Qi Zhenzhen and Gu Sinian went to the Qin residence. Coincidentally, they met Xie Chen at the Qin residence's entrance, holding a pot of chrysanthemums.
Xie Chen greeted Gu Sinian and Qi Zhenzhen naturally, "You're here? Have you seen Tingxue?"
Gu Sinian felt a bit awkward. Qi Zhenzhen responded to Xie Chen with grace, "It was a last-minute decision to come; I didn't inform Mother. Your chrysanthemums are very special; the green color is quite rare."
Xie Chen went along with it, "Its name is Green Cloud. I specifically asked someone to get it. Tingxue likes chrysanthemums, so I brought it for her to place in her room. It'll be soothing to look at."
Gu Sinian became even more silent. He didn't realize his mother liked chrysanthemums. In his memory, he had never seen his mother tending to flowers and plants.
It made sense; when a person is confined for a long time, they gradually become listless, devoid of vitality.
"Thank you," Gu Sinian suddenly said.
"Thank you for what? I'm doing this for myself, not for you," Xie Chen raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I'm doing this to curry favor with you?"
"You're overthinking it!"
"I only curry favor with Tingxue."
Gu Sinian felt a bit provoked. He couldn't understand why Xie Chen could so easily stir his emotions.
After all, his ability to remain impassive was something he prided himself on.
Qi Zhenzhen tugged at his sleeve and shook her head gently.
Gu Sinian swallowed the retort he was about to make.
Xie Chen walked away with the chrysanthemums.
"He's doing it on purpose," Qi Zhenzhen said. "He's trying not to put pressure on Mother. Right now, the person Mother cares about most is definitely you."
Gu Sinian was a bit confused. "Then shouldn't he try to please me more?"
"That would make Mother uncomfortable," Qi Zhenzhen explained.
Although he still didn't quite understand, Gu Sinian knew that what Zhenzhen said was definitely correct.
"We don't need to pay too much attention to them. When we meet people, we can just interact normally," Qi Zhenzhen said with a smile. Not paying too much attention didn't mean not caring. "For example, would you want us to be the focus of everyone's attention?"
Of course not. If it weren't impossible, he would want to close the door and live their own quiet life with Zhenzhen—him, Zhenzhen, and their child.
"Let's go. We should see Grandmother first," Qi Zhenzhen said.
Old Madam Qin was very happy to see Gu Sinian and Qi Zhenzhen. She held Qi Zhenzhen's hand and warmly asked if she had been feeling unwell lately, urging her to tell her immediately if she had any discomfort, as she had raised several children and was very experienced.
"Don't worry, Grandmother. If anything happens, A'nian and I will tell you right away," Qi Zhenzhen said with a smile. "A'nian takes very good care of me. He doesn't let me do anything every day. If it weren't for the doctor's instructions that pregnant women should move around more before labor, he wouldn't want me to be active at all."
"You can't listen to him; what does a man know? The closer you get to giving birth, the more you should move around. That way, you'll suffer less during labor. When your mother was giving birth to A'nian, she didn't move around much, and she suffered a great deal during labor," Old Madam Qin said.
"Zhenzhen's legs are very swollen, and moving around is really too strenuous," Gu Sinian said.
Old Madam Qin patted Qi Zhenzhen's hand. "That's why it's a difficult thing for us women to carry a child. Not to mention going through the gates of hell during childbirth, even the process of carrying it is something men cannot truly understand. So, A'nian, you must treat Zhenzhen well, understand? Likewise, you must treat your mother well. You can't neglect your mother just because she has returned home!"
"Grandmother, don't you know what kind of person I am? Both Zhenzhen and my mother are the most important people to me," Gu Sinian said.