Liu Guimei did not miss the chance to impart her wisdom, "Xinghua, don't bother being polite to a person like her. If she's shameless, you have to be even more shameless than her to deal with her."
Jiang Xinghua smiled awkwardly.
Liu Guimei shook her head. Her elder sister-in-law was as soft as cotton.
Forget it, she would take on the protector role for this family.
Liu Guimei carried the pigeons to the central room to claim credit. She called, "Mother, not only did I get the pigeons back, but I also brought back a handful of medicinal herbs."
Her voice was as loud as a loudspeaker.
As soon as they entered the house, Second Fu shushed her. "Keep your voice down, keep it down. Don't wake Fubao."
Liu Guimei turned around and sulked.
"You're pretty capable to have been able to take something from Fatty Li's possession." Mdm Fu couldn't help but praise her.
Fatty Li was famous for being a miser and tightwad.
To take something from her was a challenge harder than ascending to the skies.
Liu Guimei beamed and said smugly, "That's not all. I even told her that if Erxing doesn't recover, I'll go back and ask her for medical fees."
Mdm Fu laughed till her sides ached. "Wish I could have seen her face!"
Pretty capable indeed.
She resembled her in her younger days.
Initially, Mdm Fu was not very happy with Liu Guimei as her daughter-in-law. However, she then saw the pros in her fiery character that could help protect the family.
It was a pity that her elder daughter-in-law, Jiang Xinghua, was too soft-hearted. If there was another person in the family with a similarly soft personality, the family would definitely be taken advantage of by outsiders in the future.
Because of this, she better appreciated Liu Guimei's character and saw it as an asset which could benefit the entire family when such incidents occur.
"Who cares how her face looked? Even our family has yet to enjoy the pigeon meat. She doesn't even deserve a turn in this!"
Liu Guimei gestured at the pigeons held in her hands. "Mother, if I hadn't run fast enough, the pigeon would have been in her stomach long ago."
Her contribution was significant.
Does this mean that she could have some of the pigeons too?
She added tactfully, "It's said that a pigeon has the nutritional value of ten chickens. I wonder if it's true."
How could Mdm Fu not get her meaning from the gluttonous look on her face? "Take those four pigeons to make soup for the family dinner tonight."
It has been a long time since the family had eaten meat. All of them were so malnourished that their faces were pale.
Compared to the other children in the village of the same age, Xiaolong and the other children were a few heads shorter.
They needed some additional nourishment too.
"Sure! Leave it to me. I'll get going now." Liu Guimei grabbed the four pigeons and instantly disappeared.
Afraid that Mdm Fu might go back on her word, Liu Guimei immediately started a fire to boil the soup, as soon as she reached the kitchen.
She was always in the lead when it came to eating. If only she was as diligent when doing the house chores.
Lunchtime.
Jiang Xinghua brought the dishes into the central room as usual. Additionally, she also brought Mdm Fu a bowl of pork bone and yam soup. The pork bone was from the skull of a pig.
This was not as valuable as pork ribs, and hence in lower demand and much more affordable.
Since both were pork bones, they should be pretty similar.
She called out softly, "Mother, you eat in your room, away from the cold wind outside. Father, come out and eat."
Second Fu was still staring at his child by the bedside. Without moving his eyes away, he said, "You guys go ahead. I'm not hungry."
It was as if looking at his daughter was enough to satiate him.
Mdm Fu was already used to it. "Old man, stop joking and go have your meal. There will be ample time for you to carry her later."
"I'm really not hungry. Besides, our daughter smells better than food."
Under Mdm Fu's murderous glare, Second Fu gave in and got up to eat.
Seeing how happy her father-in-law was,Jiang Xinghua couldn't help but grin. He was so happy that he didn't even need to eat.
She could not help but walk over to take a look too. She had been busy all morning and had not had the chance to see the newborn yet.
The only precious girl of the Fu family.
When she got closer, she saw Fu Xing'er pouting and blowing little bubbles from her mouth in her sleep. She was smiling and her dimples were showing clearly. She might just be having a sweet dream.
Just one look, and Jiang Xinghua was captivated.
How cute!
She felt love for her immediately.
She had never seen a newborn so beautiful, as exquisite as a porcelain doll.
"Mother, look at her fair skin. It's so white and smooth, like a peeled egg. She's so different from other newborns, whose skin would usually be dark and rough. The dimples on her cheek are so charming when she smiles. Her nose is as pointed as a little hill, and her eyebrows are curved at the right angles, like beautiful willows. Her chin is round and beautiful. Her facial features are simply flawless. She must be the epitome of beauty in the world."
She was not highly educated and did not know much vocabulary. However, she did know that the baby looked beautiful.
No wonder her father-in-law was reluctant to leave. If it were her, she would also have stayed here the whole day to watch her.
Hearing Jiang Xinghua's out-of-the-world praises of her daughter, Mdm Fu couldn't stop beaming. Her heart swelled with pride.
"Thank you."
Outside, Fu Xiaolong and the others ran into the house, making much noise.
This woke Fu Xing'er from her sweet dreams.
Which brat is making noise and disrupting her beautiful dream?
She scowled and opened her sleepy eyes reluctantly.
Just a while ago, she had dreamed that she was an adored princess in a rich family. Her whole family, including her parents and older siblings, all doted on her very much. It was non-stop eating and shopping. She did not have to worry about money. It was a dream come true.
When she opened her eyes, she was still an adored princess. However, she was now in an extremely poor family.
Jiang Xinghua called, "Mother, she's awake."
A gaze coming from a pair of big round eyes met hers. Jiang Xinghua felt her heart skip a few beats. She said, "These eyes are as large as grapes. They are black and bright, as dazzling as gems."
When her eyes were closed just now, she was already beautiful. Now that she has opened her eyes, she looked like she was glowing.
No female could resist being praised.
This person had very good taste.
Fu Xing'er stared at Jiang Xinghua. She looked as gentle as water. Her eyes looked kind, and she did not seem threatening in any way.
Oh, this was her elder sister-in-law.
She liked what she saw.
She smiled at her.
Jiang Xinghua rubbed her hands excitedly. "Mother, she is smiling at me. She's smiling at me."
Mdm Fu, who was drinking her soup, saw what happened too and said, "She likes you."
These words made Jiang Xinghua happy. She couldn't help but pick her up. "I like you too."
She reached her finger out and gently poked her little face. It was so bouncy.
Fu Xing'er kept smiling. Jiang Xinghua felt her hunger ebb away just by looking at her.
No wonder her father-in-law had said that he wasn't hungry. She could understand this kind of happiness too, now that she had experienced it.
Ouch!
Fu Xing'er felt her face muscles cramping from smiling so long.
Jiang Xinghua gently patted her and played with her. "Mother, has she been given a name?"
"Yes, your father had named her. Her name is Fu Xing'er, nickname Fubao. It means that she is as beautiful as the stars in the sky and a precious treasure of our Fu family, bringing us full of blessings."
"I love both the names! Fubao, our little Fubao."
What?!
Fu Xing'er?!
Again?! How is it so coincidental that this happened to be her exact name in her previous life?
"Fubao, you like this name too, right?" Jiang Xinghua tapped her little chin, and Fu Xing'er smiled in satisfaction.
"Mother, Fubao understands what I'm saying. She's so smart."
She recalled when Xiaolong and Xiaohu were born, they were very different. The only thing they could do was to eat. Nothing else.
Whereas for Fubao, not only could she understand her words, but she could also interact with her.
"Mother, if you ask me, Fubao is really a blessing for our family. Otherwise, Daxing and Erxing wouldn't have been so lucky today to chance upon the pigeons on the mountain."
She had heard the story from Daxing. It was too unusual for any animals to appear on the forsaken mountain, let alone pigeons falling from the sky right in front of them.
This was clearly a gift from the heavens.
In the past, her family had been used to being unlucky. They had never encountered such good luck.
Jiang Xinghua looked at Fu Xing'er in her arms and felt that her birth had brought good luck to their Fu family.
She liked her even more.