sjar Chapter 433 The birth of a child
Chapter 433 The birth of a child
Li Ju'an received his medal and, carrying the skins of male macaques, returned to Lijiatun. He called Xiao Chen, the ranch's veterinarian, to treat Xiao Gangpao.
The veterinarian, seeing the little cannon's pitiful state, shook his head and said, "This hunting dog can't be put through any more trouble. These two legs are useless."
Even if the femur is fixed and healed after a humerus fracture, it will leave a lasting problem, leaving the person with a limp and unable to go hunting in the mountains.
Lin Mei hugged Xiao Gangpao, tears streaming down her face, and rubbed the dog's head to comfort Li Ju'an, saying, "It's okay, honey. It's good to keep Xiao Gangpao to guard the house. We've watched the little guy grow up from a puppy, and our yard just happens to need a guard dog."
Li Ju'an looked into Xiao Gangpao's eyes. The dog's eyes were staring at him. Xiao Gangpao wasn't exactly a smart dog, so it didn't understand what a watchdog meant. It just happily wagged its tail, grinned, and stuck its tongue out at him.
Li Ju'an said with a wry smile, "You brat, you've escaped with your life. Don't risk your life like that again."
Veterinarian Xiao Chen examined the other lightly injured hunting dogs one by one and laughed, "What hunting dog doesn't fight for its life? For hunting dogs, entering the mountains is like entering a battlefield. If the hunting dogs don't fight for their lives, it's the hunters who have to. The hunting dogs are risking their lives to protect the hunters from injury."
Li Ju'an treated the veterinarian to a simple meal and gave him 8 cents as a fee for running errands and treating patients. His mother, Song Lanhua, also thoughtfully gave him a basket of eggs laid by their backyard hens. Veterinarian Chen thanked him profusely, happily carrying the eggs as he left, winking at Li Ju'an and saying, "Next time, just call our landline; we've installed a telephone at our station."
"I know, let's go."
Li Ju'an saw off the veterinarian, Xiao Chen, and gently stroked his wife Lin Mei's belly. Lin Mei's pregnancy was becoming increasingly prominent, so he decided to take her to the town's central hospital for a check-up and to reserve a bed for delivery.
"Honey, I don't know how this baby is born. Should I ask Mom to find a nurse she knows at the hospital to help look after the baby and reserve a bed for a C-section?"
Lin Mei laughed and said, "It's not that complicated. I'll just give birth the same way other people do. C-sections cost a lot of money and are quite expensive."
Li Ju'an shook his head and said, "I'll ask around later. I heard that C-sections are safer. If anything happens to you two, I'll never forgive myself."
Lin Mei was amused. She gently cupped the man's face in her hands, gazing at Li Ju'an's sharply defined features—the face of her beloved. Li Ju'an's face was filled with worry, and this affection warmed her heart, making her feel incredibly comforted and secure.
She wrapped her whole body around Li Ju'an in her arms, gently patting her husband's broad, warm back as if coaxing a child, and patiently coaxed, "Okay, okay, I'll listen to you, husband. Whatever you say goes, okay? We should ask Mom to ask someone to go to the hospital to help check. I also want to know if it's a boy or a girl, so I can knit a sweater with nylon yarn and match the baby's colors."
She opened the drawer of the chest of drawers, and there were indeed three or four rolls of nylon thread inside. This was the nylon thread that Li's mother, Song Lanhua, had bought at the supply and marketing cooperative after visiting her aunt and other relatives in the county town. For the past few months, Song Lanhua had been busy preparing for the upcoming baby's arrival, from formula and cloth for diapers to pacifiers and baby cotton dolls. Even when Sun Hao came over, he said, "So many fun things, I want some too!"
At that time, Song Lanhua laughed at Sun Hao and said, "Tell your mother to have another brother or sister. Then you'll have both."
Sun Hao took it seriously and went home excitedly to urge his grandson to have a baby, only to be glared at by his mother. His grandmother, on the other hand, smiled and praised her grandson for doing the right thing and saying well.
Lin Mei turned Li Ju'an's face and pressed it against her stomach, putting her finger to her lips and saying, "Shh, did you hear that?"
His large, warm hand touched his wife's belly through the fabric. Suddenly, he felt a slight bump on her belly, and a small, fish-like ripple appeared, then slid away. He stared wide-eyed in surprise and said, "The baby kicked me!"
Lin Mei covered her mouth and giggled, saying, "Listen again."
Li Ju'an listened, and Lin Mei smiled gently. That winter, as the year was drawing to a close, their first child was born.
The newborn baby was delivered via cesarean section at the county's central hospital. Li Ju'an, a first-time father, was flustered and didn't even know how to hold the baby properly. The soft infant was so tiny; he was terrified of dropping the baby, of hurting him, or causing him to bump into something. He practically wanted to put the baby in his mouth and let him melt.
The head nurse came to check on the ward, looked at Li Ju'an's family, checked Lin Mei's IV drip, and said, "It's a good thing you arranged a C-section. This baby is lucky. The umbilical cord was wrapped around its neck so many times, it really wouldn't have been possible to give birth naturally. Here, family members, sign the consent form."
Li Ju'an quickly handed the baby in his arms to his mother, Song Lanhua, and then went to sign the papers.
Lin Mei called to him, and he hurriedly stood guard by his wife's hospital bedside, holding her hand. The two looked at each other and smiled.
"Honey, your wound hurts, don't move, I'll feed you."
"No, I still have to breastfeed the baby."
Lin's mother and brother-in-law came to the hospital to visit Lin Mei. Lin's mother believed that early breastfeeding was good for the baby's health and would also help Lin Mei's recovery. However, Lin Mei was in severe pain after her C-section and couldn't even urinate on her own. Li Ju'an had to bend over, letting his wife lean gently against his back, as they slowly made their way to the toilet. Even then, a urinary catheter had to be inserted, making it extremely painful for her.
After the anesthesia wore off, Lin Mei cried in her mother's arms from the pain. Her mother, as always, was capable and strong-willed, saying, "Why are you crying? Every woman goes through this. I went through the same thing when I gave birth to you and your brother. Other women can give birth, but you cry like this."
Lin Mei felt wronged, and her heart ached even more after being scolded by her mother. After her mother and brother-in-law left the hospital, it was late at night. Her mother, Song Lanhua, was so tired that she fell asleep outside the ward. Lin Mei looked at Li Ju'an, who hadn't had a good rest for several days, and felt guilty and remorseful.
Li Ju'an was leaning to one side, his hand supporting his chin, almost asleep. The hospital ward had four beds per room for four pregnant women, each with family members watching over them, making it extremely crowded. Some hadn't given birth yet, while others were groaning in pain after giving birth. Only after being officially discharged could the next pregnant woman line up to be admitted, so the beds were never empty.
Four men sat in chairs, all exhausted in the dead of night. Nearby, a woman in labor was screaming in pain as her cervix dilated, and a newborn baby was crying loudly. The new mother had no milk, and her baby was hungry, with nothing she could do. The entire hospital ward was noisy and crowded.
Lin Mei looked at Li Ju'an, who hadn't slept much for three days, and held his hand with heartache.