"What a nice day?" An Zhiqing couldn't help thinking to himself, did he forget some important occasion.
Just then he saw Zhi Xia wink at him mischievously and say, "Big brother is here, isn't that a nice day!"
"You little rascal." An Zhiqing laughed helplessly and shook his head, couldn't help sighing to himself again, if it wasn't for the baby swap incident back then, such a lovely little sister growing up in his family would surely be doted on by everyone.
His second and third brother wouldn't be like now, having a shadow almost when hearing the word "little sister".
Zhi Xia had been learning cooking from a young chef for a long time after rebirth, plus the ingredients today were ample, needless to say the flavor.
The braised pork was shiny golden, oily and bright, taking a bite was fatty but not greasy, even An Zhiqing who had eaten many delicacies couldn't help but squint his eyes, carefully enjoying the exploding juiciness in his mouth.
Originally thinking meat was not easy to come by, he wanted to eat less and save some for his little sister, anyway it's cold now, leaving the meat for a few more days wouldn't make it go bad.
But the flavor was just too good, he lost control for a moment, and when he came to his senses, six or seven pieces of braised pork had already went down to his stomach.
Feeling a little ashamed, he raised his head, and saw Zhi Xia smiling while scooping him soup, "Big brother, you like my cooking right?"
"This is not just good, it's fantastic. Little sister, don't laugh at your big brother for eating like he had never eaten meat before. Actually big brother hadn't had such tasty braised pork for many years."
"Eat more if you like it." Zhi Xia placed the bowl of ribs and radish soup she just ladled in front of him, "Have some soup first to cleanse your palate."
An Zhiqing originally thought after eating so much heavy flavor braised pork, drinking bone broth would be too light, but after taking a sip, the flavors of the ribs and radishes blended together was actually pretty good.
And this bok choy, unlike the cafeteria style, always mixing in some sweet potato starch, was sweet and sour with a little spiciness, simply too delicious.
Unconsciously, three or four steamed buns went down to his stomach.
In comparison, Zhi Xia's appetite was much smaller, just a small piece of fat streaked braised pork, half a bowl of rib soup but she did gnaw on two ribs, and one steamed bun she split with An Zhiqing before finishing.
"Little sister, your appetite is too small. Anyway you must eat more now, understand?"
An Zhiqing spoke with hesitation, but the perceptive Zhi Xia immediately guessed, "Big brother, you know already?"
"Don't blame Pei Jing, I forced him to tell me, after all..." An Zhiqing looked at Zhi Xia's belly and nodded, "Your big brother is much smarter than those two at home. Your marriage was too rushed, impossible under normal circumstances."
They both knew clearly in their hearts, An Zhi Ren and An Zhi Ang might not necessarily be too dumb to guess something was going on, they were just used to not interfering and not asking questions.
Zhi Xia could also see, they were unrestrained spending money on her, but very stingy with emotions.
But for her, this was already very good. At least since she returned home, her status in their hearts had always been above Gao Mei Yun's.
She hadn't thought of that name for a long time, Zhi Xia lowered her head to hide the emotions in her eyes.
After that person died, Zhi Xia had a sudden sense of relief, but after her wish for over a hundred years finally came true, she somehow felt empty in her heart, as if not knowing what to do next, completely unable to find a goal in life.
When she first found out she had a child in her belly, she was naturally anxious, after the anxiety, there was excitement and joy.
It's said marriage is the second rebirth, her first rebirth was not bad, just that good was snatched away by someone else, so it no longer belonged to her.
But for the second rebirth, she could completely take control.
Pei Jing was a mature and steady man, already quite outstanding and responsible, from a rational perspective, he was a suitable match.
But Zhi Xia also understood a good marriage needed cultivation.
His feelings for her now mostly stemmed from the unborn child, a small part was a man's care and sympathy for the weak, this was also why Zhi Xia tried hard to get close to him.
She wanted to turn that sympathy into love, it would be a huge project, plus her approaching him was also to break his inherent notions, don't let him think she was just a weak and pitiful person who needed care.
Zhi Xia firmly believed for Pei Jing's personality, if she didn't take initiative to get close, he would very possibly live separately from her when possible.
Because for responsibility and physical intimacy, there was a clear separation, he thought care was materialistic, of course, this was also what most people thought nowadays, eat well and live well was the best.
But Zhi Xia had existed for too long, seen too much, she wanted not just materialistic, but spiritual and physical.
She didn't want her marriage to settle, spiritual rapport and physical harmony would make it more perfect.
Of course, this was all premised on the other party having those conditions, and also made her want to give it a try.
"Right, just now I saw someone, Pei Jing is not here, big brother will explain it to you first so you don't hear a twisted version from others and overthink. It might make you worry for no reason." An Zhiqing surely didn't care about Pei Jing, but he had to care for his little sister, so he decided to be nosy.
"What is it?" Zhi Xia was called back from her thoughts by An Zhiqing's words, still looking a little bewildered.
"That Shen Hongxing next door you know right? If it wasn't so hard to apply for a house, big brother would never let you live here no matter what." An Zhiqing sighed, but things were as they were, no other way, "Shen Hongxing has a little sister called Shen Hongmei, she is in the army's performance troupe. She used to like Pei Jing, and confessed publicly a few months ago, but got rejected by Pei Jing. That girl is stubborn, said she won't give up until Pei Jing marries someone. Sounds a bit hard to deal with, but don't worry, Pei Jing absolutely has no feelings for her, big brother can attest to that. If he did have anything, I wouldn't let him off even if you don't say anything, but...if you hear anything from others, you must not overthink. Remember at all times, you are different now. For some things you have to be open-minded, don't get angry or sad, and don't hurt yourself. If anything comes up tell big brother, understand?"
Seeing how solemn he looked, Zhi Xia couldn't help bursting out laughing, "Big brother, I already know about this. And you can rest assured your little sister is not as fragile as you imagined."
Let alone Pei Jing having nothing with Shen Hongmei, even if there really was something now, it absolutely wouldn't hurt her.
She just felt Pei Jing was not bad, a suitable match, and wanted to develop feelings with him. But after all there were no deep feelings yet.
Their marriage was just to let the child be born properly.
So in terms of emotions, no one could bring her harm, not even her own parents.
The longer one lives, the more indifferent they become emotionally, because the more they see and understand, the clearer it is that some things can't be forced.
Zhi Xia didn't live long, but she existed for quite a while after death.
