Tianliangyuan

Chapter 443 Premature birth

In early February, after visiting her family, Li Mingya suddenly experienced abdominal pain, which triggered premature labor.

Fortunately, Wang Ruolan was well-prepared, so both the delivery room and the midwife were readily available, preventing her from being caught off guard.

When Wang Ruolan arrived, Li Mingya's mother, Madam Ji, was already in a panic, pale and helpless. The two women standing behind her also looked unwell.

"what happened?"

The maidservant serving by his side dared not hide anything and told him everything in detail.

It turned out that Madam Ji had come to visit her daughter, bringing a lot of tonics, hoping that her daughter would give birth to a son so that she could gain a foothold in the Xu family in the future. However, she did not expect that Li Mingshu would say that looking at Li Mingya's belly, it looked more like a daughter.

This wouldn't normally have caused Li Mingya to have a premature birth, but as the conversation went on, they unconsciously brought up topics like taking a concubine. Li Mingya already felt somewhat inferior because she was the one with the lowest social standing among her sisters-in-law, and now, after Li Mingshu's words, she felt even more useless. Thinking about these things too much naturally made it easier for trouble to arise.

Wang Ruolan is Li Mingya's mother-in-law. She has been taking good care of Li Mingya since she became pregnant. Who would have thought that the visit from her family would lead to Li Mingya's premature birth?

Seeing the Duchess's unfriendly gaze, Li Mingshu quickly explained, "Aunt, it wasn't my fault. It was just a casual remark."

Wang Ruolan wasn't stupid. She knew why Li Mingshu would say such things—it was simply because she couldn't stand seeing Li Mingya doing well!

"Quickly, go and ask the doctor to wait here. Also, could you send someone to the government office to inform the Third Young Master?"

"Reporting to Madam, someone has already gone to inform the Third Young Master, and he should be back soon."

"Take my letter and go fetch the imperial physician."

"Yes, ma'am."

Li Mingya's groans of pain came from inside the room, and Wang Ruolan felt bad too.

She has three daughters-in-law, and each of them had a relatively smooth delivery, unlike some families where childbirth can be fatal for the mother.

But Li Mingya's voice still frightened Wang Ruolan somewhat.

"Go to the Duke of Huguo's mansion and find either Shaoyao or Granny Xu. If the princess is alright, ask her to come over. If the princess is also unwell, then there is no need to disturb her."

"Yes, ma'am."

Xu Zhaozhao is in very good health; she's currently playing cards with a few girls.

You're saying my third sister-in-law had a premature birth?

"Yes, when I heard that the Third Young Mistress was complaining of stomach pain, Madam Li and the two illegitimate daughters of the Li family were present."

"Alright, go and tell Mother that I am fine and will be there soon."

"Yes, county lord."

Xu Zhaozhao changed her clothes. She wasn't in a hurry. Judging from the timeline, even if it was a difficult childbirth, it shouldn't have happened so soon.

However, there seems to be something strange about this.

How could just a few words cause my third sister-in-law to experience abdominal pain and premature labor?

It just doesn't seem right no matter how I look at it.

Soon, Xu Zhaozhao arrived at the Duke of Xin's mansion. At this time, Li Mingya was still in the delivery room. According to the mansion, she had been in the delivery room for almost two hours.

Xu Junting never expected that his wife would be fine when he left home in the morning, but then an accident would happen so soon.

But he couldn't say anything harsh to his mother-in-law, so he could only pace back and forth anxiously.

The imperial physician also took her pulse and confirmed that the pregnancy had been disturbed, but the baby showed no signs of moving down, which was why Li Mingya was in so much pain.

According to the midwife, the amniotic sac should have already broken. If the baby is held in for too long, even if it is born safely, it may be mentally challenged.

Moreover, in this situation, the probability of a safe delivery seems to be less than 30%.

Even worse, there were warning signs of massive bleeding!

Xu Junting felt as if the sky had fallen, and without realizing it, he sat down on the ground.

"daughter in law?"

Xu Zhaozhao shook her head, took out a small bottle, and handed it to Wang Ruolan.

"Mother, this is medicine given by the Immortal Sun. Please go in and give Third Sister-in-law one pill. Just one pill is enough; it's said to be specifically for dealing with difficult childbirth."

Peony, who was standing nearby, blurted out, "This was something our master went through a lot of trouble to get. That Immortal Sun spent more than a month just preparing this medicine. It's very precious. You can't buy it outside even if you have money."

Upon hearing this, Xu Junting's eyes immediately lit up again.

Wang Ruolan didn't have time to think much and went straight into the delivery room with the bottle.

Fifteen minutes later, Wang Ruolan came out, looking relieved: "According to the midwife, the birth canal is open and the baby's position has clearly dropped. Now we just need to wait."

Upon hearing this, Ji felt a weight lift from her heart and weakly sat back down on the stool.

As for Xu Junting, he finally stood up with the help of his servants, patted his bottom, and bowed deeply to Xu Zhaozhao.

"Good sister, we owe you so much this time!"

"Alright, Third Brother, that's my Third Sister-in-law, not an outsider. We're family, so this is normal. If you really care, whether it's a boy or a girl, I'll have to choose the nickname!"

Xu Zhaozhao's choice of name wasn't particularly clever, but she just liked it.

Xu Junting wiped his sweat: "What's so difficult about that? As long as they are safe and sound, you can name them whatever you want."

These words earned him a slap from Wang Ruolan: "No manners! Your father should be the one to name you, what kind of talk is this!"

Xu Junting pursed his lips, stepped aside, and dared not speak.

The commotion inside was noticeably different. Xu Zhaozhao sat for a while, and then, by chance, she turned her head and saw a jade pendant on Li Mingshu's body. If she remembered correctly, the jade pendant was something her third brother had kept before she got married.

So how did this jade pendant end up on Li Mingshu?

With just a glance from Xu Zhaozhao, Zisu subtly moved closer.

Without Li Mingshu's knowledge, the jade pendant ended up in Zisu's hands.

"Third brother, come here."

Xu Zhaozhao called Xu Junting to a more secluded corner of the corridor: "Have you given Li Mingshu anything?"

Xu Junting looked bewildered: "No! Why would I give her something? There's a difference between men and women, and besides, she's my sister-in-law. Zhao Zhao, don't get me into trouble."

"Then take a look, do you recognize this?"

Xu Junting took it and looked at it: "Isn't this the one I gave to your third sister-in-law last year? I remember it clearly. She even made the knot on it herself, saying that she would wear it often and then pass it on to our daughter."

This jade pendant is relatively small, and many women would wear such a pendant, firstly to weigh down their skirts, secondly for aesthetic reasons, and thirdly to demonstrate their status and position.

However, Xu Junting was clearly unaware that the jade pendant had appeared on Li Mingshu.

According to Xu Junting, the jade pendant was a gift for his third sister-in-law.

So, how did it end up in Li Mingshu's hands?

"Third Brother, your wife is having trouble conceiving today. I'm afraid there's more to it than meets the eye. If this matter isn't resolved, I'm afraid your relationship with her will suffer, and you may never be as loving as you were before."