Chapter 243: Jinsui is Pregnant
Miss Yan was admitted to the hospital in advance. Because her belly was rather large, Jinsui worried she might give birth prematurely, so she had her admitted ten days before her due date, as the hospital’s obstetrics department was a separate compound.
It was built to the exact standards of a royal garden, so one would never tire of staying there during pregnancy. Family members could also stay with the patient. Yan Shiyi and Han Xing both stayed with Miss Yan.
Miss Yan was very happy and not worried about giving birth at all. Her water broke in the middle of the night. Because the Empress had specifically instructed that Mrs. Yan be notified immediately when she went into labor, no matter the time.
That night, palace servants rushed in to report, “Your Majesty, Mrs. Yan is going into labor.”
Jinsui jumped up immediately, “Prepare the horses.”
Gu Changxiao also got up, “I’ll accompany you to see.”
Jinsui shook her head, “Your Majesty still has morning court tomorrow. Besides, your presence will make everyone nervous. You should just wait to attend the three-day celebration at the Han residence!”
When Jinsui arrived at the hospital, Miss Yan was in the throes of labor, moaning. Yan Shiyi was pacing around the courtyard like a donkey on a mill, sweating profusely and exclaiming, “Is giving birth this scary?”
Jinsui was speechless, “Haven’t you seen other women give birth?”
Yan Shiyi was even more speechless than her, “I’m not married, where would I have seen other people give birth?”
Jinsui: …Alright, I asked a stupid question!
“Giving birth is this painful, so you should treat your wife well in the future.”
Yan Shiyi knew she was skilled in medicine and gestured for her to go in quickly. He added, “Also, tell Han Xing to treat Miss Yan well.”
How could Han Xing not treat Miss Yan well! At that moment, he tightly held Miss Yan’s hand. Miss Yan was in so much pain she wanted to bite something. The nurse told her to bite a towel, so Han Xing put his own wrist into her mouth, “Bite me, it won’t hurt your teeth.”
During the intervals between contractions, Miss Yan needed to drink ginseng soup because she would need a lot of strength. Han Xing personally fed her.
The midwife hired by the Yan family muttered that it was unlucky for a man to enter the delivery room. Han Xing quickly asked, “Why is it unlucky?”
The midwife said righteously, “Seeing bloody discharge will affect the adult’s luck. Men cannot see bloody discharge.”
Jinsui scoffed, “Nonsense! The mother will be much more at ease with a family member present.”
Han Xing quickly said, “That’s great! I thought it would be unlucky for Miss Yan. Since it’s unlucky for me, it doesn’t matter. I’ve killed so many people, what kind of blood haven’t I seen? Why would I care about the blood and discharge from my wife giving birth?”
Jinsui patted his shoulder, “This is a responsible good man!”
Even though Miss Yan was in so much pain she was about to lose consciousness, she still looked at Han Xing tenderly. Jinsui hissed, “That’s sickening. I know you two are in love, but you don’t have to flaunt it at a time like this!”
As soon as she arrived, both Miss Yan and Han Xing, as well as the medical staff, gained confidence. Jinsui calmly directed everyone’s actions, occasionally checking on Miss Yan’s uterine contractions.
Only Miss Yan felt awkward inside, as she still couldn’t forget her feelings for Li King when Jinsui was Li King.
Let’s put it this way: if Jinsui were truly a man, regardless of her true identity, whether she was a stable hand, a Taoist priest, or a wandering knight, Miss Yan would have steadfastly stayed with her.
Jinsui even felt at one point that if she weren’t so straight, she could easily have turned Miss Yan.
So, when Jinsui checked her contractions, Miss Yan became very shy. She directly said it was fine for a nurse to check and that she shouldn’t dirty the Empress’s clothes.
Because it was night and she was afraid the lights wouldn’t be bright enough, Jinsui didn’t care about how she would explain it later. She directly moved several large lamps from her space, all filled with light, making the delivery room as bright as day.
Everyone was surprised and curiously asked what kind of lamps they were. Jinsui could only laugh it off, saying they were lamps refined from another type of black oil, with night-blooming pearls as wicks, and were treasures of the Imperial Palace.
This reminded Miss Yan of the treasure lamp that Second Brother had bought from Suisui for thousands of taels of silver. She smiled. As she relaxed, everyone else relaxed too. They were afraid the mother would be nervous and scared.
Fortunately, Miss Yan did not have a premature or difficult birth. Jinsui did not need to use the cesarean section surgical tools she had prepared in advance.
The reason she didn’t dare to take them out beforehand was that she was afraid of scaring Miss Yan, or rather, scaring Han Xing. She thought that if it came to that, she would use anesthesia to put both husband and wife to sleep.
She would perform the cesarean section herself, and in any case, she would do her utmost to save Miss Yan and the child.
Fortunately, she only needed to drink the labor-inducing medicine, combined with acupuncture and an episiotomy. By dawn, Miss Yan successfully gave birth to a baby boy weighing seven catties and eight taels.
Nowadays, newborns are generally small, mostly weighing four or five catties. Six catties and above are considered chubby babies, let alone her son who weighed almost eight catties.
The midwife sighed, saying that if she had given birth at home, it would have been a difficult labor. She didn’t expect the hospital to have such complete medicine and so many skilled female physicians for childbirth, and that it would be so smooth.
The stitches used after the episiotomy were made of catgut, so they didn’t need to be removed and would be absorbed into the flesh without leaving any trace.
The baby’s cry was accompanied by the rising sun. Then, Yan Shiyi’s cries were heard. He shouted outside, “Miss Yan, Miss Yan, how is she?”
The baby is crying, what about my sister?
Miss Yan was already exhausted, but she still responded to Second Brother, “I’m fine.”
Yan Shiyi was relieved. He was about to send someone to notify Eldest Brother, but learned that Eldest Brother was already in the courtyard. He had been sitting there for half the night without him noticing.
Although Miss Yan lost her parents at an early age, her two elder brothers truly cherished her.
Jinsui wiped her sweat, washed her hands, and personally washed the baby. After wrapping him up, she placed him beside Miss Yan.
“Let the wet nurse feed him before your milk comes in. After your milk comes in, you can feed him yourself for a few days. The colostrum is the best food for the baby. Also, breastfeeding yourself helps with uterine contractions and speeds up recovery.”
Nowadays, if a family had some capital and could afford a wet nurse, they wouldn’t let the mother breastfeed herself.
Miss Yan believed Suisui’s words and nodded, “Yes, I want to feed the baby myself. I feel more connected to him.”
Jinsui smiled, “But you need to rest well at night, let the wet nurse feed him.”
She then took out a postpartum care manual for Han Xing, “Read this carefully. Although servants take care of the wife and child during the confinement period, you, as the father, should also understand some things.”
Miss Yan quickly asked, “Suisui, can’t I stay in the hospital for my confinement? I think it’s very good here.”
Jinsui smiled and shook her head, “The hospital doesn’t have a postpartum center yet. You’ll have your confinement at home. I’ll arrange for a nurse to accompany you when you’re discharged in three days.”
Jinsui accompanied Miss Yan back to the ward, which was a suite of four rooms: a bedroom for the mother, a nursery, a living room, and a bathroom.
The nurse took the baby to the nursery to sleep, and Han Xing stayed with Miss Yan in the bedroom. Jinsui gave some more nursing instructions and told them to send someone to the palace to summon her if anything happened.
She then took off her clean clothes and prepared to return to the palace. At this moment, she saw Yan Jiu waiting in the courtyard.
Yan Jiu bowed to her and thanked her, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for taking care of my sister.”
Jinsui quickly replied, “It’s my duty. I should thank Miss Yan for her trust in choosing to give birth at the hospital.”
She then smiled, “Haven’t you seen the baby yet? He’s very cute, looks like Miss Yan. You can go hold him after he wakes up.”
Perhaps it was due to the night’s labor, but in the sunlight, Jinsui felt a little dizzy. She covered her forehead and walked towards the veranda, with Yan Jiu following closely.
This was the first time they were alone together since Jinsui’s marriage, or rather, since Gu Changxiao returned from Chang’an.
Yan Jiu had many things he wanted to say to Jinsui, but he swallowed them back as they reached his lips. This situation was not suitable for discussing other matters.
In the sunlight, looking at the stray hairs on Jinsui’s temples, glistening with sweat, and her simple white dress, not as regal as when they met in the palace, she looked as she did when they traveled Northward together.
Yan Jiu felt his heart uncontrollably pound. The sunlight cast a dreamlike, gentle glow on the woman before him. Step by step, he felt as if he were crossing time, even transcending past and present lives, unsure of the current year.
Everything in this world turned to nothingness. The only reality was the fluttering of the woman’s robes before him, the gentle clinking of her waist pendant, and the slight sway of her hair ornament.
“Miss Ling.”
The woman froze, then turned back with a charming smile, “Young Master Yan.”
Her voice pulled Yan Jiu back from his thoughts. He then realized what mistake he had made, but he didn’t want to apologize. Instead, he looked at Jinsui with burning eyes.
His gaze was neither the deep blue of the sea nor the calm of a lake, but rather like a boiling volcano, like roaring waves.
He knew that this might be the only chance in his life, a chance to express his feelings to the woman before him.
He forgot about royalty and wealth, forgot about worldly constraints. He only knew that he had regretted countless days and nights, regretting not expressing his feelings to her on the Northward Journey, regretting not climbing the Divine Palace to save her from King Batel.
He was about to speak…
But at this moment, he noticed Jinsui’s gaze was a little unfocused, her shoulders trembled slightly, and her steps were hurried. She looked at him with effort, “Young Master Yan, why are you spinning?”
Yan Jiu swallowed the words back into his throat again. Then he saw Jinsui softly collapse. He lunged forward and caught her.
The exclamations of the palace servants rang out, “Your Majesty! Quickly, summon the Imperial Physician, Your Majesty has fainted!”
Yan Jiu held the woman in his arms, feeling helpless. He was worried about her health, and at the same time, his heart stirred at this moment of contact. She was in my arms.
This was a hospital, so there was no need to summon an Imperial Physician, nor even for a nurse to push an emergency gurney. Yan Jiu carried Jinsui to the emergency room and placed her on the hospital bed.
Soon, a physician arrived, took her pulse, and examined her. After confirming, she said, “Quickly give Her Majesty some glucose water. Her Majesty has low blood sugar, pregnancy-induced low blood sugar.”
“Her Majesty is with child!”
Yan Jiu silently withdrew from the ward. Outside, the sun was shining brightly, but he felt as if his life would forever be spent in a damp, rainy gloom.
Even heaven was preventing him from speaking.
Upon receiving the news, Gu Changxiao immediately adjourned the morning court for the day and came to the hospital to pick up Jinsui and return her to the palace.
The fainting spell from low blood sugar quickly subsided. After drinking the glucose water and eating a bowl of brown sugar eggs, Jinsui had completely recovered, except for a slight sweat.
She thought of Yan Jiu. Yan Jiu seemed to have something to tell her at that time, so she quickly asked the palace servants where the Lord Yan was.
After learning that Yan Jiu had visited the baby, the Yan family notified him of an urgent matter, and he had to leave.
Yan Shiyi ran over and said that something had happened at the East Sea Base, and Yan Jiu had to rush to handle it, unable to even attend his nephew’s three-day celebration.
Jinsui felt a little regretful. Yan Jiu’s expression at the time was very serious. What was he going to say? About the matters in Japan? Or about the sea merchants?
Never mind. Since he had already gone to the base and left no message, it seemed it wasn’t important.
Gu Changxiao, wearing his dragon robe, went straight to the emergency room, “Suisui.”
Jinsui quickly got out of bed, “I’m fine. The palace servants were too alarmed. It’s still morning court time, why are you here?”
Gu Changxiao quickly said, “The court has been adjourned today.”
He strode forward and hugged Jinsui tightly, “Suisui, that’s wonderful, we’re going to have a child.”
Jinsui hugged him back, patting his back, feeling like he needed more comfort than she did, “Yes, you should look at the pregnancy manual later. We’re going to be parents!”
This feeling was strange, as if she wasn’t a qualified adult yet, but was about to become a mother.
“Since you’re here, let’s go see Miss Yan’s son! The little fellow is so adorable.”
When they arrived at the ward, Miss Yan was still asleep. The little fellow was lying in the cradle. Han Xing, as if facing a great enemy, was leaning over the cradle, staring at the little one without blinking.
Jinsui saw him motionless and thought he had been stimulated by becoming a father. She leaned closer and realized that the little one had grabbed one of his fingers and wouldn’t let go.
General Han, who had wreaked havoc in Chang’an, causing rivers of blood, was helpless just because his son had grabbed one of his fingers.
He couldn’t even salute Gu Changxiao and said apologetically, “Your Majesty, I apologize, I cannot rise.”
Gu Changxiao lowered his voice and said, “It’s alright. Hmm, the little fellow is indeed very handsome.”
To be honest, he was vastly different from Hei Hu’s son. Hei Hu’s son resembled Hei Hu, born dark red. This little one, however, looked like Miss Yan, with extremely fair skin, and no infant wrinkles or downy hair, like a carved jade or sculpted snow.
Jinsui smiled and took a ribbon, tied it around the baby’s wrist, made him let go, and before he could cry out in surprise, she put the ribbon back into his hand.
She whispered, “The baby thinks he’s still in the womb, holding the umbilical cord. Now, if he doesn’t hold something in his hand, he won’t feel secure.”
Han Xing let out a long sigh of relief. He couldn’t help but touch his son’s cheek with his fingertip, his face filled with the joy of a new father.
I have a son!
Thinking back to those days with Hei Hu and his brothers, living day by day on the border, risking their lives between Tartars and bandits. Hei Hu often talked about getting married, while he, though he didn’t say it, understood it in his heart.
For border soldiers like them, marrying a wife would mean she would suffer with them. Why delay a girl? If they had children, they would also become border soldiers like them.
He never expected that now, he would be a general, marry the beautiful and noble Miss Yan, and have such a lovely son.
Han Xing felt a dreamlike happiness. He looked at Jinsui. He had already heard from the nurse that Her Majesty had fainted.
Han Xing suddenly knelt towards Jinsui and said sincerely, “Thank you, Your Majesty!”
Jinsui thought he was thanking her for assisting with the delivery and quickly helped him up, “It’s my duty! Lord Yan has already thanked me. I also want to thank you for your trust in letting Miss Yan give birth at the hospital!”
Han Xing quickly said, “No.”
I’m not just thanking you for this. I also thank you for giving me a second life. My current status is all thanks to going to pick up Li King back then and bringing you, Li King, back.
But he couldn’t say these words aloud; it was too sentimental. So he changed his tune, “Congratulations, Your Majesty, congratulations, Your Majesty.”
