1994: Starting with unpaid leave

Hecheng First People's Hospital.

The old-fashioned black-and-white ultrasound machine made a "buzzing" sound, and blurry static dots danced on the screen.

Xiuyun lay on the bed, her clothes lifted up, revealing that her stomach was covered with sticky coupling gel applied by the doctor.

She clenched her fists because she was a little nervous.

The cold probe slid across her abdomen, and the female doctor quickly stopped.

"Come on, let's take another picture from a different spot."

"Um."

She managed to turn over and lie on her side, and then the doctor continued.

Seeing the doctor constantly frowning and staring at the instrument screen, Xiuyun couldn't help but feel a little nervous:

"Doctor, is my child alright?"

"It's alright, this little one is developing very healthily, his limbs are quite strong, he'll definitely be a lively baby."

Hearing that the baby in her belly was healthy, Xiuyun breathed a sigh of relief, and a happy smile appeared on her face.

But she quickly became nervous again. Seeing that she and the doctor were the only ones in the ward, she tried to speak again:

"Doctor, is the baby in my belly... a boy or a girl?"

Although Dong Jianguo kept saying that it didn't matter whether he had a boy or a girl, Zhou Xiuyun still hoped to give birth to a boy for Dong Jianguo.

That way, at least my father-in-law will be very happy.

Perhaps this will ease the conflict between Jian Guo and his parents and elder brother.

The female doctor glanced at her and shook her head:

"Current medical regulations prohibit revealing the sex of the fetus, so just relax and prepare to have a healthy baby. As for the sex, you'll find out when the baby is born!"

After saying that, she handed over some toilet paper, and after Xiuyun finished wiping the coupling gel off her stomach, she handed her the report:

"The baby is in the correct position and the amniotic fluid is normal. Just remember to have your prenatal checkups on time."

"Oh……"

Xiuyun was in low spirits as she took the report and walked out of the ultrasound room.

Dong Jianguo, who was waiting outside, quickly came out to greet her. Seeing that his wife was in low spirits, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem?"

"No, the doctor said the baby is healthy, but they just won't tell me the gender..."

"Oh dear, I had no idea what happened, it's just this little thing..."

Dong Jianguo reached out and pressed his hand on his wife's brow, helping to smooth out her furrowed brows.

"I was just curious... Besides, it's my belly, and I paid for the ultrasound. Why shouldn't she tell me whether the baby is a boy or a girl?!"

"Stop thinking about these things, it's pointless. Thinking about you won't bring any results. What do you want to eat for lunch? I'll take you there."

Xiuyun's eyes lit up when she heard about food.

Now it's been 6 months, the baby is getting bigger and bigger, and her appetite has increased a lot.

Sometimes when I see barbecue on the street, I can't help but stop and smell it.

"Forget it, I'll just go back to my mom's... I can spend more time with her."

Two days ago, Dong Jianguo's mother-in-law, Cao Wenli, was not feeling well. Her eldest and second eldest sisters were both at work and had no time to take care of their mother, so the task of taking care of their mother naturally fell on Xiuyun's shoulders.

Dong Jianguo was initially a little reluctant, after all, Xiuyun was heavily pregnant and needed to be taken care of.

But Xiuyun insisted on returning to her parents' home to stay with her mother.

Even for the inspection this morning, Dong Jianguo had Erzhuzi drive him there...

Hearing that his wife wanted to go home, Dong Jianguo nodded and accompanied Xiuyun in a taxi back.

After getting off the bus, Dong Jianguo bought some braised pork and braised pork hock, and also got three plates of home-style stir-fried dishes from a small restaurant at the entrance of the community before going upstairs with Xiuyun.

Upon entering the building, Dong Jianguo couldn't help but pause for a moment.

Because he never expected to run into Xiuyun's second sister, Zhou Xiuqing, and her husband, Zhang Jinlong, in the stairwell.

Neither of them spoke, as if they were sulking.

"Second sister, second brother-in-law, why aren't you going upstairs?"

Upon hearing Dong Jianguo's voice, Zhang Jinlong turned his head, his anger transforming into a warm smile:

"Oh, it's Jianguo and Xiuyun back. We were just thinking of going up to see Mom and Dad, and it turns out we had the same idea..."

"What do you mean, we're thinking the same thing? Didn't Second Sister ask Xiuyun to come and take care of Mom? We're just following orders."

Dong Jianguo muttered something to himself.

He already harbored some resentment about this, so he didn't hide it.

The second brother-in-law was a little embarrassed after hearing this, but since it was true, he couldn't say anything and just forced an awkward smile.

Xiuyun sensed the dissatisfaction in his tone and pushed him.

Why did you push me? Was I wrong?

Upon hearing Dong Jianguo's words, Zhou Xiuqing, the second sister, immediately widened her eyes:

"Hey, Jianguo, what's wrong with letting my sister come and take care of Mom? My older sister and I both have work to do, and she's the only one who's free and on vacation right now. If she doesn't come, who will?! Just say what you want to say, stop with the sarcastic remarks."

"Alright, that's enough. Xiuyun isn't feeling well, so it's normal for Jianguo to be a little resentful!"

Zhang Jinlong, fearing he might anger Dong Jianguo, quickly tried to smooth things over.

But as soon as he said it, his wife became even more opposed:

"Zhang Jinlong, what are you pretending to be, playing the good guy? Didn't you say you'd let Xiu..."

"Hey, shut up! Stop talking!"

Feeling uncomfortable from his wife's choking, Zhang Jinlong glared at her.

Dong Jianguo's gaze swept between his second sister's husband and sister, but he didn't say anything.

Seeing that Dong Jianguo was still carrying a lot of things, Zhang Jinlong quickly stepped forward to take them from him.

"Come on, Jianguo, these things are quite heavy, let me help you carry them."

"No need, brother-in-law, I can do it myself."

Dong Jianguo directly refused his help.

This wasn't because I wanted to exercise, but because my brother-in-law has a criminal record.

In his memory, it was the second day of the Lunar New Year next year when he and Xiuyun visited his parents-in-law's house to pay their respects. They met his second sister and brother-in-law downstairs.

At that time, my second brother-in-law was exceptionally helpful, taking a lot of things from Dong Jianguo and carrying them upstairs.

At first, Dong Jianguo was quite grateful, but when he entered the house and saw his father-in-law's long face when he saw that he had only brought two bags of apples, he realized that something was wrong.

What's most infuriating is that his brother-in-law, who's always been so good at handling things, didn't even try to explain for him. He just smiled and put everything he was carrying into the kitchen.

Before leaving, he wiped his sweat in front of his father-in-law and said something like, "I bought a lot of things this year, otherwise I wouldn't have sweated so much..."

At the time, Dong Jianguo was completely unaware of these tricks; he was a complete novice.

Afterwards, I realized how angry I was.

Even after his rebirth, he still felt that his second brother-in-law was dishonest.

So this time, I absolutely cannot let what I bought become a reason for my brother-in-law to take credit.

"this……"

Zhang Jinlong was stunned when he realized he hadn't grabbed anything.

Dong Jianguo smiled:

"Brother-in-law, I just bought some groceries. There should be food upstairs. Why don't you go down and buy some wine, and we can have a drink with Dad?"

"what?"

Zhang Jinlong's expression suddenly turned somewhat unpleasant...

……