Siheyuan, Shazhu: I have both parents in this life

Chapter 194 My Son He Yaozu

He Yuzhu leaned closer and saw that the little one in the swaddling clothes was all wrinkled, its eyes not fully open yet, but its little mouth was wide open, crying with all its might.

The crying sounded like celestial music to him. He wanted to reach out and touch the child's face, but his fingers trembled violently.

"Zhu Zi, come and see my great-grandson!" The old lady peeked into the swaddling clothes, her face crinkling with laughter. "Look at that voice, just like yours when you were little, like thunder!"

“She looks just like her father, look at her nose and forehead.” Chen Lanxiang wiped away tears from the corners of her eyes, then turned to the nurse and asked, “Doctor, how is my daughter-in-law?”

"The mother is a little exhausted, she'll be delivered soon." The nurse handed the baby to He Yuzhu, "Here, let the baby's father hold him."

He Yuzhu carefully took the child, feeling that the little body was as soft as a ball of cotton.

He was afraid of hurting the child if he used too much force, so his arm was stiff as a stick, which made the nurse laugh: "Relax, support the bottom, yes, just like that."

The little one seemed to sense his father's embrace, or perhaps he was tired from crying, because his crying gradually subsided, and he smacked his lips and fell asleep.

He Yuzhu looked down at his son's closed eyes, his aggrieved expression suddenly filling him with an unprecedented tenderness.

He recalled the anxiety he felt outside the delivery room, and the journey he and Qiao Lingyi had taken over the past few years, from chaos to peace, to their mutual support and companionship. Now, the arrival of this little life was like a timely rain, irrigating the driest corner of his heart.

"Brother, brother, what name are you planning to give my nephew?" He Yushui asked, leaning closer.

He Yuzhu thought for a moment, looked at the sunlight streaming in through the window, then at his son sleeping peacefully in his arms, and blurted out: "He Yaozu".

"Great! Great name!" Chen Lanxiang nodded repeatedly. "Yaozu, to bring glory to one's ancestors, great!"

Just then, several doctors pushed out a hospital bed.

Qiao Lingyi lay there, pale-faced, her wet hair plastered to her forehead. When she saw the child in He Yuzhu's arms, her eyes immediately lit up, and her voice, though weak, held a smile: "Brother Zhu, our child is a boy..."

"Xiaoman, you've worked so hard." He Yuzhu half-squatted down beside the hospital bed and brought the child closer to her. "Look, this little guy is asleep, and he's just as handsome as you."

Qiao Lingyi reached out and gently touched the child's face, and tears welled up in her eyes—tears of joy.

He Yushui was being directed around by Chen Lanxiang as she went about her hospitalization procedures and ward arrangements.

As for He Yuzhu, he had already been sent home to prepare postpartum meals, and he even took the old lady and the two boys home with him.

He Yuzhu escorted the old lady to the gate of the compound, had his two younger brothers help her inside, and then sped away.

Not long after, he returned with several chickens in his car, both roosters and hens. He then entered the courtyard through the east gate.

After going in, they started boiling water and killing chickens. We don't know how well Xiaoman (the solar term) is helping with milk production, so we'll have rooster soup first. If it helps with milk production, we'll switch to hen soup.

Nutrition is the most important thing; having a child these days leaves your body severely depleted.

He Yuxin and He Yuyao heard the commotion in the east courtyard and ran over to help. After several months of practicing basic cooking skills, the two boys were quite adept at washing vegetables and plucking chicken feathers.

Now that I'm back to cook, I definitely can't just cook for Xiaoman alone.

After preparing meals for everyone, He Yuzhu packed Xiaoman's rice and soup in a lunchbox and thermos, as well as Chen Lanxiang's and He Yushui's portions. He instructed He Yuxin and He Yuyao to take good care of their younger brother and the old lady at home, and then drove directly to the hospital.

When they arrived at the hospital, Xiaoman was already asleep, and He Yushui was practically drooling over the delicious food.

After a while, Xiaoman woke up and drank a small amount of chicken soup from a thermos, and her face regained some color.

He Yushui took a sip of the remaining chicken soup from Xiaoman Festival and said, "Brother, you didn't add salt?"

"What do you know? Too much salt is bad for your nephew."

"Oh, how can we eat this dish if it has no flavor?"

"I brought you some salt, you can add it yourself." He Yuzhu took out a small packet of salt from his pocket.

"My brother is still the best to me, hehe."

"Mom, have something to eat too. You've been busy all morning."

"Row."

After dinner, He Yuzhu was kicked out by Chen Lanxiang, who said that he couldn't help with anything except cooking and delivering food.

He Yuzhu went back to his workplace, but left again before the end of the workday, by car.

He has now streamlined his work, and his subordinates are completely under his control. At the end of the day, there is basically nothing that requires his personal attention.

He went home and cooked, making another pot of chicken soup. He left the food at home and then rushed to the hospital.

Xiaoman's breast milk is doing well, so He Yuzhu plans to switch to chicken soup tomorrow. There are red dates, and the people in the western desert also sent him some goji berries before. When the previous batch of supplies was sent there, they didn't have anything worthwhile to offer, so these little things are a token of their gratitude.

After get off work, He Daqing rode his bicycle to see his grandson, but when he heard that a name had already been chosen, he felt a little depressed, as he was still thinking of naming his grandson.

However, when asked what name He Daqing had in mind, he wouldn't say, because it wasn't as good as the one his son had suggested.

He Yushui stayed to keep watch over the girl that night. She was already quite grown up, and it would be unacceptable if she couldn't handle this little thing properly.

He Yuzhu drove He Daqing and Chen Lanxiang home. The next day, He Yuzhu took Chen Lanxiang to the hospital with breakfast before going to work.

He Yushui couldn't get a ride home, so she had to take the bus by herself.

He Yuzhu brought lunch again at noon, but this time he didn't cook at home; he cooked it in the company cafeteria.

When the head chef of the canteen saw He Yuzhu bring a bunch of ingredients, he thought he was going to cook a special meal for lunch. But He Yuzhu had already asked everyone to leave, saying he was going to cook postpartum meals. When He Yuzhu started cooking, the chefs who had come to watch were dumbfounded. The new deputy factory director's cooking skills were better than theirs.

Moreover, they had never seen any official cook postpartum meals for his wife.

After finishing his meal, He Yuzhu quickly ate his own and started delivering food. After delivering to the hospital, He Yuzhu went home to deliver some more. He Yuxin and He Yuyao came running out after the car horn sounded twice. The two boys were overjoyed to see the food He Yuzhu had brought back.

They genuinely didn't expect that their sister-in-law's childbirth would improve their lives.

Xiaoman asked to go home after lying in the hospital for three days. She was worried that He Yuzhu would get too tired from running around. Chen Lanxiang could also make chicken soup, but of course, He Daqing at the steel mill could make it even better if they took the ingredients.

However, He Yuzhu still decided to cook for himself. It's just that instead of three meals a day, now it's just one lunch. He Daqing cooks the dinner meal whenever he doesn't have any entertaining duties.

The He family had been enjoying chicken for a while, so much so that the kids were getting tired of it. Finally, Xiaoman strongly protested, and He Yuzhu changed the menu a bit.

This guy has turtles in his spatial pond, and then the simple chicken soup turned into a tragic tale of farewell to a heroine. The first meal of it made He Yuxin and He Yuyao's noses bleed.

After that, they could only watch their family eat, and the way they looked at He Yuzhu was so resentful. In the end, He Yuzhu had no choice but to cook a braised pork dish to appease the two brothers.

Xiaoman wanted to eat some too, but she was only given a little bit, because He Yuzhu didn't know how to make braised pork with less salt.

Before we knew it, Yaozu was a month old. He Yuzhu set up a small table at home, and all the guests were his closest relatives.

Old Fang himself didn't come, but he had several cans of milk powder delivered to him.

As for He Yuzhu from the factory, he didn't invite anyone because he wasn't familiar with them, and he dismissed those who tried to give him gifts by saying he didn't need any.

When the weather got too hot in August, He Yuzhu brought two electric fans home. Then the children all huddled together to sleep, and Wang Cuiping went directly to He Yushui's small side room, leaving her west wing room for the children.

Despite eating a lot for over a month, Xiaoman didn't gain weight, but all the other children had rosy cheeks.

Now, the first thing they do after washing up is to run to see their nephew. Because of the good milk supply, He Yaozu is now chubby and fair-skinned, and he really looks like Xiaoman. His big eyes are bright and adorable.

After having children, He Yuzhu rarely goes out during holidays. He spends all his time taking care of his children. His younger siblings have asked him several times, but he hasn't taken them out to play like he did during the holidays last year. Xiaoman even asked him, "Brother Zhu, why don't you take them out to play?"

"No, my son is more fun."

"Oh, so you've been treating our son like a toy."

"No way, he's so cute."

"What do you think he'll do when he grows up? Like you?"

"No way, I just want to be like you: study hard, go to university, get a stable job, get married and have children."

"Yes, their generation doesn't need to experience war anymore."

He Yuzhu didn't say anything. If his son were to stay safely in China at this age, he might be caught up in the war, and things could get very different then.

"Brother Zhu, Brother Zhu, what are you thinking about? You're lost in thought."

"It's okay, he's still so young, why think so much? Who knows what he'll be like in twenty years?"

"That's right."

He Yaozu made two timely "ah, ah" sounds, and the couple exchanged a knowing smile.

Summer rainfall was significantly more than last year, and He Yuzhu knew that the drought was basically over, but recovery would take a long time.

Summer vacation is over, and Xiaoman's maternity leave is over. Now Chen Lanxiang is taking care of the child every day. Every day when she comes back, she praises her grandson for being more well-behaved than her son and daughter when they were young.

Perhaps He Daqing was more fond of his grandchildren, because he spent more time holding He Yaozu than He Yuzhu.

In mid-September, He Yuzhu received a call from Lao Fang, and then he went to Lao Fang's place.

"Zhu Zi, there's been some progress on the matter you asked me to investigate."

"Oh, I knew you guys could do it."

"Don't flatter us. You have no idea how much effort you've put in."

"What's the specific situation?"

"Before I say anything, I need to ask you, how do you know that the bald eagle is currently supporting the small-time electronics industry?"

"You guessed it."

"Guessed? Then why couldn't others guess it?"

"I've been abroad many times, after all."

Don't try to fool me.

"Then let me give a simple analysis: is the bald eagle currently competing with the bear?"

"correct."

"You don't know anything about what the Russians are up to, do you?"

You mean long-range strikes and attacks from the air?

"So, if the bald eagle wants to suppress the bear, what would it do?"

"Does this have anything to do with the question I asked you?"

"Somewhat. If the United States wants to restructure its domestic industries, does that mean it has to move some things out of the country, freeing up domestic factories and labor?"

"That doesn't make sense either, why is it called 'small days'?"

"Because the little ones are terrified of the giant mushroom bombs from the Bald Eagle, they're obedient. Who threw them those?"

"What you're saying makes some sense, but no, no, you've got me all confused. What does all this have to do with semiconductors?"

"Actually, I got a little bit of information in Hong Kong, but I couldn't verify it. I happened to be doing this after I came back, so I asked you to help me verify it."

"It's been verified now, and it's exactly as you thought, but we can't go to any of them."

"Can't go? I can understand if Bald Eagle can't go, but Xiao Rizi can't go? I don't believe you guys don't have a way?"

"This is very troublesome."

"You're just going to give up on something that's too much trouble? That doesn't seem like your style, Lao Fang."

"It's still very dangerous. There's no one to help us or support us. We're isolated and helpless. This isn't a short-term mission. It'll be very difficult for my people to complete it."

"So there's a way to get through?"

"Hmm, why are you asking so many questions? You're not thinking of going by yourself again, are you? No way, absolutely not. Look at your big body, you don't look like someone who lives a simple life."

"Can't I eat well in the country?"

Who do you think would believe that?

Does it matter whether you believe it or not? As long as we can get through this, that's all that matters.

"No, I don't agree to this. Your son is only two months old."

"Alright, then pretend I was never here. I'm leaving."

"I knew I shouldn't have told you. Here are some more documents for you to take. They've been filtered. See if they can be of any help to you."

"Thanks, Lao Fang!" He Yuzhu picked up the documents and left.

After He Yuzhu left, Lao Fang was caught in a dilemma, a dilemma beyond ordinary dilemma.

Based on his previous style of doing things, he would never let go of any opportunity, but when it came to He Yuzhu, he really hesitated.

This kid has risked his life for the country so many times, and he has completed each mission perfectly. He has no demands on the country, and he has no complaints about being wronged or treated unfairly. He feels that He Yuzhu's contributions are enough.

However, this matter is too important. The disaster is not over yet, and there are still wolves lurking outside. What should we do?
Old Fang picked up the phone several times but hung up again. Finally, he sighed and said he was going to make a call.

"Sir, I have something I'd like to ask for your opinion on."

"You old rascal, you rarely speak like this. Tell me, let me hear what's troubling you."

Old Fang explained the situation, and there was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

After a long while, the other end spoke up: "Things are more complicated than you think. I can't make the decision on this myself. I also need to consult with my superiors. If this is handled well, it will be fine, but if someone finds out, it will be a big problem."

"I know, then I'll hang up now, sir."

"Wait for my news. By the way, bring Xiao He to see me when you have time. I also want to meet our hero."

"Yes."

(End of this chapter)