Chen Rou sat quietly by the bedside, gentle as the warm spring sunshine. Even the way she spoke was soft and melodious, making people feel as if they were basking in a pleasant spring breeze.
“Mom, I just wanted to make a little outfit for the baby in my belly. I’m fine.”
“You’re about to give birth, why are you fussing around like this?” Wang Cuilian scolded affectionately as she snatched the sewing from Chen Rou’s hands and set it aside.
“Third Sister-in-law gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. It’s really enviable.” Chen Rou lowered her eyes with a smile tinged with bitterness.
She had finally managed to conceive a child after so much waiting, yet fate toyed with her. Her husband had died in an accident, leaving her a widow.
Wang Cuilian sneered disdainfully. “So what if she had twins? They’re still born with the fate of mud-legged peasants.”
Her kindly face softened as she stroked Chen Rou’s belly. “The old immortal appeared in my dream. He said the child in your womb is blessed and destined for great fortune in the future.”
Chen Rou lowered her gaze. What old immortal appearing in dreams? It was nothing but feudal superstition. Still, it was fine. Her child would definitely stand above the Meng family’s grandchildren in the future, just as she herself had once stood above Meng Qiufeng and his siblings.
She lifted her eyes and leaned dependently against Wang Cuilian’s shoulder, her voice light and choked with emotion.
“Mom, it’s so good to have you.”
Wang Cuilian’s eyes reddened. Looking at Chen Rou’s face, so similar to the man she had loved, her heart melted completely. She poured all her maternal love into Chen Rou simply because Chen Rou was the daughter of the man she had loved.
She patted Chen Rou’s shoulder lovingly. “As long as I’m alive, I won’t let you suffer any grievances.”
Chen Rou curled her lips into a smile, satisfaction flashing in her eyes. Just as she was about to continue speaking, her brows suddenly knitted together.
Looking down, she felt a warm flow beneath her body. Her face instantly turned deathly pale, and she tightly clutched Wang Cuilian’s sleeve.
“Mom… I think I’m going into labor.”
The midwife, who had only just left not long ago, was hurriedly dragged back by Wang Cuilian.
Once again, a woman’s agonized cries echoed through the Meng family courtyard.
Since this was Chen Rou’s first childbirth, her painful screams lasted until dawn the next day.
The morning light was faint, brilliant rosy clouds stretching across the horizon.
Wang Cuilian had stayed awake the entire night, hands clasped together in prayer toward the glowing dawn sky.
Then came the faint cry of a newborn baby.
Overjoyed, Wang Cuilian rushed inside at once.
“Congratulations, it’s a girl.”
Usually, Wang Cuilian never had a pleasant expression when it came to granddaughters, but now her grin stretched nearly to her ears.
“Girls are good! Girls are wonderful!”
“Mom, give the child a name,” Chen Rou said weakly. Her face was as pale as paper, and she struggled to stay awake.
Wang Cuilian held her granddaughter tightly, unwilling to let go, her face filled with joy. “She’ll be called Meng Zhu. From now on, Zhuzhu will be the precious pearl of the old Meng family.”
Chen Rou smiled in satisfaction before drifting into a hazy sleep.
The rest of the Meng family, having listened to Chen Rou scream all night, all had dark circles under their eyes.
Lying on the bed, Xu Chunhua yawned and frowned delicately. “What exactly did that Chen Rou give birth to? Look how happy that old witch is. I can hear her laughing even from inside this room.”
Meng Yu opened her eyes wide, blinking as she stared at the dull gray ceiling.
Meng Qiushi mixed a bowl of milk powder and handed it to Xu Chunhua, mockery filling his raised brows.
“It’s a girl. They named her Meng Zhu.”
Xu Chunhua curled her lips disdainfully and snorted. “As long as it’s something Chen Rou gave birth to, she’d love it even if it were a pile of dog crap.”
A look of understanding flashed through Meng Yu’s clear eyes.
So she had become the supporting female character in a novel.
Meng Zhu was the kind-hearted heroine, while her own family were the immoral, vicious, short-lived villains of the story.
Her eldest brother and second sister constantly opposed the heroine. One was hit by a truck and died without even a corpse left behind, while the other drowned in a river and vanished without a trace.
She and her younger brother had it even worse—they died during the years of famine.
Unable to bear losing their children one after another, their parents decided to perish together with the heroine, only to reap the consequences themselves and be burned alive in a raging fire.
The heroine merely sighed faintly that evil deeds brought evil retribution.
Thus ended the absurd and laughable lives of the villains who existed only to highlight the heroine.
The years of famine…
Meng Yu’s eyes flickered. She stretched out her tiny hands and made the babbling sounds unique to an infant.
Xu Chunhua set down the empty bowl and picked up her daughter to breastfeed her.
Meng Yu suddenly lifted her hand and tightly grabbed the red cord around Xu Chunhua’s neck.
“Qiushi, hurry and pry our daughter’s hand open,” Xu Chunhua said, unable to free herself while holding the baby.
Meng Qiushi hesitated, afraid of hurting his daughter’s delicate little hand.
“Little Fishy is gripping too tightly. I’m afraid I’ll hurt her.”
Xu Chunhua’s gaze landed on the scissors nearby. “Use the scissors to cut the cord off.”
The cord was cut, and Meng Yu finally obtained the jade pendant she wanted. A toothless grin spread across her face.
Xu Chunhua laughed at the sight. Gently rubbing Meng Yu’s chin with her finger, she coaxed softly, “Since Little Fishy likes this jade pendant so much, Mommy will give it to you, okay?”
Meng Yu nodded her tiny head and babbled happily, as though sincerely answering Xu Chunhua’s question.
Meng Qiushi glanced at his young son sleeping like a dead pig and immediately saw the contrast. Little Fishy was simply far too lovable.
“I’m heading to the fields for work. Stay home and rest well. If my mom gives you trouble again, tell me when I get back and see how I deal with her.” Meng Qiushi affectionately planted a kiss on Xu Chunhua’s cheek.
After he left, the room became quiet again. Meng Wei and Meng Qing slept soundly on the small bed nearby.
Meng Yu tightly gripped the jade pendant as though she were holding the most precious treasure in the world.
In truth, the pendant hid a secret realm.
In the novel, the heroine Meng Zhu had picked up Meng Yu’s fish-shaped jade pendant. After recognizing it as her master with a drop of blood, she discovered the pendant contained a paradise-like pocket dimension.
Relying on the pendant, Meng Zhu helped those close to her survive the famine.
Meng Yu’s gaze unfocused as she suckled hard, thinking about how to bind the pendant to herself with blood. Delays invited trouble. Carrying such a treasure without claiming it left her deeply uneasy.
After letting out a baby burp, Meng Yu blew a tiny milk bubble. Her watery eyes resembled a clear spring, pure and transparent, perfectly reflecting Xu Chunhua’s beautiful face.
Xu Chunhua laid her daughter down and picked up her son instead.
Meng Yu’s dark eyes rolled around. Though her vision was blurry, she could clearly feel something hard pressing beneath her. Her father had forgotten to put the scissors back where they belonged.
Her eyes lit up, and she secretly rejoiced.
The opportunity had come.
Meng Yu struggled to stretch out her arm. The moment her hand touched the scissors, she held her breath and lightly dragged her finger across the blade.
As blood welled from her fingertip, she immediately pressed it against the jade pendant in her palm. Light flowed through the pendant like water, and in an instant, the pendant vanished, leaving only the lonely red cord in her hand.
“Little Fishy!”
Xu Chunhua’s gaze swept over casually before suddenly freezing. She hurriedly set down Meng Che and grabbed Meng Yu’s tiny hand for a closer look.
A fresh cut had appeared on her finger, blood continuously flowing out.
Xu Chunhua quickly wrapped the wound with a handkerchief, then angrily threw the scissors onto the floor.
“That Meng Qiushi—how could he be so careless? How could he leave scissors on the bed?!”