Cheng Baidong came down from the urology department on the third floor, went out through the back door of the outpatient building, and then went to the west door of the inpatient department.

He took a shortcut, which only required walking through a long corridor to return to Fang Qiao's obstetrics and gynecology ward.

As Cheng Baidong passed by the water room, he bumped into Liu Dongliang, who had just finished fetching water.

Cheng Baidong was not surprised; he ran into Liu Dongliang outside the ward in the early hours of the morning. At the time, Liu was sitting on the steps smoking in silence, and the two even exchanged a few words.

The two walked back together. Cheng Baidong nodded slightly to Liu Dongliang and said in a friendly greeting, "Come to fetch water?"

Liu Dongliang hummed in agreement and asked, "You came back from outside?"

Cheng Baidong nodded: "I went back to the factory to complete the procedures for paternity leave."

Liu Dongliang: "If you leave, won't you be leaving Fang Qiao alone in the ward? Do you think she'll want that?"

"No, my sister is in the hospital too."

"Oh, it's alright if someone's watching over things." Liu Dongliang sighed. "I don't even have anyone to help me. My child is gone after birth, and I don't even have anyone to lend a hand. I haven't even completed the paternity leave procedures yet, and I can't get away from it."

Cheng Baidong: "The factory leaders know about your situation. Special cases require special handling. There's no need to rush back to complete the procedures."

Upon hearing Cheng Baidong's words, Liu Dongliang's face lit up slightly.

After all, his wife was giving birth while he went out to play mahjong, which alerted the factory leaders.

Because if this matter were to be mentioned to his superiors, it would certainly not be a good thing for him.

For the rest of the journey, the two remained silent until they parted ways at the next intersection.

Li Dan's ward is on the left side of the intersection, and Fang Qiao's ward is on the right side of the intersection.

The wards on the left are large rooms with eight beds each, while the wards on the right are some rooms with three or two beds. The single rooms are upstairs, and all of them are full.

When Cheng Baidong returned to the ward, the two little twins were still fast asleep. An'an and Tiantian, the two little girls, were taking a nap in the small bed provided by the caregiver. One side of the bed was against the wall, and the other side was blocked by two stools to prevent them from rolling over and falling off the bed while they were sleeping.

Cheng Baidong looked around but didn't see Xiaojing, so he asked, "Where's Xiaojing?"

Fang Qiao first shushed him, saying, "Don't wake the child."

She then lowered her voice and answered him, "The second child just pooped, and it stinks so bad it's nauseating. Xiaojing went to the public restroom to wash the soiled diapers."

Cheng Baidong nodded, indicating that he understood.

He walked to the bedside, picked up the kettle, and asked Fang Qiao, "Wife, do you want some water?"

Fang Qiao waved her hand: "I won't drink."

I always need to go to the toilet after drinking water.

The thing she least wants to do right now is go to the toilet!

This is so painful!

"Help me up, I want to get down and walk a few steps," Fang Qiao said, extending her arm to him.

Cheng Baidong quickly supported her arm so she could use it for leverage.

Fang Qiao struggled to move her legs off the bed, gripped Cheng Baidong's arm tightly, and slowly exerted force.

Getting out of bed was difficult, but once my feet touched the ground, I gradually got used to it and was able to move a few steps slowly while holding onto the bed.

Xiao Jing quickly finished washing the diapers and came back, followed by a little tail.

"Sister-in-law, you can get out of bed now?"

Fang Qiao gave a soft "Mmm": "Getting out of bed and walking around will help you recover faster."

Her gaze fell on the little tail behind Xiao Jing, and she smiled, asking, "Is that Lai'er? What brings you here?"

Liu Lai'er obediently greeted "Uncle and Auntie" and replied, "I've come to play with Tian Tian."

Fang Qiao: "Sweetie hasn't woken up from her afternoon nap yet."

"I'll come find her later. Goodbye, Uncle and Aunt." Liu Lai'er said and ran away.

"Do you know the way back?" Xiaojing chased after him and asked.

"know."

Liu Lai'er's voice came from afar. Xiao Jing watched her return to a ward in the distance before carrying the basin for washing diapers into the room.

Fang Qiao asked her, "Laier is here, is Li Dan here too? Did she give birth? Was it a daughter or a son?"

From the start of the operation to production, she only had enough energy to focus on her own small plot of land and was unaware of Li Dan's situation.

"She gave birth to a daughter." Xiao Jing interrupted, "I just passed by her hospital room and heard her crying inside."

"It's normal for her to cry. After all, she had been hoping for a son since she got pregnant. Before the Lunar New Year, she even came to me to tell me that her nose had gotten bigger during her pregnancy, which meant she was carrying a son. She was beaming with joy and couldn't have been more proud of herself. But it turned out to be a girl. It would be strange if she didn't cry."

Xiao Jing leaned closer, lowered her voice, and said to Fang Qiao with a gossipy look, "Sister-in-law, I also heard that she had a massive hemorrhage during childbirth and had her uterus removed to save her life."

"I see." Fang Qiao raised her eyebrows slightly and said calmly, "That's because she was unlucky and was born without a son."

It's no wonder she was gloating; Li Dan's words were just too disgusting.

A woman who favors sons over daughters, believing she is carrying a son, points to other women's bellies and claims they are carrying daughters—the malice in her actions is unimaginable.

Even though Fang Qiao wasn't sexist, she found Fang Qiao's words incredibly nauseating.

Fang Qiao couldn't learn to repay evil with kindness; all she could say was: "She has no manners, no wonder she ended up having a daughter."