Cheng Su had been lying down for more than two hours when she heard laughter and chatter outside. She glanced at the time on her wrist; it was already four thirty. She guessed the village women had come over to the Qi family to help.
"Granny Qi, hasnât your eldest sonâs wife come back yet? Jianguo got into university; as his brother and sister-in-law, they ought to come back to celebrate, right?"
"Heâs stuck with the troops in Taiguo; heâs out on a mission. But his wife did come back!" Mother Qi replied.
"Why havenât we seen her?"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Su knew something was amiss. She quickly got out of bed to get dressed, and sure enough, she heard Mother Qiâs dissatisfied voice: "Sheâs still lounging inside."
She almost didnât say I was being lazy!
After tidying herself up, Cheng Su walked out of the room. Indeed, the Qi familyâs courtyard was bustling with activity; pots and pans were everywhere. Someone was holding a knife, someone else was grabbing a chicken, getting ready to cut its neck.
When they suddenly saw Cheng Su come out, they hesitated for a moment.
"Oh, itâs the wife from Taiguo. Sheâs back," someone called out first.
Cheng Su smiled and said, "I just got here this afternoon. It was a long ride, so I rested a bit. Thank you all for taking the time to come to our home and help!"
Upon hearing this, they all laughed and replied, "No need to thank us. Who doesnât lend a hand when thereâs a celebration in town?"
Theyâd heard that the Qi familyâs eldest daughter-in-law also got into university and was running a business. She certainly had seen the world and knew how to speak well.
"Mom, Iâll wash my face quickly, then come help," Cheng Su said to Mother Qi, not wanting to put on airs.
"Hurry up, hurry up," Mother Qi replied, a bit grumpily.
Cheng Su quickly returned to the room, grabbed a towel, and headed to the bathroom to freshen up.
As soon as she left, everyone started complimenting Mother Qi.
"Granny Qi, youâre really blessed. Both of your sons are successful. The eldest is an officer, and the youngest got into university. Nobodyâs as lucky as you."
Mother Qi was quite proud and said, "Both of our kids are always obedient."
"The wife from Taiguo seems good too. See, she runs a business, so her style is different. Her dressing is nicer than us village folks, and sheâs eloquent," someone complimented Cheng Su, adding, "Wasnât your daughter-in-law also a university student? Wow, if Jianguo marries a university student as well, wonât there be several university graduates in the family?"
Mother Qi was somewhat dismissive of Cheng Su, focusing only on her younger son, saying, "Finding a match should be equal in terms of family background. In the future, Jianguoâs wife will certainly be at least someone educated."
Yet privately, she calculated that now that Cheng Su was successful, Jianguoâs future wifeâs background couldnât be worse, and sheâd definitely have to be a university graduate. Otherwise, if she couldnât match Cheng Su and couldnât hold her head up, thatâd be embarrassing.
"But whenâs your daughter-in-law going to give you a big, chubby grandson? Theyâve been married for a few years, right?"
Mother Qiâs smile suddenly stiffened.
Honestly, what dissatisfied her most about Cheng Su was that she still hadnât laid an egg, so to speak. This was the biggest burden on her mind and the thing she resented most.
Now, someone brought up this sore topic, and her face couldnât help but darken as she secretly blamed Cheng Su.
All because of Cheng Su, this wonderful day was turning embarrassing. Humph.
Realizing Mother Qiâs expression wasnât good, the person felt they said something wrong and was about to change the subject when they saw Cheng Su coming out and loudly called, "Wife from Taiguo, come here and help me hold down the chickenâs wings so I can slit its throat and let it bleed!"
Cheng Su smiled and agreed, walking over and suddenly catching the disapproving look from her mother-in-law. She thought, now what?