QTIMP -Chapter 85 Character Persona – Lazy (Part 33)

Hearing this, the old couple nodded along.

“That’s how it should be. That stubborn girl—she usually looks easygoing and always smiles sweetly, but in reality she’s unbelievably headstrong. Once she decides to do something, there’s no stopping her.”

Lu Hongjun took the old couple to eat at a state-run restaurant and then to shop at the state-run store. Watching him buy things without even blinking, and noticing that most of what he bought—whether food or daily necessities—was for Si Qiu and the baby, the old couple felt a bit pained about the money, but inwardly they nodded with satisfaction.

Their close friend hadn’t lied to them—this young couple was indeed living well, and Lu Hongjun was generous when it came to his wife.

After bustling about for several more hours, they finally returned to the small building. Before anyone even got out of the car, they saw Si Qiu waddling out with her big pregnant belly in her hands.

Wang Xia was startled at first, and then tears suddenly fell. She didn’t even know whether she was happy or worried.

“You silly girl, what are you doing coming out here? What if you trip and fall? Honestly, you’re always making people worry.”

Her words sounded harsh, but the way she held Si Qiu’s arm was extremely gentle.

Si Shi followed closely behind, frowning as he looked at her.

“Aiya, you’re already like this—you should’ve written earlier and asked us to come sooner.”

Then, as if remembering something, he set down the basket he had been holding and took out another cloth bundle from his clothes.

Leaning close to Si Qiu, he whispered softly, “Your mom asked around and used some connections to gather these—ginseng slices that are more than two hundred years old. When it’s time for you to give birth, keep them in your mouth.”

Si Qiu said in a soft, coquettish tone, “Mom, Dad, you really don’t need to worry. My body is in great shape. Some swelling and things like that are all normal.”

The three of them chatted and laughed together, completely forgetting the other two people still standing at the doorway. The two could only slowly unload the packages from the car and carry them into the main room.

As soon as Si Qiu saw her mother arrive, she lay down even more comfortably. Wang Xia spent the first day unpacking everything, and starting from the second day she completely took over caring for the pregnant woman, while Si Shi helped from the side.

Their little courtyard quickly became lively.

Si Qiu couldn’t understand it—her mother didn’t have much education, so how on earth was she such a social butterfly?

Now there wasn’t a single person in the entire family compound she didn’t know. Her information channels were far broader than Si Qiu’s.

Lu Hongjun, on the other hand, finally let out a long breath of relief. Every time he saw his wife’s big belly before, he would feel nervous and didn’t dare take his eyes off her.

He was always afraid that if he looked away for even a moment, something might happen.

But he was also planning to use his family connections to transfer back to Beijing, and he had been quite busy during this period. Now he finally didn’t have to worry about both things at once.

“Qiuqiu, how can there be such a cruel grandmother? That eldest daughter from the Xiao Song family—the one you sold the job to.”

When Wang Xia saw Qiuqiu nod, she continued.

“You probably don’t know this, but the scar on that girl’s face was burned by her own grandmother.”

“On purpose?”

Wang Xia curled her lips.

“The old woman claims it wasn’t intentional, but afterward she didn’t even apply any medicine to the child. For a little girl like that, she really has no heart. That incident alone makes her just as bad as Si Lai’s mother. Back when Si Lai was about to give birth, didn’t they say she should come help take care of her? She actually forced her son-in-law to give her 100 yuan. And that didn’t even include the travel expenses or the things she took back with her afterward. Just what kind of person does that make her? Back in our village, you wouldn’t even need that much money to marry a wife. And yet she still has the nerve to sit at the village entrance showing off. Behind her back, who isn’t criticizing her?”

“This time when your father and I packed up so neatly and came here, she came over to pry for information. I ignored her. Just seeing that person annoys me to no end.”

As Wang Xia chatted casually, her hands never stopped moving. She was preparing to make mackerel dumpling filling.

“Who knew that the next day your father told me that she had her eldest son call Si Lai, saying she also wanted to come over. I don’t know what that girl Lai Lai said, but the three of them started arguing on the phone. After hanging up, she went home still cursing and grumbling. Even with two houses between us, I could hear it clearly. Old man, your hands are clean—take that book from your daughter and make her stand up and walk around a bit.”

Hearing this, Si Qiu sighed, closed her book, and set it aside. Supporting her belly, she slowly stood up and shuffled around the courtyard.

Si Qiu couldn’t help but sigh in admiration at the old lady’s boundless energy. On the third day after arriving, she had already asked Lu Hongjun to take her to the military hospital to consult the obstetrics doctor about precautions.

After returning, she strictly followed the doctor’s instructions and made Si Qiu regulate her diet and exercise. Whenever Si Qiu tried to slack off, the old lady would glare and immediately start interrogating the entire Si family.

No one in the family dared to refute her.

Lu Hongjun, however, was delighted. Now he not only brought gifts to the old couple every few days, but also specially exchanged some goods with his comrades and mailed them to Si Qiu’s two elder brothers back home and to her brother-in-law’s family in the army.

The old couple kept saying, “No need, no need,” but the smiles on their faces never stopped. After all, in their hearts, even if their children were unpromising, they were still flesh from their own bodies.

By the time of the college entrance examination, Si Qiu was already over eight months pregnant. Her belly was simply too big, so Lu Hongjun specially drove her and her parents to town and rented a house for them to stay in.

“Renting a place is good. Even when Qiuqiu gives birth, we can still cook soup or make meals here.”

During the exam, she naturally became the center of attention. Although the atmosphere was tense and there were other pregnant women taking the test, her situation was far more unusual.

The girls in the same examination room consciously took care of her—for example, helping steady her chair and assisting her when she sat down or stood up.

Soon, the three days of exams ended.

As soon as Si Qiu walked out of the examination room, she was sent directly to the hospital. During the final exam, she had already felt a faint discomfort in her belly.

So she handed in her paper early and hurried out, then was taken straight to the hospital. It wasn’t until after 7 p.m. that she finally gave birth.

Fortunately, there was no danger. But what gave everyone a headache was that the triplets were all boys—what kind of odds were those!

Si Qiu was too lazy to breastfeed the three babies. Even if she did, it wouldn’t be enough for long anyway. Besides, feeding babies was exhausting and painful. She didn’t lack milk powder, so she simply decided not to breastfeed.

Lu Hongjun had no objections and instead busied himself arranging formula.

But Wang Xia felt that the babies should still be breastfed—it was both convenient and economical.

However, after mentioning it several times and seeing Si Qiu refuse each time, she stopped insisting.

Their family soon became a small spectacle at the hospital, with everyone wanting to come see what the triplets looked like.

Si Qiu couldn’t rest properly there, so she stayed only two nights before being discharged. For this reason, they even asked Lu Hongqi to drive another car.

After all, they had a lot of belongings, plus a pregnant woman and three babies—one car simply couldn’t carry everything.

After returning home, Si Qiu began her postpartum confinement period. For the first time in her life, she felt that lying in bed all day was incredibly difficult to endure.

Meanwhile, the Lu family also learned that Si Qiu had given birth to three children. Old Madam Lu immediately packed her things and wanted to come over, but Old Master Lu and Lu Xianzhong persuaded her to stay.