Chapter 111: Is It Twins?

Chapter 111: Chapter 111: Is It Twins?

"Ugh..."

Su Wan held onto the desk to stand up, her legs trembling. Her brows furrowed. Her feet were numb, so she didn’t dare to move.

She could only stand in place and wait for the numbness to subside, enduring the throbbing pain in her belly. Her lower back, especially, felt like it was about to break.

She knew she must have been sitting for too long and had strained herself, affecting the pregnancy.

Once the numbness in her feet faded, Su Wan turned, fumbled in the drawer for a pill, and poured some hot water into an enamel mug, mixing it with the cold water already inside before swallowing the pill.

It was what the clinic had prescribed before.

After taking the medicine, Su Wan went straight to bed to lie down.

She lay there in a daze for a while and started to feel a bit better when she heard voices outside.

Su Wan snapped back to her senses and called out, "Su Jue? Aunt Zhao, are you back?"

"Yes, Wanwan, we’re back. We’ve got a lot of stuff, so we’re sorting it out in the yard first. Are you hungry? If you are, I’ll go make you a meal now," Aunt Zhao said, walking quickly to the window to speak with her.

Hearing this, Su Wan quickly shook her head. "Auntie, it’s okay. You go ahead and get your work done. I’m not hungry yet."

"Alright, I’ll go help them then."

Su Wan heard her footsteps fade away. She touched her belly and lower back; they didn’t hurt as much anymore. The pain in her belly, in particular, should be much better after the medicine. The soreness in her back was just from not resting for a long time. It would get better if she just took it easy.

She got out of bed, grabbed some toilet paper, and went out to the restroom.

Passing through the yard, she saw many bags of chestnuts piled up. They were all raw, shelled chestnuts, big and small, that needed to be sorted again, especially the ones Su Jue planned to sell.

Su Wan didn’t have time to help. She went into the bathroom first, and when she pulled down her pants, she saw that there was indeed a bit of spotting.

She was bleeding.

Su Wan’s brows furrowed slightly. ’I’m a little worried. By all rights, I’m almost five months along now. The fetus should have stabilized long ago. The baby is even growing, and my bump is getting more and more obvious. I shouldn’t be spotting just from sitting for a long time.’

’Especially since I’ve been taking the medicine exactly as the doctor prescribed.’

’I should go to the hospital for a check-up just to be safe.’

After some thought, Su Wan went out and packed a small handbag.

"Su Jue, I’ve run out of the vitamins I was taking. I want to make a trip to the clinic and have the doctor check on the baby while I’m there," Su Wan said, giving an excuse.

Hearing this, Su Jue immediately said to Aunt Zhao, "Aunt Zhao, I can sort the chestnuts by myself. Could I trouble you to take Wanwan to the clinic?"

"Of course."

"I’ll go wash my hands first."

Su Wan wanted to say she didn’t need anyone to go with her. The clinic was nearby, very close. But it was obvious that neither Aunt Zhao nor Su Jue would agree.

She had known this would be the outcome, which was why she had wanted to go alone earlier.

Aunt Zhao wheeled out a bicycle and had Su Wan sit on the back while she rode toward the clinic.

When the two of them arrived, the clinic doctor hadn’t left for the day yet.

"Doctor Huang, could you take a look at our Wanwan?" Aunt Zhao said hurriedly, grabbing the arm of the outpatient doctor who was packing up his things.

"Why didn’t you come earlier? It’s almost six, I’m about to get off work."

A different doctor was on duty at night, and their skills might not be as good. If something was really wrong, they would have to call Doctor Huang back anyway.

Aunt Zhao said quickly, "I’m sorry, Doctor Huang, but this is rather urgent. Our Wanwan suddenly felt unwell, and we’d only feel at ease after you’ve checked on her."

"Alright then. I know you, Comrade Su Wan. Your husband is a soldier." Lu Zhengchuan had brought Su Wan to the clinic for medicine before. He had been wearing a military uniform at the time, but without any epaulets, so others didn’t know his rank, only that he was in the army.

At that time, the general public had a natural trust in and support for soldiers.

When Doctor Huang saw Su Wan, he showed her, a soldier’s family member, extra care on account of Lu Zhengchuan.

"Sorry to trouble you, Doctor Huang."

Su Wan walked over, sat down, and held out her wrist for Doctor Huang to take her pulse.

Doctor Huang’s expression was casual at first, but as he felt her pulse, his brow began to furrow.

Su Wan’s heart leaped into her throat.

’It’s just as I feared.’

Then Doctor Huang looked up and asked her, "Have you had any spotting recently?"

Su Wan heard Aunt Zhao gasp beside her. Not daring to look at the other woman’s expression, she could only try to downplay it. "Yes, there was a little spotting today. I thought it might be because I ran out of vitamins."

"No, you’ve strained yourself and disturbed the fetus," Doctor Huang said, shaking his head. He then asked for her other wrist.

Su Wan obediently complied.

Aunt Zhao asked nervously from the side, "Doctor Huang, is she okay? She’ll be alright, won’t she?"

"For now, the problem isn’t especially serious. But there is an issue I can’t resolve here. You’ll need to go to a larger hospital for another examination."

After finishing the examination, Doctor Huang first prescribed Su Wan some medication.

Su Wan asked with her heart in her throat, "What kind of problem?"

"I suspect you aren’t carrying a single baby. It just wasn’t discovered before, so it was overlooked."

"But this is something you’ll only know for sure after an examination."

"Besides, if it is twins, this would mean that one fetus is developing well and the other is not, which would explain such a clear discrepancy."

"In any case, you need to go to a major hospital for a check-up to get a definitive answer."

"Take the pregnancy-stabilizing medicine for two days. Stop once the spotting is gone. You can continue with the vitamins," Doctor Huang instructed.

Su Wan nodded, her expression dazed.

She thought she was hearing things. The shock of this sudden news was immense; Su Wan had never imagined she could be pregnant with twins.

Aunt Zhao took the medicine with one hand and supported Su Wan with the other as they left the clinic.

She got back on the bicycle and pedaled Su Wan home.

On the way, she pedaled and said, "Wanwan, this news is a good thing. But from now on, if you feel unwell in any way, you have to tell me right away. It’s good to have someone to help you figure things out."

Su Wan knew she understood that she had hidden the spotting and was afraid of sounding too forceful and annoying her.

In that moment, Su Wan felt she had been willful.

"Aunt Zhao, I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to worry you... I was wrong."

"No, no, Wanwan, dear. Auntie is just worried about you being uncomfortable. After all, you’re the one who’s pregnant, and you’re the one who suffers."

Aunt Zhao’s words made Su Wan burn with shame.

’My seeming independence and dislike of troubling others... isn’t that just a form of immaturity?’

’True maturity should mean not letting yourself suffer while also not causing trouble for others.’

"Wanwan, if you’re really carrying twins, that’s a joyous occasion. Since Doctor Huang told you to go to the hospital for a check-up right away, I don’t think we should delay." Aunt Zhao smiled. ’Kids will be kids. How can they always be sensible? Even after being a mother for so many years, I still have my insensible moments.’

"Okay." Su Wan didn’t feel at ease either. After all, she hadn’t forgotten Doctor Huang’s grave expression.

When they got home, Su Jue had already sorted out a hundred jin of chestnuts. He had bartered for a lot this time, a total of over a thousand jin.

Pushing that many chestnuts back was exhausting, but the thought of how much money he could make gave him an instant surge of motivation.