The Stepmother's Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era-Chapter 75 - Mingzhu, You’re Not Pregnant, Are You
Chapter 75: Chapter 75 Mingzhu, You’re Not Pregnant, Are You?
Chapter 75 -75 Mingzhu, You’re Not Pregnant, Are You?
The sixth day of the first lunar month, favorable for travel.
Early in the morning, Shen Mingzhu and her family of three had just stepped out of the apartment building when they bumped head-on into Shen Baolan and her husband, who were also leaving their home.
Shen Baolan glanced at Shen Mingzhu, “Oh, heading out to visit relatives?”
Pei Yang asked Zhou Shuhuan, “What about you guys?”
Zhou Shuhuan hurriedly replied that he was accompanying Shen Baolan back to her mother’s home.
After a huge fight with Ma Sufen, Shen Baolan insisted on returning to her maternal home that very day, but buses to Shenjiagou only ran every other day, so she had to wait until this morning to leave.
Zhou Shuhuan was worried about her traveling alone in her heavily pregnant state, which was why he was specially escorting her.
Upon hearing this, Pei Yang laughed, “What a coincidence, we’re also heading to Shenjiagou.
Let’s go together.”
So the two families set off together.
They first needed to take a public bus to the coach station.
The family housing was a distance from the bus stop.
Pei Yang carried their stuff, Shen Mingzhu walked holding Pei Ziheng’s hand, and the family of three strolled shoulder to shoulder, chatting and joking along the way.
Zhou Shuhuan walked behind, helping Shen Baolan.
Shen Baolan, with her belly protruding, watched Shen Mingzhu’s family of three.
It was cold in Fengcheng.
She and Shen Mingzhu were both wearing long padded jackets, similar in style but different in color.
She wore blue, and Shen Mingzhu wore purple.
However, Shen Mingzhu had tied a black sash around her waist, accentuating her slender figure that seemed too delicate to grasp.
On her feet were leather boots with medium-high heels that clicked assertively and attractively against the ground as she walked.
Shen Baolan looked down at herself, with a waist as thick as a barrel and a belly so big, she felt like a round bear wrapped in a padded jacket, her feet in bulky cotton-padded shoes.
Before she got married, she had been the golden flower of the eight villages, with matchmakers almost breaking down her family’s doorstep.
But everything changed once she married into the Zhou family.
She had to attend to every old and young member in the household, look after the children, and go to work, busy from dawn to dusk, barely having a moment to breathe, let alone taking the time and mood to dress up.
After becoming pregnant, her appetite increased dramatically, and she was so hungry every day that she wished she could stuff herself straight from the pot, growing fatter and more unattractive as the days passed.
At this moment, seeing Shen Mingzhu and Pei Yang walking ahead, one petite and affectionate, the other tall and handsome, a talented and beautiful couple full of love, Shen Baolan felt as if a bottle of spices had been knocked over inside her heart.
If only she hadn’t had that dream back then.
If she hadn’t had that dream, she would have chosen Pei Yang, and she would be the one lovingly matched with him now.
It should have been Shen Mingzhu who was big with child, fat, and unsightly.
—
Upon arriving at the coach station, they boarded directly.
It was a short-distance bus where passengers often boarded or alighted, and there was a designated conductor responsible for opening the door and selling tickets.
Perhaps due to the New Year, the bus was not very crowded.
Shen Mingzhu and Pei Ziheng sat in the second row, with Pei Yang sitting behind them.
Shen Baolan, having visited the restroom, boarded the bus later.
When she boarded, there was an empty seat next to Pei Yang, and she promptly sat down, even flashing a smile at him after sitting.
Pei Yang nodded politely and, upon seeing Zhou Shuhuan standing in the aisle, stood up to let Zhou Shuhuan sit beside his wife.
“Pei Yang, keep your seat, don’t worry about him,” Baolan said, reaching out to grasp Pei Yang’s sleeve.
Shen Mingzhu, who was sitting in the front row, heard the commotion and turned around to see Shen Baolan clutching Pei Yang’s sleeve, which reminded her of the gossip that circulated among the residents of their complex.
She hadn’t taken it seriously before, thinking that since Shen Baolan had not chosen Pei Yang in the past, and now that she was pregnant, it was unlikely she would develop any feelings for him.
But now, witnessing Shen Baolan’s eager gesture of holding onto Pei Yang, she began to have some doubts.
Pei Yang, seeing that his wife noticed Shen Baolan grabbing his sleeve, quickly yanked his sleeve back and stepped over her to stand in the aisle.
Standing in the aisle, Pei Yang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately motioned for Zhou Shuhuan to take the seat.
Zhou Shuhuan declined politely for a moment before sitting down.
Pei Yang took a half step forward when he caught Shen Baolan staring at him, then stood beside Shen Mingzhu, placing a hand on the back of her seat and turning slightly to show his back to Shen Baolan.
Bus cabins in those days were not very high, so a tall person like Pei Yang had to hunch slightly to avoid bumping his head when standing up.
Seeing Pei Yang looking so uncomfortable, Shen Mingzhu glanced around and saw an empty seat at the back of the bus, so she gestured for him to sit there.
However, Pei Yang just wouldn’t budge, insisting on staying by her side.
In the end, it was Pei Ziheng who couldn’t stand it any longer and got up to give his seat to Pei Yang.
He then squeezed in to sit between Pei Yang and Shen Mingzhu.
The bus departed at ten o’clock.
Once out of the city, the road became bumpy, and with the frequent stops, Shen Mingzhu soon felt carsick.
Pei Yang noticed her pale face, realized she was feeling sick from the motion, and took her hand to massage the Hegu Acupoint (between the thumb and forefinger) to relieve it.
Sitting in the back row, Shen Baolan peered through the gap in the seats and instantly noticed the gold bracelet on Shen Mingzhu’s wrist, her eyes turning red with jealousy.
If only she had been the one to marry Pei Yang, that gold bracelet would be on her wrist now!
At this moment, Shen Baolan’s regret was as endless as the surging river.
Zhou Shuhuan was also looking at Pei Yang in the front row, watching as he massaged Shen Mingzhu’s hand.
Pei Yang, who spent years at sea, had a darker complexion than the average person, making Shen Mingzhu’s fair and flawless hand stand out even more, like the finest mutton-fat jade.
Zhou Shuhuan also noticed the gold bracelet on Shen Mingzhu’s wrist.
He had never seen any woman wear a gold bracelet that looked so good, nor had he seen one with such a small circumference.
For his wife, the circumference would probably need to be at least twice as large.
—
Finally, they arrived at Shenjiagou.
As soon as she got off the bus, Shen Mingzhu squatted by the roadside and began to vomit violently.
Shen Baolan, with her protruding belly, stood to the side with an ever-changing expression.
“Mingzhu, you’re not pregnant, are you?”
Pei Yang, who was patting Shen Mingzhu on the back, paused—how he wished it were true.
Shen Mingzhu, feeling miserable, ignored Shen Baolan altogether.
But Shen Baolan was persistent and asked again.
She didn’t know that Pei Yang had only returned ashore just before the Chinese New Year.
All she knew was that Shen Mingzhu had been to Xicheng Port for nearly half a month and, with the past few days at home, it had also been close to a month.
“Mind your own business!”
Shen Mingzhu snapped back irritably and stood up with Pei Yang’s help, heading toward Shenjiagou.
Shen Baolan followed behind her, her eyes lingering on Shen Mingzhu’s slender waist, her feelings a mixture of happiness and worry.
If Shen Mingzhu really was pregnant, she would soon become a big and ugly pregnant woman like herself.
Yet at the same time, she was unhappy that it would be Shen Mingzhu giving birth to Pei Yang’s child.
Subconsciously, she felt that Pei Yang should be her husband, and she should be the one bearing his children.
Once they entered the village, the narrow village path allowed only one person to pass at a time, so Zhou Shuhuan fell behind.
He didn’t have any particular thoughts about whether Shen Mingzhu was pregnant or not, but he couldn’t help but wonder if a pregnant Shen Mingzhu would turn out like his wife.
After entering the village, they encountered many villagers from Shenjiagou, who warmly greeted the two families.
Qin Jinlian and Liu Cuihua both heard the news that their city son-in-law was coming to visit very early and ran out happily to meet them.
“Pei Yang, why didn’t you send a message ahead so I could have come to meet you?”
Pei Yang called out ‘Mom’ with a smile and then asked Pei Ziheng to greet the others.
But Pei Ziheng pressed his lips together and remained silent.
Just as Pei Yang was about to scold him, Qin Jinlian laughed it off.
“It’s okay, children are shy at first, they’ll get used to it later.”
As she spoke, her gaze fell on the items Pei Yang was carrying.
This was the first time Pei Yang had prepared generous gifts for visiting his parents-in-law after getting married—tobacco, liquor, sweets, and some tonics, all high-quality items that would impress.
Qin Jinlian couldn’t stop smiling, and she couldn’t help but glance at Liu Cuihua’s son-in-law to see what he had brought for his mother-in-law.
But when she looked, she nearly burst out laughing.
