Chapter 83: Worried Sick

Chapter 83: Worn Out with Worry

When Su He came out of the room with the two kids, Fu Tinghua was already sitting dutifully on a low stool in the kitchen.

As soon as he saw Su He enter, he asked, "Which chicken are we having tonight?"

Su He looked at him with amusement before replying, "Just pick the fattest one. Let’s go check."

With that, she headed toward the backyard.

Fu Tinghua said nothing more and simply stood up to follow her.

The two walked to the fence where the chickens were kept. Su He glanced at the three chickens and casually pointed at the fattest one. "That one."

"That’s the chicken the Wang family brought this morning," Fu Tinghua said calmly.

Su He: "......" Oh right, she almost forgot—they shouldn’t eat that one too quickly.

"Then that one," she said, pointing at another at random.

Her casual attitude made Fu Tinghua feel like he really shouldn’t have waited for her to choose which chicken to kill.

Without another word, Fu Tinghua ducked into the pen to catch the bird.

Watching Fu Tinghua—with his handsome face and refined, cool air—now catching a chicken for her...

The scene was so ridiculous Su He could barely look.

But Fu Tinghua was surprisingly quick. With one swift motion, he caught the chicken effortlessly, nothing like the clumsy scene she’d imagined.

Seeing him holding the chicken as naturally as if it were a handbag, Su He couldn’t help but feel at a loss for words.

"What’s wrong?" Noticing Su He staring at him, Fu Tinghua immediately brushed at his shirt—spotless.

"Nothing. You handle the chicken," Su He said before hurrying back to the kitchen, leaving Fu Tinghua standing there, baffled.

Once Fu Tinghua had plucked the feathers, Su He started cooking.

The kids stayed put that afternoon. Knowing their father would be returning to the city for work the next day, they didn’t want to miss a minute with him.

They sat quietly in the kitchen, watching their parents bustle around.

The moment "Dinner’s ready!" was announced, the two little ones lit up.

After all, there was chicken for dinner.

Su He made mushroom chicken, their favorite. The batch of mushrooms Ji Liangchuan had found on the mountain last time, she hadn’t traded in her space—she’d kept them to cook instead.

She had points to spare now, so why not let the kids enjoy them? Especially since they loved the dish so much.

There were many ways to prepare chicken, but being a total pushover for her kids, Su He went with their favorite.

The family of four was digging in when Wu Yanhua showed up.

"Ting Hua, Su He, eating already?"

Wu Yanhua could already smell the mouthwatering smell from outside the door.

"Mom, you're here. Come join us for dinner," Su He quickly stood up to greet her.

"No, no. I was just coming to invite you all for dinner tonight. Your dad splurged on some meat from town," Wu Yanhua said, feeling awkward seeing Su He already eating chicken.

The Fu family didn’t often buy meat—it was too expensive. Most folks in the countryside couldn’t justify the expense.

But since Fu Tinghua was back, Fu Dajun had rarely been so generous as to buy some meat, wanting to invite his younger son over for a meal.

Little did she know they were already having chicken here.

Seeing Wu Yanhua’s stiff expression, Su He quickly explained, "This chicken was a gift from Liangchuan’s grandmother. Since Tinghua came home and we didn’t have any other meat, I figured I’d cook a chicken for him. His job’s demanding, so I wanted to give him some chicken to nourish him."

I killed the chicken for your son—surely my mother-in-law won’t have any complaints now? Su He thought to herself.

Even with the best relationships between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law, seeing her feast every day would inevitably cause some unease.

Just as Su He hoped, Wu Yanhua’s stiff expression relaxed.

"That’s right. Tinghua works hard. It’s good you’re looking out for him as his wife. Since you’ve already eaten, we’ll just have our meal at home," Wu Yanhua said with a smile before heading back to the Fu household.

After she left, Su He finally let out a sigh of relief.

Fu Tinghua looked puzzled. "Why the guilty look?"

"I don’t know. It’s just this feeling of guilt when others are scraping by while we’re feasting," Su He replied helplessly.

"Our parents’ generation pinches pennies. You should eat and spend as you like, just don’t go overboard. My work provides meals, so I don’t spend much."

He earned more than most regular folks, and Fu Tinghua believed he had the means to let Su He and their two children eat well.

"Don’t be too frugal either. I don’t spend much here," Su He advised.

Being a doctor was hard work, and she didn’t want Fu Tinghua to skimp on himself just to save money for them.

"Mm, I know," Fu Tinghua said, his expression brightening at her concern.

After dinner, Fu Tinghua said he wanted to visit the Fu household. After a moment’s thought, Su He brought the two kids along.

Zai Zai and Niu Niu walked beside their parents, thrilled.

Every time another child looked at them with envy, they beamed with pride.

Hah! Now we’re kids with parents who dote on us!

When they arrived at the Fu household, the family had just finished eating.

Seeing Su He and Fu Tinghua together for once, no one was over the moon like Fu Dajun.

A harmonious family brings good fortune—this was the Fu family’s tradition.

Seeing his youngest son and daughter-in-law so close made Fu Dajun happier than anyone.

"Did you eat yet?" he asked them.

"Dad, we already ate," Fu Tinghua replied.

"So, heading back to the city tomorrow?"

"Mm-hmm."

Fu Tinghua was always quiet, and the Fu family was used to it.

"Su He, are you going to the city with Ting Hua this time?" Fu Dajun was worried sick about his youngest son and daughter-in-law’s relationship.

"I’ll go to the city next week to see Ting Hua," Su He replied.

It was the first time she had addressed Fu Tinghua so intimately; before, she had always called him by his full name.

Hearing her say his name like that, Fu Tinghua’s heart skipped a beat.

"Heh, good, that’s good. Ah, married folks oughta stick together," Fu Dajun said with a hearty laugh.

Meanwhile, Zai Zai and Niu Niu were huddled up with Zhuang Zhuang and the other kids, chatting quietly.

"Hey Zai Zai, Niu Niu—where’s your buddy? He ditch you today?" Zhuang Zhuang asked.

He meant Ji Liangchuan—they’d just played together yesterday.

Ji Liangchuan was pale, steady-natured—even Zhuang Zhuang liked hanging with him.