Chapter 65: Teasing
Looking at his wife and daughter resting together on the kang bed, Li Xiu paid no mind to the peals of laughter coming from beside it. He turned to the other women. "Grandma, Second Aunt Li, Sun San Niang—don’t go just yet. Please stay for dinner."
"No, no, you’re busy. We won’t get in your way," Sun San Niang quickly refused. "There’s so much to do after a birth, especially with no elders to help manage things. Grandma Li is getting on in years, and Li Xiu doesn’t want to trouble her."
"It’s no trouble, everything’s ready. Grandma already cooked a chicken, so we can all share it," Li Xiu said casually. ’His wife wouldn’t be able to have chicken soup for three days, and this one has been stewing for too long. I would never give it to her.’
Grandma Li chimed in, "Just have a simple meal with us. Eat early so you can go home and rest. You’ve all worked so hard today."
"Oh, listen to you, Grandma Li! Your granddaughter-in-law is healthy, so it wasn’t a difficult birth at all. And besides, it’s what we’re here for!"
The fire under the pot was kept going, keeping the chicken soup inside hot. Li Xiu went to the pickle jar, scooped out a plate of pickled vegetables, and boiled a few salted eggs.
Seeing the pickled wild peppers, mountain bamboo shoots, and asparagus ferns on the table—along with the boiled salted eggs, a large basin of chicken, a large basin of chicken broth, and a stack of savory crepes—Second Aunt Li and Sun San Niang exchanged a look. This was far too lavish.
"Nephew, you should take the chicken away. Save it for your wife. The eggs and pickles are more than enough," Second Aunt Li said, looking at the spread. Times were tough for everyone, and having eggs on the table was already a treat. Besides, they were all from the same village. Midwives usually went straight home after a delivery and were rarely asked to stay for a meal. Not to mention, Li Xiu had already made them sweet egg soup with brown sugar that afternoon. They were already being treated exceptionally well.
"It’s fine. When she’s ready to eat, I’ll make her a fresh one," Li Xiu urged them. "Please, eat. It’s getting late, and you’ve been busy all day. You should get home to rest soon."
"Oh, and be sure to stay alert tonight. Don’t sleep too soundly!" Seeing that Li Xiu wasn’t just being polite, Second Aunt Li took a seat and began to eat as she spoke.
Li Xiu swallowed the food in his mouth and promised, "Okay, I’ll be careful."
Grandma Li glanced at him and asked in a low voice, "Should I stay the night? I can help you for a couple of days."
"No, that’s not necessary. You should go home and rest, Grandma. I can handle it, don’t worry. If you’re still concerned, you can come by again tomorrow during the day." Li Xiu shook his head, refusing her offer. ’The baby will probably start nursing tonight. A feeding and a diaper change every two or three hours... there’s not much else to it. Besides, it’d be a miracle if I could get any sleep tonight anyway!’
After seeing everyone out and closing the main gate, he returned to the room. The mother and child on the kang bed were sleeping soundly. He checked the time—it was almost eight o’clock. ’It’s been nearly four hours since she last ate.’ With that thought, he rolled up his sleeves and went to the kitchen to make his wife something to eat.
He had just finished cooking when he heard his daughter’s cries. He rushed to soothe her. Unwrapping her little swaddle, he saw she had both wet and soiled her diaper. He mixed some warm water to wash her clean, changed her into a fresh diaper, and held her, cooing softly.
Seeing her little mouth constantly moving, Li Xiu held her and mixed some warm water for her with his free hand. The moment the bottle nipple touched her lips, she began to suckle vigorously. After drinking for a little while, she fell asleep again. Watching her sleep so peacefully, her tiny fists raised, he felt an overwhelming surge of fatherly love. ’In my memories, she was always such a whirlwind. I’d forgotten how adorable she was as a baby.’
He laid his daughter down and gently woke Zhou Lian. He wiped her face and hands with a warm towel, then helped her sit up against the headboard, propped up on the kang bed. He held the bowl and began to feed her.
Zhou Lian looked at the food in the bowl, not really wanting to eat. ’I’m not hungry yet.’
"Bao’er, be good now," Li Xiu coaxed her gently when he saw she didn’t want to eat. "Just have a little. Your body is very weak right now, so we can’t start with rich foods yet, but you have to eat well. Otherwise, how will you have milk for our daughter?"
Frowning, Zhou Lian managed to eat half a bowl of millet porridge before she really couldn’t eat anymore. Li Xiu didn’t force her. ’She can eat again whenever she gets hungry. Forcing her will only make her uncomfortable.’
"Li Xiu, how many times has our daughter woken up?" Zhou Lian asked, looking at the sleeping baby beside her.
"Just once. I changed her diaper—she passed her meconium—and she just had a little water before falling back asleep," Li Xiu explained slowly, reassuring her.
"Oh. Bring her to me, I’ll try to feed her."
"Okay. Has your milk come in yet?" Li Xiu asked as he carefully handed their daughter to her.
"I think so. They feel a bit full now," Zhou Lian said, looking up at Li Xiu. She settled the baby comfortably, lifted her shirt, and helped her daughter latch on.
After a moment, the baby started wailing. Zhou Lian and Li Xiu looked at each other, confused. Why had she started crying in the middle of feeding?
Zhou Lian lifted the baby to check and couldn’t help but feel torn between laughter and tears. Blushing, she looked up at Li Xiu. "Her suckle is too weak!"
Seeing his wife’s crimson face, Li Xiu understood instantly. He looked at Zhou Lian with a smile and said, "Why are you getting shy with your own husband? It’s not like this is anything scandalous!"
Zhou Lian shot him a glare. ’When is he ever serious? This ridiculous man...’ she thought irritably, then snapped, "Just hurry up, the baby is still crying!"
Li Xiu glanced at his endlessly crying daughter in his wife’s arms, sighed silently, and stepped forward to help his daughter get her meal.
When she felt her milk let down, Zhou Lian, face flushed, pushed Li Xiu away and quickly let her daughter nurse. Nuonuo, finally getting milk, stopped crying and began to suckle with all her might. Only then did Zhou Lian turn to look at the man beside her. Seeing his expression of utter despair, she was puzzled. ’What’s wrong with him now?’
"What’s wrong with you now?"
"Bao’er, this won’t do. You’re being so unreliable!" Li Xiu said with a serious face now that his wife had finally noticed him.
"What did I do? How am I unreliable?" Zhou Lian asked, looking at him with complete confusion.
"Our daughter was just born, and you’re already ignoring me. Bao’er, you only pay attention to me when you need me, then you cast me aside. It’s heartbreaking!" Li Xiu spouted nonsense with a perfectly straight face.
It took Zhou Lian a moment to realize this infuriating man was teasing her again. She stared at him, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. ’Is there anyone else like him? Teasing his own wife for no reason. How did I never notice he had such a smart mouth before!’
"Bao’er, I formally protest! It’s not a smart mouth," Li Xiu retorted, displeased. "Besides, I’m teasing my own wife. Nobody can tell me not to, not even the Jade Emperor himself!" ’What does she mean, "smart mouth"? This woman has no filter.’
"Huh?" Hearing his response, Zhou Lian realized she had just said her thoughts out loud.
"Right, Li Xiu, are we sending out red eggs the day after tomorrow?" Zhou Lian changed the subject. ’If I keep arguing with him, who knows what kind of verbal trap he’ll lead me into.’
Li Xiu gave Zhou Lian a deep look. ’Just you wait until your confinement month is over.’ Zhou Lian understood the meaning in his eyes perfectly, and her face turned beet red. ’Seriously, how did we become so attuned to each other?!’
Seeing his wife’s blushing face, Li Xiu worried he’d gone too far and upset her, so he went along with her topic change. "Yep, we have to send them. To our own family, the village head and team leader, the matchmaker, and the midwives. That’s about it. In the next two days, I’ll have Li Bao go inform your father’s side, my aunt’s family, and my maternal grandfather."
Zhou Lian thought it over. ’He’s been very thorough, thinking of everyone who needs to be notified.’ "You can take care of it, then," she said. As she spoke, she lifted their daughter, who had fallen asleep while eating, preparing to burp her.
With lightning-fast reflexes, Li Xiu took the baby from her arms. Gently patting her back, he said, "Bao’er, let me do this. You just lie down and rest. Don’t sit up for too long, it’s bad for your back."
Seeing his wife obediently lie down, he continued, "Bao’er, you have to listen to me. Illnesses you get during the confinement month are hard to cure. If you want to hold our daughter, there will be plenty of time for that later. You absolutely must recover properly during this month. It’s winter now, and I have nothing else to do, so leave everything to me. Don’t make me worry, okay?"
He knew his wife responded to gentleness, not force, so he continued to coax her softly.