Chapter 208: In the end, she still couldn’t save her child
Sweet potato porridge bubbled in the iron pot. Fu Yucheng stirred it gently with a spoon to prevent it from getting too sticky. He added some red dates and longans to the porridge, and its sweet aroma, mixed with the sweet potato fragrance, filled the courtyard.
"The porridge is almost ready," he called out to the eaves, "Yinyin, Second Sister-in-law, come over and try it to see if it's sweet enough."
Jiang Jianhua put down the embroidery thread and helped Yun Tangyin to stand up: "I'm a little tired from embroidering. Have a bowl of porridge and take a break."
The two walked to the kitchen, and Fu Yucheng filled two bowls of porridge and handed them to them.
Yun Tangyin blew on the porridge and took a sip. The warm porridge slid into her stomach, making her squint her eyes comfortably. "It's delicious, sweeter than pure sweet potato porridge. Your cooking skills are getting better and better."
Jiang Jianhua also nodded: "Yes, the porridge bought in the city doesn't taste like this. Let's cook some corn porridge in a few days and add some pumpkin. It will definitely taste good."
Fu Yucheng smiled and agreed: "Okay, I'll make whatever you want to eat for you, and I guarantee you'll be satisfied."
Aunt Zhang finished cleaning up the dried radish and came over to take the bowl of porridge from Fu Yucheng: "Let me try it too, it smells delicious."
She took a sip and couldn't help but sigh: "The porridge at home is still delicious, soft, sticky and sweet, and it's not hard for my old teeth to eat it."
She shouted in the direction of Fu Yuanshan, "Yuanshan, come over and drink the porridge quickly. It won't taste good if it gets cold."
Fu Yuanshan was weaving a bamboo basket for the children. Upon hearing this, he put down the bamboo strips and came over: "I'm here. I'll have the basket ready soon. It's perfect for Lan girl to put marbles in."
He took the bowl of porridge and took a big sip. "It's really sweet. It suits my taste better than the sugar water in the city."
The children, tired from playing, gathered around to ask for porridge. Fu Yucheng poured a bowl for each child. Xiaolan held the bowl and sipped it, not forgetting to put a piece of sesame candy in her mouth. The sweetness made her eyes bend. "Brother Fu, this porridge is really delicious. Can you make it again tomorrow?"
Fu Yucheng smiled and nodded: "Of course, as long as you like, you can cook it every day."
While drinking porridge, Yun Tangyin always felt that Jiang Jianhua's eyes when looking at her stomach were a little different, with a hint of envy, but also a bit of indescribable loneliness.
She was about to ask something, but Jiang Jianhua looked away first, smiled and handed her a piece of red dates in the porridge: "Eat the red dates quickly, it replenishes your qi and blood, and is good for the baby."
Fu Yucheng also sensed something was amiss. Last night when he was drinking with Fu Yuanshan, his brother's hesitant look was still fresh in his mind.
Seeing that Jiang Jianhua avoided the topic, he quietly touched Fu Yuanshan's arm and signaled him with his eyes to find a chance to talk about the situation.
Fu Yuanshan understood, drank the porridge in his bowl in a few mouthfuls, and said to Jiang Jianhua: "Jianhua, come with me to the house, I will sort out the things I brought from the city for you."
After they entered the house, Fu Yuanshan sighed, "If you feel bad, talk to Yinyin and the others. It's no use keeping it bottled up."
Jiang Jianhua sat on the edge of the kang, his fingertips unconsciously touching the corner of his clothes. He was silent for a long time before he said softly, "I'm afraid that telling you will make everyone worry, especially since Yinyin is pregnant. I don't want her to be sad."
"But if you keep holding it in like this, we'll be even more worried." Fu Yuanshan squatted in front of her and held her hand. "Yinyin is not an outsider. Aunt Zhang loves you too. She said that it's better for everyone to share the burden than for you to carry it alone."
Jiang Jianhua's eyes gradually turned red, and his voice choked with sobs: "Yinyin and I were pregnant together, but... I had a sudden hemorrhage at three months old, and I lost the baby. My body was too weak, so I still couldn't keep him."
Fu Yuanshan patted her back gently, said nothing more, and just accompanied her silently.
Outside the house, Yun Tangyin saw that the two had not come out for a long time, and she became more and more uneasy. Just as she was about to get up to check, she saw Jiang Jianhua walking out with red eyes.
She quickly helped Jiang Jianhua sit down and handed her a handkerchief: "Second sister-in-law, what's wrong with you? Are you hiding something from us?"
Jiang Jianhua took the handkerchief, wiped his tears, and finally told the whole story: "Yinyin, I still couldn't save the baby. I didn't keep it... That's why my belly was empty when I came back. I was afraid you would worry, so I didn't dare to tell you."
After hearing this, Yun Tangyin felt a pang of anxiety and quickly held her hand: "Second sister-in-law, don't be sad. This isn't your fault. It's just that we're not meant to have children. We'll take good care of ourselves and we'll definitely be able to have children again."
Aunt Zhang also came over and patted Jiang Jianhua on the shoulder: "Silly boy, why didn't you tell me about such a big thing earlier? It must be so uncomfortable for you to bear it alone. I'll make you chicken soup and some tonic food. I'm sure you'll be in good health."
Fu Yucheng also said, "Second sister-in-law, don't think too much, just take a good rest. You don't have to do any housework. My second brother and I will take care of it. I will go to town in a few days and buy you some brown sugar and red dates to replenish your qi and blood. I will also ask the doctor if he has any prescriptions for conditioning your body."
Jiang Jianhua looked at everyone's concerned eyes, and his heart warmed, but his tears flowed even more fiercely: "Thank you, I thought you would blame me for not saving the child..."
"Silly words," Fu Yuanshan walked out and sat beside her, "We are all sad that the child is gone, but the most important thing is that you are well. We will have another chance in the future."
In the following days, everyone took extra care of Jiang Jianhua.
Aunt Zhang stews chicken soup for her every day, adding angelica and astragalus to it, which replenishes qi and blood without drying her out.
Yun Tangyin also often talked to her, told her interesting stories when she was pregnant, and made her happy.
When Fu Yucheng went to the town, he specifically asked the doctor for a prescription for conditioning his body, bought some Chinese medicine, and reminded Jiang Jianhua to drink it every morning and evening.
That afternoon, the sun was shining brightly, and Jiang Jianhua and Yun Tangyin were sitting under the eaves embroidering.
Yun Tangyin was holding a small quilt she had embroidered for her child. The patterns of locust flowers and butterflies on the light pink fabric were almost finished.
"Sister-in-law, what do you think of the butterfly I embroidered?" Yun Tangyin handed her the quilt. "It's much better than the last time you taught me, right?"
Jiang Jianhua took the quilt, looked at it carefully, and nodded with a smile: "It's really beautiful. The stitching is much more even than before, and the butterfly wings are three-dimensional. When the baby is born and covered with it, it will definitely be the most beautiful little quilt."
She paused and continued, "When I feel better, I will embroider a tiger-head pillow for the child to bless him with good health."
Yun Tangyin smiled and agreed: "Okay, then we will do it together and make a complete set of small clothes, a small quilt, and a small pillow for the child, so that he can be very proud when he is one month old."
Jiang Jianhua's eyes brightened, the embroidery thread in her hand moved faster, and there was a lot more smile on her face than before.
For dinner, Fu Yucheng made Jiang Jianhua's favorite shepherd's purse and tofu soup, and also stewed pork ribs and corn soup.
"Second sister-in-law, drink more soup to nourish your body." Fu Yucheng poured her a bowl of pork ribs and corn soup. "This corn is sweet corn bought in town. The soup made from it is very sweet. I'm sure you like it."
Jiang Jianhua took the bowl of soup and took a sip. The sweetness of the corn mixed with the aroma of the pork ribs warmed her heart. "Thank you, Acheng. This soup is even more delicious than the one I had in the city."
Fu Yuanshan also picked up a piece of pork ribs for her: "Eat quickly, eat more to have strength. When you feel better, we will go to the back mountain to pick mushrooms, dry them and save them for winter."
At night, Jiang Jianhua lay in bed, thinking of everyone's care these days, and his heart was filled with warmth.
She touched her belly. Although she lost the baby, she knew that things would get better slowly with so many people around her who cared about her.
The moonlight from outside the window poured in, illuminating everything in the room and the hope in her heart.
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