Gu Yanxiao hadn't returned until Xia Liang's due date. The family was having breakfast when Han Yulan said, "I wonder when that brat will arrive. If he doesn't make it in time for his daughter's birth, I'm definitely going to tell my granddaughter." Gu Weiguo, unusually, disagreed with his wife's statement: "He has no choice. He's in the military; he has to follow orders." Han Yulan knew this perfectly well; she was just worried her daughter-in-law might have reservations. After all, since Xia Liang became pregnant, her husband hadn't been by her side for a single day, and now that she was almost due, he still couldn't come back. Xia Liang, of course, understood her mother-in-law's good intentions and comforted her, "It's alright, Mom. He's not a doctor. Even if he were here, he could only wait outside; he couldn't help much." If he didn't come back, the child would take her surname, Xia Liang thought.
After dinner, Gu Weiguo and Han Yulan were about to leave for work. As usual, Han Yulan asked her daughter-in-law a few questions, but Xia Liang suddenly felt a sharp pain in her abdomen. Seeing Xia Liang doubled over in pain, the couple quickly went to support her, asking, "What's wrong? Are you going into labor?" They then hurriedly helped her out the door. A few days ago, Xia Rong had brought their tricycle over, worried that it would be difficult to get to the hospital when her sister gave birth. When Xia Liang was taken to the hospital, the pain had subsided, and she lay in bed as usual. Han Yulan said this was normal; contractions are like this. Han Yulan looked at Gu Weiguo: "Go to your workplace, I'll stay here." Gu Weiguo nodded and ran off to his workplace.
Xia Liang lay in the hospital bed, experiencing contractions every now and then, each time feeling like she was about to give birth, but each time it was a false alarm. She said to Han Yulan, "Mom, could it just be that my stomach is uncomfortable, and it's not time to give birth yet?" Han Yulan took her hand and said, "No, contractions happen when you're close to labor. The shorter the intervals between contractions, the closer you are to giving birth." Xia Liang understood. Not long after, Zhao Danxiang arrived at the hospital with her granddaughter. Wu Ma, seeing Gu Weiguo and Han Yulan, didn't even bother to go to her in-laws' house to inform them, and ran off on her own. When Zhao Danxiang arrived, Xia Liang was in excruciating pain. She didn't even have time to greet her own mother. The little girl in Zhao Danxiang's arms looked at her aunt, who was lying in bed moaning, with a curious expression. Wu Ma brought lunch, and Han Yulan coaxed Xia Liang to eat a little. Xia Liang was in too much pain to eat, but after the pain subsided, she quickly picked up her bowl and ate a few mouthfuls. Zhao Danxiang said, "Eat more while you still have an appetite, otherwise you won't have the strength when you give birth." Xia Liang nodded and ate two bowls of rice.
Xia Dahe, Xia Rong, and Zhou Xiaohui all came to the hospital after get off work. After checking on Xia Liang, they sat in the ward. The whole family was waiting for Xia Liang to go into labor, but the baby showed no signs of coming out even by nightfall. They asked the doctor, who said it was normal; many women give birth after three days and three nights. This terrified Xia Liang; she thought that if she were to give birth for three days and three nights, the pain would be unbearable.
At this moment, Gu Yanxiao ran to the county government compound as soon as he got off the train in the county town. He found that the door to his house was closed, so he hurriedly ran to his father-in-law's house, but the door was also closed. He thought that his wife was probably in the hospital, but he didn't know if she had already given birth or had just been taken in. He was so anxious that his legs went weak. He couldn't help but silently pray in his heart, "Baby, wait for Daddy, Daddy will be there soon."
When Gu Yanxiao arrived at the hospital, he went straight to the obstetrics and gynecology department. He had been there when Zhou Xiaohui gave birth before, so he didn't need to ask for directions. At that moment, Xia Liang in the ward suddenly started having pain again. The head of the bed was facing the door, and she saw a panting man running up from outside. Xia Liang couldn't help but shed tears. Han Yulan saw this and asked worriedly, "What's wrong, A Liang? Is it very painful? I'll go find a doctor." She turned around to go find a doctor, but in her haste, she bumped into a fleshy wall. The wall pushed her back a step. She rubbed her nose and looked at the person who seemed to have already asked her to come to the back of her. When she saw it was her son, she couldn't help but slap him twice in annoyance.
Gu Yanxiao knelt before the hospital bed, his hands tightly holding Xia Liang's. For a moment, the room was silent. Gu Yanxiao pressed Xia Liang's hands against his face, and Xia Liang felt a hot, burning liquid soak her hands. For a moment, she forgot the pain, then, remembering there were other people in the room, she quickly pulled her hands away and patted his shoulder, gesturing for him to look around. Only then did Gu Yanxiao realize that his parents, his parents-in-law, his brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Aunt Wu, and a chubby little baby were in the room. He immediately felt incredibly awkward. The others in the room, seeing his slightly red and watery eyes, knew what had just happened and felt a little uncomfortable themselves. It was Han Yulan who broke the silence. She had just been about to go find the doctor, but seeing her son interrupted her, asking, "Ah Liang, how are you feeling now? Is it still painful?" Xia Liang nodded slightly, "It hurts." Han Yulan said, "I'll go find the doctor right away," and ran towards the hospital office.
After the doctor arrived and asked Xia Liang some questions, he told the family that she was about to give birth. He then called a nurse to take Xia Liang to the operating room. The whole family waited anxiously outside the ward. Gu Yanxiao didn't say a word, radiating a depressed aura. The others were also anxious and didn't pay much attention to him. After more than an hour inside, the nurse pushed open the door and said, "Have you prepared the swaddle blanket? Here, the baby has been born." Gu Yanxiao rushed forward and said, "Hello, how is my wife?" The nurse, seeing the handsome man in front of her, didn't care about blushing at this moment and said, "Don't worry, mother and daughter are safe." The two families waiting outside were relieved. Zhao Danxiang glanced at the Gu family's expressions, wondering if they would be disgusted by the fact that it was a granddaughter. However, the Gu family were all smiles, which reassured her.
When the nurse brought the baby out, a group of people crowded around to look. Han Yulan said, "Her eyes look like A Liang's. Even though they're closed, her eyeliner will make them grow bigger. Her nose and mouth look like Yan Xiao's." Zhao Danxiang glanced at her granddaughter without saying anything, but her lips were always upturned. Xia Dahe said, "I think she looks more like A Liang. She looks exactly like A Liang when she was little." Gu Yanxiao echoed his father-in-law, "Yes, she really does look like A Liang. She's beautiful." Xia Dahe nodded in satisfaction.
Gu Weiguo "..."
Han Yulan “......”
The rest of the Xia family said "..."
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