Zhou Yao frown and his body emitted a cold and stern aura. “What do you mean?”
“Major General, a pregnant woman’s physique is extremely fragile and sensitive, so we need to spend a lot of energy and time to take care of a pregnant woman. However, sister-in-law had probably been in a state of vigilance for a long time during pregnancy. Such a state is very harmful to both the fetus and the mother. Just now, sister-in-law even had a subtle contraction.”
“Contraction?”
“Yes, contractions occur when a pregnant woman is about to give birth.”
“Impossible,” Zhou Yao pursed his thin lips. “She’s only eight and a half months pregnant.”
“Major General, that’s the problem. Sister-in-law is only eight and a half months pregnant. Logically speaking, she can’t have contractions. I have two bold guesses. First, sister-in-law’s contractions started recently. Sister-in-law didn’t even realize it herself. This is what I meant when I said there were signs of premature labor. Second…” the female military doctor looked towards Zhou Yao.
“Speak!”
“Second, sister-in-law’s contractions have been happening for a long time. Scorpion must have used some medicinal herbs to keep the baby alive. If this is the case, then the use of such medicinal herbs must be continued.”
Zhou Yao’s handsome features turned serious. His brows furrowed and said nothing.
“Major General, you should go and ask sister-in-law. Only by asking will we know which kind of situation it is. Then we can treat it accordingly. If it’s the first case, Major General should immediately request medical assistance. Although I’m a doctor, I’m not an obstetrician. Once sister-in-law gives birth prematurely, there will be too many complications for me to handle. If it’s the second case, then Major General needs to talk to Scorpion. Scorpion must not die.”
After half a second of silence, Zhou Yao nodded. “I understand.”
He started walking back to the room with his long legs. Xiao Zhi was waiting behind him. “Major General.”
Zhou Yao said in a low voice, “Contact the safety control center here immediately. Request obstetricians with excellent medical skills. Also, call my big brother, Young Master Lu. I need Doctor Zhou’s help.”
Military doctors were accompanying them during battles, but there were no obstetricians. He did not know that she was pregnant, so he did not make any preparations.
Signs of fetal malposition and premature delivery were serious matters. She may go into labor at any time, which meant danger was unpredictable. So they were fighting against time. For now, Zhou Yao could only request for some local foreign doctors. He knew that Zhou Dayuan’s medical skills outranked all others. But Zhou Dayuan was too far away at the time and it would take a while before he arrives. Therefore, Zhou Yao made two arrangements.
Even though he had made two arrangements, he still felt uneasy and scared. Eight and a half months of premature delivery meant that her life would be in danger. It would also be challenging for the child to make it.
The worst-case scenario was… one corpse and two lives.
He did not dare to think any further. The saying goes that a woman in labor was a woman passing by the gates of death. He only now realized the truth in that.
Also, which of the two situations was it? Did she have signs of miscarriage in the early stages of pregnancy? Was it Scorpion who had been using medicinal herbs to aid her pregnancy?
If that was the case, he needed to negotiate with Scorpion.
The female military doctor was right. Scorpion could not die, and Zhou Yao would not let Scorpion die.
…
In the room, Zhou Yao opened the door and walked in. There was no one on the bed. Leng Zhiyuan was standing barefoot on the floor, bending over to pick up something from the floor.
The bump on her stomach was quite obvious, so it was difficult for her to bend over.
“Why are you out of bed and barefoot?” Zhou Yao immediately walked over and carried the woman in his arms.
To prevent herself from falling, Leng Zhiyuan reached out an arm and hugged his neck. The man’s face looked sterned. His facial features were tense, and even his tone was very serious.
She was stunned.
Zhou Yao quickly realized that he was speaking too loudly. He tried his best to explain with a gentle expression, “Sorry, my tone was very harsh just now. That’s because you’ll catch a cold if you’re barefoot. You are in the third trimester already, so you have to take care of yourself. If you dropped something on the ground, ask me to get it for you.”
“Oh,” Leng Zhiyuan replied.
Zhou Yao placed her on the soft bed. Leng Zhiyuan did not lie down. She sat on the bed and fiddled with the thing in her hands.
Zhou Yao sat by the bed and glanced at it. She was holding a small bracelet in her fair hands. It was probably the bracelet that she had dropped on the floor. The small bracelet was woven out of red yarn. The patterns were very exquisite. Ding! Ding! Ding! There were a few tiny bells lying by her delicate feet.
She was attaching the small bells onto the red-yarn bracelet.
“What is this? A bracelet for the baby?” Zhou Yao hugged her from behind and pulled the blanket over her belly.
“Mmm,” Leng Zhiyuan nodded.
Zhou Yao looked at her face. The dim yellow light shone on her fair, jade-like face. She lowered her eyes and focused on attaching the little bells. Her stunning facial features were soft and exuded an indescribable gentleness.
He suddenly understood why he felt a different type of tenderness from her when he saw her earlier. It was the tenderness of a mother.
She was a mother-to-be.
He helped her became a mother.
Zhou Yao felt his bones melting. He wished that he could just wholly become one with her. He tightened his arms around her and pecked her cheek, “You didn’t know how to make such things in the past. The bracelet looks so well made, I’m starting to suspect that you didn’t make it yourself.”
“I’ve been working on them for a long time. I like this one the best,” she answered concisely.
She had been making them since she was pregnant. She had made hundreds of them, but this one was the only one that she like. The patterns were exquisite.
“Honey, you seem to like red yarn very much.”
“Huh?” She did not understand.
Zhou Yao took the small bracelet from her hand and put it into the drawer by the bed. He held her shoulders and turned her around. The two of them faced each other. He unbuttoned his shirt and revealed the red yarn necklace he had been wearing.
“You gave this to me. Do you want to take a look?” He asked lovingly.
Leng Zhiyuan had no impression of this necklace. When she saw those women weaving things with red yarn, she thought it looked very nice, so she decided to make something out of red yarn for the baby.
Seeing her curious gaze, Zhou Yao opened the small brocade bag on the necklace and showed her the photo inside.
It was a photo of him and her. He had on a serious face and did not smile, while she tilted her head towards him, smiling foolishly. She even made a silly peace sign.
She frowned as she looked at the photo. Was that her?
She looked like a little idiot.
How could Zhou Yao not know what she was thinking? He put his treasured photo back into the small brocade bag. Then, he reached out and pinched her little face. “This is good. One for me and one for the baby. We both got a gift from you.”
We?
Leng Zhiyuan looked at the handsome face in front of her. Would he be a good father in the future?
He probably would.
She felt relieved knowing that the baby will be under his care.