Chapter 48: Chapter Forty-Eight: Qin Huairu Is Pregnant, Jia Zhangshi Roars

After dinner, Qin Huairu stopped making cloth shoes; she took the clothing store's fabric and began working, staying busy until past ten at night before finishing half, which pained Jia Dongxu, who kept telling Qin Huairu to rest early.

The next day before leaving, Jia Dongxu found Jia Zhangshi and said, "Mom, you can't go anywhere today; stay home and help Huairu make shoes—yesterday she sewed clothes until past ten."

Jia Zhangshi reluctantly waved her hand and said, "I know, hurry up and go."

After Jia Dongxu left, Jia Zhangshi put on a stern face and helped Qin Huairu apply starch to the fabric, while Qin Huairu personally stitched each dried sole from yesterday with the sewing machine, working all morning to finish more than thirty pairs of soles.

"Huairu, go cook, I'm hungry," Jia Zhangshi said while applying starch to the fabric. Qin Huairu stopped the sewing machine, said "Okay, Mom," and went to cook; as soon as she entered the kitchen and smelled the odor, she covered her nose, ran out, and vomited by the sink.

Seeing Qin Huairu's reaction, Jia Zhangshi's stern face broke into a smile; she hurriedly got up, went to Qin Huairu's side, and asked, "Didn't you get your period this month?"

Qin Huairu blushed and nodded; seeing her response, Jia Zhangshi happily said, "Oh dear, my great-grandson, Grandma has been waiting for you!" She started to help Qin Huairu back inside, but Qin Huairu stopped her, saying, "Mom, let me go buy something to eat—I feel like vomiting when I smell food while cooking."

Jia Zhangshi still Chen Yue in the joy of expecting a grandson, saying, "Huairu, you don't need to worry about cooking; I'll do it," then she went into the house and ran to the kitchen to cook.

After returning home, Qin Huairu didn't rest but picked up the shoe pattern and continued making shoes, waiting until Jia Dongxu got off work in the evening; Jia Zhangshi told Jia Dongxu the news of Qin Huairu's pregnancy, and seeing Qin Huairu pregnant yet still working at the sewing machine, Jia Dongxu said, "Mom, Huairu is pregnant—why are you still letting her work the sewing machine?"

Jia Zhangshi glanced at Qin Huairu and said, "Oh dear, I'm too happy—tomorrow, I'll make the shoes myself; Dongxu, go ask your master for a day off tomorrow and take Huairu to the hospital for a checkup."

After hearing that, Jia Dongxu went to Yi Zhonghai's home; once Jia Dongxu left, Jia Zhangshi hurried to Qin Huairu's side and said, "Huairu, don't sit—tomorrow I'll make the shoes, so rest now."

Qin Huairu stopped the sewing machine, looked at Jia Zhangshi, and said, "Mom, no—otherwise we won't finish on time," then she stepped on the pedal again.

Jia Zhangshi didn't dare let Qin Huairu continue, fearing that if Jia Dongxu came back he'd blame her, so she hurriedly pulled Qin Huairu up and herself sat on the sewing machine, stepping on the pedal.

Qin Huairu saw Jia Zhangshi sitting on the sewing machine and noticed a barely perceptible smile.

The next day early, Jia Dongxu took Qin Huairu to the hospital; after the examination confirmed her pregnancy, an excited Jia Dongxu led her back to the courtyard house. Upon entering, neighbors seeing Jia Dongxu not at work asked, "Dongxu, why aren't you at work today?" An excited Jia Dongxu told the neighbors, "Oh, Aunt Li, Huairu is pregnant—I brought her for a checkup."

Back at the Jia family, Jia Zhangshi was sitting on a chair drinking water; Qin Huairu saw that Jia Zhangshi had made two pairs of shoes that morning, said nothing, and sat at the sewing machine to continue making shoes. Seeing Qin Huairu start working again, Jia Dongxu walked over and said, "Huairu, rest, don't work."

Qin Huairu turned, looked at Jia Dongxu, smiled, and said, "Dongxu, no—otherwise we definitely won't finish ten pairs of shoes today; I'm fine, not tired," then turned back and resumed making shoes.

Seeing this, Jia Dongxu didn't stop Qin Huairu any further, merely reminding her to be careful before leaving; around noon he returned with a prepared chicken, holding it and said to Jia Zhangshi, "Mom, Huairu can't go into the kitchen now—please stew this chicken for her."

Jia Zhangshi, seeing there would be chicken for lunch, agreed and went into the kitchen to prepare it. At mealtime, just as she was about to put a drumstick in her own bowl, she saw Jia Dongxu place a drumstick in Qin Huairu's bowl, saying, "Huairu, eat more chicken for nourishment," then he rummaged in the pot and also placed the other drumstick in her bowl.

Qin Huairu, seeing both drumsticks in her bowl, took one and placed it in Jia Zhangshi's bowl, saying, "Mom, I can't eat both—you have one." Jia Zhangshi was about to pick it up to eat when she saw Jia Dongxu looking at her; she sighed inwardly, put the drumstick back into Qin Huairu's bowl, and said, "Huairu, you're pregnant now—just eat the drumstick; I'll have something else," then she picked up a wing and began eating.

Previously, each of them got one drumstick, but after the previous incident Jia Dongxu stopped eating chicken altogether; thereafter, whenever they ate chicken, both drumsticks went to Jia Zhangshi—did Qin Huairu really think she could eat? What a joke!

Around four in the afternoon, Qin Huairu had Jia Dongxu bring twenty pairs of shoes; the two went to the Street Office, found Zhang Caifu, and said, "Comrade Zhang, please take a look—these are the shoes I made these two days."

Qin Huairu had Jia Dongxu take the twenty pairs of shoes out of the cloth bag and put them on the table; Zhang Caifu examined each pair and said, "Comrade Qin, no problem—these twenty pairs are fine; just don't waste time on the rest—bring them over when they're done."

Hearing Zhang Caifu's affirmation, Qin Huairu smiled and said, "Comrade Li, how many more of these shoes can we make? If we have time, I'd like to get some more."

Zhang Caifu looked at the form on the table and said, "Well, there are still seventy pairs; if you add the remaining shoes and you personally deliver them within fifteen days, then you can take these seventy pairs back."

Jia Dongxu originally wanted to stop Qin Huairu, but seeing her excited expression, he didn't, and the two fetched the fabric for seventy more pairs of shoes and returned to the courtyard house.

Seeing Qin Huairu bring back more fabric, Jia Zhangshi bellowed, "We already have so much we can't finish—why fetch more? Jia Dongxu, do you want to work me to death?"

Qin Huairu and Jia Dongxu put the fabric into the inner room and said, "Mom, that's all there is—you can't get any more; if we finish these in fifteen days we'll earn eight yuan fifty," then they walked over to the sewing machine and continued making cloth shoes.

Jia Dongxu also came out of the house and said, "Mom, you've worked hard these two days; tomorrow I'll buy you another chicken to nourish yourself."

Hearing Jia Dongxu want to buy another chicken, Jia Zhangshi said, "Don't buy, don't buy—making these shoes is how we get to eat a few chicken meals; I'll work, I'll start tomorrow."

In Sijiucheng, at the Electronics Research Institute, Chen Yun had already been transferred back to Sijiucheng over a month ago; he had not returned to Huaxia University, but instead came to the institute to serve as director. A few days ago he received a superior's order to form a research team to head to Northern Frontier to obtain data on the guidance trajectory of the carrier vehicle for the White Bear, which is secretly experimenting.

After several days of personnel screening, the candidates were preliminarily decided; only the report and background checks remained. Chen Yun went to the director's office, knocked, entered, and said, "Director Luo, please look—the list has been confirmed," then handed the list to the institute's director, Luo Youbin.