To Save Her Child, a Mother Becomes Strong — No Mother Could Hear This and Not Be Anxious.

Lu Qingqing stepped onto the bed and positioned herself over Madam Feng’s body, pressing down on the bulging belly.

“Sister-in-law, I’ll count to three — then you push!”

Madam Feng could no longer distinguish who was giving the orders.

All she knew was that this person was saving her child!

She followed the voice and began to push.

The long, relentless pain had already left her body numb.

She simply obeyed, followed the instructions.

Finally, a sudden lightness below.

It was like laying an egg.

In that moment, all the pain vanished.

“Sister-in-law, you did great!”

The voice was crisp and full of vitality.

As Feng Xiaowan lost consciousness, she wondered: Who is this person? Why is she calling me sister-in-law?

Lu Qingqing opened the door, her forehead dripping with sweat, hair clinging to her cheeks.

She looked disheveled, but her eyes were bright.

She took the needle kit from her father’s hands and said, “Dad, sister-in-law’s fine now. She gave birth to a baby girl.”

Then she instructed, “Boil more hot water. Prepare the herbs…”

She listed several medicine names.

The door closed again.

Old Man Lu opened his mouth, stunned.

Was that really his daughter, Qingqing?

His daughter-in-law was alive — they’d heard it from outside, along with the baby’s cries.

While giving thanks to the heavens, he was even more shocked.

It was already good enough if his daughter didn’t yell or scowl at them — and yet here she was, speaking calmly and saving her sister-in-law from death.

It had been a case of massive hemorrhage — a near-certain death!

“Dad, how did she save sister-in-law?” Lu Yun was equally astonished.

“Doesn’t matter how. You’ve got a good memory — did you remember the herbs Qingqing mentioned just now? Sell the last chickens we have and get those herbs. I’ll boil the water!”

…

Lu Qingqing gave Feng Xiaowan another round of acupuncture before turning her attention to the baby.

The newborn was premature, hadn’t fully descended, and due to the mother’s physical limits, there was barely any pushing — most of the delivery had to be assisted externally.

Then the baby had shoulder dystocia due to a breech position.

To avoid suffocation or nerve damage, Qingqing chose the method with the least harm:

She broke the baby’s collarbone.

Nerve damage would be irreversible, but newborn bones heal fast — usually within a month.

Seeing the frail, kitten-like baby that had survived, Lu Qingqing finally breathed a sigh of relief.

If she hadn’t been there, mother and child would both be dead.

Since she had taken over this body, she would now bear all the karma of its past.

She accepted it.

From now on, she was the infamous daughter of the Lu family.

After finishing everything, Lu Qingqing herself was weak — the injury to the back of her head had left her with a mild concussion.

She felt dizzy and lightheaded.

The moment she stepped outside, she found three grown men blocking the doorway.

“Little sister, can I go in now?” Her older brother, looking anxious and disheveled, craned his neck to peer inside.

Lu Feng was well-built, with thick brows and big eyes, clearly taking after their father — the honest type.

But right now, his face was bloodied and bruised.

Lu Qingqing had heard him from inside earlier — he’d rushed to town with only ten copper coins, begged three doctors and got turned away each time, kowtowing in vain.

She told him the situation inside, told him not to touch the baby, and explained what needed to be done. Lu Feng agreed immediately and rushed in.

Soon, the sound of quiet sobbing came from the room.

Old Man Lu offered a chicken leg, eyes full of hope.

“Qingqing, have one for yourself. Leave the other for your sister-in-law, okay?”

Lu Qingqing: “…”

Seeing the cautious look in the old man’s eyes, she truly felt helpless.

Even after everything that had gone wrong, her father still couldn’t bring himself to strike her once.

Because deep down, he always felt guilty toward his daughter.

Lu Qingqing had a scar from the corner of her eye to her cheek — finger-length, chopstick-thick.

That scar had everything to do with Old Man Lu.

A girl’s appearance was everything.

The old man had blamed himself for ruining her face — her whole future.

So every time there was food, he saved it for her, which had only made the original host more spoiled and unreasonable.

Any slight inconvenience, she’d cause a huge scene.

Now, he wasn’t really indulging her — he just didn’t want her to throw another tantrum at a time like this.

“I won’t eat it. Leave it all for sister-in-law. Dad, I was wrong before. I won’t cause trouble anymore.”

Lu Qingqing had no intention of pretending to be the original host, slowly “changing” over time.

She needed to find a way to explain her medical knowledge instead.

“Hmph, a dog can’t stop eating shit…” muttered Lu Yun from the side.

Lu Qingqing didn’t get angry.

She nodded at the two of them, passed them by, and went into her own room.

Her room was the best in the house.

Old Man Lu was a carpenter, so the Lu family was doing slightly better than most — if not for Lu Qingqing, they would’ve already moved into town.

Lu Qingqing lay down for a bit, but soon there was noise outside again.

“Dad, you’re still siding with her! That was our last chicken, and you gave it to sister-in-law!”

“Shut your mouth!”

“Dad, don’t be fooled by her — a dog can’t change its ways…”

“One more word out of you, second son, and I’ll leave with Qingqing. We won’t drag you two brothers down anymore.”

Silence followed.

Then came the sound of knocking, and Old Man Lu entered.

“Qingqing?”

Lu Qingqing lay on her side, back to the door.

Old Man Lu sighed, placed the bowl of chicken down, and left.

Outside, Lu Yun muttered quietly, “Dad, I was just venting. I didn’t mean to really abandon her…”

Lu Qingqing was truly exhausted.

After a short rest, she got up and ate the chicken.

It tasted terrible.

That bitter, coarse salt made it even worse.

The meat was dry and tough.

But she didn’t waste a single bite, not even the soup.

That chicken leg ended up in her stomach after all.

She needed the energy — there was still urgent business to take care of.

After eating, she quietly slipped out of the house.

It was March, a busy farming season.

Peach blossoms reflected in the ponds.

Most of the villagers were out in the fields for spring plowing. Hardly anyone was around.

If the Lu family hadn’t sold their three acres of land, the three men of the household would be farming now too.

Lu Qingqing headed to the old pagoda tree at the east end of the village — where the only educated man in the village lived.

Ning Xiuwen.

That bastard had sweet-talked the original host into stealing the deed to their grocery shop, used it to borrow 80 taels of silver, costing the Lu family their entire life savings — and leaving them with another 30 taels of debt.

Eighty taels — that was equivalent to 100,000 yuan in today’s money!

And of that money, she didn’t keep a single cent. Ning Xiuwen had taken all of it to treat his mother.

Old Man Lu, to protect his daughter’s reputation, hadn’t dared raise a fuss.

He went to beg Ning Xiuwen in secret.

But meat once swallowed doesn’t come back up.

And with the original host going crazy, threatening to hang herself or jump into the river — how could they stop her?

Damn love-brained fool! Lu Qingqing cursed inwardly.

Chang Le Town wasn’t big. Once creditors started coming to the Lu family’s grocery shop, word spread fast.

Lu Feng, the elder brother, took the blame for the loan, claiming it was borrowed to restock goods.

Because of this, he was beaten and scolded by his wife’s family — they even tried to take her home.

Fortunately, his wife loved him deeply and refused to leave.

The second brother had been working in a cloth shop, but once his employer heard about the debt, he was fired on the spot.

The 80-tael loan had ballooned to 100 taels in just one month.

Overnight, the Lu family had gone from modest comfort to crippling debt.

They used the shop deed to cover 30 taels, sold their land for another 30, and borrowed 10 more — now, they still owed 30 taels.

The creditors had given them three more days. Tomorrow was the deadline.