"Sister-in-law, what do you mean by 'not that bad'?"
Jiang Si looked curious, sensing that Hu Meili was hiding some juicy gossip.
As it turned out, her hunch was right.
"Come closer, both of you. Let me tell you something."
Hu Meili beckoned them closer and whispered, "Do you know why Li Mei went into premature labor?"
Xu Mingjuan shook her head.
She had been busy packing at home these past few days and barely stepped outside.
Jiang Si was in a similar situation.
Shaking her head, she glanced at Hu Meili in surprise. "Sister-in-law, you know?"
Hu Meili nodded. "Several colleagues came to visit the baby these past couple of days, and we chatted a bit."
"From what I heard, Li Mei accidentally ran into the inspection team while shopping at the free market a few days ago."
"She was so scared she abandoned her purchases and ran, but then she tripped and fell."
"If it weren’t for a kind stranger who took her to the county hospital, it could’ve been a tragedy—both her and the baby."
Jiang Si froze. "She went to the county hospital?"
"Yes."
Xu Mingjuan frowned. "The county is an hour’s drive from here. Why go so far when she could’ve just shopped in town?"
"That’s what I found strange too."
Hu Meili added, "Several sisters-in-law warned her not to go that day, but she wouldn’t listen."
"But that’s not even the most bizarre part."
"Old Lady Xiang was all smiles when she left, but she came back scowling."
"Ever since then, she’s been cursing Li Mei nonstop at home."
Xu Mingjuan sighed in exasperation. "A mother-in-law without an ounce of decency—no wonder Li Mei schemed against her."
Jiang Si, however, focused on something else. "What exactly did she say?"
The language was too vulgar, so Hu Meili skipped over it, only summarizing the reason.
Of course, these words came from Old Lady Xiang’s mouth—whether they were exaggerated or not was anyone’s guess.
Hu Meili explained, "Apparently, where Li Mei fell was quite far from the county hospital, and with the inspection team around, no one dared to help her."
"Li Mei was in pain and terrified, so she promised two hundred yuan to whoever ensured her baby was delivered safely."
"Two hundred yuan?" Jiang Si narrowed her eyes.
That was no small sum, but given the circumstances, if she hadn’t gone to the hospital, it really could’ve been a double tragedy.
More importantly, as a military spouse, if she’d been caught by the inspection team,
Deputy Battalion Commander Xiang’s military career would’ve been over.
Xu Mingjuan asked, "So Old Lady Xiang has been cursing her over the money?"
Hu Meili nodded. Everyone in the residential compound knew how much Old Lady Xiang prized money.
"At least she gave birth to a son. Otherwise, Old Lady Xiang would’ve dragged this payment dispute out forever..."
"She had a son?" Jiang Si suddenly interrupted.
Hu Meili paused. "Yes... a son."
Otherwise, given Old Lady Xiang’s temper, she’d never have willingly handed over that two hundred yuan.
Hearing this, Jiang Si fell silent for a moment.
Doctor Jiang’s expression that day had indeed been off, her brows furrowed the entire time.
But now that she thought about it, the doctor’s confusion might’ve simply been over why Li Mei lied.
After all, Doctor Jiang never told her the baby’s gender.
Yet Li Mei claimed in front of Old Lady Xiang that the doctor had revealed it.
Meaning, Jiang Si had overthought the whole thing.
Then again, swapping a baby unnoticed in a military hospital,
without the in-laws finding out, was nearly impossible.
They say pregnancy makes you slow-witted for three years—Jiang Si could now confirm the saying was true!
Just as Jiang Si mocked herself for jumping to conclusions, Hu Meili gave her an awkward look.
"Earlier, when you mentioned how urgently Li Mei borrowed money, I wondered if she had debts outside."
"Maybe she used the premature birth as an excuse to extort her mother-in-law..."
Jiang Si stiffened at the words.
Meanwhile, elsewhere,
Doctor Jiang was still processing the unbelievable news.
She was the one who performed Li Mei’s ultrasound—no one knew the baby’s gender better than her.
But after she refused to disclose it last time, Li Mei never returned to the military hospital.
Doctor Jiang only learned of the birth after hearing Old Lady Xiang’s loud cursing.
And... it was a son!
With years of medical experience, Doctor Jiang had full confidence in her skills.
Yet this news left her stunned, unable to react for a long while.
It wasn’t until a nearby exclamation snapped her back to reality.
"Doctor Jiang, please check on me—my stomach hurts."
Hearing the name, Li Mei instinctively looked over.
Her eyes met Doctor Jiang’s for a brief, tense moment.
In those ten seconds, their gazes were laden with unspoken complexity.
Doctor Jiang pressed her lips together, sighing softly but ultimately saying nothing.
Without proof, and with a family and a child’s future at stake,
she couldn’t—and shouldn’t—speak up.
Li Mei caught the doctor’s expression and smiled faintly.
BOOM—CRACK!
A deafening clap of thunder split the sky.
The children burst into terrified wails.
The older ones covered their ears, while the youngest wet themselves in fear.
The auditorium was instantly drowned in cries.
Hu Meili hugged her baby, soothing it while shuddering in relief.
Thankfully, she’d stuffed cotton in the infant’s ears—otherwise, the poor thing would’ve been feverish by nightfall.
The thought of her five-day-old enduring a typhoon of this magnitude made her heart ache.
She wasn’t alone. The moment the thunder struck, every mother instinctively clutched their child tighter.
Their eyes reflected pain, worry, fear, or guilt.
But amid the crowd, only Li Mei stood frozen, staring at her baby in horror.
How could this be?
Every other child was crying—why wasn’t hers?
If he’d been asleep, she could’ve reassured herself.
Maybe he’d slept through the noise.
But he was wide awake!
Then—
CRASH! BANG!
Another round of thunderous noise erupted overhead.
The children’s wails grew even louder.
Li Mei immediately checked her baby again.
Why? Why was there still no reaction?!
Her shock was so palpable that nearby sisters-in-law noticed something was wrong.
"Huh? This child... why isn’t he making a sound?"
"Could he be...?"
Before they could finish—
SMASH!!!
Everyone turned toward the noise.
The next second, their pupils shrank in disbelief—
