I Became the Mother of His Child

"Have you killed the chicken yet, and is it all prepared now?" Xu Xiuxiu looked helplessly at Xu Jingjing as she continued to ask, aware that the girl was cluelessly unaware that all her little schemes had been thoroughly seen through, yet still thought she had hidden it quite well?

Upon hearing her third sister ask this, Xu Jingjing instantly knew what was meant and her eyes smiled brightly, "I was just plucking the feathers! In a moment, after I've plucked the fine feathers clean, it will be ready to go into the pot for stew. By the way, sis, do you have a particular flavor you love to drink? If not, I'll just add some more red dates and goji berries to the stew for you. It's good for replenishing blood!" Xu Jingjing pondered and asked for Xu Xiuxiu's preference again.

Her brother-in-law had said that her third sister was very picky, so it was better to ask about her third sister's tastes before starting the soup. After all, her third sister was someone her brother-in-law cherished as dearly as apple of his eye.

"Sure! Let's stew it with red dates and goji berries!" Xu Xiuxiu had no objections; she also quite enjoyed red dates, "As long as it's cooked by our Si Ya, I'll love to drink it." Xu Xiuxiu, wanting to make Xu Jingjing happy, thus echoed with the words she wanted to hear.

This girl used to be the type who wouldn't touch soup or stew with a ten-foot pole, but now she was willing to boldly take on the task of cooking for her and even knew to cater to her tastes when making soup. How could she have the heart to dampen her enthusiasm?

Hearing this, Xu Jingjing's smile grew even more unrestrained, "Don't worry, third sister! I'll make sure it tastes great, and I promise it won't be greasy. I'll skim off the layer of fat on top very carefully."

"Great! Then I'll leave it to our Jingjing!" Xu Xiuxiu smiled and nodded, "Since you're nearly done with it, there's no need to have Chu Tiangu, a grown man, keep bustling around in the kitchen with you. You can take care of the rest, and Chu Tiangu, please, go and rest in the living room!" Xu Xiuxiu didn't ask Chu Tiangu's age, but took the liberty of speaking as Xu Jingjing's older sister, bestowing an indulgent glance at Xu Jingjing before politely addressing Chu Tiangu.

Regardless of anything else, once someone entered the home as a guest, Xu Xiuxiu naturally wouldn't let the situation become too unsightly.

"I just got too busy and forgot for a moment! Brother Chu, you see what I'm like. Why don't you quickly go take a break on the couch!" Xu Jingjing suddenly felt it was improper to have had Chu Tiangu plucking chicken feathers in the kitchen, especially as their hands had accidentally touched while they were crowded together by the sink just a moment ago.

"I won't sit down; I need to hurry back for training! The squad leader will be looking for me soon." Chu Tiangu naturally knew that it wasn't good for him to stay any longer, and despite some reluctance, he spoke up about leaving, "Then, Jingjing, I'll head back first. You carry on, and if there's anything you can't handle, you can call on me for help." As he spoke, Chu Tiangu's gaze lingered wistfully on Xu Xiuxiu for a moment, then he saluted and was ready to leave.

"Brother Chu, let me walk you out!" Xu Jingjing immediately panicked as she spoke to Chu Tiangu and then stepped forward, escorting him to the door, "Brother Chu, come visit us when you're free! I'm usually at home with nothing much to do." Xu Jingjing said from the doorway to Chu Tiangu.

"Alright! I'll come and bother you when I have time, but for now, I have to get back to training," Chu Tiangu said excitedly, nodding his head before reluctantly turning to leave.

Xu Jingjing only closed the door after watching Chu Tiangu descend the stairs, but when she turned around, she saw her third sister still standing outside the kitchen, watching her. Her cheeks flushed, "Sister, what do you think of Chu Tiangu just now?" Xu Jingjing was straightforward and seemed to have no intention of hiding her feelings. Seeing Xu Xiuxiu looking at her, she immediately asked, curious about her sister's thoughts.

Her third sister was smart and good at judging people. She should be able to give some advice to her, who was feeling a bit lost right now. Xu Jingjing didn't even know what to do; Chu Tiangu seemed like a good catch, but she wondered if he would be interested in her.

"How should I put it? If it's just as ordinary friends, I have no objections, but men and women are different; you need to be mindful of the boundaries in your interactions. However, if you're considering a romantic relationship, becoming boyfriend and girlfriend, then I wouldn't recommend him to you. He's not a good candidate for marriage." Although Xu Xiuxiu lacked experience in romantic relationships, she had seen all kinds of people, and she understood very well the type of person Chu Tiangu was—a hypocrite who was all about appearances.

Such a person wasn't suitable for dating, let alone marriage. Otherwise, who knows what kind of mess life would turn into!

"Why? I think Brother Chu is really nice! He's fair and clean, not rugged and coarse like the other men around here. Plus, he's educated—he graduated from high school! He exudes such a gentle scholarly aura! And he treats me well; I run into him every day when I go to get food, and he always insists on delivering it to my doorstep because he's worried I'd tire myself. Such a gentlemanly man is exactly what they write about in books! How rare to find in reality!" Xu Jingjing obviously seemed smitten, as if under a love spell, and started rebutting against Xu Xiuxiu's disapproval.

She believed that Chu Tiangu was the man she had always dreamt of: gentle, polite, and cultured. It was so rare for her to encounter such a man! Plus, he was a soldier, with a substantial salary every month. And these days, those who could join the military were likely from clean family backgrounds for at least three generations, which suggested he was reliable.

Xu Xiuxiu could see Xu Jingjing singing Chu Tiangu's praises and knew the girl had been poisoned, and deeply at that. If this continued, it could be truly dangerous.

"Jingjing, listen to your sister, okay? Look, there's no shortage of men in the army. Look at yourself, you're pretty too, right? An elegantly beautiful girl, young and educated. With your qualities, what kind of man couldn't you find? Don't rush into anything, meeting a man and taking him as the one right away! You have to be picky with men, choosing the best of the best, understand?" Although Xu Xiuxiu knew her words might not make much difference, she was anxious to boost Xu Jingjing's confidence, seemingly lacking at the moment, "Chu Tiangui might be okay in many respects, but you're not bad either! You can find a better man. And whether a man is good or not takes time to find out through interactions. Don't rush into deciding on him, let's take our time and get to know him better, alright?" Xu Xiuxiu was clearly a bit unsettled.

How naive this girl was! Normally, she was the type that, once she fixated on something, wouldn't easily let it go. If she carelessly fixated on something now, Xu Xiuxiu feared it would take considerable effort to bring back her simple-hearted little sister.