The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 215 - 214: I’ll Take Care of You (Minor Edit)

Chapter 215: Chapter 214: I’ll Take Care of You (Minor Edit)

"Mingzhu, I was wrong, please forgive me."

"Stop being angry with me, okay?"

"Just tell me, what must I do for you to calm down? Or you can scold me if you want."

The soft-spoken and clingy Zhong Qing in front of her contrasted starkly with her distant and indifferent tone on the phone, as if they were two separate people.

Shen Mingzhu couldn’t take it anymore, "Otherwise, if you’re sick, go get treated, I’ll pay for it."

You really seem like someone with schizophrenia.

Zhong Qing’s light-tea colored pupils looked at her tenderly, "Mingzhu, you spoil me so much."

"..."

Shen Mingzhu emotionlessly brushed off Zhong Qing’s attempting to entangle her hand, "Speak properly, don’t use your hands and feet."

"Oh."

Zhong Qing withdrew her hands and placed them on her lap, sitting upright, and perhaps because the filter had shattered, without the demeanor of a lady of high society, she rather resembled a small schoolchild listening attentively in class, a bit silly and somewhat cute.

"My family has been very strict with me since I was young, they even interfere with my friends, Mingzhu, I don’t want to cause you trouble, that’s why I haven’t acknowledged our relationship in front of my family."

That explanation was somewhat reasonable.

"Mingzhu, I really like you and want to be friends with you, but I truly don’t want my family to notice you. Let’s be secret friends from now on, okay?"

"..."

Don’t make it sound like we’re having an affair.

Although it was hard to judge, Shen Mingzhu still expressed respect and understanding.

Zhong Qing wasn’t just talking; she was serious about being secret friends with her, even outlining several locations for them to meet up in the future and setting up a code word for each place. From then on, they would communicate by mentioning the code word over the phone.

Can’t we just be normal friends? Do we have to make it seem like we’re having a clandestine affair?

...

After dinner that evening, Shen Mingzhu took out her baking tools, preparing to bake some egg cakes for breakfast the next day and to treat the classmates who helped Pei Ziheng by switching seats with him last time.

Pei Yang came to help her after finishing the dishes.

Shen Mingzhu handed over the chilled egg whites to Pei Yang to whip while she mixed the egg yolk batter.

"Wife, did something good happen? You seem to be in a pretty good mood."

Pei Yang, holding the special egg white whisk provided by Shen Mingzhu, whipped up the egg whites with ease while glancing at her.

"Zhong Qing came to see me today."

Shen Mingzhu had told Pei Yang about Zhong Qing’s strange behavior on the night of the engagement banquet when she got home.

The couple analyzed the situation in bed and concluded that Zhong Qing must be hiding something.

But since Zhong Qing hadn’t attempted to explain in the past few days, Shen Mingzhu appeared indifferent on the surface, yet it bothered her inside.

The sudden end of her friendship with Xiangying had already depressed her; if she lost Zhong Qing too, she would really be ready to snap.

After listening to the reason behind Zhong Qing’s behavior, Pei Yang laughed, "So, have the two of you made up?"

"Mm."

After that response, Pei Yang didn’t continue the conversation, and the atmosphere suddenly fell silent.

After a moment, Shen Mingzhu took a glance at the man.

Pei Yang was always outgoing and good at communicating, bluntly speaking, a chatterbox. The lively atmosphere at home was almost always maintained by him.

When he didn’t utter a word, it was as if the home had become significantly quieter.

"Do you have something on your mind?" Shen Mingzhu asked proactively.

"Mm."

Shen Mingzhu immediately leaned in with interest and patted the man’s sturdy, hot arm, "If something’s bothering you, spit it out. Let me cheer up a bit."

Pei Yang gave a light snort, "If I really talk about it, you might not be able to cheer up."

"Just tell me."

"Today my boss talked to me about work assignments."

Shen Mingzhu stopped what she was doing, "Didn’t you get assigned to a good position?"

"The position isn’t bad, but it’s not in the city. The unit is planning to send me to the port for management work, I’ll have to work over at Xicheng Port."

Okay, now she really couldn’t muster any happiness.

Shen Mingzhu continued with what she was doing, but felt a tightness in her chest.

It had been less than a month since the wedding, and now she heard news that her husband had to work away from home. Even the most generous of women would have a hard time understanding, right?

Pei Yang didn’t say anything either, and a silent atmosphere spread between them.

After taking a deep breath, Shen Mingzhu took the initiative to break the silence, her tone somewhat low, "I can’t follow you there for the time being. I can’t just abandon the food factory, and Ziheng is still young. I’m worried that a sudden change in environment and schools won’t suit him."

Pei Yang sighed, "I understand, and I don’t want to take you over there either; the seaside is damp and cold, and living there long-term isn’t good for your health."

Moreover, he didn’t want her to follow him from place to place, leading a life of constant upheaval.

So, it seemed they would have to live apart.

Just thinking about this situation made Shen Mingzhu’s nose tingle inexplicably, "Then is it possible for you to transfer back here in the future?"

"Hard to say; probably not in the short term."

Shen Mingzhu brooded for a while then asked, "When will you leave?"

Pei Yang suddenly threw down what he was holding, "Leave? My home is here, my wife and child are here, I’m not going anywhere!"

Shen Mingzhu was somewhat stunned.

For the first time, she thought that a man throwing a tantrum looked handsome, and she liked it very much.

Her mood inexplicably improved quite a bit, and she said despondently, "The unit has already arranged it this way, what can you do if you don’t go? Are you going to resign?"

"Alright, wife, I’ll listen to you, I’ll resign."

Shen Mingzhu froze for two seconds before belatedly reacting, "So, you resigned?"

"Yeah, I quit my job."

After saying this, he stared at her. Despite being a tall man of over six feet, his face showed the nervousness and caution of a child who had done something wrong.

Seeing her not speak for a long time, Pei Yang reached out to pull her, his tone laced with appeasement, "If you’re angry, take it out on me, don’t keep it inside."

Shen Mingzhu asked him, "Did you really resign?"

Pei Yang nodded, "Yeah, I resigned."

Shen Mingzhu’s lips suddenly curved into a smile, "That’s pretty good."

Pei Yang was baffled, "You’re not angry?"

"Why would I be angry?"

"Without a job, I’ll have no income."

For men of that era, a job was the backbone that kept them standing tall, especially for someone like Pei Yang, a man with a strong sense of responsibility and the duty to earn money, support the family, and uphold the household—it was a mission ingrained in his marrow.

Making the decision to resign was not easy, yet he did it without any second thoughts, leaving no room for turning back.

No, one couldn’t say he left no room for retreat. A person like him, how could he leave no room for fallback, acting like a hot-headed youth without thinking things through thoroughly before resigning.

In fact, when he first entertained the thought of resigning, he had already considered countless possibilities.

Looking for a new job, what kind of job to find, an income that could cover family expenses while also taking care of his wife and child.

He had also thought about going into business, but which industry to enter, where the capital would come from, he was still considering these.

But no matter what, he was unwilling to work away from home.

He was a man; he couldn’t and wouldn’t bear to let his wife support the family alone.

"No income means no income, I will support you." Shen Mingzhu said nonchalantly, though in her heart she didn’t have much confidence. After all, thus far, the food factory hadn’t seen any money.

To date, Pei Yang’s income had been the mainstay, supporting the expenses of their family of three.

But compared to losing a stable income, she preferred to live together as a family.

She looked at her husband’s deep and handsome face, her voice warm yet resolute, "A lost job can be found again. As long as the family is together, living a harder life is okay."

Pei Yang’s heart felt as if it had been wadded up then smoothed out again, tender and swollen, yet filled to the brim.

How fortunate he was to have married such an understanding and good wife.