Tangli Fried Snow

Duan Jingyu was anxiously waiting outside the delivery room, where his delicate wife was moaning and crying.

His fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly; the torment he endured for the past two days and nights was even more arduous than fighting on the battlefield.

I don't know what happened with this pregnancy; it was so difficult to give birth!

Two days ago, they were having dinner. Xu Sangning was eating a bowl of soup, chatting happily with him as she ate. Her round face was full of happiness. She even said to the head maid beside her in a coquettish tone, "Fuying, this soup is too bland today. Your young lady is pregnant, not in jail!"

Fu Ying smiled and said to her, "Miss, the doctor and the midwife said that your baby is big this time, so you need to eat less and move more to have a smooth delivery. After you finish eating, you should still go for a walk in the yard with your husband!"

While eating, Xu Sangning said, "Okay, then let's find a few more people to carry lanterns and follow us." Her mouth was bulging from eating, making her look like a cute little kitten.

Duan Jingyu looked at her, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve into a smile.

Unexpectedly, Xu Sangning and Fu Ying exchanged a few more words, and Xu Sangning had just laughed when a gush of amniotic fluid flowed out from below, gushing down his trouser leg to his feet. Startled, he exclaimed, "Oh no, husband, did I pee?"

Duan Jingyu was also startled, and said with doubt, "Is she about to give birth?"

"Someone, quickly go and fetch the lady, and quickly go and call the midwife!"

Three experienced midwives had long been living in the courtyard; two were invited by Madam Jiang, and one was sent from afar by Princess Duan from the south.

After the initial panic subsided, Xu Sangning's stomach began to hurt regularly. She nervously gripped her husband's hand, and Duan Jingyu picked her up and carried her to a clean and warm room that had been prepared in advance next to their bedroom.

The midwives, maids, and servants all sprang into action, and the entire courtyard was thrown into chaos.

Soon after hearing the news, Madam Jiang arrived with her entourage. A large group of people surrounded Xu Sangning, chattering about all sorts of things, creating quite a lively scene.

Too many cooks spoil the broth! Xu Sangning's head was throbbing from their nagging. What was her good mother saying? Telling her to push, Ning'er, push! Her water just broke, what was she supposed to do? And those maids, they were busy burning incense for her, arguing about which incense would help with labor. What was she doing burning incense at a time like this?

Duan Jingyu couldn't stand it any longer and went in, shouting, "Shut up, all of you!" The women inside all fell silent at the same time, and the whole world became quiet.

Duan Jingyu chased away all the irrelevant people and asked his mother-in-law to leave as well, leaving only Fuying and the three midwives inside to watch over Xu Sangning.

He held his wife's hand and talked to her for a long time. There is an old saying that women who give birth are stepping into the gates of hell. This was her first pregnancy, she was young, and her belly was big, so it was even more dangerous.

Although Xu Sangning was a little flustered, her eyes remained calm, and she even comforted her husband. She nodded vigorously at him and said, "I'm fine. You can go out too. Men shouldn't stay in the delivery room. There are midwives here. You can wait outside."

Duan Jingyu patted her hand, gave her an encouraging smile, and stood up. He said to the three midwives with a serious expression, "If you ensure the safety of the lady and her child, you will naturally receive your due rewards. If anything goes wrong, you'd better consider the consequences yourselves!"

All three were intimidated by his imposing manner and couldn't help but kneel down and kowtow.

Fu Ying quickly stepped in to smooth things over, helping them up as she said, "Gentlemen, please get up. The young prince only said that so that the princess could have a safe delivery. As long as the princess can give birth safely, you will all be rewarded, and you will all enjoy wealth and honor in the future!"

Hearing this, the three midwives felt relieved and got up from the ground to begin examining Xu Sangning.

Duan Jingyu pointed to the most capable and composed midwife and said, "You will be in charge of the Princess's delivery this time, with the other three assisting. You will make the decisions first." The midwife was one of the two women invited by Madam Jiang, and she accepted the order and said yes.

After assigning tasks to the staff, Duan Jingyu went outside to stand. Soon after, the physician arrived with his medicine box and waited outside in case of emergency.

An hour passed in the blink of an eye. Xu Sangning's contractions grew increasingly painful, and she finally couldn't help but groan softly. The midwife examined her and said to her gently, "Madam, you've only just started having contractions. You're still a long way from giving birth. Just bear with it and don't shout. Save your strength for last."

Xu Sangning was tormented by pain and could not speak, only giving a low reply.

I thought I would give birth that night, but I waited until dawn and still didn't give birth. The next day, everyone said I would definitely give birth in the morning, but I waited another day and even suffered through the whole night in pain without giving birth.

Before long, dawn broke again. Xu Sangning had been in pain for two days and two nights, sometimes lying down, sometimes standing, and she had to eat several extra meals to replenish her strength.

She hadn't slept for over two days, and the pain became so intense that she was almost delirious. Fu Ying was terrified and cried, while Duan Jingyu paced anxiously outside. The imperial physician finally went in, gave her acupuncture, forced her to drink a bowl of ginseng soup, and placed ginseng slices under her mouth to keep her breathing. One midwife massaged her abdomen, while two others delivered the baby. Suddenly, one of the midwives shouted, "Push! Madam, push with the contractions!"

Xu Sangning felt an excruciating pain about to tear her lower body apart. The pain at this moment was longer than a lifetime. Her ears started to ring, and her vision gradually blurred. At that moment, it felt as if her soul had left her body for a while. Perhaps she really was going to die like this.

Does death mean the pain will stop? Is this what going to hell for punishment is all about?

A baby's cry brought her back to her senses.

Her soul returned to its place, her ears returned to normal, and her eyes could see the top of the tent clearly again.

The midwives laughed and said, "It's born! It's born! Congratulations, Madam, it's a little prince!"

Xu Sangning felt a surge of joy rush to her head, and then everything went black before her eyes, and she fainted.

When I woke up again, it was two days later.

Xu Sangning had many dreams. In her dreams, she felt as if she had been taken away by Ox-Head and Horse-Face, as if she had entered hell. She was led into a vat of boiling oil and tortured. Her lower body felt like it was being roasted on a fire, swollen and painful.

She couldn't help but shout: I haven't done anything bad, I haven't even stepped on an ant, let me out, let me out now!

No one paid any attention to her; two mountains slowly pressed down on her chest, making it hard for her to breathe.

She couldn't help but open her eyes, only to feel a sharp pain in her chest, a sharp pain in her lower body, and a sharp pain in all the joints of her body.

Duan Jingyu, his face covered in stubble and his eyes red, sat by the bed looking at her. As soon as he saw she was awake, he quickly leaned closer and said excitedly, "You're awake!"

"Someone come here! Quickly bring the lady a bowl of ginseng soup!"

The physician said, "Madam is weak after childbirth and cannot take much tonic." He only had someone bring her a bowl of porridge to drink.

Duan Jingyu personally helped her up, placed a thick blanket under her lower back, and then personally fed her a bowl of fragrant millet porridge. Only after finishing the bowl did Xu Sangning feel that she had truly come back to life.

When she regained her strength, the first thing she said was, "Where are the children?"

Duan Jingyu smiled and ordered the wet nurse to bring his son over. Due to a difficult birth, the child was born with a reddish-purple complexion, a large head, a fleshy body, and legs that were much longer than those of a normal baby. His face was wrinkled and he was so ugly that he was hard to look at.

But his own mother looked at him and thought he was the most beautiful child in the world. She held him tightly and wouldn't let go, kissing his chubby little face again and again, laughing and crying at the same time.

Fearing that she would become emotionally agitated and physically unable to handle it, Duan Jingyu quickly took the child away and had someone take him to the next room.

He smiled and said softly to Xu Sangning, "You should rest well. The child is next door. I'll stay here with you."

Xu Sangning also felt very tired. Although her mind didn't want to sleep, her body wouldn't listen to her. As soon as she closed her eyes, she woke up again and it was already dawn.

She was awakened by the pain in her chest. When she told Fuying, Fuying brought in a woman who knew how to induce lactation. The woman drained all the milk from her breasts, and she felt much better. The woman came once a day to drain the milk. After three days, the milk gradually stopped because there was no baby suckling, and her health began to improve.

For the next few days, Duan Jingyu spent his time either with her or receiving relatives and friends who came to offer their congratulations in the courtyard. Anyone who was even remotely related to her or had any standing came over with gifts.

Duan Jingyu spent a whole month with her and even threw a lively full-month celebration for their son.