The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 362 - 361 Shen Hongmei Resigns

Chapter 362: Chapter 361 Shen Hongmei Resigns

Shen Mingzhu finished her bath and came upstairs to the baby’s room.

Summer had arrived, and the weather grew hotter by the day.

The breeze upstairs was stronger, especially cool at night with the windows open, and the delicate fragrance of jasmine from the yard wafted in.

Shen Mingzhu spread a layer of straw mat on the floor of the baby’s room and covered the doors and windows with fine mesh to keep mosquitoes out. Whenever she was free, she would let her daughter play there.

Pei Ziheng placed a wind-up frog on the straw mat, and the frog hopped forward as if it had come to life.

Little Guoguo giggled, scampering after the frog on hands and knees.

Before Little Guoguo could catch up, the frog stopped moving. Pei Ziheng picked up the frog, wound it up again, and placed it back on the mat.

Little Guoguo continued the chase.

The siblings were having a blast.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t interrupt but simply leaned against the door frame, looking on. The joyful atmosphere was infectious; she couldn’t help smiling, her heart brimming with happiness and contentment.

"Mom."

Pei Ziheng soon noticed Shen Mingzhu at the door.

Hearing his call, Little Guoguo also turned her plump, tender body to look at her, following with a call, "Momma~"

The soft, sweet baby voice was sweeter than candy, almost melting Shen Mingzhu’s heart.

She lifted the mosquito net and kicked off her slippers, crossing the barrier at the door barefoot to crouch beside her children and hug her soft, cuddly daughter over and over.

A baby’s skin is especially delicate and smooth, like jelly and smelling of milk – she could never kiss enough.

"Guoguo is so good. Is the frog toy that brother bought fun to play with?"

"Ah, play!"

Nine-month-old Guoguo could only utter simple syllables of one or two letters.

"Still want to play, aren’t you tired? It’s time to sleep tight."

Guoguo either understood or didn’t; her chubby little hands pointed at the frog, her legs kicking, "Play, play!"

Shen Mingzhu checked the clock on the wall and placed her daughter back on the straw mat.

"All right, ten more minutes of play."

Little Guoguo didn’t care what her mother had said, setting off on her own towards the frog.

Just as she was about to get the frog, her mischievous brother picked it up and wound it up again.

Seeing the frog hop away, and then her brother, it took Guoguo a couple of seconds before she earnestly started crawling after it again on all fours.

Determined to catch that frog.

Shen Mingzhu found it amusing and looked up at her son, reaching out to brush his forehead hair that partially covered his eyebrows.

Under the light, the young boy’s skin was pale and cool, with features so delicate and handsome it was almost unreal.

"Your hair’s gotten a bit long. I’ll take you to get a haircut tomorrow. Short hair isn’t so hot."

"Mm-hmm."

Pei Ziheng nodded, the very picture of obedience and sensibility.

Shen Mingzhu’s tone softened even further, "How did you do on the exam today? Could you answer all the questions?"

"Mm, I finished them all."

After responding, Pei Ziheng voluntarily brought up the event of being interviewed by the reporters, "... Mom, you should prepare for it; the spicy strips and dried tofu might sell out in a few days."

Shen Mingzhu was somewhat surprised, "Why do you say that?"

"I told Uncle Reporter that my favorite snacks are Mingzhu’s spicy strips, dried tofu, and snowflake crispy; he promised he would write all about them. I think when everyone reads the newspaper, it should help the factory’s business."

Shen Mingzhu looked at him quietly for a while, then suddenly opened her arms, "Son, come here, let Mom hug you."

Pei Ziheng leaned into her embrace.

Shen Mingzhu affectionately tightened her hold on her little one, "Son, thank you for being so outstanding and considerate. Having a son like you is Mom’s good fortune."

Pei Ziheng nestled against her shoulder, his dark eyes reflecting a youthful softness and purity.

"Mom, just wait a bit longer, I’ll grow up fast. When I’m grown up, I’ll help you manage the company, so you won’t have to work so hard."

Shen Mingzhu suddenly realized an important question.

"Mom forgot to ask you, do you have a dream? Like, what do you want to be when you grow up – a doctor, a teacher, a scientist?"

Pei Ziheng tilted his snow-white face upward, "I want to be mom’s son for a lifetime."

Shen Mingzhu smiled and ruffled his head, "That’s not a dream. You are my son, and that’s a set and unchangeable fact."

In Pei Ziheng’s dark eyes suddenly shone an unparalleled seriousness, "Mom, if one day you had the chance to go back to your original world, would you go back?"

Shen Mingzhu paused for a moment, then shook her head with a smile, "No, I wouldn’t."

"Why not? Don’t you want to go back to your original world?"

"Hmm, I don’t want to."

Shen Mingzhu explained earnestly, "Here is mom’s home, with you and Guoguo, and dad. You all are family members that mom can’t let go of. Here, mom is very happy."

"So, were you not happy in your original world?"

Pei Ziheng was filled with curiosity about everything to do with her.

"There was happiness, too. There were my grandparents who loved me dearly since I was a child, and my friends. But if I had to choose between the two, I would choose to stay here."

This answer clearly gave Pei Ziheng a great sense of security.

His eyes sparkled with joy, and he extended his little finger.

Although he once thought this gesture was very childish.

"Mom, let’s pinky swear."

"Mm-hmm, pinky swear and hang, a hundred years, no changes allowed."

As the mother and son’s thumbs met in a kind of seal, suddenly, Guoguo’s crying could be heard from nearby.

Both mother and son turned in surprise to find that little Guoguo had managed to stand up with the support of the wall.

This was the first time little Guoguo had stood up.

She must have been startled and didn’t know what to do next, so she cried urgently.

...

The next day at the factory, Shen Mingzhu called a morning meeting for the team leaders and above, and unexpectedly found that Shen Hongmei wasn’t there.

Upon asking, she learned that Shen Hongmei had taken a day off.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t pay much attention to it. Shen Hongmei was always diligent with her work and would not take leave without good reason.

During the meeting, Shen Mingzhu issued a notice for the whole factory to work overtime.

As her son said, the upcoming interview should boost sales, so she needed to prepare in advance.

Although overtime was hard, it paid 1.5 times the normal wage, so the workers were not only without complaints but also excited.

After the meeting, Shen Mingzhu returned to her office to work.

The new assistant Pei Qiuxia followed her step by step.

After Du Juan went to Rongcheng, Shen Mingzhu intended to support Shen Hongmei and gradually transferred the work that Du Juan used to do over to Shen Hongmei.

As a result, Shen Hongmei was no longer able to also serve as an assistant.

Pei Qiuxia was Pei Yang’s cousin, who hadn’t been admitted to college after finishing high school and had been recommended to the food factory by Pei Wenping.

Shen Mingzhu, who was in urgent need of an assistant, saw that Pei Qiuxia had a not low education level and was also meticulous, so she was kept by her side.

"Did Hongmei say why she took leave?"

"She didn’t say..."

Pei Qiuxia looked hesitant, clearly having more to say, but uncertain whether she should speak.

This was also one of the reasons why Shen Mingzhu liked Pei Qiuxia so much, for her very cautious character.

"Speak up if you have something to say."

Only then did Pei Qiuxia speak up, "Yesterday afternoon, Sister Hongmei’s family came to see her. They had a fight at the factory gate. I don’t know what they were arguing about, and it wasn’t right to ask."

Shen Mingzhu nodded to show her understanding.

The next morning, seeing Shen Hongmei arriving on time, Shen Mingzhu heaved a sigh of relief.

After the morning meeting, she called Shen Hongmei into her office and assigned her work.

"The new factory is about to be completed soon. You need to hurry up with the new employee recruitment..."

"President Shen."

Shen Mingzhu had not finished speaking when Shen Hongmei interrupted her, "I want to resign."

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.