"Back when I was with An Fu’s family," Shi Xiaolan continued, her smile tinged with both bitterness and relief, "I worried every day, scared of giving birth to another girl and displeasing my in-laws. Now I don’t have those worries. I’d be happy with either a boy or a girl if I could get pregnant again."
She paused, then laughed again, "Of course, having a son would be even better. Brother Xiaoshan and I would have a son to take care of us in our old age."
In her bones, Shi Xiaolan still felt a son was better than a daughter, but if it were her child, she’d love them regardless—yet the depth of her affection would surely differ, favoring a son over a daughter.
An Jing understood Shi Xiaolan. After all, Shi Xiaolan was a local, deeply poisoned by the thoughts of the place. Therefore, An Jing didn’t bother to say anything about Shi Xiaolan’s preference for a son over a daughter.
And even if she spoke up, it wouldn’t change Shi Xiaolan’s mind. Why waste her breath?
"An Jing, there’s something..." Shi Xiaolan suddenly hesitated, and after a long pause, she finally continued, "A few days ago, An Fu’s mother came to see me, said she wanted to take Niuniu and Yu Yu back, but I didn’t agree."
An Jing immediately asked with a serious expression, "Did she make things difficult for you?"
"No, she didn’t. When she saw I didn’t agree, she cried and begged me for a while, and when she realized I still wouldn’t agree, she left."
An Jing frowned, "Why on earth does she suddenly want to take Niuniu and Yu Yu back?"
"It seems like... Mrs. Gong can’t have children. She’s been married to An Fu for a year and a half now, and hasn’t gotten pregnant. I heard she saw numerous doctors and took a lot of medicine to try to regulate her body, but she just can’t get pregnant. The doctor also seems to have said she’s likely infertile."
An Jing sneered, "Right after Yu Yu was born, they had the nerve to think about remarrying right away. Let them marry off again."
Shi Xiaolan burst into a humorless laugh, "Their family is very poor now, they don’t have the money to remarry."
An Jing sneered again, "That’s why An Fu’s mother came to you to take Niuniu and Yu Yu, even if they’re both girls, having children is better than none. Xiao Lan, if they come to ask for the children again in the future, you can’t give them, no matter what!"
Shi Xiaolan nodded immediately, "How could I possibly give them up? It’s clearly stated in the divorce papers that Niuniu and Yu Yu are mine, I will never give them up to them!"
"Right, you just don’t give them up! If they bother you about it, just come to me! And it serves them right; if they hadn’t been so obsessed with having a son before, they wouldn’t be in this situation now! I think they’re coming to you for the children because their family is so poor now that even their own clan won’t give them a child to adopt."
Shi Xiaolan sighed, "You’ve hit the nail on the head. I heard An Fu’s second uncle and third uncle aren’t willing to let him adopt a child, saying his family’s too poor, and they’re worried they wouldn’t even be able to keep the child alive."
An Jing was speechless, but still, she added two words, "Serves them right!" She didn’t have an ounce of sympathy.
Even as good-natured as Shi Xiaolan was, on this matter, she allowed herself a moment of schadenfreude and laughed, "I also think they deserved it."
An Jing gave a wry smile, "They must really regret the remarriage now."
Shi Xiaolan nodded in agreement, "I think so too."
Meanwhile, at An Fu’s home.
An Fu, An Hegui, and Yun Dame truly regretted what had happened back then.