“Yi Da Ye, I'm so sorry. My mother-in-law, she was just worried about the child...”
Qin Huai Ru stammered as she explained the situation to Yi Zhong Hai.
Lying on the kang, Yi Zhong Hai's face stiffened, his smile gone.
Because of his cold, the Jia family wouldn't be celebrating the New Year with him?
They had agreed, and now they were going back on their word.
Were they afraid he would infect Bang Geng with his cold?
Colds were definitely contagious, and Bang Geng was so young. It was understandable that the Jia family would have this concern.
“I understand, and I get it,” Yi Zhong Hai said.
Yi Zhong Hai didn't want to infect Bang Geng with his cold either.
He understood the Jia family's concern.
Qin Huai Ru secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Yi Zhong Hai understood, that was good.
She observed his expression, and he didn't seem angry.
Qin Huai Ru was worried that Yi Zhong Hai would get angry and stop looking out for the Jia family.
If Yi Zhong Hai cut off ties with the Jia family, their losses would be significant.
It seemed the outcome was good.
“Then, Yi Da Ye, please take good care of yourself...” Qin Huai Ru smiled and went home.
As soon as Qin Huai Ru left, the Old Lady arrived.
Yi Zhong Hai told the Old Lady about the Jia family not celebrating the New Year with him.
“It's fine if they don't celebrate with you. You have a cold now, and the Jia family is worried about it spreading to their child, it's understandable,” the Old Lady said nonchalantly.
The Old Lady, herself, didn't want to celebrate the New Year with the Jia family, this was just as she wanted.
“Or you could celebrate the New Year with Sha Zhu,” the Old Lady suddenly mentioned Sha Zhu.
The Old Lady considered Sha Zhu as her own grandson, and she was planning to have him take care of Yi Zhong Hai in his old age, so that she could enjoy a good inheritance in the future.
Since the Old Lady was also an only child, Sha Zhu could be said to be inheriting from two "only children."
It was safe to say that Sha Zhu wouldn't be losing out if he took care of Yi Zhong Hai in his old age.
However, based on the Old Lady's observations, Sha Zhu was currently only a backup in Yi Zhong Hai's heart.
In Yi Zhong Hai's eyes, Jia Dong Xu was far more important than Sha Zhu.
But the Old Lady was subtly influencing Yi Zhong Hai.
Hearing the Old Lady mention Sha Zhu, Yi Zhong Hai thought for a moment and nodded.
After all, it would be quite lonely to celebrate the New Year with just him and the Old Lady.
With Sha Zhu and his sister, it would be quite lively to celebrate the New Year together.
Seeing Yi Zhong Hai agree, a smile appeared on the Old Lady's face.
Next, the Old Lady would go and talk to Sha Zhu.
The Old Lady was confident that she could persuade Sha Zhu.
……
As the New Year approached, even Zheng Ai Min could feel the festive atmosphere.
Things like sticking candy to melons, sweeping the house, freezing tofu, going out to buy meat, slaughtering a rooster, fermenting dough, and steaming buns.
Of course, there was also making dumplings.
His adoptive parents had bought a lot of New Year's goods.
Zheng Da Ma was busy, she had made a lot of dumplings, some with meat filling, some with cabbage filling, and some with radish filling.
She also steamed several baskets of steamed buns.
However, Zheng Ai Min couldn't eat any of it.
Currently, Zheng Ai Min's diet consisted of rice porridge, malted milk powder, and meat or tofu soup.
Compared to when Zheng Da Ma had found him, Zheng Ai Min had gained quite a bit of weight.
Zheng Da Ma was very happy. To be able to fatten up a child, this was a sign of good fortune.
Zheng Da Ma was satisfied with her current life.
In the past, she had lived a very repressed life with Yi Zhong Hai, but after the divorce, she felt like she had been reborn.
At this moment, Zheng Da Ma was holding Zheng Ai Min in the courtyard, chatting with some neighbors.
After lunch, she took a walk outside the courtyard.
She heard people talking about Yi Zhong Hai having a cold.
Zheng Da Ma hesitated for a moment, she didn't go to see Yi Zhong Hai. After all, they were divorced, and she had remarried.
If she hadn't remarried, Zheng Da Ma might have gone to see him.
Besides, a cold wasn't a big deal, was it?
She had heard people say that Yi Zhong Hai's fever had already subsided and that Jia Dong Xu's wife, Qin Huai Ru, was taking care of him.
So, it was better for her not to go.
“Yi Zhong Hai, that old geezer, has a cold?” Zheng Ai Min was a little surprised.
But he felt that Yi Zhong Hai deserved it.
In the courtyard, Yi Zhong Hai was the boss.
It couldn't be denied that Yi Zhong Hai had done a lot of good deeds, but most of them were probably done for the sake of his reputation.
In reality, Yi Zhong Hai had also schemed quite a bit.
Yi Zhong Hai had been too good to the Jia family, unnaturally good.
When Zheng Da Ma wanted to adopt a child, Yi Zhong Hai disagreed and even threatened to divorce her.
After analyzing the situation, Zheng Ai Min thought that maybe Jia Dong Xu was Yi Zhong Hai's illegitimate son, otherwise, a lot of things wouldn't make sense.
That meant Yi Zhong Hai wasn't actually an only child.
If he had a biological son, of course, he wouldn't want to adopt a child.
……
Yi Zhong Hai sighed, he needed to use the toilet but no one was there to get him a urinal.
Qin Huai Ru wasn't taking care of him either.
It was almost the New Year, and everyone was busy getting ready.
The Jia family had a lot to do as well.
So, it was understandable that Qin Huai Ru wouldn't have time to take care of Yi Zhong Hai.
But Yi Zhong Hai wasn't stupid, he knew that Qin Huai Ru probably didn't want to take care of him.
He wasn't Qin Huai Ru's real father.
In Qin Huai Ru's eyes, he was just a neighbor.
It was almost the New Year, and there were tons of things to do at home. Why would she neglect her work and take care of a neighbor? That would be crazy!
Besides, Qin Huai Ru was also worried about catching Yi Zhong Hai's cold. Even if she wasn't sick, she might still catch it through Bang Geng.
Therefore, she decided to temporarily not take care of Yi Zhong Hai.
Yi Zhong Hai could get up by himself, right?
Besides, the Old Lady and Sha Zhu could help Yi Zhong Hai.
……
In the courtyard, Qin Huai Ru started washing clothes early in the morning.
It was almost the New Year, and there was a lot of laundry to do. Besides clothes and pants, there were stinky socks, blankets, etc.
At this moment, there was a pile of clothes and pants next to Qin Huai Ru's wooden basin.
The washboard was in front of her.
It had to be said that Qin Huai Ru washed clothes quickly and cleanly.
She was just very experienced.
Back in the countryside, Qin Huai Ru had often gone to the river to wash clothes, both her own and her family's.
After marrying into the Jia family, Qin Huai Ru had washed a lot of clothes, making Jia Zhang Shi's life easier.
Before Qin Huai Ru married into the Jia family, Jia Zhang Shi was the one who washed all the dirty clothes.
Since becoming a mother-in-law, Jia Zhang Shi had basically been living a life of luxury.
Life was good, and sometimes Jia Zhang Shi would pick fights for no reason.
Besides, Jia Zhang Shi had also gained a lot of weight.
“Qin Jie, can you help me wash this?” He Yu Shui dragged a wooden basin over with difficulty. It contained a lot of clothes, both hers and Sha Zhu's.
Qin Huai Ru：……
He Yu Shui looked at Qin Huai Ru with hopeful eyes, making it difficult for Qin Huai Ru to refuse.
Sha Zhu was clumsy and couldn't wash clothes properly, and He Yu Shui was still young and found it difficult to wash clothes.
So, He Yu Shui asked Qin Huai Ru for help.
In the past, Qin Huai Ru had often helped He Yu Shui.
Although Qin Huai Ru wanted to refuse this time, she still agreed to help He Yu Shui wash her clothes.
“Thank you, Qin Jie. You are a good person.” He Yu Shui beamed with joy.
He Yu Shui then ran off, leaving Qin Huai Ru to wash clothes diligently.
The Jia family's laundry, plus Sha Zhu's family's, was a lot of work.
It would take Qin Huai Ru at least two hours to finish.
Looking at Qin Huai Ru's hands, she had some chilblains.