When Zhulan arrived, Li Shi was already in labor. Li Shi’s pregnancy had been very emotionally volatile, and she was having a difficult time, making the delivery difficult.

Li Xu Shi and Zhulan went inside. The midwife had been arranged to stay at the Zhou family’s house long ago. The sterilization was done according to Zhulan’s plan, and preparations were thorough, but the baby was reluctant to come out.

Li Shi was in pain all night, and Zhulan stayed up all night with her until dawn, when Li Shi finally gave birth.

The midwife was also exhausted, but she happily held the baby and said, “Congratulations, Madam, it’s a strong boy!”

Zhulan took the baby from the midwife and weighed him; he was indeed quite heavy, about seven pounds. No wonder Li Shi’s belly was so big.

Li Xu Shi, feeling sorry for her daughter, had already gone inside to see her.

Zhulan followed, carrying the baby. Li Shi had already changed her clothes, and everything was ready. She was exhausted from giving birth all night and had fallen asleep.

Boss Zhou was happy to have another son, but then felt that three sons were enough, and he didn’t want to have any more children.

Zhou Shuren arrived only after hearing that the baby had been born. Seeing Zhulan’s pale face, Zhou Shuren frowned. “It’s getting late. There are people here to take care of you. Have breakfast and then get some rest.”

Zhulan was indeed exhausted. She said to Li Xu Shi, “Juanhua, take care of the baby and Li Shi. Qīnjiāmǔ, let’s go have breakfast first. Qīnjiāmǔ has been busy all night. Get some rest, too.”

Li Xu Shi was also a little dizzy. Her health was really failing at her age. “Okay.”

Zhulan went back to the main courtyard with Zhou Shuren first. Zhou Shuren supported Zhulan and couldn’t help but mutter, “The doctor and midwife have been called. You insisted on staying up all night. You didn’t even…”

“You should know how to take care of yourself.”

Zhulan smiled, “I’m sorry to have made you worry.”

Zhou Shuren glared at Zhulan, “It’s good that you know, look at your eyes, they’re all black.”

Zhulan looked at Zhou Shuren’s eyes. She hadn’t gone home all night, and Zhou Shuren hadn’t rested either. “If you have free time at the yamen today, take a break.”

Zhou Shuren was indeed tired. He had been on the dike for the past few days and had stayed up all night again. He really needed to find a place to rest during the day. “I will take good care of myself.”

After breakfast, Zhulan went to see Li Shi before returning to her room to rest. When she woke up, she had missed lunch. She called Liu Ya and found out that it was almost four in the afternoon.

Zhulan rubbed her forehead, her head throbbing. “I slept for so long?”

Liu Ya helped the mistress up. “Miss came to call you for lunch, but this servant saw you were sleeping soundly, so didn’t wake you.”

Zhulan got out of bed and let Liu Ya comb her hair. “Is the First Madam awake?”

Liu Ya smiled. “Yes, she ate two bowls of noodles at noon and is chatting with her parents right now!”

Zhulan was envious. “I’ve gotten a year older, and my health has deteriorated a lot. I wasn’t this tired from traveling last year.”

After saying that, Zhulan’s mood was very low. She had only stayed up all night, and her body was already struggling. How could she get pregnant and give birth?

Liu Ya didn’t know why the mistress was in a bad mood, and she didn’t dare to say anything more.

After washing up, Zhulan was still a little dizzy. She drank a bowl of porridge and rested for a while before going to the main room.

Li Xu Shi stood up. “My dearqīnjiāmǔ, you’re here. You don’t look too well. Sit down and rest for a while.”

Zhulan said shyly, “It’s been a long time since I’ve stayed up late. I’ll be fine after a night’s rest.”

Li Xu Shi was relieved. She was completely impressed by her qīnjiāmǔ. Yesterday, her qīnjiāmǔ was just as worried as she, as her own mother was.

Hearing her mother’s words, Li Shi was moved to tears. “Mother, I’m fine here; you should go back and rest!”

Zhulan didn’t insist either. “Okay, I’ll go back and rest after checking on the baby.”

Li Shi grinned. She had given birth to four children, and her youngest son was the fattest. Moreover, this child was very fortunate. “Mother, this child looks like you.”

Zhulan was still dizzy in the morning and hadn’t really looked at the baby’s appearance carefully. But when she got closer, Li Shi wasn’t just saying it to flatter her; the child really did look like her. The face shape, eyebrows, and eyes were very similar to hers. Among the Zhou family’s grandchildren, the newborn little one looked most like her. “He really does look like her.”

Li Shi hadn’t noticed at first, but her mother had. She looked closely and realized he really did look like her mother-in-law. That’s why this boy was the most fortunate. Her father-in-law cared most about her mother-in-law, and since the boy looked like her, her father-in-law would also favor him more.

Li Shi grinned foolishly. She was truly blessed with many children.

Zhulan felt a strong liking for the little one who looked so much like her. She even thought that if she didn’t have children, having a child who looked just like her wouldn’t be a regret. Her low spirits lifted considerably, and her energy returned.

Zhulan returned to the courtyard and took out the gold lock, gold necklace, and gold bracelet she had already made. Then, she picked up a pen and thought about a name for the child. After thinking for a while, Zhulan decided on Zhou Ming Hui.

When Zhou Shuren returned and entered the house, he saw Zhulan staring blankly at the name she had written. He knew what Zhulan was thinking, but he couldn’t afford to gamble. Zhou Shuren smiled and asked, “Is this the name you’ve chosen for the child?”

Zhulan snapped out of her reverie and nodded with a smile. “The little one looks a lot like me, so I thought I’d name the child myself.”

Zhou Shuren raised an eyebrow. “A lot like?”

Zhulan nodded. “The eyebrows, the eyes, and the face shape are all very similar.”

Zhou Shuren clenched his hands behind his back. He clearly saw the joy in Zhulan’s eyes. Zhulan still wanted to have a child of her own. He and Zhulan—cough cough—had been planning ahead. Zhulan’s periods were very regular, so contraception had been quite effective.

Zhulan naturally knew, but she never said it. He could guess her thoughts; she was also gambling. If she conceived despite using contraception, it would be fate. However, for Zhulan’s health, although regretful, he still didn’t want it. Now, having a child who looked like Zhulan wasn’t bad either.

With the addition of a new baby today, the evening meal was sumptuous, but Zhulan didn’t have much of an appetite and went home to rest early. It took her a whole night to recover.

Dong Shi and Zhao Shi already knew that the little one from the Eldest Branch resembled their mother-in-law. Zhao Shi rubbed her stomach, her eyes lighting up. She had thought of a way to return home sooner — give birth to a child that looked like her mother-in-law!

Dong Shi envied her Eldest Sao’s good fortune, regretting that she didn’t know when the third son’s child would be born.

Before they knew it, it was the third-day celebration. On that day, the Chen family, the He family, and everyone who knew came. The little one was also very proud; he cried for a while during the celebration and then stopped.

If it weren’t for spring, Zhulan really wouldn’t want to hold the third-day celebration.

(End of Chapter)

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