The Stepmother's Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era-Chapter 887 - 886: Pressuring to Marry

"Nurse, how’s my wife doing?"

"Is it a boy or a girl?"

As soon as the nurse stuck her head out, before she even had a chance to speak, she was surrounded tightly by the people waiting outside the delivery room.

"Mother and child are safe, congratulations, it’s a big chubby boy, eight pounds and seven ounces."

Zhao Yun had arrived at the hospital three days in advance to accompany his wife during labor and had become familiar with the obstetric staff. As the nurse congratulated him, she handed over the swaddled baby to him.

"Here, hold your son. The mother is still being cleaned up inside, and after that, she’ll need to be observed for a while."

After explaining, the nurse turned and went back into the delivery room. Zhao Yun, holding his son, was surrounded by Zhao Dafa and others. freewёbnoνel.com

"This little guy is really good-looking; he’s going to be just as strong as our Xiaoyun in the future."

"His nose looks like his aunt, and his mouth looks like Brother Yun."

Zhao Yun looked at the wrinkled, rosy baby in his arms, unable to stop his tears.

He had a son, woo woo woo...

He was a father now, woo woo woo...

When Pei Ziheng received the news from Zhao Yun, he was in Wan Province negotiating a chip procurement deal worth over one billion.

Knowing that Ren Jingshu and the child were safe and that Zhao Yun had a son, Pei Ziheng sent his congratulations and also casually gave Zhao Yun two sets of Hong Kong stock codes.

"Buy before today’s market close, don’t spend over ten million on a single stock, and sell everything before tomorrow’s market close. The money you earn will be my congratulatory gift to you."

Zhao Yun: "And if it loses?"

"That’s your bad luck."

"..."

You really are my dear brother!

...

The two Hong Kong stocks earned Zhao Yun ten million. After withdrawing the money, he directly deposited it into Ren Jingshu’s bank account.

Ren Jingshu naturally asked about the origin of such a large sum of money.

Zhao Yun explained, "It’s a congratulatory gift from Ziheng."

"That’s too much."

"It’s okay, he has so much money he can’t spend it all by himself. By helping him spend some, we’re doing a good deed."

Ren Jingshu couldn’t help but smile, "Having you as a ’good brother’ is truly his good fortune."

"Not too shabby."

Cries of a baby came from the nursery next door.

Ren Jingshu couldn’t continue bantering with Zhao Yun, "Xinxin seems to have woken up, bring him over."

Zhao Yun squatted down in front of her and said seriously, "Breastfeeding affects your figure recovery; let’s give him formula from now on."

Ren Jingshu looked at him, hesitant to speak.

Zhao Yun explained, "Don’t worry, I’ve bought all imported formula, the nutrition is not worse than breast milk. Your main task now is to recover your health, get back to work soon, and don’t worry about the baby. I and the nanny will take care of him."

Her husband’s understanding and support were too overwhelming for Ren Jingshu to hold back her tears.

"Thank you, dear."

Zhao Yun affectionately pressed his forehead against hers and said tenderly, "No, I should be the one thanking you. Thank you for marrying me, thank you for giving us a lovely baby, and most of all, thank you for giving me a complete family."

Zhao Yun’s son was named Zhao Xinhao.

Zhao Xinhao’s full-moon celebration was held at the newly opened five-star hotel in Fengcheng, with a hundred banquet tables set up, and it was extraordinarily lively.

Shen Mingzhu was impatient with socializing, and after making a round at the banquet, she went to the rest room to see the children.

The rest room was a business suite, with a living room big enough to accommodate forty to fifty people, complemented by a large bedroom for Ren Jingshu and her child to rest and breastfeed.

When Shen Mingzhu entered, the place was lively.

In addition to the relatives and female friends of the Zhao and Ren families, there were also quite a few high-society ladies closely associated with the Zhao Family, all surrounding Shen Hongmei and Ren Jingshu mother and child as if they were stars holding the moon.

After all, the Zhao Family was now one of the top real estate leaders in Fengcheng.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t go forward to join the fuss; she found a spot to sit by herself, sipping tea and engaging in sporadic small talk with the person next to her.

Before long, Jia Yuemei appeared out of nowhere and sat down opposite Shen Mingzhu.

Flush with cash, Jia Yuemei’s dressing and taste had improved, her hair was done up in a bun, and she wore a full set of pearl jewelry with a ginger-colored Chanel-style suit, exuding a certain affluent lady’s demeanor. But as soon as she opened her mouth:

"Li-li-litt, little sister, wh-what, what are, are, are you doing sitting here? Why don’t, don’t, don’t you go and ho-hold, hold the baby?"

Shen Mingzhu replied indifferently, "Can’t you cure that throat of yours?"

Jia Yuemei touched her throat, her expression a bit sheepish, "I’m, I’m, I’m getting it treated, it can, can be cured."

That’s not a bad thing either; if you can’t speak smoothly, you talk less.

Shen Mingzhu continued drinking her tea silently. It was the middle-aged woman next to her, probably wanting to curry favor, who enthusiastically introduced Jia Yuemei to an old Chinese medicine doctor who specialized in treating stutters.

Jia Yuemei’s stuttering actually started at Zhao Yun and Ren Jingshu’s wedding.

She had choked on a piece of braised pork and a broken needle had pierced her tongue. The treatment at the hospital then accidentally damaged her vocal cords, but the hospital took responsibility, promising to cover all subsequent medical expenses and even compensated Jia Yuemei with an additional twenty thousand yuan.

At the time, Jia Yuemei was quite happy, feeling like she had made a profit.

Little did she know, after her vocal cords healed, she was left with a stutter.

Jia Yuemei held the hospital responsible, demanding a compensation of five hundred thousand yuan. The hospital, however, pointed to the previously signed settlement to absolve themselves of further liability, and the two sides were still embroiled in a legal battle.

...

The full moon party lasted until half-past nine in the evening.

When everyone arrived, they came in their own cars, but after having had a good amount to drink at the banquet, the family of four decided to ride home together.

The father and son sat in the back, Pei Tang took the shotgun seat, and Shen Mingzhu drove.

Although both the front and rear windows were open, the car was still filled with the smell of alcohol, which made Pei Tang sniff in disdain all the way, although it didn’t stop her from chattering non-stop.

One moment she talked about Jia Yuemei’s stutter, then she would praise Zhao Xinhao’s adorable look, while also casually critiquing the evening’s menu.

Speaking of Zhao Xinhao, Pei Yang teased his son who was sitting beside him, "You and Xiaoyun have been good buddies since you were kids, and now he’s become a father. You’re not getting any younger either. When will you bring a girlfriend home for us to meet?"

"Wait until the day your company’s market value hits ten digits, then you can worry about me."

"..."

In front of his wife and daughter, Pei Yang felt he couldn’t save face and humphed, "I’m your father. How can I not worry about you? When we get back, I’ll have your mother find a few well-matched girls for you to meet."

"Dad, you’re being too overbearing. What era are we in, that you still want to arrange marriages?!"

Pei Tang was the first to protest from the front seat.

Pei Yang responded, "What’s wrong with arranged marriages? Your mother and I had an arranged marriage. We registered the first day we met, and aren’t we living well now?"

Pei Tang turned her head and asked Shen Mingzhu, "Mom, if you had another chance to choose, would you still choose to marry Dad?"

"Don’t drag me into your squabble."

The car was filled with the argument between father and daughter, but Shen Mingzhu’s thoughts had drifted back to the windy night when she first met Pei Yang.

If she had only been a little more aware back then, she probably wouldn’t have married a complete stranger at the Cloud Civil Affairs Bureau on a whim.

But how does the saying go? Marriage relies on impulse; those who are too rational often can’t marry.

Asked if she regretted it, her answer was no, she didn’t regret it.