Married at First Sight

The old lady couldn't help but envy Mrs. Johnson. She had a daughter, and while her own grandchildren were all boys, Mrs. Johnson's greatgranddaughter, Avah, was a sweet, easy-to-care-for child who rarely cried. In over 80 years, the old lady had never seen such an easygoing little girl.

Tania mumbled, "How's this our fault? Mom, you didn't have a daughter either. It would've been nice if you had. When you were younger, you could've adopted a daughter. Maybe we'd have a girl in our family now."

The old lady sighed, "Do you think I didn't try? When I was young, a friend of mine had several daughters. I liked one of them and decided to bring her home to raise as my own. But within six months, she fell ill repeatedly and was on the verge of death. She seemed half- dead from all the sickness. I had no choice but to return her to her birth mother. Strangely enough, after she went back, she quickly recovered and was healthy within a month. "I didn't believe in superstitions, so I tried again with another friend's daughter. But the same thing happened-she was always sick, and my friend got so scared that she rushed to take her back, saying that the York family is like a Buddhist temple. We couldn't raise a daughter of our own, nor could we raise anyone else's. So, I gave up."

The old lady knew her in-laws and ancestors had daughters in the previous two generations, but they hadn't survived.

Serenity gently chimed in, "Maybe it's because Grandma didn't know how to raise a daughter. You wanted a daughter so much that you were extra careful, but sometimes being overly cautious can make a child more susceptible to illness." She continued, "You raised your sons without much fuss, almost like you were raising livestock," she chuckled. "But if you suddenly had a daughter, you'd treat her like a precious treasure, which might not be good for her health."

The old lady had several sons and raised them in a straightforward, nononsense way. But when it came a daughter, her approach would've been different. Being overly protective can sometimes have the opposite effect.

Serenity added, "Plus, when you were younger, you were busy helping Grandpa build the family business. It's natural that you couldn't give all your attention to a child."

"If you raised your daughter the

same way you raised your sons, Zachary would probably have at least one aunt by now, even if she was adopted." The old lady hesitated. "Is that so?" she

murmured, reflecting on how ol

had treated the two baby girls she brought home all those years ago. Compared to the way she raised her sons and grandsons, she sighed deeply. "Maybe I just didn't know how to raise a daughter, and I wasn't meant to have one."

She then made a promise to herself. If she ever had a

great-granddaughter, she would simply enjoy holding and playing with her. She would leave the responsibility of raising her to her grandchildren. The younger generation had their own ways of

parenting, after all.

"Grandma, Seren just woke up and is probably hungry. Let her eat something first," Zachary intervened, worried that the conversation might put pressure on Serenity to have a daughter. Both the old lady and Tania quickly agreed in unison, "Seren, go eat something! Don't stay hungry."

The old lady then turned to Zachary, scolding him, "Zack, you should take Seren to eat. How could you let her go hungry? Pregnant women need to eat small, frequent meals. Make sure she eats often!"