Chapter 125

"Hey, you remembered it right, that's exactly what happened. How come the people of the Jia family don't bear grudges?"

Outside the steel rolling mill gate, Li Zhiguo was about to leave on his bicycle when he suddenly saw Dongxu's wife walking in front of him.

"Bihua!"

"Brother Li!"

As soon as Chen Bihua turned around, a smile instantly broke out on her face.

When Li Zhiguo saw the smile on Chen Bihua's face, he thought to himself, he had saved the Jia family. The Dongxu brothers would not be able to enter the steel rolling mill, so they would not be hung on the wall. Isn't this equivalent to changing his fate?
Let brother Dongxu taste more of the bitterness of this world. No, it should be the prosperity of this world.

"Bihua, are you going back, or what?"

"I want to go back. Bang Geng is at home. He will cry if he gets hungry."

Chen Bihua looked at the steel rolling mill with some nostalgia. She used to be a worker there.

"Come on, I'll take you back."

Li Zhiguo was originally going to go to his concubine's place, but it didn't matter if he waited a little longer. Giving birth to a child is not something that can be done overnight.

"Okay!" Chen Bihua turned sideways, held Li Ge'er with one hand, and sat sideways on the back seat of the bicycle.

"Bihua! Um, your sister Qin is at work now. If my little Guan Xiang is hungry, you can help feed him."

Li Zhiguo planned to find a wet nurse for his son. Isn't that what all wealthy families do?

As for my wife not being able to finish feeding the baby, I still have him to help. As long as the child doesn't go hungry, that's enough.

"Okay!"

Chen Bihua agreed without thinking. Now Li Ge'er's family is the best-off in the courtyard, and he is also a brother of Dongxu. If they have a good relationship, maybe he can live a good life with him.

"Okay, I'll talk to Dongxu when I get back."

Li Zhiguo pedaled quickly and soon returned to the yard. At this time, everyone who had to go to work or school had left, but the yard was not deserted.

It’s because there are only single workers in the hospital, and basically one man supports the whole family.

"Li Zhiguo, you guys are back. Did Jia Zhang really go to work in the factory?"

Aunt Wang was washing clothes in the front yard. She was not surprised to see the two of them together. If Li Zhiguo really wanted to do something, Jia Dongxu couldn't stop him, so she might as well relax.

"I'm back to work, also in Workshop 2, Dongxu's previous position, drilling screw holes."

Li Zhiguo felt that the job was not easy. He had to stand there for a whole day. Jia Zhang had never suffered any hardship before, so this was really hard.

"It would be good to let Jia Zhang go to work and earn money to support the family."

Aunt Wang dared to gossip in front of Chen Bihua. Jia Zhang had gone to work and had no time to make a fuss in the yard.

Li Zhiguo smiled and said, "I just don't know how much she pays every month. Sister Wang, I'm going to go back first. We'll talk when we have time."

"Hey, go ahead!"

Aunt Wang saw that the bicycle was still there. It seemed that the bad boy would go out for a wander in a while. What a good life these days were. If her son could grow up and live like Li Zhiguo, she would wake up laughing in her dreams.

Soon they arrived at the middle courtyard, and Li Zhiguo shouted, "Dongxu, I brought your wife back."

"Hey, is my mother really taking over the post?"

Jia Dongxu was drying clothes. When he turned around and saw his wife, the last bit of hope he had was shattered.

"I'm in the workshop, in your previous position."

Li Zhiguo walked over and said, "I have something to say. Isn't Bihua at home? If my little Guanxiang is hungry..."

He brought up the matter of breastfeeding again, and he had to inform Brother Dongxu.

"That's no problem. We are brothers. Bang Geng and Guan Xiang will also be brothers in the future."

Jia Dongxu grinned. Among the brothers in the courtyard, Xu Damao often scolded him, Sha Zhu didn't give him face either, and Lao Cai didn't say much, he was just there to make up the numbers.

Li Zhiguo had the best relationship with him. They went fishing together and Li Zhiguo even lent him his bicycle for riding practice.

He still raises chickens, but now that the weather is cold, they don't lay many eggs.

"That's what I thought, too. It's settled then. I'll bring little Guan Xiang over right now to test the waters first."

Li Zhiguo was worried about his son's acclimatization problem, so he asked his son to try it first. If it worked, he could let his son go out without worry.

There are many benefits of breastfeeding, the only disadvantage is that the baby gets hungry quickly, basically he will be hungry in about three hours, and when he is hungry he will cry, no matter how you coax him, it will be useless.

It's the same day and night. Last night alone, my wife got up three times to go to the bathroom.

If you are feeding your baby with formula, you can basically just feed him once in the middle of the night.

But now that we have a wet nurse, it’s easy. Whenever the baby is hungry, I can just call Chen Bihua to the backyard to feed the baby.

After a while, he brought his infant son to the Jia family, but he didn't see Jia Dongxu. What was going on?
"Dongxu went out to buy groceries. I saved some money from work."

Chen Bihua carefully took little Guan Xiang over and, without any hesitation, she began to breastfeed the baby after opening her eyes.

Li Zhiguo was stunned for a moment, but he was not embarrassed. This was nurturing offspring, a sacred thing.

"Xiao Guanxiang has a good appetite. He eats more than Bang Geng."

Chen Bihua had a smile on her face.

"That seems to be all right, Bihua. From now on, when Xiao Guanxiang is hungry and your sister Qin is not at home, let my mother call you over to feed the baby.

I'll ask my mother to prepare some food for you, it has to be nutritious."

Li Zhiguo would not give money, otherwise he would really hire a wet nurse, but he gave some food so that his son could have enough to eat.

"Thank you, Brother Li."

Chen Bihua had a smile on her face. After a while, Xiao Guanxiang was full. He was not very hungry at that time.

Li Zhiguo took the child over, but didn't want to stay long, so he said hello and left.

Chen Bihua then took off her clothes, hummed softly and went to operate the sewing machine. As for her son Banggeng, he was still sleeping soundly.

"Mom, please tell Huairu about letting Bihua breastfeed the baby at noon.

I have something to do at Qianmen Street, so I'll leave first. You can prepare something delicious for lunch at home."

"Hey, Mom, please go slowly on the road, son-in-law."

Qin's mother sent everyone out of the house and then went back to do housework.

……

Li Zhiguo left the yard and went directly to Union Hospital, which was three kilometers away from Qianmen Street. Without two cents, other tricycle drivers were really unwilling to make the trip.

"Li Zhiguo, you are here."

Chen Xueru is in the ward, but she is not lying in bed. She is still waiting to give birth.

"Well, how are you feeling today?"

Li Zhiguo nodded to Ding's mother as a greeting.

As for grandma, she is old and stays at home.

"Also... Ouch, my stomach hurts."

Chen Xueru suddenly reacted, and Mother Ding hurried to call a doctor.

Soon after asking about the situation, Dr. Liao said, "The baby is about to be born, it will only take a day or two."

"Okay, thank you, Dr. Liao."

Li Zhiguo had experienced this once and had experience. In this situation, his concubine was also about to give birth.

"Governing the country, will it be painful to give birth to a child?"

Chen Xueru suddenly felt a little nervous, but not afraid. How could a woman not give birth to children?

"It should be fine! Xueru, I'll go back this afternoon and tell my family. I'll stay here for the next two days."

He seldom comes here normally, but at such a critical moment, he still has to accompany me.

"Ok!"

Chen Xueru was in need of comfort and couldn't care less.

Mother Ding watched from the side, moved her lips but said nothing. As long as the young lady likes it, that's good. After observing him for such a long time, she also found that Li Zhiguo was a good person, except that he already had a family.

In the afternoon, Li Zhiguo returned to the compound and told his mother-in-law that something happened on the street and he would not go back at night. It was a small matter, but if he did not notify her, he would become a missing person.

"Son-in-law, go ahead and get busy, but also make sure to take a rest."

"Okay, Mom!"

After giving the instructions, he went out and met Yan Bugui in the front yard. The get out of class ended very early and Xiao Jingru had not returned from school yet.

"Li Zhiguo, are you going out again?"

Yan Bugui was just looking at bicycles; he wanted to buy one.

"Something happened to my father-in-law, so I won't be back tonight."

He just made up an excuse to let people know so that no one would worry about it.

"Well! Then Jia Zhang went to the factory, and Dongxu and his wife just stayed at home like this? If it takes a long time, nothing will happen?"

Yan Bugui casually said some gossip, how could my mother work to support the whole family.

"It's nothing. Isn't Dongxu learning cooking? He has to find something to do. Let's go. We'll talk later."

He did not delay and went to the Union Hospital again, staying with his young wife in the ward. In the evening, he suddenly had a reaction again.

"Governing the country, I will definitely give birth to a big fat boy."

Before entering the delivery room, Chen Xueru was reluctant to let go for a long time.

"Go ahead, I like both boys and girls."

Li Zhiguo patted the back of his concubine's hand, watched her enter the delivery room, and waited outside. There was no need to rush, as giving birth was not that quick.

At night, with the sound of a baby crying, the door of the delivery room opened soon. Li Zhiguo suddenly became a little nervous. Was it a boy or a girl this time?
"Congratulations, mother and child are safe, it's a boy."

Doctor Liao was delighted. She had once again made a correct judgment. Her fame would grow in the future. As for accepting gifts...

"Thank you, thank you Dr. Liao."

Li Zhiguo stepped forward to shake hands, and like a magic trick, he put the money he had prepared in the space on.

"Thank you too!"

Dr. Liao's words left the assistant a little confused. What are you thanking me for?

Soon, Chen Xueru was pushed out sitting on a chair, holding the child in her arms.

"Li Zhiguo, it's a boy!"

"Hey, hello boy!"

Li Zhiguo stepped forward. With his experience, he dared to hold the child this time. The child looked very similar to Xiao Guan Xiang. If he took the child back to the courtyard, he would be exposed.

"Boy, that's great."

Grandma Chen was very happy. In this era, the mainstream preference is for boys.

Mother Ding standing by also had a happy look on her face, as she would be the one taking care of the child from now on.

After a while, after returning to the ward, Chen Xueru leaned on the bed and said, "Zhiguo, you can name the child now."

"Well, I'll think about it."

Various quotations from saints flashed through his mind. "I got it, let's call him Xueyi, Li Xueyi. Uh, it's Chen Xueyi."

"Learn chess? Do you want us, my children, to play chess when they grow up?"

Chen Xueru is still educated and knows that Yi is chess.

Li Zhiguo shook his head and said, "Learning chess is a short story written by Mencius, which means that one should concentrate on learning. Besides, there is nothing wrong with playing chess. Life is like chess, and all living beings are chess pieces."

Only in the ward, with no outsiders around, can I brag like this. This is basically my idea: I hope my youngest son can become a chess player when he grows up.

"Well, that's called learning chess!"

Chen Xueru nodded, thinking that the name sounded like a cultured person, which was good.

The matter was settled: the eldest son was Li Guanxiang and the younger son was Chen Xueyi.

At night, in order to avoid suspicion, Li Zhiguo did not stay in the hospital. He stayed until very late and came back early the next morning.

Over the next twenty days, he frequently went to Chen's house, and in the blink of an eye it was January 27th, the Little New Year.

A few more days passed, and on February 2nd, which was New Year's Eve, all units and factories were still working, but after that they would have four days off, including one Sunday.

Li Zhiguo had a reunion dinner at his concubine's house at noon, which happened to not affect either party, as his concubine was discharged from confinement after the Spring Festival.

"Xue Ru, I have to go to the factory. I'll come back when I have time."

He hugged his son, who looked very much like Xiao Guan Xiang. They were his biological children, and there was nothing wrong with them.

"Well, after the Spring Festival, I will go to the store more often."

Chen Xueru has stayed at home for so long, if Li Zhiguo didn't come often, she would feel like she would be driven crazy.

"Then I'll go to the store first."

He didn't say much. After leaving Chen's house, he rode his bike to the street to stand guard for the last day of his shift.

"Li Zhiguo, after the New Year, you will be transferred to a formal cadre."

The director stopped him and mentioned this matter, which was also agreed upon at the beginning.

"Okay!"

Li Zhiguo now needs this cadre status, which will be of great use in the future.

After chatting with the director for a while, he left the street. There was no need to give gifts to anyone, and he still didn't go to work.

In the afternoon, the steel mill had already stopped working. People were basically waiting to get off work. It was the New Year, and no one had the heart to work, unless that person wanted to be a model worker.

But the model worker of the factory is not in the factory. Don’t you think this is nonsense?

"Look, that's not Li Zhiguo. What is he doing here today?"

A sharp-eyed worker noticed the situation at the door and realized that the model worker had arrived.

"Oh, everyone is busy!"

Li Zhiguo walked into the workshop. He was there to pick up his wife from get off work. Although Qin Huairu had a bicycle, it was convenient for him to ride it. He had to have a beginning and an end throughout the year.

"It's quite busy. Everyone has a lot of work to do."

"I'm so busy that I don't even have time to eat. Maybe I'll even have to work overtime."

The co-workers were all good at acting and answered along with the others. In fact, they all gathered in groups of three or four to kill time.

"Zhiguo, why are you here?"

Qin Huairu stood up in surprise. She had just been thinking that since it was New Year's Day, she should go back early to help with the cooking.

"Pick you up!"

Li Zhiguo was surprised to see Jia Zhangshi and Liang Ladi next to Qin Huairu. What was going on? They shouldn't be talking to each other.

Jia Zhang suddenly said, "Li Zhiguo, why didn't you come when the salary was paid this morning? I asked Qin Huairu to collect it for you."

When these words were spoken, the workers who were watching the fun were all stunned. Could it be that Qin Huairu couldn't just collect the money directly?

"I'm busy preparing New Year's goods. She's my wife, so it doesn't matter who takes her over."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Huairu handed over the money.

"Government, a total of sixty-three dollars, all here."

"Okay, I'll keep it for now, and I'll give you living expenses after the Spring Festival."

Li Zhiguo rolled up the money and put it in his jacket pocket, buttoned it up, and patted it. Isn’t that reassuring?

Everyone was confused. You didn't come here to pick someone up. You were probably thinking about the wages. It still has to be you. You haven't changed until now.

Qin Huairu smiled and said, "Zhiguo, this is Liang Ladi, she is Doctor Liang's niece."

"What a coincidence!"

Li Zhiguo was stunned for a moment, as if his wife didn't know that he was helping her find a job, as she was still in confinement after giving birth.

He might as well just pretend not to know her. He had never spoken to Liang Ladi at the factory anyway.

"Hello there!"

Liang Ladi greeted her, but pretended not to know her, fearing that others would gossip about her getting in through connections.

Li Zhiguo nodded, and suddenly remembered that he had told Director Yang that he wanted to invent a big thing, but there was no progress even after the New Year. So he just kept putting it off, year after year, and there was no rush.

Looking at Liang Ladi, she is indeed thinner and has not yet grown up. She has a hairstyle with big bangs and two braids because she is still young.

When life gets better, probably in one or two years, she will become pretty. Girls change a lot when they grow up.

Suddenly, Jia Zhang's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Li Zhiguo, how about our two families celebrate together today?"

Jia Zhang looked for He Daqing last night, but He didn't agree. She was sad for a long time.

She had just received her salary today and had money in her hands, so she wanted to have a good meal. Speaking of life, Li Zhi's country was still the best.

"Not today, I have an appointment with the He family to celebrate the New Year together, and if your family is included, there won't be enough room, let's wait until next time.

Besides, I heard that Uncle has made an appointment at your house, hey, Uncle, come over here."

Li Zhiguo directly called Yi Zhonghai, who was in the workshop.

"What's going on!"

Yi Zhonghai walked over quickly. He didn't work very hard, but just rested beside the machine.

"Just now, Jia Zhang invited my family to have New Year's Eve dinner together. I invited the He family. Didn't you invite the Jia family?"

Li Zhiguo also wanted to ask about the situation. He had been leaving early and coming back late recently, so he didn't know much about what was going on in the hospital.
"I made an appointment with Dongxu to have fun together."

Yi Zhonghai had a smile on his face. He was happy to see everyone in the hospital spend the New Year together, so he wouldn't feel lonely.

"That's great. It's almost time. I'll take Huairu away first. She still needs to get checked out."

Li Zhiguo made up an excuse and took the person away, otherwise it would have been a wasted trip.

When they left the factory, Qin Huairu said, "Zhiguo, are we going to buy anything?"

"I don't need to buy anything. I have everything ready. It's New Year's Eve. It would be nice to go back early to reunite with my family!"

Li Zhiguo rode two bicycles at once, carrying Qin Huairu and holding onto an empty bicycle, and rode back to the yard. His physical fitness and sense of balance were really not exaggerated.

"Hey, you're all back."

Yan Bugui was pulling chicken feathers. It was New Year's Day, so he gritted his teeth and bought a chicken. After the year, he had to eat some meat.

"Uncle, you are a teacher and a scholar, why do you kill the chicken yourself?"

Li Zhiguo never killed any living creatures. Even if he caught a fish, he would give it to others to handle. He usually only ate ready-made fish.

Yan Bugui smiled and said: "As for this chicken, you have to buy it home and kill it yourself, so that the chicken blood won't be wasted. And the chicken feathers can be made into shuttlecocks and dusters, which are all good things."

"Well, you keep busy!"

Li Zhiguo just said hello and followed him to the central courtyard. It was too cold now and there were usually few people in the courtyard.

"Hey, Li Zhiguo, wait a minute."

Suddenly, Jia Dongxu lifted the curtain and trotted out of the room.

(End of this chapter)