TSWPF -Chapter 363 Difficult Labor

“What? Ah Bai is about to give birth?” Li Qingling sprang to her feet and lifted her foot to rush outside.

Her sudden movement startled Liu Zhimou and the others. Liu Zhimou and Mr. Luo hurriedly told her not to get agitated, to walk slowly.

Li Qingling laughed awkwardly and slowed her steps.

Her belly hadn’t grown much yet, so sometimes she forgot that she was a pregnant woman herself.

When they reached the backyard, Li Qingling saw Ah Huang anxiously pacing back and forth outside the door. The moment it saw her, its eyes lit up, and it began whimpering softly.

“Ah Bai won’t let me go in. I don’t know how it’s doing.”

If Ah Bai hadn’t driven it out, it would have stayed by Ah Bai’s side to keep it company.

Li Qingling walked over, patted Ah Huang’s big head, and comforted it, saying there was no need to be afraid—Ah Bai would be fine.

Ah Huang sighed and continued pacing restlessly at the doorway.

Seeing how nervous Ah Huang was, Liu Zhimou felt as if he were looking at himself. If Li Qingling were giving birth, he would probably be just as anxious.

He stepped forward and tightly held Li Qingling’s hand. She looked at him in confusion and asked what was wrong.

Swallowing, he said that seeing Ah Huang so nervous made his own heart tense as well.

Li Qingling understood the implication behind his words. She squeezed his hand back and smiled. “It’s fine. Women all have to go through this sooner or later.” With her good constitution, there shouldn’t be any major problems.

Liu Zhimou said solemnly, “No matter whether the child is a boy or a girl, one is enough.”

He didn’t want to see her suffer like this.

She turned her head and looked at him in surprise, not expecting him to say something like that.

Didn’t people here all want their wives to bear many children, to continue the family line? How could he…

Liu Zhimou gently flicked her forehead and said he didn’t want to see her work so hard. Raising one child well was better than raising ten poorly.

No matter how tired she was, hearing him say that made it all feel worth it.

She gently rested her head against his shoulder, neither nodding nor shaking her head.

In any case, she had already decided she wouldn’t have just one child. At the very least, she wanted two, so they’d have each other.

Liu Zhimou lightly wrapped an arm around Li Qingling, letting her lean against him so she wouldn’t be so tired standing.

They hadn’t expected to wait a full two hours, with Ah Bai showing no sign of delivering at all.

“How about you go back and rest for a bit? I’ll stay here and keep watch,” Liu Zhimou suggested softly, wiping the sweat from Li Qingling’s forehead.

Li Qingling shook her head and refused to leave. Without seeing Ah Bai safely deliver, she couldn’t rest easy.

Knowing he couldn’t persuade her, Liu Zhimou sighed helplessly and told Nianxia to bring some snacks so Li Qingling and the others could eat something.

Nianxia acknowledged and went.

When she returned with the snacks, Li Qingling hadn’t even had time to eat before they heard Ah Bai’s agonized roar. She jolted in fright, and the snacks fell from her hands.

“What’s wrong with Ah Bai? Don’t tell me… don’t tell me it’s a difficult labor?” Li Qingling stood up, her eyes reddening with anxiety.

Ah Huang no longer cared about angering Ah Bai. It crashed open the door and rushed inside.

It saw Ah Bai lying on the ground, convulsing in pain. Its heart ached terribly. It ran over, licking Ah Bai’s fur with its tongue, muttering that it wouldn’t give birth anymore, that it wouldn’t.

Ah Bai weakly glanced at Ah Huang, tears shimmering in its eyes. In a faint voice, it said it was having a difficult labor and was afraid… afraid it wouldn’t be able to accompany it anymore.

Hearing this, Ah Huang froze. Then it snapped back to its senses, turned, and ran outside to seek help from Li Qingling.

Difficult labor?

It really was difficult labor?

Li Qingling bit her lip hard and turned to shout loudly for the guard captain, Ling Yi.

“Madam…” Ling Yi appeared quickly. Li Qingling urgently told him to fetch a doctor—quickly.

Understanding the seriousness of the situation, Ling Yi nodded and hurried away.

Li Qingling took a deep breath and walked to the doorway, asking Ah Bai if she could go inside.

Seeing that it was Li Qingling, Ah Bai gave a soft whimper.

Li Qingling turned to Liu Zhimou. “Brother Zhimou, Ah Bai is having a difficult labor. I’m going in to check on it. You all wait outside—don’t come in.” She was afraid that seeing too many people would make Ah Bai panic.

Liu Zhimou looked at her worriedly and told her to be careful.

He knew what Ah Huang and Ah Bai meant to her. He couldn’t stop her, only remind her to take care.

Li Qingling reassured him that she’d be fine. Then she strode inside and closed the door again.

She went to Ah Bai’s side, drew out the spirit water from her hand, fed it to Ah Bai, and comforted it, telling it everything would be all right.

Ah Huang squatted to one side, continuously licking Ah Bai’s fur, trying to ease its pain.

After drinking the spirit water, Ah Bai recovered a bit of strength. Li Qingling told it not to push yet and to wait for the doctor to take a look first.

Ah Bai lifted its head, licked Li Qingling’s hand, and thanked her.

Li Qingling gently touched its belly. “You and Ah Huang are my family. I hope you’ll be all right.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Liu Zhimou’s voice came from outside the door, saying the doctor had arrived.

Li Qingling hurried to open the door. It was the same old doctor who had previously checked her pulse.

The doctor thought Li Qingling was the one with a problem. Seeing her come out, he was about to take her pulse.

“Doctor, it’s not me,” Li Qingling said with a helpless smile, shaking her head. “Doctor, can you… treat animals? One of the animals I’m raising is having a difficult labor. I’d like you to take a look.”

What? An animal having a difficult labor, and he was supposed to see it?

The old doctor was stunned. He stared at Li Qingling with his mouth agape. He treated people, not livestock.

“Madam Magistrate, forgive this humble one for being unable to help.”

“Really… not possible?”

“Not possible.”

Li Qingling looked at him in disappointment, apologized, then quickly closed the door again and returned to Ah Bai’s side.

She clenched her teeth, made up her mind, and firmly asked Ah Bai whether it trusted her.

Ah Bai nodded slightly. It trusted its mistress.

“Good. Then… endure it.” Li Qingling closed her eyes and recalled how, in her previous life, her grandmother had helped deliver piglets when a sow had a difficult labor. She placed her hands on Ah Bai’s belly and rubbed forcefully.

She didn’t know if it would work. It was a case of treating a dead horse as if it were alive.

Ah Bai cried out in pain, though it seemed to be holding back because there were people outside.

Li Qingling looked at it with heartache and told it to endure, not to cry out, to save its strength for delivering the baby.

Hearing this, Ah Bai only let out a muffled groan when the pain became unbearable.

After who knew how long, when Li Qingling’s hands were utterly exhausted, she finally said it was time.

Ah Bai gasped heavily, then gathered its strength and pushed downward.

Li Qingling watched closely. When she saw that only one leg of the tiger cub had come out, her face changed drastically, and she cried out, “Wait!”

How could this be? Hadn’t she turned it already?

In her panic, she tried to stand up, forgetting that she had been kneeling for too long. Her legs were numb, and as soon as she stood, she staggered, about to fall to the ground.

Ah Huang dashed forward in one leap and grabbed her clothes with its teeth, preventing her from falling.

Li Qingling was badly startled. Holding onto Ah Huang, she steadied herself, then hurried to the door, opened it, and told Nianxia to fetch some oil.

Before Nianxia could go, Ling Yi went instead.

Moments later, he returned carrying a small jar.

Li Qingling took it with both hands, thanked him, and quickly shut the door again.

She smeared oil over her hands, knelt behind Ah Bai, and prepared to push the cub back in.

“Master, Ah Bai is counting on you. You must save it. Don’t… don’t save the cub,” Ah Huang said, tears streaming from its eyes.

Li Qingling looked up and saw Ah Huang crying. Her nose stung, and she nodded heavily, saying she would do everything she could to save Ah Bai.

If she had to choose between Ah Bai and the cub… she chose Ah Bai.

Ah Bai was family, a companion of many years. She couldn’t abandon it.

“Master…” Ah Bai, eyes full of tears, turned to look at Li Qingling and spoke with difficulty. “Save… the cub…”

“No!” Ah Huang growled. “I want you, not the cub.”

Seeing the two tigers about to argue, Li Qingling quickly stopped them, saying she would do her best to save both.

After that, she took several deep breaths and told Ah Bai to endure—it was time to begin.

This time, it would be success or death.

She gently grasped the cub’s leg, carefully pushed it back in, and, using the momentum, helped turn its head around.

The movement made Ah Bai roar in agony.

Li Qingling softly comforted Ah Bai, slowly withdrew her hand, and said, “Come on, Ah Bai. Push.”

She hoped there wouldn’t be any more problems.

Ah Bai’s belly heaved violently. After a long while, it gave a low whimper and pushed with all its strength.

After much struggle, the little tiger cub was finally born.

When Li Qingling saw it, tears suddenly fell. Witnessing the birth of a life with her own eyes deeply moved her.

Ah Bai propped itself up slightly, picked up the cub in its mouth, and gently licked it clean.

“It’s very beautiful,” Li Qingling said, looking at the cub after Ah Bai had cleaned it. Its fur was yellow, but right in the middle of its forehead was a tuft of white, making it especially pretty.

Ah Huang glanced at the cub with displeasure. It was all this little brat’s fault that Ah Bai had suffered so much.

Seeing Ah Huang’s expression, Li Qingling helplessly patted its big head, telling it not to blame the cub. The cub didn’t want this either.

Ah Huang snorted. It just didn’t like the cub.

Li Qingling smiled wordlessly, then looked down at the cub, which was squinting its eyes and scrambling on its four short legs to find milk. Suddenly, inspiration struck, and she thought of a name.

“Ah Huang, Ah Bai, how about calling the baby Diandian?” The little tuft of white fur on its forehead looked like a drop of white dye accidentally splashed into yellow paint.

Ah Huang said it didn’t matter.

Ah Bai said it sounded nice.

Just like that, the little tiger cub’s name was decided.

Li Qingling smiled and called out “Diandian.” Diandian didn’t react, still paddling its short legs in search of milk.

Watching such an adorable Diandian, Li Qingling couldn’t help but laugh.

After another quarter of an hour, Ah Bai still had no reaction. Li Qingling frowned. “Ah Bai, don’t tell me you were only carrying Diandian?” Otherwise, why hadn’t another cub been born after so long?

Ah Bai gave an affirmative sound—it had only been carrying one cub this time.

Just one cub, yet it had nearly cost it its life.

Ah?

Li Qingling reached out and felt Ah Bai’s belly. Sure enough, she didn’t feel any more cubs. She’d been too nervous earlier to notice.

This time, Ah Bai had unusually carried only a single cub—and that single cub had almost taken its life.

There was an old saying: when animals give birth to a single offspring, that child tends to be very domineering.

She tapped Diandian’s little head.

Now that she looked at it… it really was quite domineering.