The Gu King also commanded the remaining desert vipers, and with Lightning’s calls for reinforcements, many venomous snakes would guard the Red Mangrove Slope every night.
Lu Ye would not let these snakes and rats help in vain, and would secretly feed them spiritual spring water and food daily.
Moreover, his dear Bao had long anticipated that the Crown Prince and Empress would secretly send people for revenge. She also released the Scorpion Gu King within her. Desert scorpions also gathered near the Red Mangrove Slope as the night deepened.
Concurrently, Lightning and Thunderstorm slept in the space during the day and strictly guarded the Red Mangrove Slope at night.
Due to the drought, there were few large wild beasts in the desert. Since Thunderstorm could not summon companions, he brought out Hail.
Hail burrowed into the sand, capable of ambushing enemies.
Seeing Lu Ye’s determined expression, Prince Yu also felt a slight relief. “In any case, you must be vigilant and not make any mistakes. Also, be wary of anyone secretly infiltrating the work crew.”
Lu Ye nodded. “Currently, all those who come to work at the Red Mangrove Slope are meticulously recorded. Furthermore, we have always had supervisors specifically tasked with remembering people’s appearances or other characteristics.”
Zhou Donggua, the grandfather of Xiao Chibao, and the mother of Ga Mei, were among those performing this duty.
Therefore, it was extremely difficult for anyone to sneak into the work crew.
All along, Lu Ye held daily meetings with the guard team, spending most of his time racking his brains to anticipate the dangers the Red Mangrove Slope might face and how to deal with them.
The meticulousness with which Lu Ye considered problems amazed the guard team members.
A few afternoons later, Bai Sheng felt contractions in her abdomen.
Having studied medicine with her master for some time, she understood that these contractions were signs of labor.
She was still a month away from giving birth, but the little cubs couldn’t wait to come out.
Bai Sheng clutched her stomach, her lips pale, her eyes slightly closed, groaning “Ooh~ ooh~” in pain.
The four maids, Huo Yin, Qiu, Dong, and Xia, were stunned for a moment before immediately rushing forward to support Bai Sheng, whose face was contorted in pain.
A Dong, the eldest, asked with a trembling voice, “Mistress, what… what’s wrong?”
Bai Sheng gritted her teeth and said, “I’m… I’m going into labor, quickly… quickly go call for people!”
Lu Huo and Lu Yin were shocked and immediately bolted.
Lu Yin ran to call Granny Wu and the midwives.
Lu Huo ran out the door, stood on the sand dike, took a deep breath, channeled his energy, and let out a deafening roar of the Lion’s Roar technique towards Lu Ye, who was planning the overall layout of the Red Mangrove Slope with Feng Pingyuan in the distance, shouting, “Eldest Master, Mistress is… is having a baby!”
The deep and loud voice resounded through the Red Mangrove Slope. Lu Ye froze for a moment, dropped the blueprints in his hand, and sped home.
As he ran, a single thought repeated in his mind: his dear Bao was going into labor. Heaven must bless them with a safe delivery for mother and child.
Feng Pingyuan, understanding what had happened, also hurried back.
Prince Yu, Lu Yun, Lu Yu, A Qiu, and others who were playing Jianzi under the sand dike paid no mind to where the Jianzi rolled. They abandoned the game and rushed home.
Yang Ming and other members of the guard team naturally heard Lu Huo’s shout. However, Eldest Master had instructed them to patrol strictly and not allow any suspicious individuals to infiltrate the Red Mangrove Slope.
To ensure the safety of the Eldest Mistress during childbirth, they suppressed their urge to run back and check.
Granny Wu, along with ten midwives, rushed into Bai Sheng’s room.
Du Min, Tian Guihua, Liu Shi, Yang Shi, and Granny Zhong, also known as A Zhong, and Old Madam Ji, also known as A Ji, hurried back from the shops behind.
With quadruplets, childbirth was very dangerous, and everyone gathered in the main hall, filled with anxiety.
Lu Ye stood by the door of the room, neither sitting nor standing, his entire being consumed by frantic worry.
Prince Yu, with sweat on his face, had returned without even wiping it after playing Jianzi.
A Qiu brought him a chair, but he didn’t sit. He stood with his hands on his hips, panting heavily, his eyes fixed on the door of Bai Sheng’s room.
Lu Yun and Lu Yu stood by the side, fidgeting with their hands. They were so scared their faces had turned pale. They had heard that childbirth was not only painful but also dangerous for women. Although they were about to become elders and were happy to soon meet their four little nephews (nieces), they were also very afraid for their sister-in-law.
At such a young age, they were experiencing complex emotions for the first time.
Bai Sheng had deliberately suppressed her cries, but Lu Ye still found it unbearable. He stood up and banged on the door, wanting to see how his dear Bao was doing.
The door suddenly opened, and Granny Wu, peeking her head out, roared at him, “You scoundrel, if you don’t want your wife to be in trouble, get away from here and wait quietly!”
Lu Ye was halted by her scolding. He didn’t want anything to happen to his precious wife, but he was so worried, so scared.
He couldn’t add to the trouble for his master and the midwives; he had to be strong!
The strong Lu Ye trembled as he huddled in the corner, curled into a ball. Listening to Bai Sheng’s cries, tears streamed down his face.
“Pathetic!” Prince Yu cursed him, yet he felt a hint of wetness in his own eyes.
Lu Huo and the other maids clasped their hands together, muttering incessantly, “Greatly compassionate Guanyin Bodhisattva, bringer of salvation and remover of suffering, protect Mistress, protect the four little masters.”
Inside the room.
Bai Sheng lay on the bed, drenched in sweat. The contractions in her abdomen made her want to give up breathing; life was so hard!
“It seems there might be some difficulty in labor; the baby hasn’t turned, and its back is coming out first,” said a midwife from Prince Yu’s side, reaching in to feel the fetal position.
The midwife from Lu Ye’s side immediately retorted, “If the back comes out first, it’s not that difficult; we can just correct the fetal position. I’m afraid if the feet come out first.”
Granny Wu nodded. “Let’s correct the fetal position first.”
Midwife from Prince Yu’s side: “I’ll do it!”
Midwife from Lu Ye’s side: “I’ll help!”
At this moment, inside Bai Sheng’s womb, the four little cubs were also getting anxious.
Eldest: “Look, someone is pushing Mommy’s belly.”
Second: “Eldest sister, the situation is urgent, you have to go out first.”
Eldest: “Sister, I want to go out first, but fourth is blocking my legs, I can’t turn around.”
Fourth: “Eldest sister, it’s not my fault; third is squeezing me. I… I’ll try to move over there. Third, move inward a bit.”
Third: “Second, can you get your stinky feet off my face? Squeeze over there, otherwise, how can I make space!”
Bai Sheng felt a violent commotion in her abdomen, causing her to cry out in agony.
Second: Everyone, don’t panic, I am shrinking my body to the best of my ability.
Eldest couldn’t help but roar at her three younger brothers: “Hurry up, all of you! Can’t you see Mommy is in excruciating pain?! If you dawdle any longer, Mommy will die!”
Upon hearing this, the younger brothers quickly took action. They had waited for so long and were about to see their mother; they couldn’t let her suffer any longer.
Eldest finally turned around and pushed with all her might to get out.
With Bai Sheng’s heart-wrenching scream, the eldest was born.
She let out a loud cry. She had to cry; she felt a stuffy sensation in her chest and felt very uncomfortable. Crying made her feel instantly better.
Midwife from Prince Yu’s side exclaimed joyfully, “She’s out! She’s out! The eldest is a young lady!”