The summer breeze carried a hint of dryness, and the weather grew increasingly hot. At noon, the streets and alleys were sparsely populated, with only a few poor people carrying sacks passing by, their skin tanned dark by the scorching sun.

As the head of the household, he had to shoulder the heavy load no matter how tired he was, since this was the only extra income besides farming. He could earn about 15 coins a day by carrying a sack, and if he encountered good weather in spring or autumn, he could earn at most 10 coins.

Prices are higher in summer and winter.

After all, one place is too hot and the other is too cold, so there are few people available to do the work. If there's a shortage of people, then the cost of hiring will have to be high.

They really earned their money through hardship.

"Brother Li, when will it rain? It hasn't rained since June. Will it be a drought this year? The sun is so strong, the crops in the fields are all wilting."

"Hey, who knows? Let's hurry up and carry the sacks. Let's make more money while it's hot, and buy enough food. Even if there's a drought, we won't be afraid. We men would rather work ourselves to death than let our families go hungry."

Two casual laborers, chatting about the weather, walked past the entrance of Yan's Pastry Shop.

The sound reached Yan Xia's ears.

Several days have passed since she returned.

Today is July 18th.

Logically, Xiaohe should have started her pregnancy at fifteen.

But three whole days passed, and she still showed no signs of giving birth.

Yan Xia was a little worried. Premature birth was bad, but late birth was even worse. The longer the baby stayed in the womb, the greater the danger.

If Xiaohe's water hasn't broken by tomorrow morning, she'll immediately make her drink a labor-inducing soup.

Of course, it's best to avoid drinking if you can avoid it.

Every medicine has some degree of toxicity, and inducing labor can be very harmful to the mother's body.

Yan Xia came down from the second floor of the shop with a worried expression.

"Changlu, take good care of the two shops these next few days. Your elder brother is at home with Xiaohe, and your mother doesn't have much time to manage the shops. So, stay alert and make sure nothing goes wrong, understand?"

"Mother, don't worry. Your son isn't stupid. You go back and stay with your sister-in-law. Don't worry about me." Chang Lu patted his chest and said to Yan Xia.

"Yes, I'm really worried about your sister-in-law. Alright, I'll go and invite a doctor to stay at our house first, just in case something unexpected happens to her and we panic. Alright, you go ahead and do your work, I'm leaving now."

Yan Xia left the shop and went to the best clinic in town, where she consulted an elderly doctor with white hair.

The older you are, the more sought-after you become in this industry.

Even she herself couldn't escape the common belief that the older one gets, the more experience one has, and the better one's medical skills become with age.

It took ten taels of silver to persuade the old doctor to stay at her house.

"Madam, please wait a moment. I'll take the medicine first. Xiao Fuzi, get Atractylodes lancea, Platycodon grandiflorus, Citrus reticulata peel, Angelica dahurica, Glycyrrhiza uralensis, Cinnamomum cassia... Oh dear, never mind, I'll do it myself. You're such a fool, you can't even read all the characters. What kind of medicine is that? You just grabbed whatever you could find. From now on, you'll go to the backyard and guard the medicine pots. Come back to the front when you've memorized all the names of the medicines."

The old doctor gave the apprentice, Xiao Fuzi, a hard knock on the head.

"Ouch, Master, stop hitting me! You'll make me even dumber!" Little Fuzi grimaced, covering his head.

"Hurry up and get my clothes ready. If it weren't for your pitiful state, I would have kicked you out!"

Although the old doctor's words were somewhat harsh, his tone was not stern.

Xiao Fuzi went to help him pack his clothes with a grin, showing no sign of displeasure.

"I'm sorry to have made such a fool of you. You're just a junior apprentice, and you've made too many mistakes in your work. Don't worry, I'll personally get the medicine. Madam, please sit down and rest for a while, have some tea, and wait a bit."

Yan Xia nodded.

After watching a play about a master instructing his apprentice, her tense mood eased considerably.

A doctor's heart is full of compassion.

The fact that this old doctor was able to take in an orphan and teach him a skill so that he could support himself with his medical knowledge shows that he was a truly kind-hearted person.

As the saying goes, "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Giving money or food is merely an act of pity.

The greatest act of kindness is to help these unfortunate people change their current circumstances, enabling them to become self-reliant and have the ability to survive.

Yan Xia suddenly had some insights. Just as she was pondering them, the old doctor was already standing in front of her with another apprentice.

"Madam, let's go. Xu'er, take the medicine and my clothes."

It seems this apprentice is his assistant.

Yan Xia thought.

She didn't ask any more questions and led the two of them home.

Just as I arrived at my doorstep, the weather changed drastically; ten minutes later, dark clouds gathered.

"Splash—"

The rain poured down like a bucket.

It poured straight down.

Fortunately, Yan Xia had already brought the old doctor to her daughter-in-law's room.

She planned to have the doctor examine Xiaohe's pulse first.

The two midwives we had hired earlier had already moved in at the beginning of July.

They are the Lü family and the Jia family, respectively.

The two stood on either side of the chaise lounge, guarding Xiao He.

It looks just like the stone lions placed at the main gate.

The eldest son, Changfu, also held his daughter-in-law's hand and sat with her on the chaise longue.

"hiss--"

"Mom, I... my stomach hurts—"

As soon as the doctor took her pulse, Xiaohe frowned and called out Yanxia's name.

Her voice was slightly tearful.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, Mom is here. Doctor, please take a look, is my daughter-in-law about to give birth?"

Before the doctor could speak, the two midwives said, "Oh dear, her water has broken! Quick, help her to the bed. Manager Yan, please have the maids boil some water, and boil plenty. Also, the delivery room is too bloody; there's no reason for a man to go in. Young Master Yan, please wait outside, doctor. We'll be fine here."

The two midwives wanted to drive the others out.

Aside from the senior doctor and his apprentice leaving first to avoid suspicion, Yan Xia and Chang Fu didn't budge an inch.

"Changfu, carry Xiaohe to the bed. Be careful and move gently. Madam Lü and Madam Jia, we don't have these rules in our family. Let my son stay in the delivery room. Changfu, you stay by the bedside and watch over Xiaohe, otherwise she will be scared. Everyone else, come out with me. I need to tell you something."

When Lady Lü and Lady Jia heard this, they were taken aback.

They had delivered so many babies, and they had never seen a woman voluntarily leave her son in the delivery room.

After all, a woman's delivery room is considered unlucky by most people.

A man should not be tainted by bad luck.

However, this was someone else's business, and they had no right to interfere. After Yan Xia left, the two midwives went to tidy up the bed.

"You guys go boil some water and bring it into the room later. You go cut some white cloth; we'll need it in the delivery room later. Remember to choose soft cloth. And you three, go get a pair of scissors, wash them clean, and soak them in strong liquor. Bring them over later. As for you two, make a pot of old hen soup for Xiaohe after she gives birth. Also, keep an eye on the medicine pot. If the doctor needs to decoct medicine, you're responsible for guarding the pot, understand?"