WSMTATMC C54

Chapter 54

The sudden news of having a child left the two of them utterly stunned. Even after everyone else had left, they were still unable to collect their thoughts.

Wang Ying reached out to touch his own lower abdomen and asked,

“Could that old physician have been mistaken?”

Chen Qingyan quickly sat by the bedside, grasping his hand.

“He can’t be wrong. His medical skills are well known in the town. Something as simple as detecting pregnancy through the pulse, he wouldn’t make an error on that.”

Wang Ying muttered, “What the fuck…”

Chen Qingyan tilted his head, puzzled:

“Wang, what did you say?”

Holding his forehead, Wang Ying replied,

“Nothing… it just feels a bit hard to process all of a sudden.”

“I feel the same too… almost like I’m dreaming.”

The thought that he was going to be a father — it thrilled Chen Qingyan, but anxiety outweighed his excitement. Would he be able to live up to the role of a father?

He recalled his own father, who, ever since he could remember, had showered him with meticulous love and warmth.

Perhaps because he had married later than most, Chen’s father was more patient than other men, and cherished his child even more deeply.

People often said, “men hold grandsons, not sons,” but Chen Qingyan remembered how, at four or five years old, he would still often ride on his father’s shoulders. Some teased Chen’s father as overly indulgent.

Back then, Chen Xian (his father) would smile, ruffling his son’s hair, saying:

“This is my child. As long as I can lift him, I’ll gladly carry him even until I’m eighty.”

Unfortunately, his father passed away early, and Chen Qingyan would never again lean on that broad shoulder.

His eyes grew hot with emotion, and with newfound determination, he declared:

“Ah Ying, rest assured. I will definitely take care of you and the child!”

But to Wang Ying, this wasn’t about being “cared for” or not. His mind still had not fully adjusted. It was one thing to accept that he had become “gay” in this world, but the thought of bearing a child himself was still hard to accept.

After wrestling with it for three or four days, Wang Ying finally gave up on overthinking.

Perhaps it was better to go with the flow. If he truly could give birth to a child linked to his own bloodline, that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. At the very least, in this unfamiliar world, he would finally have a family member related to him by blood.

On the fifth day, they prepared to return to the manor, only to have Madam Li (Chen Qingyan’s mother) drive her son away, insistent on leaving Wang Ying behind to be cared for.

“Wait until the pregnancy is stable before going back. Besides, what would you men know about caring for someone? Let Ying stay here at home.”

“Mother, I can take care of Ah Ying.”

“No, you can’t. If you’re attending to him all day, will you still have time to study? You can’t split your focus — don’t squander such a rare chance!”

Seeing that persuasion was useless, Chen Qingyan left in frustration. Fortunately, the “experimental field”^1 could now be opened remotely, so he and Wang Ying could still meet there each evening.

Back at the manor, he shared the news of Wang Ying’s pregnancy with the others.

“Brother, am I going to be an uncle?” his younger sibling exclaimed.

Chen Qinghuai made a formal bow with clasped hands.

“Congratulations, cousin.”

The elder, Liang, cleared his throat, remarking:

“From today onward, you must be an even better example, study diligently, and one day be a worthy model for your child.”

“Yes!”

Perhaps feeling the weight of responsibility, Chen Qingyan studied with even greater intensity, rising before dawn and reading until sunset.

The very first thing he did after finishing studies was to rush to open the experimental field and meet Wang Ying.

Since it could only be opened for two fixed hours a day, they agreed upon meeting every evening at “You hour” (around 5–7 PM in the ancient time system).

The moment he opened the field, Wang Ying was already there. The two embraced at once.

“How was today? Does your stomach hurt? Any nausea?”

“No, I’m fine. But how are you all doing? What did you eat?”

“I cooked with Uncle Chen today. It wasn’t as good as your cooking, but decent. Master grumbled at the meal, saying how much he misses your food.”

Wang Ying couldn’t help but laugh. Old Liang had no hobbies other than indulgence in good food, and now even that was deprived.

“Mother says things will be safe after three months, then I can return to the manor. Today, she even went to a temple to have a peace amulet blessed for me.”

“Aunt Third is already rushing to make clothes for the child. She doesn’t even know if it’s a boy or girl yet, but she’s already panicking with excitement.”

“No matter. Boy or girl, it’s all the same.”

Wang Ying thought so too. Coming from modern times, he had no patriarchal notions of favoring sons over daughters.

If it were a boy, then Chen Qingyan could teach him to read and perhaps take the civil examinations; if he lacked ambition, then he could simply enjoy family life at home.

If it were a girl or a “ge’er”^2, then Wang Ying could teach them to run businesses.

Given the restrictions of the era, women and “ge’er” had few options for lives of their own. To marry well and live in peace was already a blessing.

Embracing him under the peach tree, Chen Qingyan and Wang Ying studied the peace amulet together, suddenly looking forward even more to the unborn child.

Chen Qingyan then shared what he had learned in class, as well as his experiment with making ice pops.

“I followed your instructions step by step — poured the mixture into molds, then froze them in the experimental field. Uncle Dun will deliver them to town tomorrow.”

“Sorry for troubling you.”

“How could you call it trouble? This is what I should be doing.”

Wang Ying shifted, resting his head on Qingyan’s shoulder.

“We need to save more money. If you one day enter the imperial examinations, it will cost a lot.”

“I doubt it will be that soon. For one to gain fame like our teacher, it depended on timing, opportunity, and the literary culture of the capital. There, poetry gatherings and debates were formally recorded and published into collections. I’ve even bought a few volumes myself. Our teacher had both talent and the right circumstances, so he soared into renown at the right moment. But I don’t have that talent, nor such opportunities.”

Wang Ying nodded. But Qingyan was still young, only eighteen.

“Don’t rush. You certainly have the ability.”

“I know.”

“And don’t overwork your body. Don’t fall ill from exhaustion.”

“Don’t worry. Every morning I practice the Five-Animal Frolics exercise with Master, and I feel my health improving. Touch and see for yourself.”

Wang Ying reached out and felt his abdomen. Indeed, there was some muscle — no wonder he was always so strong on top during intimacy, leaving him unable to move.

As their time was almost up, Chen Qingyan reluctantly kissed the corner of his lips.

“I have to go back. Let’s meet again tomorrow at this time.”

“Alright. Remember not to stay up too late reading — it will damage your eyes.”

“Yes, I know.”

The vision blurred, and they each returned to their own bedrooms. Hugging the quilt, Wang Ying, for the first time, felt that the bed at home was unbearably lonely. Thinking he’d still have to stay here for two more months before returning to the manor made it even harder to endure.

On the other side, Chen Qingyan suffered the same torment. Inhaling the lingering scent of his brother on the bed, he tossed and turned sleeplessly until nearly dawn before dozing off.

Half a month later, Madam Li once again invited a physician to examine the pulse.

“The fetus is stable, and there is no mistake — it is certainly a pregnancy pulse.”

Hands clasped together, Madam Li uttered a devout Buddhist chant:

“Amitabha, may the Buddha bless us!”

The physician prescribed a couple of decoctions for stabilizing the pregnancy and departed. Then, Madam Li and Chen Rong entered with cloth in hand.

“Which color do you like best? Mother will make you some clothes.”

“I already have plenty of clothes in the wardrobe. It’s enough.”

Chen Rong smiled.

“Silly child. A few months later, your belly will be bulging, and the old clothes won’t fit anymore. You’ll need looser ones.”

Wang Ying scratched his head awkwardly. Just imagining himself with a round pregnant belly made him feel unbearably self-conscious.

“Any will do. You choose.”

“Then let’s use this pale-lavender fabric and this rouge-colored one.”

Chen Rong held the cloth against him and commented,

“Ying is fair-skinned — every color looks good on him.”

Madam Li added,

“Hopefully, the baby’s skin resembles Ying’s. Heaven forbid it resemble Qingyan’s.”

Wang Ying asked,

“But Qingyan isn’t dark-skinned either.”

“He isn’t dark, true, but as a child he had terrible eczema. In hot weather, his whole body would flare red and itchy, making him wail endlessly.”

Hearing stories of Chen Qingyan’s childhood, Wang Ying perked up, amused.

“Did he cry a lot when he was little?”

“Yes! He cried a lot!” both Chen Rong and Madam Li answered in unison.

When Chen Qingyan was first born, Chen Rong hadn’t been married yet, so she had even helped look after him.

“When he was young, people even gave him the nickname ‘Night-Crying Boy.’ Every night without fail, he would start crying. But instead of bawling loudly, he would sob Pitifully in hushed tears, making people feel very distressed.”

Madam Li sighed,

“At first, I thought he was just naturally tearful. But who could withstand such sleepless nights? Nurse Tian had to watch him night after night, until she was so exhausted her back gave out.”

At the mention of Nurse Tian, Madam Li couldn’t help but heave another sigh…

“Later, a few monks came to town begging alms. They said Qingyan had unresolved attachments from a past life, unable to let go of loved ones, thus he cried every night. After they recited scriptures over him for a day, strangely enough, from that night onward, he never cried again!”

That was one of the reasons Madam Li had so much faith in monks and Daoist priests today.

Wang Ying clicked his tongue in wonder. At least he was learning more about his young husband.

The days at home were uneventful. Around noon he often went to deliver food to his younger siblings at the shop. Madam Li, unwilling to let him walk alone, always insisted on sending Ershun along.

Once at the shop, he happened upon Cao Kun, eating an ice pop. Upon seeing Wang Ying, he quickly rose and greeted him:

“Greetings, cousin’s wife.”

Chuckling, Wang Ying replied:

“You really are diligent. You’re here again?”

Cao Kun grinned sheepishly.

“Hehe, I missed Xiao Qiu and came to see him.”

Blushing scarlet, Lin Qiu stomped on his foot and bolted away.

Wang Ying burst into laughter.

“You’re not even married yet. Watch your words!”

“I said it on purpose, so he would leave us alone. There’s something I need to discuss with cousin-in-law.”

Wang Ying, seeing his serious expression, immediately asked,

“Is it about something in the county? Xiao Qiu’s father, perhaps?”

“You’re sharp, sister-in-law, guessed it right away. Yes, it’s about Lin Qiu’s father.” Cao Kun described how he had run into Lin Changbin some days ago. “I was worried he might hassle Xiao Qiu again, so I kept him around at the transport guild and even arranged a bookkeeping job for him.”

“That was well done.”

“This was only my duty. But lately, he somehow heard that I plan to marry Qiu’er, and suddenly he’s acting like an elder over me — demanding higher wages, expecting me to serve him food and drink!”

Wang Ying clicked his tongue. What a shameless man, not even aware of his own uselessness.

But Cao Kun wasn’t a naive youth. Having been on the streets since sixteen, he had seen all sorts of people. If not for considering that this was Lin Qiu’s father, he would have had him beaten bloody already.

“I hired two lads to scare him a bit. Gave him such a fright he nearly collapsed.”

“Serves him right. Don’t indulge him. If he dares stir trouble again, just grab a stick and beat him out of sight.”

“Yeah, I know. By the way, that son he had with his mistress doesn’t seem right. The child must be about seven or eight months now, yet can’t even roll over. Doesn’t respond to calls either. Most likely a simpleton…”

Wang Ying smacked his lips. Retribution had come quickly indeed.

Before long, Lin Qiu returned outside, and Cao Kun got up to leave.

“I’ll go now. I’ll visit again next time.”

Lin Qiu nodded. Seeing him reach for his purse, he quickly waved him off.

“I don’t need your money. Cousin’s wife already gives me a share of the shop’s profit — I get seven or eight taels a month!”

“Then help me save it. I travel too much, afraid of losing it.” He tossed him a pouch with some broken silver, about twenty taels or so, waved, and left.

Wang Ying, looking at the starry-eyed young lovers, nearly crumbled from the sugar overload. Thankfully, he could see Qingyan tonight, or else he’d die of yearning!