry that she almost tore her handkerchief. She thought Fourth Brother really didn't care about her life anymore. She gave Xie Youhe five taels of silver and told him to take it back and inform her of anything that came up in the future. After he left, Ruyi went to find Gao Zhengping and told him about this incident.
Gao Zhengping also noticed Hua Heng's actions and knew it was related to Xiao Lihua. He felt quite frustrated; after all, Xiao Lihua had once tried to seduce him, but he had never been interested in her. He only wanted to use her for a while but failed, which led him to kick her out of the mansion. He never expected that she would become someone capable of deciding his family's business matters. He thought if he had known this woman was so capable back then, he might as well have kept her!
Gao Zhengping pondered whether he should personally intervene when he heard another piece of news that solidified his resolve.
The author has something to say: Thanks for the support!
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