The little fellow truly was fortunate. Just after being born, he had already received quite a few gifts. All the gifts from today belonged to the little fellow, and there would still be the full-month banquet and the first-birthday banquet to come. Even though he was still tiny, he had already managed to accumulate quite a nice family foundation for himself.

When the others had all left, Xue Han followed beside her mother. “Mother, doesn’t that mean whenever any family holds a three-day washing ceremony, a full-month celebration, and so on, we also have to attend?”

Zhulan replied, “Yes, don’t be fooled by how many we receive; we’ll give away quite a lot too.”

There was no real profit to be made; frankly, it was just a matter of our own things changing hands.

Zhulan saw Fang Shi today. This was Fang Shi’s first visit. Fang Shi’s resentment had subsided, and she was finally considering her son’s future. Today, she was not only generous but also very flattering.

Although Fang Shi was generous, she appeared far too eager for quick success and instant benefits. After only a few words of flattery, she already wanted to ask Zhulan to send Keqi to the academy with financial support.

At that time, Zhao Shi pulled Fang Shi away, and Zhulan was in a good mood. Zhao Shi had indeed become much more sensible these days.

Zhulan thought of Zhou Shuren. Today, Zhou Shuren had specially asked his eldest son to bring the baby out. It was the first time Zhou Shuren had ever held a child.

Zhulan couldn’t help but laugh when she thought of how stunned her eldest son had looked. He must have been terrified.

In the eldest son’s house, the eldest son held his youngest son with incredibly gentle movements. “Son, your Yeye loves you!”

Li Shi said, “Please tell me again how Dad holds his son!”

The eldest son’s throat was a little dry; he had practiced it too many times!

In the second son’s house, Zhao Shi was even more determined to have a baby!

In the third son’s house, Chang Lian felt sour. His mother had always favored his eldest brother, and now, even the old man was biased. The older the old man got, the more willful he became. His mother would at least try to hide her bias, but in recent years, his father has only cared about his own happiness.

Chang Lian couldn’t help but look at Dong Shi, wondering when his son would be born. His eldest brother was the oldest and had a huge advantage.

That evening, Zhou Shuren held Zhulan’s hand. “The child does look like you. If you like, you can take him and raise him.”

Zhulan pursed her lips and sat up, pulling Zhou Shuren up with her. “We’ve been married for a few months. Although we haven’t talked much, we know what each other thinks. You want me to take the child so you can give up on the idea now?”

Zhou Shuren held Zhulan’s hand. “I care more about you.”

Zhulan had a lot to say, but Zhou Shuren’s five words deflated her. She leaned on his shoulder. “I won’t stop you from using contraception, but I gave myself a year. Half of that time has passed. If it’s still not working after six months, then it’s fate, and I’ll give up on the idea myself. But let’s not talk about adopting a child again.”

Even if it were her sūnzi, Zhulan wouldn’t adopt him from Li Shi. Although Li Shi and the eldest son would be happy, she didn’t want to completely disrupt the balance of the Zhou family.

Besides, there was her eldest grandson, Ming Yun. She didn’t want to leave any future trouble.

Zhulan pursed her lips. “You don’t need to favor Ming Hui too much either.”

Zhou Shuren smoothed the furrowed brow of Zhulan with his fingertips. “You worry too much. You could live a more carefree life.”

Ever since he let Second Zhou move out, he’d occasionally had the thought of having Chang Lian move out too!

Zhulan said softly, “At least now there’s something for me to worry about. If I didn’t worry about anything, I’d feel even less of a sense of belonging.”

Zhou Shuren tightened his grip on Zhulan’s hand and took a deep breath. “Okay, I promise you, we’ll leave the time to fate. If it really happens, we’ll have it. Anyway, if you live, I live; if you die, I die.”

He also wanted to know if he and Zhulan had actually died in the modern world. If they hadn’t, would they have returned to the modern world if they had died in ancient times? He even wondered if he would be rewarded for saving so many lives in Lizhou City.

If they could really return to the modern world, he was willing to lower his standards and be a good official, not seeking eternal fame but only hoping to return to the modern world with Zhulan.

Zhulan felt completely relieved. She hadn’t spoken to Zhou Shuren, which inevitably led to overthinking. The doctor had mentioned during her checkup that she was preoccupied with her thoughts and had some inner turmoil.

The next morning, Zhulan’s change was obvious. She smiled more and was less prone to daydreaming.

In a good mood, Zhulan took Xue Han to a jewelry shop, giving the leftover pieces to the jeweler to choose designs for her daughter’s dowry. She also selected jade to have bracelets custom-made for Li Shi.

She was determined to keep her promise. Previously, there weren’t any well-known jewelry shops in Lizhou City; this one opened this year.

Zhulan didn’t intend to favor one over the other, so she promised Li Shi and also had bracelets made for her other two daughters-in-law.

Time flew by as the children grew. Before Zhulan knew it, Ming Hui was a month old.

Li Xu Shi Shi had been there for over a month, but Second Zhou still hadn’t returned. She wondered what had kept him occupied.

Li Xu Shi felt she had stayed too long. She was enjoying a life of luxury at the Zhou family’s house, but it wasn’t her own home. Now that her daughter had given birth safely and her wàisūn was healthy, she wanted to go home.

On the second day after Ming Hui’s one-month celebration, she said, “Qīnjiāmǔ, we’ve troubled you for so long. I also miss home, and we should go back.”

Zhulan wanted to keep Li Xu Shi longer; her mother had been incredibly happy these past few days. However, the Li family wasn’t in Lizhou City, so she had no reason to keep Li Xu Shi any longer. Zhulan took out a pre-written contract. “Mother-in-law, since you miss home, I won’t keep you any longer. I said I would cooperate with you; this is the contract I prepared.”

Just as Zhulan finished speaking, Steward Ding entered. “Madam, a letter from Wú Dàrén has arrived.”

(End of Chapter)

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