1940s: I supported my wife and sister-in-law by hunting.

When Xinghua was asked this question, she glanced at her mother-in-law somewhat embarrassedly.

Chen Liushi plopped down on the kang (a heated brick bed). "Doctor Zhou is treating you, there's nothing to be embarrassed about. Everyone suffers when they're sick, and your father and I can't take your place, so don't be shy."

Xinghua's face flushed, and she counted the days on her fingers, not caring about anything else. "I usually come on the fifteenth of every month, but I didn't come last month."

When was the first time you slept with Shanzi?

Seeing her daughter-in-law struggling to speak, Chen Liu, being an experienced woman herself, immediately understood what Old Doctor Zhou meant by asking that question. In her haste, she spoke for her.

"Shanzi and Xinghua consummated their marriage on the first day of the second lunar month."

Lianhua stood to the side, her heart pounding in her chest, anxiously watching the old doctor. "Uncle Zhou, how is my sister? Is it serious? Could she have gotten delirium?"

The old doctor smiled.

He smiled, looked at Old Man Chen and his wife, and cupped his hands in greeting.

"Congratulations! This is wonderful news! Your wife isn't sick, she's pregnant! It's been more than a month since she got pregnant."

The pregnancy is going well, but she's a bit weak since she just got pregnant. Plus, the stress and anxiety she just experienced caused her to faint. It's nothing serious. I'll prescribe some mild medicine to help with the pregnancy. Just let her rest and avoid worrying; that's more important than anything else.

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent instantly. Old Chen stood there, mouth agape, unable to react for a long time. Chen Liu's eyes widened, and it took her quite a while to come to her senses.

"Dr. Zhou, what did you say? My Xinghua...is pregnant? The Chen family is going to have a grandson?"

"It's absolutely true. The pulse is smooth and slippery; it's a pregnancy pulse, no doubt about it. Come to my house to pick up the medicine in a bit."

Chen Liu hurriedly ran to the kitchen and took out three eggs and a rabbit skin from a basket hanging from the rafters.

That covers the consultation fee and the cost of medicine.

After Dr. Zhou left, Old Man Chen returned after seeing the person off.

Just a moment ago he was frowning, but now he's laughing so hard he's practically rolling on the floor, pacing back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back, muttering to himself.

"Great news! Great news! The Chen family is going to have a new member! We were just thinking about how unlucky things were going on at home, and now this wonderful news has arrived!"

Tears streamed down Chen Liu's face. She completely forgot about her son, who was still fast asleep on the other side of the kang (a heated brick bed). The heartless boy was sleeping soundly, his deafening snores could be heard halfway through the room.

It has to be their apricot blossoms.

She reached out and smoothed Xinghua's hair.

"My silly daughter, don't you know in your heart whether you're pregnant or not? Why didn't you tell your mother sooner? You really scared your mother to death... It's good that you're alright, it's good that you're alright. Our Chen family will finally have a new generation, the eldest branch will finally have an heir!"

Lotus quickly moved closer to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"That's great, sis! You're finally pregnant! Now your brother down here can finally rest easy!"

Xinghua lowered her head, reached out her hand, and touched her very flat stomach.

She was actually pregnant! It turns out it was never her problem; she was capable of having children!

She can give birth.

My nose tingled, and my eyes instantly welled up with tears, yet I couldn't help but smile.

"Mother, Lotus, I'm pregnant, I'm really pregnant..."

Seeing Xinghua both crying and laughing, Chen Liu nodded repeatedly and reached out to wipe away her tears.

"Yes, she's pregnant! Our Xinghua is pregnant with the Chen family's child! Mother will go to the kitchen right now to stew some meat for you, to nourish your body. When that brat Shanzi wakes up and finds out he's going to be a father, he'll be so happy he'll jump for joy!"

·····

Chen Gaoshan slept soundly, without even having a dream, and completely drifted off to sleep.

When he finally woke up and opened his eyes, it was already pitch black outside the window. Inside the room, only an oil lamp was lit, its flame flickering.

The chill that had been lingering on my body finally began to dissipate slowly on the warm kang (heated brick bed).

The old saying was right: the silly boy slept on the cold kang (heated brick bed), all thanks to his strong body. He was young and healthy, and after this sleep, he finally warmed up his frozen body.

As soon as he opened his eyes and saw the scene before him, Chen Gaoshan was so frightened that he almost fainted again.

He saw his mother, Chen Liu, Xinghua, and Lianhua sitting quietly around him on the edge and inside of the kang (a heated brick bed). Their six eyes were fixed on him without blinking or making a sound, which made him feel very uneasy.

He rubbed his eyes and spoke in a low voice.

"Mom, what are you all doing? Why are you all sitting around me like you're chanting a mantra? It's really creepy."

Seeing that the people who had slept for most of the day had finally woken up, Chen Liushi, Xinghua, and Lianhua felt the weight lifted from their hearts after an afternoon of worry. They couldn't hide their joy, their eyes were shining, and they were so excited that they didn't know what to do with their hands and feet.

Chen Liu was both angry and happy. She raised her hand and slapped his arm hard, but couldn't help touching his arm to check if his body was still cold.

"Shanzi, are you still half asleep? You've already forgotten about crawling into the ice hole to pick up the hanging ornaments? You can't seem to calm down unless you cause some trouble every day!"

"You won't stop until you scare your family to death, will you? You troublemaking brat!"

After scolding him, she immediately remembered his health and her tone softened.

"Are you thirsty? The ginger water I made for you is still warm on the pot. Dad, hurry up and bring the ginger water over!"

Hearing the shouts, Old Chen quickly walked in. Seeing his son's rosy cheeks and that he had almost fully recovered and was completely alright, Old Chen finally relaxed his tense shoulders and breathed a long sigh of relief.

That afternoon, he paced around the house countless times, silently praying for his son's safety. Now he could finally relax.

Lianhua had been holding back her tears, but the moment she saw him wake up, she could no longer hold them back and they streamed down her face.

"You actually woke up! Do you know how worried my sister was about you? She was so anxious she fainted! We were all terrified!"

Upon hearing this, Chen Gaoshan instantly sobered up considerably. He hurriedly sat up from the kang (a heated brick bed), ignoring the fact that he was still feeling weak. He turned around and saw Xinghua sitting to the side, secretly wiping away tears with the back of her hand.

He quickly reached out, taking Xinghua's hand with one hand and Lianhua's hand with the other.

"What happened? Xinghua fainted? Is it serious? Lianhua, quickly find a doctor to take a good look at her!"

Lotus withdrew her hand, wiped away her tears, and glared at him irritably.

"I've checked! The doctor took your pulse, it's nothing serious, it's just that he was worried about you and got it out of control! Silly Shanzi, I have something important to tell you, you're going to be a father!"