Chapter 45: Debt Collector, Gao Xiuxiu Gave Birth

Chapter 45: Gao Xiuxiu, the So-Called Debt Collector, Gives Birth

"Aircraft crash?" Song Fenglan's heart skipped a beat. She thought the new fighter jet she was working on hadn’t been completed yet, but a crash was still a major incident.

"A J-7 fighter jet crashed into farmland," the messenger said.

After asking a few more questions, Song Fenglan learned it was a plane from another research institute that had crashed. The test flight ended in a crash within just over ten minutes. The fighter jet broke into two pieces in the farmland, but fortunately, there were no crops or farmers working in that area at the time.

To say Song Fenglan wasn’t shocked would be a lie—she never wanted such a thing to happen to any fighter jet she worked on. Though test flights always carried risks, safety came first, and accidents were best avoided.

The test pilot was an experienced veteran. Even after the accident, he focused on protecting the aircraft and preserving as much flight data as possible. Before and after landing in the field, he avoided restarting the engine, having detected the smell of fuel.

Nearby farmers rescued the pilot, who suffered several broken ribs and other injuries and would need a long time to recover.

There were several fighter jet research institutes in the country, each working to improve their jets. They worked together but also competed with one another.

Each institute conducted independent research, sometimes with different approaches, but the ultimate goal was the same: to protect the nation.

Test pilots were typically veterans with extensive flight experience, so they could handle emergencies—not just acting on impulse.

Thankfully, the pilot survived. The crash meant more research was needed.

As a result, the Southern City Research Institute held a meeting urging caution, not recklessness, along with other safety protocols. This incident wasn’t just about the aircraft—it also stemmed from rushing to succeed.

By around seven in the evening, Song Fenglan finally returned home, where Qin Zihang and Zhang Xiaohu were watching TV.

Zhang Xiaohu had always enjoyed visiting Qin Zihang, but now he loved it even more.

"Auntie, watch TV!" Zhang Xiaohu called out eagerly as soon as he saw Song Fenglan. "It’s awesome!"

Qin Yizhou was watching the kids, while Auntie Fatty hadn’t come over yet. (Note: “Auntie Fatty” is a nickname; her real name isn’t mentioned.) She planned to pick up Zhang Xiaohu later—she had to, fearing he’d insist on staying at Song Fenglan’s place otherwise.

Without a TV, it was manageable, but with one, Zhang Xiaohu would want to stay until it was turned off.

Auntie Fatty avoided lingering at Song Fenglan’s house to watch TV, believing it was better to keep things proper. With Qin Yizhou watching the kids and Song Fenglan absent, her staying would seem inappropriate. If anyone should stay longer, it ought to be Zhang Chenghai—men could handle it more appropriately.

"Watching ads?" Song Fenglan asked.

"They’re awesome too!" Zhang Xiaohu insisted. Anything on TV was exciting to him.

"Mom!" Qin Zihang held out his arms toward her.

Instead of picking him up immediately, Song Fenglan first took off her coat before embracing him.

"Mom, there’s a tiger," Qin Zihang pointed at the TV. "But no panda."

"Panda?" Song Fenglan thought. In this era, pandas weren’t as widely adored as in her past life, where a touring panda had become popular.

"Yeah!" Qin Zihang loved the panda plushie his mother had made him and wanted to see a real one.

"Maybe sooner," Song Fenglan said.

"When’s sooner?" Qin Zihang asked. "When I grow up?"

"Not necessarily." Though pandas weren’t yet classified as a first-class protected species, they were already gifts to other countries, and some zoos had them. "There’s a zoo in Southern City. I’ll take you there one day."

"Zoo?" Qin Zihang had never been.

"Yes, a zoo full of animals," Song Fenglan replied.

"Are there pandas?" Qin Zihang asked.

"Hard to say," Song Fenglan replied. "We’ll have to go and see."

"I really want to see one," Qin Zihang said.

"Me too," Zhang Xiaohu added.

"Have your mom and dad take you," Song Fenglan said, not planning to bring Zhang Xiaohu along. She wasn’t even sure how big the local zoo was—what if it was up a mountain, meaning we'd have to hike all the way up? We could handle just Qin Zihang, but carrying two kids, one for Qin Yizhou and one for her?

Song Fenglan thought that would be too exhausting. Better to let Zhang Xiaohu go with his own parents. She wasn't one to go out of her way for others. You had to be careful on outings, especially with lively kids who ran around. Managing one child was hard enough, let alone two.

"Where are you off to now?" Auntie Fatty arrived, hearing the commotion. She had come to take Zhang Xiaohu home so Song Fenglan’s family could rest. "Xiao Hu, time to go back."

"Mom, take me to the zoo!" Zhang Xiaohu whined.

"It's not free, you know," Auntie Fatty said. It wasn’t free, and she’d rather spend that money on something more useful.

"Mom, mom!" Zhang Xiaohu kept begging. "I want to go, I want to go!"

"..." Song Fenglan looked on without saying anything, wondering if she shouldn’t have mentioned the zoo in front of the kids.

Qin Zihang didn’t ask his parents to take Zhang Xiaohu—he had his own parents.

"I just mentioned taking Zi Hang to the zoo," Song Fenglan cleared her throat.

"Go ahead, of course," Auntie Fatty said.

"Mom, I want to go too!" Zhang Xiaohu insisted.

"Always wanting what others have," Auntie Fatty grumbled, pulling Zhang Xiaohu away. Zhang Xiaohu really wanted everything. Auntie Fatty sighed but couldn’t blame Song Fenglan.

"Mom, I want to watch TV, it’s still on!" Zhang Xiaohu planted himself on the floor, clinging to her leg.

"The floor’s cold, get him up," Song Fenglan quickly said. "Let him watch a little longer."

"That’s just how he is," Auntie Fatty sighed. "Always making a scene about every little thing."

"I’m not!" Zhang Xiaohu shot back.

"Feng Lan, when are you going to the zoo? I’ll take both kids too," Auntie Fatty said. "We’ll look after them ourselves."

She knew Song Fenglan didn’t like being inconvenienced and wasn’t one to impose. Zhang Xiaohu already was enough of a bother by coming over to watch TV.

"This Saturday," Song Fenglan said. "I have the day off, unless there’s overtime. It’ll be good for Zi Hang to see different animals while he’s still young."

"You're the smart one, so you'd know," Auntie Fatty said, letting Zhang Xiaohu stay. "Fine, your aunt says you can keep watching. But you go home by eight, or no more coming over next time."

"I’ll go, I’ll go myself!" Zhang Xiaohu promised, holding up two fingers like he was making a pledge.

He let go of Auntie Fatty’s leg and scrambled back onto the couch.

Auntie Fatty noticed his dirty clothes but saw Song Fenglan’s family didn’t make a fuss about it.

Back home, she found herself telling her husband.

"When I first met Feng Lan, I thought she was too fancy and put-together. But after getting to know her, I realized she has a soft spot," Auntie Fatty said, folding clothes. "Xiao Hu always comes over filthy, yet she makes sure he washes his hands and feeds him too."

"That's true." Zhang Chenghai nodded.

"There was a fruit platter on the table, probably apples peeled and sliced by Brother Qin. When I got back, Xiao Hu grabbed two slices right away." Auntie Fatty said. "Since Feng Lan came here, our Xiao Hu has put on weight, all from eating at their place."

Auntie Fatty felt particularly embarrassed. She had originally planned to make some tofu and fry it during the New Year to give some to Song Fenglan. But since Song Fenglan went back to the capital for the New Year, Auntie Fatty never got the chance to give any.

"Not just one layer—I’d say he’s gained two layers. His brother’s only put on a little." Zhang Chenghai was rarely home, but even he could notice the changes in their children’s figures.

It wasn’t just Auntie Fatty who felt awkward—Zhang Chenghai did too.

Neither Qin Yizhou nor his wife ever criticized Zhang Xiaohu. They believed he had a good nature and thought it was better for Qin Zihang to play with him than with kids we don’t know well. Qin Zihang had started kindergarten and made some friends, but he found them too childish and immature. Some of them would cry over nothing.

Qin Zihang particularly disliked how easily those kids cried. He never bullied them, yet they still cried. Even if he just said something like, "My mom…" before he even finished, one kid would start crying, and soon the rest would start wailing too.

Zhang Xiaohu wasn’t so quick to cry, and being a bit older, Qin Zihang preferred playing with him.

"They’re good people, and so is Zi Hang." Auntie Fatty said. "Now if it’d been Gao Xiuxiu next door instead…"

Good luck with that!

Gao Xiuxiu would never let anyone get anything out of her—she was always the one trying to take advantage of others.

Originally, when Song Fenglan’s family went back to the capital for the New Year, they had planned to visit Doctor Lin. But Song Fenglan got pulled into overtime work at the research institute and later had to rush back to Nancheng, so she didn’t make it to Doctor Lin’s place. Instead, Qin Yizhou took Qin Zihang there.

When Qin Yizhou took Qin Zihang to see Doctor Lin, they missed each other—their visits didn’t overlap.

Back when Tian Keshu and Eldest Brother Qin were still married, Tian Keshu used to say, "Your brother went to your uncle’s place but not your eldest aunt’s, and your eldest aunt still took their side."

At this moment, Eldest Brother Qin came home swaying, drunk off his feet.

Seeing her eldest son in such a state, Mother Qin’s heart broke seeing him like this.

"Drink some water." Mother Qin poured him a glass.

"Gone… all gone." Eldest Brother Qin collapsed onto the couch. "All gone."

"What’s all gone?" Mother Qin asked.

"No promotion." Eldest Brother Qin had been banking on this promotion for a long time.

But someone else got the promotion instead. That dream went up in smoke—not just this time, but likely for years to come.

This devastated Eldest Brother Qin. He had always believed that if he worked hard, he would eventually rise to a higher leadership position, not remain stuck in a low-level job with limited authority and respect.

He thought he had performed well over the years, yet now his superiors shot him down just like that.

"I already got divorced, divorced!" Eldest Brother Qin’s eyes were red, his face red with drink. Soon, he leaned over and vomited.

Mother Qin had no choice but to look after him. Since his divorce, there had been no woman to care for him. She thought he should remarry soon—someone needed to take care of him. She couldn’t babysit him forever. He was still relatively young and needed a partner.

"I already got divorced, so why won’t they promote me?" Eldest Brother Qin muttered.

True, he hadn’t wanted to divorce at first, afraid people’d think he was cruel.

He had been afraid to end the marriage, but when things blew up, he and Tian Keshu divorced anyway. He thought that once they separated, her issues wouldn’t affect him—yet he still didn’t get the promotion.

Even though he had suspected this might happen, facing the reality was still unbearable.

Once, Eldest Brother Qin had believed his younger brother’s life was ruined for marrying someone like Song Fenglan, whose background was problematic. But now, it was his own life falling apart.

Eldest Brother Qin kept switching between crying and laughing, startling Mother Qin.

Mother Qin hadn’t expected Eldest Brother Qin to behave like this. His heartbreak was over his lifelong career prospects.

When the weekend arrived, Song Fenglan and her husband took Qin Zihang to the zoo, while Zhang Chenghai and his wife also brought their two sons along. Auntie Fatty brought Zhang Xiaohu along to stop him from throwing a tantrum. After all, they hardly ever went to the zoo—they rarely even went to the movies unless it was a free outdoor screening. If tickets were required, they seldom attended.

Cao Fang also joined them, making the group a total of eight people.

The zoo’s entrance sat at the base of the mountain, with various animal exhibits scattered along the path from the base to the summit. Visitors got a simple map to guide themselves around, following it up and then back down. The tickets were good all day, so they could stay from morning until afternoon if they wished.

They weren’t alone at the fox exhibit—other visitors were there as well.

“Did someone just fart?” Qin Zihang blurted out. “It reeks!”

Song Fenglan shot Qin Zihang a look, glad he hadn’t said that on a bus. Otherwise, people would have turned to stare at her.

Even here, a few people nearby overheard Qin Zihang and backed off, waiting for the smell to dissipate before approaching again.

Song Fenglan noticed the reactions and looked down at Qin Zihang, who was staring intently at the foxes. He’d even stubbornly brought his stuffed panda along, despite Song Fenglan advising against it since it had just been cleaned. Qin Zihang had argued that he could wash it himself.

In the end, Song Fenglan let it slide, figuring it was better to let him have his fun.

“Fart? Who farted?” Zhang Xiaohu chimed in.

“The foxes farted,” Qin Zihang declared. “It reeks—definitely a fart.”

“That’s just how foxes smell—it’s musky,” Song Fenglan explained.

“But they’re so cute—how can they stink? Farts stink—pfft, pfft, pfft. The foxes must be farting,” Qin Zihang insisted. “Didn’t their mom tell them not to fart in front of guests?”

Listening to her son’s reasoning, Song Fenglan thought that if foxes actually knew this, they wouldn’t be stuck in a zoo for people to gawk at. They’d get jobs and buy perfume to cover it up.

“Do foxes need baths?” Qin Zihang asked again. “They look dirty—their fur is all clumped together.”

“Foxes… just wait for the rain to wash them,” Song Fenglan replied.

“Mom, is this the mama fox?” Qin Zihang asked.

Qin Zihang had endless questions, and Zhang Xiaohu joined in. “If there’s a mama fox, there’s gotta be a papa fox. The papa fox must be here too. Is that chubby one the fox baby?”

“It’s so big—how can it still be a baby?” Qin Zihang retorted.

“I’m chubby too—see?” Zhang Xiaohu said, much rounder than Qin Zihang. He eyed a particularly pudgy fox, wondering if it was indeed a baby.

Times were tough—people barely had enough to eat, so animals got even less. Most zoo animals were scrawny, but this fox looked a little pudgy—though its fluff might just be deceptive, and it could slim down quickly if wet.

“Fox baby!” Zhang Xiaohu called out to the fox.

The fox yelped in alarm, its fur bristling.

Zhang Xiaohu bolted back to his mom, afraid the foxes might escape.

“They can’t escape—they’re locked up,” Qin Zihang said. “See the bars, Xiao Hu? No way they’re getting out.”

Xiao Hu finally peeked out from behind his mom, trying to act brave. “Yeah, no way they’re getting out. No way.”

After seeing the foxes, the group continued uphill to see giraffes and peacocks. When they saw the peacocks, Zhang Xiaohu was drooling.

"Mom, is a peacock a chicken? Can we eat it?" Zhang Xiaohu asked. "Can we roast it?"

The boy was craving meat, and the peacock looked quite large—maybe it had a lot of meat.

"Peacocks can't be eaten. None of the animals in the zoo can be eaten," Qin Zihang explained.

"If they’re not in the zoo, they’re fair game," Zhang Xiaohu argued. "If we buy them, they won’t be in the zoo anymore."

"Can you even afford that?" Auntie Fatty rolled her eyes. Coming to the zoo to see animals and still thinking about buying them—impossible.

Qin Yizhou picked up Qin Zihang. They had been walking for a while, and Qin Zihang was getting a little tired. They needed to rest a while before moving on.

It was still chilly out. Walking kept them warm, but sitting still made them feel cold again.

Qin Zihang, Zhang Xiaohu, and Zhang Wen, however, didn’t feel cold at all. After drinking some warm water and eating a few pastries, they were still full of energy.

Song Fenglan massaged her legs. She hadn’t walked this much in a long time and was feeling a bit tired.

"Pandas!" Qin Zihang blurted out.

As it happened, the zoo had two pandas. Song Fenglan and the group went to see them. The southern city was rich in bamboo, so the pandas could eat fresh bamboo year-round. There were also plenty of bamboo shoots, available in every season, whether winter or summer.

With their meals guaranteed, the pandas sat there, cute as could be, munching on bamboo shoots.

Qin Zihang stared at the pandas, too captivated to see anything else. He looked at the stuffed panda in his hands, then at the real ones eating bamboo.

"Mom, my panda doesn’t have any bamboo," Qin Zihang said.

"I’ll get you some bamboo later. It’ll take a few days," Song Fenglan replied. When she made the stuffed panda for her son, she hadn’t thought about adding bamboo. But now that he’d seen the pandas eating bamboo, she’d have to make some.

"Feng Lan, you really spoil your child," Auntie Fatty remarked.

"He’s my only child, and he’s well-behaved. A little spoiling never hurt," Song Fenglan said.

The group had left early in the morning and got back around four.

On the way back, Gao Xiuxiu saw Song Fenglan and the others returning happily, buzzing about the zoo and the animals. Gao Xiuxiu thought that once she had a child, she would definitely take them to the zoo.

Zhang Xiaohu wouldn’t stop talking about the zoo, especially to other kids.

Many people knew that Zhang Xiaohu and Qin Zihang had gone to the zoo, though Qin Zihang didn’t talk about it much.

"The zoo has peacocks, and they spread their tails!"

"There are monkeys, and they eat fruit!"

"Foxes fart—super stinky!"

...

When Zhang Xiaohu went out to play, he told several kids about it. Some of them badgered their parents to take them to the zoo, and a few parents, unable to resist, reluctantly agreed. Others muttered, “It’s just a zoo trip,” saying it wasn’t worth bragging about.

Not every family could afford it. Some broke before payday, scraping by on scraps. Some parents preferred spending money on themselves rather than their children.

"You can go when you’re older," some parents told their kids. Zoo tickets cost money, and bringing the whole family added up.

Some children refused to wait and threw fits.

Upon hearing that other children were making a fuss, Fatty Auntie was tempted to smack Zhang Xiaohu a couple of times. Will that boy ever learn to keep his mouth shut? Even the smallest things, Zhang Xiaohu loved to blab to everyone, while Qin Zihang never went around boasting.

Song Fenglan and her husband bought a television, but Qin Zihang didn’t go around telling people about it. He just watched it quietly at home. When Mrs. Su was looking after the children, she watched it together with Qin Zihang.

Other families knew about Song Fenglan’s situation, but most were too shy to come by and watch TV.

"It wasn’t me who told them to go to the zoo!" Zhang Xiaohu ran around the yard as his mother chased him with a bamboo strip, ready to hit him. He felt completely innocent.

"If you hadn’t gone around blabbing about every little thing, would those kids have wanted to go to the zoo and made such a fuss?" Fatty Auntie hadn’t originally intended to hit the child, but Zhang Xiaohu had just started talking about the zoo again, which left her exasperated. She wasn’t really going to hit him—otherwise, she would’ve already caught him and done it.

Passersby heard the commotion at Fatty Auntie’s house and peeked in. Soon, word spread that Zhang Xiaohu had gotten a spanking.

Some parents, upon hearing that Fatty Auntie had given Zhang Xiaohu a spanking, said at home, "That mischievous kid really needed a spanking."

Gao Xiuxiu, still at home, commented, "I don’t think she actually wants to hit him—she’s just making a show of it."

In truth, Fatty Auntie didn’t hesitate to give her child a smack when he misbehaved, though she never hit him hard. He got a light spanking once or twice a month. But Zhang Xiaohu was just too unruly, never learning his lesson.

"Could you bring yourself to hit your child?" Fang Xudong asked.

"No," Gao Xiuxiu replied. "But once our son is born and a little older, I’ll take him to the zoo too."

The next evening, Fan Yani brought some homemade treats to Song Fenglan’s house—biscuits and shortbread, with dried fruit mixed in—they're quite tasty.

Knowing that Song Fenglan had recently taken her child to the zoo, Fan Yani had even made some cookies shaped like little animals.

"All homemade," Fan Yani said. "They're probably not as good as yours, but please do try them."

"Wow!" Qin Zihang's eyes lit up at the sight of the animal-shaped treats.

"Go ahead," Fan Yani said, giving Qin Zihang a cookie and giving one to Zhang Xiaohu, who was also playing at Song Fenglan’s house.

She passed the bag of cookies to Song Fenglan, who, after some hesitation, accepted it and took a bite. "They’re delicious."

"I added some milk," Fan Yani said. "Please enjoy them—I should be going."

"Stay a while," Song Fenglan offered.

"No, you should rest," Fan Yani replied.

Song Fenglan walked her to the door, and Fan Yani left with a smile.

Even after returning home, Fan Yani was still smiling.

"You really like Sister Fenglan, don’t you?" Yue Hongwei asked, knowing where his wife had been.

"I do," Fan Yani said. "Didn't I tell you? I admire women like Fenglan. Her family is wonderful too—her uncle was quite something, though it’s a shame he didn’t live long."

Fan Yani planned to take the college entrance exam to see if she could get in. At the same time, she wanted to practice her baking—she had experience from her past life selling cookies and pastries. She wasn’t sure if she’d pass the exam this time, with so much competition and how long it had been since she’d studied.

In her past life, Fan Yani hadn’t been a top student—she’d graduated from a technical school. But now, with the chance to take the exam, she wanted to give it a shot—no regrets, even if she failed.

If others knew her background, they might scoff, saying she hadn’t even passed high school entrance exams in her past life, so why bother now? But Fan Yani would say that no matter what happened before, when an opportunity comes along, you have to try. What if it works out?

"Did you find the textbooks I asked for?" Fan Yani asked.

"They're on the table—take a look," Yue Hongwei said. "Do you get it? If not, why not ask Sister Feng Lan for help?"

"I won't bother her," Fan Yani replied. "I don’t want to interrupt her downtime. Sister Feng Lan is already very busy—how could I trouble her with such a small matter?"

Fan Yani figured she didn’t have the clout to take up a researcher’s time. Whether she passed the exam or not didn’t matter much—she was just an ordinary person. You’ve gotta know your place and not foolishly keep demanding things.

"..." Sometimes, Yue Hongwei didn’t quite understand Fan Yani. She just seemed to genuinely care about Song Fenglan without expecting anything in return.

"Try the cookies I made," Fan Yani said. "I saved some especially for you."

Yue Hongwei picked up a cookie. "These are really good!"

"Right? I packed them with good stuff—red dates and raisins," Fan Yani said proudly.

Before they knew it, March rolled around. One evening, just after nine, Song Fenglan had just returned from work when she heard shouts from Gao Xiuxiu’s family—Gao Xiuxiu was having the baby.

Fortunately, the hospital was nearby. Her husband could wheel her there on a flatbed cart, or even carry her if needed—it wasn’t far.

But Gao Xiuxiu wasn’t having it. Seeing Song Fenglan step out of a car, she zeroed in on it. The car belonged to Song Fenglan’s workplace—she had just returned from a meeting elsewhere.

"The car! I want to go in the car!" Gao Xiuxiu bolted over like lightning, suddenly appearing right in front of Song Fenglan.

Cao Fang quickly stepped between them, caught off guard by her charge.

"The baby’s coming!" Gao Xiuxiu declared.

Song Fenglan instinctively stepped aside, and Gao Xiuxiu piled into the car.

The driver, who had been about to take Cao Fang home before returning the car to the workplace, was stunned by Gao Xiuxiu’s abrupt entry.

"Take her to the hospital," Song Fenglan told the driver. With her already in, they couldn’t exactly kick her out.

The hospital was only a ten-minute walk away—by car, it would be even faster.

"Go, just go!" Gao Xiuxiu yelled.

It burned her up that Song Fenglan had a car at her disposal—why didn’t she? Once she gave birth to her son, she’d make sure her husband arranged a car to bring her home.

Song Fenglan tuned her out, watching as the car drove off. She turned to Cao Fang. "What about you?"

"I’ll walk back," Cao Fang said. "It’s right down the road. You should go rest."

"Alright, be careful on your way," Song Fenglan said.

Just as Song Fenglan entered her home, she saw Qin Yizhou coming out.

"Not asleep yet?" she asked. "Where’s Zi Hang?"

"He just went to bed," Qin Yizhou replied. "The Fang family?"

"Yes, it’s Gao Xiuxiu—she muscled her way into the car," Song Fenglan said.

Song Fenglan had no choice but to let the driver take Gao Xiuxiu to the hospital. The workplace could clean the car later. Two lives were on the line, even though the distance wasn’t great, since Gao Xiuxiu had already gotten in, they had to take her.

This wasn’t Gao Xiuxiu’s first child—it was her second. Everyone had assumed the birth would be quicker this time, but shockingly, it dragged on for a whole day. Worn out, she passed out and woke up barking, "Where’s my boy?"

"What boy? It’s a girl," Old Lady Fang shot back.

She’d bet everything Gao Xiuxiu was carrying a boy and had prepared all sorts of special treats for her. But surprise—it was a girl.

"No way, it can’t be a girl!" Gao Xiuxiu refused to believe it.

"It’s a girl," Fang Xudong said, carrying a food container with fish soup inside.

"That can’t be right—it has to be a boy!" Gao Xiuxiu insisted. "Did they swap my baby?"

"No, it's a daughter," a nurse nearby said. "The doctor even held the baby up for you to see after delivery."

At the time, all she could think was that she’d surely had a son. As long as the baby was healthy, she was relieved.

Now everyone kept saying it was a girl, not a boy.

Gao Xiuxiu refused to believe it. She thought they were lying to her and insisted that someone must have swapped her baby.

"Who else gave birth yesterday?" Gao Xiuxiu demanded. "Someone must’ve taken my son!"

"You were the only one in labor yesterday," the nurse replied.

After speaking, the nurse checked Gao Xiuxiu's condition before preparing to leave. Gao Xiuxiu grabbed the nurse's hand. "I had a son! I had a son! You’re hiding my son!"

"This is a military hospital," the nurse sighed. "We don’t swap babies—why would we?"

"Who knows if you—"

"Enough! It’s a girl, end of story!" Fang Xudong couldn’t stand Gao Xiuxiu’s behavior any longer. "Let go of the nurse’s hand!"

Fang Xudong burned with shame. A girl’s a girl—why couldn’t his wife accept it? This was a military hospital—who’d be stupid enough to pull that here?

Besides, Gao Xiuxiu was the only one giving birth at the time. Why was she so convinced someone had swapped her child? Even after explanations, she refused to believe it.

She’d been dying to see her son—now she couldn’t care less.

She had told many people that her baby was definitely a boy—no doubt about it. And now? The baby was a girl.

Wouldn’t everyone laugh behind her back?

This child had stripped her of all pride. And the baby had caused so much trouble—being the second child, not even the firstborn, yet taking so long to be born.

Was this kid some kind of curse?

Yeah, no question—this kid was bad news.

Gao Xiuxiu decided her second daughter was nothing special—just a troublemaker who would cause them problems in the future.

Since Gao Xiuxiu had a natural birth, she didn’t need to stay in the hospital long. Before, she had imagined her husband arranging a car to bring her home after delivering a son. But now, she bit her tongue, afraid of her husband’s reaction—she had given birth to a girl, just a girl who didn’t deserve such treatment.

It was all this girl’s fault. If the baby had been a son, none of this would have happened.

Soon enough, Auntie Fatty and the others found out that Gao Xiuxiu had given birth to a girl, not a boy. Auntie Fatty even went out of her way to tell Song Fenglan—she knew about Gao Xiuxiu shamelessly squeezing into Song Fenglan’s car. Song Fenglan kept quiet, but bystanders had noticed.

Once the news got out, gossip traveled fast.

"A girl. Not that there’s anything wrong with girls, but... does Gao Xiuxiu even like daughters?" Auntie Fatty sat on the sofa while Zhang Xiaohu and Qin Zihang played nearby.

The kids half-watched TV before losing interest and playing with toys.

The TV droned on in the background as Auntie Fatty tuned in and out.

"This child... I'm afraid she won't be her parents' favorite," said Auntie Fatty. "Before Gao Xiuxiu gave birth, she went around bragging she was having a boy. Now, it turns out to be a girl. Not just her, but even her husband probably feels like they've lost face."

"Her husband didn’t try to stop her earlier, so they’ve got no one to blame but themselves," Song Fenglan replied. After all, the gender of a child isn’t something one can decide.

If Gao Xiuxiu had gotten a checkup confirming it was a boy, that would be one thing. But she went around making claims without even confirming the baby’s gender. Once she got pregnant, she acted like she was carrying the crown jewels, expecting the world to owe her favors.

If it were just her own family, fine—but Gao Xiuxiu even demanded others cater to her. How was that possible?

Before the baby was even born, Gao Xiuxiu asked Auntie Fatty to knit a sweater for the child and even wanted Song Fenglan to make clothes for it. Song Fenglan refused. Auntie Fatty, at least, made sure Gao Xiuxiu provided the yarn first before knitting. Some people knitted sweaters without receiving any yarn, and Gao Xiuxiu dismissed it as ‘just gifts for the baby.’ Those people were too embarrassed to refuse, but afterward, they stopped helping her.

Now that Gao Xiuxiu had a girl, those who heard about it all said she had it coming, bearing only daughters. If she had actually had a son, she would’ve likely tried to mooch off people even more. Gao Xiuxiu always complained about her mother-in-law, but how was she any better? Just the same kind of person.

"They’ve got no one to blame but themselves," Auntie Fatty said. "They brought it on themselves by running their mouths. Let me tell you, she asked people to knit sweaters but never gave them yarn—and now she doesn’t plan to, acting like they were congratulatory gifts for her supposed son. People are furious. She even had the nerve to say they were getting secondhand ‘blessings’ so they could have sons too."

"She still hasn’t given the yarn?" Song Fenglan asked. "No yarn, no money either?"

"Nope! She treated it like a congratulatory gift for her supposed son," Auntie Fatty said. "Now that she’s had a daughter, she’s already taken the ‘son’ gifts in advance. I bet she’ll just play dumb and never return them. Good thing I insisted on getting the yarn first—I only started knitting after it arrived. She even suggested I buy the yarn myself! No way."

Believe it or not, some people actually planned to ask Gao Xiuxiu for the yarn back. A few thought they’d wait until the baby was born before delivering the sweaters. So not everyone lost out on yarn—four people knitted sweaters: three never got yarn, one waited until the birth, and two already handed over the sweaters.

"Go! Go get that sweater back!" one of their mothers-in-law snapped. "No son, no gifts! Since when do girls rate presents?"