Xu Bin nearly spat out his mouthful of alcohol, coughing repeatedly.
"What the hell kind of reasoning is that? So, being a brother-in-law means you're always at a disadvantage, and it's okay if your wife is eyed by others? And being a brother-in-law means you're always the one benefiting?" he thought to himself.
Yao Xin, who had been teased, didn't blush but instead smacked her sister's butt and laughed, "I dare him to try anything. You're asking for it with jokes like that."
"How about that? Pregnant and taking a break from duties, planning to keep the family wealth within, huh?"
"Sure, if Big Sister is okay with it, I don't mind. But we'd have to follow the rules of seniority, and you'd have to call me 'sister,'" Yao Nan replied with a smirk.
The sisters laughed and joked, but Shen Ruyu blushed and scolded, "You two, watch your mouths."
Then, she suddenly asked, "Yao Xin, why did a bank call me today saying your credit card bill is overdue?"
Yao Xin froze, her face paling slightly, while Shen Ruyu's expression turned serious.
"Mom, those are scam calls," Xu Bin said casually, peeling a large prawn and placing it in his wife's bowl with a smile. "Telecom scams are rampant these days."
"But they knew so many details," Shen Ruyu replied, still skeptical.
"Mom, in this age of big data, scams are precise. They even know you have three daughters, two married and one not," Xu Bin explained, still smiling.
"Alright," Shen Ruyu's expression softened, remembering the gossip from the tea house and how even her acquaintances had been scammed.
Yao Xin chimed in, "Mom, you've never received a scam call?"
Yao Nan laughed, "I've received a few. Once, they said my son was with them."
Xu Bin winked and said, "Baby, did you ask the scammer if he was sticky?"
The three married women burst into laughter.
Maybe it was the alcohol, but the joke felt natural and harmless, unlike before when Xu Bin would have been scolded by his mother-in-law.
Xu Bin flattered, "Now, scammers are precise in their targeting. They called you, Mom, which means they think you're wealthy. To you, Mom!"
"Cheers!"
Yao Xin gave Xu Bin a grateful look, and he smiled back, understanding passing between them.
*Ding... Big Sister Yao Xin: Affection Level 50%.*
Xu Bin had figured out the pattern: lower levels increased easily, but higher levels were a challenge. Last night, his wife was extremely satisfied, even giving him a new phone and whispering sweet nothings, but her affection only rose to 96%. He wondered when it would reach 100%.
What worried him more was that affection could both increase and decrease. He was always careful with his words and actions, trying his best to please her, fearing that one wrong word could undo all his efforts.
Yao Nan opened a bottle of red wine, and Xu Bin raised an eyebrow, "Honey, you're pregnant. Can you drink alcohol?"
Shen Ruyu smiled approvingly, "You're quite the observant one."
Yao Nan poured herself a small glass, sticking out her tongue playfully, "Husband, I took the afternoon off. Aunt Yanzi took me to the city's traditional Chinese medicine hospital. We got a specialist to check me out."
Xu Bin frowned, "What specialist?"
These days, the term "specialist" didn't have a good connotation, mainly because there were so many quacks.
Shen Ruyu rolled her eyes, "Let Nan finish speaking. Why the long face?"
Yao Nan continued, "The regular checks and machine scans can be done at our hospital, but I wasn't comfortable, so I went to the traditional Chinese medicine hospital for another check-up."
"Aunt Yanzi found a remarkable specialist—a retired professor from the provincial medical university who was recalled to teach. He doesn't see patients anymore, just mentors students."
"The old man is 85 and came to our city at the invitation of our hospital director. Almost all the chief physicians, department heads, and even the director of the traditional Chinese medicine hospital are his students."
"Impressive!" Xu Bin thought this one might be legitimate.
Shen Ruyu puffed out her chest proudly, "Well, of course. I wanted to go, but Aunt Yanzi said we shouldn't bother the old man."
Yao Nan added, "Aunt Yanzi didn't even go in. A department head from the traditional Chinese medicine hospital led me in. They were incredibly polite."
"What did the doctor say?" Xu Bin asked, concerned.
Yao Nan sipped her red wine and smiled, "The old man said my constitution is good, just different from other pregnant women."
"My body is 'dry' and has 'slow blood flow.' Usually, pregnant women shouldn't stimulate blood flow, but I should have a little white or red wine every few days to stimulate my blood. I don't have to avoid crab like other pregnant women; I can eat it once a week to reduce internal heat."
"What else?" Xu Bin asked, taking notes seriously.
Shen Ruyu smiled warmly, "This daughter-in-law of mine is a good one. When I was pregnant with you girls, your father never asked a single question. I was pregnant and still had to serve the family."
Yao Xin looked down, and Yao Nan stuck out her tongue, neither wanting to interrupt.
"Nothing much else. Just eat normally; eat whatever you crave. Pregnant women just need to avoid stimulating blood flow, but since my blood flow is slow, I can soak in a warm spring once I'm six months along, for no more than ten minutes, twice a month. It helps the baby absorb nutrients better," Yao Nan said.
Xu Bin wrote everything down diligently, not missing a single word.