Marriage in the 1970s: The Political Commissar's Contract Wife

Fang Chu tiptoed back home, finding the courtyard quiet. As expected, Zhi Xia was asleep on the recliner again, a half-read book still spread out on her lap.

A gentle evening breeze stirred the stray hairs on her forehead; her sleeping face was serene, yet it exuded a lingering sense of languid weariness.

She's been sleeping way too much lately.

For the past two months, Fang Chu has spared no effort in trying various ways to nourish her. He called back to Beijing and asked his mother to send all the best bird's nest and donkey-hide gelatin in the family's inventory, which she would stew for her every day without fail.

He would bring her chicken and fish every few days, and even went to great lengths to get his hands on the scarce beef, all so that she would eat more meat and grow strong.

Under his careful feeding, Zhixia's originally pointed chin became rounder, her cheeks puffed out with a cute curve, and her skin was nourished to a fair and rosy color, with an amazing complexion.

At this moment, in the hazy night, her chubby sleeping face looked like a delicate porcelain doll.

Fang Chu squatted down, carefully picked up the thin blanket that had slipped to the ground, and covered her up again.

His gaze lingered on her still flat stomach, his eyes filled with complex emotions—worry, fear, but perhaps also a faint expectation that even he himself was unaware of.

He reached out and very lightly touched her warm cheek with his fingertips, having already made his decision.

Can't delay any longer.

Whether the outcome is good or bad, he must know the answer. He's had enough of this life of being suspended in mid-air, tormented by daily doubts.

"Xiaxia," he said silently to himself, "we'll go to the hospital tomorrow."

As night deepened, Fang Chu gently carried Zhi Xia back to the bed in the room, while he himself lay down on the floor mat next to her bed.

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But he was destined to be sleepless that night; the test results for tomorrow weighed heavily on his heart like a boulder.

The next day, Fang Chu almost coaxed and persuaded Zhi Xia, who looked unwilling, to go to the military hospital.

"I'm all better, why am I still coming to the hospital?" Zhixia muttered, feeling that he was making a mountain out of a molehill.

Fang Chu gripped her hand, his tone unusually serious, tinged with a barely perceptible tension: "Think carefully, you haven't had your period for two months. Listen to me, we're just here for a check-up, to put your mind at ease."

Menstrual period? Two months?

Zhi Xia was suddenly stunned, instinctively stopping in her tracks and looking up at Fang Chu in astonishment. How could he remember something so clearly that she herself had only vaguely remembered it and hadn't really paid much attention to it? He even had the exact date in mind? An indescribable sense of unease welled up in her heart. How could he have noticed even this?

But then she thought about it again; missing her period for two consecutive months was indeed not normal. She remembered how much blood she had lost during her miscarriage and was worried about potential health problems; she didn't want to die so young. With that thought in mind, she stopped struggling and silently followed him into the hospital.

However, the test results completely exceeded her limited medical knowledge and imagination.

"Congratulations, comrade, you're pregnant, two months along," the obstetrician announced calmly, looking at the test results.

Pregnant? Two months along?

Holding the flimsy lab report, Zhi Xia was completely stunned, her mind a jumbled mess.

She stared wide-eyed at the doctor, then at Fang Chu beside her, whose face was tense, completely unable to understand.

The previous child... wasn't it already miscarried?

Could it be... that the previous miscarriage was a lie? The baby wasn't actually lost? This absurd thought flashed through her mind, but her physical sensations and previous sick leave couldn't be faked.

Where did this one come from? How could she be pregnant again?!

Unlike Zhi Xia's shock and confusion, Fang Chu's last shred of hope vanished the moment he heard the result.

He closed his eyes, a sense of absurdity, bordering on resignation, washing over him.

It’s over.

Zhi Xia's body... is truly untouchable.

Every time you touch it, you get pregnant.

An immense pressure and responsibility instantly fell on his shoulders. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.

He helped the still dazed Zhixia to sit down on a bench in the corridor, his voice unusually gentle: "Sit here for a while and rest. Don't wander off. I'll go in and ask the doctor how to take care of you from now on."

After saying that, he turned and walked into the doctor's office alone, gently closing the door behind him. This temporarily kept his wife, who had been "made" pregnant again and was still confused about the situation, out of this sudden and enormous life-altering event.

Fang Chu walked into the doctor's office, gently closing the door behind him to shut out the noise from outside.

He walked to the doctor's table, his brow furrowed, and spoke in a heavy tone, each word carrying immense weight:

"Doctor, my wife... she had a miscarriage three months ago. Now she's pregnant again. Will this baby... have a significant impact on her health? Is there any danger?"

The words "had a miscarriage three months ago" immediately made the experienced female doctor look up, her eyes sharp as she looked at Fang Chu, her tone filled with undisguised reproach:

"Nonsense! She just had a miscarriage, her uterine wall hasn't recovered yet, it's as thin as paper! How can you be in such a hurry to get her pregnant again? Isn't that killing her?!"

Fang Chu was speechless after being reprimanded, his face burning with embarrassment. Unable to explain that it was just an accident, he could only weakly admit, "I... I didn't expect her to get pregnant again so quickly..."

Seeing his condition, the doctor sighed heavily, his tone softening slightly but still serious: "Based on the current examination, the baby is relatively stable, and there don't seem to be any problems with her body yet. But that doesn't mean we can rest easy from now on! Once she gets home, she must take good care of herself, absolutely rest in bed, avoid emotional excitement, and absolutely not do any heavy work! Understand? Getting pregnant right after a miscarriage makes it very difficult for the embryo to attach, and it's very easy to lose it!"

"Okay! Okay! I will definitely keep an eye on her and not let her do anything!" Fang Chu nodded repeatedly, like a primary school student receiving instruction, engraving every word into his mind.

Seeing his sincere attitude, the doctor added a few more words of advice: "Make sure you get enough nutrition, eat more good food, don't be stingy. As long as you take good care of yourself and get through the first three months safely, this pregnancy is basically stable, and the risks will be much lower."

"Okay, I understand. Thank you, doctor!" Fang Chu's tense nerves relaxed a little, but the words "it's easy to lose" were like a tight band around his heart.

He walked out of the office with the doctor's prescription for some pregnancy-supporting and nutritional supplements in hand, his feelings a mix of emotions.

Outside the door, Zhixia was still sitting on the bench, head down, seemingly lost in thought.

Looking at her, Fang Chu felt a burden heavier than ever before on his shoulders—he had to carefully protect the fragile new life inside, and even more so the woman outside whom he had once again dragged into the risks of childbirth.