Hard work after winning the lottery

"Yes, yes, that's what I meant too!" Li Guifen said, holding Lin Yi's hand. "Mother-in-law, thank you for taking care of Yunyun these past few days."

"Oh dear, what kind of talk is that? She's my daughter-in-law, my granddaughter!"

At night, Hua Yun lay in bed, listening to her parents and in-laws chatting downstairs, and the children playing. She felt so at ease.

"What are you thinking about?" Zhou Yanjin came out of the shower, still feeling refreshed from the water, and snuggled into the covers to hug her.

"I'm wondering if I saved the galaxy in my past life." Hua Yun leaned against him, touching her belly. "I have such a good husband, such a good family, and these four little devils."

"You saved me." Zhou Yanjin kissed her forehead. "Go to sleep. Tomorrow is your last prenatal checkup. The doctor said that if things go well, labor could start at any time."

Last prenatal checkup.

Although not all of my family members came, they were all waiting for news in the group chat.

In the ultrasound room.

The doctor held the probe and carefully examined each indicator.

"Amniotic fluid index is normal."

"Placental maturity grade 2".

"The umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck once, but it's not tight, so it's not a big problem."

Finally, the doctor placed the probe at the very bottom and smiled.

"Alright, the most crucial step is complete."

Zhou Yanjin's palms were sweating with nervousness: "What?"

The doctor pointed to the screen: "It's engaged. The baby's head is completely inside the pelvis."

"Then...when will you give birth?" Hua Yun's voice trembled slightly.

"Anytime." The doctor took off his gloves. "Maybe tonight, maybe tomorrow. Go home and get some rest, prepare your hospital bag, and come to the hospital immediately if you notice anything unusual, such as spotting, water breaking, or regular contractions."

On the day of White Dew, a rain fell in City A, extinguishing the heat of the past few days.

In the luxurious VIP suite of the private hospital, the temperature-controlled air conditioner was running quietly, and the air was filled with a faint smell of disinfectant and expensive aromatherapy.

Hua Yun was "escorted" to the hospital by Zhou Yanjin three days before her due date.

They called it "just in case."

In reality, Zhou Yanjin was just too nervous.

At three in the morning, the rain outside the window stopped, and the moon timidly peeked out from behind the clouds, its cool moonlight filtering through the gauze curtains and dappling the hospital bed.

Hua Yun was awakened by the pain.

The feeling was like an invisible giant hand squeezing her lower abdomen and back hard, causing a soreness, swelling, and a downward pull.

In her dream, she was gnawing on a big pig's trotter when suddenly the pig's trotter came to life and kicked her in the stomach.

"Well……"

A suppressed groan was heard with unusual clarity in the quiet night.

Zhou Yanjin, who was sleeping on the cot next to Hua Yun, sat up abruptly almost immediately after Hua Yun made a sound.

Zhou Yanjin's hair was disheveled, and her eyes were full of worry; she was nowhere near her usual elite demeanor.

"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

Zhou Yanjin didn't even bother to put on his shoes. He took two barefoot steps to the bedside and his large hand trembled slightly as he touched Hua Yun's sweaty forehead.

Hua Yun gripped the bedsheet tightly, her knuckles turning white. She gasped for breath, and after several seconds, she managed to squeeze out a sentence through clenched teeth:

"Zhou Yanjin... I think... I'm about to give birth."

Zhou Yanjin was stunned for a moment, then realized what was happening and hurriedly pressed the call button on the bedside table.

"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I'm here, the doctor will be here soon."

Although he tried his best to keep his voice calm, the trembling at the end betrayed him.

The on-duty doctor and nurses arrived quickly, pushing trolleys and rushing into the room with a flurry of people.

Wearing sterile gloves, the doctor performed the procedure and then removed his mask, his expression somewhat regretful: "Mr. Zhou, Madam, you're only one finger dilated."

"Only one finger?"

Hua Yun felt that all the pain she had just experienced was for nothing. She stared at the ceiling in despair, "I felt like I was going to split open, and it was only one finger's width?"

Zhou Yanjin's brows furrowed deeply as he looked at his wife's pained expression. He wished he could take her place and turned to ask the doctor, "Can we have an epidural?"

"It's too early now." The doctor shook his head and dutifully advised, "With contractions at this level, I suggest you move around more to help the baby's head descend using gravity, which can also speed up labor. Lying down will actually slow it down."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanjin immediately looked at Hua Yun.

Hua Yun buried her face in the pillow, utterly dejected: "I'm not leaving, I want to sleep, I want to have a C-section..."

"Be good, listen to the doctor."

Zhou Yanjin leaned down and kissed her cheek, which was covered in cold sweat, his voice so gentle it could melt water.

"Let's take a walk, so the baby can be born sooner and you can be free sooner. After the baby is born, you can punish me however you want."

Hua Yun sniffed and stretched out her hand with a pitiful look: "Then help me up."

"Okay, I'll help you, I'll carry you on my back, whatever you want."

Zhou Yanjin carried the IV stand in one hand and carefully supported Hua Yun's bloated waist with the other.

Hua Yun was wearing a large hospital gown, her belly was surprisingly big, and she moved like a penguin with every step she took.

The hospital corridor was empty at 3:30 a.m., with only the sound of their footsteps and Hua Yun's occasional gasps.

"pain……"

When they reached the tenth lap, Hua Yun suddenly stopped, draped herself over Zhou Yanjin, and dug her nails into the flesh of his arm.

Zhou Yanjin didn't even frown, letting her pinch him, while gently patting her back with his other hand.

"Inhale...exhale...yes, follow me."

Zhou Yanjin's breathing technique is now more standard than that of professional midwives, all thanks to the practice she's developed over the past few months while accompanying Hua Yun to prenatal classes.

"Zhou Yanjin, you big liar, I will never have any more children!" Hua Yun cried out in pain, tears welling in her eyes.

"Okay, we won't have any more after this one." Zhou Yanjin admitted her mistake without any principles. "When this little brat comes out, I'll beat him up for you."

"No!" Hua Yun's tears hadn't even dried when she immediately defended her child, "You can't hit him, he's my baby!"

"Okay, okay, I won't hit you, I'll hit myself instead."

Zhou Yanjin smiled helplessly, looking at her lips that were white with pain, and felt a sharp, stabbing pain in his heart.

He took out a cotton swab he had prepared beforehand from his pocket, unscrewed a bottle of mineral water, moistened it, and gently dabbed it on Hua Yun's chapped lips.

"Moisten your lips, don't bite them."

Seeing Hua Yun's suffering appearance, Zhou Yanjin secretly vowed that she would only have one more child in this lifetime, and would never have any more after that.

This wasn't childbirth; it was like being slowly tortured in his heart.

The moment Hua Yun cried out in pain for the first time, Zhou Yanjin had already called home.

The phone rang suddenly at this time; something must have happened.

Back at their old house in Baixi Village, Hua Shu and Li Guifen were fast asleep when the phone rang. Startled, Hua Shu rolled off the bed.

"What's wrong? Is it an earthquake?"