In This Life, I Will Extremely Pamper My Short-Lived Husband-Chapter 223: Awaiting Labor

By the time they had finished playing and emerged, it was already an hour later.

After tiring themselves out, they prepared to find a restaurant to eat.

Xu Jinzhi didn’t know what to eat, and after circling around, she chose a hot pot restaurant.

The family of three then went to the restaurant to dine, but Xu Jinzhi and the others hadn’t expected that as soon as they sat down, they would spot someone familiar.

Xie Xingchuan was also surprised to see his second brother and his family, so much so that he choked on his own surprise.

The girl sitting opposite Xie Xingchuan quickly passed him a glass of water and handed him a tissue, her face filled with concern.

Xie Xingchuan stopped coughing, whispered a few words to the girl opposite him, and then stood up and walked over to Xu Jinzhi and company.

"Little uncle," Tuantuan called crisply.

Xie Xingchuan patted the little guy’s head and then looked at the two in front of him, "Second brother, sister-in-law, you’re also here for hot pot."

"Uh-huh," Xie Yanchuan nodded slightly, then glanced at where Xie Xingchuan had been sitting, making eye contact with the girl who was looking in their direction.

Xie Xingchuan said somewhat awkwardly, "That’s my friend."

Xu Jinzhi looked over and realized that the girl was not the sister-in-law she had had in her previous life; back then, Xie Xingchuan didn’t get married until he was thirty-five.

Xie Xingchuan made no indication of inviting her over to say hello, evidently having no particular interest in her.

"Well, second brother and sister-in-law, enjoy your meal. I won’t disturb you," Xie Xingchuan said.

"Sure," Xu Jinzhi nodded.

Xie Xingchuan patted Tuantuan’s head again and then turned back to his own seat.

It was just an insignificant little interlude, and Xu Jinzhi and her family didn’t take it to heart.

After finishing the hot pot, the family of three strolled around the mall to digest their food, and when they had walked enough, they returned home.

And so, the last day of the Spring Festival came to an end.

In the morning, Xu Jinzhi left the house by herself, while Xie Yanchuan and Tuantuan stayed at home.

Everything at the company was normal, the morning’s work went smoothly, but when Xu Jinzhi ran into Xu Zhen, she noticed that he didn’t look well, and took the opportunity to go to his side.

"Are you okay? Do you feel unwell?" Xu Jinzhi asked.

Xu Zhen cleared his throat slightly, "It’s nothing, just a bit of a cough."

As he spoke, Xu Zhen made a point to keep a distance from Xu Jinzhi, "Don’t get close, I won’t let you off if you make my granddaughter sick."

Xu Jinzhi was at a loss for words; she had come with good intentions to show concern for her aging father, only to receive such a reaction.

And Xu Zhen was observing Xu Jinzhi—despite only a few days having passed and while Xu Jinzhi still appeared frail, her condition was no longer the same as before the New Year.

Although Xu Zhen didn’t know what had happened in this short period that had so clearly improved Xu Jinzhi’s condition, seeing her much better state now gradually eased his mind.

After a brief silence between them, Xu Jinzhi said somewhat helplessly, "You’re getting on in years, you still need to take good care of your health. Otherwise, how will you look after your granddaughter in the future?"

Xu Zhen thought to himself, why should he look after his granddaughter? Didn’t she have parents?

But then he reconsidered; she was his granddaughter, his daughter’s child, and it was only right for him to protect her.

"It’s just a little throat inflammation, nothing serious," Xu Zhen explained without good humor.

Xu Jinzhi, however, didn’t continue to confront her father. As she looked at him, she noticed the white hairs hidden amongst the black in his head and suddenly felt an unsuppressable sourness in her heart.

Xu Jinzhi pushed down the strange feeling inside her and tried to make her tone more relaxed, "Don’t work so hard, Dad. You can’t possibly spend all the money you’re making."

"Hmph!" Xu Zhen snorted coldly, "I’m saving it for my granddaughter."

"Fine, it’s for your granddaughter," Xu Jinzhi said, somewhat helplessly.

After confirming Xu Zhen was alright, Xu Jinzhi turned and left for her own workstation.

Xu Zhen stood there, watching his daughter walk away. In a daze, he felt like he could no longer remember what she looked like as a child.

Suddenly, a subtle bitterness arose in his heart.

But it didn’t matter, he would always find a way to make her life a good one.

~

Time flew by quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was already July.

Xu Jinzhi’s due date was in mid-July. She had already stopped working and was staying at home, waiting to give birth.

Xie Yanchuan’s school had also started summer vacation, but recently, the lab had been quite busy.

Xie Yanchuan had been leaving early and coming home late every day, and it had been several days since he had a proper conversation with Xu Jinzhi.

Today, he finally managed to come back to have dinner with Xu Jinzhi. When Xie Yanchuan entered, Tuantuan was busy building LEGO.

It seemed this LEGO set was a bit more complicated, and Tuantuan was having difficulty with it. He had been working on it for several days but had only put together a simple base.

Right now, he was struggling with the LEGO, while Xu Jinzhi seemed to be helping, but she wasn’t good at building LEGO and lacked the patience. At the moment, she was somewhat boredly fiddling with a small piece.

As if they had a telepathic connection, Xu Jinzhi instinctively looked up and then saw Xie Yanchuan coming in through the foyer.

"You’re back!" Xu Jinzhi said with great joy, already standing up.

"Yeah." Xie Yanchuan nodded, changed his shoes quickly, and hurried toward Xu Jinzhi.

"Daddy." Tuantuan also looked at Xie Yanchuan, but when he called out, his voice was tinged with a hint of grievance, and he looked quite listless.

"What’s wrong with Tuantuan?" Xie Yanchuan asked gently.

Xu Jinzhi glanced at Tuantuan and, seeing that he didn’t plan to speak up, took it upon herself to tell Xie Yanchuan, "In the past, you’d help him build it, and it was finished quickly."

But Xie Yanchuan had been busy these past few days and hadn’t had time to help Tuantuan with the LEGO. Plus, this set was more challenging, and they hadn’t managed to finish it even after several days.

Xie Yanchuan smiled gently, "Sorry, I haven’t spent much time with you recently. After we eat and accompany Mom for a walk, Daddy will help you finish it, okay?"

"Okay!" Tuantuan immediately cheered up.

Xie Yanchuan and Xu Jinzhi exchanged a look and both smiled.

After finishing their meal, Xie Yanchuan took Xu Jinzhi for a walk outside. She was close to giving birth, and a bit of walking was good for her health.

But it was still very hot outside, and Xu Jinzhi was totally reluctant to go.

After much gentle persuasion from Xie Yanchuan, Xu Jinzhi finally agreed to go outside with him.

And so, the family of three slowly walked around the villa complex. Along the way, they even met a little girl who knew Tuantuan.