Dr. Lu stroked his beard and took a look. “The twins are not small. They are still strong and look healthy. Let me touch them.”

Dr. Lu touched them one by one and said, “These two little guys are in good health. They will be fine if they are taken good care of.”

Zhulan was relieved. The child in her arms was so small. She was really worried that the child would not be healthy. “With your words, I feel relieved.”

Dr. Lu said cheerfully, “Don’t worry.”

The woman in labor had been ne taken care of, so Xuěméi could no longer be moved. She would have to go through her postpartum confinement here. The room was cleaned up, and Xuěméi was covered with a quilt. Only then did Zhúlán invite Old Master Lu in to take her pulse.

Dr. Lu stroked his beard and said, “Although the birth went smoothly, the mother was in poor health two years ago and has not recovered in the past two years. The twins have hurt her body again. It is better to take care of her body for at least five or six years before having another child, otherwise it will damage her foundation.”

Zhulan said: “We must take good care of ourselves.”

Dr. Lu thought to himself that the Zhou couple not only cherished their own lives but also the lives of their children. They are really good parents. “I’ll go out and write a prescription. It’s not suitable to take medicine during the confinement period. I’ll prescribe some tonic medicine for the mother after the confinement period. The mother can take it and feed the baby, which can also replenish the vitality of the two premature babies.”

Zhulan was very grateful, “Thank you for your help, Dr. Lu.”

Zhulan was particularly convinced of the old man’s medical skills, and her and Zhou Shuren’s health was the best proof of that.

Zhulan followed the old man out, and then she remembered that she had not given the midwife any congratulatory money, so she quickly took out two taels from her purse and said, “I’m sorry to bother you today. The red eggs[In traditional Chinese culture, red eggs are given to the midwife immediately after a child’s birth as a gesture of gratitude for safely delivering the baby. They symbolize new life, good fortune, and act as a blessing, sharing the joy and prosperity of the newborn’s arrival with the midwife. are not cooked yet, so take this coin.”

The midwife didn’t care about the red eggs, she only cared about the silver in front of her. Oh, it turned out to be a family of a juren, and she gave two silver coins at once!

Li Shi came out of the kitchen, “Mom, I boiled red eggs, here are ten red eggs.”

Zhulan smiled. She didn’t need to tell her now. Li Shi knew what to do. Good, good. “I have the red eggs. Please take them before you go.”

The midwife said cheerfully, “Don’t bother, I can go out by myself.”

Jiang Sheng saw the two children and his wife come out and said, “Mom, I’ll send the midwife out.”

Zhulan said: “Okay.”

Zhou Shuren invited Dr. Lu to the front yard to chat. Dr. Lu was not in a hurry to leave and planned to stay overnight. Zhulan was even happier. She felt at ease knowing that the old man stayed.

Jiang Sheng came back soon, and Zhulan said, “You take care of Xuemei first. I’ll go cut out some diapers.”

Jiang Sheng replied: “Mom, I’ll go home and get it. Xuemei has prepared everything for the child.”

Zhulan believed more in what she had prepared, “No need, I’ve bought them all, okay, you can go in.”

Jiang Sheng felt embarrassed and said gratefully, “Mom, thank you for your hard work today.”

Zhulan smiled and said, “Taking care of my own daughter is no trouble at all. Alright, go on in.”

Jiang Sheng was touched by the kindness of his father-in-law and mother-in-law. If the Yue family had not come back today, he didn’t know what a mess it would be like at home. He smiled inwardly, thinking that these two boys would find the time to be born. They were both blessed boys.

Li Shi came over and said, “Mother, I’ve made some chicken soup for my older sister. She’ll be able to drink it soon.”

Zhulan, “Thank you for your hard work today. I’ll boil a few more pots of hot water. Is the food ready?”

Li Shi nodded, “All the dishes are ready, only two pots of steamed buns are left.”

Zhulan said to Li Shi: “Tell your mother and your aunts to go to the front yard to chat first. I’ll cut some diapers and come over in a while.”

Li Shi said, “Ok.”

Zhulan sent her qīnjiāmǔ and others to the front yard and then took her little girl back to the house. Zhulan signaled her little girl to get some hot water. The kang in the house was lit, and Zhulan cut eight diapers, rinsed them with hot water, and then spread them on the kang mat to dry.

Xue Han saw her mother continue to cut the fine cotton cloth, “Mom, aren’t there enough diapers?”

Zhulan lowered her head and said, “When you come back after dinner, I will make quilts and small mattresses for your two wàishēng.”

Xue Han thought about her wàishēng’s clothes not fitting them well. The clothes she made for them were a little too big. “Mom, I’ll also alter their clothes tonight.”

Zhu Lan stroked her daughter’s hair, remembering how she had worried about not having clothes for the newborn. She hadn’t expected Xue Han to make clothes for the baby, showing she was a good aunt. “Good,” she said.

Zhulan cut the cloth, boiled it in hot water, and spread it on the kang. It would be almost dry by the time dinner was over.

Li Shi came back, “Mom, I’m waiting for you to have dinner!”

Zhulan rubbed her waist and said, “Let’s go.”

When they arrived at the front yard, even with torches lit and lanterns hung, the yard was still very dim. Zhulan thought that the ancient dinners in TV dramas were all fake because they were all lit by lights. The real ancient dinners were filled with a terrifying atmosphere.

Because they didn’t bring much wine back, they didn’t drink at dinner. They only ate food. The Zhou family was also very hungry. They had to travel and cook. Oh, and Xuemei had just given birth to a baby. Now they were tired and hungry.

The Li family was not full, to begin with, and their stomachs had been growling for a long time. In the yard, apart from the men at the table chatting for a few words, the only other sound was the sound of eating.

Zhulan stood for a long time. It was late for dinner and she didn’t have the energy to speak.

There were many boys in the Li family, so there were no steamed buns or vegetables left after a meal. Li Xu Shi asked her daughters-in-law to help Li Shi clean up the dishes. Zhulan felt embarrassed, so she asked Li Shi to give the remaining braised meat to her sǎo zi to take back.

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren sent Li Xu Shi and others away and returned to the main courtyard to see Xuemei. Even if Xuemei had given birth to two children smoothly, she was exhausted. Jiang Sheng had already cleaned up the dishes while they were having dinner in his room.

Zhulan asked, “How is Xuemei?”

Jiang Sheng stood up quickly, “She just drank some chicken soup and fell asleep again.”

Zhulan glanced at the two children. The two little guys were sleeping soundly without crying or making a fuss. “I’m going to rely on you to take care of them tonight.”

She was so exhausted that if she hadn’t been thinking about making a quilt for the child, her eyelids would have drooped long ago.

Jiang Sheng, “Mom, you should rest early. You’ve been tired all day.”

Zhulan said, “I’ll make the baby’s quilt and go to sleep. Okay, don’t send me off.”

Back in the main room, Zhou Shuren washed and folded the dried diapers. Zhulan saw Zhou Shuren pouring hot water for her and said while rolling up her sleeves, “They say that only when you have children do you know the kindness of your parents. I don’t have any children, but I have six debts. I am really exhausted today.”

Zhou Shuren felt sorry for Zhulan and was somewhat dissatisfied with his satisfied daughter, “Can’t Xuemei give birth on a different day?”

Zhu Lan chuckled, “This is childbirth, how can we just change the date whenever we want?”

Zhou Shuren handed Zhulan a handkerchief and said, “I just feel sorry for you. Look how tired you look.”

Zhulan washed her face but didn’t rush to change her clothes. She sat by the kang and took the needle and thread. “Please help me light two more candles. I’ll make the quilt.”

Zhou Shuren’s face darkened. “Let the Zhao Shi do it for Xuemei tomorrow.”

Zhulan said, “It’s not a big deal. The quilt for a child is small, so just put some cotton on it and sew it up. It will be ready in a moment.”

Zhou Shuren knew Zhulan’s temper, so he could only help spread the cotton with a gloomy face, hoping that Zhulan could rest soon.

Zhulan was very good at sewing. She finished making two small quilts and mattresses and also made two diaper pads.

Zhou Shuren held the small quilt and said, “I’ll send it to Jiang Sheng. You can also change your clothes and go to bed!”

Zhulan’s waist ached from sitting so much, and her eyelids couldn’t bear it any longer. “Well, you can ask about Xuemei and the child’s situation.”

“Ok.”

Zhulan changed her clothes and got into bed, then she remembered that she had forgotten to ask Jiang Sheng whether the baby was nine months old. Her eyelids were really heavy, so she decided to ask tomorrow!

(End of this chapter)

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