"That was before, but this time your sister-in-law's cravings have changed. Now she can't stand anything sour at all."
Xiao Zhengjun chuckled halfway through his sentence. "Now she rolls around in spicy food every day. I bet this one’s a little girl."
"Oh, and if you’ve got extra peppers in your garden, save some for me later."
Huo Tingzhou replied, "Got it. I’ll bring them over soon."
"By the way, how’s your wife doing now?" Xiao Zhengjun asked.
"She seems fine for now."
"That’s good. When you went to report to the police earlier, I saw her throwing up several times—her face was pale."
Only then did Xiao Zhengjun notice the odd expression on Huo Tingzhou’s face.
"What, didn’t your wife tell you?"
"No."
Jiang Si really hadn’t mentioned it, so Huo Tingzhou had no idea.
"Well, keep an eye on her these next few days. Some people get scared and seem fine at first, but they might run a fever at night."
With two boys at home, Xiao Zhengjun had plenty of experience with this sort of thing.
He patted his friend on the shoulder. "Alright, I won’t keep you. My wife’s still at the hospital getting an IV, so I’m heading over to bring her some food."
Huo Tingzhou snapped out of his thoughts. "What’s wrong with her?"
"Nothing serious. Probably just shaken up—she’s been throwing up nonstop since we got back."
After a brief chat, the two went their separate ways.
Jiang Si was still awake, lying on the living room sofa.
When she saw Huo Tingzhou carrying a whole vat of pickled bamboo shoots, she bolted upright.
"You—why did you bring their entire vat back?"
Huo Tingzhou explained, then mentioned that Sister Hu was at the hospital getting an IV.
"Is her condition serious?"
"Shouldn’t be."
If it were serious, Xiao Zhengjun wouldn’t have sounded so casual.
He added, "They’ll be back once the IV’s done."
"That’s good." Jiang Si let out a relieved sigh.
Remembering they still had a few jars of canned fruit made with spiritual spring water at home, she decided to bring some to Sister Hu later.
When she looked up, she found Huo Tingzhou staring at her.
Sensing his concern, Jiang Si smiled. "Don’t worry, I’m perfectly fine!"
Huo Tingzhou nodded. "Rest a little longer. I’ll make dinner."
With two stoves, cooking didn’t take long.
Soon, Jiang Si was digging into a steaming hot meal.
Aside from the three dishes she’d requested, Huo Tingzhou had also made her a spicy stir-fried green tomato at her insistence.
Before cooking it, he double-checked, "Are you sure this is edible?"
He vaguely remembered someone saying green tomatoes were toxic.
Jiang Si nodded eagerly. "Absolutely. Just cook it already."
Even so, Huo Tingzhou tasted it several times before serving.
Toxicity aside—it was unbearably sour.
Yet his wife was happily eating it, taking bites of rice between mouthfuls, her eyes crinkling with delight.
Huo Tingzhou couldn’t help asking, "Sweetheart, doesn’t this taste sour to you?"
"Not at all." Jiang Si then took a bite of the spicy and sour shredded potatoes.
"This is delicious too, but you could’ve added more chili. We’ve got plenty of red peppers—use more next time."
Huo Tingzhou watched her silently for a long moment before casually asking,
"Sweetheart, do you prefer boys or girls?"
"What about you?" Jiang Si tossed the question back.
Huo Tingzhou thought it over. Deep down, he wanted a daughter.
But then again, he realized it didn’t matter.
Finally, he said, "As long as it’s yours, I’ll love them either way."
Jiang Si gave him an approving look.
"Same here. Boy or girl, I’ll love them. But—"
"But what?" Huo Tingzhou paused mid-bite and looked at her.
Jiang Si grinned. "If it’s a girl, she takes my surname. If it’s a boy, he takes yours."
As the eldest daughter of the Jiang family, she’d grown up showered with affection. She wanted to pass that same privilege to her own daughter.
No—her daughter would be even happier.
Because she’d have a wealthy mother and a dependable father!
Huo Tingzhou’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.
"We already agreed—the first child takes your surname, regardless of gender."
"What if there are two?"
Jiang Si wasn’t even sure if she was pregnant yet, but that didn’t stop her imagination.
Lately, her cravings had been all over the place—loving both sour and spicy foods.
Noticing Huo Tingzhou staring at her stomach, she waved a hand to snap him out of it.
"I’m just speculating. There’s nothing confirmed yet."
Even so, the idea kept Huo Tingzhou lost in thought long after dinner.
By the time they lay down for an afternoon nap, his mind was still racing.
Only when Jiang Si waved her hand in front of his face several times did he finally refocus.
"What’s on your mind?"
"I was thinking—if we have two, maybe the daughter could take my surname."
Jiang Si rolled her eyes.
She’d seen his slow reactions before, but this was ridiculous—half the day had passed.
"No," she said flatly.
Huo Tingzhou pressed his lips together, still searching for the right words, when Jiang Si suddenly took his hand and traced a character in his palm.
"Tell me yourself—doesn’t this name sound better with my surname?"
"..."
After a long silence, Huo Tingzhou finally nodded.
Not out of pressure—he genuinely agreed.
Jiang Si almost said more, then caught herself and laughed.
They were seriously discussing something that wasn’t even a sure thing yet. How childish.
Well, it wouldn’t be long now.
Her periods were always punctual, arriving within the first two days of the month, give or take a day.
But before Jiang Si could confirm whether she was pregnant, Huo Tingzhou received orders the next morning for a training mission.
"Training" was just the official term.
The truth was, M Country had been stirring up trouble.
Their reconnaissance planes had breached Chinese airspace just that morning.
Enough was enough!
If they didn’t respond firmly, the provocation would only escalate.
But these were classified details—Huo Tingzhou couldn’t breathe a word.
All he could share was his departure time.
Like last time, they had to leave within two hours of receiving the orders.
Jiang Si could only sigh inwardly.
It seemed he missed every major milestone.
Their wedding night, and now this.
Just that morning, she’d been thinking of asking him to accompany her to the hospital in a few days.
But it didn’t matter. She was used to it.
This wasn’t his first mission, nor would it be his last. As a military spouse, she’d long since made her peace with that.
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Si pushed all these emotions to the back of her mind.
As usual, she packed some spiritual spring water for him this time.
But no matter how much there was, it would only last him a day or two at most.
After a moment’s thought, she took some common fruits from her space and packed them for him as well.
Finally, she tucked some money into his pocket.
"Keep this money safe. Don’t come back drowning in debt every time."
"Remember to eat the fruits I packed for you."
"Wife…" Huo Tingzhou’s eyes were filled with guilt.
Last night, she had just battled a low fever that didn’t break until dawn, and now he had to leave for another mission.
Knowing what he wanted to say, Jiang Si continued packing while speaking firmly.
"Don’t worry about me. Third Uncle and Zhong Shu are here…"
She went on, listing reassurances one after another.
Huo Tingzhou didn’t respond. His gaze drifted from the worry in her eyes down to her lips, slightly parted as she spoke.
The next second, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her deeply—
