In the afternoon, Qin Xiaozhou moved the brazier out of the kitchen to roast rabbits in the yard. Lu Yunxing caught rabbits in the backyard, and Lu Yan threw grass in while directing, "Second brother, second brother, I want the white one, the white one squatting in the corner. I'll have Aunt Zhen make clothes out of its pelt. It'll look great to wear in winter."

Lu Yunxing was scrambling around in the rabbit hutch. "Alright, alright, you guys go to the yard first. This rabbit hutch stinks, don't get your clothes dirty."

Lu Yu stood silently on the other side, holding the grass she had cut the day before. She tried to talk to Lu Yan several times, wanting to hear more about Qin Xiaozhou's life in the county. It seemed like she could never get enough of hearing about him, but she didn't know how to start the conversation, so she just kept circling around Lu Yan.

Zhao Fang had just fed Xiao Shitou goat milk and was holding him to sleep when she strolled over to the backyard. “Your Aunt Zhen is busy. She doesn’t have time to make clothes for you. With sheep and rabbits in the house, the grass in the fields will be gone in a month. We should find some helpers to prepare more grass in the fall.”

Lu Yunxing grabbed a rabbit by the ear and handed it to Lu Yan. "Grandma has thought about this too. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the autumn harvest in the village will be almost over, so it's the best time to find some help."

Qin Xiaozhou killed and skinned the rabbit, marinated it with scallions, ginger, and garlic, and roasted it over a fire. Lu Yan and Qin Jingxiu squatted by the fire pit to tend the fire. Lu Yunfeng and Wang Lan entered the courtyard one after the other. Wang Lan was furious. The old lady, unusually, threw down her basket and sat down heavily under the pomegranate tree in the courtyard, her chest heaving, clearly very angry.

Lu Yan leaned closer and said, "Grandma, what's wrong? Look at the rabbit meat we're roasting, it smells so good!"

Wang Lan pulled her granddaughter into her arms and patted her, "Go play."

After saying that, she went into the kitchen, pulled Lu Yu into a tight hug, and said, "My son..."

Lu Yu was stunned for a moment, and then tears welled up in her eyes. She had actually had a premonition that if the Li family really cared about this marriage, they wouldn't have kept quiet for so many days. But when the moment actually came, she still felt dizzy and weak all over, unable to say anything. "Mother, it's just my bad luck."

Qin Xiaozhou ran out of the kitchen, grabbed Lu Yunfeng, pulled him aside, and whispered, "What did the Li family say?"

Lu Yunfeng was also in a bad mood, but he knew how to control his emotions. "The Li family said they are not good enough for our family. We have also brought back my aunt's birth chart. So this marriage is off."

Qin Xiaozhou thought it was better if the marriage didn't go through, but Lu Yu was heartbroken right now, so she couldn't say that. "It's best not to gossip about the Li family."

Otherwise, Lu Yu would become even more withdrawn.

Lu Yunfeng acted with discretion, "They wouldn't, and they wouldn't dare."

When Zhao Fang returned from collecting eggs in the orchard, she could tell from the atmosphere that the marriage was not going to happen, and she couldn't help but sigh. Why is it so difficult for such a good girl like Lu Yu to find a husband?

Despite it being the Mid-Autumn Festival, a night for family reunion, the Lu family was unusually quiet because of the wedding. However, the celebrations still had to go on. After offering sacrifices to the moon and having dinner, the courtyard became lively with many children in the house. Qin Xiaozhou took two little girls to catch river crabs in the stream behind the old house before going back to sleep.

The village was always quiet at night. Qin Xiaozhou had a rare bout of insomnia. She tossed and turned for a long time, then opened the window to look at the moon. The moonlight in this world was bright and clear, as bright as day. Although she didn't like the Li family, it was a fact that Lu Yu had broken off the engagement because of her, and the guilt in her heart still lingered.

Judging from Lu Yu's condition, no amount of money would make it useful to give her the life of a rich young lady; the only thing she could pursue was to get married and have children.

Qin Xiaozhou felt a toothache. She was quite good at doing business, but finding a husband for someone was really difficult for her.

Lu Yunfeng glanced at her window frame. "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Qin Xiaozhou sighed, a rare occurrence. She beckoned Lu Yunfeng to come closer, as even a slight noise could be heard nearby. She whispered, "Keep an eye on the unmarried men around you. If they're decent, find someone to act as a matchmaker for your aunt. If you don't go her way, she might feel hurt but won't say anything, letting it fester in her heart and wear herself down."

Lu Yu is indeed this kind of person; she keeps everything bottled up and won't say anything. Even when she's sad, she'll just hide and secretly wipe away her tears.

Lu Yunfeng nodded, "The Li family's affairs are not your fault. Don't overthink it. Go to sleep."

Although it wasn't Qin Xiaozhou's fault, she genuinely wanted to find a good husband for Lu Yu. Lying in bed, she went through all the men she knew, and strangely found that none of them were suitable. She was really thinking of finding an opportunity to talk to Lu Yunxing and see if any of his classmates were reliable. Just then, shouts came from the village, sounding extremely painful, and then the Lu family's gate was pounded on.

Qin Xiaozhou couldn't sleep, so she got up and followed Lu Yunfeng to open the door. Wang Qing was pacing anxiously outside the door. As soon as the door opened, he came forward and said, "Nephew of the Lu family, I'm looking for Aunt Wang. My wife is about to give birth, and I need her to come and take a look."

There are no midwives in Wangjia Village, and the villagers are too poor to afford to hire one. It is usually the older women who help the young women give birth. Today, they have asked Wang Lan to help.

Upon hearing that it was about childbirth, Wang Lan came out while still getting dressed, saying, "Come on, don't delay the baby's arrival. It's not good for the baby to hold it in for too long."

Qin Xiaozhou wanted to go with them, but Wang Lan stopped her. They could still hear the pregnant woman's screams from afar, and she was still shaken. "How much pain must that have caused?"

It hurts just hearing it.

The screams continued until sunrise, but as the village became lively and the woman in labor was too weak to hear them, Qin Xiaozhou felt anxious and choked up. "Why isn't Grandma back yet? It's almost lunchtime."

Zhao Fang is the only one here who has given birth. She wiped the water off her hands and said, "I'll go take a look."

Lu Yan was very curious about childbirth and wanted to go along, but Zhao Fang stopped her. As a result, Zhao Fang went and never came back. When lunch was served, Qin Xiaozhou couldn't wait any longer and got up to go to the village.

Before even reaching Wang Qing's house, Qin Xiaozhou could smell the stench of blood. Blood was flowing down from the drainage ditch in the corner, making her feel unwell. The stench of blood was even stronger when she got to the door. There were several old women in Wang Qing's small courtyard. Zhao Fang happened to come out and said, "Why are you here? Go back quickly. I was just about to go back to tell you to eat first and not wait for us."

Qin Xiaozhou felt a sharp pain in her teeth and stomach, and hissed as she gasped, "Haven't I given birth yet?"

"No." Zhao Fang's expression was solemn. Logically speaking, this was Guo Que's third pregnancy, so the delivery should have been easy. But the fact that she couldn't deliver soon would be very dangerous.

Qin Xiaozhou asked, puzzled, "Why didn't you call a doctor?"

Wang Qing returned carrying two bundles of rice, cursing, "Why do women need doctors when they're giving birth? It's not like they're sick. Why did she have to give birth at this time? If the rice in the fields isn't harvested soon, it will fall. This year's harvest was finally good. If we delay, we'll starve to death next year."

Qin Xiaozhou was incredulous. "Childbirth is very dangerous for women. How could you not call a doctor? What if something goes wrong?"

The woman who came to help with the delivery sighed, "Giving birth depends entirely on a woman's fate. If she's lucky, she can have eight or ten children and be even healthier. If she's unlucky, she won't be able to give birth to even one."

"Bullshit." Qin Xiaozhou laughed in anger. "It was clearly his own ignorance and stinginess that killed those innocent women, but in the end he tries to use the excuse that they were just unlucky."