Chapter 251: Saying Goodbye
When Sheng Wanyan woke up the next morning, she reached out and felt the space beside her. Sure enough, it was already cold; Gu Tingxiao was nowhere to be found. Without a doubt, he was either in the kitchen preparing breakfast or out in the yard clearing away the fresh snow.
She got out of bed to wash up, and as expected, looking through the window, she spotted Gu Tingxiao sweeping the backyard. The moment he noticed she was awake, he set down his broom and jogmed inside to squeeze the toothpaste onto her brush for her.
“Wife, breakfast is keeping warm on the stove. I’ll bring it in for you.”
Seeing the thoroughly satisfied, smug expression written all over his face, Sheng Wanyan shot him a fierce, resentful glare.
Gu Tingxiao cleared his throat awkwardly, his conscience suddenly kicking in. He ducked back into the kitchen to scoop her a bowl of freshly cooked millet porridge. For side dishes, he brought out the pickled radishes and cucumbers she had jarred herself, along with two hard-boiled eggs. He even took the time to mix her a warm mug of malted milk before sitting down across from her, his eyes fixed on her as she ate.
“Why are you staring at me like that?” she mumbled around a spoonful of porridge.
“Wife, you look beautiful.” Gu Tingxiao delivered the compliment smoothly, his heart steady and his face completely unbothered, as if declaring his wife the most beautiful woman on earth was simply an undeniable fact.
“You’re nothing but a sweet talker,” she huffed. He shouldn’t think a few smooth words would make her forgive him for how completely unrestrained he had been last night.
“Eat a bit more, sweetheart. Last night was… exhausting for you.”
Sheng Wanyan’s face flared red, and she nearly choked. Gu Tingxiao truly had no shame whatsoever. Could he please stop whispering these scandalous things over breakfast? He used to be such a cold, taciturn man; how had he become so utterly shameless?
“Have you finished sweeping the backyard yet?” she snapped, trying to deflect. “Stop being so frivolous and get back to work.”
Seeing his wife’s intense embarrassment, Gu Tingxiao suppressed a grin, ceased his teasing, and dutifully went back outside to finish clearing the snow.
Taking advantage of the remaining weeks of Gu Tingxiao’s leave, Sheng Wanyan instructed him to renovate the spare room for the baby. There was no need to rush into buying heavy furniture just yet; a simple table, a couple of stools, and a sturdy wardrobe would be more than enough for now. Father Sheng had already finished crafting the wooden crib, so she just needed to source a proper mosquito net to drape over it.
Furthermore, since Mother Gu would be coming to stay and help care for her once the baby arrived, they needed extra bedding. The spare bed would require a proper quilt and pillow. While Sheng Wanyan had plenty of high-quality bedding stockpiled inside her spatial domain, she had no logical way to pull them out without raising suspicion.
That evening before bed, she nudged Gu Tingxiao. “You should head into the city tomorrow. Buy some fresh cotton and bolts of fabric. If you see any good cuts of meat or extra grain, grab those too.” One could never have too much food in reserve, a reality Gu Tingxiao understood all too well.
“Alright,” he agreed.
“Oh, and see about getting that wardrobe and table built while you’re there. We’ll need everything set up before Mom arrives.”
Sheng Wanyan counted out fifty yuan from their savings, pairing the cash with a selection of food, meat, cloth, and cotton coupons before handing the pile over to her husband.
Early the next morning, Gu Tingxiao made breakfast and left it warming on the stove. He slipped across the lane to ask Mother Sheng if she could look after Wanyan and cook her lunch. Learning that her son-in-law was heading into the city, Mother Sheng asked him to pick up two bottles of soy sauce and two bags of salt on his way back. Gu Tingxiao nodded, mounted his bicycle, and pedaled off into the cold morning air.
With Gu Tingxiao out of the house for the day, Sheng Wanyan seized the rare privacy, locked the front door, and entered her spatial domain to translate.
When lunchtime rolled around, Mother Sheng’s voice echoed through the courtyard, calling her to eat. Hearing the shouts from inside her space, Sheng Wanyan hurriedly emerged, terrified her mother might wander in and find an empty house.
“Coming!” she called out, quickly sliding her shoes on, stepping off the warm kang, and heading across the lane to her parents’ place.
After a quick meal, she didn’t linger to chat. She hurried back home, locked herself in again, and returned to the quiet of her spatial domain to resume her work. Thanks to the favorable time dilation inside the space, she managed to seamlessly translate two entire books in what felt like a blink of an eye. With those out of the way, she could easily take her time polishing the remaining volumes whenever she had a spare moment.
Feeling a wave of fatigue after snacking on some fresh fruit, she left the domain, curled up on the bed, and fell into a deep sleep.
It was already four in the afternoon when Gu Tingxiao returned. Seeing his wife dead to the world, he kept his footsteps entirely silent. He buried the fresh meat in the snow bank outside to keep it frozen, stored the grain safely in the cellar, and neatly stacked the fabric and cotton rolls next to the sewing machine.
He counted the remaining change—fifteen yuan—and placed it on the desk, weighing it down with a book so she would see it the moment she woke up.
With the new supplies delivered, Sheng Wanyan found herself with a new project to keep her busy: sewing the quilts and pillows. Grandma Sheng and Mother Sheng came over to lend a hand, and together, the three women gave the spare room a thorough scrubbing. Within a few days, the bedding was completely finished, and Sheng Wanyan had even sewn a beautiful, clean quilt cover to match. By then, Gu Tingxiao had delivered the newly built wardrobe and table.
Sheng Wanyan neatly tucked the fresh bedding into the closet, planning to pull them out for a thorough wash and sun-dry once the spring weather finally warmed up.
Time moved relentlessly forward, and by the end of March, the day arrived for Father and Mother Sheng to return to Chengdu.
Knowing his parents were departing, Sheng Wanze took a half-day leave from his unit to escort them to the train station. Sheng Wanyan spent the morning preparing an abundance of travel food, packing it tightly so they wouldn’t have to rely on meager station rations.
“Mom, Dad, take this with you,” Sheng Wanyan insisted, forcing the heavy parcel into her mother’s hands.
Seeing how much high-grade food her daughter had packed, Mother Sheng frowned with worry. “Why did you prepare so much fine grain? You’re pregnant, and you have so many expenses coming up at home. Keep this to nourish your own body. Your sister-in-law already packed plenty of food for our journey.”
When Mother Sheng peered into the bundle and spotted ten precious eggs, her heart formatting-ached. Eggs were incredibly nutritious; her pregnant daughter needed them far more than they did.
“Mom, we have plenty at home,” Sheng Wanyan insisted, gently pushing her mother’s hands back. “Besides, I haven’t even finished the supply you gathered for me earlier. Please take it. I’ll feel much better knowing you have good food for the trip.”
Recognizing that stubborn glint in her daughter’s eyes, Mother Sheng relented. She knew Wanyan’s character perfectly; if she refused, the girl would spend the next several days losing sleep from worry.
“Alright, alright. It’s starting to snow, so hurry back inside,” Mother Sheng urged, her voice softening. “Your father and I are leaving now.”
Sheng Wanyan nodded, an unexpected wave of sorrow tightening her throat. During the months her parents had been staying across the lane, she hadn’t needed to worry about a single thing. She had been entirely shielded, allowed to focus solely on her own health and the growing life inside her. They said a child with parents nearby was a protected treasure, and she now knew that wasn’t an exaggeration. Subconsciously, she had leaned heavily on their presence, feeling an unshakeable sense of security just knowing they were a stone’s throw away.
Sheng Wanyan’s eyes welled with tears. Seeing her daughter on the verge of crying, Mother Sheng’s own composure began to crumble. She truly couldn’t bear to leave her little girl behind.
But life was a series of seasons; families could not remain huddled together forever, and farewells were inevitable.
“The moment the baby is born, Mom will find a way to come back and see you,” Mother Sheng promised.
Sheng Wanyan forced a watery smile and nodded. Seeing that strained, brave little face, Mother Sheng’s eyes turned entirely red. Her daughter had never been away from her side since childhood, and it had been painful enough letting her go when she married. After so much hardship, her daughter-in-law had finally given birth, the family had reunited, and in the joy of their daily routine, Mother Sheng had almost forgotten that Wanyan belonged to a household of her own now.
This sudden separation was a stark, painful reminder of reality.
“Alright,” Wanyan whispered.
Mother Sheng reached out, her hand lingering as she tenderly caressed her daughter’s cheek. It would be a very long time before their next meeting, and her only prayer was for her child’s safety and happiness. “Go on back inside. You shouldn’t stand in the cold in your condition.”
“Okay.” Sheng Wanyan knew that if she didn’t step through the door, her parents would refuse to board the vehicle out of worry—not to mention Gu Tingxiao would fret.
Once Wanyan stepped into the warmth of the hallway, Mother Sheng turned to Pan Yue, pulling her daughter-in-law into a tight embrace as they exchanged their own tearful goodbyes.
“Grandma is leaving now, little Huzi,” Mother Sheng murmured, leaning over the bundled infant in Pan Yue’s arms to press a lingering kiss to his soft cheek. “You must be a good boy and listen to your mother.”
Checking the watch on her wrist, she let out a heavy sigh, steeled her heart, and finally climbed into the waiting vehicle. She knew if she looked back even one more time, she wouldn’t find the strength to leave.
Standing on the snow-dusted path, Grandpa and Grandma Sheng raised their hands, waving steadily to reassure the departing travelers.
