The soft and tender little cutie looked at you with tearful eyes, full of pleading light, and affectionately called out "daddy." It completely melted Lianshan’s heart, his eyes filled with tenderness. However, his wife was easy to talk to about everything else, except when it came to Lian En’s education, where she was particularly persistent. She constantly reminded that "a tree untrimmed is not straightened; a person unwatched is unruly." She said a child at three will see the man at eighty; children should be taught from a young age. Otherwise, if they’re inherently not good, and without careful and strict supervision, once they show signs of deviating, it will be a real worry and effort to correct them later. Lianshan understood this reasoning well. But as the saying goes: a cat loves its own kittens, and a dog loves its own puppies. Which father wouldn’t feel distressed seeing his child suffering? Although there was no biological connection, he had been reading to the little one for prenatal education while he was still in the womb. After birth, he was washing diapers, changing clothes, bathing, feeding, teaching him to walk and talk. Whatever a biological father would do, he had done everything. Emotionally, this was his own eldest son! At the beginning, he often pleaded and talked things over. He even had small disputes with Shuzhen due to her excessive strictness, something they had never experienced before. Until he saw that after his pleas, not only did the son not receive forgiveness but was held to even stricter standards, Lianshan completely gave up on pleading. He was afraid that the more he helped, the more trouble it would bring, causing Little Lian’en to suffer more punishments. If he really provoked his wife to upgrade the lessons to "spare the rod and spoil the child," wouldn’t it still be his beloved son who suffers? Lianshan consoled himself , suppressing the impulse to rush in every time the little one cast a pleading glance at him. Instead, he patiently waited until Shuzhen finished teaching and scolding, then immediately took over. Gently washing the little one’s tear-streaked face, steaming the minced meat and egg custard he loved, telling his favorite historical stories, and softly teaching him to listen well to his mom, explaining that scolding was all for the baby’s own good. He frankly explained, telling him the principle that obedience would lead to less scolding. This combination of strict mother and kind father resulted in Little Lian’en becoming even more sensible and clever, and the already close father-son relationship growing ever closer and more intimate. Seeing this, Shuzhen was delighted and even more determined to educate the little one well. Otherwise, if not careful, he might turn into an ungrateful traitor like in her previous life, leaving for riches and honors with a pat on the butt, acknowledging a thief as his mother, how heartbroken would her husband, who treated him like his own son, be? Her strategy was to start with opportunistic education focused on filial piety, morality, and etiquette. In two years, when he turns four, she would send him to school, where Uncle Wu and several other big shots would teach him meticulously. She was sure that under the guidance of such strict teachers, he wouldn’t turn rogue again! Life leisurely passed by between childbirth and child-rearing, and in the blink of an eye, it was the heart of winter. On the morning of the second day of the tenth month in the lunar calendar, second brother Liu Shouyi braved the roaring northwest wind to deliver the good news: After more than three hours of painful struggle, his wife’s sister-in-law gave birth to a chubby, dark-skinned Liu Jianjun weighing seven pounds and eight ounces. Indeed, the more you hope for something, the less likely it comes. Su Hongying dreamed of having a cute, sweet daughter like Jiajia from Lian Hai’s family, and the wraps and small clothes she prepared were all soft pink and peach pink. She awaited the delivery, hoping for a warm and thoughtful little cotton-padded jacket. Only to find out at birth that the fair and dainty girl she hoped for didn’t come; instead, there was a dark, plump little boy, loud and healthy right from birth. The originally joyful Su Hongying, who couldn’t wait to embrace her daughter, was so upset seeing her dark, chubby boy wrapped in a pink blanket and wearing peach pink clothes, that tears rolled down! What happened to the saying "sour son, spicy daughter"? Isn’t it said that a pointy belly is a boy, and a round belly is a girl? How come, despite eating so much chili and having a belly round like a giant watermelon, she ended up with another little troublemaker! Upon hearing this, both Shuzhen and Wu Yinghong had a good laugh for quite a while. Knowing the Su family and Su Hongying didn’t believe in such superstitions, the sisters-in-law cheerfully went to help with milk production. "Hey, is this my third nephew? Come, let Auntie have a look, such a strong boy today." After warming herself in the west room for a while, making sure she wouldn’t bring in a chill, she smiled warmly and entered the room. Su Hongying grinned: "What good is being strong, just another boy, totally wasted my eight or nine months of expectation and nourishment." "Stop with the nonsense, the more children and grandchildren, the more happiness. How is that bad? A boy, nothing wrong with having a boy. Many families long for a boy and can’t have one! You’re being picky, and we only talk among ourselves. Say that in front of the many daughters longing for sons, you’d get beaten..." Su’s mother scolded her daughter lightly, then warmly greeted Shuzhen and Wu Yinghong. With her mother reprimanding her, leaving her speechless, Su Hongying fell silent, though the regret in her eyes was all too evident. No other reason, it’s just rare things are precious! While children can’t be objectified, the principle is the same, right? Her birth family with eight siblings had her as the only daughter, and her in-laws also had two sons with just one little sister as a flower. The male-heavy result made her a precious gem in both families! Seeing her four brothers and four younger brothers have quite a few children, all turning out to be boys, and her own two sons, plus her sister-in-law’s Lian En. Among the twenty or so little boys, there wasn’t a single blossom! It’s understandable she had expectations when her pregnancy came with cravings for spicy foods and a round belly! She had been eagerly hoping for months, only to find the promised little cotton-padded jacket turned into a breezy vest. It’s normal to feel disappointed and have a hard time accepting it! Shuzhen was amused by her sister-in-law’s look of inability to accept: "Don’t worry. Our family’s situation is good enough to afford, and we’re not pressured by the birth control policy, actually encouraged to have more. If you’re really fond of a daughter, you can have another after nurturing this one for two years, right? Keep trying; after all, it’s either a boy or girl, persistence will eventually pay off!" Su’s mother and Wu Yinghong doubled over with laughter, and Liu Shouyi, half in and half out of the door, almost slipped and fell backward. Only after steadying himself with the door frame did he want to ask his little sister: Was she really trying to console, or was she rubbing salt into her sister-in-law’s wound, finding her too pretentious?