https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-656-A-Chance-Encounter-at-a-Banquet/13466266/
Chapter 655: Good News
Chapter 655: Good News
Jiang Xia and Zhao Cheng Lei returned to the village in the evening.
Zhou Fu knew they were coming back, so he went out to sea in the afternoon to catch some fresh fish, shrimp, and crabs.
Since they had bought the clothing factory, Zhou Fu felt they should treat their relatives and friends to a meal to celebrate.
Jiang Xia carried her elder brother inside and saw He Xinguan, Tian Caifua, Zhou Mu, Great-Grandma, Xu Ling, and Second Aunt all busy in the kitchen.
She greeted them with a smile.
Zhou Mu was making sour fish soup. Zhou Fu had caught a 1.7-pound East Star Grouper earlier in the day and then caught another 1.5-pound one at the dock.
Knowing Jiang Xia loved sour fish soup, Zhou Mu decided to make it with the two East Star Groupers.
She smiled and said, "Your dad said you'd be back around this time."
Tian Caifua chuckled, "Perfect timing, we’re about to eat. We just need one more dish."
The brothers Zhou Wenguang, Zhou Wenzong, Zhou Wenyao, and their sisters Zhou Zhou and Zhou Ying excitedly called out, "Auntie, Dabao, Erbao, Xiaobao, you’re back!"
Great-Grandma had just finished washing the bowls and chopsticks. Seeing them carry the three children in, she quickly set the dishes on the table, dried her hands on her apron, and smiled, "Oh, you’re finally back! Great-Great-Grandma wants to hold them."
Zhou Fu, who was opening the wine inside, heard the voices and hurried out to take the children from his father-in-law.
After taking the children, Zhou Fu had to carefully identify each one. After a few seconds, he recognized them, noting how quickly they were growing. He laughed, "Twenty days without seeing you, and our Erbao has grown taller and stronger! You’re amazing, Erbao! Do you still recognize Grandpa?"
"Ya ya..." The younger brother didn't understand what Grandpa was saying, but he knew how to respond, using the few sounds he knew.
"Ah, you still recognize Grandpa, don't you? That’s right, I’m Grandpa..."
Zhou Wenguang came over to Second Aunt, "Second Aunt, which one is this baby? Let me hold them."
He hadn’t seen them in a while and couldn’t recognize them either.
Second Aunt handed him the little sister, "This is Xiaobao, be careful."
Zhou Chengxin and Zhou Chengsen were setting up chairs inside, preparing to eat. They came out and said, "Grandpa, Grandma, Second Aunt, come inside and sit down."
Zhou Fu, happy, carried the younger brother and invited his in-laws to come inside.
Jiang Xia went outside to help Zhao Cheng Lei with the luggage. Zhou Chengsen and Zhou Chengxin also went out to help.
With three children, the luggage was quite a lot. The back seats of the car were packed, and Jiang Xia had also bought some gifts in the city to share with the food workshop employees and Great-Grandma.
She had also bought gifts for the children, some new toys, which she distributed to them.
Zhou Wenguang, Zhou Wenzong, and Zhou Wenyao received the latest gaming consoles and roller skates.
Their previous roller skates no longer fit.
For the younger ones, Zhou Wenzu and Zhou Jie, she bought toy cars and gaming consoles.
Zhou Zhou and Zhou Ying got dolls, stuffed animals, and gaming consoles.
Each of them got the latest gaming console.
The siblings immediately wanted to run outside to show off their new gadgets to the village kids.
But Tian Caifua stopped them.
After dinner, Xu Ling helped clear the dishes. Zhou Mu said, "No need, I’ll do it. The courtyard is slippery, you sit down. Go and hold Dabao, Erbao, and Xiaobao, and get some good luck!"
Jiang Xia looked at Xu Ling’s abdomen and smiled, "Is this...?"
She didn’t finish her question.
Xu Ling nodded and held up one finger, indicating she was only a month and a bit pregnant.
Jiang Xia smiled, "Congratulations!"
She and Zhou Guodong got married in September. At the time, Jiang Xia was in the Capital City, having only just started school, so she didn’t come back. However, she had already sent her gift before leaving, and on the wedding day, she asked Zhou Mu to send another one on her behalf.
Xu Ling smiled a bit sheepishly. "Thank you."
Great-Grandma quickly said, "Come, come, give Dabao a hug!"
Second Aunt laughed. "First, hug Xiaobao, then Dabao."
Now, if the first child is a boy, they can only have one child. But if it's a girl, they can have another.
Neither of their families has ever had twins, so it’s impossible for Xu Ling to have twins like Jiang Xia did.
Second Aunt hoped that Xu Ling’s first child would be a girl, and the second one a boy.
Of course, she knew that you can’t always get what you want, but people always have their hopes and dreams, and they wish for them to come true.
If Xu Ling’s first child is a boy, she would be happy too; no one dislikes having a grandson.
Once they have enough money, they could always hide and have another child.
People by the sea like having many children and a large, happy family.
Most households have many children, except for those who work for the government.
Jiang Xia said, "Do you want to adjust your workload at the food processing plant?"
Xu Ling quickly replied, "No need, I can handle it! There’s no need to make changes. Some women even work in the fields while pregnant! I don’t find this work tiring at all."
With such a high salary, she couldn’t afford to stop working.
She and Guodong planned to build a house. Living in one big house with the entire family was too crowded and inconvenient.
Their wedding room was only made available after Zhou Guodong’s nephews moved to sleep with their grandparents, freeing up a room.
The room was partitioned off, and the walls weren’t even built to the ceiling; they were raised for their wedding.
She always worried about being overheard during intimate moments.
Besides, this work wasn’t tiring, and she was used to it.
Jiang Xia had seen women in the village working in the fields while heavily pregnant, and she had seen them carrying water to water the vegetables. So she said, "Then just do lighter work, and don’t move heavy loads."
"I know. My mother-in-law, Sister Ahuan, and Aunt Fen don’t let me move heavy things. They only have me tend the fire and wash things."
Jiang Xia felt reassured. With Second Aunt watching over her, there was nothing to worry about.
However, she decided to talk to He Xinguan and Aunt Fen the next day, asking them to help share Xu Ling’s workload and give them a bit more bonus at the end of the year.
The next morning, Jiang Xia went to the old house and discussed the matter, adding, "Thank you all for your hard work these past few months. I’ll give you a little extra bonus at the end of the year."
Xu Ling smiled and said, "Everyone has been so kind to me. At the end of the year, please share my bonus with everyone! I’m not doing nothing, and everyone has their own difficult times. Besides, when I do less, my mother-in-law does my share."
The food processing plant was running smoothly. Even without her in the kitchen, everything was clean and orderly, and everyone worked efficiently. After a quick look, Jiang Xia drove to the city.
Zhao Cheng Lei had already driven to the factory to check on its progress.
They split up to handle their respective tasks.
Jiang Xia went to the city to discuss the clothing factory with the factory manager and attend a meeting.
Jiang Xia appointed a deputy factory manager to manage the clothing factory in her absence.
She didn’t make any changes to the other positions, as it wasn’t appropriate to do so yet.
The original factory manager was being transferred to a new position. After the clothing factory was contracted out, his work here would be complete, and he would report to his new department next month.
However, the factory manager was close to retirement age and would retire by the end of the year. He smiled and said, "When I retire, I’ll come back here as a security guard."
Jiang Xia laughed. "You’re always welcome to come back, but you don’t have to be a security guard. You can continue as the factory manager."
Everyone assumed Jiang Xia was the factory manager since the position was vacant, but Jiang Xia planned to wait until the original factory manager retired and then ask him to come back to manage the factory.
(End of Chapter)
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