Siheyuan: I just came across and wanted to chase me away

Chapter 1173 Qin Huairu's Thoughts

Watching the child swallow small sips, he suddenly remembered how hard Ran Qiuye had been working these past few days—during the day she would soothe the child, do laundry and cook, and at night she would get up to change diapers and feed the child when the child cried. She used to be a teacher who was adored by her students at school, but now she was so busy with these trivial household chores that she had no free time, and fine lines had appeared at the corners of her eyes.

"Once this is all over, she needs to rest," Gu Nan murmured to himself, gently patting the child's back, his movements becoming more practiced.

On the other side, Ran Qiuye and Lu Jia were walking to the health center. The autumn wind swirled with withered yellow leaves. Ran Qiuye carried a cloth bag and occasionally helped Lu Jia: "Did you bring all the test forms? The doctor said last time that you need to have your blood drawn on an empty stomach. You didn't eat anything this morning, did you?"

"I brought everything, but I didn't eat anything, just drank some warm water." Lu Jia's tone was much gentler than usual, and she even took the initiative to talk about He Yuzhu's embarrassing incident, "Yesterday he wanted to boil some eggs for me to make me stronger, but he squatted by the stove and fell asleep, burning the pot and filling the house with smoke. It almost disturbed the neighbors, and I was the one who had to go and put out the fire while I was heavily pregnant."

Ran Qiuye was amused, her eyes curving into crescents: "With his personality, he's only good at wielding a big ladle, he can't do delicate work, he'd mess up even boiling an egg."

Lu Jia smiled at her, but her heart remained unmoved. She had no other plans in calling Ran Qiuye out—dealing with Gu Nan was her own business, and Ran Qiuye was innocent; there was no need to involve her. She simply wanted to use this trip to ease tensions and prevent Ran Qiuye from becoming Gu Nan's ally when things came to a head in the future. After all, Ran Qiuye was considered reasonable in this courtyard.

The two chatted idly along the way. When they were almost at the health center, Lu Jia suddenly stopped and pointed to the grocery store on the street corner: "Look at my memory, I forgot to buy toilet paper. I might need it for the follow-up check-up. Wait here for me for a bit, I'll be right back, it won't take more than a few minutes."

Ran Qiuye nodded and stood there waiting for her, casually teasing a small tabby cat by the roadside. The cat wasn't afraid of people and rubbed against her trouser leg, meowing. Sunlight filtered through the bare branches, casting dappled shadows on the ground. She didn't notice that behind a telephone pole not far away, a small dark figure was crouching there—it was Heizi, its head tilted, its eyes fixed intently on the door of the general store.

Lu Jia's mind was elsewhere; she lacked Ran Qiuye's keen observation skills. She followed the doctor towards the examination room, her eyes casually glancing at the shadows in the corner of the corridor, completely unaware of the small black fur huddled there—it was Gu Nan's black dog named Heizi. Its pointed ears were erect, its amber eyes gleamed like two glass beads in the darkness, and its tail gently brushed the dust from the floor, having overheard every word of their conversation.

Lu Jia's steps quickened, and her hands unconsciously protected her lower abdomen. These days, He Yuzhu had been very attentive to her, making sure that every meal included meat and eggs, and sometimes even specially stewing chicken soup to bring over. The baby in her belly was growing exceptionally well; even through the thin fabric of her clothes, she could feel a hard outline, like a small fist inside.

After the checkup, Ran Qiuye was waiting for her by the window in the corridor. Sunlight streamed through the glass and fell on her hair, giving it a soft golden edge. When she saw Lu Jia coming over, she smiled and raised her eyebrows: "Don't you want to know if the baby is a boy or a girl? I was chatting with the doctor earlier, and he secretly told me that the little guy is moving around a lot inside, and you can see him very clearly."

Lu Jia gently stroked her lower abdomen, feeling the slight fetal movement under her fingertips. Her heart felt a ticklish sensation, like being scratched by a cat's claws. But then she thought, the most important thing right now was to keep an eye on Gu Nan's movements. Director Zhu was still waiting for news; she didn't have time to dwell on these romantic entanglements. So she shook her head, her tone as calm as if she were talking about someone else: "It's all the same. Sons and daughters are both my flesh and blood. Sons can run errands, daughters are caring—it's all good."

Ran Qiuye nodded, her eyes filled with approval: "That's what a mother should be like. After all, boys and girls are both flesh and blood of your own flesh and blood. You raise them little by little, how can you favor one over the other? The other day, Aunt Zhang in the courtyard was talking to me, saying that she just wanted a granddaughter so that she could embroider with her."

Lu Jia hummed in agreement and said nothing more. The two walked side by side out of the corridor, chatting about pregnancy precautions, from whether to eat more fish and shrimp or whole grains, to sleeping on their left side at night. Ran Qiuye gave detailed instructions for a long time, even calculating the number of steps to take after meals, before they walked out of the hospital together. Although this wasn't her first checkup, Lu Jia deliberately chose this hospital, which was farther from the courtyard house. Firstly, the environment was quieter, and the doctors would be more attentive; secondly, it would avoid running into those gossipy people in the courtyard who would ask all sorts of questions and annoy her. It just meant spending an extra half hour on the way.

Meanwhile, in the canteen's kitchen, He Yuzhu was standing in front of the stove, tossing a large ladle. The iron wok clanged against the stove, flames leaped up, licking the bottom of the wok and reflecting a flushed red onto his face. Beads of sweat streamed down his cheeks, dripping onto the scalding stove and sizzling into white steam. In no time, two meat dishes and one vegetable dish were ready: a plate of braised pork belly, glistening with oil and skin; a plate of golden, fluffy scrambled eggs; and a dish of vibrant green stir-fried vegetables, their aroma filling the air. He deliberately filled an extra large bowl, carefully packed it into an aluminum lunchbox, and sealed it tightly—this was for Qin Huairu, knowing she had recently lost her appetite due to worrying about the rice cakes.

Qin Huairu stood waiting at the kitchen door, holding an empty basket in her hand. When she saw him come out with a lunchbox, she quickly went up to take it from him, her face beaming with a warm smile: "Zhuzi, you're the most thoughtful person in this yard. Knowing that my Banggeng wasn't home, I didn't even feel like cooking. Alright, shall we go back now?"

She knew perfectly well that He Yuzhu was using the pretext of delivering food to talk to her about something—most likely about Gu Nan. Ever since he got involved with Factory Director Zhu, He Yuzhu's gaze towards Gu Nan had changed; he was always looking for a reason to overpower her. But it would only make sense if he spoke first; if she brought it up herself, it would make her seem too eager, putting her at a disadvantage.

He Yuzhu scratched his head, a slightly awkward smile on his face, his hand still rubbing against his apron. "Sister Qin, are you... going back already? Won't you sit a little longer? I still have some freshly brewed flower tea here, given to me by Factory Director Zhu the other day, he said it's new tea from Hangzhou." He actually wanted to stay a little longer, wondering how to ask Gu Nan about her recent activities at the factory, but he couldn't bring himself to do it—after all, he had exchanged a few words with Gu Nan a few days ago, and it felt a little awkward to ask her now.