---Jiangnan Courtyard: A Race Against Time to Protect the Arrival of New Life
The carriage practically crashed into the courtyard gate. The guards, who had received a prior message by carrier pigeon and were already on high alert, instantly sealed off all entrances and exits. Bows were nocked, swords were drawn, and the air was thick with murderous intent!
"Wei'er! Hold on! Mother is here!" Mother Shen and Lin Qingwan, one on each side, practically carried the already mentally unstable Shen Yuewei into the prepared delivery room.
"Hot water! Scissors! Ginseng soup! Quickly!" Like the most composed general, Zhang's mother issued a series of orders, and the midwife who had been arranged in advance and the gynecological expert who had been invited from the city at great expense immediately arrived.
Shen's father paced anxiously outside the delivery room, listening to his daughter's increasingly painful screams. His heart ached, and tears streamed down his face. "How could this happen! How could it be so early! Wei'er... my Wei'er..." He had always been strong, but at this moment he was like a helpless child.
Shen Wensong was also terrified, his face pale, and he tightly gripped his second brother's arm: "Second brother! Sister... will sister be alright? It's all those bastards' fault! I'll go kill them!" He impulsively tried to rush out.
"Stop!" Shen Wenbai grabbed his younger brother, his voice hoarse yet carrying an undeniable authority. His eyes, sharp as an eagle's, scanned every corner inside and outside the courtyard, his hand always on the hilt of his sword. "The most important thing right now is the safety of your sister and the child! There are guards outside, and Mother and Zhang Mama are inside! You stay here and behave yourself, don't go anywhere! Do you hear me!" The chilling aura emanating from him made Shen Wensong nod involuntarily, shrinking behind him, afraid to move.
Lin Qingwan rushed out of the delivery room, her face grave and her hair damp with sweat: "Uncle Shen, Wenbai, Yuewei is in a very dangerous situation. She's breech and premature! The doctors and midwives are doing everything they can to save her! They need the oldest ginseng to keep her alive!"
"Yes! Yes! The best old ginseng left by His Highness the Crown Prince!" Shen Wenbai immediately took out a small, sealed jade box from his pocket. This was his life-saving possession, which he kept close to his body. "Qingwan, take it quickly!"
Lin Qingwan took the jade box, gave Shen Wenbai a deep look, a look that contained endless trust and entrustment, and then turned and rushed into the delivery room filled with the smell of blood.
Time seemed to stand still. Inside the delivery room, Shen Yuewei's screams, sometimes high-pitched, sometimes faint, tugged at the hearts of everyone outside. Shen's father knelt in the corridor, chanting prayers into the void.
"May God bless my Wei'er so that she can give birth to the child safely, please bless her..." Father Shen knelt on the ground, chanting prayers for divine protection.
Shen Wensong bit his lip, tears streaming silently down his face. Shen Wenbai stood motionless at the delivery room door, like the hardest rock, only his hands, gripping the sword hilt so tightly that his knuckles turned white, betraying the turmoil within him. The warning in Xiao Chengjing's secret letter flashed through his mind—the Imperial Concubine would intervene during childbirth!
His gaze, sharp as a hawk's, swept over everyone coming and going, including the maidservant carrying hot water! Any suspicious movement would invite his thunderous rebuke!
Suddenly, he spotted a maidservant walking hurriedly towards the delivery room, carrying a hot water bottle. She was pale and her steps were unsteady. Shen Wenbai immediately stepped forward to stop her. "When did you come to serve us?" Shen Wenbai asked first.
"Reporting to the Second Young Master, this servant was sent by the Crown Prince to attend to the young lady during childbirth," the maid replied.
Shen Wenbai suddenly asked the maid, "What is your name and where do you live?"
The maid replied, "My home is in the capital."
Shen Wenbai instantly realized that this might be sent by the Imperial Concubine, with the purpose of preparing for childbirth. It was clear that the small courtyard arranged by the Crown Prince was still full of danger. He wondered if there were others who also wanted to kill Shen Yuewei.
Shen Wenbai understood everything and told the maid to leave first, so she didn't need to wait in the delivery room any longer.
Finally, the shadow guards were summoned to secretly observe the maid's every move.
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