Spending Money Like Water

"What's wrong?"

Seeing that Su Man's expression was off, Chen Weidong hurriedly asked her what was wrong.

"I...I feel a bit of a stomachache!"

Su Man clutched her stomach, her face first flushed, then turned pale.

"Am I about to give birth, doctor?"

Chen Weidong was somewhat flustered at this point and hurriedly shouted at a hoarse voice.

This reminded him of his previous life. After he was kicked by the horse, he didn't pay attention to Su Man. Instead, he went to play cards with some people from the same village. By the time He Yan came to call him and asked the midwife to come over, it was already too late.

Afterwards, he watched as Su Man gave birth to Chen Xiaoan and left him...

Thinking about this, Chen Weidong's mind became even more chaotic!

"Comrade, stop shouting, I'm here. Please take this lady to the room in the back."

The outpatient doctor raised his voice and said that he had seen newlywed couples panicking when giving birth, but it was rare to see someone like Chen Weidong.

"Yes, Weidong, we're in the hospital now, so everything will be fine!"

Yang Shulin offered a word of advice, and then he and the doctor helped Su Man into the room, one on each side. He was still a little puzzled, wondering why Su Man was in this state, even though it wasn't her first pregnancy.

"Wei Dong, I'm fine."

Su Man, lying in bed, comforted Chen Weidong, feeling a warmth in her heart. She felt that Chen Weidong had changed a lot since he was kicked by the horse, reminding her of how considerate he was when he was pursuing her.

"I understand, I'll wait for you outside!"

Chen Weidong calmed down at this moment. Perhaps due to the influence of his past life, this had almost become his inner demon, which had caused him to lose his composure just now.

Moreover, he discovered that since his rebirth, his heart had become younger along with his body; in his previous life, he would not have felt this way.

……

Time passed by, and Chen Weidong was able to sit up at first, but then he started pacing back and forth at the entrance of the delivery room, glancing at the doorway from time to time.

squeak-

A doctor ran out from inside, asking, "Are there any family members here?"

"I'm here."

Chen Weidong hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Has something happened?"

"The mother experienced severe bleeding. Her cervix was fully dilated for two hours, the baby's heart rate dropped to 80 beats per minute, and the amniotic fluid was as cloudy as rice water. A cesarean section was necessary."

"A natural birth is definitely not an option now. If we delay any longer, there will be intrauterine asphyxia, and both lives will be lost without a C-section. As for whether to save the mother or the child, you should think about it yourself."

"I'll leave the surgery form here. Just sign it and we'll go into the operating room right away."

"Save the mother! You absolutely must save the mother! Please!"

Without a second thought, Chen Weidong took the surgical consent form and shakily wrote down his name.

The doctor looked at Chen Weidong in surprise. You see, cesarean sections are not as common now as they used to be, especially in rural areas. Many people are unwilling to come to the hospital, let alone have a cesarean section.

Therefore, he actually used some intimidation tactics just now, in order to get the family to make a decision as soon as possible so that they could save time.

Unexpectedly, Chen Weidong made such a decisive decision, and he even saved the mother without hesitation. You know, many families nowadays prefer to save the child, especially when they know it's a boy.

Don't worry!

The doctor took the form and turned back to the delivery room.

……

After an unknown amount of time, the delivery room door opened again, and the doctor came out. Chen Weidong hurriedly went to greet him.

"Doctor, how is she? Is my wife alright?"

"The surgery went smoothly, and both mother and child are safe. Although the mother experienced some bleeding, the timely cesarean section has kept her vital signs stable, but she will need to stay in the hospital for observation for a few more days."

"Thank you, doctor!"

Chen Weidong excitedly shook the doctor's hand.

Yang Shulin and He Yan also breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, they listened to Chen Weidong and let Su Man come along. If they had stayed in the village, she might have had a difficult childbirth...

As soon as the doctor left, a nurse came out carrying a child.

"Comrade, this is a child, take a look."

Chen Weidong took a step forward. The little one was covered in a layer of grayish-white vernix caseosa, as if someone had hastily smeared some lard on him. His skin looked damp and pink under the light. His scalp was long and pointed. He squinted his swollen eyes. There were still light purple marks from the forceps on the sides of his nose. Yet his cries were crisp and clear.

This was the first time he had seen Chen Xiaoan, who had just been born. In his previous life, he had been in a daze for several days because of Su Man's departure. It wasn't until he sent Su Man away that he was able to take Chen Xiaoan back from Fu Xiao.

Chen Xiaoan, don't blame your father for what happened just now!

Don't worry, Dad will make it up to you. He'll definitely get you a big house and a good wife!

Chen Weidong looked at the child and silently recited a sentence in his heart.

In his previous life, after returning to the city, he didn't listen to his parents and find a formal job. Instead, he was ambitious and stayed at home, relying on his parents, wanting to become a writer.

At this point in time, everyone probably dreams of becoming a writer, after all, it's prestigious to talk about it, and the royalties are exceptionally high.

I've read countless articles and newspapers and submitted numerous manuscripts, but they haven't been accepted by top-tier publications like "Yanjing Literature," "Harvest," and "October," nor even by some state-level publications like "Gesang Flower," or county-level publications like "Shouqu Literature," "Diebu Literature," and "Lingcheng Literature."

After struggling for several years without achieving anything, Chen Weidong saw others going into business and followed his cronies to the south to do business, but not only did he not make money, he also lost a lot of money.

In the end, even his parents' house in Beijing was lost, forcing his parents and children to rent a place to live with him.

After that, he was always causing trouble, constantly trying different things, opening small shops or supermarkets, but rarely making any money. Even when he did make money, he couldn't settle down and would quit after a short time.

When Chen Xiaoan finally got married, he couldn't even afford the bride price, and the wedding fell through.

Looking back now, Chen Weidong feels that he must have been obsessed back then, and he simply didn't have the destiny to make money in business.

……

Su Man stayed in the hospital for ten days, and Chen Weidong took care of her diligently.

Actually, staying for five days would have been fine, but he was worried that Su Man might suffer from aftereffects. After all, it was winter, the village was quite a distance from the county town, Su Man had just had surgery, and Chen Xiaoan was too young. It would be bad if she caught a cold.

In the end, Su Man refused to stay, because hospitalization costs money.

Finally, the registration fee, hospital bed fee, basic examination fee, labor induction, postpartum anti-inflammatory drugs, delivery fee... added up to a total of thirty-two yuan and thirty cents.

Adding to the 3.5 yuan Chen Weidong spent a few days ago, the total came to 35.8 yuan, almost half a year's income for him.

"Weidong, why don't we sell this bracelet of mine?"

Su Man looked at the expenses on the bill, pondered for a moment, and resolutely said that she knew her family's situation very well. They were on a pay-as-you-go basis and had no spare money at all.

Looking at the jade bracelet on her wrist, she realized it was a dowry her mother gave her when she was sent to the countryside.

Although I'm reluctant, there's no other way now.

……