Chapter 17

Chen Jue bought so many things that naturally drew comments from the thrifty aunties. Sixth Aunt said he should live frugally, and Zhou Hehua glanced at his belly with a huff, saying he was greedy, and so on.

Uncle Liu, on the other hand, said nothing. As long as Chen Jue could eat, that was good enough. Their family could work hard and support him—today's earnings were already considerable.

Chen Jue said, "Because there's nothing to eat at my place. I'm hungry every day." His single sentence won the aunties' sympathy. He was alone and pregnant, and Dalin still hadn't returned. The poor thing.

Zhou Shuyao drove the cart ahead, thinking, you're all wrong. This Chen Jue bought all this because he wants to go back to his family's place, and while Huo Lin is away, he's cleaning out the house. He even bought wine and meat.

But is he going back for a visit, or is he never coming back? That question matters a lot—his father is keeping a close eye on this...

Zhou Shuyao was lost in thought and stayed quiet. On the road, when Aunt Zhang told him to get off and collect dung for the ox, he didn't hear her. He urged the slow ox along and finally made it back to the village before sunset.

This time, he was nice enough to help Chen Jue carry everything home. Chen Jue thanked him and handed him a box of pastries: "Take this home for Aunt Zhang to try."

Zhou Shuyao waved his hands repeatedly and hurried off.

He hadn't expected Chen Jue to be so generous. These were pastries from Xu Ji's shop—a hundred wen for a box! And only eight pieces, each the size of a tea bowl, not even a mouthful for him.

Who'd be crazy enough to eat such expensive pastries? If he brought them home, his mother would scold him. Most importantly, his father was already thinking of driving Chen Jue out of the village, so how could he accept his pastries?

Chen Jue watched him run off faster than a rabbit and just let it go.

After putting away his own grain, Chen Jue took two boxes of pastries and two catties of meat to Uncle Liu's house. He hadn't given them earlier for fear of others gossiping.

Uncle Liu's goods today weren't just vegetables. Underneath were dried wood ear mushrooms, matsutake mushrooms, well-woven straw shoes, and other things that sold well.

Since Uncle Liu didn't want to attract attention, Chen Jue would be discreet for him.

He owed Uncle Liu's family for all their care lately—this was his way of saying thanks.

He'd rarely done things like this before, but that didn't mean he couldn't.

Uncle Liu never expected half of Chen Jue's four boxes of pastries to be for him. He was even more flustered than Zhou Shuyao and refused flat out.

But Chen Jue opened them all, so everyone got to taste the pricey pastries.

When Chen Jue finally left, he carried a basket of food, including the meat he'd bought that day, plus another basket of chicks—half-grown ones that an old hen could raise without him lifting a finger.

He'd shown up with next to nothing and left loaded down. Chen Jue didn't know what to say.

Uncle Liu also gave Chen Jue the one tael and two hundred wen they'd earned from selling half a month's work, since they'd agreed earlier that all earnings would go toward supporting Chen Jue's child.

Chen Jue waved off Uncle Liu's gesture with one sentence: "Uncle Liu, keep the money for me. If you give it to me, I'll blow through it."

He hadn't yet told Uncle Liu that he'd used half of today's earnings to order scalpels he might never use.

Uncle Liu thought of the fancy pastries and reluctantly withdrew the money: "Alright, I'll hold onto it for you. We'll have more later."

Chen Jue nodded: "I know. With Brother Qingshan around, our days are only going to get better."

Zhou Qingshan was caught off guard for a moment, then nodded eagerly. He was deeply grateful that Chen Jue treated him like a normal person. Especially when everyone else pitied him as a cripple, Chen Jue the physician saw him as ordinary. That meant more than anything anyone could say.

Chen Jue looked at the chicks packed in the basket and asked the little girl nestled in Zhou Qingshan's arms, "You're really okay with giving me these chicks? They're not cute anymore?"

Days ago, when the chicks were fluffy, Nannan had been crazy about them. She counted them every single day and would cry if even one was missing.

Now the month-old chicks had lost their fluff and were in that awkward molting stage—not nearly as cute as when they were fuzzy. So Nannan gave them away without a second thought.

Busted by Chen Jue, she shyly turned her face and burrowed into Zhou Qingshan's arms. He helplessly patted her head. These past few days, his daughter had finally dared to get close to him again.

Though he'd had another unexplained outburst yesterday and worried Nannan would be scared of him like before, she still brought him a stool to sit on and leaned into him. Zhou Qingshan knew this was all thanks to Chen Jue, who treated him as normal and convinced the whole family that he was just sick. Once he recovered, everything would be fine. No one thought of him as crazy anymore.

Zhou Qingshan's eyes got a little misty. He took a deep breath and said quietly, "Thanks for what you did for Nannan too."

Chen Jue knew what he meant. Before, Nannan wouldn't even dare step into Zhou Qingshan's room.

People naturally fear doctors and sick people.

Even with her own dad, she was scared.

Now Nannan no longer feared Zhou Qingshan, smiled at other people, and was willing to get close to her dad. Watching Nannan hand him pastries, Chen Jue would be lying if he said he wasn't surprised.

In his past life, kids hadn't liked him—that was just his personality. He kept people at arm's length, including kids.

Even though he'd spent plenty of time in obstetrics because of Jiang Xinhe, surrounded daily by the wails of newborns, those children hadn't changed him.

But now, looking at Nannan, he wanted to reach out and touch her dry, thin hair, but his hand froze halfway.

His belly seemed to move. No, the baby was only three months along—it couldn't move. It was just a tiny bubble...

Was it jealous? Or did it want to play with Nannan?

Chen Jue froze, and it took him a moment to snap out of it, only then truly realizing there was a baby in his belly.

When he'd been throwing up earlier, he'd only grumbled about how tough it was to be a pregnant man—he hadn't actually felt the baby or taken it seriously.

Now there really was a baby—his own baby. Whether he liked it or not, whether he wanted it or not, it was in his belly, affected by his health and mood.

They were bound together, through thick and thin, in life and death.

In this strange new world, he had someone who was family.

"Wh-what's wrong?" Zhou Qingshan noticed his dazed expression and asked quickly.

He was a bit afraid Chen Jue had spotted another problem. He was already messed up—Nannan couldn't have issues too.

Chen Jue shook his head and said flatly, "Nothing. I think I pulled a muscle in my arm."

Zhou Qingshan sighed in relief. "You carried heavy stuff today, didn't you? You can't do that anymore. Qingzhu, walk Jue Geer out."

Zhou Qingzhu was wrapping up freshly baked locust flower cakes for Chen Jue. "Coming!"

He left with food and gifts, and someone even walked him all the way home. At the door, Zhou Qingzhu carefully told him, "Jue Geer, I've stir-fried the meat so it'll keep. When you make soup, just scoop out a spoonful—no need to cook it yourself. Try using less water so the soup is richer and more flavorful, but watch the heat."

Chen Jue knew he'd seen the burnt pot, so he didn't refuse. He couldn't cook—that was obvious. They'd probably known for a while but hadn't said anything to spare his pride.

It looked like he'd have to haul those two bags of grain over to their house after all. He'd originally planned not to bother Uncle Liu's family and just make noodle soup every day.

Little by little, he owed more and more, and the ties of obligation got more tangled. This was what people meant by bonds.

Standing at the door watching Zhou Qingzhu walk away, he looked at the small mountain village that seemed more appealing every day. He took a deep breath and felt reluctant to leave.

In the ten or so days before the autumn harvest, the villagers were both excited and anxious. Wheat harvest was coming. They only had two harvest seasons a year to look forward to, and this was the most important one, arriving just as their grain stores were running dry. They were beyond excited.

But at the same time, the harvesters still hadn't come back. That dread hung over their heads like a sword, making them happy and worried at the same time.

Under these circumstances, the villagers would instinctively rest under the big locust tree at the village entrance after working in the fields, where they could see people coming from outside.

Gatherings for casual chat became more frequent, mostly among women and menfolk, those hoping for the return of their sons or husbands.

They talked about all sorts of topics, of course gossip being the most common, and Chen Jue was among them. If the head nurse saw this, she'd surely look shocked.

He never used to join these gatherings, but now it was different—he had become one of the women and menfolk, needing to pick up other news in addition to his herb digging.

Giving birth was now his top priority.

Until that was settled, he too felt like a sword was hanging over his head.

The gatherings he joined weren't just full of women, menfolk, and children—there were also quite a few pregnant women and pregnant men.

He wanted to learn about how men give birth and how they breastfeed after giving birth.

If Chen Jue asked about childbirth, all those aunties and uncles, brothers and sisters-in-law could talk at great length—everyone who had given birth had their own book of parenting wisdom.

"You're already three months along now, you can start preparing the baby's clothes. It'll be born right in the winter, so you'll need to prepare cotton clothes, quilts, and diapers. Oh, in winter you'll need to prepare extra—if they don't dry after washing, you'll have nothing to use."

"Yan Geer will be giving birth before long—he's six months along now, right? Born in autumn—that's a good time, neither too hot nor too cold, good whether for confinement or washing diapers."

Aunt Liu said, pulling over Zhang Yan, the pregnant man beside her who was already six months along.

Zhang Yan smiled shyly, and also smiled at Chen Jue, who had been glancing at his belly from time to time. Though Chen Jue's glances at his belly were very covert, he'd still noticed them. This Chen Jue was scared of giving birth, wasn't he?

He was scared too—it was too hard for menfolk to give birth. With that thought, a faint trace of melancholy crept onto his brow. The further along he was, the more nervous he became, which was why he'd been sitting among these aunties and husbands lately, hoping to pick up some wisdom.

Same idea as Chen Jue.

Chen Jue had managed to get himself into the pregnant men's circle.

Aunt Liu and the others were still talking about baby supplies, recalling bitter memories—raising children was never sweet, each story more bitter than the last.

Aunt Zhang said, "Yes, this is the most worrisome thing. A newborn pees every little while—pees after every feeding, you can't change them fast enough, let alone wash them. If you don't have someone to help out, you're the one who suffers. You can't touch cold water during confinement, and then washing diapers in the dead of winter—ah, I suffered that hardship with my second."

"Why should only you wash diapers? Don't the child's father have hands?" Zhou Hehua, who had just sat down in the chat circle, immediately jumped in.

She had a loud voice and a big build—in this era where everyone was as thin as a rail, she was plump.

Chen Jue glanced at her. Zhou Hehua—he remembered her quite well. Not because her husband had said one extra word to him last time and she'd scolded him for it.

Rather, it was because if you looked at Zhou Hehua's complexion using TCM's "inspection" method, something seemed off with her.

But Chen Jue didn't say anything. He wouldn't casually ask about matters related to pregnancy anymore.

The psychological barrier from having once treated a patient to death wasn't something easily removed.

Zhou Hehua, seeing she'd cowed the crowd of women and menfolk, continued with a cold snort: "If I had a baby, I'd lie on the kang all day—don't expect me to touch a drop of water. My hands and feet are already always cold, and then washing diapers on top of that? Wouldn't that be asking for death? Don't throw away your life just to have a child!"

"Hehua, you can't say things like that! Who ever died from having a child? You've never given birth, you don't understand—don't scare these new husbands." Aunt Liu quickly said, speaking too fast and forgetting that Zhou Hehua hated being told she couldn't have children. She'd been married for seven years without having a child.

Zhou Hehua looked about to get angry: "So what if I've never given birth? Isn't what I said right? Isn't having a child a matter for two people? If we can't have one, how is it only my fault? My body is perfectly fine—there's nothing wrong with me!"

Aunt Zhang smiled and mediated: "Right, Hehua, don't get worked up. You're still young, no need to rush. Children depend on fate—maybe you'll even have two at once. Your husband is a tall, burly man—there's nothing wrong with either of you."

Zhou Hehua snorted coldly, which counted as accepting the mediation.

Chen Jue glanced at Zhou Hehua with surprise. Not because she had trouble bearing children—women in this dynasty were very fertile. In families where the woman was the mother, one woman could bear six to eight children, though how many survived was another matter. It was the menfolk who had difficulty giving birth.

What surprised him was Zhou Hehua's way of thinking.

An ancient woman with modern ideas—that was truly rare.

Many people in later generations didn't even have her mindset; plenty still thought childbirth was solely the woman's problem.

But from what he could see, Zhou Hehua had a few more issues than that.

Chen Jue looked at her: "Have you and your husband seen a doctor?"

He thought he'd just said something ordinary, but Zhou Hehua exploded: "Who needs to see a doctor! My husband is fine! No need! And I definitely don't need one! I eat well! Sleep well!"

Without waiting for Chen Jue to explain, Zhou Hehua stood up abruptly and stormed off.

Chen Jue watched her retreating figure and said nothing. So she feared doctors too. But there were plenty of people who feared doctors, so Chen Jue didn't think much of it.

It was Aunt Zhang who told Chen Jue, "Jue Geer, don't take it to heart. Hehua just has a quick temper, but she's a warm-hearted person. The two of them have seen doctors over the years, but nothing's improved. We're worried for her too, but we can't say it to her face. Having children really does come down to fate sometimes."

Aunt Liu also sighed and said, "Indeed. Zhou Hehua's mother only had her one daughter, no sons, but the family had money, so they had to bring in a son-in-law. Yet after seven or eight years of marriage, still no child—it's really hard to know what to say. I suppose their family just has shallow luck with children."

Shallow luck with children—that was a phrase modern people used too.

Some people just had difficulty conceiving. In modern terms, it would be long ovulation cycles—once every two months or even half a year—combined with polycystic ovaries and cold conditions caused by wasting thirst, making childbearing difficult.

Chen Jue figured he roughly understood Zhou Hehua's problem—possibly a family-inherited polycystic condition, a constitution prone to infertility.

Sure enough, what Liu Cuier said later confirmed it. Liu Cuier lived right next door to Zhou Hehua and spilled all their family secrets, even mentioning how Hehua's mother made the live-in son-in-law drink sheep penis and centipede concoctions every day.

"Hehua's father only had this one daughter and feared the family line would end, so he had Hehua's mother gather all sorts of folk remedies, forcing Hehua's husband to drink who knows how many bowls of black, murky medicine—sheep penis, snake gall, centipedes, you name it. I think her husband getting darker and darker is definitely from drinking that stuff."

"You mischievous thing, don't talk nonsense! Last time you said Hehua rolled around in pain during her period, and her husband sewed rabbit fur onto her belly band for her—the young couple loves each other so much. Now you're making up stories about them again. Careful—if Hehua hears you, she'll tear your mouth apart!" Aunt Liu said, even as she herself hadn't stopped talking, making a gesture of pinching Liu Cuier.

Liu Cuier let out an "ow" and said, "What I said before was all true... This time I'm just curious—does that dog penis and sheep penis stuff actually work? Is it really potent?"

She stuck her head into the circle to ask.

Aunt Zhang finally couldn't help but swat her: "You with your unguarded mouth! There are two new husbands here who've been married less than a year, and you just talk like that openly? Look, you've made them hang their heads!"

"What's there to be shy about? They've got kids on the way—they've been through everything already, right? Yan Geer, Jue Geer, your men both look like fine, strong fellows."

Zhang Shuier teased, looking at Chen Jue and Zhang Yan with a grin.

Zhang Yan coughed. He wasn't shy, exactly—he just hadn't expected these sisters-in-law and husbands to have such explosive topics. He'd thought they were discussing parenting tips.

Chen Jue's expression didn't change either. Later generations had no shortage of dirty jokes.

He was just a bit resigned—if he wanted to hear parenting advice, he had to sit through these dirty jokes first.

After that, they went on to share all sorts of bedroom gossip about various households—who knew how they found it all out. Finally, Aunt Liu couldn't take it anymore and changed the subject: "Alright, enough of that. Let's tell these two new husbands what they need to prepare for the baby's arrival. Where were we?"

"...We were at washing diapers in winter," Chen Jue prompted her.

Author's note:

I'll speed up the updates—the male lead should appear within the next few chapters.