Country Love: Xie Dajiao, 37, is pregnant!

The next morning at seven o'clock, the sun climbed over the wall, and several freshly washed clothes were hanging on the wire in Chang Gui's yard, still dripping water, swaying slowly in the wind.

At this moment, Changgui was lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), not wanting to move an inch, and making groaning noises.

Xiangxiu stayed up too late last night and was too lazy to go home, so she simply slept at the clinic.

She came back early this morning, firstly to wash and dress up, secondly to pick up her stockings, and thirdly to wait for Lin Chen's call.

The moment Xiangxiu pushed open the door and entered the room, she was completely stunned.

Wang Changgui, who is usually afraid of being late and losing his job, is unusually staying on the kang (a heated brick bed) today.

With a hot towel on his lower back and his face buried in the pillow, he looked listless and weak.

Xiangxiu raised her eyebrows, strode forward, and asked:

"Dad, what's wrong? Why are you bedridden? Aren't you going to work today?"

Wang Changgui struggled to lift his head, his eyelids drooping, his lips dry, and his eyes slightly dark.

He dared not lift his lower back forcefully, his head was tilted to the side, and he groaned weakly.

"I asked for leave from the station and I'm not going today. I feel a bit uneasy."

"Dad, you're someone who goes to work every day without fail, so how come you can take a day off? You must be really feeling unwell."

Xiangxiu leaned closer to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), tilted her head, and stared at his face, finding something increasingly off.

Chang Gui's eyes darted around twice, then he forced himself to make up a lie, pretending to be very serious:

"It's nothing, I just strained my back while working. You weren't home yesterday, and I was tidying up the storeroom when I was doing something. I didn't put my strength in the right place and twisted my lower back. Now I can't straighten my back, and it hurts terribly whenever I move."

"No way, Dad?"

Xiangxiu frowned, pursed her lips, and looked him up and down, her face full of puzzlement:

"You've worked your whole life, and you managed to strain your back like this while cleaning the warehouse? You don't look too good."

"Did you catch a chill at night? I'll get you two cold pills; see if they help."

Wang Changgui guiltily declined, but remembering how she hadn't come back no matter how much he called her last night, he glared at Xiangxiu, his voice rising in impatience:

"What cold or flu? It's just a sprained back. There's nothing wrong with your bones. Just rest in bed for a day and you'll be fine. You don't need any medicine. Don't do anything unnecessary!"

Last night, it was just him and Wang Yun at home. The two of them dawdled and played until the middle of the night, turning the lights on and off repeatedly. It's understandable for a young person, but they didn't even consider how old he was.

Within two minutes, Wang Yun walked in carrying an enamel mug of hot water.

She looked quite well today, her complexion was much rosier, and she looked at Xiangxiu as if she were her own daughter.

"Xiu, don't listen to your dad's exaggeration. It's nothing serious. I just boiled some water and applied a hot towel to his skin several times. Massaging it in will make him feel much better."

"Have you had breakfast yet? There's some corn stubble and pickled vegetables left in the pot, it's all ready-made, have a bowl to tide you over."

Xiangxiu didn't notice the subtle actions and knowing glances between the two. She casually waved her hand, turned around, and headed straight for her room.

"I won't eat anymore, Aunt Yun. I have to go back to the clinic for my shift. Old Wang is busy today, so I can't get away. I just came back to get something."

She went back to her room, opened a drawer, took out the unopened pair of stockings, thought for a moment, then took another pair and stuffed them into her small black handbag.

Before leaving, he glanced back at the dejected Chang Gui and casually gave him a word of advice:

"Dad, then you should lie down and rest. If your back hurts so much you can't bear it, just call the clinic. I'll come back and put some plasters on you. That stuff stops pain really fast."

After saying that, he casually closed the door and went out to the clinic.

Once the footsteps in the courtyard could no longer be heard, Wang Changgui, who had been putting on airs, instantly lost all his strength, slammed his head back onto the pillow, let out a long sigh, and looked utterly frustrated.

He glanced at Wang Yun and said in a low, annoyed voice:

"Look at the mess this has made! If others find out, they'll laugh at us. What will become of my reputation as a village official? If word gets out, I'll never be able to hold my head up in Ivory Mountain again. It's so embarrassing!"

Wang Yun gently placed the water cup on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), crossed his arms, and said with a smile:

"What's so shameful about this? We've already agreed to live together as a couple, and we'll get our marriage certificate and have a wedding banquet sooner or later. The whole village will know sooner or later."

"To put it bluntly, this isn't my fault. It's just that your body couldn't handle it, and you can't blame it on me?"

"I'd been single for so many years, it's normal that I didn't perform well!"

"Okay, let's continue tonight."

One sentence was enough to choke Wang Changgui, leaving him so ashamed he didn't know where to put his face. He simply buried his head in the quilt and pretended to be asleep, keeping his mouth shut and not daring to utter a word of rebuttal.

At this time, at Lin Chen's home.

A low wooden table was placed on the kang (a heated brick bed), and four people were eating breakfast around it, chatting noisily in the room.

The millet porridge, simmered slowly in a large pot, was sticky and smooth. The flatbread had a crispy outer layer that looked just like a pancake. There was also a bowl of steamed egg custard that Wang Xiaomeng had made early in the morning, specially for Xie Dajiao, who was pregnant, to nourish her body.

Simple, home-cooked meals, nothing fancy.

Xie Dajiao, holding a bowl, scooped a spoonful of steamed egg custard, her eyes constantly glancing at Wang Xiaomeng sitting to the side. She couldn't hide the amusement in her eyes as she slowly began to tease the little girl, harboring a mischievous thought:

"Xiao Meng, how did you sleep in Lin Chen's room last night? Was his kang (heated brick bed) warm? It was chilly at night, did you catch a cold?"

Wang Xiaomeng blushed instantly at just that one joke.

She's naturally shy and reserved, with her head practically buried in her bowl.

"Mmm...it's warm, I slept really well."

Sitting next to her, Xie Xiaomei couldn't hold back her laughter. Her shoulders twitched as she chuckled silently. Unable to contain herself any longer, she nudged Wang Xiaomeng's arm lightly with her elbow and joined in the fun.

"Of course! Brother Chen planned for Xiao Meng to stay overnight, worried that she'd get cold in the mountains late at night, so he specially heated the kang (heated brick bed) really hot. I never got this treatment when I stayed here before. Brother Chen is just being biased!"

"Ugh, stop talking! You're so annoying!"

Wang Xiaomeng's face burned, and she shyly reached out and gently pushed Xie Xiaomei away, a secret smile playing on her lips, her heart filled with sweet joy.

Lin Chen saw all the girl's embarrassed and shy little actions, and shook his head and smiled helplessly.

"It was over 30 degrees Celsius back then. If you heated the kang (a traditional heated brick bed) then, you'd be scalded to death!"

He scooped another spoonful of steamed egg custard into Xie Dajiao's bowl and then stopped the two of them from joking around:

"Alright, you two, stop teasing her. She's already shy. Hurry up and eat. Didn't you two say you were going to drive to the county town to check out the bean product processing machines? The dirt roads in the countryside are hard to drive on, so drive slowly and watch your step."

Xie Dajiao smiled with her eyes narrowed and joked:

"Look at Lin Chen, he's so protective of him."

She joked and teased, but she was actually very satisfied with Wang Xiaomeng, and Wang Xiaomeng also liked the lifestyle here.

After a quick meal and a simple cleanup, Xie Xiaomei grabbed her bag, car keys, and headed towards the county town with Wang Xiaomeng. The two chatted about tofu workshop equipment and sourcing channels as they went about their business.

Lin Chen was left alone in the courtyard with the pregnant Xie Dajiao as they slowly walked toward the grocery store.

The two strolled to Big Foot Grocery Store, where old-fashioned wooden shelves were crammed full, with oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, cigarettes, alcohol, snacks, and bulk groceries piled up haphazardly.

The middle section is very small; it's so crowded during mealtimes that even slightly overweight people have to squeeze through sideways.

Xie Dajiao is pregnant. It's not obvious yet, but when she's further along in her pregnancy, she's afraid to put weight on herself while walking, what if she bumps or falls?

Lin Chen looked around at the layout, his brows furrowing as he observed. He circled the shop inside and out, then said bluntly:

"This shop needs to be expanded; we can't just make do like this anymore."

"Break down this partition wall in the middle, expand it further back, combine the two rooms into one, and turn it into a small supermarket."

Xie Dajiao immediately waved her hand, clearly distressed about the money; typical of the frugal nature of rural life, she repeatedly declined.

"Oh, don't bother expanding it. Just make do with selling goods. I've been running this shop for years, and business has always been steady and smooth, without any problems."

"Besides, renovations, new shelves, and stocking up require a large sum of cash, and small businesses shouldn't waste money on such extravagance."

Lin Chen grabbed her arm, spread his arms, spun her around in a circle, and patiently said:

"This isn't about saving money or not; look how crowded it is."

"The key is that you're pregnant, and your belly is getting bigger every day. This aisle is too narrow. When you're busy running the shop, you might accidentally bump your belly, which would be dangerous for both you and the baby. No business is more important than safety."

"Furthermore, money is earned, not saved. If you expand your store and stock a wide variety of goods, people in the surrounding area will be more willing to buy things from your big store, and your profits will definitely double. If you don't renovate, you can build a big supermarket somewhere else and attract all those people away."

Xie Dajiao lowered her head and touched her lower abdomen. She knew that it was cramped and unsafe to walk around in this room, but she was heartbroken about spending so much money and had some doubts.

Seeing that she had relaxed, Lin Chen squatted down on the muddy ground in front of the shop, picked up a pebble, and sketched a rough layout of the shop on the spot. As he drew, he counted the detailed expenses on his fingers for her:

"Look, if we break this open, the total area will be just right at forty or fifty square meters. We can put a glass counter at the entrance for cigarettes and such, multi-tiered grocery shelves on the east side, and large groceries like grains, oils, rice, and noodles at the back. We can also put a large standing freezer here. The room will have a simple, flat ceiling, and it will be clean and bright. You can walk around safely even if you're heavily pregnant."