"Huh? ... Huh!!"
Lin Feng sat up with a start: "So fast?"
"You brat, with such a big thing happening, how could I possibly sleep? I hired a car and came all night!"
Zhang Hui didn't sound at all like someone who had traveled all night; her voice was full of vigor: "If I hadn't been afraid of walking in on something inappropriate, I would have already come upstairs."
Lin Feng: "..."
"Alright, Mom, come on up, room 501."
After hanging up the phone, Lin Feng fell silent for a moment.
He really couldn't imagine what expression his mother would have when she saw him.
Happy? Shocked? Angry? But most likely, she'd start with two hard slaps to the face...
Lin Feng shook his head, walked over to the hospital bed, and gently woke Lu Qingxue:
"Qingxue, wake up, my mom has arrived at the hospital."
"Ah? So fast?!"
Lu Qingxue's hazy eyes instantly cleared up: "I—I'll wash up and tidy myself."
"No need!"
Lin Feng pressed Lu Qingxue back down onto the bed and smiled:
"Just think of my mom as a family elder, there's no need to stand on so much ceremony."
Anxiously, Lu Qingxue smoothed her hair, tugged at her pajamas, and whispered:
"I still want to make a good impression on your mom..."
"You're so pretty, my mom will definitely love you the moment she sees you."
Lin Feng meant every word.
Lu Qingxue possessed a natural, bone-deep beauty; even though she was currently drained of vitality and looked pale, it was an aura of delicate frailty, completely unrelated to looking sloppy.
His mother was a hardcore aesthetics enthusiast and would definitely love Lu Qingxue.
Not to mention the two little dumplings adding to her charm.
Lu Qingxue paused, looking at Lin Feng's completely sincere expression, and her ears quietly turned red.
…………
Downstairs, Zhang Hui lugged a mountain of bags, asking directions all the way to the inpatient department.
This was the Maternal and Child Health Hospital, after all, and all along the way there were either pregnant women or tiny, pink babies.
The sight made Zhang Hui's heart burn with eager warmth.
Had she not wanted to make a good impression on her daughter-in-law, she would have already burst into the ward.
"I wonder how my daughter-in-law's health is, what the babies look like..."
"That brat, keeping everything under wraps, I'll definitely have to give him a good scolding."
In her heart, Zhang Hui had already passed a death sentence on Lin Feng.
Hurrying straight to 501, she found Lin Feng already standing at the door.
"Mom."
"Thwack!"
The moment they met, Lin Feng took a solid slap across the back from his mother.
"I'm not your mom, I'm your grandmother—bah, I *am* a grandmother!"
"Ah?"
"What do you mean 'ah'? Are my daughter-in-law and grandson inside?"
While asking, Zhang Hui had already set down her things, smoothed her completely undisturbed hair, and tugged at her clothes.
Seeing the mother and son make the exact same gestures, Lin Feng silently choked back a laugh.
"Mom, take it easy. There's more than just your daughter-in-law and grandson inside."
"Ah?!"
Zhang Hui licked her lips, looking somewhat nervous:
"Are the in-laws in there too?"
"You brat, why didn't you tell me sooner? I only prepared a welcome gift for my daughter-in-law and grandson."
"This is so discourteous! What if the in-laws think I'm trying to throw my weight around with their daughter..."
Huh? In such a short time, his mother had even prepared a welcome gift? Lin Feng gave a light cough to interrupt his mother: "Don't be nervous, the in-laws aren't there. It's just that inside, there isn't only a daughter-in-law and a grandson—there's a granddaughter too."
"If your welcome gift is lacking, you might as well not take it out at all."
"Otherwise, how wronged would the one who doesn't get a gift feel?"
Zhang Hui froze: "What do you mean? Suddenly you've got both a son and a daughter??"
"No way? It's not what I'm thinking, is it?"
Lin Feng nodded, "It's exactly what you're thinking."
Zhang Hui covered her face, "How on earth did I give birth to such a disaster?!"
Lin Feng: ??? "Getting two girls pregnant at the same time, and even having them live in the same hospital room to give birth—'scumbag' doesn't even begin to describe you!"
Lin Feng: !!!!! "Mom, Mom... calm down! People *can* give birth to fraternal twins!"
Lin Feng hurriedly stopped his mother's wild imagination.
"Oh?"
Zhang Hui fell silent, her breathing turning slightly rapid:
"Our ancestral graves are smoking with auspicious vapor, son."
Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door:
"I'm Lin Feng's mom, can I come in?"
Inside the room, Lu Qingxue nervously smoothed her hair: "A—Auntie, please come in!"
Zhang Hui pushed the door open, and the instant she saw Lu Qingxue's face, she turned her head back: "Son, the ancestral graves have caught fire..."
Lin Feng stared up at the ceiling, not daring to utter a word.
Seeing Lin Feng's thoroughly thwarted expression, Lu Qingxue felt her heart sink a little, and she quickly greeted Zhang Hui:
"Hello, Auntie, my name is Lu Qingxue. Thank you for your hard work traveling all night."
Just as she was feeling anxious and uneasy, she suddenly felt a coolness on her wrist.
Looking closely, she saw a jade bracelet gleaming with green slip onto her hand.
"Qingxue, can I call you that?"
Zhang Hui looked at Lu Qingxue with a somewhat apologetic expression: "I prepared this bracelet as a welcome gift for my daughter-in-law; please don't look down on it."
"The way things turned out... it's Lin Feng who has wronged you. I'll make sure he properly makes it up to you in the future!"
Lu Qingxue had assumed that when Zhang Hui arrived, she would go straight to see the children.
She hadn't expected the older woman to say such words and even hand over a welcome gift.
She was deeply moved, and the unease in her heart faded somewhat.
"Auntie, it's nothing. You must be tired from traveling all night, have you had breakfast?"
Hearing Lu Qingxue's soft and gentle words, Zhang Hui's heart bloomed with joy.
Not only was the young woman pretty, but she also knew how to care for others—unlike that brat Lin Feng!
At this thought, Zhang Hui turned her head and glared at Lin Feng: "Look how considerate she is! And you? You don't even know how to care for someone!"
Lin Feng, who was pouring water for his mother, "???!"
Without giving him a chance to defend himself, Zhang Hui turned back to Lu Qingxue and showered her with concerned questions.
"How are you feeling physically right now? Have the lochia been discharged?"
"Are you breastfeeding? If so, make sure to clean up afterwards to prevent inflammation."
"A young woman must take proper care of her postpartum confinement; lingering ailments last a lifetime."
After getting all the details from Lu Qingxue, Zhang Hui finally shifted the topic to the babies.
"Let me take a look at the little ones..."
"Fraternal twins, I've only ever seen them on TV. Let me have a proper dote."
Zhang Hui's eyes overflowed with motherly warmth:
"Is the baby boy larger or the baby girl?"
"The baby boy is larger."
"Then he's the older brother and she's the younger sister. The two little ones look so good, have you named them yet?"
Lin Feng looked at Lu Qingxue, "I forgot to ask, did you have any names in mind before?"
At this question, Zhang Hui, standing to the side, imperceptibly frowned.
Asking a question like that... could it be that her son hadn't been around during the pregnancy?
Was there some kind of accident in between?
Lu Qingxue didn't notice Zhang Hui's reaction and replied: "I thought of nicknames: big brother can be Ping'an, and little sister can be Ruyi. We haven't decided on their formal names yet."
Zhang Hui teased the two little dumplings on the bed, the smile on her face never stopping: "Ping'an and Ruyi, what a wonderful meaning. These nicknames are lovely."
"You young people can take your time coming up with their formal names."
Hearing this, Lu Qingxue let out a sigh of relief in her heart.
She had originally worried that Mother Lin would have an overbearing personality and want to control everything.
Now it seemed she had overthought it.
As Zhang Hui was teasing the children, a loud rumbling sound suddenly echoed through the ward.
Following the sound, she saw Lu Qingxue covering her stomach with an embarrassed look on her face.
Lin Feng couldn't help laughing.
At school, Lu Qingxue was known as the aloof goddess, but in just half a day, he had seen her act shy and blush far too many times.
This experience was quite novel...
The next instant, the smile on his face was wiped out by a slap from his mother.
"Nursing mothers get hungry easily—don't tell me she hasn't eaten breakfast yet?"
This time, it was Lin Feng's turn to lower his head.
Zhang Hui: "..."
How on earth did this blockhead manage to find a girlfriend??
Sighing, she said: "Come on, let's go to the cafeteria. I'll teach you what foods are suitable for postpartum mothers."
With that, Zhang Hui handed the babies back to Lu Qingxue and dragged Lin Feng out of the ward.
As soon as they stepped outside, she couldn't wait to voice her doubts:
"Why do I feel like your relationship with Lu Qingxue isn't quite like a normal couple?"
"Here's what happened..."
Lin Feng told his mother the whole story of his entanglements with Lu Qingxue from beginning to end.
After hearing everything, Zhang Hui: "..."
"So, basically, Lu Qingxue doesn't actually like you?"
Lin Feng: "Mom, you really know how to summarize."
Zhang Hui let out a lingering sigh:
"I knew it. 'One should look at a scholar with new eyes after three days apart' only happens in stories."
"As for you, your life is just a succession of accidents."
Lin Feng: "That's too harsh."
The next instant, Zhang Hui smiled:
"Things are different now! Mom is going to assist you two! You can't possibly miss out on such a wonderful girl."
Lin Feng: ?????