Lin Xiaoyue pouted, "By the time I have my child, you’ll almost be a master."
"What can we do about that?" Wen Wan gestured towards her belly with her eyes. "Don’t tell me you don’t want the child anymore?"
"No way!" Lin Xiaoyue immediately said, "I’ve been married for four years and was called a hen that can’t lay eggs so many times before I finally got pregnant. How could I just not want it? You say that easily since you’re not the one carrying the baby."
"Well, that’s settled then. Since you think the child is important, you just have to let go of other things. You can’t have all the benefits, can you?"
"As if you haven’t gotten them all yourself!" Lin Xiaoyue snorted lightly.
She had both a son and the opportunity to enter Hongwen Academy. No one else in the Hongwen Academy was as fortunate as her.
Wen Wan didn’t argue with her on this, instead asked her if she had eaten since she arrived so early.
Lin Xiaoyue touched her belly, "Not yet, I plan to scrounge a meal here."
Wen Wan said, "We don’t have much at home, just simple tea and plain meals for you to eat, as long as you don’t mind."
With that, she waved to let Mrs. Jin, who was waiting outside, come in and instructed her to prepare the meal.
Although Lin Xiaoyue had been here for a while without seeing any maid bringing tea, she didn’t have the nerve to ask if they didn’t have other servants at home.
Wen Wan adjusted the way she was holding her son and frankly said, "Don’t take it the wrong way, we’re a small family and can’t afford many servants, just two rough-mannered maids. One does laundry and cooks, the other does some chores. Usually, my mother-in-law takes care of the child. My husband and I are out during the day, so there’s no maid for personal service."
Lin Xiaoyue didn’t intend to mock Wen Wan. She got up, walked over, and with a smile, touched Jinbao’s little head, "They say a child’s mouth is accurate. Jinbao, tell me, is there a brother or sister in Aunt Lin’s belly?"
Wen Wan looked down, guided Jinbao’s little chubby hand to Lin Xiaoyue’s belly, then asked him, "Is it a brother or a sister?"
Jinbao couldn’t articulate well, making a sound that seemed like "blee blee." Follow current novᴇls on 𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹⟡𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮⟡𝙣𝙚𝙩
The two women had already gotten the answer, exchanging a glance.
Fearing Lin Xiaoyue would take it too seriously, Wen Wan told her, "That’s just superstition, it’s not accurate. Our Jinbao can’t even speak properly, what could he know?"
From the naturally noble Royal Family to the common people who rely on the heavens for food, these days there’s nowhere that doesn’t value offspring.
Especially for women, if they give birth to a son at their in-laws’ home, at least their position is secured, and their life won’t be too hard.
If the first child is a daughter and the in-laws are decent people, perhaps it won’t be too bad. Just talk less and work more to make a good impression; however, if the mother-in-law is tough, life could be quite difficult.
So for most women, the first birth is like gambling, with the outcome depending entirely on whether they can deliver a boy.
Lin Xiaoyue, however, laughed lightheartedly, "Both my rightful mother-in-law and my legitimate mother-in-law have long gone to meet the ancestors underground. We’re the seventh family and have separated, so it doesn’t really matter whether it’s a boy or a girl. If it’s a sister, it’s a sister. I quite like little girls too."
"You’re still young, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to have a son." Wen Wan consoled.
"That’s true." Lin Xiaoyue stroked her belly, which hadn’t yet started showing, "If the first one doesn’t work out, there’s always the second one. I just don’t believe everyone in the Lin Family can only have daughters."
While they were talking, Mrs. Cao came in to say that Mrs. Jin had already prepared the meal and asked if Madam wanted to eat in the backyard or have it brought to the front hall.
Wen Wan instructed them to divide it into two portions, sending one to the backyard and the other to the front hall.
Curious, Lin Xiaoyue couldn’t help but ask, "Are your in-laws both alive?"
Wen Wan nodded saying they were.
"So how’s your relationship with your mother-in-law?" Lin Xiaoyue asked again.
"It’s fairly good!" Wen Wan carefully recalled, "All these years since I got married, I’ve never heard her say a harsh word to me."
Lin Xiaoyue couldn’t help but feel envious, "Then it seems your mother-in-law has a good temper."
Wen Wan gave a slight smile. She couldn’t quite describe her mother-in-law’s temperament. If you say she has a good temper, she really is fierce at times. But if you say she’s fierce, she keeps everything clearly divided, never doing stupid things that would hold her husband back. Often, her mother-in-law’s words were rough, but the reasoning wasn’t.
The food was served, so Wen Wan first fed Jinbao, urging Lin Xiaoyue not to be polite and to help herself.
Lin Xiaoyue picked up her chopsticks, took a couple of bites, and then looked at the little guy across from her.
Even though he held a spoon in his hand, he was still used to being fed. After swallowing, he was afraid his mom would forget, so he opened his mouth and said "ah" to remind her to feed him.
Seeing this, Lin Xiaoyue couldn’t help but laugh and asked him, "Little one, why are you so lovable?"
Upon hearing her voice, Jinbao glanced at Lin Xiaoyue, then lowered his eyes to her belly, before excitably calling out "blee blee blee blee."