Lying on the bed, Ms. Su suddenly opened her eyes, her vision filled with light, before gradually returning to calm. She spoke:
"Come in and help me change and wash up."
Soon, maids and servants filed in carrying things. Little Su yawned lazily, letting the servants attend to her. Her voice was somewhat drowsy as she said:
"Honestly, why did they choose to start at this hour? Can't they let people get a good night's sleep?"
The old woman Qi, who was serving her, said, "Madam, you just need to go through the motions. You can go back to sleep when you come back later."
Little Su yawned again and gave a lazy hum.
"Is everything arranged?"
Granny Qi said, "Don't worry, Madam, Granny Yan is watching over things."
Soon, Madam Su was dressed. The moment she stepped out of her own courtyard, her expression changed, and she quickened her pace to hurry to Aunt Lin's courtyard.
"Oh dear, how did labor start so quickly? Master said he wanted to see the baby within the first hour. Has the midwife, Granny Yan, been invited?"
Granny Yan, who was directing the servants in the courtyard, replied, "Don't worry, Madam. Midwife Feng has already gone in. Midwife Feng is the best midwife in the county. Concubine Lin will definitely have a safe delivery."
Madam Su deliberately raised her voice and said, "That's good. But you must make sure that Consort Lin gives birth to Master's child safely. There must be no mistakes. Has the ginseng soup been prepared for Consort Lin? It must be sent in during the delivery so that Consort Lin will have the strength to give birth."
"Yes, yes, Madam, the kitchen has already started cooking." Granny Yan hurriedly replied, then turned to the servants in the courtyard and scolded, "Did you hear that? All of you servants, you better pay attention and keep your skin on yourselves. If you neglect your duties and something goes wrong, don't blame Madam for selling you out!"
The servants in the courtyard all responded in a panic, "Yes."
Intermittent cries of pain, along with the sobs of Liu Mingzhu and Mingyue, soon came from inside the room.
"Waaah, Mother, are you going to die? Please don't die!" Liu Mingyue cried, lying by Lin Taohua's bedside.
Liu Mingzhu's eyes were also filled with tears. She knew that Aunt Lin was about to give birth. She said:
"Mingyue, don't talk nonsense. Aunt Lin won't die. Aunt Lin is just about to give birth to a little brother."
Even so, her little hands were still trembling with fear. Granny Fang said that her mother had also died in childbirth in the same way.
Lin Taohua felt a sharp pain in her lower body from time to time.
"Ah..." she murmured.
After calming down, she raised her hand to wipe away the tears on Mingzhu and Mingyue's faces, and said softly:
"Yes, Mingzhu is right. Mother is just about to give birth to a little brother. Once the little brother is born, everything will be fine. Mother won't die."
After she finished speaking, another, even more intense throbbing pain shot through her, causing her to scream in pain:
"ah!....."
"Oh dear, Aunt Lin, you're only three centimeters dilated yet. Try not to cry out and save your energy for the delivery."
Midwife Feng said.
When Liu Mingzhu and Mingyue saw Aunt Lin crying out in such pain, they cried even harder.
Hearing this from outside the house, Xiao Su frowned and said with some displeasure:
"Why are those two young ladies inside? Why wasn't anyone brought out?"
Granny Yan replied, "Madam, the two young ladies insist on staying inside with Concubine Lin. We can't do anything about it. Should I have the maids pull them out?"
When Madam Su heard this, she waved her hand to indicate that it was alright, the two girls were no big deal. She looked tired and thought that she hadn't slept well in the middle of the night and her headache had flared up again, so she rubbed her forehead with her hand.
When Granny Qi saw this, she immediately said, "Madam, you've been working so hard these past few days taking care of Consort Lin. As soon as Consort Lin went into labor, you rushed over without even sleeping. The people in the delivery room said that Consort Lin is only three centimeters dilated, and it's still a long way from delivery. Why don't you go back and rest first?"
Madam Su immediately put on a stern face and said, "Granny Qi, what are you saying? How could I not be here to watch Aunt Lin give birth? This is Master's flesh and blood."
Granny Yan chimed in, "Yes, Madam, why don't you go back and rest first? I'll send someone to call you when Consort Lin has fully conceived. You can't overwork yourself. Consort Lin will need your help with everything after she gives birth. Don't worry, this old servant will be here keeping an eye on things."
The maids around him also hurriedly tried to persuade him.
Having thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle, Madam Su rubbed her head and said, "Alright then, my headache has flared up a bit and I'm really dizzy. I'll come over after I rest for a while. If anything happens to Granny Yan, be sure to report it to me immediately."
Granny Yan agreed, and then exchanged a knowing glance with Granny Qi.
Intermittent screams could still be heard from the delivery room, and every now and then a sudden cry of pain could be heard. As dawn broke, Lin Taohua finally couldn't hold back any longer and screamed more and more agonizingly.
Standing at the foot of the bed, the midwife, Feng, said, "It's dilated, it's fully dilated, Aunt Lin, you can push now."
"Push harder, push harder, yes, yes, that's it."
Lin Taohua gripped the quilt tightly with both hands, her forehead covered in sweat. Granny Fang wiped her sweat while instructing the maid beside her:
"Quickly, have someone bring the ginseng soup over."
At the foot of the bed, midwife Feng suddenly exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! Oh no! The baby's head is too big! Aunt Lin's birth canal is too narrow, she might not be able to give birth, she'll have a difficult labor!"
The faces of everyone in the room immediately changed. Granny Fang said, "Then, what should we do? Midwife Feng, you are the best midwife in the county, you must think of a way."
Midwife Feng said with a grim expression, "This, this, I really have no choice. If the fetus is too big, we can only save the baby or the mother. That's the best-case scenario. Otherwise, it could easily result in the death of both mother and child."
Upon hearing this, Granny Fang's face turned extremely horrified, and she was almost in tears as she said:
"Midwife Feng, Aunt Lin can't die, and the child in Aunt Lin's womb must be saved. Please, please think of another way."
Liu Mingzhu and Mingyue, who had been dozing off from crying, suddenly woke up with a start. Upon hearing these words, tears welled up in their eyes again.
"Waaah, Mother, don't die! I don't want Mother to die..."
Liu Mingzhu was pale and terrified. She was afraid that Aunt Lin would die like her mother, losing her child. Aunt Lin had been so good to her; she didn't want Aunt Lin to die.
She suddenly knelt before the midwife, sobbing, and pleaded with her:
"Grandma, Grandma, you must still have a way. Please save Aunt Lin. Aunt Lin can't die."
Liu Mingyue quickly knelt down and said, "Grandma, please save my mother... Waaah... I can't live without my mother..."
"Oh dear, Miss, Second Miss, how can you kneel before me? Get up, get up! Even if you kneel, I can't do anything about it!"
Midwife Feng quickly helped the two women up.
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