“Thankfully, I have your dad by my side. Otherwise, I really think I would not be able to pass my days.”
She had thought that the children had been too noisy when they were younger. But now that she was older, Qiao Nan felt that there was nothing much to her life other than work since her children were not by her side.
Qiao Nan, who was utterly bored, could not help but have the same idea as her mother-in-law. How fulfilling would her life be if she had a grandchild whom she could take care of!
Qiao Nan tried to restrain her smile. “Don’t forget about your maternal grandpa once you’ve coaxed your paternal grandparents.”
“Don’t worry, Mom. I know what to do.” Zhai Yi was the one who answered Qiao Nan.
Zhai Yi and Zhai Xin still had some vague impressions of what had happened when they were younger. Just a few years ago, Zhou Xing had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and had refreshed their memories of their maternal grandma’s family. Thankfully, their family had not encountered any more major problems after that. Neither had their maternal grandpa created any trouble or done anything wrong because of these troubles and problems.
Thinking about their maternal grandpa’s age, the sensible and grown-up Zhai Yi and Zhai Xin became much more considerate. Zhai Yu was the only child who stayed by Qiao Nan’s side. While Zhai Yi and Zhai Xin were not around, Zhai Yu had done her brothers’ share of filial piety on their behalves. As such, if anything happened to any of the three elders, Zhai Yu had to busy herself with both sides of elders.
Zhai Yi’s gaze was filled with tenderness. “Mom, it’s been hard on you all these years.” In the past, the one who had it the hardest had been their mom. Now, San Bao had taken over the burden from their mom, and she was now the one who worked the hardest amongst the three of them.
In other families, it was usually the elder brothers who took care of their younger sisters so that their younger sisters would be able to live a comfortable and easy life. But in the Zhai family, it seemed as though they were always out of the ordinary. The women in the Zhai family always needed to bear more responsibilities than the men of the Zhai family.
This was his only younger sister. He had wanted to pamper and spoil her.
“Children are their parents’ debt, but you and Er Bao have to treat San Bao well in the future. When the day comes when your dad and I are no longer around, the only ones that San Bao can rely on are the two of you, her elder brothers. The three of you have to get along well. Do you understand?”
Qiao Nan did not want to overthink matters. But seeing all the examples around her, she could not let it go just like that. There was a saying that men often neglected their mothers after marriage. Qiao Nan felt that with Zhai Sheng by her side, she would not despair even if her children really distanced themselves from her because of their partners. Of course, it was only natural that her heart would ache. But at least, she still had her life partner by her side.
As long as her children lived good lives on their own, Qiao Nan would not mind it. Even if her children were to leave her, she would still find a way to enrich her own life. But if this were to happen to her own children, Qiao Nan felt that she might not be as calm and collected.
Qiao Nan believed that her children were good kids, but what worried Qiao Nan was that the children were bound to have their own partners once they grew up.
It was not just a matter of having another mouth to feed or laying out another pair of chopsticks during mealtimes. Having an additional person in the family meant that there were one more person’s feelings to consider. There might even be a problem between Zhai Yu and her sisters-in-law. If there came a day when neither she nor Zhai Sheng was around, San Bao would naturally have to rely on only Da Bao and Er Bao.
It was easy for girls to be taken advantage of. If San Bao was unlucky and they followed suit, judging a person wrongly and handing San Bao over to the wrong person, San Bao would suffer and be wronged in the future. Then, San Bao would need Da Bao and Er Bao to seek justice on her behalf.
Da Bao and Er Bao would definitely not let it go if San Bao were to be bullied. Qiao Nan had never doubted that and had the utmost faith in her own sons. The only thing she was worried about was that Da Bao and Er Bao would have their own ideas after getting married and settling down with their own families. Perhaps, Da Bao’s and Er Bao’s feelings would no longer be as sincere and intense as before because of their partners’ influence.
“You’re all the Zhai family’s children. Zhai Yu’s desire for the army is probably as intense as yours and Zhai Xin’s, but this child is considerate and chose to sacrifice herself for our sakes. It may be a little early to say this, but I’m afraid that you won’t understand even if I say it now since you have no context behind it and won’t feel much for it. Whenever the two of you are away, San Bao’s the only one who takes care of all three of your grandparents. She’s already a grown-up young lady. If she isn’t busy with work, she’s busy taking care of all three of your elders. She doesn’t even have any free time to spend on shopping or catching a movie like any other young ladies her age should be doing, much less have any time to get herself a boyfriend.”
At the mention of her sensible daughter, Zhai Yu, Qiao Nan’s tone was full of tenderness and affection.
“Everyone praises San Bao for being a down-to-earth young lady. To be honest, I had never wished for your sister to be so simple and down-to-earth given our family background. Do you mean we can’t even afford a branded bag? Or pretty clothes? All those makeup products that young ladies use may be expensive, but couldn’t our family afford them? It’s just that San Bao’s too busy. She’s such a beautiful young lady but has no time for herself! It breaks my heart as a mother.”
Zhai Sheng was a man, after all, and it was inevitable that he was a little crude and careless when it came to small details. What would a man who spent all his time in the military with other men know?
But Qiao Nan was different. As a mother, Qiao Nan herself had once been a young lady. She knew exactly how San Bao was feeling as a young lady.
In her first lifetime, she did not have the financial ability. In reality, when she was in her teenage years and in her twenties, she had handed all her earnings over to her family to raise Qiao Zijin. At that time, when she saw her peers dressing up beautifully while she had not been able to buy even a single piece of new clothing for herself even after a few years of work, Qiao Nan had not only felt inferior but had also felt extremely envious of her peers.
Even in her second lifetime, Qiao Nan’s conditions had not been very good. Before she married Zhai Sheng, her only goal in life was to graduate from university with her own efforts. After marriage, she was always busy with her studies, her family, and her career. She might look young and full of vitality, but she was inevitably older than many others.
At that time, she really had no energy to care about putting in some effort to dress up.
But San Bao was different. San Bao’s life had always been sunny and bright. San Bao herself was bright and cheery. Whatever a typical young lady liked, San Bao was sure to like it too. Such a vibrant young lady was living the life of an old lady! How could Qiao Nan’s heart not ache for her?
Qiao Nan felt that it was apt to talk to her sons about this topic today.
Between them, Qiao Nan valued Da Bao more. She knew that she only had to leave a strong impression on Da Bao. That way, even if Er Bao were to commit a folly in the future and treat San Bao poorly, Da Bao would definitely correct Er Bao.