Chapter 95: A Sudden Illness
Qingyan and Qiu Henian walked back to Liuxi Village together, taking their time.
The load on the cart was quite heavy, and even Qiu Henian, who was strong, needed to rest twice along the way.
Qingyan felt sorry for him and suggested, “We’ve been saving money before, but now we have quite a bit saved up. Let’s buy a horse. That way, we won’t have to tire ourselves out like this, and it’ll save us a lot of effort.”
Qiu Henian thought for a moment and said, “That’s a good idea. With a horse and cart, it’ll be convenient for you, Aunt Li, and Qiuniang to go back and forth from town, and we won’t need to hire a carriage when we go to the county. We can keep the horse in the yard and as long as we clean up regularly, it won’t get dirty.”
Since they got married, except for being particular about their meals, they hadn’t really spent much money on anything else. This was the first time they were adding a large animal to their home, and a matching horse and cart weren’t cheap either.
But now that they had the money, they needed to spend it where necessary. What was the point of earning money if they couldn’t bear to spend it?
When they reached the blacksmith’s shop, Qiu Henian asked Qingyan if he should go home first. Qingyan shook his head and said, “I’ll wait here for you to go back together.”
By this time, it wasn’t early anymore, and the sun was beginning to slant westward. Qiu Henian agreed, and he and Xiao Zhuang unloaded the cart. Qingyan took out the account book and meticulously helped them check the accounts.
By the time they finished unloading the cart and arranging the materials, Qiu Henian took off his outer robe, added coal to the stove, and took out the red-hot iron block with tongs, placing it on the anvil to hammer.
Seeing that his master didn’t need his help, Xiao Zhuang washed his hands and strolled over to his mistress’s side. He took out an orange from his pocket and placed it next to the account book.
Qingyan looked up at him and said, “Thank you.”
Xiao Zhuang scratched his head awkwardly, smiled, and then went back to work.
When Qiu Henian had finished his work, the sun was finally about to set behind the mountain.
He had Xiao Zhuang extinguish the fire in the stove, and they quickly tidied up the shop so they could close.
Putting on his outer robe again, Qiu Henian turned to find Qingyan, only to see him lying on the table where the account book was placed, seemingly asleep.
He walked over quietly, bent down to look, and saw Qingyan with one hand on the table, his head resting on his arm. His face was pale, his brows furrowed tightly, looking very unwell.
“Qingyan!” Qiu Henian called out to him.
Qingyan’s eyelids twitched, and he opened his eyes. Qiu Henian’s anxious heart slightly relaxed.
After Qingyan opened his eyes, he blinked blankly for a few moments, then suddenly pushed him away with a cry, vomiting onto the floor.
Qiu Henian quickly went behind him, one hand loosely around his waist and abdomen to prevent him from falling under the chair, while gently patting his slender back.
Qingyan vomited a few more times until everything he had eaten was completely gone.
Xiao Zhuang also heard the commotion and hurried over. Although he looked nervous, he knew to bring the cup his master usually drank water from, filled it with fresh water, and handed it over.
Qiu Henian took the cup, and seeing that Qingyan didn’t want to vomit anymore, he helped him rinse his mouth with water.
Seeing his mistress like this, Xiao Zhuang was so scared that his hands trembled. He stammered, “Is… is it because the orange I just gave Mistress wasn’t fresh?”
Upon hearing this, Qiu Henian suddenly looked at him.
Just as Qingyan finished rinsing his mouth, he weakly said, taking the orange from the bundle on the table, “It’s not your fault. I haven’t eaten it yet.”
Xiao Zhuang was almost in tears, thinking that his master would kick him out.
Qiu Henian helped Qingyan lie down on the temporary plank bed next to the shop and then quickly cleaned up the mess on the floor.
Xiao Zhuang handed him a shovel and then a bucket for the trash. After finishing, he quickly carried it out.
When Qiu Henian was done and returned to the bedside, Qingyan’s face had improved slightly.
He reached out and touched Qingyan’s forehead, saying, “It doesn’t feel hot. You shouldn’t have a fever.”
Qingyan said, “Maybe it was because of the buns I ate just now. My stomach must have been upset. I’ll be fine.”
Qiu Henian nodded, and Qingyan glanced at Xiao Zhuang, who was standing at the door looking worried and hesitant. Not wanting the boy to worry, he said, “Let’s go home.”
Qiu Henian took off his outer robe and draped it over Qingyan, helped him up, and squatted in front of him, saying, “Come on, I’ll carry you back.”
Qingyan didn’t hesitate. His body was weak, and he was sure he couldn’t walk back on his own. He leaned forward onto the tall figure in front of him, burying his face in the man’s neck.
After Xiao Zhuang locked the shop door, they went straight home. Xiao Zhuang was still uneasy, but Qingyan gestured for him to go, saying, “Hurry home. Your parents will worry if you’re late.” Xiao Zhuang nodded, locked the door, and ran in the direction of home.
Qiu Henian carried Qingyan all the way back home. After entering the house, he had Qingyan take off his outer robe and lie down on the bed. He went to wash his hands, change his dirty clothes, and then went to the outer room to light the stove and cook porridge.
That night, after Qingyan drank the porridge, he fell asleep.
In the middle of the night, his body temperature rose, feeling hot to the touch.
Qiu Henian brought a basin of cold water over and repeatedly washed a cloth to wipe him down to reduce his fever. When the water warmed up, he would get another basin.
After tossing and turning all night like this, Qingyan’s body finally didn’t feel hot anymore.
Qingyan didn’t sleep much that night. When he did sleep, he kept talking in his sleep.
Sometimes he said, “Don’t come near me, don’t…” and other times he repeated, “I don’t want to die, I don’t want to die.”
In the middle of the night, he got up to vomit twice more. Qiu Henian tried to get him to drink more porridge, but he couldn’t eat anything and had to give up.
Just as dawn was breaking, Qingyan finally fell deeply asleep.
He didn’t know how long he had been asleep when he vaguely heard someone speaking softly.
He struggled to open his eyes and saw the familiar ceiling.
The voices continued softly, and he turned his head to see the old doctor sitting at the table by the window, writing something while saying, “From what I observed, he must have suffered some fright. I’ll prescribe a sedative to calm his mind. You can come get the medicine from me later, and I’ll prepare it for you. Give him a dose of the medicine soup every morning and evening for six or seven days, and he’ll be fine.”
Qiu Henian stood at the side table, back facing this side of the bed, bending over carefully reading the prescription. During his time detoxifying, he had some understanding of these things.
The old doctor finished writing, took the prescription, looked it over again as usual, and handed it to him. When Qiu Henian looked down, the old doctor added, “By the way, I’ve adjusted this calming prescription. It uses mild herbs, so you can rest assured. It won’t affect the child in his stomach.”
Qingyan blinked, unable to react to what he had just heard.
At this point, Qiu Henian had already put down the prescription and assisted the old doctor to walk outside.
The door creaked open and footsteps receded outside.
Qingyan wanted to call out to someone, but his throat was dry, and for a moment, he couldn’t make a sound. He could only watch as the person left, and then the door closed again.
Feeling somewhat disappointed, Qingyan lowered his eyelids. Just then, he heard the door opening again. Surprised, he turned his head to see the tall figure hurriedly returning.
Seeing the familiar man, Qingyan’s eyes inexplicably welled up with tears. He turned towards him and reached out his arm.
Qiu Henian quickly walked to the bedside, reaching out to embrace the hands extended towards him, lifting him up and settling him onto his lap at the edge of the bed.
Qingyan buried his face in the crook of his neck and asked softly, “Didn’t you just go out? Why did you come back?”
Qiu Henian reached for the blanket, wrapping it around Qingyan and himself, his voice resonating in his chest, “When I was about to leave just now, I thought I heard you calling me, so I came back to check on you.”
Feeling comforted, Qingyan embraced the man’s neck, nuzzling against him like a small cat.
Qiu Henian said, “I need to take the old doctor back to the clinic and bring back the medicine he prescribed for you.”
Qingyan looked up at him, and Qiu Henian leaned down to kiss his forehead tenderly, “I’ve asked Chen Yu to come over and keep you company.”
Surprised, Qingyan asked, “Chen Yu from next door?”
Qiu Henian explained, “Aunt Li and Qiuniang went to the shop early. The Liu family’s tofu is being delivered right now, and everyone at home is busy. So, I went to Mr. Zhang and asked him to send Chen Yu over to look after you for a while. He’s currently in the outer room cooking noodles for you.”
No wonder when the old doctor was writing the prescription just now, Qingyan faintly heard the sound of bowls and plates from the outer room.
Qiu Henian slightly tightened his arms around Qingyan, gave him another hug, and then bent down to kiss his lips.
“The old doctor is waiting outside. I have to go.”
With great care, he gently laid Qingyan back onto the bed and stood by the bedside, bending down to tuck him in with the blanket.
Afterward, with both hands supporting the mattress, he gazed at Qingyan’s face, various emotions flashing through his eyes, finally condensing into one sentence, “Qingyan, wait for me to come back.”
…
Qiu Henian hadn’t been gone for long when the door creaked open again. Chen Yu walked in carrying a steaming bowl.
Seeing Qingyan looking in his direction, he smirked, “Young Master Yu is finally awake.”
Qingyan paid no attention to his teasing tone; his gaze was fixed on the baby in the sling on Chen Yu’s back.
He had been busy lately and hadn’t seen Xiao Jiuliang for a long time. The child inherited both Chen Yu and his husband’s best traits, fair as white jade and incredibly cute.
Chen Yu placed the bowl on the round table beside the bed. Noticing Qingyan’s gaze, he untied the sling and placed Xiao Jiuliang on the bed. As soon as the child was set down, he squirmed and kicked his legs, his big round eyes looking around.
Feeling nervous, Qingyan said, “Don’t let the child catch a chill.”
Chen Yu rolled his eyes, “If I don’t put him down, I’ll be carrying him all the time. When you have one in your belly and it grows this big, you’ll understand how hard it is to carry them every day!”
He added, “Besides, I didn’t even pay attention. Why are you making a fuss?”
Qingyan was taken aback, not hearing the latter part of his statement. His attention was focused on the phrase “when you have one in your belly.”
Instinctively, he reached out to touch his own abdomen, asking blankly, “One in my belly?”
Seeing his reaction, Chen Yu was also stunned for a moment before suddenly realizing, “So your family hasn’t told you yet? You’ve been pregnant for about a month and a half now, according to the doctor!”
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
Qiu Henian placed Qingyan’s feet back on the bed, covered them with a blanket, then leaned on the mattress with both hands and softly said, “Qingyan, we need to endure for a while. The doctor said no intimacy for the first three months.”
