Back To The 80s

Li Fengmei assumed that Qu Yan was just being shy and smiled, saying, "You two aren’t getting any younger. It’s about time you had a baby. Now that you’re living better, the child won’t suffer."

Qu Yan awkwardly agreed, "You’re right, sister-in-law, but we don’t know why we’re having troubles conceiving."

Li Fengmei hesitated before responding, "You’ve been married to Xiangyang for a while, right? Have you ever checked to see what might be the problem?"

A touch of displeasure crossed Qu Yan’s face as she retorted, "Sister-in-law, there’s nothing wrong with either of us. Why would we need to get checked? It sounds like you’re suggesting we’re incapable of having children."

Upon seeing Qu Yan’s embarrassment, Gu Xiaobei could not help but feel a sense of schadenfreude. The icy relationship between Xiangyang and Qu Yan reinforced Gu Xiaobei’s suspicion that the couple had been having issues for some time.

Feeling she was only trying to help, Li Fengmei felt a tad upset at Qu Yan’s response. "I’m merely suggesting you get checked out of concern for you two. Besides, it’s just us three here today. Do either of us look like we’d spread rumors?" she countered.

Qu Yan opened her mouth but did not fight back, her face full of displeasure.

Gu Xiaobei remained silent, uninterested in diffusing the tension between the two.

Qu Yan turned to Gu Xiaobei with a forced smile, "Sister-in-law, I was making clothes the other day and have a piece of fabric left over. I can use it to make a piece of clothing for your child. I’ll bring it over later."

Gu Xiaobei looked at Qu Yan and quietly responded, "That’s very kind of you, but we have plenty of clothes for the baby already. We have enough for now."

Qu Yan smiled and waved her hand dismissively, "The baby should call me auntie, right? So it’s only right for an aunt to make clothes for her nephew."

Gu Xiaobei gave a thin smile and replied, "Based on the relationship between me and Lu Zhanguo, as well as the one between you and Xiangyang, the baby should call you auntie. You’re hardly in a position to call yourself sister." In her heart, Gu Xiaobei scoffed at Qu Yan’s audacity to presume to be on par with her.

Flushed red, Qu Yan sat in silence for a while before leaving awkwardly.

Only after Qu Yan left, did Li Fengmei voice her complaints, "There’s no pleasing some people, even when you mean well. I have a feeling something’s off between her and her husband."

Gu Xiaobei just offered a smile without a word. Given the mess Qu Yan was in, she guessed not many men could tolerate it.

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The task on this occasion was quite simple for Lu Zhanguo’s team. They were to transport a batch of new weapons to a field army on the edge of the desert in X Province.

As the convoy passed through the city at night, Lu Zhanguo, who was in the passenger seat, noticed the car’s lights going bright and dim intermittently. "Xiaowang, is there something wrong with the headlights?" he asked.

Soldier Xiaowang looked at the patently functioning headlights, perplexed. "They’re fine, Commander."

Startled, Lu Zhanguo closed his eyes briefly only to see the headlights normal again when he reopened them. A wave of disquiet washed over him.

................

Unexpectedly, Qin Ximei showed up again. Seeing that Lu Zhanguo was not home, she looked around curiously, "Is Zhanguo not here? When will he be back?"

"I’m not sure, you haven’t left yet?" Gu Xiaobei answered curtly, curious as to why Qin Ximei was still there.

Giving a nonchalant grin to Gu Xiaobei, Qin Ximei replied, "My mom’s niece is living in town. I’ve come from afar, can’t just leave without visiting them." Gu Xiaobei could tell that Qin Ximei’s smile concealed bad intentions. Given Qin Ximei’s consistent nuisance, Gu Xiaobei was wary and kept her distance.

Qin Ximei grabbed a stool and sat down, slightly scoffing, "Such a big house, yet you don’t even have a couch?"

Gu Xiaobei cradling her belly against the bedroom door, responded dispassionately, "I’m about to give birth soon, we need to save money wherever we can."

Qin Ximei snorted indignantly, "You weren’t this prudent when it came to raising a child of another family. Heard you raised a girl from the Mayor’s family? Quite a social climber, aren’t you?"

Too tired to bother with her, Gu Xiaobei stood there silently, her eyelids drooping. She was mystified as to where Qin Ximei heard the news from. She’d never discussed Jiujiu’s heritage the last time they met in Capital City.

Unperturbed, Qin Ximei glanced at Gu Xiaobei’s belly, "It looks like you’re due soon."

"It’s still a while to go." Gu Xiaobei replied indifferently.

"From the look of it, you’re going to give birth to a baby girl." Qin Ximei busked facetiously.

Gu Xiaobei really felt like shooing her away. Anticipating the gender of the baby was none of her business. Upset, Gu Xiaobei retorted, "Even if it’s a baby girl, I wouldn’t mind."

At this moment, Li Fengmei came over to deliver some food for Gu Xiaobei, effectively rescuing her.

Gu Xiaobei let out a sigh of relief. The last thing she wanted was to deal with Qin Ximei alone. "Fengmei, why don’t you join us for lunch," she suggested, winking at Li Fengmei in the process.

While confused, Li Fengmei still agreed. Smiling, she said, "Sure, we have a guest as well so let’s eat together. What would you like?"

Gu Xiaobei thought for a moment, "How about noodles with steamed egg? We don’t have any meat anyway."

Gu Xiaobei thought that Qin Ximei would leave after dining. Contrarily, Qin Ximei placed her dishes aside and retreated, "I’ll stay the night and leave tomorrow."

Unaware of what was really going on, Li Fengmei chuckled, "If you’re staying over, I’d better take the kids and stay at our own house."

Gu Xiaobei didn’t want Qin Ximei to stay. It was likely that she was looking for another opportunity to cause trouble. "Fengmei, you stay here instead. Tonight, I’ll get a room for Aunt Yuan at the guest house," she said, clearly annoyed.

"Stay at your place, and you’re not even happy about it? Even your mother-in-law wouldn’t dare to treat me like this," Qin Ximei frowned, clearly unsatisfied.

Gu Xiaobei chuckled, "Aunt Yuan, it’s not about my mother-in-law daring to do so. It’s just that you like to remind her of how you helped her before while implying she’d be ungrateful if she forgot about it. I’m really curious, what did you do for my mother-in-law to make her so obliged to you?"

Qin Ximei’s face stiffened. She snarled, "What business is it of yours to ask so many questions? Have you forgotten your place?"

Gu Xiaobei scoffed, "I’ve never acknowledged you as an elder. I’m serving you today out of respect for my in-laws."

"You--" Qin Ximei was left speechless. She sat in silence for a while before finally leaving in annoyance. Gu Xiaobei however felt that something wasn’t right. Qin Ximei wasn’t one to give up easily. Perhaps she needed to be cautious from now on.

Once Qin Ximei left, Li Fengmei curiously inquired, "Why does she keep coming here, considering her daughters have been causing trouble?"

Gu Xiaobei shook her head, "I don’t know. Moreover, she’s always pretending to be clueless. No matter how bad you make her feel, she never takes the hint; nor does she react to harsh words. Seeing her leave in a snit like she did today is rare."

Li Fengmei nodded in agreement, "I see. That old woman sure knows how to stir up trouble."