The meat ball was wiped with the cotton cloth that had been prepared earlier, wrapped in a thin quilt, and first handed to Lu Jiaxue.

Lu Jiaxue felt strange when he took the incredibly soft little ball. The child's face was only the size of a fist, its skin red, its features wrinkled into a small puckered shape. Its soft lips moved slightly. As if dissatisfied, its brows furrowed in a frown, as if it was about to cry. The midwife immediately instructed him, "My Lord, you have to hold his head up. He's still so young..."

The baby was only as long as his arm, and Lu Jiaxue was not very comfortable holding him. His hand holding a sword could not hold a soft child.

He simply placed it on the side of Yining's pillow and reached out to touch Yining's face: "Yining, look at your child."

Yi Ning turned her head and saw him twisting gently in the quilt. He was finally unhappy and burst into tears. She wanted to hug him, but she had no strength left. Little Tuanzi was so small and had just been born. She didn't know how to treat him well.

Xuezhi said, "Madam, please give the child to the wet nurse. She still needs to bathe and feed him."

Yi Ning was too thin, so to be on the safe side, they chose two fair-skinned, plump wet nurses from the country farms who were about the same age as Yi Ning. Xuezhi took the crying child from Yi Ning's arms and handed it to the wet nurses. Yi Ning was indeed very tired and needed a good rest.

Yi Ning looked at the wet nurse's back as the child was taken away...

She had just been through the gates of hell, and Lu Jiaxue seemed to feel as if he had been there with her. The room was quieter now. Seeing that she was reluctant to leave, he whispered in her ear, "Sleep well, I'm here. When you wake up, I promise he'll be by your side, okay?"

His voice was soft, and Yi Ning nodded tiredly. She felt herself being picked up and then gradually fell asleep.

When she finally woke up, she was already washed and laid out on her comfortable bed. Daylight had just begun to break, and sunlight streamed through the half-open partitions, revealing that the weather outside must be beautiful. The maids in the room walked softly, yet their joy was uncontrollable.

Xuezhi was half-crouching beside her bed, gently teasing a little ball wrapped in cloth next to her.

Seeing that she had woken up, Xuezhi happily picked up the child and said, "Madam, the young master has finished his milk and it's been brought to you right now. Are you hungry? The Marquis ordered some pigeon soup, you can have it when you're hungry."

Giving birth took a lot of energy, and Yining was indeed hungry. She nodded and said, "Send it in."

The hot soup was brought in, and with the ham slices simmered together, it was particularly delicious. She ate most of it before going to check on the child. He was already asleep, leaning against the quilt. Perhaps because he had just finished feeding, he had a sweet and soft milky scent on his body.

Yi Ning was reluctant to wake him up. Seeing his small face, the size of a fist, with small features, it was hard to tell who he resembled. She lowered her head and gently kissed the side of his face. His face was so soft.

He was woken by the noise, his tender little mouth moving, his brow furrowed as he began to cry again. Yi Ning was stunned. Was he woken already? She pulled his blanket aside and scooped him up into her arms to soothe him. Perhaps it was more comfortable in his mother's arms, as he leaned against her soft body and fell into a deep sleep again. His little hand curled up against her chest. Yi Ning picked up his little hand with her fingers and looked at it. Her fist was only the size of a walnut, and it made her heart melt.

Xuezhi looked at her quietly and felt that the young lady seemed to have obtained a small toy and liked it very much.

"Why are they so happy?" Luo Yining asked, referring to the girls outside.

"The Marquis gave each of us fifty taels of silver, and we're as happy as if it were New Year's Eve," Xuezhi said to her with a smile. "The two older girls are making socks for the young master."

Luo Yining discovered that there was a string of dark Buddhist beads on his wrist.

This is Lu Jiaxue's bead.

Lu Jiaxue happened to come at this time, and thought Luo Yining was asleep, so he came in from outside. He suddenly met her eyes directly.

Lu Jiaxue walked over to her and sat down. He looked at the little girl lying in her mother's arms and said after a moment's hesitation, "It's good that you're awake. The medicine has been boiled in the kitchen. It won't be so bitter if you drink it while it's hot."

Yining looked up at him.

He raised his eyebrows: "Why, you don't want to take medicine?"

Luo Yining said: "You said that if I survived, you would send me back."

"I don't remember, did I say that?" Lu Jiaxue said lightly.

Yi Ning had guessed that he would cheat, but she was still angry when she heard it. She was too weak to sit up, and the little boy was lying on her, otherwise she really wanted to hit him!

Luo Yining stared at him and sighed heavily. She raised her wrist, took off the beads on her hand and handed them back to him: "Your beads."

Luo Yining vaguely remembered that Lu Jiaxue had wrapped his arm around her when she was having a difficult time giving birth. Of course, she was also very grateful, as Lu Jiaxue's gesture was well-intentioned after all.

"Since I'm giving it to you, then keep it with you," Lu Jiaxue said, wrapping the beads around her wrist again. "I'm going to Datong immediately tomorrow. The Waqir tribe has attacked outside Yanmen Pass, and Wei Ling can't hold on any longer. The emperor has sent me an urgent decree through a secret line, ordering me to lead 80,000 troops to counterattack the Waqir tribe, otherwise your father's life may be in danger."

Luo Yining was well aware of the importance of Yanmen Pass, a battleground for military strategists. She immediately plucked the beads from her hand and said, "Then I should return them to you."

Lu Jiaxue slowly held her hand without question. He looked at her and said, "Listen to me, Luo Yining. As long as you are okay, I will definitely come back alive."

Luo Yining was slightly stunned. He had said something similar when he followed Lu Jiaran to fight in the war.

"Even if I desert, I will come back. Don't cry. I will definitely not die."

Lu Jiaxue continued, "When I'm not in Jinling, you can get together with the wives of the neighborhood magistrates and the wives of the local gentry. Don't try to play any tricks, and always be considerate of the child. I don't want to say anything threatening... but you should understand what I mean. I'll have someone watch over you, and you can tell him if you have any problems."

Luo Yining knew that the entire mansion was filled with his personal soldiers, sentries, and guards. Even if he left, he would leave someone behind to watch over her. If she made the slightest move, or even tried to get word out, he might not care about her child's life and take action directly. It was incredibly convenient.

Yining was silent for a moment as he slept soundly against her soft ball.