Chapter 18: Difficult Labor, Umbilical Cord Around the Neck

Ever since having a son who became a company commander, Li Jinjuan had walked around like she owned the world. She had never suffered such humiliation or disgrace. Now, hearing someone say the baby must be delivered via surgery, she was immediately enraged.

She completely ignored the other military wives explaining Chu Yue’s identity and assumed she was just some delicate young girl.

“You think you can just decide on a C-section? Who do you think you are? I, Li Jinjuan, have never seen such a shameless girl like you. You dare to interfere in something as big as childbirth—are you tired of living? I’ve eaten more salt than you’ve eaten rice! I say no surgery, and that means no surgery. She must—”

She was still shouting and spitting in rage when, in the next second, she suddenly closed her eyes and fainted on the spot.

This happened because Chu Yue swiftly struck her neck with a precise karate chop.

Chu Yue knew human anatomy well and exactly how to knock someone out safely.

Clean and decisive—the strike was perfectly measured. Finally, there was peace.

As Li Jinjuan slowly collapsed, Chu Yue, out of a sense of basic decency, reached out to catch her and immediately shouted, “Song Qi!”

Right now, entrusting Li Jinjuan to Song Qi was the safest option. Chu Yue hadn’t used excessive force, but if Li Jinjuan woke up early, only Song Qi would be able to restrain her.

Chu Yue handed Li Jinjuan over to Song Qi and also gave him a mission.

“Take her and go find Commander Zhou by car. Don’t come back until you find him.”

“But sister-in-law…”

“Do as I say. If anything happens, I’ll take full responsibility!”

Chu Yue gave him no room to hesitate. The quiet authority in her voice and demeanor even made Song Qi momentarily feel like he was being ordered by Lu Zhanlin himself.

Song Qi froze for a second before snapping back to his senses. “Sister-in-law, don’t worry! I’ll find Commander Zhou as fast as I can!”

He looked at the unconscious Li Jinjuan and hurried off.

Meanwhile, the group of military wives nearby stood frozen in shock, unable to believe what had just happened.

Chu Yue had actually knocked out that crazy woman, Li Jinjuan, just like that—without giving her a chance to rant further.

Such a seemingly delicate young woman—was she really not afraid of what might happen when Li Jinjuan wakes up and seeks revenge?

Chu Yue could sense the women’s shock and hesitation, but with Wang Chunling’s life hanging by a thread, this was no time to waste with idle talk.

“Sisters, you all saw and heard everything. I’m the one who knocked Li Jinjuan out—it has nothing to do with you. If she wants to cause trouble later, she can come after me alone. I’m going to perform a C-section now. If you’re willing to help, stay. If you’re afraid of trouble, you’re free to leave.”

“You—you—you’re going to operate here?” Chen Fengying’s mouth dropped open in fear.

“The mother’s water has been broken too long, her abdomen is hard, and the baby is too big to deliver naturally. There’s no time to get to a hospital—both the baby and the mother could suffocate and die. So the surgery must happen now.”

“But you… you…” Can you really do it?

That was the unspoken question in everyone’s hearts. Even though Chu Yue was taking full responsibility, if something went wrong, they couldn’t walk away unscathed either.

But there was no time to hesitate.

Chu Yue saw the silence and decided to act on her own.

She still had her dimensional space—she could pull out anything she needed from there.

Just as she turned to get started, a trembling hand suddenly reached out.

“I—I’ll help!” The youngest and most timid of the group, Xia Xiaolan, was the first to trust Chu Yue. She gave a nervous smile. “Since there’s no time to get her to the hospital, we might as well try! Sister Chunling has always looked after me. I can’t bear to see her suffer like this—I want her to survive.”

Xia Xiaolan’s words stirred many memories in the women’s hearts.

Unlike the sharp-tongued and vicious Li Jinjuan, Wang Chunling was known for being gentle and kind. She was always helping neighbors whenever she could.

Chen Fengying clenched her teeth, took a deep breath, and said, “If we’re going to help, we all help together! If anything happens, we’ll take responsibility together! Are we really going to just watch Chunling die? Only if we stick together will we have the courage to face anything like this again!”

“Yes! Together!”

The sisters all spoke in unison—they had made up their minds.

Chu Yue turned to Chen Fengying and Huang Aifang and instructed, “Sisters, help me get the mother onto the bed, lying flat. Then take off her pants from the waist down.”

She turned to the others. “I need scissors, high-proof alcohol, clean towels, gauze, warm water, and clean clothes…”

“I have some baijiu (white liquor) at home.”

“Me too. I’ll go get it right now.”

“Then I’ll go boil some water and prepare a washbasin.”

The sisters-in-law all sprang into action—those with strength offered their strength, those with supplies brought them out—responding eagerly and helpfully.

Chu Yue turned and walked into the room behind her. In her mind, she summoned her personal storage space, 007, and silently pulled out a set of surgical tools: a scalpel, disinfectant alcohol, rubber gloves, painkillers… all of which she quietly placed into her backpack.

“Ah! She’s bleeding—a lot of blood!”

Just as Chu Yue stepped through the door, she heard Chen Fengying’s startled cry.

The cotton pants soaked with amniotic fluid had been removed from Wang Chunling, revealing a large patch of bright red blood.

By now, Wang Chunling had already fainted, slipping into a semi-conscious state. Her eyelids twitched faintly, and even in her dazed state, she kept crying out:

“Dad… Mom… it hurts… it hurts so much…”
“Mom… I don’t want to give birth anymore… never again… Mom… where are you… Chun’er is in so much pain…”
“Dad… Mom… Chun’er is going to die…”

It was as if Wang Chunling could feel her life slipping away. In her final moments, the people she yearned for most were her parents. She sobbed like a child…

“It hurts… it hurts… I don’t want to do this anymore…”

Hearing her, Chen Fengying and Huang Aifang couldn’t hold back their tears. As women, their hearts ached deeply with sorrow.

Chu Yue looked at the profuse bleeding from Wang Chunling’s lower body, took a long deep breath, and began disinfecting the round, swollen belly with alcohol.

Her gloved hand held a scalpel that gleamed coldly under the light.

She began the incision—slowly, carefully.

At that moment, both Chen Fengying and Huang Aifang closed their eyes, unable to bear watching.

Only Chu Yue remained calm and composed.

Back in the apocalypse, she had once helped deliver a baby—but that had been a natural birth. This time, it was a C-section, far riskier and requiring extreme caution.

---

One hour later—

“The baby’s out! It’s finally out!”
Chen Fengying had just begun to breathe a sigh of relief when she suddenly realized something was wrong.
“Why isn’t the baby crying? And the skin looks all blue? Quick—check if the baby’s breathing!”

The umbilical cord was wrapped around the neck.

The baby had already suffocated in Wang Chunling’s womb.

Chu Yue held the newborn gently in both hands—no breath, no heartbeat, just a sticky mess of fluids.

But she didn’t give up. Grabbing the baby’s legs, she turned it upside down and began gently but rapidly rubbing its chest, performing CPR in small, quick motions.

Once, twice… again and again…

Everyone’s hearts hung on the baby’s fate, silently praying this misfortunate child could survive.

Minutes passed.

As Chu Yue massaged the baby’s chest, she felt a faint heartbeat—and the amniotic fluid clogging the airway began to trickle out.

Still, she didn’t relax. She turned the baby over and gave its bottom a few firm slaps.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

Three sharp strikes.

“Waaa—Waaa—Waaa—”

The baby’s loud, piercing cries rang through the room, echoing with the hope and relief of everyone present.