AYLS – Chapter 120

When Li Ermei was giving birth, she screamed so hard it sounded like her heart was being torn apart, gritting her teeth in hatred at the pain. But once the baby was actually born, and she was moved into the ward and drank the soup Su Weizhen brought, she immediately became lively again—full of energy and holding her baby tightly, refusing to let go.

Instructor Chen stood next to her grinning like a fool.

Lin Qiao stretched her neck to look at the baby. The little thing was all wrinkled, looking a bit like a tiny old man. She was already worrying about how hard it would be for him to find a wife in the future.

Su Weizhen couldn’t stand her fussiness. “Can you calm down? It’s just a baby. Look at how dramatic you are.”

“What, I can’t be happy that I gave birth to a son? If you’ve got the skill, you give birth to one too. Seven jin and two liang, mind you.”

Su Weizhen replied, “Are you sure that seven jin and two liang doesn’t include our contribution too?”

Li Ermei: “…I still worked hard to eat all that myself.”

Su Weizhen: “…”

Lin Qiao burst out laughing. When Ermei dropped her shame, she was unbeatable.

Li Yan asked enviously, “Have you named the baby yet? What’s he called?”

“Aiya, not yet. I told Old Chen to think about it earlier, but he never does. I’ve already chosen a nickname though—Donkey Egg. Easy to raise.”

Su Weizhen, Lin Qiao, and Li Yan: “…”

Lin Qiao said, “Ermei, aren’t you afraid the kid will resent you in the future? That nickname…”

Li Ermei said righteously, “What’s wrong with it? That’s how we name babies back home. Some are even called ‘Dunghill.’ The cheaper the name, the easier it is to raise.”

Instructor Chen said, “That’s feudal superstition—old thinking. Not acceptable.”

“What old thinking? Don’t you have a nickname too?”

The moment she said that, Lin Qiao and the others perked up, eager to hear it. Instructor Chen quickly covered Li Ermei’s mouth. “Okay, okay, you can call him whatever you want.”

Only then was Li Ermei satisfied.

Lin Qiao really couldn’t stand the name and declared that she absolutely refused to use the nickname. It felt like bullying the baby—and she would burst out laughing every time.

Li Ermei pouted. “Then what do you think he should be called?”

Lin Qiao asked, “Does it have to be egg?”

“What’s wrong with egg? I think it sounds nice.” Li Ermei was determined to stick with the word.

Li Yan suggested that since they were insisting on using egg, why not call him Pidan—like a preserved egg. A sturdy egg. And there’s also the food called pidan, with a unique flavor that helps clear internal heat.

Lin Qiao clapped her hands. “That’s a great name. I like eating preserved eggs too. They taste best when served cold with seasoning.”

Gu Huayuan raised an eyebrow at her.

As soon as Li Ermei heard Lin Qiao say preserved eggs were delicious, she immediately asked, “Are they really that good?”

“I think they’re pretty good.” Lin Qiao couldn’t help recalling the taste.

Back then she had looked down on such food, but now she couldn’t even afford it.

Li Ermei was also a foodie. Hearing that preserved eggs were good, she instantly changed her mind. “Then let’s call him Pidan.” Then she kissed her obedient little son on the forehead. “Pidan, look how lucky you are. Such a good name just for you.”

To her, her son really was blessed. So many people came to see him the moment he was born. If this were back in her hometown, besides her mother’s side, who would bother to come? Maybe not even her mother’s family.

A married daughter wasn’t worth much, and the Chen family wasn’t lacking grandsons.

Compared to the past, life now was much better.

Since Ermei had given birth, Lin Qiao and the others had to go back and rest. They still had to work the next day.

When leaving, Lin Qiao was reluctant. Everything felt so new and wondrous. Just like that, there was suddenly an extra person in the world—it felt magical.

On the way back, she chattered with Su Weizhen, “Life is really amazing. It just appears out of nowhere. It used to be inside Ermei’s belly, and now it’s suddenly here in front of us, where we can see it and touch it. And when it grows up, it’ll even call us aunties.”

“It might take after Instructor Chen though. Finding a future spouse might be troublesome,” Lin Qiao added.

Gu Huayuan immediately started coughing.

Su Weizhen laughed. “Stop worrying about that.”

“I’m just amazed, that’s all. When Ermei gets discharged, we can see the baby every day. I’m definitely going to cuddle that soft little thing properly.”

Whenever it came to other people’s children, Lin Qiao’s eyes sparkled with joy.

Her expression left Gu Huayuan feeling conflicted. When they got home, he even purposely reassured her, telling her not to rush. Having children required the right timing and conditions, so the mother would suffer less.

Lin Qiao was confused. “Who said I’m having a baby with you?”

“You’re the one who envies the Chen family’s baby.”

“Who envies them? I just like children, that’s all. I’m not giving birth. It hurts too much. Hearing Ermei today scared me half to death. No way.”

Lin Qiao had firmly decided that when she returned to her own world, she would absolutely not have children.

Now it was Gu Huayuan’s turn to be shocked. “Really not giving birth?”

“No. If someone’s giving birth, you can do it yourself.” Lin Qiao huffed and flopped onto the bed. She needed to catch up on sleep.

Gu Huayuan moved his lips but decided to let it go—she was still young. When she grew up, she wouldn’t think like this. So he changed clothes and went to the training ground. Unlike Xiao Qiao who could lounge around, he still had winter training—the best time of year for drills. If they couldn’t do farm work, they trained. Not a day could be wasted.

He had barely arrived at the training grounds when Zhang Tuo came over beaming, asking if they should prepare a gift for the Chen family for the new baby.

Gu Huayuan said, “Weren’t you only on average terms with them? Why the sudden change?”

Zhang Tuo immediately looked offended. “How can comrades not be close? Besides, I’ve got to prepare for the future. What if I have a kid later? He’d have to give me a gift too, right?”

Gu Huayuan just stared at him silently. Zhang Tuo stared back, clearly waiting for him to ask for more details.

But Gu Huayuan only looked at him and didn’t say anything.

Zhang Tuo couldn’t hold it in anymore and bragged—Li Yan had brought it up first, saying that having another child would make their family even more perfect. Wasn’t that basically saying she wanted to have a baby with him?

Gu Huayuan: “…”

Because of Li Ermei giving birth, the courtyard was lively. When she returned home holding the baby, even more people came to visit.

Everyone said Ermei was raising the child well—in fact, he was the best-looking baby in the courtyard.

After finishing work, Lin Qiao stopped by every day. Watching the baby change day by day, she finally stopped worrying about his future marriage prospects.

This New Year, because of the newborn, the heavy mood of Gu Huayuan and Xu Yuanzheng preparing to leave was eased.

The families gathered again for a New Year’s Eve dinner—an early farewell meal.

Lin Qiao even drank some good liquor that Zhang Tuo had gotten from who knows where. Her cheeks flushed red, and on the way home, Gu Huayuan had to carry her back.

After finally getting home and tossing her onto the bed, he sighed. “Honestly, with such bad alcohol tolerance, you shouldn’t drink.”

“I don’t have bad tolerance. I’m not drunk. My face is just a little red,” Lin Qiao covered her cheeks. She hadn’t had alcohol in a long time and had drunk a little too much.

It was delicious though—not worse than anything she’d had before.

Gu Huayuan shook his head with a smile, then went to heat water to wipe her face.

Watching him carefully wipe her face and hands, Lin Qiao suddenly felt wronged and pouted.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Wuwuwu… Gu Huayuan—” Lin Qiao wrapped her arms around his neck and cried, “I really want you to love me more. Love me a lot. I want to be in love with you. But I’m scared. What if I lose you in the future?”

At first, Gu Huayuan felt flattered, but the latter half of her words made him tense. “How could you lose me? Don’t say things like that.”

“I’m not talking nonsense. I definitely will lose you. I’m scared to like you. I can’t like you,” she whimpered.

Gu Huayuan sighed helplessly. “You make it sound like you don’t already like me.”

“I don’t,” she insisted stubbornly.

Liking Gu Huayuan was destined to end in sadness—that’s why she didn’t want to. Liking him would make her a fool.

Not wanting to argue with a drunk person, he said, “Alright, stop fussing. Wash up and sleep. You’ll feel awful tomorrow.”

“I’m not fussing. I just don’t like you,” Lin Qiao emphasized again. “I don’t want to like you.”

“…You really don’t like me?” Gu Huayuan asked.

“Don’t like, don’t like.” Lin Qiao burrowed her head under the blanket.

“…” Gu Huayuan’s rational side told him not to argue with someone who wasn’t fully conscious, but he still felt an emptiness in his chest. A feeling of something not settling properly.

He sat by the bed and watched Xiao Qiao fall asleep in an instant, her cheeks flushed rosy. After thinking carefully, he concluded it must be because of his profession.

Maybe his job made Xiao Qiao lack a sense of security, which was why she said such drunken nonsense.

Aside from that, he didn’t consider any other possibility.

He didn’t think of himself as a fool—he felt he was fairly perceptive. How could Xiao Qiao not love him? That kind of emotion was already embedded in her eyes, in every little movement. How could she possibly not like him?

“Silly girl, you can’t say things like that casually. It’s only because it’s me that I’m not holding it against you.”

The next morning, Lin Qiao had absolutely no memory of what she’d said and continued bustling about with her work.

Seeing how busy she was, Gu Huayuan didn’t bring up those unpleasant words again. But every night before bed, he would talk to her about the current peaceful environment and reassure her that he was safe.

Lin Qiao said, “Of course I know. You’re Gu Huayuan—my… partner. Nothing could possibly happen to you.”

Gu Huayuan was half-believing, half-doubting. “You really think so?”

“Of course! I firmly believe it!” Lin Qiao declared with full confidence. The final boss of the game was the most powerful one—he definitely had to survive until the end, otherwise the game wouldn’t work.

Speaking of which… she’d almost forgotten she was inside a game.

She was too busy. So busy she didn’t even have time to remember.

Listening to her reassurances, Gu Huayuan felt much more at ease—but also more conflicted.

If so… then why did she feel insecure?

Lin Qiao had no idea what was going on in his mind. She spent the New Year earnestly and joyfully. By the third day of the Lunar New Year, the real excitement of the holiday finally kicked in for Lin Qiao and the others.

The chicken farm was officially beginning its recruitment assessment. It was Lin Qiao’s first time acting as the chief examiner, and she was so excited she could barely contain herself.