When Yuancheng woke up and learned about his situation, he was nowhere to be seen, hiding in his room all day and refusing to come out for meals, driving Qin Changlin to desperation.
"Sister Youyou, what should we do? His physical injuries have healed, but this heart..." In agony, he patted his chest and said, "It’s hard to treat a heartache! He’s even ignoring me now. He can’t just keep moping around . Think of something fast!"
Gu Youyou replied irritably, "There’s no use coming to me; I’m not a psychologist."
"What are you so anxious about? It’s only been two days. He just had his surgery, and he shouldn’t be moving around too much these days anyway. It’s good for him to stay in his room. Just don’t forget to give him his meals and medicine."
Gu Youyou sighed and, propping her chin, said, "For a man, especially someone whose spirit has been damaged, this kind of thing is hard to accept. Oh, well, Yuancheng is still young, not quite a man yet."
Waving her hand dismissively, Gu Youyou continued, "Anyway, his reaction is normal for now, so just stop worrying. Accepting what happened takes time. Once he figures it out, he’ll come out naturally."
Qin Changlin shook his head and sighed helplessly, "I hope so."
Gu Youyou looked up to see a frail woman holding a child—it was Daya Gu Xiaolian.
She hurriedly got up and brought her into the house.
"Why have you come now? The sun is so strong, be careful not to let it shine directly into the child’s eyes!"
Gu Youyou noticed that Xiaolian was holding the child with no cloth to shield the little one’s face from the sun, grateful that the child was sleeping.
Gu Xiaolian frowned and showed the child to Gu Youyou, saying, "The baby’s little face has been yellow since birth, still yellow now. People in the village say the child might be sick."
Gu Youyou took the little Lanxin in her arms, her face not even as big as a palm, which made her feel incredibly heartbroken.
The unnatural yellow color on the child’s face was indeed jaundice, which was not the normal kind found in newborns, given the child’s age.
The child was still deeply asleep, seemingly peaceful, which made it hard to tell if there were any other issues.
Gu Youyou asked, "How is her feeding? Does she often spit up milk?"
Gu Xiaolian shook her head and answered, "No, she feeds well. It’s just that... my milk isn’t plentiful; I always feel she’s not full."
"Any other troubling symptoms?"
"Normally, I’m out doing farm work, so I leave her at home with her grandmother," Gu Xiaolian sighed, "Her grandmother probably just lays her on the bed and cares no further; every time I return home, her diaper is wet."
Gu Youyou thought to herself: With a mother-in-law like yours who abused you during your pregnancy, it would be surprising if she took good care of this little girl.
After carefully examining the child, Gu Youyou finally said, "Since there’s no other major issue, it shouldn’t be serious. Here’s what you do: don’t breastfeed her for now. If her symptoms lessen after three days without milk, it might be an issue with the milk."
"Ah... no, how can not breastfeeding be okay? Not having milk for three days is not viable; she’s so small and can’t eat anything else. She can’t go that long without food!" Gu Xiaolian shook her head vigorously in disagreement.
Gu Youyou patiently explained, "She doesn’t have to drink your milk; she can have someone else’s."
Gu Xiaolian looked distressed, almost to the point of tears, "A wet nurse, that’s something only the wealthy families in town can afford. I... I don’t have the money."