Courtyard Houses: Starting with the principle of hard work paying off

Chapter 197 The Best Surgeon: Jia Zhangshi Reveals Her Chicken Feet

night.

Upon learning that Chen Xueru had successfully given birth at the hospital, Li Hongmei, along with Zhao Weiguo, their eldest son Zhao Jianjun, and their youngest daughter Zhao Qingwan, rushed to the hospital to visit her.

Not surprisingly.

Just like last time, Li Hongbing did not inform Li Hongmei immediately upon arriving at the hospital. Instead, he sent someone to inform her only after Chen Xueru had successfully given birth. As a result, Li Hongbing was scolded by Li Hongmei once again.

Li Hongbing failed to keep his promise, even though he had made it last time.

Repeatedly taught.

Li Hongbing didn't want to make a big fuss, since even if Li Hongmei and the others put aside their work, they wouldn't be of much help. On the contrary, having a group of people together would put pressure on Chen Xueru.

In cases like today, I arrived at the hospital in the morning but didn't get into the delivery room until the afternoon.

Even Chen's mother and Li Hongbing could only wait here.

So what if I get complained about? I won't lose anything if Li Hongmei says a few words to me.

only.

When Li Hongmei learned that Li Hongbing had given her the name Chen Jiwen, her expression changed. However, she did not say anything on the spot, but quietly called Li Hongbing out.

"Hongbing, what were you thinking? How could you let the child take your wife's surname?"

Although Li Hongmei was quite satisfied with Chen Xueru, her sister-in-law, she still had some difficulty accepting this matter.

"Sister, I asked the staff at the neighborhood committee and the police station's household registration department, and they said that children can take their mother's surname."

Li Hongbing wasn't too surprised by Li Hongmei's reaction and offered an explanation.

Li Hongbing did not consult with her beforehand regarding this matter.

Although Li Hongmei is a relatively open-minded person, she is still quite traditional and conservative in some aspects. She cannot accept all "advanced" ideas, even though she is also a woman.

"Li Hongbing, don't try to fool me. You know this isn't what I'm asking."

Li Hongmei glared at Li Hongbing, and said with a mixture of anxiety and disappointment, "This is a child of our Li family!"

"Yes, Jiwen is of course a child of our Li family."

Li Hongbing nodded, expressing his affirmation.

"But why is his surname Chen?"

Li Hongmei didn't understand and was very angry.

If she hadn't been somewhat sensible and didn't want to make things too awkward, she would have asked these questions in front of Chen's mother and Chen Xueru while she was inside.

Li Hongmei knew that doing so was inappropriate.

Not only is it undignified, it can also easily cause rifts in their relationship and affect the harmony of Li Hongbing and Chen Xueru's marital relationship.

So she had no choice but to call Li Hongbing out alone, wanting to get to the bottom of things and find out what was going on.

"Sister, Jiwen is the child of both me and Xueru. Without Xueru's ten months of pregnancy, he would not have been born."

“He is a child of the Li family, and also a child of the Chen family, just as Xue Ru is a daughter-in-law of the Li family, and I am a son-in-law of the Chen family.”

"We're all family, why make such a big difference?"

"Are you saying that just because Jiwen shares the surname Chen with Xueru, he's not my son, Li Hongbing? Not a child of our Li family? You're not going to acknowledge him as your nephew?"

"If we really want to be so clear about it, you know Xue Ru's situation. She is the only daughter of the Chen family. What's wrong with letting Ji Wen take the surname Chen?"

"Before this, she had already given birth to Jianwu for our Li family..."

"..."

After Li Hongbing said this, Li Hongmei wanted to refute him, but she couldn't find any points to refute him.

“Hongbing, you’re well-read and eloquent; I can’t argue with you when it comes to reasoning…”

Looking at her younger brother, Li Hongbing, Li Hongmei felt a deep sense of powerlessness, but said with some pain, "But do you know what people outside will say about you, what they will think of you, if they find out what you're doing? I'm afraid..."

In Li Hongmei's view, Li Hongbing married Chen Xueru into the family, rather than becoming an adopted son-in-law of the Chen family. Such an action would obviously attract criticism.

After all.

Besides being influenced by traditional ideas, Li Hongmei also felt sorry for her younger brother Li Hongbing, fearing that he would be wronged and looked down upon because of this matter.

"Sis, do you think I'm someone who's easy to bully?"

Upon hearing this, Li Hongbing couldn't help but smile and said reassuringly, "This is a new society now, and the old ways don't work anymore. If anyone dares to come up to me and say anything gossipy, I'll give them a good slap across the face."

"Sigh, maybe I'm really out of touch. Since you've already made up your mind, I won't say anything more."

After a moment of silence, Li Hongmei finally sighed and said this helplessly.

Li Hongmei's compromise was not because she approved of or accepted the matter, but because she realized that Li Hongbing and Chen Xueru had already discussed it and that Li Hongbing's mind was made up.

There's no point in persisting; it would only make me look bad.

Another point is that Li Hongmei felt that since she was already married, Li Hongbing was the true head of the Li family, and she had no right to interfere.

And most importantly.

This is because, as Li Hongbing just mentioned, Chen Xueru had already given birth to Li Jianwu for the Li family, thus continuing the family line.

If their first child had the surname Chen, Li Hongmei would never have compromised so quickly, even if it meant offending her sister-in-law Chen Xueru.

Back in the ward, Li Hongmei didn't show any dissatisfaction. Instead, she expressed concern for Chen Xueru, stayed to chat for a while, and played with the newborn Chen Jiwen before finally leaving with Zhao Weiguo, Zhao Jianjun, and Zhao Qingwan.

As the older sister, even though she had some thoughts in her mind, she still took care of her younger brother Li Hongbing's dignity.

same.

As a smart and meticulous woman, how could Chen Xueru not notice anything amiss? While her mother went out to fetch water, she whispered to Li Hongbing, "Hongbing, is my sister unhappy?"

Actually, Chen Xueru's biggest worry about her second son taking her surname was that her older sister, Li Hongmei, would have objections.

When Li Hongmei first learned about this matter, her expression changed immediately. Chen Xueru had already noticed this and observed her action of calling Li Hongbing out.

However, when Li Hongmei and Li Hongbing returned, they acted as if nothing had happened and showed no negative emotions whatsoever.

This made Chen Xueru very curious about what Li Hongbing had said to her.

"Don't worry, I'm an open-minded person. Give her some time, and she'll understand and figure it out."

Li Hongbing knew that Chen Xueru could tell if Li Hongmei had any thoughts or unhappiness, so he didn't intend to hide anything. Instead, he explained and reassured her, "Don't overthink it, I've got you covered!"

When two eras clash, disagreements and sparks are inevitable, but these are not fatal problems.

People's thoughts always change over time.

There are some things that Li Hongbing is powerless to fight against.

Just like the previous public-private partnership and the subsequent rise of the winds and currents, Li Hongbing never intended to resist; at most, he would guide and follow the trend. But some things were just trivial matters to Li Hongbing.

Even if Li Hongmei couldn't understand it at first, once she accepted it and got over that mental hurdle, it wasn't a big deal.

Li Hongbing has his own sense of proportion and standards regarding what is permissible and what is not.

……

a few days later.

Chen Xueru was discharged from the hospital and was picked up by Li Hongbing and taken home.

Li Hongbing was overjoyed to have a son, and naturally received congratulations from everyone in the courtyard. During this process, he was inevitably asked about Chen Jiwen's name.

"Chen Jiwen? Chen?"

Yan Bugui was completely dumbfounded when he received this answer.

Seeing Yan Bugui standing there in a daze, Li Hongbing smiled slightly and took the initiative to speak, "What's wrong, Uncle Yan? Do you think there's something wrong with the name I chose?"

"No, no, the name Jiwen is naturally excellent."

Fearing that Li Hongbing might misunderstand, Yan Bugui quickly explained, then pondered and said, "The character 'Ji' is composed of 'water' and 'Qi,' and its original meaning refers to the name of a river. It also has the saying 'to cross the river together in the same boat.' There is an ancient saying that 'when one is successful, one should help the world.' It also refers to success and achievement. The Book of Documents, 'Jun Dong,' says, 'One must be patient before one can achieve success.'"

As for the writing itself, it naturally involves literary talent and style…

It must be said that Yan Bugui is quite learned; those who have attended private schools are indeed different.

Yan Bugui naturally thought the name Li Hongbing chose was excellent and of high quality.

Chen Xueru's surname is Chen, and Li Hongbing's second son, Chen Jiwen, also has the surname Chen, so naturally he takes his mother Chen Xueru's surname. Yan Bugui also thought of this.

What Yan Bugui really couldn't understand was why Li Hongbing would let his second son take the surname Chen, which was not his surname. He was just afraid that if he questioned it, it would displease Li Hongbing or even offend him.

"Uncle Yan, are you wondering why he's called Chen Jiwen instead of Li Jiwen?"

Seeing that Yan Bugui had an idea in mind and was already planning it, but was hesitant to speak up, Li Hongbing spoke up for him and explained, "Xue Ru is the only daughter in the family. This is my father-in-law's last wish. As his son-in-law, I naturally have to respect the elder's wishes."

This is a new society now, with gender equality. Children can take their father's surname, and naturally, they can also take their mother's surname. I specifically asked Director Wang and Director Yang of the neighborhood office, as well as the officer in charge of household registration at the police station, and they confirmed that this is permitted and supported by the state..."

Originally, the civil affairs department and the street office were responsible for managing household registration.

However, with the implementation of the Household Registration Regulations in January of this year, the management authority was transferred to the public security organs, and the household registration system officially entered a new stage of unified management by the public security system.

Li Hongbing directly brought up the street office and the police station, and proactively made his stance clear, obviously to shut some people up and prevent them from talking nonsense.

Questioning and criticizing his actions is tantamount to questioning the neighborhood committee and the police station, and questioning the country's policies and management system.

When it comes to escalating accusations and making sweeping generalizations, Li Hongbing is no less adept than Yi Zhonghai.

If you don't want to offend Li Hongbing or cause him trouble, then you have no choice but to keep your mouth shut.

Even if you gossip or talk about it in private, offending Li Hongbing will only make things difficult for yourself.

If people gossip behind closed doors, Li Hongbing doesn't care, nor can he interfere.

But if he talks nonsense outside and Li Hongbing finds out, he'll be in big trouble.

One of this person's worst traits is that he bullies the weak and fears the strong, and likes to climb up and step on the low.

Regarding Chen Jiwen taking his mother Chen Xueru's surname, many people were naturally curious and gossiping about it privately. However, with Li Hongbing's statement, those who didn't want to offend him kept their opinions to themselves and didn't gossip outside.

Of course.

There are exceptions.

Upon learning of this, Yi Zhonghai and the Jia family gathered together to secretly complain and watch the spectacle unfold.

"This Li Hongbing is really getting worse with age. His own child has even taken a different surname. If Li Fushun finds out, he'll be so angry he'll jump out of his coffin and settle scores with this unfilial descendant, Li Hongbing..."

Jia Zhangshi laughed the loudest.

Among the people in the room, besides Yi Zhonghai and Jia Dongxu, she was the only one who had a direct conflict with Li Hongbing.

Thanks to Li Hongbing, she suffered several misfortunes and a lot of hardship.

"Without any elders around, Li Hongbing's actions are utterly laughable and a disgrace to his ancestors."

Upon hearing Jia Zhangshi's words, Yi Zhonghai shook his head and gloated, "So what if he's a first-class cook? He's made men lose all face. People don't want to offend Li Hongbing on the surface, but who knows how they'll laugh at him behind his back!"

At this moment.

Yi Zhonghai felt as refreshed as if he had just drunk a sip of cool, sweet well water on a sweltering summer day.

Especially when it comes to the topic of male dignity.

Although he no longer has that thing, no one else knows it. But even though Li Hongbing is perfectly healthy, in Yi Zhonghai's eyes, what he did this time was a complete disgrace to men and the Li family ancestors.

"Hey! Li Hongbing is shrewd! He might be after the Chen family's wealth, selling his son for personal gain. Now he's even brought his mother-in-law to live with him. He'll definitely have to take care of her in her old age. What's the difference between this and marrying into the Chen family?"

Jia Dongxu was filled with envy and jealousy, but his words were full of sarcasm and disdain.

Not only them, but even Wang Guihua chimed in with a few words.

Even if they had no prior conflict with Li Hongbing, they still couldn't condone his actions.

They used to keep their complaints and jokes to themselves behind closed doors, and Li Hongbing was unaware of it and couldn't do anything about it.

Can be biased.

Jia Zhangshi was a restless person, and this incident gave her a sense of superiority. She felt that Li Hongbing was a disgrace and had become the subject of gossip, giving her the right to laugh at Li Hongbing.

then.

Just as Li Hongbing returned to work at Fengzeyuan, Jia Zhangshi went to Chen's mother and belittled and mocked her, resulting in Chen's mother slapping her twice in anger.

Jia Zhangshi was not one to suffer a loss. After being beaten, she naturally couldn't swallow her anger and immediately retaliated.

However, just as Jia Zhangshi was about to fight with Chen's mother, Aunt Yan and the others panicked and rushed forward to "break up" the fight, holding Jia Zhangshi down.

When Chen's mother moved into the courtyard house, Li Hongbing specifically told them to take care of her and help her as much as possible.

Although it was just a polite remark, they hadn't forgotten it.

and.

If they were present and watched as Chen's mother was attacked by Jia Zhangshi, even if it was a mutual fight, it would be troublesome if Li Hongbing found out that they stood by and did nothing.

Most importantly, if they helped Chen's mother, given Li Hongbing's personality and everyone's understanding of him, they certainly wouldn't treat them unfairly.

When there are good opportunities, everyone is scrambling to get them, afraid of falling behind.

The eagerness of everyone rushing to the front startled Jia Zhangshi, who thought that so many people were going to gang up on her, and she quickly ran back home in fright.

(End of this chapter)