The little girl’s question was too sudden. Sang Yu was at a loss for words. “Er, not in the near future.”
I have two years to go before I graduate. We haven’t even consummated our marriage yet. I finished my period a few days ago, but Shen Peichuan had forgotten all about it. I can’t tell him that my period is gone, can I?
Outside, Aunt Yu had arrived to visit Lin Xinyan and the baby.
She was talking to Zhuang Zijin. “Let’s take shifts. You can take care of the kids at home while I’ll take care of Mrs. Zong here.”
Zhuang Zijin chuckled. “Are the kids naughty?”
Aunt Yu shook her head. “No, I’m just worried about you. You should take a break at home instead of coming to the hospital every day. The kids are old enough to be obedient. Don’t worry. It must be tiring for you.”
“Thank you. But I want to take care of my daughter myself,” Zhuang Zijin replied and patted Aunt Yu’s shoulder.
“Grandma!” Zong Yanxi struggled out of Sang Yu’s arms and ran to Zhuang Zijin, while Zong Yanchen scoffed at her.
My sister will always be this childish, huh?
“Sang Yu, have a seat.” Upon picking Zong Yanxi up, Zhuang Zijin waved to Sang Yu.
“What a pretty girl. Peichuan is lucky to have her,” praised Aunt Yu. Sang Yu might have been a young girl who had grown up in a broken family, but she was pretty, smart, and sensible. That was enough.
A month later, Lin Xinyan was discharged from the hospital.
The baby was brought home too. After a month, he had fattened up and had grown some hair. If someone picked him up, he would be quick to fixate his gaze on that person. Everyone adored him.
Zong Yanxi was initially afraid that her parents would stop loving her after the birth of her little brother. As it turned out, she was the one who adored her little brother the most. Every day, the first thing she did after coming back home from school was to rush upstairs to see her little brother.
If anyone teased her about taking her little brother away, she would push that person out of the door.
With the baby’s arrival, the house was lively once more.
Lin Xinyan had finally ended her confinement period after one month, but Qin Ya had been suffering throughout the past month.
Upon taking medication and shots for the past month, the doctor found three matured eggs ready for retrieval. It was a painful process. A long needle would be stuck into a woman’s private part to find the exact location of the eggs before taking them out.
Normally, an anesthetic would be given to the patient before the egg retrieval procedure, but for patients like her with less dominant follicles, the anesthetic would affect the success rate of IVF. Besides, the procedure itself was harmful to the patient.
After the surgery ended, Qin Ya was so frail and pale she couldn’t even utter a word.
When Su Zhan entered her ward and tried to talk to her, she didn’t even realize he was there as she stared at the ceiling wordlessly.
Upon hearing that the egg retrieval process was successful, Grandma Su told Chen Xue to bring her to the doctor.
Su Zhan remained in the ward to accompany Qin Ya.
He wanted to give her a hug, but her arm had been injected so many times that there were bruises all over it.
“It must hurt a lot.” Su Zhan’s eyes reddened. “I wish that I could’ve taken some of your pain.”
“I’m thirsty,” Qin Ya croaked abruptly.
Sweat was pouring down her face by the end of her surgery, so her entire mouth was dry, as though it was the Sahara desert.
She could feel her belly throbbing with pain, but she couldn’t move an inch. Even bending her legs was terribly painful. She had no choice but to lie in bed.
“I’ll get you some water.” Su Zhan stood up immediately and got her a cup of water. He was afraid that Qin Ya couldn’t get up, so he got her a straw, too. Upon placing the straw in the cup, he raised the cup to her lips. “Part your lips.”
Qin Ya’s pupils moved slightly. Su Zhan waited patiently until she was looking at him. He repeated gently, “Here’s the water. Open your mouth.”
She sucked on the straw greedily. When the cup was empty, Su Zhan asked, “Do you want more?”
Qin Ya shook her head.
He placed the cup down. “Does it hurt?”
“No,” uttered Qin Ya.
“You’re lying to me. Look at how pale you are! You couldn’t receive anesthetization during the procedure. It must hurt terribly as the needle had pierced your skin.”
The corners of Qin Ya’s lips curled up. “What else can I do?”
Su Zhan offered. “Is there anything that you’d like to eat? I’ll get some food for you.”
“Buy something sweet.” Anything sweet will do. Sugary foods make people happy, right? I want to eat something sweet now.
“Okay, I’ll go now.” Su Zhan was about to leave when he realized that he couldn’t leave her alone. “I’ll ask someone to deliver—”
Before he could finish, Chen Xue arrived with Grandma Su. “Deliver what?”
Su Zhan didn’t even spare her a glance as he replied, “Something.”
“That will be too slow. You should head out and buy it yourself.” The old lady gazed at Qin Ya with concern. “Ya, you’ve suffered too much.”
Qin Ya forced out a smile. “It was a necessary procedure.”
“Su Zhan, you should go and buy the stuff that you’ll need now. Xue and I shall be here.”
Su Zhan stood rooted to the spot as he lowered his head. “I’ll ask someone to deliver the stuff.”
Grandma Su flew into a fit of rage. “Su Zhan, what is this? Do you think that I’ll torture your wife?”
“No—”
“Then what is it?” the old lady demanded.
Qin Ya turned her head slightly and closed her eyes. She uttered weakly, “Su Zhan, I don’t want it anymore. I want to take a nap now.”
“What does she want you to buy?” Grandma Su inquired.
Su Zhan tucked Qin Ya in and urged, “Grandma, let’s go out so that she can rest.”
Grandma Su was utterly furious. “You haven’t answered my question!”
“What do you want me to answer?” My grandma is turning into a stranger.
“Fine. Anyway, you don’t respect me anymore.” She called out, “Xue, bring me home.”
Right then, the doorbell rang.
“Who is it? I’ll open the door.” Chen Xue walked toward the door.
It was a delivery man.
The delivery man wearing a helmet raised the lunchbox in his hand. “Is there a Ms. Qin Ya here?”
