The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 218 - 217: She’s Happy, I’m Satisfied (Minor Edit)

Chapter 218: Chapter 217: She’s Happy, I’m Satisfied (Minor Edit)

Although Shen Baolan succeeded in vexing Shen Mingzhu, her mood wasn’t much improved.

Three thousand four hundred yuan, just thinking about how much money Mingzhu had made left a burning discomfort in her, as if being scalded by hot oil.

When could she ever earn that much money?

Zhou Shuhuan had been in good spirits due to successes at work recently and, feeling unusually amorous, he wanted to get intimate with Shen Baolan. Usually, Baolan was very cooperative and proactive, but that night she was distracted.

He huffed and puffed for a long time, but Shen Baolan was unresponsive like a log, leading to his frustration and disappointment, and he ended things abruptly.

Shen Baolan, preoccupied with thoughts of money, failed to notice her husband’s dejection. "Shuhuan, you should start a business, too. If Mingzhu can make money by fluke, you can definitely do better than her," she suggested.

Zhou Shuhuan, already displeased because his excitement wasn’t fulfilled, felt his irritation flare upon hearing Shen Baolan’s unreasonable demand.

"That’s easy for you to say, but doesn’t doing business require capital? Where is that capital supposed to come from?" he retorted.

Shen Baolan disagreed, "Ask your mother for it. The money you and dad earn has always been in her hands, and after saving for so many years, she must have amassed a few tens of thousands, right?"

Zhou Shuhuan sat up in bed and began to sarcastically calculate with her.

"We married, and your family wanted five hundred for the bride price; the wedding banquet cost a thousand, and following Mingzhu’s lead with the egg cake business, you lost another twelve hundred. Your miscarriage and hemorrhage, the surgery and medical bills cost two hundred. In just over a year since you’ve joined the family, you’ve fussily spent nearly three thousand. There’s not much left of what my mom had saved!"

"And you still want to compare yourself with Mingzhu, do you think you can outdo her? I’d thank you if you could just keep to yourself and cause less trouble," he scolded.

Zhou Shuhuan, having vented his anger, got dressed and left the house.

Shen Baolan’s face stung from being yelled at by her husband. She felt wronged, frustrated, and also very defiant.

Could she really just watch Mingzhu outshine her and get left behind?

All her life, she had always been better than Mingzhu, even having had that dream before their matchmaking sessions.

As for the decision to choose Zhou Shuhuan over Pei Yang, Shen Baolan harbored no regrets.

Though Pei Yang hadn’t died early as in her dream, he turned out to be useless. Marrying him would have just meant living like a widow, the same as in the dream.

"Pfft~ Pfft~"

Perhaps having eaten too much sweet potato that evening caused her to break wind several times. Shen Baolan rubbed her belly and then stood up to take some toilet paper in preparation to use the outhouse.

After a couple of steps, she suddenly looked down at her belly, and her lips slowly curled into a smile.

She had one advantage over Mingzhu; dealing with a useless man like Pei Yang, Mingzhu certainly couldn’t give birth to a son!

...

After an intense bout of exercise, Shen Mingzhu lay languid and exhausted in Pei Yang’s arms like a lazy cat, too tired to even lift a finger.

Half-asleep, she felt Pei Yang carefully adjust her head onto the pillow.

Although his touch was gentle and didn’t make her uncomfortable, she still couldn’t help but murmur a complaint.

Pei Yang, charmed by her unwittingly cute protest, patted her back and cooed, "The phone is ringing, I’ll go answer it."

"Mhm."

Mingzhu merely hummed in response when she felt a warm kiss on her lips and then heard the slight creak of the bed as he got up.

Pei Yang got out of bed.

She turned over to find a more comfortable position and drifted back to sleep.

Soon after, she heard the door open and a shadow loomed over her.

Instinctively opening her eyes, she saw Pei Yang squatting by the bed, bending towards her. His deep-set eyes softened in the dim light, looking exceptionally tender.

"What’s the matter?" she whispered.

"I need to go out for a bit and will be back later," he said.

Pei Yang’s voice was husky and gentle, giving Mingzhu the feeling that even her ears might get pregnant.

"Where are you going at this hour?" she asked.

"Shuhuan wants to have a drink with me."

"It’s so late, is he not working tomorrow?"

Seeing her complaints, Pei Yang said, "Then I won’t go, I’ll call Shuhuan back."

He was about to get up and step out as he spoke.

Shen Mingzhu stretched out an arm as delicate as a lotus root from under the covers and grabbed him, "Forget it, just go, lest your brother teases you about being henpecked."

Pei Yang bent down again, smiling with his eyes as he looked at her, "Then I’m really going."

"Mm, come back early."

After a pause, Shen Mingzhu added another sentence, "Otherwise I’ll deal with you."

Pei Yang, looking as if he was looking forward to it, asked, "How do you want to deal with me?"

Shen Mingzhu hummed, "You’ll see if you try."

After a passionate embrace and placing a cup of warm water on the nightstand for her, Pei Yang finally dressed and left the house.

Shen Mingzhu was quite sleepy, but the man’s disruptions had awakened her, so she simply put on a coat and got up to study.

Only two months left until her next self-study exam.

...

"Pei’s here, take a seat."

Zhou Shuhuan greeted him while pouring him a drink.

Pei Yang sat at the table, looking around, his face showing a hint of confusion, "Where are Taozi and the others? Haven’t they arrived yet?"

"I didn’t call them. I’m feeling troubled and just wanted to talk to someone."

Upon hearing this, Pei Yang replied carelessly, "What’s troubling you? Share it and make me happy too."

Seeing Zhou Shuhuan staring blankly at himself, Pei Yang chuckled and scratched the back of his head, "Your sister-in-law always jokingly says that to me, and I’ve unintentionally picked it up."

Watching Pei Yang speak of Shen Mingzhu with undeniable joy on his face, Zhou Shuhuan couldn’t help but be stunned.

Pei Yang was only half a year older than him, so in theory, he should call her ’sister-in-law.’

But since Shen Mingzhu was actually much younger than him, he found it somewhat difficult to address her that way.

The two brothers chatted and ate.

After venting his frustrations, Zhou Shuhuan began to show concern for Pei Yang’s work—

"... You’ve been at the overseas company for so many years and finally reached this position. Do you have no regrets about resigning?"

Pei Yang tilted back his head and downed a gulp of liquor. The strong drink, more than 40 degrees, burned from his throat down to his stomach, but it was nowhere near as intense as the heat he felt in his chest when he thought of his wife.

"I couldn’t help it. The thought of leaving them, mother and child behind to work over there, even gold bricks seemed meaningless to me."

Zhou Shuhuan couldn’t comprehend, "Why don’t you just have Shen Mingzhu and the child join you there?"

"She can’t leave things behind here; I don’t want to force her."

Zhou Shuhuan had always known that his friend Pei Yang doted on his wife, but this level of indulgence still shocked him.

He stayed silent for a while before speaking up, "Don’t you ever think about yourself? Quitting your job means all your years of hard work have been for nothing."

Pei Yang countered, "Shuhuan, what do you think is the point of earning money?"

To eat, to clothe, to support a household.

With a firm and persistent look that was uncharacteristic of the average person, Pei Yang spoke as he held his drink—

"At twenty, my dream was to become an outstanding captain. For that goal, I feared neither hardship nor death, fighting with my life on the line."

"But now, my dream is just to be with her. If she’s happy, I’m content."

"Whether then or now, I’ve always known what I want, and I’ve never regretted it."

Zhou Shuhuan looked at Pei Yang’s determined face, at the confidence and spirit that shone between his brows, and felt an unspeakable envy.

Pei Yang had always been like this: fearing neither heaven nor earth, facing anything at any time with a confidence and composure that others couldn’t imitate, which made Zhou Shuhuan envious, yet admiring, and he couldn’t help but look up to him.

Pei Yang, unaware of his brother’s thoughts, felt excited and relaxed because of the alcohol, and couldn’t help but talk at length—