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Indeed, he had a regret, but after some thought, he decided not to voice it.

Chu Yuening, on the other hand, wore a smile. "Congratulations."

Yuan Tianbo was about to ask why.

Studying his face intently, Chu Yuening said, "Your Life Palace, Fortune Palace, and Children Palace are all filled with happiness. Your new daughter-in-law has given birth."

Confused, Yuan Tianbo turned to look at his wife, who was tallying accounts in the shop. He turned back, puzzled. "But my son mentioned that there's still one week left until the due date."

"Her delivery came early," Chu Yuening explained. "That's quite common. This girl's destiny is filled with great fortune and prosperity. Congratulations on fulfilling your wish."

Yuan Tianbo was so stunned that his limbs went numb. With ten generations of boys in the family, he had always dreamed of having a daughter. The buzz in his ears grew louder.

It wasn't until his wife received a call and emerged from the shop, beaming, that she nudged him. "Tianbo, Tianbo! Ailan went into labor in the taxi and gave birth to a daughter!"

Chapter 37

Yuan Tianbo swayed with the push, taking a moment to regain his composure. "She actually gave birth?!?"

His wife was ecstatic. "Yes, they've already taken her to Jordan Hospital, and both mother and daughter are safe. Husband, let's hurry over to take care of our daughter-in-law. Our son is at work and can't leave, so we should prevent her from being alone in the hospital."

"Alright, alright, alright."

The shock Yuan Tianbo experienced went far beyond that. As he rose, he looked back at Chu Yuening once more.

Chu Yuening pushed the two hundred dollars back to him, her fair face adorned with a subtle smile. "Boss Yuan, consider this my stall rental fee for your entrance."

Yuan Tianbo waved his hand. "I was letting you use the space for free anyway. A business is open to serve customers—how can a fortune teller not accept payment?"

Before Chu Yuening could respond, a cold snort echoed through the crowd.

Huashesen happened to be among them. Initially, he had approached the crowd thinking it was an exciting event, only to discover that Chu Yuening was doing fortune-telling. Upon hearing that she had indeed predicted a daughter, he scoffed.

"What good is having great fortune if it's just for a daughter? Even if the prediction were true, what use is it for a girl?"

"For a family with an unbroken line of male descendants, at least each generation could carry on the family name. Now with just one daughter, how can the lineage continue? Are you happy about it?" Huashesen said to those around him. "How foolish. Is it something to celebrate when the Yuan family's line might come to an end?"

Yuan Tianbo, having been a boss for many years, was not easily angered. "Actually, I don't understand either. Aren't both boys and girls children? Why can boys carry on the family line, but not girls? Do girls not share my bloodline?"

Yuan Tianbo's family did not discriminate between boys and girls, and under his parents' good upbringing, he naturally didn't hold such outdated views.

Unlike some stubborn old timers in Hong Kong who insisted that only sons could inherit the family business.

His friend's daughter, who adored both her mother and father, would always buy them something after receiving her monthly allowance. In contrast, Yuan Tianbo found that boys were inherently less considerate; it was pointless to expect such gestures from them.

"Even if a girl has your bloodline, she'll still have to marry into another family," Huashesen dismissed nonchalantly. "All the time and money you invest in her will eventually benefit someone else. Daughters are a loss-making investment – once they're married off, they're like water poured out."

Yuan Tianbo had yearned for a daughter, and now that he finally had a granddaughter, someone dared to call his daughter a burden?

Furrowing his brows, Yuan Tianbo was about to call his wife to fetch a basin of water to give Huashesen a taste of what it meant to be 'poured out.'

"Boss Yuan, today is not a day for you to get worked up," Chu Yuening said after counting on her fingers. She then lifted her gaze to look at the smug Huashesen. "As for you, you are like a frog at the bottom of a well, with narrow-minded views. Trying to make you understand broader principles is like playing a piano to a cow or speaking human language to an animal – it's futile."

Yuan Tianbo chuckled. "The master truly knows how to speak."

Being called an animal, Huashesen's smug expression turned into one of utter embarrassment.

"So, I'll head to the hospital first. Don't worry about the stall, and if anyone gives you trouble again, I'll call out my staff to help you." Yuan Tianbo turned back to the shop to instruct his employees before hurriedly leaving with his wife.

Two employees promptly emerged from the grocery store.

One was a young man with a menacing expression, and the other was a beautiful lady with a head full of Latin American curls and a large beauty mole the size of a black bean on her chin.

The troublemakers immediately backed off upon seeing these two.

"Are you kidding me? Why did you call Ah Fa and Sister Nancy for a simple dessert stall?"

"You can't beat Ah Fa, and you can't outshout Nancy either."

The young man chuckled. "I'm not involved in the underworld anymore, so there's no need for you to be afraid."

"Today is a joyous day for our boss. Hong Kong is a place ruled by law, and it's best if we all get along peacefully. We don't wish to witness any disputes in front of the shop."

Nancy directed a deliberate glance at Huashesen and said, "Huashesen, we have a passing acquaintance, being neighbors on this old street. Let's not make trouble here."

"No worries," replied Huashesen, though he wasn't intimidated by Yuan Tianbo, he still had some respect for Ah Fa and Nancy who had both been fixtures of the nightlife scene. He softened his demeanor and spoke humbly, "I wouldn't dare cause trouble for Nancy."

Huashesen finished speaking, but a sense of resentment lingered within him.

That damned girl Ding had embarrassed him at the market earlier, and now she was doing it again outside. He decided to bide his time, waiting until the very end when everyone left the dry goods store before giving that sweet soup girl a taste of her own medicine.

Feeling Huashesen's hostility, Chu Yuening glanced in his direction, then shook her head. Her gaze returned to the crowd as she asked, "I can still provide a reading today. Is there anyone who would like one?"

"Can I have a reading?"

Chu Yuening followed the sound of the voice to see a fashionable urban woman. She had long, wavy hair and wore a black base layer beneath a lengthy, gray wool coat.

"The standard fee for a reading is two hundred," Chu Yuening gestured for the woman to sit down. "If that's acceptable, you can take a seat here."