A Good Country Wife
Chapter 174: The Big Fat Boy_1

Chapter 174: Chapter 174: The Big Fat Boy_1

Frying the tea leaves sounds simple enough: kill-green, rolling, and drying. Lin Yue had seen her grandfather do it and had even helped knead the tea leaves after the kill-green process, so she was quite familiar with the procedure for making tea. However, to fry a good batch of tea experience was especially crucial. In pursuit of perfection, Lin Yue divided the tea leaves into many batches to fry, slowly accumulating experience. As time went by, the quality of the tea leaves she fried improved, with those consisting of a single bud and leaf saved for the last batch.

Lin Yue didn’t trust this delicate task to anyone else either. Zhao Erhu had offered to help several times but was turned away by Lin Yue each time. By the time she finished preparing all the tea leaves, Lin Yue was so exhausted that she skipped washing up and collapsed into bed, falling asleep instantly. Zhao Erhu shook his head; this girl took everything she did so seriously and earnestly. Seeing how tired she was, he didn’t wake her up but instead got some hot water from the kitchen and gave Lin Yue a simple wipe down.

"You stubborn girl, always causing people to worry," Zhao Erhu gently kissed Lin Yue’s forehead, his face soft as he looked at her sleeping soundly, his voice filled with indulgence and doting.

Lin Yue had been extremely tired from the previous day and therefore slept in late the next morning, oblivious to when Zhao Erhu had gotten up. She was in a half-dream state when she vaguely heard someone shouting, "It’s a boy, a boy! Zhao Xinglin’s wife gave birth to a big fat baby boy, weighing eight pounds and six ounces—such a blessing indeed." It turned out the great-uncle had received the news and sent someone to bring the good tidings to Zhao Erhu’s house.

At first, Lin Yue thought she was dreaming and continued to sleep soundly, until Zhao Erhu roused her from the bed, "Niuniu, wake up quickly. Brother Xinglin’s wife has given birth to a big fat baby boy, and we must go congratulate them together in the city. Great-uncle is waiting to go with us, so we can’t delay any longer."

"It’s a boy? That’s truly great news. Isn’t that what Brother Xinglin has been hoping for? He’s finally gotten his wish. We must hurry!" It was only then that Lin Yue fully awoke, realizing that Zhao Xinglin’s wife had given birth. She suddenly sat up, got ready in a flash, and took out a red cloth-wrapped gift. Remembering the pheasants she had brought back from the mountains yesterday and not having enough time to stew them, she decided to bring them directly to Zhao Xinglin’s house.

The couple took their offerings and hurried to the great-uncle’s house in their ox cart. The great-uncle had already tidied up and locked his door, waiting by the roadside.

"Hurry up, Erhuzi, you’ve got to drive faster. This old man is eager to see his great-grandson," said the great-uncle. He’s usually a very steady and composed person, but he seemed somewhat impatient now, probably because he was too excited.

Poor heavens, finally, their branch of the family had descendants. Xinglin’s parents would find peace in the afterlife as well. Zhao Xinglin had often invited the great-uncle to live in the city, but the latter was reluctant; it was only during last year’s New Year that he stayed in the city for a while before returning to the village. Yet today, he packed up his belongings in a hurry as if planning to move to the city permanently to take care of his grandson.

Upon arriving at Zhao Xinglin’s house, the atmosphere was filled with joy. Zhao Xinglin was cheerfully handing out candy to the congratulating neighbors at his doorstep. Seeing his great-uncle, he immediately said, "Old man, my wife gave birth to an eight-pound six-ounce big fat boy! I, Zhao Xinglin, finally have a son, and our Zhao Family’s third branch has a future now!" Clearly, both grandfather and grandson shared the same joy.

"Congratulations, Brother Xinglin, you’ve finally got your wish! How’s the sister-in-law doing? Is she well? Let me go see her," Lin Yue said with a beaming smile, handing over the wild pheasants to Zhao Xinglin. Leaving the men to chat outside, she carried the gift package into the birthing room to see Han Family.

"Sister-in-law, congratulations on your big fat boy. How are you feeling? Is your health alright?" When Lin Yue entered, Han Family’s mother and sister-in-law, as well as the great-aunt, were all in the room, happily staring at the little one, evidently thrilled.

By this time, Mrs. Han had already taken a nap and awakened, feeling much more spirited, and even had the strength to greet Lin Yue with a smile, "Sister-in-law, you’ve come! I’m quite well, it’s not my first birth after all. The delivery went very smoothly. I went into labor last night, and by early morning when the sky was just getting light, my son was born. Come, take a look at my son."

"Oh, the little fellow is really adorable. He looks so much like Brother Xinglin, especially around the eyes and brows. He’s bound to be a handsome young master when he grows up."

"Thank you for your auspicious words, sister-in-law. I don’t ask for much, just that he be safe and healthy," Mrs. Han said with a face full of satisfaction.

"By the way, sister-in-law, I’ve made several sets of little clothes for my nephew, all of them freshly laundered and clean." Lin Yue said while handing over the bundle to the great-auntie at her side. The great-auntie opened the bundle, and upon seeing the neatly folded eight sets of little clothes, four sets for indoor and four for outdoor wear, complete with little shoes and hats to match the outdoor sets, was incredibly amazed and couldn’t stop stroking them with her hands.

"I must say, Erhu’s wife, your craftsmanship is simply divine. I’ve lived for a good part of my life and never have I seen clothing as beautiful as these. The embroidered patterns on the clothes look just like the real thing. Just how much effort must have been put into sewing these clothes?"

Mrs. Han’s mother and older sister-in-law were both genuinely city-born and bred, and with their husbands holding some official status, naturally had seen more than the great-auntie. Standing by, they too were full of praise, "Your niece-in-law really has exceptional skills, and this fabric is also of the highest quality. I don’t think even the young masters from wealthy families have clothes this nice."

People always have a tendency to compare themselves with others, and especially since her own sister-in-law always looked down on the fact that her husband came from the countryside and always treated her with a sense of pity, this really disgusted Mrs. Han. Seeing her sister-in-law’s eyes filled with envy, Mrs. Han’s heart felt extremely gratified, thinking that this cousin-in-law really brought honor to her.

A few women were chatting about various family matters when Zhao Xinglin rushed into the room in a few strides, wanting to take his son out to show him to the great-grandfather. The newborn was extremely delicate, and with Zhao Xinglin being a burly man, not very delicate in his ways, Mrs. Han and the great-auntie were both worried he might hurt the child. In the end, the great-auntie carried the baby out, accompanied by Zhao Xinglin.

A month flew by in the blink of an eye and on the day of the baby’s full moon celebration, Zhao Xinglin, wanting to show how much he cared, unusually splurged and booked several tables at a restaurant. He invited not only his colleagues and friends from the government office, neighbors from the street, but also the great-aunts and relatives from the countryside.

The Zhao Family’s old house was of course on the list of invitees, but Zhao Jingen didn’t particularly like the family of the great-uncle and he couldn’t stand seeing them prosper. He would have preferred them to have an even harder time, so now that the great-uncle had gained such a source of pride with a great-grandson, there was no way he wanted to go into town for the banquet, only to feel annoyed for no reason.

The Wei Family, including several sons, resented the great-uncle because he had always been partial to Erhu from a young age, having suffered at his hands, and they had no interest in witnessing the great-uncle’s moment of glory. Yet, considering how closely related the two families were, not attending would draw gossip, and considering that they had always attended each other’s banquets before, the entire family unanimously decided to send Zhao Dahuo and his wife to the city for the feast.