Invariably affecting the people waiting outside.
Every time Ji Nan Feng heard a scream from within, his heart clenched. It continued from morning to night, and night to midnight before finally, a cry was heard, alleviating everyone’s tense mood.
The doctor pushed open the delivery room’s door and a nurse came out carrying an infant. Ji Nan Feng bypassed them to head towards the gurney, looking at his wife in distress.
Long before, Mo Li Xin had already shouted herself hoarse. She was completely knocked out the moment she heard her baby cry.
“This mother is selfless. There were many times we had wanted to give up on the child but the mother adamantly refused. She struggled and endured for such a long period of time. Sir, it was not easy for her, so treat your wife well,” the doctor said in admiration as he removed his surgical mask.
Ji Nan Feng did not acknowledge the doctor’s words as he continued to stare at Mo Li Xin.
“Congratulations! He’s a healthy baby boy,” the nurse announced as she handed the infant to Mother Ji who was standing nearby.
By the time Mo Li Xin woke up again, it was already noon the next day. When she woke up, Ji Nan Feng fed her porridge spoon by spoon.
“Uswtb nswtb nswtb!” Pwl vs bla kdyvvldvksd, pbl nbsjle.
“Gqvla oyjkdt wr, kp vblal yduoblal wdnsxqsavyczl? Mbkapvu? Fbyzz R rswa usw psxl oyvla? Xa yal usw pvkzz bwdtau? Ps usw oydv vs lyv psxlvbkdt lzpl?” Mbl xyd rzynle vbl csoz esod yde wple y olv dyrjkd vs okrl vbl nsadlap sq bla xswvb yp bl ypjle kd nsdnlad.
“Tlzr xl pkv wr qkapv,” pbl obkprlale.
Gzvbswtb pbl qlzv pwqqknkldvzu alpvle, bla hsknl oyp pvkzz pwarakpkdtzu bsyapl yde pbl nswze dsv xyjl xwnb pswde. Zlv, Kk Lyd Wldt pvkzz wdelapvsse bla yde iwknjzu blzrle bla yefwpv bla rkzzso ps pbl nswze pkv wr xsal nsxqsavyczu.
“Mbl cycu oyp clkdt vss dskpu, R ypjle Ywx vs nyaau bkx swv ps yp vs dsv ekpawrv uswa alpv. Tl’p1 y csu, hlau yesayczl… Ekql, usw’hl osajle byae,” Kk Lyd Wldt pyv clpkel vbl cle bszekdt bla byde. Tl caswtbv bla byde wr vs bkp zkrp qsa y jkpp. Gzvbswtb jdsokdt pbl nyddsv prlyj ewl vs bla pvaykdle hsknl, bl pvkzz nswze dsv blzr cwv pyu.
Ys Nk Dkd fwpv pbssj bla blye yde vsze bkx, “R’x hlau byrru.”
Gzvbswtb bla hsknl oyp psqv, bl pvkzz blyae kv.
“Valnkswp taydepsd, zlv’p ts zssj qsa xwxxu,” Ysvbla Kk’p hsknl nyxl qasx vbl nsaakesa.
“Oh! Li Xin, you’re up. Take a look at your baby. Doesn’t he look so cute? And he looks so much like you with his brows and eyes, and even his aura. But his mouth and nose are like Nan Feng’s. When he grows up he will be tall and he will grow up to be a very handsome lad,” Mother Ji kept gushing as soon as she entered the ward and passed the baby to Mo Li Xin.
Mo Li Xin felt helpless. The child was only born yesterday. How would Mother Ji be able to tell all these? But Mo Li Xin still smiled even though she currently had difficulties speaking.
“Oh yes, what’s the child’s name?” Mother Ji asked suddenly. Before, she was so elated that it never crossed her mind to ask. Now that the baby had left her hand, did she suddenly recall to ask about his name.
Ji Nan Feng and Mo Li Xin exchanged a glance and smiled.
Ji Nan Feng then informed Mither Ji, “Xin’er and I discussed before, if it’s a girl, she’ll be named Ji Yan’er. And if it’s a boy, it’ll be Ji Zi Rui.”
Mother Ji pondered for a while, “en, it’s a good name, Ji Zi Rui, sagacious and quick-witted.”2
After chatting for a while, Mother Ji informed them, “my… I’ve to go back now and make chicken soup for Li Xin. I’ll drop by on the way and let the elders and your brother know of the baby’s name.”
After a few steps, she turned around in unease, “remember, don’t let Li Xin come in contact with wind. One has to do their confinement properly. Otherwise, problems will arise if illness takes root in the later years.”
Ji Nan Feng nodded, he also understood his mother’s intentions. She assumed that he, as a man, would not know of these things. However, he had already done his homework back then, so he knew what to do.
“Little Zi Rui, my little Zi Rui,” Mo Li Xin half seated up, looking at the little bundle in her embrace, tapping on his little nose.
Ji Nan Feng watched them from the side, a smile slipping onto his lips. Having a wife, made one satisfied with their life.
Tak tak tak…
Someone knocked on the door of the ward.
“Xin Xin, how are you? This godmother has come to see her godson!” Xu Qing Man’s voice could be heard.
“Group leader! Oh no, it’s design director now. We’ve also come to see you!” Dai Meng chirped, holding up a fruit basket.
“Why are you all…” Mo Li Xin was surprised.
She did not need to go to the company after she became pregnant as she managed to apply for maternity leave. It was also due to safety concerns that she stopped going to work for that period. It was not surprising to see Xu Qing Man as she usually dropped by to accompany her when she was bored. But her coworkers… they only casually chatted, thus she did not expect to see them here. Additionally, today was not a public holiday, by right, they would still need to go to work.
“We came to visit you on behalf of the company. We’ve gotten approval from upper management so it’s okay,” Liu Feng explained, seeming to know her doubts.
“Oh! How’s the company? Did anything major happen?” Mo Li Xin asked.
“Nothing much happened. The only major incident was your outstanding performance at Bai Sha Exhibition. After that, it brought our company to new heights, especially our wedding dress design department. You might not have known yet, but because we were part of your team for Bai Sha Exhibition, we all got promoted and a raise,” Liu Feng updated her.
She… really did not know about this.
“Pass me the child, I’ll change his diaper,” Ji Nan Feng, who had been beside her silently, suddenly said. He skillfully picked up the baby, took out a fresh diaper, and changed the diaper calmly and with ease.
There was a certain kind of person, whereby no matter what they did, they could always make their actions look graceful and elegant. That certain person was most probably Ji Nan Feng. For a new dad, he was not clumsy in his actions as predicted. In fact, he looked like a veteran, every step was done perfectly. For the first time, everyone watching on the side felt that even changing diapers was so mesmerizing.
Sure enough, people who were good-looking made every action look attractive. Even television dramas depicted that one does not fear a black-hearted man, but a devilishly handsome man.
Dai Meng and Liu Feng rarely saw such a scene. The only time they met him was when he picked Mo Li Xin up. At that time, they just thought that the man was handsome and gentlemanly, like a fairytale prince. Making them feel the distance between them and a fear of offending him. But today’s scene made them feel that things of a kind come together, and people of a kind fall into the same group.
Their design director was a beauty with an amiable personality. Unexpectedly, even though her spouse was extremely handsome, he was also a considerate husband, a truly qualified partner. These two people were a match made in heaven, one that made many envious.
Oh, come on… They originally came to see the baby, who expected that they would be stuffed with a mouthful of dog food. Forget it, they might as well apply oil on the soles of their feet, and get the hell out of there. Prolonged stay in such a place would cause damage to them, single dogs.
But it was also thanks to today’s fiasco that the entire company, regardless of department, knew that Mo Li Xin, the new beautiful design director had a very enviable husband.
The one month of confinement passed swiftly. Mo Li Xin disregarded ‘worldly affairs’ during her stay in the hospital as she enjoyed delicious food with no worries. She lived a life of stretching her hands for clothes and opening her mouth for food all day long.
The day of her discharge arrived. As she was about to finish packing her things, Mo Li Xin received a call. From there, she learnt that Fei Fei’s grandmother was in the hospital, barely hanging on to her last breath.
Hence, the two took the baby and drove towards Grandma Fei’s hospital.
Unfortunately, when they arrived, the person had already passed, leaving a letter addressed to Mo Li Xin.
‘Miss Mo, by the time you see this letter, I’ve most probably passed on. In this past year, you’ve taken care of me and Fei Fei and I’m forever grateful. Because of your companionship, Fei Fei’s condition has also improved a lot. Unavoidably, people are bound to die one day. But there’s one thing that stops me from being able to leave in peace, and that’s Fei Fei. She’s still young and still recovering from her psychological trauma. Although I’ve contacted the orphanage before, I still feel uneasy. So I hope you’ll try to visit her often during her growing period to make up for the knot in her heart. I know that it’s an unreasonable request, but after my death, please help me take good care of Fei Fei. Fei Fei likes you, and I also know that you’re a good person. After I’m gone, Fei Fei has no other relatives, so I can only beg of you.’
When she saw the letter’s inscription, Mo Li Xin was filled with heartache. Although she and Grandma Fei had known each other for less than a year, she got to know that Grandma Fei was an optimistic and kind elderly. Additionally, Mo Li Xin was exceptionally fond of Fei Fei. Every time she saw Fei Fei, she felt inexplicably familiar to her and wanted to get closer to her.
“The deceased has declared that she found a cemetery. Within these few days, her remains will be able to be transported there. I’m assuming that you two are the elderly’s relatives? The dead have departed, but the living must live on. My condolences,” the doctor comforted before shaking his head and turning to leave.
“Is Fei Fei still at the kindergarten? When shall we pick her up?” Mo Li Xin asked after adjusting her state of mind.
“Let’s not rush. Grandma Fei still needs to be cremated. Do you want Fei Fei to see this? Let’s send Grandma Fei into the cemetery before picking Fei Fei up,” Ji Nan Feng soothingly advised.
The funeral of Grandma Fei was quickly settled. It was a rare day where there was no snow, but the cemetery grounds was blanketed in white. Ji Nan Feng and Mo Li Xin led a child to Grandma Fei’s grave.
Fei Fei stared at the tombstone calmly, she did not cry or make a fuss, as if there was no fluctuation in her emotions. But Mo Li Xin knew that she was grieving because her hands clenched tightly onto the corners of her clothes. Previously, psychologist Zhang Ai Fei, noted that this was the subtle action Fei Fei displayed when she was in distress. However, in the past six months, the number of times Fei Fei displayed this action had reduced and occasionally, she could also say a word or two. Yet today, she demonstrated this action again. Mo Li Xin knew that Fei Fei’s condition had worsened again.
“Fei Fei, Grandma has gone to heaven. Over there, it is beautiful and Grandma will be very happy. You also wish for Grandma to be happy right? She’s watching over you from there, so you must be happy so that Grandma will be happier, yes?” Mo Li Xin squatted down, bringing Fei Fei into her arms.
“You… you two will also leave me… right?…” Fei Fei managed to muster and ask. Her voice was small, self-abased, and pitiful, making people’s heart ache for her.
Mo Li Xin and Ji Nan Feng exchanged a glance before she proceeded to say, “of course not. In the future, Fei Fei will be living with us. I’ll be your mum and Uncle Nan Feng will be your dad.
“Oh, you’ll also have a younger brother. You see, my bulging belly is gone! Previously, didn’t you say that you wanted to see the baby in my belly? Let’s go home later to see him, okay?”