Chen Hao's hand was still on Susan's belly; the fetal movements had just stopped, and the room had quieted down. Just as he was about to say something, Susan suddenly stiffened, and her breathing became rapid.

"What's wrong?" He immediately sensed something was amiss.

Susan didn't speak, her fingers gripping the edge of the sofa tightly, her face pale, and a fine layer of sweat beading on her forehead.

"Nana!" Chen Hao looked up abruptly. "Get ready to go to the hospital! Quickly!"

Nana's blue light instantly turned to flashing red, and her voice was a beat faster than usual: "Navigation system activated, optimal route planning complete. Medical records are being uploaded to the emergency department of the Municipal Maternity Hospital."

Carl sprang up from the carpet, nearly dropping his tablet. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, turned and rushed into the room, emerging a few seconds later with a pink cloth bag—the maternity bag that had been prepared long ago.

"Mom... are you in a lot of pain?" Carl stood beside her, his voice trembling slightly.

Susan gritted her teeth and nodded, squeezing out two words: "Tear...like being torn apart."

Chen Hao took off his coat and placed it behind her back, supporting her waist with one hand and her arm with the other, slowly moving her towards the door. "Don't be afraid, we'll leave soon, I'm here."

Before leaving, he casually tore off a calendar page from the refrigerator and stuffed it into his pocket, calling back as he walked, "Karl! Close the door! Nana! Contact the hospital and say we'll be there on our way!"

As the elevator descended, Susan leaned on his shoulder, panting, each breath like a strained bellows. Chen Hao touched her forehead; it was alarmingly hot.

"Didn't you say the due date was still a few days away?" He stared at the changing floor numbers. "It's only the ninth day. How did you start your rebellion so early?"

Susan wanted to laugh, but didn't. She just snorted, "I didn't want to... but it's coming out."

"Who wants to come out?" Chen Hao asked nervously.

“Child,” she said with her eyes closed, “it’s going down.”

Nana has already opened the car door. The interior lights have automatically brightened, the seat heaters are off, and the air conditioning is set to ventilation mode. "The rear seat belts are unbuckled, and the headrests are in place. Please settle the patient as soon as possible."

Chen Hao carefully helped Susan lie down, then climbed into the back seat to sit with her. Carl sat in the passenger seat, his hands gripping the straps of the maternity bag tightly, his knuckles white.

As the car started, the navigation voice announced: "No traffic congestion for the next three kilometers. We expect to arrive at the hospital's east gate emergency entrance in seven minutes."

No one spoke inside the car.

After passing two traffic lights, Susan suddenly groaned and arched her back.

"Not again?" Chen Hao quickly placed his hand on her stomach. "Is it better this time than before?"

She nodded, biting her lower lip, tears welling in her eyes.

"Breathe, breathe in rhythm." Nana projected a soft audio waveform from the rearview mirror. "Take a deep breath—exhale slowly—don't hold your breath."

Carl turned to look at her: "You can still listen to music?"

“This isn’t music,” Nana said calmly. “It’s a breathing guidance program, generated based on Susan’s physiological data from the past two weeks.”

"Oh." Carl looked down and opened his tablet, his hands still trembling, and it took him several tries to turn on the recording function.

A message popped up on the screen: **Record start time: 21:07 Event: Mother experiencing sudden abdominal pain and being moved**

He stared at that line of text for two seconds, then deleted it and retyped it:

**At 21:07, the mother entered a period of intense pain. At 21:05, departure; everyone was in the vehicle.**

Seeing Susan's pained expression, Chen Hao suddenly leaned close to her stomach and whispered, "Son, your mother is holding on, and you have to hold on too. Our family can't afford to fall apart at this time."

A few seconds later, my belly twitched slightly.

It wasn't big, but it did move.

"It moved!" Chen Hao looked up. "It moved again! I heard it!"

Carl immediately leaned over and placed his hand on it as well. "I felt it too."

“Weak, but regular,” Nana added. “The fetal heart rate is currently 142, slightly above the normal range, but not dangerous.”

"So everything's alright then?" Chen Hao breathed a sigh of relief.

“It’s not certain,” Nana said. “Further monitoring with specialized equipment is needed.”

The car turned onto the main road, and streetlights flashed past the window one after another. Susan calmed down a bit and leaned against Chen Hao, her hand pressed against her lower abdomen.

"Do you think... it might be Braxton Hicks contractions?" Chen Hao asked.

“The pain lasted for more than two minutes, with intervals shortening to within four minutes,” Nana replied. “Combined with signs of elevated body temperature and minor leakage of amniotic fluid, the probability is less than three percent.”

"The amniotic fluid leaked?" Chen Hao's eyes widened.

“It hasn’t ruptured yet,” Nana corrected, “but there are signs of dilation in the cervix.”

“That means she’s really going to give birth,” Karl murmured.

"Premature birth," Chen Hao's voice deepened, "just over thirty-six weeks."

"The newborn survival rate is 98.6%," Nana responded immediately. "Under modern medical conditions, the risk is controllable if the baby's weight is within the target range."

“But it hurts me to see her in so much pain.” Chen Hao gripped Susan’s hand tightly. “Didn’t you used to say you were most afraid of pain? Why aren’t you making a sound now?”

Susan opened her eyes, glanced at him, and said, "Screaming out... will hurt more."

Chen Hao felt a lump in his throat and quickly tilted his head back and blinked a few times.

"Do you remember the first time you accompanied me to my prenatal checkup?" Susan suddenly asked, her voice soft. "You hid at the end of the corridor, too scared to go into the ultrasound room."

"Who wouldn't dare!" Chen Hao retorted. "I'm just afraid of standing too close and blocking the doctor's view!"

"Then why are your hands shaking?"

"The air conditioning is too cold!"

Carl listened to the two talking, his lips twitched, and he lowered his head to continue taking notes.

Nana suddenly reminded them: "There are traffic police conducting a temporary check at the intersection ahead, please slow down."

"What are you investigating!" Chen Hao exclaimed, "Someone in the car is about to give birth!"

“I know,” Nana said calmly. “An emergency passage request has been sent to the traffic management system, and the red priority code has been activated.”

Ten seconds later, the police lights ahead flashed twice, and a patrol car moved aside to make way.

The car sped through.

After passing three more intersections, the outline of the hospital building came into view, with a striking green indicator light shining at the entrance to the emergency room.

"We expect to arrive in two minutes," Nana said.

Chen Hao patted Susan's face: "Hang in there, we'll be there soon."

Susan nodded, her lips turning purple, cold sweat trickling down her temples.

“Next time…” she gasped, “you’re not allowed to sing for prenatal education anymore.”

"Huh?" Chen Hao was stunned.

"It's awful." She closed her eyes. "It's so noisy that it made the kids... run out early."

Everyone on the bus was stunned for a moment.

Then Karl burst out laughing, even causing Nana to pause for a moment.

"You still have the mind to complain at a time like this?" Chen Hao said, both amused and annoyed. "I'll sing for you every day after you give birth!"

Susan didn't reply, her body tensing up again.

"A new wave of pain is coming," Nana warned. "Intensity rating: Level 8. We recommend immediate contact with the hospital's emergency response team."

"Have you made the contact?" Chen Hao asked.

"The three-way call has been established: the emergency room doctor on duty, the head of obstetrics, and the neonatal ICU preparation team are all on standby."

The ambulance siren approached from the right and drove alongside them for a distance.

“They’re coming for us,” Nana said. “The hospital sent a support team to wait at the east gate.”

The car entered the emergency lane, slowed down, and stopped.

As soon as the car door opened, two medical staff in white coats rushed in, pulling a stretcher.

"The mother's name? Date of last menstrual period? Are there any pregnancy complications?" a female doctor asked quickly.

“Susan, her last period was on December 3rd. She had mild gestational hypertension before, but her last two checkups were normal.” Nana directly reported the data: “Temperature 38.1°C, pulse 112, fetal heart rate fluctuating between 138 and 146, suspected premature rupture of membranes.”

The doctor glanced at the information transmitted on the screen in the ambulance and nodded: "Send her to the delivery room for observation. We cannot rule out the possibility of premature birth caused by acute uterine contractions."

Chen Hao helped Susan onto the gurney, his hand never letting go.

“Go change your clothes,” Susan grabbed his wrist. “Don’t just stand there like an idiot.”

"I'm not leaving."

"You have to go." She pinched him hard. "You need to be disinfected to go in, and you can't get in dressed like this."

Chen Hao gritted his teeth: "Then I'll wait outside."

"Remember to bring a calendar." Susan closed her eyes. "Tear off a page to mark one day."

The bed was quickly pushed into the aisle and disappeared behind the double doors.

Chen Hao stood there, still clutching the crumpled calendar paper in his hand.

Carl walked over and handed him the maternity bag: "The changing room is the third one on the left."

Nana's blue light resumed its normal flashing speed: "The hospital's internal network is now connected, and I will synchronize the delivery room information in real time."

Chen Hao nodded and turned to walk towards the changing room.

Just as I reached the door, a nurse rushed out, holding a walkie-talkie and shouting, "Prepare for an emergency cesarean section in delivery room number three! The fetal heart rate is dropping! Notify the anesthesia team immediately!"