Su Hongying looked helplessly and amusedly at Qiu Fang, witnessing a new height of her younger brother-in-law’s devotion to his wife.
She was just about to say that Shuzhen was fine, just exhausted from childbirth and fast asleep now. They just needed to tidy up a bit, and once everything was in order, he could come in to see her.
But before she could say that, the guy took advantage of the midwife stepping out with the baby, letting the child’s father and uncles take a look and collect some congratulatory money, to slip into the room.
At this moment, the younger sister-in-law’s face was pale, covered in sweat with a few strands of hair stuck to her forehead. She hadn’t even had a chance to put on her pants, and the sanitary pad beneath her was stained with fresh blood, filling the room with a pungent smell of blood.
Seeing this, Su Hongying was stunned and quickly ushered him out, fearing that if he stayed a moment longer and saw too much of his sister-in-law’s disheveled state, it would affect their relationship later on.
After all, this child that Shuzhen painstakingly delivered wasn’t even the Lianshan family’s own. There was no inherent sense of gratitude or guilt, and she didn’t want the sight of this to strip away any sympathy he might have.
Lianshan, unaware of Su Hongying’s concerns, thought she was just adhering to customs by sending him out.
He saw his sister-in-law hastily wiping Shuzhen down and trying to help her get dressed. Already reluctant to go out, he resisted even more: "Second Saozi, don’t push me out. Blood or no blood, there’s no such thing in my eyes! It’s Shuzhen who’s been through hell, and I have to take good care of her. She’s particular about cleanliness, and if she isn’t cleaned up well, she definitely won’t sleep soundly."
Although Lianshan had a slight smile on his face, he firmly took the basin from Qiu Fang’s hands. He fetched warm water and a fresh towel, gently and meticulously wiping Shuzhen’s hands and face.
His attitude was gentle and meticulous, and his actions were skilled, clearly a seasoned hand from extensive experience.
Seeing this, Su Hongying gave an embarrassed smile, realizing she had judged a gentleman with a petty heart. Lianshan’s affection for his younger sister-in-law was so deep that her mess only made him more concerned, not disdainful.
But Qiu Fang, being the one who had the basin taken from her, blushed deeply, utterly embarrassed. She wanted to explain that her hasty attempt to dress her sister-in-law was to spare her the awkwardness if she woke, not because of a lack of cleanliness!
The midwife was eager to collect money for the birth, but the child’s father had already slipped into the delivery room, and the child’s uncle had no intention of giving much for his nephew’s birth — instead, he craned his neck to look into the room, constantly asking about the mother’s condition.
The midwife, finally realizing what was going on, nearly slapped herself in the face for being so foolish! She thought Lianshan was doting on his wife beyond measure, and she wouldn’t settle for less than a generous tip. She had turned down several other births to be on standby for the Lian family.
How could she forget that Lianshan’s wife’s pregnancy was the doing of that scoundrel Chen Shimei?
The more Lianshan doted on his wife, the more he couldn’t stand the child who had caused his wife so much trouble and taken the place of his own firstborn son. And the birth of this child was a big awkward deal — even his uncle, renowned for doting on his sister, Liu Shouyi, couldn’t bring himself to fondly regard him. Seeing him reminded him of his scoundrel father, adding a layer of disdain.
However, no matter how much she regretted it, the job was done. She couldn’t hope for extra money, but she would certainly demand her basic fee.
After taking the baby back, the midwife, fearing any excuse, openly hinted at needing her fee, citing family matters as the reason.
Forgetting everything but his wife, Lianshan sheepishly slapped his forehead and chuckled, "Really sorry, Aunt Wang. I’ve been so focused on my wife that I completely neglected you. Well, since you’re busy, I won’t keep you longer. I’ll bring you some celebration eggs on the third day after the child’s birth."
While listening to this, the midwife couldn’t help but scoff inside: eggs, indeed; I’d be grateful if you just paid me well!
But then, when Lianshan handed her a five-yuan note with both hands, the midwife’s eyes widened in surprise.
Even as she left the Lian family’s gate, she couldn’t figure out if Lianshan was fond of this son who wasn’t of his blood or not.
If he was fond of him, he hadn’t glanced at the little boy from the moment he was born until she left.
If he wasn’t, this tip was incredibly generous.
Considering tough times, a typical worker made just over twenty yuan per month with thirty or so catties of grain as their award. A one or two yuan fee for childbirth was generous, and some stingy folks gave just a few eggs to dismiss her, especially with a girl they weren’t happy about.
Lianshan hadn’t realized that merely prioritizing his wife’s care and wanting to get her fully settled before thinking of anything else would lead the midwife to concoct such wild theories.
Finally finishing cleaning up his wife and tidying the room, he headed into the kitchen once more.
While brown sugar boiled eggs were nice, it wasn’t nearly nutritious enough for a wife who had worked so hard.
During their last prenatal visit, he’d already found out that puerperal women needed pig trotters and soybean soup, crucian carp soup, and old hen soup for nourishment and to aid milk production. For this, he had asked his older brother-in-law, the accountant, to help buy ten pig trotters and several marrow bones at the team’s pig slaughter the previous year.
While his wife slept, he retrieved a cleaned, cut, and frozen pig trotter and slowly boiled it. Then he cut some marrow bones, added chopped green onions and cilantro, and boiled them. Once the broth was ready and delicious, he’d put in the freshly rolled noodles...
Fragrant bone broth noodles with pig trotters and soybeans would be nourishing and milk-producing for his wife, making sure both she and the child wouldn’t suffer!
Lianshan grew happier as he thought about it, a smile spreading as he busied himself. Yet he didn’t know that his blissful demeanor was driving Su Hongying and Qiu Fang to envy, each deciding to return home and encourage their husbands to shower love and care like he did. Qiu Fang, especially, thought: her own man is Lian Hai’s blood brother, yet when it comes to being a loving husband, even someone like Lian Hai, who’s generally considered a good man, doesn’t compare to Lianshan.
This won’t do — they’re blood brothers, so how can they be so different?
At least in cherishing a wife, they had to make sure that Lian Hai caught up!