Chapter 58: Sewing Machine

Qin Pandi held Yushui's small hand as they walked out of the Siheyuan, greeting people she met along the way; whenever Yushui encountered children she knew outside, she would proudly introduce, "This is my mother."

"Don't say, they really do look like a mother and daughter," Yang Ruihua said.

"There is a bit of that feeling. Yushui has suffered quite a bit over these years; having a woman to look after her will be much better."

"Indeed, Yushui lost her mother when she was young, and He Daqing was busy with work before; it was only a bit better after he transferred to the Rolling Mill."

In the current Siheyuan, except for the Yan family who had only arrived less than two years ago, almost everyone else were old neighbors of ten or eight years, and they were all very clear about these matters.

"This is also good; a home without a woman just won't do."

"Who's to say otherwise? Washing clothes, cooking, cleaning, and raising children—which of these can be done without a woman?"

"Even the Chairman has said that we women can hold up half the sky."

Meanwhile, at the Deaf Old Lady's place in the Back Courtyard:

"Xiaocui, what is the situation with He Daqing? Why did he suddenly get married out of the blue? And what is the deal with that Qin Pandi?"

"I'm not very clear on it either. She seems very kind, and mainly, Yushui gets along quite well with her."

After Tan Cuicui finished speaking, she looked at the Deaf Old Lady with some strangeness, not understanding why she was suddenly concerned about the situation in the courtyard today.

The Deaf Old Lady seemed to see Tan Cuicui's confusion and offered an explanation:

"I'm just worried that people in the courtyard might be deceived."

It would have been better if she hadn't explained; this explanation only made Tan Cuicui's suspicions even deeper. Was this still the same Deaf Old Lady who was indifferent to everything? And the reason was so far-fetched.

"That's true," Tan Cuicui suppressed the suspicion in her heart and casually echoed her.

When Qin Pandi and Yushui came out of the bathhouse, Qin Pandi, who was already fair with a rosy glow, looked even more radiant, and Yushui had turned into a pink and tender porcelain doll; if one didn't look closely, one would really think they were a biological mother and daughter.

"Uncle Yan, Aunt Yang, look at the flower braids my mother braided for me."

"Uncle Liu, Uncle Wu..." Yushui showed off wherever she went, her little appearance even happier than during the New Year.

Back home, Yushui was still chattering away, showing off to He Daqing, which made the corners of He Daqing's eyes slightly moist; only then did he realize what had been on Yushui's mind all these years.

"Alright, Brother Daqing, things will only get better for us from now on," Qin Pandi said, stepping forward to comfort him, knowing that Yushui's behavior had made He Daqing feel guilty.

"Yes, I heard from Huairu that you are quite skilled at making clothes. Let's go buy a Sewing Machine later; from now on, all the clothes for the family will be left to you."

"Brother Daqing, there's no need for a Sewing Machine; I can just use my hands."

"That won't do. There are so many clothes to make throughout the four seasons, and besides, buying a Sewing Machine might even allow you to take on odd jobs, so you can earn some money too."

He Daqing's words moved Qin Pandi. She didn't want to be an idler in the city either. If she could earn money by making clothes herself, she could hold her head high wherever she was, so she stopped refusing.

"Well, then, alright."

"That's the spirit. We'll set off after we finish eating, and then we'll make some pretty clothes for Yushui."

"Dad, really?"

"Of course, when has Dad ever lied to you?"

The current He Daqing could be described as wealthy and imposing. He had been invited by Lou Bancheng, so his salary was certainly not low—seven hundred and fifty thousand per month—and if he took on a couple of banquet jobs on his days off, he could easily make over a million in minutes.

Over these years, he had also saved nearly twenty million. Although he had spent over three million to marry Qin Pandi—which, of course, included buying a Bicycle—buying a Sewing Machine now was still easy.

"Then I'll go ask Brother Dongxu to borrow a tricycle," Yushui said, and without waiting for He Daqing to reply, she ran out in a flurry.

Yushui knew that a Sewing Machine was a large item, and since the Bicycle had to carry a person, it naturally couldn't fit a Sewing Machine.

"This little girl is precocious."

"Sister-in-law, Brother Dongxu."

"Oh, it's Yushui. What's the matter?"

"My dad is going to buy a Sewing Machine, and I've come to borrow your family's tricycle."

"Oh? Uncle He really dotes on Auntie."

"Huairu, let's buy one too. Didn't you say before that Auntie's craftsmanship is good? You can learn a few tricks from her, and then we won't need to buy clothes for the family anymore."

Qin Huairu was also somewhat moved; she really didn't have much to do in the Siheyuan right now.

"Let's ask Dad and Mom for their opinion tonight."

"That works too. Yushui, here is the key; just have Uncle He come over and ride it away when the time comes."

"Mm, thank you, Brother Dongxu." Yushui took the key and trotted back home.

After Yushui left, Qin Huairu said to Jia Dongxu:

"Brother Dongxu, I think I'm pregnant. I've been feeling nauseous and sick these past few days, and my period hasn't come either."

"Really, Huairu? Let's go, let's go, let's go see Divine Doctor Wang."

"Brother Dongxu, it's mealtime right now."

"Right, right, right, let's eat first, let's eat first, and go after we finish."

Qin Huairu meant that the doctor also needed to eat, and seeing Jia Dongxu's excited appearance, she didn't say anything more.

After eating, the two of them couldn't wait to go to the Eighty-eight Courtyard. Seeing the long queue, Jia Dongxu was so anxious he was scratching his head.

"Dongxu, Huairu, come over here with me." Zhang Ping'an saw the two of them in line and brought them in through the side door.

"Why are you two here?"

"Uncle, Huairu seems to be pregnant, so we came to confirm it."

"Alright, you wait here, and I'll have my master come over to take a look for you."

Currently, Zhang Ping'an was still completely ignorant about pulse-taking. Although he understood the theoretical knowledge well enough, that mysterious and elusive feeling required more pulse diagnosis to slowly grasp; he hadn't touched upon that area yet.

"Mm~ It is indeed a Happy Pulse. Congratulations to you both."

"Master, is it a boy or a girl?"

"You little brat, still favoring boys over girls," Divine Doctor Wang glared at him.

"No, no, I was just asking on behalf of Dongxu and the others."

"Right, right, right, Wang Lao, we are also curious."

Qin Huairu also looked at the Divine Doctor Wang with a nervous expression; although her in-laws treated her very well, it was precisely because of this that she hoped even more for her firstborn to be a boy.

"It's a boy, take good care of yourself for these next two months."

"Haha, good, good, good! Many thanks, Wang Lao." Jia Dongxu was excited beyond measure.

After Lao Wang left, Zhang Ping'an instructed them, saying:

"Just go back and tell San Jie and San Jie Fu, don't tell anyone else yet."

"Mm-hmm."

When it came down to it, the two were still young people under twenty; the joy on their faces was impossible to hide, and since they had just come out of the Eighty-eight Courtyard, anyone with experience could tell at a glance.

The joy on their faces and the way Jia Dongxu was carefully shielding Qin Huairu were both seen by the observant Yang Ruihua.

"Head of the house, Huairu might be pregnant."

"Hm? How do you know?"

Yang Ruihua immediately told Yan Bugui about the scene she had just witnessed; Yan Bugui thought about it and realized it was indeed possible, so he cautioned his wife:

"They haven't said anything, so don't go blabbering about it outside."

"I wouldn't do that, I'm not that kind of person."

"Do you even believe what you're saying?" Yan Bugui rolled his eyes at her and then added:

"I don't care about others, but don't talk nonsense about the Jia Family. If you happen to cause Ping'an any dissatisfaction, do you still want that annual summer vacation income of a hundred or eighty thousand in the future?"

Yes, Yan Bugui had only revealed one-fifth of it to Yang Ruihua, but this was already enough to make Yang Ruihua look at Zhang Ping'an in a new light.

In fact, only the one summer vacation when Yan Bugui tutored Zhang Lanhua had an income as high as several million; afterwards, there were basically only extra earnings when he encountered Zhang Ping'an, and since the autumn harvest, Zhang Ping'an had mostly been at the wild rivers outside the city, so the two basically never ran into each other.

"Alright, alright, alright, I won't say anything."

Yang Ruihua naturally did not want to give up the annual summer vacation income of a hundred or eighty thousand, but for a big-mouth like her to keep a secret was simply torture; she felt itchy all over every single day.