Chapter 939: Mu Xueqing's Psychological Trauma

Wang An perked up upon hearing this. He took Bai Xuezi's hand and gave it a little squeeze, asking

"What is it, wifey? If something's on your mind, just say it. Why are you talking about 'discussing' things with your own man?"

Mu Xueqing paused for a moment, thought it over, and then said

"I just feel like my body is getting clumsier and clumsier, and I don't feel right when I try to do anything. And didn't you say you were going to dig for ginseng in a couple of days? I was thinking... maybe you shouldn't go for now. Wait until I've given birth—maybe next year or the year after—and then you can go?"

Wang An was momentarily stunned; he simply hadn't expected Mu Xueqing to suddenly say this.

However, Wang An quickly grasped the crux of the matter. Mu Xueqing was feeling insecure because her belly had grown so large.

After all, for a woman, giving birth was no different from taking a trip through the gates of hell. It was perfectly normal for Mu Xueqing to feel afraid.

After a brief moment of thought, Wang An said to Mu Xueqing with a smile

"Mm-hmm, of course that's fine. If you say don't go, then I won't go for now. Anyway, the ginseng is just growing there; it doesn't matter when I go. It'll be the same if I go after the baby is a bit older."

Hearing this, Mu Xueqing couldn't help but lean over and hug Wang An, speaking in a rare, fragile voice

"I don't know what's come over me lately. When I thought about you going into the mountains for over a month, I just felt... like the ground had fallen out from under me."

To be honest, since Wang An had been reborn, this was only the second time he had seen Mu Xueqing look so fragile and helpless.

The first time was when Wang An first went to the county town after his rebirth. At that time, Mu Xueqing had been extremely fragile because she knew she couldn't escape her fate of being married off to Zheng Fei.

Wang An patted Mu Xueqing on the back and comforted her with a smile

"You don't have to feel insecure this time. I'm not going. Hehehe... during this time, I'll help Dad and Mom tidy up the crops. When I'm free, I'll go catch some fish, or maybe pick some mushrooms and wild vegetables around the house."

Mu Xueqing gave a soft "mm," and then said

"Back when my mother was giving birth to Xue Ting, I was right there with her. Because her nutrition wasn't up to par, she fainted from exhaustion halfway through the labor."

At this point, Mu Xueqing's tone became noticeably shaky, as if the scene from back then was appearing before her eyes once again.

Wang An continued to gently pat her back as Mu Xueqing continued

"I was so scared back then, my mind went completely blank. All I knew was how to scream and wail; I was scared half to death. Luckily, before Xue Ting was born, my father had harvested some honey from the mountains. Later, they dissolved the honey in water and poured it down my mother's throat. Otherwise, my mother and Xue Ting might... might both have..."

At this point, Mu Xueqing could not go on and began to sob softly.

It was clear that Liu Ruxin's labor had truly terrified the fourteen-year-old Mu Xueqing, leaving her with a shadow she had yet to emerge from.

Truthfully, this was only because Mu Xueqing was relatively strong. A woman with weaker mental fortitude might have been too scared to ever have children for the rest of her life.

For a moment, Wang An didn't know what to say. The main issue was that he couldn't give birth in Mu Xueqing's place, which made the situation quite difficult to handle.

After thinking for a long while, Wang An finally said

"Don't be afraid, wifey. When your time is close, we'll go to the county hospital to be admitted. Giving birth in the hospital will be safe."

Moving his hand to pat Mu Xueqing's smooth, large backside, Wang An continued to comfort her

"Don't be scared, okay? It'll be fine. We'll stay in the hospital for a few extra days, and we won't be discharged until you've fully recovered."

And so, Wang An rambled on, comforting Mu Xueqing for quite a long time, until she eventually fell asleep in his arms.

Wang An took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

They say pregnant women are both sensitive and fragile, and their minds are always filled with useless worries. Seeing it now, it was indeed true.

But to be fair, Mu Xueqing had performed well enough since becoming pregnant; it was only now that she was so far along that she revealed her fragile side.

For Wang An, digging for ginseng or whatever else wasn't nearly as important as his wife and future child. Forget just skipping this year; even if he never went back to dig ginseng again, it wouldn't matter at all.

The night passed without incident, and dawn soon arrived.

During breakfast, Wang An took the initiative to tell Wang Dazhu and his wife

"Dad, Mom, I thought about it yesterday. I feel like the ginseng we have at home is enough for now, so I won't go dig for more. I'll go back in a few years when I have the time."

As soon as Wang An finished speaking, Liu Guilan said

"Mm-hmm, it's right not to go. I was just talking to your father about this before we went to sleep last night. Things haven't been very peaceful lately; the nearby villages are always having this problem or that damn problem. Besides, Xueqing is far along now, so it's best if you just stay home and keep watch."

"Last night" was expressed in the local dialect as "ye ge hong shang."

After Liu Guilan finished, Wang Dazhu added

"Mm-hmm, our family has money and grain now. There's no need to keep running into the mountains. Besides, that ginseng stuff isn't that easy to find. I've heard that when the timing is off, you can't even spot a ginseng sprout right in front of your eyes."

Thus, Wang Dazhu and his wife took turns saying things about why they didn't want Wang An to go into the mountains for ginseng, but Wang An didn't interrupt.

Once the couple finished, Wang An said

"Then I don't have anything to do today, so I'll go to the fields with you. By the way, how many mu of land do we have left to tidy up?"

Liu Guilan took a bite of a steamed bun and said while picking up side dishes

"You don't need to go to the fields. Your father and I will be finished in another two or three days. You just stay home and tend to the livestock."

Wang Dazhu followed up

"Right, there are only a few fish left in the vat, and the water in the fish pond is almost full. If you have time, let Xiao Yi help you, and the two of you can go to the river to catch some fish to put in there."

Wang An nodded in agreement and took a large gulp of millet porridge.

He had to admit, millet porridge tasted better than cornmeal porridge.

Amidst the chatter, the family quickly finished breakfast.

After the meal, Wang Dazhu, his wife, and Shen Wei drove the horse carriage to the fields. Wang An pushed a wheelbarrow with a square shovel in it and walked toward the horse stable.

After cleaning the manure from the stable, Wang An called out to Wang Yi

"Xiao Yi, go find the fishing nets. Let's go."

(End of Chapter)