The Eldest Daughter of a Rural Family
Chapter 847 - 182: The Birth of Xixi_3

Chapter 847: Chapter 182: The Birth of Xixi_3

"Mo Heng isn’t an ingrate, so don’t go talking nonsense to others, lest they really start getting ideas." Old Scholar Fang frowned as he spoke to her.

"I’m just worried about Pei Qin and the others feeling wronged." Grandma Fang said with a sigh. She had been hoping all along that Pei Qin would give birth to a son this time. She also feared that Mo Heng might suddenly return to the Mo family, and even if Qinqin was a Third Rank Enjoin, with the aristocratic family’s power and influence, they would surely look down on her and make things difficult for her and her mother. Those big households were all full of sly people, who might seem like saints on the surface, but with the slightest flick of an eyelid could come up with a deadly scheme, insidiously hard to guard against.

Old Scholar Fang was worried too, but he said, "Now is not the time to worry. Qin’er is still young, she’s healthy, and the birth went smoothly. Having two or three more wouldn’t be a problem." With more births, there was always a chance of having a son.

Lady Yu had already packed a pile of things: old hens, eggs, red dates, angelica, brown sugar, codonopsis, and a lot of bits and bobs like little belly bands and swaddling clothes for the child, filling more than half a cart. The whole family, Lady Ruan included, rushed to Liu’er Alley.

Pei Qin was still asleep. Grandma Fang didn’t let anyone wake her up. She asked the Midwife and Mo Heng about the childbirth, and hearing everything had gone smoothly and without too much suffering, nodded and began to speak ambiguously, praising Jiujiu for being obedient, sensible, and smart, saying she would make them proud in the future, that their marriage prospects wouldn’t be bad, and that they would be able to enjoy blessings because of her, much better than their worthless son—a point she illustrated with Fang Li. She also praised the little one, saying that she was already looking around even though just born, not crying or making a fuss, showing her sensibility.

Mo Heng, who could clearly understand that she was offering consolation, said directly, "The little one looks a lot like Qinqin, I like her."

Seeing his genuine affection, with joy unable to hide in his eyes, Grandma Fang and Lady Yu exchanged a glance and both breathed a sigh of relief.

Old Scholar Fang also broke into a smile.

As Mo Heng opened his mouth to speak, anticipating he might give the little one a name, he quickly said, "I’ve already chosen a name for the little one, her milk name is Xixi."

Lady Yu heard the name and knew he really liked the little girl. She smiled and nodded, "That name is auspicious, good!"

Lady Ruan also smiled and nodded.

As long as Mo Heng liked her, it was all happiness. With no elders in the house, Grandma Fang decided to stay, taking care of Pei Qin during her postpartum confinement and looking after the child. "I’ll watch over you for the first few days, so you can rest assured."

When Pei Qin woke up, Grandma Fang fed her soup while convincing her once again that sons could still be had, and that children could be born again. Some people kept trying for seven or eight. After all, they weren’t so poor that they couldn’t afford to raise them.

Pei Qin nearly spit out the soup she was drinking.

When she went to take care of the child, Mo Heng lay beside Pei Qin at the head of the bed, holding her, "We’re not having any more, two daughters are enough." Each pregnancy was a year, and it was hard for her to care for a child while pregnant, and even harder to endure childbirth. He also found it difficult to bear.

Pei Qin pushed his face away, snorting, "They say a daughter is her daddy’s lover from a past life. I’ll just keep having them and see how many lovers you had before!"

Mo Heng kissed her, laughing, "In my past life, I’m sure you were the only one!"

Pei Qin just hmphed.

The baby started crying outside, and Grandma Fang brought her over, "Is the milk coming in yet? The child has only had some warm water and is hungry, that won’t do."

Pei Qin wanted to breastfeed the child herself. They had a wet nurse at home, but since Jiujiu weaned early, she no longer had any breast milk. Xixi had been born for over half a day and had only had a few sips of warm water.

"Let me try," Pei Qin said as she sat up, took Xixi in her arms, and sent Mo Heng out so that she could feed Xixi.

Mo Heng turned and looked on from beyond the screen.

But the little one sucked for a long time without drawing any milk, and then curled her small mouth and began to cry.

Grandma Fang frowned, "It’s been so long and still no milk, did you drink too little of the milk-producing soup?" she hurried to the kitchen to bring more soup.

By the time she came back with the soup, Xixi was already feeding.

Pei Qin looked bemused at someone who kept a straight face, "Get out!"

With a smile still in his eyes, Mo Heng went out, "I’ll wait outside."

Grandma Fang was puzzled, but seeing Pei Qin’s face turn red, thinking Mo Heng had been massaging her, she too blushed and laughed, "Drink more soup, only then will you have milk. Can’t let the baby go hungry!"

"Mhm," Pei Qin hummed, feeding Xixi until she was full and rocked her to sleep.

News of Pei Qin’s confinement spread quickly.

For the washing-third-day ceremony, Fang Hui and Li Hualing came early too, with a four-fen silver ingot, feeling too heartbroken to throw it into the basin.