Chapter 93: Golden Thorns and Blood Vines, Li’s Childbirth
Yang Zhengshan had no idea that Liu Yuanfu was being scolded. If he knew, he would have clapped his hands in excitement. Who would have thought that this old man was so stubborn and obstinate? Yang Zhengshan had visited Liu’s family several times, wanting to ask Liu Yuanfu for guidance, but the old man didn’t give him any face, not even a good one. If it weren’t for the good attitudes of Liu’s family members, Yang Zhengshan would have liked to send the old man to the construction site to carry bricks and experience the hardships of the world.
This year, everyone in the Yang family was having a great time. They were all together, warm and joyful. On the first day of the new year, Yang Zhengshan gave out a bunch of red envelopes, almost all the children in the fortress received one from him. However, they didn’t visit relatives or pay respects this year because they were in Ying River Fortress.
The happy New Year soon passed. In the 25th year of the Chengping era, on the 10th day of the first month, the soldiers who were on leave started returning to Ying River Fortress one after another. The new phase of training continued. The cold weather couldn’t stop the soldiers’ enthusiasm for training because Yang Zhengshan had already announced the date of the martial arts competition: the 28th day of the first month. Two battalion commanders, two trial battalion commanders, and 16 officer positions were waiting for them. How could they not work hard?
Early in the morning, the sound of loud drums echoed in the training ground outside Ying River Fortress. Yang Zhengshan had just gotten out of bed. The cold weather made his warm bed feel like a rope, making it hard for him to get up. However, as the head of the family and the defense officer of Ying River Fortress, he had to set an example for his children and his soldiers. Moreover, martial arts training required perseverance. Winter training was as important as summer training, and one hundred tempering could forge steel. Yang Zhengshan also wanted to be a idle person who only knew how to enjoy himself. However, this world wasn’t peaceful, and being idle meant having no human rights, not even control over one’s own life and death. It wasn’t easy to be idle. So Yang Zhengshan could only be an early riser.
After washing up, Yang Zhengshan first entered the Spirit Spring space to take a look. These days, the Spirit Spring space had expanded a lot. The water pool in the middle was now one zhang wide, and the land around it had also increased by about one zhang. The medicine he had planted had all sprouted, and the small green leaves were particularly pleasing to the eye. Yang Zhengshan carefully checked each plant, making sure there were no problems before feeling relieved. These medicines were all carefully selected by him. There were ginseng, seven-leafed willow, stone bamboo, five-toothed wu yu, and thick-skin apricot, all of which were commonly used and precious medicines. Besides, Yang Zhengshan had also managed to get some precious medicine seeds. However, the growth of precious medicines was extremely slow, like the golden thorn blood vine, which only grew one inch a year, took five years to become a medicine, and thirty years to become a treasured herb. Moreover, the growth conditions of the golden thorn blood vine were extremely harsh, making it almost impossible to cultivate. Luo Jin had good luck and found ten or so seeds of the golden thorn blood vine for him. Yang Zhengshan was just trying his luck, so he planted these seeds in the Spirit Spring space. The result was pretty good, with more than half of the seeds sprouting. However, it would take a long time to nurture them into precious medicines. The golden thorn blood vine’s main effect was to supplement blood and energy, fill up deficiencies, and prolong life. Its price was also extremely high, with one inch of it costing ten inches of gold in the Guan Cheng treasure hall. Yang Zhengshan wasn’t expecting to get rich from this golden thorn blood vine, but it didn’t stop him from having high hopes for it. If these golden thorn blood vines all grew into precious medicines, that would be worth tens of thousands of gold.
Yang Zhengshan took care of the grasses and medicines in the space, then went out to train. However, before he could even come out of the horse shed, Yang Yunxue suddenly ran out from the house. “Dad, Dad, second aunt is about to give birth!” The little girl’s face was flushed as she urgently shouted. Yang Zhengshan’s figure froze, and he quickly rushed back to the house. “Old three, old three!” “Third brother is at the training ground!” Yang Yunxue said. “Ah!” Yang Zhengshan cursed silently. At this time, there were only Wang, Li, Yang Yunxue, and Wang Yunqiao at home. Yang Mingcheng and Yang Minghao had definitely gone out to train, and Yang Mingzhi had returned to the Jin Ning Guard three days ago. “Girl, go call the midwife!” “Lin, go find Doctor Niu!” Wang was still taking care of Li in the house, so Yang Zhengshan could only send Yang Yunxue and Lin. Li was about to give birth, and Yang Zhengshan had already prepared. He had already informed the midwife and Doctor Niu in the fortress not to go out recently. So, Yang Yunxue and Lin quickly brought back a woman and a middle-aged man. “Greetings, sir!” “No need for formalities, just hurry in!” Yang Zhengshan hastily said. He really felt like he was walking on thin ice when dealing with childbirth. The medical conditions in Ying River Fortress were extremely primitive, and the only doctor was Doctor Niu, whose medical skills were definitely not comparable to those of Song Yu in Anning County. Giving birth here was like passing through the gates of hell, and Yang Zhengshan was really worried about something going wrong. However, thinking about Li’s body, Yang Zhengshan felt that she should be able to make it. The Spirit Spring water wasn’t just for show, after all. Although Li wasn’t a warrior, her physique was far superior to that of ordinary women. Thinking about this, Yang Zhengshan quickly ran to the stove in the main room and boiled a pot of Spirit Spring water. Then he ran to the bedroom and took out an old mountain ginseng. This old mountain ginseng was a gift from Lu’s family when they came to visit, a fifty-year-old ginseng that, although not a precious medicine, had a life-saving effect. The midwife had just entered the room, and the sound of painful screams came from inside. Wang Yunqiao was boiling water in the kitchen, Wang was helping the midwife in the room, and Yang Yunxue was running in and out, finding bandages and fetching water. The whole family was busily preparing for the birth of the child. “Dad, how’s second aunt?” Yang Mingcheng asked when he came back. Yang Zhengshan glared at him. “How would I know? I can’t go in there!” “Ah!” Yang Mingcheng looked towards the west wing, rubbed his hands together, and could only squat beside Yang Zhengshan, watching the stove. When it came to this kind of thing, they men couldn’t do anything, and it was all up to Wang. “Oh, go buy some servants in Guan Cheng in two days.” Yang Zhengshan sighed. “Servants!” Yang Mingcheng was stunned. “Yeah, find a stable and reliable woman, ah, I’ll go myself!” Yang Zhengshan thought for a moment and felt that it would be better if he went personally. In the past, the Yang family didn’t have the conditions to hire servants, and Yang Zhengshan thought that doing things himself was also a kind of training. But now, looking at it, it wasn’t bad when nothing was happening, but once something happened, Wang would be too busy to handle it all by herself. Moreover, with more and more children in the family, they needed people to help with the chores. Yang Mingcheng also felt that they should buy some servants. He was also a man who loved his wife, and his wife was really busy. Li got pregnant, and it was all Wang who took care of her, washing clothes, cooking meals, cleaning the house, and taking care of the children, especially after they moved to Ying River Fortress. Wang had become thin and pale from exhaustion. The chubby wife had become thin, and it didn’t feel good even when he hugged her to sleep. After more than an hour, the sound of a baby crying came from the main room. This cry was loud and clear, and Yang Zhengshan felt much more at ease when he heard it. “Congratulations, sir! Congratulations, sir! The second madam has given birth to a boy!” The midwife came out to report the good news. Yang Zhengshan nodded, took out a piece of silver from his sleeve, and handed it to the midwife. “Thank you, sir!” The midwife smiled, her wrinkles gathering together. “Doctor Niu, please take a look at the second madam and the child.” Yang Zhengshan said to Doctor Niu, who was waiting beside him. “Don’t worry, sir, the second madam’s body is very good, and she definitely won’t have any problems.” Doctor Niu smiled and said. Li had been seeing Doctor Niu for check-ups since she came to Ying River Fortress, so he was familiar with her body. After the room was tidied up, Doctor Niu went in to take a look at Li and the child. As he said, Li’s body was very good, and she didn’t feel tired at all, still full of energy as she held the child. Yang Zhengshan didn’t dare to enter the room, so Wang brought the child out for him to see. The little guy was all scrunched up, looking very ugly, but his eyebrows and eyes were just like Yang Mingzhi’s. The whole Yang family thought that Yang Mingzhi was the most handsome, and this little guy would definitely grow up to be a handsome young man. “Aunt, I’ve boiled some eggs, and you can take some back later!” Wang finally had time to care for others after taking care of Li. The midwife didn’t care about the eggs, but she wouldn’t refuse the joyous occasion of a newborn. “Thank you, aunt, I’ll send you out!” “No need, no need, I can go by myself! You’re busy, madam!” The midwife took the eggs and happily left. Later, Yang Mingcheng sent Doctor Niu away, of course with a generous payment. After everything was done, it was already noon, and Wang was busy preparing lunch. Seeing her busy, Yang Zhengshan couldn’t help but remember to buy servants. They would need people to help with the chores, especially with the addition of the new baby. Even with Yang Yunxue and Wang Yunqiao’s help, Wang would be too busy to handle it all by herself. The next day, Yang Zhengshan took Yang Minghao to Guan Cheng. There were many slave traders in Guan Cheng, and the slaves’ prices were at their lowest point due to the natural disasters and wars in Zhongshan Town last year. Many people had become refugees or sold themselves as slaves. Moreover, the officials in Zhongshan Town who were dismissed would also sell their slaves. So, the slave traders in Guan Cheng had many slaves now. Yang Zhengshan wasn’t fond of buying people as goods, but this was the way of the world. Even if he didn’t like it, he couldn’t change it.
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