Mrs. Lu sighed. “How can I sleep?”


  When she was pregnant with Lu Beichuan, she had prematurely gone into labor. It had taken a day and night of pain before she finally gave birth to him. Looking at Ye Zhen, she was sure that there was more suffering in store for her daughter-in-law.

  It was easy for empathy to develop between two women. As soon as she thought of her own painful experience in giving birth, she couldn’t help breaking out in cold sweat for Ye Zhen.

  Gradually, the orange glow of sunrise appeared over the horizon to replace the night sky. Dawn shifted to morning as the distant sun rose up and illuminated the earth. The skyscrapers’ glossy glass walls reflected the bustling scenes below.

  A ray of sunlight passed through the window and brightly lit up the hospital room. Ye Zhen felt half-blinded by the light and raised her hand to cover her eyes. She groggily said, “So bright……”


  Lu Beichuan got up and closed the curtains. When he turned his head to look, Ye Zhen was already fully awake.

  “How are you feeling? Does it still hurt?”


  Ye Zhen shook her head. “I’m okay. It doesn’t hurt too much. Don’t you have to go to work today?”


  “My wife is going to give birth soon. Why would I go to work?”


  A pretty good performance.

  The hospital door opened, and Mother Lu came inside along with Aunty Yue, one of the servants that was skilled in taking care of pregnant women. They were carrying several big and small containers.

  “Zhenzhen, you’re awake? How is it? Does it still hurt?”


  Ye Zhen shook her head. “Thank you, mom. It doesn’t hurt.”


  “Oh you child, you don’t need to thank me. The cooks sent over breakfast. Beichuan, you can help by feeding Zhenzhen.”


  Ye Zhen grimaced. “Mom, I’m not hungry.”


  “You still have to eat something even if you’re not feeling hungry. Otherwise, you won’t have enough strength when you’re giving birth. Be good, listen to me, mom had the cooks prepare your favorite foods. Aunty Yue spent half the night simmering this soup for you. Take a few sips and bites at least. It’s important to keep up your strength!”


  Mother Ye had already said all that, so it wouldn’t be good for Ye Zhen to refuse. Lu Beichuan helped his wife sit up, then he fed her the soup, spoonful by spoonful, so that she at least ate something.

  At around 10 AM, Old Master Lu and the butler came to visit Ye Zhen. Once again, the chief physician patiently explained Ye Zhen’s condition in detail all over again to put Old Master Lu’s worries to rest.

  Ye Zhen couldn’t bear to see an elderly person like Old Master Lu staying here to keep her company. It would be too tiring for him. After chatting with Old Master Lu for a bit, she asked the old butler to bring Old Master Lu home to rest.

  However, Old Master Lu stubbornly refused to go home. He said that he was healthy enough and insisted on staying in the hospital until the baby was born.

  Nobody could persuade Old Master Lu to change his mind, so they could only find a room at the hospital for him to rest in while they waited.

  Over two hours later, Ye Zhen’s belly started to hurt. A few contractions later, the attending nurse discovered that Ye Zhen’s water had broke. She hastily wheeled Ye Zhen towards the delivery room.

  Before entering the delivery room, Ye Zhen grabbed Lu Beichuan’s hand. She was hissing as she endured the piercing pain.

  Lu Beichuan leaned over so that his ear was by her mouth. He heard Ye Zhen quietly ask him, “Lu Beichuan, will you wait for me? Will you really stay here to wait for me?”


  Lu Beichuan stared into Ye Zhen’s eyes. His voice was steady as he said, “I will. You’ll be okay. I’ll wait here for you and the baby to come out.”


  Ye Zhen unwaveringly looked into his eyes as if she was trying to find something there that would convince her.

  It was only a brief moment when their eyes met, but Ye Zhen believed him and her hand weakly let go of his. The doctor hastily helped in wheeling her into the delivery room. It was only when the doors to the delivery room closed and the light went on that Lu Beichuan staggered a few steps back and leaned against the wall.

  Old Master Lu was sitting outside the delivery room, and there wasn’t even a ripple of emotion on his face, but his tight grip on his cane exposed that he was deeply worried.

  Mrs. Lu clasped her hands together in prayer and kept pacing back and forth in the hallway.

  The butler looked towards the delivery room from time to time. His expression was anxious.

  These four people had different demeanors, but their moods were virtually the same.