As the sun slowly rose, villagers began to come out and about. With the Lunar New Year approaching, everyone had almost finished preparing for the holiday. The village was now full of idle people, visiting one house after another. They soon learned that Tie Tou's daughter-in-law had suffered a difficult childbirth the night before, and that it was Lin's second aunt who had saved her.
With Grandma Fangying's publicity, everyone naturally learned the details, as the woman said.
"I've never heard of this method before. This Aunt Lin is really bold, daring to use a knife on someone!"
"That person was about to die, so we had to try anything, even if it seemed hopeless. Aunt Tie Tou's wife came back to life and even gave birth to a big, healthy boy, which means this method works!"
Grandma Fangying hurriedly said from the side, "That won't do. The doctor from the county town said this method is good. Fengnian's mother said she wants to give this method to the doctor, saying that after the doctor becomes proficient, he can teach us midwives."
"Oh my, this Fengnian's mother is such a good person! Childbirth is like a trip through the gates of hell for us women. With this method, we women can suffer less."
Even so, the women were still somewhat afraid of the idea of having surgery on their private parts, so one woman mentioned:
"Why don't we go to Aunt Tietou's house and see how Liu Hong'er is doing now?"
......
After a harrowing delivery last night, Song Anxin didn't get up until 9 a.m. When she and Meizi arrived at Aunt Tietou's house, many women and old women had already gathered there.
After a night's rest and a bowl of chicken soup that Aunt Tietou had cooked all night, Liu Hong'er looked a little pale, but her spirits were still pretty good. She was playing with the children and chatting and laughing with some of the women from time to time.
Although the women claimed to be visiting the children, they were actually using this as a pretext to see how Liu Hong'er was doing. Seeing that Liu Hong'er was perfectly fine and could chat and laugh with them, not at all like someone who had undergone surgery, they were half convinced of the method.
At this moment, Song Anxin and Song Mei walked in. Song Anxin greeted everyone with a smile: "Everyone's here. Liu Hong'er, are you feeling any better?"
Upon seeing Song Anxin, Liu Hong'er immediately grabbed the child and tried to get out of bed to kneel and kowtow to Song Anxin. Song Anxin quickly stepped forward to stop her, saying:
"Alright, consider this a bow. You're still injured, so don't move around too much."
Liu Hong'er said with gratitude, "I can never repay Second Aunt for saving my life and my child's life. If there is anything you need from me in the future, please just say the word, and I will do my best to help you."
Song Anxin was surprised. This was the first time she had a formal conversation with Liu Hong'er. Judging from Liu Hong'er's words, she didn't seem like a typical country woman from the village.
She didn't pry too much into it; everyone has their own secrets. So she said, "I appreciate your kindness. Lie down quickly. I've come to bring you some things and to tell you about the care for your wound."
As she spoke, she took a circular cushion from Song Mei and gave it to Liu Hong'er. Liu Hong'er took it, looking puzzled.
Song Anxin said, "This is a cushion. When you get up to sit, put this under your buttocks so it won't put pressure on the incision. Also, during your postpartum period, be sure to clean the area with warm water, don't hold the baby too much, and don't lift heavy objects..."
Song Anxin explained everything carefully. In her previous world, her best friend had researched a lot about postpartum precautions during her confinement period.
"Dr. Zheng from Renshan Hospital in the county will come to remove your stitches in about five days. Dr. Zheng will also keep a close eye on your condition from now on. If you feel any discomfort, you should tell him the truth. Don't worry, as long as you take good care of yourself, you will definitely recover well."
Liu Hong'er was extremely grateful and thanked her repeatedly.
If the women who came had only believed half of what she said earlier, now they trusted her to the point of complete trust. When they gave birth, their vaginas would sometimes tear, sometimes even to the anus. The pain was unbearable. If what Aunt Lin said was true, they would rather have surgery. Aunt Lin was reliable, and with the county doctor in charge, maybe these women could suffer less in the future.
What Song Anxin didn't know was that her unexpected act, along with the subsequent advancements in doctors' skills, raised the level of midwifery techniques in that era to a new level. Many women were not only spared the pain of prolonged labor, but also their lives were saved.
Suddenly, the child lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) started crying.
"Waaaaah..."
Aunt Tietou, who was taking care of the child, quickly picked him up and tried to soothe him, but the child's loud crying did not subside at all.
"Oh dear, what's wrong with my grandson? He hasn't peed. Is he hungry?"
Liu Hong'er said, "It shouldn't be like that, I just breastfed her." As she spoke, she took the baby from her arms and comforted her herself, without caring about anything else.
"Waaaaah...!" The child's cries grew louder.
Song Anxin gently coaxed him from the side, saying, "Little darling, be good, don't cry. There are so many grandmas, aunties and grandmothers watching you here. It won't look good if you cry."
To everyone's surprise, the baby in Liu Hong'er's arms immediately stopped crying and opened its eyes a crack, looking curiously at the person in front of it.
"Oh my, this child is so clever for his age! Do you know that our village's matriarch is here?" a woman teased.
"Yes, as soon as Aunt Lin told him not to cry, he really stopped. He probably knows that she is the benefactor who saved him. This child is very perceptive."
"......"
Song Anxin was surprised that the child stopped crying so easily after she just said that, and she was immediately overjoyed. She said to Liu Hong'er:
"Can I hug you?"
Song Anxin took the baby and looked at the soft, tiny creature in her arms, its mouth wide open and yawning. She realized that she had actually delivered the baby herself, and she felt a mix of emotions she couldn't quite describe.
Song Mei, standing beside Song Anxin, stared longingly at the child. Her lips moved slightly as she spoke, and she said dryly, "Mother, can I hold this child too?"
Song Anxin replied, "Of course, but you have to be careful when holding the baby, as he is still small."
Song Mei carefully took the child. The baby in her arms glanced at her, murmured something, closed its eyes, and fell into a deep sleep. Song Mei's expression softened unconsciously, and the corners of her mouth turned up.
"Oh dear, this child was just crying so hard, but now that he's in Aunt Lin's and Mei's arms, he's sleeping so soundly. This child likes to be close to Aunt Lin's family so much, if you ask me, why don't we just recognize Song Mei as his godmother and Aunt Lin as his godmother?"
"It's Gou Dan's mother from the village," she suddenly said.
The previously harmonious scene suddenly froze, and everyone wore an indescribable expression. Everyone knew what Lin Gangzi from Tie Tou's family had done, and the relationship between the two families was complicated. How could they possibly become godparents?!
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