Hard work after winning the lottery

Hua Yun's heart instantly leaped into her throat again.

She stood up nervously, twisting the hem of her clothes helplessly with her hands, like a prisoner awaiting trial.

Grandma Hua walked ahead, her cloudy eyes fixed on Hua Yun's still flat stomach.

Her lips trembled slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately she didn't.

Finally, he just let out a heavy sigh.

That sigh, as if crushed by the years, was filled with endless vicissitudes and helplessness.

Hua Mutou followed behind, his usually cheerful face now tense.

This veteran, who had never even flinched on the battlefield, had tears welling up in his eyes as he looked at his beloved granddaughter.

He didn't look at Hua Yun, but walked to his son Hua Shu's side, squatted down, took out a pipe from his pocket, and silently lit it.

For a moment, only the father and son silently puffed out their cigarettes and the suppressed breathing of the two women remained in the courtyard.

The air was so heavy it seemed to drip water.

In the end, it was Grandma Hua who spoke first.

She walked to Hua Yun's side, stretched out her hands, which were as dry as old tree bark, and gently took her granddaughter's cold hands.

"Silly child."

Grandma's voice was old and hoarse.

"Why didn't you tell your family sooner about such a big thing?"

"I……"

Hua Yun's tears welled up again, much to her dismay.

"Don't cry."

Grandma Hua clumsily wiped away her tears with her rough fingertips.

"Crying is bad for your health and for the baby in your belly."

The mention of the baby in her belly was like a pardon, instantly shattering Hua Yun's last line of defense.

Hua Mutou, who was squatting on the ground, suddenly tapped his pipe on the sole of his shoe and stood up.

He roared loudly, breaking the dull atmosphere.

"Alright! What's with all those long faces!"

"Is the sky falling down?"

"So what if there are more chopsticks and more mouths to feed? My great-grandson, Hua Mutou's family can afford to raise him!"

The old man's words were firm and resolute, carrying the decisiveness unique to soldiers, leaving no room for argument.

This storm that swept through two generations of the Hua family finally came to a complete end with the old man's words, "I can afford to raise them."

No one mentioned the man whose name was unknown again, and no one questioned who was right or wrong that night.

From this moment on, the child in Hua Yun's womb was no longer a shameful secret, but a new life that the entire Hua family would protect together.

This family quickly unified their positions in the most traditional and simple Chinese way.

There were no complaints, no accusations, only silent acceptance and action.

That afternoon, Grandma Hua pulled out a large stack of soft, old cotton clothes from her treasured camphor wood chest.

These are leftover fabrics from when she made clothes for her children and grandchildren. They've been washed until they're white and soft like a cloud.

"Click, click, click..."

After many years, that old "Butterfly" brand sewing machine was once again moved to the sunlight in the main room.

Grandma put on her reading glasses, stepped on the pedal, held the fabric with one hand, and turned the flywheel with the other.

Accompanied by rhythmic sounds, one after another, palm-sized, exquisite and adorable little monk robes, bibs, and soft little blankets gradually took shape under her wrinkled hands.

Sunlight streamed through the window, falling on Grandma's focused profile and her gray hair, as well as on the small pile of clothes, creating a warm and comforting atmosphere.

Li Guifen devoted all her energy to her daughter's diet.

She asked someone to buy the freshest crucian carp from the town and simmered it over low heat to make a milky white broth.

She somehow found out that fresh goat milk was good for pregnant women, so every day before dawn she would go to Aunt Li's house at the east end of the village, squeeze out the freshest bowl of milk, boil it, and bring it to Huayun's bedside.

"Yunyun, drink it quickly, it's nutritious and good for the baby."

She tried every possible way to cook delicious food for her daughter, as if she wanted to pour all her love and guilt into these three meals a day.

Hua Yun's life seems to have been slowed down.

The once energetic and ambitious woman who devoted herself to the sheep farm is now the focus of her family's protection.

A few days later, Hua Shu drove his family car, with his wife and daughter, and after a bumpy ride, arrived at the best maternal and child health hospital in the city.

This was Hua Yun's first formal prenatal checkup since becoming pregnant.

The smell of disinfectant, the cold instruments, and the doctors' serious expressions in the hospital made her inexplicably nervous.

As the cool coupling gel was applied to her lower abdomen and the probe slowly moved, her heart pounded so hard it felt like it was going to jump out of her throat.

She dared not look at the screen, but stared intently at the doctor's face, afraid of seeing even the slightest sign of something amiss.

until--

"Thump, thump, thump..."

A powerful, train-like sound echoed clearly through the instruments in the quiet examination room.

The doctor pointed to the tiny, blurry dot on the screen and said with a smile, "Did you hear that? That's the baby's heartbeat. It's strong and healthy."

boom!

Hua Yun's mind went completely blank for a moment.

This is...

Her child.

That little life quietly growing inside her body.

His heartbeat was so real, so powerful.

Tears, once again, fell without warning.

But this time, it wasn't fear and pain, but a mixture of bitterness, excitement, and an indescribable ecstasy.

Li Guifen and Hua Shu, who were standing nearby, also heard the miraculous sound. The two rural people, who were nearly fifty years old, were so excited that they didn't know what to do with their hands. They just kept saying "thank you" to the doctor.

The doctor prescribed some folic acid, explained in detail the time for the next prenatal checkup, and outlined a series of precautions for pregnant women, leaving no stone unturned.

After leaving the hospital and getting into the car to return to the village, the atmosphere inside was completely different from when I arrived.

Those strong heartbeats were like a shot of adrenaline, dispelling the last gloom that had hung over this family.

The future may still be difficult, but hope has already sprouted along with the heartbeat of that little life.

Back in Baixi Village, Huayun began a complete overhaul of her life.

She handed over all the manual labor that required her to do herself in the sheep farm.

She stood at the edge of the sheep farm, clearly explaining the work to the contractor Wang Jianjun and her father Hua Shu.

She no longer spends every day at the sheep farm, but instead dedicates more time to planning the farm's future development and expanding online sales channels.

That indestructible cockroach has simply changed to a gentler, more powerful way to continue fighting.