Chapter 128 - 128 Sister-In-Law Is Enough for Him
128 Sister-In-Law Is Enough for Him
She grabbed the man by the collar before he could even reach for the fifth step. Before he knew it, he could no longer take a step further.
“Stop running! Why did you act like a thief when you only handed me gifts?” Zhao Chuchu dragged him back and said, “I told you I didn’t want that. Stop forcing me to accept it.”
The man was horrified.
Old Mr.s Chen couldn’t help but laugh at the sight of it. “Young man, you should really stop that. Chuchu has already said no to you. Quit putting her on the spot already!”
Zhao Chuchu took the bundle in wrapping cloth, opened it, and saw a few red-dyed eggs inside. After grabbing them, she lectured, “Take the rest back with you. I’ll only accept the red-dyed eggs to celebrate this auspicious event. Treat your wife and daughter better if you truly want to thank me. Don’t forget that they had a narrow escape from the jaws of death.”
Upon hearing that, the man’s eyes were filled to the brim with tears. “Don’t worry, Doctor Zhao. I’ll take good care of them both. However, I insist that you accept these gifts. Although they didn’t cost much, they were a token of our appreciation for you. If you didn’t accept them, my mother would smack me when I’m back.”
Zhao Chuchu raised her brows and commented, “A man of your size and age still gets a beating from his mother?”
“Mm, yeah. My wife only suffered difficult labor because I got under her skin. When I got home that day, my mother almost broke my legs.” After he spoke, the man pulled up his sleeves. “Here, look. These are the beating marks left by my mother.”
Multiple bruises could be seen on his tanned arms, clearly showing that he was beaten to a pulp.
Although Zhao Chuchu had never seen the man’s mother before, she got a feeling that they would get along well.
Mothers-in-law in this era would rarely stand up for their daughters-in-law. Plus, the woman didn’t come across as someone sour and petulant. Their interaction really showed the closeness of their relationship.
Zhao Chuchu grabbed a bottle of medicine and threw it at the man. “Take it. Let your wife apply the medicine for you if your mother hits you again.”
The man remained silent as she spoke.
He did not expect Doctor Zhao to react that way.
“I still have a lot on my plate. You should get back now.” Zhao Chuchu went on. “My husband is not at home currently. It is not appropriate for you to remain here.”
The man’s face flushed, and he exclaimed, “I’m sorry for being inconsiderate!”
With that, he hurriedly left Xie clan’s courtyard gate and said, “I won’t go in. This is good enough for me.”
Zhao Chuchu cupped her forehead and grumbled at the man’s stubbornness.
“How about this? I will accept your gifts, and you will take some convalescent tonics back for your daughter.” Zhao Chuchu didn’t like to eat her words. She would not take the gifts since she had refused to accept them earlier. However, exchanging goods would be a different story. “Hey, wait. Stop right there.”
Zhao Chuchu was worried that the woman’s breast milk would be insufficient since the latter was skinny. Therefore, she took two cans of milk powder and removed the graphics and words from the packaging before handing them out.
“Come here. I’ll let you know how to use them.” Zhao Chuchu beckoned at the man to enter and taught him the milk preparation process, including the suitable temperature for the child’s consumption.
The aroma of the milk attracted Old Mrs. Chen’s attention. “Chuchu, what is this?”
“Powdered milk. It is a replacement for mothers whose breast milk production is insufficient. According to my observation, that lady’s breast milk should be in short supply,” Zhao Chuchu explained.
“Yeah, that’s right. My wife’s breast milk isn’t enough for my daughter. So, we can only feed her some congee.” Tears rolled down the man’s cheek as he uttered those words.
Zhao Chuchu turned to look at him. “Have you learned how to prepare it?”
“Yeah.”
“Remember carefully. You should keep the powdered milk in a dry place. It must not be exposed to moisture.”
“Got it. Thank you so much, Doctor Zhao.”
“Get in, Junjun,” Zhao Chuchu called out to Xie Jun.
Xie Jun had gotten a whiff of the milk’s aroma earlier. He wanted to taste it but didn’t dare to ask Zhao Chuchu.
Now that he heard his name being called, he immediately rushed toward the source of the sound, knowing she wanted to let him taste it.
“Drink it.”
“Okay.”
Xie Jun held the bowl of milk in his hands delightedly.
The taste was too good. It was something he had never tried before.
“What milk is this?” Old Mrs. Chen asked.
“This is not human milk.” Zhao Chuchu continued, “You won’t find this in Guangqing Province. I got them from a traveling merchant the other day. I was told these couldn’t be stored for too long. They should be consumed as soon as possible.”
“I see.” Old Mrs. Chen stopped probing upon hearing that. All the kids were no longer little children. Those unusual things they brought back were already beyond her.
The man carried two cans of powdered milk and left after expressing gratitude.
“Hold on, Grandma Chen. I wanna give you one.” Zhao Chuchu had many of them with her, thinking it wouldn’t be a bad idea to do others a favor.
Old Mrs. Chen immediately rejected it. “We don’t have babies at home. Giving it to me is such a waste. You should keep it for yourself.”
“No. They can be separated into different age groups. I still have a few cans that are suitable for Junjun’s age. You should take one back for Chen Liang.”
Zhao Chuchu went into the house. Immediately after, she handed two cans to Old Mrs. Chen after removing the graphics and words on the packaging.
Nevertheless, Old Mrs. Chen didn’t dare to accept it.
“Grandma Chen, I’m not giving it to you for free. Please ask aunt to help out at the field in the backyard.” Zhao Chuchu shoved it to Old Mrs. Chen. “I need to prepare medicines for my patients after this. So, I don’t think I have enough time to work in the field. I might even miss the best time to grow them.”
“This is just a trivial matter. You only need to inform me about it. Why did you feel the need to give me the powdered milk?”
“That’s a different matter. I can’t let you do the work for free, can I? Reciprocity is crucial. Next time, I can be at ease when I ask for your help.”
“You really are…”
“Please accept it.”
“Alright. I shall accept it, then. I’ll ask her to come to help you later. Guess I’ll take my leave now. The clothes still need to be aired.”
“Have a nice day, Grandma Chen.”
Old Mrs. Chen found a handful of straw and hid the powdered milk with it. Otherwise, the others would come and bug Zhao Chuchu after seeing it.
Zhao Chuchu closed the door and turned around. She noticed Xie Jun licking the bowl and was at a loss for words.
Was the boy starved?
“If you clean the bowl, I’ll let you drink a bowl of milk every night. What do you think?”
“Are you serious?”
“Did I ever lie to you?”
Xie Jun jumped in ecstasy.
Zhao Chuchu was a little fluttery after seeing the high-spirited Xie Jun.
She had already planned to let Xie Jun start drinking milk.
Xie Jun was too short for his age. A child as good-looking as him should grow taller.
“Sister-in-law, what should I do?”
“Sister-in-law, what can I do to help you?”
…
Xie Jun had been following Zhao Chuchu around that day. What about his brother?
Oh, well. His sister-in-law alone was enough for him.
The people of the Chen clan did not slack at all. Old Mrs. Chen’s eldest daughter-in-law, Madam Zheng, plowed the field of the Xie clan’s backyard in one evening. She even asked Zhao Chuchu what she was planning to plant, hoping to help the latter do it.
“I want to set up a shed. It needs to be firmer.”
Zhao Chuchu pointed in the direction of the open space nearby.
She wanted to grow some pumpkins.
Pumpkin pie was delicious, after all.
“Are you going to grow some calabashes? They take up too much space. You can grow them at some random barren hill.”
“This is not calabash. It is called a pumpkin. I’m not sure what it is myself. I thought I should set up a melon shed first.”
“What did you get it from?”
“I bought a lot of stuff from the grocery store. The owner gave it to me.”
“Why don’t you try something else? We don’t even know what a pumpkin looks like. It’d be a waste of this piece of land if we were cheated and nothing grew from it.”
“I won’t be a waste. I wanted to grow some seedlings.”
“What kind of seedlings?”