Chapter 44 Chapter 44 Who told you not to let Third Brother hold me...

The heavy rain on the first day of April was indeed a warning.

The group heading south to Guangxu Prefecture only enjoyed sunny weather for less than ten days before they were greeted by heavy rain.

The rain lasted for more than half a month, and now it is already May.

Xuan Jinyu's baby was already over four months old, and her loose dress could no longer conceal her figure.

Although she is still a slim lady when viewed only from behind, her slightly bulging belly can be seen from the front or side, like a small hill lying on the ground, inconspicuous but definitely obvious.

During breaks, the children would come to Xuan Jinyu more often, chattering and calling her belly "brother" or "sister".

The three girls insisted that the baby in their aunt's belly was a younger sister, while the four boys swore that it was a younger brother. Both sides refused to give in and no one could convince the other.

Before going to bed at night, Xuan Jinyu thought of the lovely competition between her nephews and nieces, and couldn't help but lie on Su Guanzhang and laugh for a long time.

Su Guanzhang was concentrating on wiping her hair. His skill in wiping hair was now very proficient, and his dexterity was not inferior to Xuan Jinyu's personal maid.

At this moment, he felt the soft body lying on his chest trembling constantly. He turned his head to look at her and saw the happy smile on her face.

But he didn't dare ask her why she was laughing - as the months went by, Xuan Jinyu's temperament became more and more changeable, and her mood would come and go suddenly.

He had recently returned to the state he was in before being exiled, when he was in Jingzhu Garden at Duke Su's mansion. He was always worried about offending her, and the more he said, the more mistakes he would make, so he simply kept silent.

Fortunately, Xuan Jinyu no longer felt dissatisfied with him because of his coldness and silence. Instead, she became sensitive due to changes in her body and pinched and bit him more often.

But he just endured it without any dissatisfaction.

"Tell me," Xuan Jinyu asked, noticing Su Guanzhang looking at her, "Is the baby in my belly a boy or a girl? Sister Yan and Brother Mu started arguing again today."

She laughed again when she recalled the funny scene where the brother and sister snorted at each other during their quarrel and thought they were quite fierce but were actually adorable.

It rained every day a few days ago, making it unsuitable for travel. The children were detained in the post station and could only stay in their own small rooms. It was at that time that they developed the habit of guessing whether the baby in Xuan Jinyu's belly was a boy or a girl.

It was also at that time that the Su family discovered that Su Guanwu and Ding Qianqian, their two children, actually "did not get along" with each other. It was really nice when siblings got along well, but it was really a headache when they started arguing.

The sweet and pleasant laughter was close to his neck. Su Guanzhang felt his neck was itchy and his heart was itchy too.

"Do you want to know?" Su Guanzhang asked her, his cold and low voice already carrying an imperceptible hint of restraint and hoarseness.

Three days ago, he had diagnosed the gender of her unborn baby and wanted to tell her.

But Xuan Jinyu said she didn't want to know now, otherwise she would lose the joy of guessing whether it was a boy or a girl during pregnancy, and also lose the sense of anticipation.

Anyway, she will naturally know the gender of the child when it is born. Whether it is a boy or a girl, it is their child and she likes it.

Xuan Wensheng and the rest of the Su family had the same idea. Both sides now prepared small items such as quilts, clothes, socks, etc. for their children in double portions, and prepared them in different colors for boys and girls.

This made Su Guanzhang, the only one who knew the child's gender, seem out of place, and he was forced by Xuan Jinyu not to interrupt.

But given his personality, even if Xuan Jinyu didn't say anything, he wouldn't ruin his family's fun.

Xuan Jinyu noticed that Su Guanzhang had stopped wiping his hair, so she sat up straight and said, "I don't want to know, don't tell me."

Afraid that the man would go against her and tell her, Xuan Jinyu covered her ears tightly.

Su Guanzhang's heart softened at her cute reaction, and his expression softened unconsciously. He pulled her hands down and held them in his palms, "Okay, I won't tell you."

Although her belly had only been visible for a short time, he saw it growing bigger day by day. He also took her pulse every day and observed the development of the baby.

Moreover, she was carrying their child in her belly, and her body had the blood of both of them. Although Xuan Jinyu didn't know what this man was thinking, she could feel that this man was becoming more and more cautious towards her.

Xuan Jinyu's face softened as she guided his hand to rest on her abdomen. "When do you think it will move?"

At this time, her voice was filled with a mother's tenderness and kindness, and her completely relaxed and softened eyebrows were very touching.

Su Guanzhang withdrew his left hand, held her and sat her on his lap, while she still held his right hand and placed it in front of her slightly bulging belly.

"It's almost there," he couldn't help but kiss her between the eyebrows, "usually there will be fetal movement in four to five months, just wait a little longer."

Tonight they were not staying in an inn, but in Xu Yu Niang's dowry farm. The farm manager had assigned them a separate small courtyard as instructed, which was very quiet.

Just as Xuan Jinyu said to Fang Yuanyuan, she is no longer used to being served by others.

Now Su Guanzhang helps her take a bath.

Perhaps it was because they had just exposed their bodies to each other, and it was a rainy day, the sound of raindrops outside the window amplified the desire in people's hearts.

When their eyes met, the lingering love in each other's eyes could no longer be concealed, and some things between husband and wife happened naturally.

Considering Xuan Jinyu's health, Su Guanzhang only had a little fun and then stopped paying attention.

After taking another bath, Xuan Jinyu, who was satisfied both physically and mentally, lay down and subconsciously snuggled into his arms before closing her eyes.

Su Guanzhang kissed her forehead and carefully checked her pulse. Only after confirming that their actions had not hurt the child did he fall asleep with peace of mind.

After the long-lost intimacy, there was some tangled ambiguity between the couple when they were alone together. For three days in a row, Su Guanzhang did not make Xuan Jinyu angry again.

The bite and pinch marks on his body finally faded away completely.

After the Dragon Boat Festival, the weather finally cleared up and the temperature rose significantly.

Pregnant women are afraid of heat, so Xuan Jinyu's clothes were a little thinner, which made her pregnant belly more prominent.

The carriage was padded with soft, thick but breathable cushions, a mat in the middle, and a thin quilt on top, so that people lying on it would feel refreshed without feeling too cold.

When the carriage was moving, Xuan Jinyu would not be easily shaken even if she lay on it.

However, for safety reasons, Su Guanzhang usually stayed by Xuan Jinyu's side when she was sitting in the carriage.

If she got tired of him, she would kick him out of the carriage and replace him with her mother-in-law, Xu Yu Niang, or her three sisters-in-law. Sometimes, the children, accompanied by their mothers or grandmothers, would go into the carriage to chat and laugh with the young aunts to relieve her boredom.

In mid-May, they arrived at Beiqiu Prefecture, which coincided with the beginning of the rainy season.

As the name suggests, Beiqiu Prefecture is mountainous, and the probability of mudslides during the rainy season is extremely high and dangerous. Chen Yang and Wang Hu did not dare to take the risk, so the group had to stay at the post station for more than ten days.

By the time June came and the rain had stopped, Wang Hu really didn't want to stay in this small inn any longer.

After the officers and soldiers sent to explore the way ahead reported to their superior Chen Yang that the road was passable, he persuaded everyone and the group continued to head south.

At this time, the baby in Xuan Jinyu's belly was already five months old, and a little bigger than when it was four months old. The previous morning sickness reaction had disappeared, but she became more sleepy.

The good news was that before they encountered this disturbing rainy season, Xuan Jinyu had already noticed fetal movement. Needless to say, the couple was very happy.

The carriage rolled away from the Beiqiufu Post Station, but before it had gone seven miles, the road conditions became difficult when it reached a hillside.

The government doesn't care about the roads in the mountains, and the people who walk here all year round don't have the spare money or the energy to repair the roads.

A road wide enough to accommodate two carriages running side by side was built by caravans traveling day after day and year after year.

Such a road is naturally not good.

A carriage loaded with luggage was driving ahead, used to explore the way. At this time, the carriage was shaking and occasional collision sounds were heard.

Everyone understood that under such circumstances, Xuan Jinyu was obviously not suitable to stay in the carriage, even with Su Guanzhang holding her to steady her body.

The carriage might hit some gravel or ditch and overturn, and no one dared to take that risk.

Especially since they had heard of such an incident a few days ago.

A horse-drawn carriage passing the foot of the mountain was hit by a mudslide. The driver increased the speed of the carriage and narrowly escaped death. However, the pregnant woman in the carriage was hit hard on the stomach by the railing of the carriage, and she immediately started bleeding profusely.

The pregnant woman was almost due to give birth, but unfortunately the baby could not be saved due to the collision, and even the adult was almost unable to be saved.

Xuan Jinyu got off the carriage and was about to lie on Su Guanzhang's back as usual, but he picked her up by the waist.

"I'll hold you, don't put pressure on the child." Su Guanzhang whispered.

Xuan Jinyu put her arms around his neck and muttered to herself, "I won't crush the child." She knew it all.

But looking at the people around her, she swallowed the words.

Anyway, whether he carried her on his back or in his arms, it wouldn't tire her out, and he hadn't held her for such a long time in a long time - it seemed like the last time was not long after they left Shengjing City, and she had eaten too much and was afraid that lying down would hit her stomach, so she asked him to hold her, right?

So Xuan Jinyu was happy to let him hold her.

But this hug lasted all the way.

"Is your hand okay?" Xuan Jinyu asked Su Guanzhang when they were staying in a farmhouse at night.

Because the road conditions were so bad, there were no passengers in the carriage, and the elderly and children had to walk on their own two legs.

This also resulted in them not being able to reach the nearest post station before nightfall today. Fortunately, the owner of this farm took them in.

Su Guanzhang had already rubbed his arms with the medicinal wine and used his internal energy to maximize the medicinal effects. He shook his head when he heard this and said, "Nothing."

He used the medicinal wine just to reassure Xuan Jinyu.

You know, when he first started practicing martial arts, he had to familiarize himself with all the weapons and practiced for a whole day.

When he arrived in Mobei and went to the battlefield, he fought the enemy with a heavy sword, and it was not uncommon for him to fight for a whole day and a night without rest.

The weapon he used to practice martial arts and the heavy sword he used later on the battlefield were not much lighter than Xuan Jinyu and her unborn child combined.

Hearing him say this, Xuan Jinyu felt relieved and muttered, "If you say it's okay, then it's okay. From now on, you have to hold me. It's your fault for not letting Third Brother hold me."

Third Brother was her biological brother, so even if he hugged her, it wouldn't be a big deal. But this person, when Third Brother offered to take over this afternoon, he refused.

Su Guanzhang didn't say anything, but his eyes dimmed a little.

Out of a man's possessiveness, even if Xuan Wensheng was really her biological brother, he would not let her hug him.

Moreover, based on his observations and speculations over the past few years, Xuan Wensheng really wasn't a member of the Xuan family. If that was the case, then it would absolutely not work.

However, his wife obviously didn't know about his "dark" thoughts and Xuan Wensheng's life experience, so there was no need to say this.