Chapter 72: Twins
Editor: Atlas Studios
Shu Wanniang turned her head to look at the wrinkled child and revealed a tired but satisfied smile.
Mu Yangling, who was sitting by Shu Wanniang’s bed, realized that something was wrong. This child was even smaller than Little Bowen when he was just born.
Although more than four years had passed, it was still the first time she had seen a newborn child, so Mu Yangling had a deep impression of it. At that time, Little Bowen was a little weak when he was born. The midwife even said that he was not as heavy as other full-term newborns.
But didn’t they just say that the mother’s stomach was large and that it might be difficult to give birth because the baby was too big? Why was this baby even smaller than when Bowen was born?
The midwife quickly noticed this abnormality and quickly handed the baby to Madam Ma-Liu, before checking on Shu Wanniang.
However, Shu Wanniang still felt a slight pain in her stomach. This was completely different from the relaxed feeling she had after giving birth in the past.
The midwife touched it and exclaimed in surprise, “There’s another one in the stomach!”
As soon as these words were spoken, the expressions of everyone in the room changed.
Giving birth was already hard, and giving birth to twins was even more difficult. Not only was the probability of the child dying prematurely increased, but the probability of maternal death was also very high.
Before they could finish worrying, Shu Wanniang gave birth to a baby girl. It was a tiny bundle, and when the midwife slapped it on the butt, it only let out two soft kitten-like cries.
Feeling sorry for the baby, Mu Yangling quickly carried her over carefully. The midwife looked at her for a while and said worriedly, “She’s so small. You have to be careful and make sure she stays warm and well-fed.”
The addition of two new members to the Mu family made Mu Shi both happy and worried.
His son looked weak, but at least his cries were loud and clear, and he was even stronger than when Bowen was born. However, his youngest daughter was like a kitten. She did not open her eyes and would only cry softly when she was hungry. Mu Shi secretly measured that his youngest daughter was only the size of his palm.
He was very worried about whether she would survive.
Madam Ma-Liu taught him, “Whether the child is strong or not depends on the milk. As long as your wife’s milk is good and you pay attention to keeping the baby warm, she will definitely be okay.”
Mu Shi immediately said, “I’ll go buy chickens and eggs immediately. If there’s anything else that’s needed, I’ll go buy it immediately.”
“Your wife will get heaty if she eats anything too greasy. I’ll teach you later. Go to town and buy the things. I’ll prepare it for her when you come back.”
Mu Shi heaved a sigh of relief. He felt that it was an excellent decision to bring his aunt’s family over to stay.
Little Bowen and Xiulan were lying in front of the bed and looking at the two babies sleeping side by side. Little Bowen quietly reached out to touch his baby sister’s face, then quickly retracted his hand as if he was afraid of being discovered. He whispered to Xiulan, “It’s so smooth.”
Xiulan said enviously, “It’s great that you have a younger brother and sister.”
Mu Yangling brought a bowl of noodles to Shu Wanniang. “Mother, try it quickly. Great-aunt made it for you. It’s chicken soup made from an old mother hen. There are also two eggs inside.”
Sitting up, Shu Wanniang saw that the sky was bright outside. She asked, “Have your elders been sent away?”
“They left as soon as you fell asleep. The midwife only left at dawn. Father gave her 100 copper coins and two smoked rabbits.”
“What about your father?”
“He went to town to buy something. Mother, eat up. After you’re full, I’ll bring my baby siblings over for you to see. Then, you can think up a nice name for them.”
Both Mu Yangling and Mu Bowen’s names were given by Shu Wanniang.
Shu Wanniang said with a smile, “I’ve already chosen a name. Previously, I thought that if it was a boy, it would be called Bosi. If it was a girl, it would be called Kejia. Your father also agreed. But I didn’t expect it to be a boy and a girl. Since that’s the case, we can use both names.”
Mu Yangling carried the two babies over and showed them to Shu Wanniang. She gently tapped their foreheads and said, “You have names now.”
In the evening, Mu Shi brought back two cages of chicken and 100 eggs. Coupled with the dry goods at home, it was enough for Shu Wanniang to undergo 40 days of confinement.
Mu Shi handed the things to Madam Ma-Liu, who used all her culinary skills to prepare food for Shu Wanniang. Half a month later, the two babies were fed until they were fair and chubby, and looked about the same age as a full-term child.
Shu Wanniang wrapped the two babies in soft swaddling clothes as she said to Mu Shi, “We did things simply for the custom of giving bath to the babies on their third day, but we have to do a good job with their one-month-old banquet. We can’t let the two little fellows suffer.”
“Don’t worry, I’ve already asked Aunt to help when the time comes.”
“By the way, has Aunt’s house been rebuilt?” Shu Wanniang asked.
As the weather had turned sunny, Liu Ting had brought people to West Mountain Village two days ago to help Madam Ma-Liu rebuild her house.
“I was about to speak to you about this. I’m thinking of asking Aunt to stay here for the rest of the winter. We have two babies at home now, and Bowen also needs someone to take care of him. Ah Ling and I have to go into the mountains from time to time, so you definitely won’t be able to take care of him alone. So not ask Aunt to stay here for the time being? When the winter passes and Bowen goes to school, Ah Ling and I will be able to help.”
“Did you tell Aunt?”
Mu Shi smiled and nodded. “I’ve already spoken to her. Just focus on your confinement.
However, Mu Shi did not expect that this could only be an empty promise. Shu Wanniang was destined not to be able to have a smooth confinement.
In the middle of the night, Mu Shi suddenly opened his eyes. He jumped off the bed and lay on the ground to listen carefully for movement, but there was silence. Everything was normal, but he felt uneasy. This was a feeling he only had when facing danger. This intuition was inherited from his ancestors and came from the bloodline of someone who lived on the grassland.
In the other room, Mu Yangling also opened her eyes. Puzzled, she turned to look at Little Bowen, who was sleeping at the side. It was rare for her to have insomnia.
She closed her eyes and was about to force herself to fall asleep when she suddenly heard the door open next door.
Mu Yangling got up in confusion. Why did her father go out so late at night?
Mu Yangling put on her clothes and walked out as well. Mu Shi was climbing onto the roof and looking around. Seeing his daughter coming out, he was shocked. “Why are you awake?”
“I just woke up all of a sudden. Father, why did you climb onto the roof?”
Mu Shi looked at the red light that soared into the sky from West Mountain Village with a gloomy expression. “Something happened in West Mountain Village.”
Mu Yangling hurriedly climbed up to take a look and saw thick smoke rising into the sky from the north. There was a faint red light. Because the trees in Chef Mountain were dense and tall, she could not see very clearly, but she could not be wrong about the billowing thick smoke.
“West Mountain Village is on fire? But the fire shouldn’t be so severe.” This wasn’t like the modern ages where houses were closely connected. Other than biological brothers who subsequently divided up their ancestral land, there was a certain distance between each family’s homesteads. Even if there was a fire, at most three to five houses would be caught in the fire. How could there be such thick smoke? It felt like the entire village was in flames.
“If it was just a simple fire, I wouldn’t be so flustered. Something must have happened. Hurry up and wake your mother and siblings up. Pack our things first. I’ll go look for the village chief.”
Mu Yangling didn’t understand, but she still followed Mu Shi’s instructions to wake up her great-aunt, mother, and the others. She packed all the valuable things in the house that needed to be taken away.
Seeing that her younger siblings, who were only half a month old, were lying quietly on the bed, she turned around and packed two small blankets. She tied them tightly with a rope and found the two-wheeled cart that had been kept in the storeroom.