Wei Ruxia’s pregnancy proceeded very calmly; throughout the entire term, the baby inside her belly didn’t cause her much trouble. She even filmed two movies during her pregnancy period and attended two award ceremonies.
After completing filming for the project in June, she didn’t take on any more projects. Her work schedules were all arranged for after October. Wei Ruxia wasn’t a workaholic, but during her career ascent, she made her own choices. She ensured that filming schedules after September were mostly within Ancheng City, allowing her time to take care of the child.
At thirty-six weeks into her pregnancy, Wei Ruxia’s belly had become astonishingly large, and her appetite had significantly increased. With no one to take care of her at home, Luo Tang sent her to the main residence. Besides having Yang Shuru there, the aunt who had previously taken care of Yang Shuru during her pregnancy was also present, ensuring Wei Ruxia was well taken care of.
Compared to her time on set, life at home was inevitably more leisurely. Wei Ruxia, however, couldn’t stay idle. She created a plan for herself, delving into books and movies she hadn’t had time for before. She didn’t miss a single review or critique after watching them.
Regarding her pregnancy, the one most curious in the entire household was Luo Shian. While Wei Ruxia was reading in the small study on the second floor, she heard Luo Shian calling out “Sister-in-law” after school. She responded with a smile, not needing to get up as Luo Shian came bounding over.
The small study had its own balcony, where the cool breeze was quite refreshing. Wei Ruxia sat on a rattan chair, leaning back, and turned her head towards the doorway. Luo Shian’s petite face appeared, smiling sweetly as she ran in.
“I’m back!” Even though Luo Shian rushed in, she abruptly stopped about ten meters away from Wei Ruxia. After halting her steps, she slowly made her way to Wei Ruxia’s side.
Once beside Wei Ruxia, Shian curiously gazed at her belly, then looked up with wide eyes and said, “It’s gotten bigger again.”
She comes over to look every day, and she doesn’t know how she can tell that her belly is big; Wei Ruxia herself can’t see it.
Wei Ruxia smiled and placed Luo Shian’s hand on her belly. She’s been feeling fetal movements lately, especially today. As soon as Luo Shian’s little hand touched her belly, she felt a poke as if something was jabbing at her.
“Oh wow!” Luo Shian’s eyes widened in surprise. She had felt Wei Ruxia’s fetal movements before, but today’s were particularly strong. As soon as she placed her hand, it poked her forcefully, as if it wanted to come out right away.
“It’s a little brother!” Luo Shian said with great certainty.
“What ‘little brother’? This is your nephew,” Yang Shuru exclaimed, her voice rising in surprise upon hearing Luo Shian’s term for the child in Wei Ruxia’s belly.
Wei Ruxia laughed heartily, and Yang Shuru glanced at her, smiling as she handed over the fruit. After settling into a wicker chair, she asked Luo Shian, “How do you know it’s a boy?”
Wei Ruxia handed her a red grape, which Luo Shian accepted. As she ate, she said, “Because he’s strong.”
Elders often say that young children can accurately determine the gender of a fetus. Although Yang Shuru had just asked him, Luo Shian’s reasoning sounded so logical and convincing that it ironically reduced its credibility.
Seeing that her mother didn’t quite believe her, Luo Shian immediately climbed down from Yang Shuru’s lap. She reached out to touch Wei Ruxia’s belly, about to speak when she handed her a red grape. She nibbled on it and then confidently declared, “It’s definitely a baby boy. I’m right.”
Witnessing her serious and determined expression, Wei Ruxia chuckled lightly and placed her large hand over her small one, affirming, “Then it must be a baby boy.”
Luo Shian was pacified and looked up at Wei Ruxia, asking, “Sister-in-law, when is the baby going to be born?”
“In about four weeks,” Wei Ruxia replied according to the standard due date, although it could be two weeks earlier or later, which wouldn’t be a major issue.
“Mom!” Luo Shian called out to Yang Shuru after getting the answer.
“What’s up?” Yang Shuru leaned forward patiently and gently, as children tend to be in bursts of excitement.
“Let’s make a bet,” Luo Shian’s eyes sparkled with a hint of cleverness. “I guess it’s a boy, and you guess it’s a girl. When Sister-in-law gives birth, we’ll see who’s right.”
The earnestness of the little girl amused the two adults. Wei Ruxia raised her hand and said, “I’ll be the witness for your bet.”
Yang Shuru pulled her daughter close, pinched her cheek, and asked with a smile, “And how do we determine the winner?”
“If you win, I’ll obediently eat vegetables for a whole month,” Luo Shian said with a hint of reluctance.
The stakes for children’s bets were always light-hearted. Yang Shuru nodded with a smile and then asked, “And what if you win?”
Upon hearing this, Luo Shian’s eyes lit up, and he grinned mischievously at Yang Shuru. “I won’t go to school for a whole month!”
Yang Shuru: “……”
“In the end, Mom settled on one week for her,” After dinner, Wei Ruxia and Luo Tang went for a walk in the garden. As the cool evening breeze blew by, she told him about the bet the mother and daughter had made that afternoon.
Wei Ruxia is in primary school now, so skipping school for a month is not an option.
As they walked hand in hand, stepping on the cobblestone path, Luo Tang smiled and asked, “Hasn’t she been enjoying school recently? Why doesn’t she want to go now?”
Wei Ruxia didn’t answer Luo Tang immediately. Instead, she smiled first and explained, “It’s because the little boy Shian likes is transferring to another school in a few days, so she doesn’t want to go to school anymore.”
Upon hearing this reason, Luo Tang looked at Wei Ruxia, his gaze slightly darkening.
The two of them arrived at the garden bench, Wei Ruxia holding Luo Tang’s hand as they sat down. She smiled at him and asked, “What’s on your mind?”
When Luo Tang was in his twenties, Luo Shian was born. He has always taken good care of Luo Shian, almost like a sister-con. After pondering Wei Ruxia’s question for a moment, Luo Tang said, “I hope Shian wins.”
Upon hearing him say this, Wei Ruxia was slightly surprised. She asked, “Do you want a son then?”
“Not really,” Luo Tang shook his head. He let out a light sigh and smiled, saying, “With Shian acting like this now, my feelings are somewhat complicated. If our daughter were to be the same, I might not let her go to school either.”
“Hahaha!” Wei Ruxia laughed. After chuckling for a while, she said to Luo Tang, “But it’s also possible that our daughter will attract little boys. When Mom attended Shian’s parent-teacher meeting, there were several little boys who brought their moms to meet Mom.”
She intended to reassure Luo Tang with her words, but he seemed to feel otherwise, which amused Wei Ruxia, and she laughed again.
The garden of the mansion was illuminated by street lamps, and it was particularly quiet in the evening. It had rained earlier in the afternoon, leaving a refreshing coolness in the air, with the sound of insects chirping in the grass.
Luo Tang watched Wei Ruxia smile, and before she realized what was happening, he had already leaned in to kiss her. Wei Ruxia’s smile froze as she leaned back against the backrest of the bench, feeling Luo Tang’s gentle kiss, her cheeks gradually warming up.
His kiss was gentle, like the night breeze tonight, leaving Wei Ruxia feeling ticklish. As Luo Tang moved his lips away, Wei Ruxia looked up at him, and his eyes gleamed faintly under the street lamp.
“I was just joking,” Luo Tang said softly.
His voice was low and gentle, and Wei Ruxia felt a sweetness in her heart as she listened. She didn’t quite catch it at first and looked at Luo Tang, smiling as she asked, “What?”
“They will naturally have their own husbands to take care of them,” Luo Tang said to Wei Ruxia. He kissed her forehead lightly and smiled, “I just need to take care of my wife.”
The night sky was pitch black, and the stars were brighter than usual. Wei Ruxia tilted her head to look at Luo Tang, and after a moment, she chuckled softly, saying, “If I have a son, I’ll climb over the walls. Let the one who loves my son come to me.”
Luo Tang: “……”
Unlike Hu Yinyin, Wei Ruxia’s due date arrived two days earlier than expected. Early in the morning, she woke up to find that her water had broken. Having witnessed Hu Yinyin’s childbirth last time, Wei Ruxia remained calm. She called out to Luo Tang, who was getting dressed to go to work. He glanced at her upon hearing her call and saw that the bedsheet was already wet.
In his eyes, she saw an overwhelming sense of panic.
“Is it time?” Luo Tang lifted Wei Ruxia up immediately, his brow furrowing. As he walked out with her, he pressed his cheek against her forehead and whispered, “Are you in pain?”
Wei Ruxia was experiencing contractions now, but they weren’t too severe yet. She shook her head, indicating to Luo Tang that she wasn’t in much pain. However, his brow furrowed even more tightly. After carrying Wei Ruxia out, he called out, “Mom.” Yang Shuru came out and, seeing the situation, immediately understood. She quickly summoned the nanny and the driver, and they hurriedly took Wei Ruxia to the hospital.
Although Wei Ruxia wasn’t exactly panicking, she was very nervous, especially on the way to the hospital. Her contractions became more pronounced, and eventually, the pain even caused her to break out in a cold sweat.
Yang Shuru, with her experience in childbirth, reminded Wei Ruxia to take deep breaths. When they arrived at the hospital, Wei Ruxia was immediately wheeled into the delivery room, with Luo Tang following closely behind.
The memory of Hu Yinyin’s cries during childbirth was still fresh in Wei Ruxia’s mind. Giving birth was indeed extremely painful, and she could hardly bear it. Moreover, she hadn’t eaten breakfast when she woke up in the morning, leaving her feeling a bit weak. Yang Shuru came over midway and handed her a piece of chocolate.
Wei Ruxia’s labor lasted longer than Hu Yinyin’s. Three hours later, she felt something slipping out, and at the same time, she felt a sense of emptiness in her belly.
She collapsed back onto the delivery bed, completely relaxing her previously strained back. Staring up at the ceiling, she listened to the busy sounds of the doctors and nurses. Wei Ruxia let out a heavy sigh of relief and drifted into unconsciousness.
When she woke up, Luo Tang was sitting beside her, his brow furrowed deeply. As soon as he noticed Wei Ruxia waking up, he called for the doctor.
“Don’t worry too much,” said the hospital doctor, who was arranged by Luo Tang’s grandfather and knew Luo Tang. Seeing Luo Tang’s anxious expression, she smiled and reassured him a bit. After checking on Wei Ruxia, she smiled and said, “Everything is normal. You can be discharged tomorrow.”
After completing the examination, the doctor didn’t linger and left Wei Ruxia and Luo Tang alone. Wei Ruxia was still feeling a bit weak, but she asked the question on her mind:
“Where’s the baby?”
Luo Tang leaned in and kissed her lips, saying, “Mom is over there watching. She said she’d wait for you to wake up before bringing him over because he tends to cry a lot.”
Luo Tang was usually very composed, but the baby could indeed cry a lot. Wei Ruxia thought for a moment and guessed, “A daughter?”
It seemed likely that a girl would cry more.
Upon hearing Wei Ruxia’s words, Luo Shian’s expression became somewhat complicated. He shook his head and said, “Son.”
“Ah~” Whether it’s a son or a daughter, Wei Ruxia likes them both.
Looking at Wei Ruxia’s expression, Luo Shian suddenly asked, “Was what you said that day true or false?”
“Pregnancy makes you silly for three years,” and Wei Ruxia couldn’t quite connect with Luo Tang’s train of thought. She smiled and asked, “What did I say?”
Seeing that she genuinely forgot, Luo Tang raised the corner of his lips, smiled, and said, “Nothing.”
As they prepared to leave the hospital, Wei Ruxia sat on the bed reading a book. Watching Luo Tang feed their son with a bottle, Wei Ruxia suddenly remembered Luo Tang’s question from earlier.
Luo Tang hadn’t been going to work these past few days. He was dressed in simple and comfortable home clothes. His manner of holding the baby was very skillful, and he handled the bottle-feeding with remarkable ease.
The curtains were drawn, letting in filtered sunlight. The light cast shadows of the man holding the baby onto the curtains.
Wei Ruxia set down her book and called out to Luo Tang.
“Luo Tang.”
Upon hearing Wei Ruxia call his name, Luo Tang turned his head and responded softly, “Hmm?”
Wei Ruxia smiled and said to Luo Tang.
“I don’t climb walls. You’re the one I love most in this world.”
The sudden confession caught Luo Tang slightly off guard, but he quickly understood. A smile formed on his lips as he looked into Wei Ruxia’s eyes, filled with affection.
With the bottle in his hand, he lowered his head and whispered to his son in his arms.
“Did you hear that? Your mom said she loves me the most.”
Author’s note: As an auntie who has never given birth to a child, I find it amusing that I end up writing childbirth scenes for the female protagonists in every book. Go figure!
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