"I finally understand why she was being so vague..." Zhao Qihui looked at Luo Xiaoqiong with sudden realization, "Sister-in-law, if you want to say you’ve gained weight because our mom’s cooking is too oily, just say so. Why beat around the bush?"

"Ugh, you’re annoying..." Luo Xiaoqiong glared at her resentfully, "I’m just using myself as an example to prevent you from making the same mistake. If I had known this was how you’d take it, I wouldn’t have said anything."

"Alright, you two take your time chatting, we’re going to rest in our room," Chuxia said as she got up to leave. Yun Doudou and Yun Guoguo quickly got up to follow her.

"Were you all just here to laugh at us?" Zhao Qihui teased with a smile as she waved the others goodbye at the door, then returned to sit beside Luo Xiaoqiong,

"Sister-in-law, I’ve actually wanted to have a good chat with you for a while, but every time I try, I swallow my words. Today’s the perfect opportunity to really open up, shall we?"

"Sure." Luo Xiaoqiong agreed readily and after a brief pause, asked, "Did mom say something to you? Did I do something that made her unhappy?"

"Not at all, mom just told me to take good care of you..." Zhao Qihui sighed, continuing, "Because you chose to get married and pregnant before my brother’s mission, my parents and grandparents are extremely grateful to you, wanting to treat you like a treasure. How could they have any complaints?

I’m also very grateful for your decision. My brother is the hope of our family, and if something were to happen to him, our family would fall apart. Even having a child gives everyone hope.

Of course, I’m not saying something will definitely happen to my brother, just that in that situation, that’s what everyone thought. I’m sure when you made your decision, this was part of your reasoning too, right?"

Luo Xiaoqiong nodded confidently, "Yes." That was indeed how she felt, otherwise, at her age, there was no need to marry and have children so early. There was no need to hide this.

"But from another perspective, because of your choice, my parents always feel indebted to you when interacting, choosing not to speak up on some matters that should or shouldn’t be said.

However, there are indeed generational differences between elders and younger people. Living together long term, small conflicts are unavoidable, and holding it in is actually not healthy for either side..."

Seeing Luo Xiaoqiong looking a little tense, Zhao Qihui clarified, "Sister-in-law, don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying there’s some major conflict between you and mom, it’s just an analogy."

Luo Xiaoqiong sighed, "Why make an analogy out of nowhere? There must be something, just tell me straight, Sister Qihui, I’m not someone who can’t take others’ opinions."

"Sister-in-law, let me first suggest one thing: please stop calling me Sister Qihui, since I’m my brother’s biological sister, saying it like that feels too awkward."

Luo Xiaoqiong obediently agreed, "Alright, I’ll stop. Qihui, I want to hear the truth."

"Mom didn’t tell me anything, but from her expression and state, I can tell that taking care of you these past months hasn’t been easy for her.

The night before she left, she reminded me for half the night, afraid you’d be neglected. I couldn’t help but ask if she didn’t really want to leave.

After hesitating for a long while, she told me that in the past, dad often went on labor conscription trips (where someone would work on distant, heavy labor projects like building roads or reservoirs, typical of that era) for one or two months but still took good care of himself. So, this time, she wasn’t too worried.

As for women with ulterior motives, she wasn’t concerned either. She knows dad’s personality well; nobody could tempt him when he was young, and now that he’s older, it’s even less likely.

And by going along with everyone’s suggestion to have Aunt Cha Xiang come over, mom hoped sister-in-law could be happier. She emphasized there were no conflicts between her and sister-in-law, just worried about making sister-in-law feel wronged.

She said at this time, sister-in-law would naturally want to be with her own mother, and she couldn’t ignore sister-in-law’s feelings for the sake of her pride.

I’m not saying this to blame sister-in-law or ask you to change anything, just to let you know that mom genuinely cares for you and truly considers you a daughter.

But no matter how close a daughter-in-law and mother-in-law get, it’s hard to feel exactly like a mother and daughter, especially in your case where you and mom haven’t really spent much time together and suddenly find yourselves under one roof without my brother as a mediator.

I just want you to understand mom’s intentions so that after the baby is born, when mom comes to help with the postpartum period, you two can get along better.

Of course, I’m sure Aunt Cha Xiang will be very willing to stay and help during your postpartum period, but even if Aunt Cha Xiang stays, mom will still definitely come over. Whether my brother is back then or not, that won’t change mom’s intentions. If she couldn’t personally help you during that time, she’d feel particularly uneasy.

So, sister-in-law, after some time, could you give Mom a call and say you miss her? If she says she wants to come over, please don’t stop her, okay?"

Luo Xiaoqiong truly hadn’t considered all the nuances behind her mother-in-law’s departure. She genuinely thought her mother-in-law left because she couldn’t rest assured about her father-in-law. Only now, hearing her sister-in-law’s words, did she realize she was totally wrong.

This revelation made her feel a bit overwhelmed. Although she didn’t speak to her mother-in-law as casually as she did with her own mother after getting married, she was never indirect either.

The only difference was that she was embarrassed to bluntly express her dislikes like she would with her own mom, but that required time and adjustment.

Yet now, knowing that the real reason her mother-in-law returned to her hometown was because of her, her mental pressure suddenly intensified.

"Qihui, I have no issues with what you said. Mom can come over now, but I’m really confused. I don’t want to make my mother-in-law unhappy, yet there are things I truly can’t foresee..."

"Sister-in-law, you misunderstood me. I truly don’t blame you, and neither does Mom..." Sighing, Zhao Qihui scratched her head, "If I knew you’d misunderstand like this, I wouldn’t have said these things.

I’m actually worried that during your postpartum period, I might not have time to always stay by your side. People from Mom’s generation are very cautious, and even if I persuade her, she wouldn’t change. There’s nothing I can do but persuade you to change. Honestly, I’m being a bit unreasonable, oh..."

"Alright, alright, I understand what you mean..." Luo Xiaoqiong gave her a stern look, "You scared me! Why didn’t you make it clear earlier? I thought you were also dissatisfied with me and came to nag about all this. I was actually worried about how to satisfy you guys just now, humph!"

Zhao Qihui: "..." Was she nearly trying to do a good deed gone wrong?

"Don’t look at me with that expression. You were so clear when advising me, but now you realize that, for people who aren’t familiar, becoming family all of sudden gets tricky even for straightforward people.

Actually, upon reflection, such caution may prevent closeness, but it’s human instinct. Now that everything’s laid out, I’ll pay attention in the future.

However, being as comfortable with my mother-in-law as with my mom is impossible in the short term. The reason is simple: with my mom, whatever I do wouldn’t cause misunderstandings, but with my mother-in-law, misunderstandings could arise no matter what I do.

Such things can’t solely be avoided by being careful. Only through prolonged interaction and adjustment can actual, unreserved closeness emerge."

"I was too hasty...," Zhao Qihui chuckled awkwardly, "Indeed, I have no experience interacting with my in-laws. I was just expressing what I saw and thought, overlooking these objective facts. Being involved blinds you; observing clears the picture, right?"

"By the way, doesn’t Commander Liu’s family have an older and younger sister, right?" Luo Xiaoqiong mischievously blinked, "When you interact with them, you won’t be nitpicking about me.

Between us, thanks to Chuxia, we have a foundation of understanding and trust, so we can speak freely. As for you and them, you’re totally strangers, and then they’ll only ally with Commander Liu to strategize against you, haha..."

Zhao Qihui stared blankly at her dear sister-in-law. What is she implying? Why is she gloating mischievously?

"Even if they strategize against me, I’m not scared. I’m already married; handling my own family’s affairs is more than enough. Why would anyone have the leisure to interfere in my brother’s house?

Besides..." Zhao Qihui returned a cheeky smile, "Don’t forget, I’m a college student now. Do you think they have the courage to boss around someone like me?"

Indeed, for ordinary folks, being a college student has a pretty intimidating reputation... Coughing to cover up, Luo Xiaoqiong gave her a sideways glance, "Are you implying I didn’t get into university?"

"Can we stop overthinking?" Zhao Qihui looked at her wearily, "You know I didn’t mean it like that."

"You totally meant it, so I’ve decided. Once the baby is born, I’ll go to college too, so the baby won’t look down on me in the future!"

"Are you serious, sister-in-law?"

"Would I joke about that?" Luo Xiaoqiong was brimming with excitement, "No way, I need to tell Chuxia right now to start tutoring me!"

Zhao Qihui: "..." The phrase ’making a mountain out of a molehill’ perfectly describes people like this, right?(To be continued. If you like this work, you’re welcome to cast votes or monthly tickets at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)