On October 23rd, Ding Anmin went into labor and, after a day and a night, gave birth to a hefty eight-pound baby boy. The Huang Family was so overjoyed that they distributed red eggs and brown sugar everywhere, and the full moon banquet was also grandly held.

Hu Ailing gave birth in early November, a week earlier than expected, also to a hefty baby boy, weighing a full nine pounds.

At this time, Yi Roujing’s son, Baozi, was over seven months old. Recently, he was starting to love crawling, and if you’re not careful, he would crawl from the head to the foot of the bed. Although he wasn’t speaking yet, his babbling increased, with sounds like "ah," "aiya," "yi ya yi ya"...

With a cute big head and round eyes, he had grown quite a bit. Even at his young age, his nose was already straight and small, almond-shaped eyes were large, and his rosy little mouth was adorable even if covered in drool.

On November 27th, a Saturday, Yi Weiliang brought Xie Chenyan and Xie Chentao to Bright Alley. Yi Weiliang had just returned from a long journey, arriving home in the middle of the night, and couldn’t wait to come find Xu Ancheng the next morning.

Yi Weiliang’s eyes were bright. This time, he had gone to the southern city of Huacheng, and it had been more than half a year since he last went; there had been significant changes.

Xie Chenyan was helping Yi Roujing hold Baozi, who wasn’t very picky about who held him as long as they didn’t have a strong scent. He needed to be held by someone.

Xie Chenyan and Yi Weiliang had been married for almost a year, yet there were no signs of a baby, which made her anxious. She was reluctant to discuss it with Yi Weiliang and hesitant to ask for advice from her sisters-in-law, not daring to talk about it with her mother-in-law either. On this visit, she frequently glanced at Yi Roujing, wanting to say something but holding back.

Feng Lishu was just confirmed pregnant last month; she’s now three months along and very happy, positively radiant. Ding Anguo was more attentive than ever. Seeing Xie Chenyan’s expression reminded her of herself six months ago, and so she could understand Xie Chenyan’s current feelings.

Yi Roujing, being ever perceptive, wasn’t surprised to see Xie Chenyan like this; she had previously asked Yi Weiliang in private if he was anxious for a child or if their mother had been urging them.

Yi Weiliang wasn’t in a hurry. Although Liu Huilan was somewhat anxious, she wouldn’t say it outright, though she couldn’t help revealing her thoughts a bit. Yi Roujing held Xie Chenyan’s hand before she could speak.

Xie Chenyan had no health problems; Yi Roujing had checked her pulse, finding her to be a healthy young woman. Yi Roujing had also checked Yi Weiliang’s pulse and, additionally, Yi Weiliang often traveled long distances. The couple might only be together for half a month each time, and with the necessary timing to avoid physiology-related constraints, it’s normal they hadn’t conceived yet.

"Third sister-in-law, don’t worry. Sometimes the more you want to conceive, the harder it becomes. Your state of mind is very important, you need to stay calm and go with the flow," Yi Roujing comforted. "Plus, with the third brother always away on long trips, the time you spend together is already limited; it’s perfectly normal."

"I know," Xie Chenyan said with a wry smile. "Actually, my parents-in-law and your third brother haven’t said anything to me, but seeing how easily everyone around me gets pregnant, and I haven’t, it’s hard not to feel a bit unbalanced inside."

Xie Chenyan spoke from the heart, "It’s not the family urging me, but people at the factory often bring it up. Hearing it a few times makes me feel uncomfortable."

"It’s one thing when they talk about me, but sometimes they drag in your third brother too, and I can’t stand it. Yet, issues like this are hard to discuss openly."

"Perhaps like you said, Roujing, it’s because I’m too caught up in wanting it, that’s why nothing is happening." Xie Chenyan sighed but felt much better after expressing herself.

"Let me prescribe you a formula, third sister-in-law," Yi Roujing said, seeing how Xie Chenyan looked.

"Really?" Xie Chenyan’s eyes lit up.

"Third sister-in-law, this formula is more for body nourishment, not necessarily to ensure conception; do you still want to try it?" Yi Roujing asked.

"Of course, I’ll take it. Health is the most important thing. Let’s have the third brother take one too," Xie Chenyan said. "Your third brother is always out in the weather, all for the family. Sometimes when he returns, I see he’s thinner than before with some small wounds. Your third brother is working the hardest."

"Even though he always seems cheerful, he definitely feels pressure too, but he doesn’t show it and tries to comfort me instead."

Yi Roujing nodded, "Third sister-in-law, let me tell you about the best times to conceive..."

Then, Yi Roujing quietly passed on some tips to Xie Chenyan, who listened intently, and even Feng Lishu, blushing but also listening from the side, thinking it could be useful for her next pregnancy.

As Baozi turned ten months old and could pull himself up to stand, Xie Chenyan brought good news: she was pregnant. The day she received the news, she brought lots of things to Bright Alley. At this time, Yi Weiliang was off on another trip, so Liu Huilan came with her third daughter-in-law.

Liu Huilan was overjoyed. After all, Yi Weiliang wasn’t young, and many of his peers already had several children. Now he would finally become a father, putting Liu Huilan’s mind at ease.

"Roujing, you really did a great job with this. Your third brother and sister-in-law only drank the medicine for half a month, and now she’s pregnant. Your medicine is really effective," Liu Huilan exclaimed while holding her daughter’s hand, grinning widely.

Xie Chenyan blushed, her eyes sparkling and full of gratitude towards Yi Roujing.

Yi Roujing found it amusing, "I think it’s mostly thanks to the efforts of third brother and sister-in-law. My medicine was just for health nourishment."

Although it did include ingredients to assist with conception, the most important factor was their own efforts. The idea was to give Xie Chenyan hope or help her change her mood. For someone with no health issues, and following the right days for conception, her chances of getting pregnant were high, as this had proven now.

As the weather grew colder, Yi Roujing noticed that Xu Ancheng came home later and later recently. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

"What have you been busy with lately?" Xu Ancheng only got home at nine, and Yi Roujing helped him change into dry, warm clothes upon finding out he hadn’t had dinner yet. She hurried to the kitchen to ladle out a bowl of the red date and longan sweet soup that she had kept warm on the stove, then went to make him some dumplings.

Although her cooking skills were limited, Yi Roujing could still boil ready-made dumplings, which was quite convenient from raw to cooked.

After Xu Ancheng drank the sweet soup and ate a large bowl of dumplings, he let out a long breath, feeling much more comfortable.

"If you keep not eating on time, be careful or I’ll give you a hard time," Yi Roujing scolded, disliking seeing Xu Ancheng in such a state. What if he ruined his health?

"Yes, ma’am," Xu Ancheng answered with a salute.

Yi Roujing playfully tapped him on the arm and told him to quiet down, as Baozi was asleep.

At eight months, Yi Roujing had weaned Baozi, and he could now sleep through the night without waking.

"Here are the earnings from the past few months." Xu Ancheng took out a savings book and handed it to Yi Roujing.

Yi Roujing raised an eyebrow. Since the family’s finances were in her hands, she immediately noticed this savings book was new. Opening it, she was stunned to see three thousand dollars, almost dropping her jaw.