CHAPTER 569: CHAPTER 558: THE MARCHIONESS’S MAID

By the time they reached the delivery room, Zhong Lan was already drenched in sweat, but Ye Qiu still insisted on supporting her as they slowly walked around the room.

"The Imperial Physician said that walking around more before giving birth will make it easier when the time comes. Lady, for the sake of the young heir and the little miss in your belly, please hold on a bit longer."

Zhong Lan was amused by Ye Qiu’s words, and despite the pain, continued to walk: "How do you know it’s a boy and a girl?"

Ye Qiu chuckled lightly: "Didn’t the Old Madam say that the Old Marquis also had a twin sister? Twins are mostly hereditary, so I ventured this guess. Plus, having Dragon Phoenix twins would be perfect, the young heir will uphold the family name, and the little miss will accompany you through a life of peace and prosperity."

Listening to Ye Qiu’s words, Zhong Lan seemed to envision the happy future of her family and didn’t feel as tired anymore: "Then I’ll take your auspicious words to heart!"

After walking a couple of rounds, the Old Marchioness and Second Mrs. Shen hurried over, but there was still no news from Shen Dong, who had gone to fetch the Imperial Physician, making Ye Qiu anxious.

After a while, Shen Dong returned, his face a mix of panic and anger, and then he knelt before the Old Marquis with a "plop": "Old Madam, the soldiers outside won’t let us bring the Imperial Physician. They said no one can enter or leave Marquis Weiyuan’s Mansion now, Old Madam, please, save the Lady. How can she give birth without the midwife?"

"Bang!" The Old Marchioness stood up furiously, slamming her hand on the table, her eyes filled with intense fury, "Did they really say that?"

"Yes."

"Second brother’s family, you stay here and look after your daughter-in-law; I’ll go and see for myself." Although the Old Marchioness was advanced in years, she still moved with fierce vigor. Second Mrs. Shen quickly called her little maid, "Quick, go next door and call the Second Old Master. Make sure nothing goes wrong."

The little maid ran off swiftly, with Second Mrs. Shen still in a state of urgency.

At this moment, the pains of labor intensified for Zhong Lan inside the room, and Ye Qiu helped her onto the bed.

"Where’s the chicken soup? Is it ready? If not, quickly get a bowl of noodles ready," Ye Qiu told the little maid outside.

Second Mrs. Shen hastily went in and, seeing Zhong Lan’s condition, became incredibly anxious, instructing repeatedly: "Right, go and inform the kitchen to prepare some food quickly, how else will she have the strength to give birth without eating something?"

She then took Zhong Lan’s hand: "Don’t be afraid, it will be alright. Everything will be fine after the birth."

Zhong Lan had already heard the commotion outside and began to panic, thinking of the two children in her womb: "Aunt, are the soldiers outside stopping us from bringing the Imperial Physician and the midwife? Will there be something wrong with my children?"

During childbirth, it is most taboo for the pregnant woman to be emotionally unstable, as this greatly increases the likelihood of complications, especially since she was carrying twins. And so, Second Madam became even more anxious.

But she kept comforting nonstop: "It will be alright. Your grandmother has already gone over there, the Imperial Physician and the midwife will definitely be brought in, just relax."

At this time, Ye Qiu also took Zhong Lan’s other hand: "Lady, think of the Marquis at the border, think of the young heir and the little miss in your belly. You must believe that your entire family will be safe and sound. If anything were to go wrong because of your worrying during childbirth, do you think the Marquis would be able to forgive himself after he returns?"

"Didn’t you say the other day that if it’s a boy, he will follow the Marquis to practice martial arts, and if it’s a girl, you will personally teach her zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting? Even if they don’t like these, it doesn’t matter, as long as they are healthy and safe for their entire lives." Ye Qiu continued to encourage, "Don’t you want to see the scene of them calling you ’Mother’ with laughter?"

Second Mrs. Shen also continued, "Right, think more about these things, and all hardships will pass. Besides, your aunt here has also given birth to two children, and the old women in the mansion understand all this as well. Even if Doctor Wang can’t come, it doesn’t matter too much, so don’t worry."

Comforted by their words, Zhong Lan gradually felt at ease and then revealed a strong smile.

Seeing this, Second Mrs. Shen finally breathed a sigh of relief and then looked at Ye Qiu with approval.

At this moment, Ye Qiu took the bowl of noodles from the little maid and personally fed it to Zhong Lan’s mouth: "Lady, take the opportunity to eat more now before the full onset of labor, so you’ll have the strength when it comes time to give birth to the young heir and the young miss."

"Yes, I’ll eat." For the sake of the two children, even though she was enduring severe pain at the moment, Zhong Lan still stuffed the noodles into her mouth.

After eating the noodles, Zhong Lan only felt more pain, and the sweat on her face flowed down like rain.

"Lady, you have to trust me and Second Madam. Second Madam has given birth to the Second Young Master and Third Miss, she has the experience of childbirth. As for me, as you know, I have been studying medical skills all year round and understand a bit. Just relax, giving birth won’t happen so quickly, just listen to our instructions and use your strength later."

"Exactly, exactly, don’t panic or be afraid." Second Madam seemed to find a rock to cling to. In fact, with Old Madam and the Imperial Physician and midwife not showing up, she was extremely anxious, but seeing Ye Qiu so calm, she also forced herself to remain composed.

But although she had given birth to two children, during childbirth, she was completely overwhelmed. How could she talk about experience? What would she do later?

Luckily, Ye Qiu hadn’t actually planned to rely on her from the beginning. Saying this was just to give Zhong Lan confidence, otherwise, a person who was unmarried, had never given birth, nor had experience in medical skills saying that she could assist in childbirth would definitely not be convincing.

"It has dilated to five fingers, Lady, please endure a little longer, it’s estimated there’s still some time."

After about half an hour, Old Madam and Second Old Master Shen returned with grim faces. It seemed the soldiers outside were still not letting them pass, not only not allowing them pass, they even prohibited inviting a midwife back, which was deliberately making things difficult for Marquis Weiyuan’s Mansion.

"Damn it!" Mindful that Zhong Lan was inside, Old Madam’s curse was low, but the rage was still unable to be concealed.

"Mother, do you think those people are sent by the Eldest Prince?" Second Old Master Shen hadn’t been on his duty for several months. Although he hadn’t been involved in the tumult of the court, he had a vague sense of it.

Old Madam’s expression was not good, "It’s probable that the Holy Emperor has really... otherwise, no one would dare to treat our Marquis Mansion this way."

Anxiety flashed across Second Old Master Shen’s face, "What do we do then? If the Eldest Prince really ascends the throne, wouldn’t our Marquis Mansion be in danger?"

"Not necessarily, Rong Jing surely has arrangements, he must know much more than we do." Old Madam forced herself to remain calm, "As long as the Eldest Prince has not ascended to the throne, our lives are not in danger. Right now, the most important thing is Rong Jing’s wife and the two children in her womb. Now that the Imperial Physician and midwife are not here, I don’t know if this difficulty can be safely overcome. If something really goes wrong, how are we to explain it to the child Rong Jing?"