"Ah?"
Jiang Sicheng froze for a few seconds, then visibly brightened.
Zhou Jinbei was truly amazing. How long had she been in the Jiang family? How many injections had she received?
She got pregnant just like that?
"Hey, no way? I'm that capable? We have an heir!"
With a wife and child, he could finally rest easy!
Who would dare question his orientation now?
What more could his parents say to him?
Even if he spent all his time with men, his family wouldn't nag him anymore!
Jiang Sicheng drove, taking the wife and mother-in-law to the People's Hospital in high spirits.
Fortunately, the early stages of pregnancy were easy to manage.
Zhou Jinbei pushed her last period back by a week, and the doctor estimated her to be about four weeks along.
It matched up.
"Wow, she's really pregnant! Pregnant right after getting married, exactly one month, how wonderful!"
Looking at the freshly printed prenatal report, the mother-in-law was as happy as a child.
"I have to say, you two are too amazing, both good children to your mothers. Our Jiang family has an heir, Beibei, you are a great contributor to our family!"
"Let's go, let's go, hurry and tell Grandpa the good news."
Jiang Sicheng happily took the wife and mother-in-law to the sanatorium to report the news to the old man.
The old man was also very happy and immediately gave Zhou Jinbei a card.
"Grandpa is old and cannot personally take care of you. As the eldest grandson of the Jiang family, to show my importance and as a reward for you, here is fifty thousand yuan for pocket money. Don't think it's too little."
"When the baby is born healthy and well-behaved, Grandpa will give you even more."
Zhou Jinbei married into the Jiang family solely for money, so she accepted it without hesitation.
"Thank you, Grandpa."
Then she looked obediently at her mother-in-law.
"Hurry and tell Dad too, he'll definitely be happy when he knows."
The mother-in-law said, "I already told your dad on the way, of course he's happy."
Seeing the old man give his granddaughter-in-law such a generous red envelope in front of her, it would look bad if the father-in-law and mother-in-law didn't show anything.
The mother-in-law took off an ancestral emerald bracelet from her wrist and gave it to Zhou Jinbei.
"This is the most precious thing I have, unique to a Jiang family daughter-in-law, priceless."
"Jade nourishes people. Now that you have an heir, you are the most respected person in our family. I'm giving it to you to wear."
"Take good care of it, don't scratch it. You'll have to pass it down to your future daughter-in-law."
In short, pregnancy was a joyous occasion.
The entire Jiang family was overjoyed.
After leaving the sanatorium, the mother-in-law asked Jiang Sicheng to take Zhou Jinbei home.
"It's customary for a daughter-in-law to announce her pregnancy to her maiden family. Times have changed, and we don't need those old ways of announcing, but you still need to inform them."
"You accompany Beibei, don't let her get tired."
The two got into the car. Jiang Sicheng was happy, but his mind was calculating furiously.
"Others don't know your identity, but don't you forget it yourself. Didn't I promise you a reward after the baby is born? How can you still have the nerve to take the family's red envelope?"
"And you took so much. I won't ask for the bracelet, you can keep it to pass down. But the card Grandpa gave you, hand it over."
Zhou Jinbei had known he wasn't a good person for a long time.
But she hadn't expected him to be so stingy and heartless.
Fifty thousand yuan might be a lot for someone without money.
But what was it to him, Jiang Sicheng?
It wasn't even enough to buy two bottles of wine, or two bags for his boyfriend.
It was one thing not to like women, but did he have to be so cruel?
She sneered inwardly but outwardly complied.
"You want it back? I was just about to post on WeChat to show our affection and make you proud."
"I've already taken the photos and thought of the caption: So happy, with a baby, and the love of my husband, mother-in-law, and grandfather, I feel like the happiest person in the world."
"Since you don't want me to have it, I won't post it. I'll give it all back to you."
She took out the card, took off the jade bracelet, and handed them all to Jiang Sicheng.
Jiang Sicheng frowned upon hearing this.
"Post it, you should still post it."
"How can I post it? Later, when people see my bare wrist, my mother will ask, 'Where's that emerald bracelet your mother-in-law gave you? Let me see.' Where would I get it from?"
"Others see the bags I carry, they're all old styles. They'll ask me, 'Didn't your husband give you a supplementary card to buy bags? Why are you still carrying this?' What can I say to them?"
"Alright, alright, you keep it, go buy bags with it. Keep it all. Consider it a reward for you."
Jiang Sicheng grudgingly returned everything to her.
"Here, I'll cooperate with you, let's take a selfie together."
"Don't block me, remember to post it. I'll like it later."
Zhou Jinbei collected everything back.
When dealing with such shameless people, you have to use shameless methods.
Tsk.
Zhou Jinbei indeed posted on WeChat.
By the time they arrived home, the news of her pregnancy had already spread throughout the entire family.
Her parents were overjoyed to see their daughter so valued by the Jiang family.
Only Zhou Jinxiu.
He had opposed this marriage from the start.
Old people didn't understand young men of today, but he, who often mingled outside, understood.
Jiang Sicheng wasn't a good person, at least not as good as he appeared, but he had no right to speak.
He didn't want to take over the company in the past, and now that he finally started, he found it riddled with loopholes.
Everywhere needed money and performance to fill the gaps.
Coupled with the current era of mass entrepreneurship and too many competitors, the Zhou family was already on shaky ground.
Rather than wait for bankruptcy, it was better for Zhou Jinbei to marry into the upper-middle class.
It was better to let her stay in the upper echelons while there was still a semblance of a foundation.
People are creatures that seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, especially men who attach great importance to status and position in high society.
Therefore, he did not obstruct Zhou Jinbei's marriage.
But that didn't mean he welcomed it.
He would never get used to things he disliked; he wouldn't force himself to accept them.
As soon as Zhou Jinbei entered the house, her mother rushed forward joyfully, touching and praising her, then invited her to sit like an empress, serving her food and drinks, showering her with compliments.
It was as if pregnancy was a world-class problem that only she and Jiang Sicheng could solve.
Zhou Jinxiu found this fawning amusing.
Finally, the mother personally went to the kitchen.
"Have lunch at home, Mom will cook for you to nourish yourself. And Cheng, thank you for your hard work."
Her father sat in the living room with Jiang Sicheng, drinking tea. Although he was genuinely accompanying him, it was evident that Jiang Sicheng didn't want to talk to him much.
Zhou Jinxiu couldn't stand it anymore and went to the courtyard alone, using the excuse of smoking.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Jinbei soon followed him out.
Zhou Jinxiu was sullen and spoke unkindly.
"Why did you come out? Aren't you easily tired from just a few words? I'm smoking, aren't you afraid of harming your child? Go back inside quickly."
Zhou Jinbei didn't leave and looked at him. "Mom said the company is facing problems again recently?"
"You want to solve them for me? You have no degree, no work experience, and you can't do anything but give birth. How do you plan to solve them?"