The Next Day

When breastfeeding the baby, it is generally done every three to four hours.

Although it’s tiring, Yang Haiyan could still rest in between.

So, the one who was truly exhausted was the one watching the time, like Qin Fang.

In the early morning, Yang Haiyan woke up, and Qin Fang was snoring on the small bed.

“Madam, are you awake?” Granny Lian asked from outside, but her voice was very soft, afraid of waking the people inside.

Yang Haiyan replied, “I’m awake. Come in quietly, so you don’t wake the general.”

Granny Lian tiptoed in.

After helping Yang Haiyan brush her teeth and wash up, she brought out some tea.

It was tea brewed with cordyceps, which Yang Haiyan had bought from the marketplace.

In this world, there was no cordyceps, and no one knew what it was.

Yang Haiyan had given some to the elders of the Qin family, telling them to brew tea with it—one a day.

So, in the eyes of the Qin family, they thought this was just a medicinal herb used for brewing tea; they were unaware of its nutritional value.

Yang Haiyan drank a cup of warm tea and then had breakfast.

Afterward, Granny Lian cleared everything away.

During the confinement period, it’s not that new mothers can’t get out of bed; it’s just best not to get out of bed on the first day.

However, using the toilet still required getting out of bed.

Yang Haiyan lay in bed, her eyes never leaving the small baby.

She would occasionally touch the baby’s face, of course, very lightly.

Perhaps it was a maternal instinct, something all mothers have; looking at the baby, she found it increasingly adorable.

The baby easily got hungry since he didn’t drink much milk each time.

Generally, formula would be fed more frequently, about every two to three hours, while breast milk was about every three to four hours.

As a new mother, Yang Haiyan would check the baby’s diaper every time he made sounds.

Right now, the baby was making those sounds.

Not only that, but he opened his eyes.

Newborns aren’t very agile; after a brief moment of being awake, he began to cry.

Yang Haiyan quickly comforted him: “Baby, be good. Mom is here. Don’t cry, don’t cry…”

While saying this, she picked up the baby to breastfeed him, even though she wasn’t sure if he was hungry.

To be honest, holding the baby was quite tiring for a new mother, but when a mother saw her child, it felt like all fatigue disappeared.

The baby opened his mouth and began to suckle, his eyes that had just opened now closing again.

Yang Haiyan looked at him and couldn’t help but smile: “What a little darling.”

“Could it be that he needs a diaper change?” Qin Fang came over, his voice hoarse.

The baby had not urinated since birth, and hearing the baby’s sounds made Qin Fang worry that his wife would find changing the diaper too tiring, so he came over.

Yang Haiyan replied, “No need; he…” She opened the baby’s diaper and looked, “He has pooped.”

She didn’t know when it had happened.

Yang Haiyan was so worried: “Husband, the baby has pooped, and the color looks a bit green. You should ask Miss Li.”

Qin Fang hurriedly ran out upon hearing this.

A little while later, Miss Li arrived.

She came to the bedside and looked at the diaper that Yang Haiyan had taken off, saying, “Madam, don’t worry. This is meconium; it generally takes two to three days or three to four days to pass completely.”

Hearing this, Yang Haiyan let out a sigh of relief: “That’s good, but it doesn’t smell at all.”

Before Yang Haiyan became pregnant, Miss Li was clueless about matters concerning new mothers and infants.

She started learning after Yang Haiyan became pregnant.

Since it was Yang Haiyan’s first child and she was part of the general’s household, she took it very seriously and learned a lot.

Over the past ten months, she had learned almost everything she needed to know.

Hearing Yang Haiyan’s words, she smiled: “Meconium doesn’t smell. I’ll go fetch some warm water to clean the little one.”

Yang Haiyan said, “That’s a hassle. Let my husband do it.”

Granny Lian outside said, “The warm water is here.”

She had been keeping an eye on the situation inside and had warm water ready for twelve hours a day.

Qin Fang said, “I won’t clean him.”

Yang Haiyan raised an eyebrow.

Qin Fang explained, “Even if it’s a girl, she is still small; there are differences between boys and girls.”

Although he personally didn’t mind, he didn’t want to affect his daughter’s reputation.

In ancient times, there were many instances where a father and daughter had to be careful about their interactions.

However, Yang Haiyan, Miss Li, and Granny Lian looked at Qin Fang in surprise.

Miss Li and Granny Lian were dumbfounded; the general’s wife had clearly given birth to a little master.

How could the general think it was a girl?

“General…” Mama Lian tried to explain.

“Madam…” Yang Haiyan interrupted her, “You clean the baby. The general didn’t sleep all night; let him rest during the day. He’ll be tired tonight.”

Granny Lian didn’t think much of it and said, “How about I keep watch over the lady at night so that the general can rest?”

Though she said this, her hands didn’t stop changing the baby’s diaper and cleaning him up.

Yang Haiyan replied, “No need.”

The pain of childbirth and the effort of taking care of the baby were something men had to participate in. “The general wouldn’t want to hand his daughter over to someone else’s care.”

Granny Lian: “…”

The lady was trying to trick the general.

Qin Fang said, “No need; I’ll take care of it.”

Yang Haiyan spoke the truth; Qin Fang didn’t feel comfortable leaving his daughter in someone else’s care.

Besides, his wife had just given birth, and he wanted to be there for her.

Even if they couldn’t do this or that, he was still happy to share a room with his wife.

However, he really needed to catch up on sleep. “I’ll go wash up and take a nap; you all take care of the lady during the day.”

Granny Lian replied, “Understood.”

After Qin Fang left, Granny Lian took the baby, who had been cleaned up and was now full and fast asleep, and placed him down.

She said to Yang Haiyan, “Madam, the general doesn’t even know you gave birth to a little boy.”

Miss Li also looked at Yang Haiyan.

Yang Haiyan replied, “You don’t need to tell him. I want to see how long it takes him to find out.”

Granny Lian laughed and agreed, while Miss Li thought that the lady was quite playful.

Qin grandmother and Qin mother came in together.

They didn’t dare come too early for fear of disturbing Yang Haiyan and the baby, but they felt it was about time now.

Yang Haiyan, feeling more energetic, asked Granny Lian to invite them in.

Once Qin grandmother and Qin mother entered, they first inquired about Yang Haiyan’s health. Upon hearing that she was fine, they felt relieved.

Yang Haiyan knew they had come to see the baby, so she said, “Grandmother, Mother, would you like to hold him? He just ate and passed his meconium, so nothing should wake him now.”

Hearing that the baby had just eaten and was asleep, Qin grandmother said, “No need to wake him; he’s just eaten.”

However, her eyes were still glued to the peaceful baby. “This child looks like you, Yanyan.” So beautiful.

Yang Haiyan replied, “His eyes resemble my husband’s. Just a moment ago, he opened his eyes and cried because he was hungry.”

Qin mother said, “The child is yours; he has features from both of you.”

No matter whose child it was, one could always find traits of the father and mother in the features.

After looking at the baby, the two left.

They understood that Yang Haiyan was tired, so they didn’t linger, knowing there would be many opportunities to see the child in the future since they lived together.

Back at Liuxin Courtyard, Qin grandmother saw Qin grandfather pacing in the yard and asked, “Old man, what are you doing?”

Seeing Qin grandmother return, Qin grandfather quickly walked over. “Did you see the baby? How is he?”

It wasn’t that Qin grandfather didn’t care about Yang Haiyan, his granddaughter-in-law; such a wise old man wouldn’t only care about his great-grandson and neglect his granddaughter-in-law.

However, even with that family relationship, he felt it wasn’t appropriate to ask.

Qin grandmother replied, “I saw her. Ah Fang’s wife is in good spirits. The baby was just falling asleep when we arrived, and he looked good.”

Hearing this, Qin grandfather felt reassured.

He also wanted to see his great-grandson, but it was his granddaughter-in-law’s courtyard, so he felt it wouldn’t be proper for an old man to go in. “By the way, I’ve been thinking these past few days and haven’t figured out a name for the little one.”

At this mention, Qin grandmother warned him, “You better not name him something like Little Dog or Little Cow.”

Qin grandfather replied, “How could that be? Our little one is the son of a general; I wouldn’t give him such a name.”

If he did, the child would be laughed at when he went out, and Qin grandfather didn’t think he was that foolish.

Qin grandmother asked, “Then what will you name him?”

Qin grandfather thought for a moment. “The baby’s full name is Qin Linyang, so how about we call him Little Sun for his nickname?”

Qin grandmother thought for a moment. “That nickname is too lofty. It’s better if the baby’s nickname is something more humble. If it’s too high, what if the baby can’t live up to it…?”

In rural areas, there was this belief that children’s names shouldn’t be too grand. If the name was too lofty, the child might be taken away.

The nickname Little Sun was a bit too high.

Qin grandfather, being a man, didn’t understand this much, but Qin grandmother was a believer in such things; she held this belief firmly and therefore disapproved of Qin grandfather’s choice for a nickname.

However, Qin grandfather heard her say this and agreed.

He didn’t want anything to happen to his great-grandson. “Then… what humble name should we give?”

Qin grandmother thought for a moment. “Then let’s call him…”

“Wait…” Qin grandfather interrupted her, “The name of this little one is mine to decide; you can’t steal it. I see what you’re doing here.”

Qin grandmother snorted, “I’m not doing anything on purpose. It’s clear you don’t know how to name things, so you’re asking me. What’s wrong with me wanting to name my great-grandson?”

Qin grandfather insisted, “That won’t do. Wait until Ah Fang’s wife has the next baby, and you can name that one.”

Qin grandmother huffed, “Then you better come up with a good name!”

Qin grandfather retorted, “Wasn’t it you who said to give a humble name? I’m thinking of one!”

Qin grandmother said, “Then hurry up; the child has already been born. As a great-grandfather, you haven’t even thought of a nickname. Isn’t that shameful?”

This loving couple, who had been together for a lifetime, ended up quarreling over the baby’s nickname.