Chapter 61

When Qiu Yurou and Su Yunting reached Ni Yafeng’s maiden home and explained the situation, the entire Ni family set out for Sujia village together. This time, it wasn’t just her three brothers but her father and second uncle with his wife came as well.

On the road, Ni Yafeng’s father, his eyes red, kept reminding his sons over and over not to cause trouble.

Back in Sujia village, they went straight to the clan leader’s house. Qiu Yurou, just like the Ni family, was worried sick. She and Second Aunt Ni rushed into the house together.

The moment she heard Ni Yafeng’s pained groans, louder now than before, Qiu Yurou pressed a hand against her pounding heart and slowly let out a breath.

Inside the birthing room, Su Shuo had summoned a physician. At his mother-in-law’s insistence, he accompanied the physician inside. The sight that greeted him was the wife he had adored, face pale as gold beneath a thin quilt made his chest seize painfully, his vision swim. He knew with a chilling certainty: if they delayed any longer, her life would soon slip away.

Su Shuo had met Ni Yafeng when he was ten years old. Never before had he seen such a girl; confident, bold, lively, radiant, like a swallow darting in with the spring breeze. From that moment on, she had lived in his heart.

Now, that once-vibrant girl lay frowning in agony, her strength ebbing, unconscious moans spilling from her lips.

He had cursed his own weakness and helplessness countless times before. Now, he seized the physician by the sleeve. “Physician, I beg you, please save my wife! As long as her life can be preserved, everything else, let Heaven decide.”

At those words, Ni Yafeng’s mother broke into sobs.

She could clash with the Su family to insist on calling a physician, but she herself could not say the words “save the mother over the child.” Her daughter was hers, yes, but the baby in her daughter’s belly belonged to the Su family. She had no right to demand the mother’s life be spared at the expense of the child’s.

Yet Su Shuo’s plea gave the physician a bit more confidence.

First he took Ni Yafeng’s pulse, then withdrew his silver needles and inserted them into several points on her head. Only then did he turn to Su Shuo. “We must also needle her lower back.”

“Do it,” Su Shuo said without hesitation. “Wherever you must, just do it.”

The needles at her head gradually cleared Ni Yafeng’s consciousness. She heard the physician and her husband speaking.

She knew how old-fashioned her grandfather-in-law was. But she did not want to die. Even if it meant letting the physician see her bare waist and risking her grandfather-in-law forcing her husband to cast her aside afterward, she would endure, as long as she lived.

She wore a loose top. A quilt was pulled up to her chest. Su Shuo himself lowered the quilt past her belly, then lifted her garment to bare her waist or rather, her swollen belly.

Before placing the needles, the physician asked once more, “Are you certain you wish to save the mother?”

“Certain,” Su Shuo answered firmly.

He was resolute. Yet Ni Yafeng, now fully aware of their conversation, cried out, “No! No—save the child. You must save the child!”

At her words, Su Shuo’s long-suppressed tears burst free. Clutching her hand, he wept, “Yafeng, just stay with me. As long as you live, we can have more children in the future.”

She shook her head. She could not bear to think of the future, but right now, she could not bear to part with the life inside her.

The physician had not expected her to awaken so clearly. In truth, at such times, the mother’s will was most crucial.

Just as Su Shuo prepared to persuade her again, the physician said instead, “Since Madam is conscious, then there is still hope.”

The words fell like music from Heaven.

By the time Qiu Yurou brought the Ni family over, everyone inside the birthing room had been working together for some time already.

Ni Yafeng’s mother and sister-in-law held up the quilt to shield her body from view. Two midwives worked, one pressing her belly, the other ready to receive the child. The physician kept constant watch over her consciousness, pricking her with needles whenever she wavered toward fainting.

When the Ni family arrived, the clan leader did not appear; instead, Su Shuo’s father stepped forward to greet his in-laws.

Second Aunt Ni naturally went straight into the birthing room.

Ni Yafeng’s mother-in-law hesitated. But at this point, there was no sense in fussing over propriety, especially since the physician had been summoned by her own son. She too followed inside to see for herself.

With so many already helping, Qiu Yurou went to the kitchen to tend the fire and boil water.

Though summer days were long, the sun eventually set, and the sky darkened.

Not until halfway through the night did the cry of a newborn finally pierce the night.

Qiu Yurou, just in the middle of pouring water into the pot, froze. She dropped the ladle back into the vat and sprinted out of the kitchen.

Everyone waiting in the courtyard stood up at once.

The first to ask was Su Shuo’s father. “Is it a boy or a girl?”

From the birthing room came the midwife’s jubilant cry, “A boy! A big, healthy boy!”

Su Shuo’s father clapped his hands. “Good, good, a boy, excellent!”

Qiu Yurou, though, was only worried about Ni Yafeng. She didn’t even have time to ask before Father Ni called out, “And Xiaofeng, how is she?”

Second Aunt Ni emerged from the room. “The physician is still needling her. She must be watched through the night. If she makes it to morning, she will be fine.”

In other words, safe for now.

Soon after, the baby was swaddled and cleaned. Ni Yafeng’s mother-in-law carried the bundle out, face alight with pride.

Su Shuo’s father reached for the child, but his wife angled away, giving him a look and gesturing toward the main hall. Together they carried the baby into the Old Man Su’s room.

At this hour, the clan leader should have long since been asleep. But he hadn’t gone to bed, sitting instead in the outer chamber, waiting.

When he saw his daughter-in-law bring in the newborn great-grandson, a smile spread across his face.

After letting him inspect and confirm that the child was indeed a boy, Su Shuo’s mother finally reported the physician’s treatment.

Su Shuo’s father nodded. “If it was just a needle to the waist, then compared to her life, it is nothing.”

The clan leader glanced at the baby again. In the end, he said nothing more. “See to the arrangements as you think best. I’m tired now, I’ll sleep.”

The Su family clustered around the infant with delight, while the Ni family remained anxious for their daughter’s recovery.

Qiu Yurou worried as well. But aside from worrying, there was nothing she could do.

Back home, she fell into a muddled sleep, and rose at dawn the next day. After tidying herself, she hurried straight to the clan leader’s house.

As she stepped into the courtyard, she saw Ni Yafeng’s mother washing her hands. When the woman spotted Qiu Yurou, she greeted her with a smile.

Seeing that smile, the tension in Qiu Yurou’s chest finally eased.

Ni Yafeng’s mother lowered her voice and said, “Xiaofeng woke before dawn, ate something, took her medicine, and fell asleep again. The physician says she’s almost out of danger.”

Qiu Yurou’s lips curved in relief, though her eyes burned with sudden tears. She told Ni Yafeng’s mother, “Knowing she’s safe puts me at ease. You stayed up all night so you should rest if you can. I won’t go in. Once she’s fully recovered, I’ll come to visit again.”

After repeated thanks from Ni Yafeng’s mother, Qiu Yurou left the clan leader’s house.

Back home, Su Yunting was already awake. Qiu Yurou scolded him lightly, “You went to bed so late yesterday. Why didn’t you sleep in a little?”

Su Yunting replied simply, “I woke when the time came.”

She gave him a look. “But it’s still half an hour before you usually get up!”

People in this era tended to rise early. In summer, most were up by the Mao hour. In his previous life, Su Yunting had risen even earlier and by 5 am he would already have checked in for duty.

Since his rebirth, though, he cherished the luxury of waking later, usually not until the 7 am. And now, 5 am had only just passed, far earlier than his usual time.

Su Yunting didn’t answer, instead tugging her back inside before asking after Ni Yafeng.

Qiu Yurou told him the truth.

Only then did he ask his wife, “Yesterday, when the clan leader forbade Su Shuo from summoning a physician, were you furious?”

Even thinking about it now made Qiu Yurou burn with anger. “Childbirth is already dangerous enough. Because of his stubborn, outdated thinking, a woman who might have survived could have lost her life without treatment!”

Su Yunting patted her back. “If Ni Yafeng pulls through, I’ll ask Magistrate Lu to grant the physician an honorary plaque. Magistrate Lu is about to be promoted. With a new appointment, introducing a measure to allow physicians to attend childbirth won’t conflict with any faction or noble family’s interests. On the contrary, it will be seen as a real achievement.”

Qiu Yurou’s eyes lit instantly. She knew well that policies pushed from the top down were far easier than those forced from the bottom up.

And since this did not affect the privileges of the powerful, enforcing it would not be difficult. Once common folk learned that even noble ladies and imperial relatives called physicians for childbirth, aside from a few obstinate men, most people would surely accept it.

Seeing his wife’s mood brighten at last, Su Yunting said, “In the future, if you run into such foolishness of people risking lives out of stubbornness, don’t stew in anger on your own. Come tell me. We’ll face it together.”

Those words lifted the crushing helplessness she had felt after hearing the clan leader’s decree yesterday. Strength returned to her.

She hugged Su Yunting tightly and leaned into his chest. “If not for you, I’d probably have died of anger long ago!”

He covered her mouth gently. “Don’t talk nonsense. Whatever happens, we find a way. Even in that era you came from, hadn’t you said it hadn’t yet reached true equality? If it hadn’t, then injustice still existed. We can’t just sink into despair whenever we see unfairness. Every era has its virtues. If you try to notice more of the good in this one, you’ll find that life can be beautiful.”

Qiu Yurou blinked at him.

She smiled at him, eyes bright. “This time does have many good things. But the best thing of all is you. Because you’re here, this place is the best place.”

Emotion surged in Su Yunting’s heart. He held her tightly. “This world once gave me nothing worth remembering. But now, because you are here, it holds beauty at last.”

After sharing both practical talk and heartfelt words, Qiu Yurou’s spirits fully revived.

…

At the clan leader’s house, Su Shuo persuaded the physician to stay one more day. Only after confirming Ni Yafeng was out of danger did he pay the full consultation fee and see the physician off.

News of Ni Yafeng’s brush with death spread quickly through the village. Soon after, Su Yunting openly announced he would petition the county magistrate to grant a plaque of honor to the physician who had treated her.

Because of this declaration, those few villagers who had whispered that Ni Yafeng was “unclean” fell silent. None dared to gossip further.

When Su Yunting went into the county, Qiu Yurou also changed her routine. Instead of only manning her food stall on market days, she now stayed there almost daily.

Whenever villagers passed through the gates, she greeted them warmly.

She had always been well-liked; now her reputation only grew.

Most people stopped to chat with her a while.

Naturally, the hottest topic these days was Ni Yafeng’s ordeal. Since Qiu Yurou had been the key to getting a physician for her, all conversation circled back to that.

She told them, “High officials and even imperial relatives call physicians when their wives give birth. Do you really think we common folk are stricter than the nobles?”

Farmers knew little of such matters. Hearing this, many were astonished.

Whether or not they truly accepted it didn’t matter to Qiu Yurou. Once Su Yunting returned with that honorary plaque, calling a physician for childbirth would bear the county’s official approval.

She had just finished spreading this message when another villager appeared.

A woman limped toward her, and Qiu Yurou called out, “Sister Dani, are you heading to town?”

Su Dani hadn’t always walked with a limp. Her crippled leg was the work of her former husband’s beatings.

Her body still bore countless scars. Though she’d never seen a physician or used medicine, the wounds had healed on their own, hidden beneath her clothes where others couldn’t see.

But the broken leg, untreated, had left her permanently lame.

Gathering her courage, Su Dani looked at Qiu Yurou and said, “No, I’m not going to town. I came to find you.”